Tabatha Wagner prepares to sign her letter of intent, surrounded by her parents, Deb and Brad Wagner, Wabash High School principal Kyle Wieland and Lady Apaches coach Katie Cromer. Photo by Joseph Slacian

By Joseph Slacian

jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Wabash High School volleyball player Tabatha Wagner has signed a letter of intent to continue her volleyball career at Felician University in Rutherford, N.J.

She signed the paperwork during a ceremony Friday morning, Dec. 14, surrounded by her parents, Deb and Brad Wagner, principal Kyle Wieland and coach Katie Cromer.

“I wanted to go distance-wise, but they were like the first major school that showed interest in me,” Wagner said. “I just loved the campus. It kind of reminded me of Wabash area and the downtown area. It reminded me of home.

By Amanda Bridgman
abridgman@nmpaper.com

Wabash County homeowners Jake O'Neill and wife, Aimee Emrick, again appeared at the Wabash County Commissioners meeting Monday, Dec. 17, to talk about their home’s septic problems.

The family, which includes three teens, have been forced to move out of their home at 4 Clover Leaf Drive because of the aforementioned longstanding septic issues. O'Neill, the physical education teacher and head wrestling coach at Wabash City Schools, and his wife Emrick, owner of Get Nailed nail salon, came to commissioners last week, Dec. 10, and spoke about the problems afflicting their neighborhood.

O'Neill said of the 30 homes in the neighborhood, nine are hooked into city sewer lines, eight are hooked in “illegally,” and there are 13 left with septic tanks.
 

Participants try their hand at ice skating as part of First Friday festivities on Friday, Dec. 7 in downtown Wabash. Photo by Josh Sigler

By Josh Sigler
jsigler@thepaperofwabash.com

The Wabash Rotary Club started in 1918, and its relationship with White Residential and Family Service’s goes all the way back to 1922.

So, the club chose its longest standing service project as a way to celebrate its 100th anniversary over the weekend.

In 1922, the Wabash Rotary Club gave ice skates to the students at White’s so they could skate on the ponds. On Friday, Dec. 7, the club brought ice skating to downtown Wabash as part of the First Friday festivities.
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Change doesn’t happen unless an individual makes changes.

That was one of the messages driven home by Grant County resident Nathan Harmon during a public talk Monday, Dec. 3, at the Honeywell Center’s Ford Theater.

Harmon should know, for he has battled alcohol and drug addiction for several years. That is, until something happened, a turning point in his life, that had tragic consequences.

That night was July 17, 2009.
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

A Hilton Hotel & Resorts property could be coming to Wabash sometime in the future.

The Wabash Plan Commission, on Wednesday, Dec. 5, unanimously approved a request from Halderman Investments LLC to exclude approximately five acres of land from the city’s Land Subdivision Ordinance.

The property in question is at the northwest corner of Wedcor Avenue and State Road 15, approximately an eighth of a mile north of U.S. 24.

“We had a party come to us wanting to buy the five acres on which to build a hotel,” Robert Halderman told the commission. “They want to build a Hilton Hotel of some variety on the five acres. That would be a pretty nice asset for Wabash.”
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Two property owners met city-imposed deadlines to make improvements to homes at the sites.

Chad Vigar and Scott Hearn each completed the required work at their homes, 604 State St. and 112 E. Main St.

Vigar had to have his house enclosed so work could proceed on the inside throughout the winter. He also was required to have inspections at various points throughout the work.

Building Commissioner John Stephens informed the Wabash Board of Public Works and Safety that he had met all those requirements.

Hearn had a laundry list of things to do, including repairing soffits and cleaning up the yard and a nearby porch.

The work on the soffits is fine for now, but more work will be needed next spring. The yard was cleaned up; however, there was still some items that needed to be tended to on the porch.
 

By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com

Allan Hall’s passion is making music. As a member of the gospel trio Selah for more than 20 years, he realizes just how blessed his life has been.’

“I wonder what it would be like my whole working life to be able to do something that I love,” he told The Paper of Wabash County during a recent telephone interview from his home in Nashville, Tenn. “I know a lot of people don’t get to do that. I thank God every day.

“I can’t believe it’s been over two decades, and you’ve let me do what I love for over two decades. I hope it can keep continuing.”

Hall, along with his singing partners Todd Smith and Amy Perry, will be making their Honeywell Center Ford Theater debut on Saturday, Dec. 15, during “Christmas With Selah.” Opening for the group will be Geoffrey Andrews, along with a special performance by a local choir, Oakbrook Worship.”
 

By Josh Sigler
jsigler@thepaper.com

A pair of fires have devastated the communities in Huntington and Logansport in recent weeks.

Two died in a fire in Huntington on Nov. 25, and six more died in a fire in Logansport soon thereafter.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office has documented 85 confirmed fire fatalities so far in 2018 across the state. That figure surpasses the number of house-fire related deaths for all of 2017. Of the 70 fire related deaths last year, 31 took place from October to December.

The fire marshal’s office credits the causes of those fires to holiday cooking, using alternative methods to heat a home or electrical in nature.

Wabash Fire Chief Barry Stroup has given some tips on how to stay safe and help prevent fires now that we’re into the winter season.