By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Wabash Fire Department training wasn’t the only thing taking place last week at the former Parkview Wabash Hospital on East Street.

Crews are busy preparing the facility for demolition later this year, according to Marilyn Custer-Mitchell, Parkview Wabash president.

Decommissioning of the legacy hospital and the Ash Street Clinic actually began last year.

The clinic was torn down in December, Custer-Mitchell said.
 

By Josh Sigler
jsigler@thepaperofwabash.com

Wabash High School officials have announced the school will launch its Unified Sports program in the spring, created a Unified track and field squad as a starting point.

Unified Sports is a collaborative partnership between the Indiana High School Athletic Association and Special Olympics Indiana that promotes servant leadership among student athletes while changing their lives as well as the lives of those with intellectual disabilities.

Since its inception in 2012, Special Olympics International has supported Unified Sports as a model program to activate schools through “Project Unify,” which also has the endorsement of the National Federation of High Schools.
 

LaFontaine residents David Brinson (left) and Denny Jones chat about a piece of equipment at the Fort Wayne Farm Show last week. Photo by Harold V. Chatlosh

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

FORT WAYNE – Thousands of farmers and others in agribusiness from the tri-state area gathered at the Allen County Memorial Coliseum last week for the 30th annual Fort Wayne Farm Show.

Several Wabash County businesses were represented at the event, and scores of local residents were among the thousands visiting several hundred booths on display.

LaFontaine residents David Brinson and Denny Jones were among those visiting the annual expo on its opening day, Jan. 15.
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Eric Schoening was re-elected president of the Wabash City Council on Monday, Jan. 14, during the council’s first meeting of 2019.

Schoening bested a field of three candidates, getting votes from himself and council members Doug Adams and Bonnie Corn.
 

Ken Perkins (center) shows off his Sagamore of the Wabash award with family members (front, from left) Nicholas Perkins, Alex Perkins, Ella Dale, Harrison Dale, Benjamin Dale; Martin Perkins (second row, from left), Tatiana Perkins, Emily Perkins,  Rosemary Dale, Rachel Dale; Dr. Eric Dale (back row, from left) Beth Perkins and William Harmsen. Photo provided

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

A Wabash County man was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash, the highest award a Hoosier citizen can receive.

The man, Ken Perkins, received the honor on Dec. 19 during a reception prior to the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Holiday Pops Concert at the Honeywell Center.

“I was totally surprised,” Perkins told The Paper of Wabash County. “I was honored and humbled. Some really neat people have gotten that award before me, so I felt very pleased to be a part of that group.”

Perkins said he nearly didn’t attend the concert.

“I just retired in September from First Farmers Bank and Trust after 14 years with them,” he said. “They host the concert and have a big reception beforehand. They asked me to come and do the invocation.”
 

By Josh Sigler
jsigler@thepaperofwabash.com

MSD of Wabash County Superintendent Mike Keaffaber will remain in his position until at least the summer of 2020.
The news was delivered at MSD’s school board meeting on Jan. 8.

New board president Todd Dazey explained that Keaffaber is in the third year of a three-year contract. That contract stipulates that unless the board gives a notice of non-renewal by Jan. 1, then it would automatically renew for an additional year.

The board did not give Keaffaber a notice of non-renewal.

“As a result, his contract has now been extended to June 30, 2020,” Dazey said. “We’d like to say congratulations to Mr Keaffaber.”
 

By Josh Sigler
and
Eric Christiansen
news@thepaperofwabash.com

The Indiana Department of Education recently released its graduation rates from the 2017-18 school year, and local educators seemed pleased with the result.

Wabash City Schools finished with school year with a 95.79 percent graduation rate. In all, 91 of 95 students received diplomas.

Superintendent Jason Callahan said the school district was very pleased with that rate.

“Honestly, we view this as a 100 percent rate because 2 percent received a special education certificate and 2 percent was still in school so our dropout rate was 0 percent,” Callahan said. “Even better results were what diplomas our 96 percent graduated with from Wabash High School. Ninety-two percent of students received either a Core 40 of Academic Honors Diploma. This was the highest percentage of college ready diplomas in the history of the school.”
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

On Tuesday, Jan. 8, representatives from the Community Foundation of Wabash County honored Promise Scholarship students from Sharp Creek Elementary and Northfield Jr.-Sr. High schools during the Eastern-Northfield girls basketball game.

The students honored were in grades 4-8, and achieved 100 percent of the academic awards possible in the first semester of the 2018-19 school year. The elementary school students were honored during halftime of the junior varsity game, while the junior high students were recognized at halftime of the varsity contest.

There were 184 Northfield students who met the requirements, according to Nancy Alspaugh, the Community Foundation’s Promise Scholarship Program Director for Grades 7-8.