While you are out and about trying to find those perfect gifts for family and friends, remember the animals at the Wabash County Animal Shelter. As a non-profit entity, the shelter, located at 810 Manchester Avenue in Wabash, depends upon donations for all aspects of its operation.

Wet and dry dog, kitten and puppy food is a daily need, as is cat litter. The shelter asks that no donations of dry cat food be given at this time since there is an abundance of it at the moment. Dog and cat treats give the animals something special to enjoy; toys help keep them active and interested.

Donations of bleach, liquid laundry soap (no dry), hand sanitizer, paper towels, mops, brooms, dust pans, and Dawn dish soap help the staff keep the facility clean and the animal healthy.

Office supplies such as copy paper, stamps, envelopes and gift cards that can be used to purchase ink cartridges help cover office operations.

Donations can be dropped off at the shelter during operation hours or at a donation box located inside Big R.

by Emily Armentrout

emily@thepaperofwabash.com

Shaun Eiler has been teaching Wabash High School’s shop programs for the past seven years. He is a Northfield High School graduate, who attended Ball State University, always knowing he wanted to be a teacher.

“My grandfather was principal at Roann High School. Growing up, I always had people telling me stories about how he impacted their lives. I wanted to impact lives like that. I have always liked serving people,” Eiler told The Paper.

Math and English weren’t his strongest subjects in school, but he always enjoyed building things. Two teachers who influenced his life were his  Ag teacher, Jeff Smith, and former shop teacher at Northfield, Doug Koch. “Smitty showed even when you’re learning something you can have a great time doing it. So I’ve tried to make these shop classes something the kids enjoy so they get excited about taking shop,” said Eiler.

Eiler believes in teaching the students basic construction skills that they can use in the future.

Scheduling makes it difficult to cover every construction topic available, but Eiler focuses  on teaching students how to build doors and window frames, do basic electrical wiring, and make sound structures.

Larry Curless, long-time affiliate of the Honeywell Foundation, will retire at the end of December after 34 years of service.  A reception to celebrate and honor his contributions to the Honeywell Foundation was held in the Honeywell Room on Wednesday, Dec. 4.

Curless began his career with the Honeywell Foundation in 1979 by first serving on the Board of Directors and two years later was appointed treasurer, serving in that role from 1981 to 2001. During this time he participated in the “Miracle on Market Street” groundbreaking ceremony for the new Ford Theater addition.

Wabash County Habitat for Humanity proudly announces election of its new Board of Directors Officers for 2014.  Board President Roger Tate passed the gavel, appropriately a framing hammer, and leadership of the Board to Randy Duhamell at the Dec. 10 meeting of the Board of Directors.

Newly elected officers include; Dan Early as Vice President, Jim Finnell as Treasurer, and Jocelyn Ravenscroft as Secretary.

The Board also recognized the dedication and service of retiring Board Members Lewis Curless and Jack Eads. The Wabash County Habitat for Humanity Board of Directors includes; Curt Campbell, Dean Dawes, Curtis Campbell, Gloria Elzroth, Karen Halverson, Lynne Margolies, Bob Schmalzried, Maxine Warford, Arturo Yanez and Brad Yoder.

Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit Christian Ministry that provides affordable homeownership opportunities to low-income residents of Wabash County. Habitat Partner Homeowners purchase their homes from Habitat through a no-profit zero-interest mortgage. Habitat volunteers work alongside the future homeowners in the construction of their new home.  Habitat is in the process of preparing and raising funds for the 2014 building season.

by Ashley Flynn

ashley@thepaperofwabash.com

Just weeks after the Metropolitan School District of Wabash County announced its decision to close LaFontaine Elementary School, Wabash City Schools Superintendent Jason Callahan proposed a similar plan for his district.

In January, the Wabash City School’s board will vote whether or not to close W.C. Mills Elementary School, which holds grades four and five for the whole district.

Mr. Callahan presented the plan to reconfigure the district during Monday’s school board meeting. The new plan proposes that fourth grade students move to OJ Neighbours Elementary School and fifth grade students move to Wabash Middle School making the district a three campus district of K-4, 5-8 and 9-12.

Before Mr. Callahan’s proposal, EMCOR gave a presentation on their feasibility study on heating and cooling for all three campuses in the district.

The group also looked at additional structural repairs W.C. Mills would need as far as windows and doors. According to their study, the project would cost $3.2 million for the updates. OJ and Wabash Middle School need $1,814,000 in updates.

It came as no surprise to Mr. Callahan that W.C. Mills is in need of major updates.

“About six years ago, I was working on my superintendent’s license, and one of the projects I had to do was a facility feasibility study,” Mr. Callahan told The Paper. “I had to look at all the buildings in the corporation and how old the facilities are, the present condition of heating and cooling, roofs, paving and all those things that go into maintaining a facility.

The Community Foundation of Wabash County recently received notification that it has met the nation’s highest philanthropic standards for operational quality, integrity and accountability. The notice comes from the Community Foundations National Standards Board, a national accreditation organization based in Arlington, Va.

“This is similar to the Good Housekeeping Seal for community foundations,” said Diane Miller, Manager of the Community Foundations National Standards Board. “It says that the Community Foundation of Wabash County has demonstrated a commitment to operational quality, integrity and accountability.”

The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations program requires community foundations to document their policies for donor services, investments, grant making and administration. With over 200 community foundations already confirmed in compliance nationwide, the program is designed to provide quality assurance to donors, as well as to their legal and financial advisors.

“This is critically important to our donors,” said Patty Grant, Community Foundation of Wabash County’s Executive Director.
 

by Kalie Ammons

kalie@thepaperofwabash.com

Rachael Polk, owner and creator of Vapor Place, has a story that many people can relate to.

“I went to college and became a smoker, and my parents weren’t very happy,” Polk said.

After coming home from her freshmen year of college smoking, Polk’s parents were determined to help her quit. Polk explained e-cigarettes to her father.

“My dad started looking into it and researched all the different brands because he wanted to make sure he got me the number one,” Polk said. “And that was by far Green Smoke, and it still is, which is why we sell the product.”

Green Smoke produces electronic cigarettes that consist of a flavored cartridge called a cartomizer, a battery and a cigarette-like stem that lights up and releases a vapor when in use.

The e-cigs don’t contain the tar or carbon monoxide found in traditional cigarettes. There is also no harsh smell or smoker’s breath.

However, Polk had some issues with trying to find the right flavor and nicotine level.

“I smoked menthol and he got me a tobacco flavor, and then it was too strong or not strong enough, so we kept having to buy it off the internet without getting to try it or figure out what we really liked,” Polk said. “I wondered, ‘why isn’t there a place where people can come in and try it out so they don’t have to buy blind off the Internet.”

A $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. will ignite several exciting new Manchester University programs and collaborations, including an undergraduate sales degree that is unprecedented in Indiana.

The MU initiative, “Liberal Arts Plus,” will enable the University to expand its leadership and engagement in northeast Indiana’s economic development to improve employment opportunities for Indiana college graduates. In addition to a new bachelor’s degree (and minor) in sales, Manchester University will:

-Develop at least five new certificate programs that align with the workforce needs of Indiana employers over the next five years.

-Engage 60 Manchester students in internships to provide them with professional experience and contribute to economic development initiatives in northeast Indiana through strategic use of their talents.

-Collaborate with work force agencies, other northeast Indiana universities and the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership to strengthen MU’s relationship with employers and leverage the Lilly Endowment grants for more support.