Manchester High School seniors await the beginning of their graduation ceremony. Photo by David Fenker

By David Fenker
david@nmpaper.com

NORTH MANCHESTER -- After more than a decade of hard work and dedication, another class of Squires completed their education with a graduation ceremony Friday, June 1.

A total of 118 students earned diplomas this year, with nearly all of them attending the graduation ceremony.

Remington Trick, Student Council president and Class of 2018 valedictorian, welcomed his classmates and their family and friends, and gave the first speech of the night.

Titled “No Excuses,” Trick's speech encouraged his classmates to embrace challenges and adversity.

“When life knocked me down, I stood right back up with a fire burning inside of me,” he said, “all because I chose not to make excuses. Every single person in this room has the power to light that fire within themselves.”

Trick's “no excuses” take on life is the product of advice from both his mother, who passed away in autumn 2014, and his father.
 

By The Paper staff

Several Wabash County fourth grade students were recently honored for their efforts in the annual Wabash County Historical Museum Fourth Grade Essay Contest.

The contest is open to all fourth graders within the county, including students who may be homeschooled or not a part of a public or private school.  One winning essay was selected from each participating school, and that student received a $50 scholarship in memory of Dr. Robert Beckett in their college savings account. Additionally, an overall first, second and third place essay was selected at each school, and those students received a gift card to the Museum Store.

“This essay contest was a passion of Dr. Beckett’s as he worked to inspire young minds through local history and we are honored to continue the program and to be able to provide funds into college savings plans in his memory,” said Mitch Figert, President & CEO of the Museum.
 

By The Paper staff

On the morning of Thursday, May 24, Wabash High School had its annual Academic Awards and Scholarships Program.

 
During the first half of the ceremony 155 different students were recognized for their academic achievements and successes in the classroom.  The second half focused on the awarding of more than $550,000 in scholarships and grants to graduating seniors. 
 

By Josh Sigler
jsigler@thepaperofwabash.com

LAFONTAINE -- Festivities for the 2018 LaFontaine Ashland Days Festival are set for Friday and Saturday, June 8 and 9 in downtown Lafontaine, with a variety of activities and events for the family to partake.

The theme for the 2018 Ashland Days is “Flashback”

“Flashback to the days of the LaFontaine Festivals of old,” the festival’s webpage on visitwabashcounty.com says. “Get out your leather jackets, hoop skirts, bell bottoms and neon t-shirts and celebrate your favorite decades of past festivals.”

Several fan favorite events are returning to this year’s festival.

Registration for the Seth Zahalka Memorial Car and Bike Show will start downtown at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Other returning events include the Pet Parade (6 p.m. Friday), Rubber Duck Race (1 p.m. Saturday), Tractor Show (5 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. Saturday), and the Water Ball Fight (3 p.m. Saturday).
 

By The Paper staff

The Community Foundation of Wabash County awarded a $12,000 grant to the Wabash River Defenders. The funds, a cash match for a State of Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) project and an Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) 319(h) project, will assist in the next phase of regional water improvement activities.

The Wabash River Defenders (WRD), a local non-profit entity whose mission is to preserve, protect, and defend the Wabash River, promotes water quality, habitat, recreation, and awareness of Indiana’s primary river watershed.

The DNR awarded $38,000 to the River Defenders, enabling them to engage professional services to perform a diagnostic study of the Silver Creek—Wabash River watershed in Wabash and Huntington Counties. In addition, the IDEM awarded $129,097 to create a watershed management plan for Treaty Creek—Wabash River watershed in Wabash and Miami counties.
 

By David Fenker
david@nmpaper.com

The Wabash County Highway Department will further investigate rehabilitating the bridge carrying County Road 1050 South over Grant Creek, at an estimated cost of $325,000.

The county commissioners instructed County Highway Superintendent John Martin to pursue rehabilitation of the structure while awaiting a response regarding funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which recently made federal disaster assistance funds available to Indiana counties affected by the February flooding.
 

By The Paper staff

NORTH MANCHESTER -- Manchester Community Schools Business Manager Scott Bumgardner recently submitted his letter of resignation, effective June 30, 2018.

Bumgardner has served as the business manager for the past four years. During that time, he played an integral role in maintaining health insurance rates without an increase in premiums. Also during his tenure, he worked closely with the Manchester Teachers Association to give an increase in pay each of the last four years to all certified and classified faculty.
 

By The Paper staff

Visit Wabash County (VWC) continues to focus on ways to improve the county’s gateways, signage, and interpretation in an effort to cross promote the county in areas where large groups of visitors tend to gather. 

The two newest installations have included an information display placed at the Glenn Ruppel Sports Complex in North Manchester and at the Morrett Sports Complex Field of Dreams in Wabash.  The two 4-foot-by-5-foot, all-weather displays showcase what there is to experience in the community. 

“Nearly 25,000 people utilize the Morrett Sports Complex annually,” said Bill Barrows, senior program director for the Wabash County YMCA, “When Christine (Flohr) pitched the idea of installing this type of display, I was immediately thrilled.  We have visiting families who have time between games and are looking for places to eat and things to do.”