If I were to make a list of everything I love about springtime, having an asparagus patch just a few feet from our back door would be right at the top of that list. I love the fact that I can pick fresh asparagus for that evening’s dinner.

A few years ago, my Husband and I went to one of our favorite restaurants in downtown Ft. Wayne. I ordered shrimp scampi pasta, which turned out to be absolutely fantastic. I requested the recipe from the chef and was quickly turned down. A few days later, I decided to try and create my own version of shrimp scampi pasta. I started with the basics, adding a little of this and a pinch of that and soon I had a winner! The asparagus tips paired with the fresh mint and basil is simply delicious. I often prepare this dish during my cooking classes and it quickly becomes a favorite among my students.

by Eric Stearley

eric@thepaperofwabash.com

More than one hundred volunteers filled Legacy Hall on the evening of April 29 as the Honeywell Foundation thanked its volunteers with dinner, entertainment, and an awards ceremony.

The evening began as volunteers enjoyed a buffet of chicken calabash, baked steak, broccoli salad, Brussels sprouts with bacon, glazed carrots, whipped red skin potatoes with gravy, and a variety of desserts.

As dinner came to an end, the stage came to life with an a cappella quartet composed of Tony Millspaugh, Logan Horn, Lamar Horn, and Garry Texeira. The quartet mixed music with comedy as each member’s stage persona battled with the others for personal attention and order within the group.

After a few words from Volunteer Manager Michelle Campbell, the awards ceremony began. The most anticipated of the many awards was “Volunteer of the Year.”

“In the past, the volunteer of the year was based solely on the number of hours they worked,” said Campbell. “I wanted to change things up a little bit this year, and I wanted to value the volunteers that may not spend as much time here, but still do a lot for the Honeywell Center.”

The news that W.C. Mills Elementary would be closing its doors and consolidating with O.J. Neighbours and Wabash Middle School came earlier this school year, and the news was difficult for many students and community members, including the school’s former principal and current Wabash mayor, Robert Vanlandingham.

“I was there for a long time. When they closed Carpenter School, I went to Mills and taught fifth grade for a year and then became principal,” Mayor Vanlandingham told The Paper.

“To me, it’s a great neighborhood. It just seemed like that corner lot, with all the kids coming to school; a lot of focus came on that lot. We had a great staff. I’ll never forget my 50th birthday. I used to have an IU flag hanging and I would mess with kids and make them salute the IU flag. I came to work on my 50th birthday, and the teachers had a hoop with black and gold paper I had to run through.

“I get through it and all the teachers are dressed in black and gold. The hallways were decorated in black and gold, and then students were all dressed in black and gold. Every half hour, there were five kindergarten girls, dressed in Purdue cheerleading outfits and they would stand outside my office and do a Purdue cheer. Everyone got along so great. We had a staff that was so creative. We got a lot of work done, but we did it in a fun manner,” Mayor Vanlandingham continued.

The Wabash City Schools recently announced their plans to participate in the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). Free meals will be made available to all children 18 years of age and under, and to persons over 18 years of age, who are enrolled in a state-approved educational program for the mentally or physically disabled. Free meals will be provided to all children without charge and are the same for all children. There will be no discrimination in the course of the meal service.

In accordance with Federal Law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution prohibits discrimination against its customers, employees, and applicants for employment on the bases of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, reprisal, and where applicable, political beliefs, martial status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or all part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program, or protected genetic information in employment program or in any program or activity conducted or funded by the Department. (Not all prohibited bases will apply to all programs and/or employment activities.)

Wabash Middle School Academic Bowl participants placed third at the state level in social studies on May 3, in the Class 3 competition. Team members included Claire Hipskind, James Wolfe and Dylan Johnson. Competitors were questioned about a wide range of information related to the topic “Westward Expansion.”

“It was shocking to see students correctly answer the first six questions and maintain the lead throughout the competition. And I was just ecstatic to see that we placed third in 3A in social studies. We found out later that we were only a point off from second place and two from first,” said Coach Adam Hall.

The Wabash County YMCA is celebrating the 5th anniversary of their opening on May 17 with a day of fun activities for the community.

Beginning at 10 a.m. is a cooking demo by Purdue Extension, followed by the first session of Kid Escape, which teaches kids how to be safe and secure, even in a scary situation. Registration is required for Kid Escape and there will be free t-shirts offered to the first 25 registered for each session.

At 12 p.m., there will be a free lunch, while food lasts. Following at 1 p.m., there will be a skate, bike, hike or ride session, with a chance to win a free boys’ or girls’ bike. The second session of Kid Escape will be held at 2 p.m.

There will also be a bouncy house, face painting, and lots of booths and vendors throughout the day.

All events for the day are free to the public. To register for Kid Escape, please call 260-563-9622. Wabash County YMCA is located at 500 S. Cass St., Wabash.

by Kalie Ammons

kalie@thepaperofwabash.com

Wabash native Denis Hennelly’s most recent film, Goodbye World, premiered at Eagles Theatre last Thursday, leaving an excited audience debating with each other on how they would survive in the apocalyptic conditions shown in the movie.

James (Adrian Grenier) and Lily (Kerry Bishé) host a group of friends in their solar- and generator-powered home after a mass text sends a virus to every cell phone on the planet, shutting down electricity and resources. During their time together, these old friends hash through their own mini-apocalypses going on in their lives while trying to make the best of a devastating situation.

“People ask me how the characters can just sit around while there’s an apocalypse going on, but people do that every day,” Hennelly told the audience during a question-and-answer period after the film. “There’s an apocalypse going on down the street or at your neighbor’s house right now.”

Hennelly spoke about his experience as a director making an independent movie.

“The most challenging part was the casting,” he said. “We wanted to get some fairly well-known actors who were willing to work as one of seven, and that took about three months. We didn’t even get to do a table reading of the script.”

Shooting the actual film, however, took only about three weeks. The next nine months afterwards was spent editing down the 40 hours of film from two separate cameras to a fluid 99-minute movie.

Midwest Technical Institute is pleased to announce the completion of the MTI High School Grant Program. Midwest Technical Institute set out to give away a $10,000 Grant at each of its seven campuses throughout the Midwest and Mississippi Delta region (where MTI does business as Delta Technical College). The final votes have been counted and a winner at each campus has been named. A check presentation ceremony is to follow at each campus by Chief Executive Officer Brian Huff.

Local area high schools were nominated by their community and a list of the top twenty five was chosen based on the top nomination recipients. The top twenty five schools were given an opportunity to make a video expressing how they would benefit from the $10,000 Grant and why they deserved it. The videos were posted on the Facebook page for the MTI Brownsburg, Indiana campus, and were then voted on by the public. The top school was then named as the winner and was awarded a check for $10,000.