Local Briefs

November 12, 2019 at 12:48 a.m.

By Staff Report-

Family Sponsors Being Sought For

Tippecanoe Valley Miracle Tree Program



AKRON – Anyone looking for a way to give back this Christmas season can sponsor a family in need within the Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. through the Miracle Tree program.

Miracle Tree has been a holiday tradition in the Rochester community for more than a decade thanks to the Mill Creek Missionary Church, but because of an increase in the amount of people from the Tippecanoe Valley area seeking assistance, the decision was made to expand the program.

Trees were set up Saturday at Bell Memorial Public Library in Mentone and also Akron Carnegie Public Library in Akron. Families throughout the Tippecanoe Valley community who have expressed an interest in receiving help this year will be assigned a number. Those numbers will then be placed on ornaments and hung on the trees. The number lets a potential sponsor know how many children are in the family and their ages.

“Each family will have a wish list for the sponsors to use when shopping, filled with clothing sizes and toys requested,” said Darren Parker, a former instructor at Tippecanoe Valley High School and a member of Mill Creek Missionary Church.

If a person, business or organization is interested in sponsoring a family, they simply take an ornament from the tree and give it to the circulation desk at either library. The sponsor is then provided a wish list for that family with items the children might want for Christmas.

Sponsors wrap the gifts they purchase and then return them to Splendor Boats in Silver Lake for sorting and delivery. To avoid any confusion, there are specific instructions on each wish list on how to mark the gift after it has been wrapped so organizers know which gift belongs to which family and child.

Gifts must be returned by Dec. 6. Gifts will be distributed to each family on a special night in December. The church will cater a meal, provide activities for the children and take family pictures.

The Miracle Tree assisted over 125 families, provided Christmas gifts for more than 350 children, and fed more than 550 people at the culminating event night in 2018.



Titus Hosts Seminar For

Planning Wills, Estates



Titus Funeral Home will host a “Wills, Estates and Pre-Planning Seminar” with Havrilla & Nolin Attorneys at Law of Warsaw.

Join Titus for a free educational seminar and a complimentary dinner at 6 p.m. Nov. 19 at Titus Funeral Home and learn how to plan for the "what if's" in life.

Attorneys from Havrilla-Nolin Attorneys at Law will share how you can act today, through wills and estate planning, to protect your family and your assets in the future. And you'll learn from the Titus Funeral Home staff how pre-planning services can guarantee today's costs and take the burden off of your family. Bring questions.

The event is free, but registration is required by Friday. To register, call Sara at Titus Funeral Home at 574-267-3104.



Tractor Supply Hosts CCS Pet Food Drive



A pet food drive for Combined Community Services will be held at Tractor Supply Company, U.S. 30E, Warsaw, on Nov. 23.

Dog food, cat food or monetary donations of any kind are welcome (funds will be used to buy pet food).

John Parker is the directory of emergency assistance for CCS. He said, “We see pet companionship as key to wellbeing for pet owners. And many of the folks we help have pets. So, we want to help feed people and pets. We seem to run out of cat food first, though we need both cat and dog food to help us keep pets in their homes. The goal this year is to get enough pet food to get these pets through the winter months so they can stay with their families. We don’t want those families to have to rehome their pets.”

The CCS Pet Food Drive will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. If people can’t make it that Saturday, they can contact One Dog at a Time Rescue at 574-527-7085 or message One Dog at a Time on Facebook. ODTR can arrange for donation pick-up and deliver to CCS.

For more information, contact One Dog at a Time Rescue, P.O. Box 76, Warsaw, IN 46581. The website is at www.odtr.org, email is at [email protected].



Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary

Preparing Fruit, Nut Orders For Pickup



The Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary will have the orders for the annual fruit and nut sale ready for pick-up from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Home & Family Arts Building, Kosciusko County Fairgrounds, 1400 E. Smith St., Warsaw.

Extra nuts and fruit are available for sale those days, according to Kim Hart and Ann Pinnick, sale coordinators.  

"The Auxiliary has sold nuts since the early 1970s," said President Teri Jarrette. "We appreciate everyone purchasing products that helps us support serving ‘others’ through The Salvation Army."  

For more information, go to www.sawarsaw.org.



WCS Responds To School Fighting



On Nov. 5, a teacher at Lincoln Elementary contacted administration and the school resource officer about students who were fighting in the restroom, according to a press release from Warsaw Community Schools.

It was later determined students had created a "fight club" they were posting on social media. Immediately, local law enforcement partnered with school administrators to contact families and put an end to the behavior. Students were disciplined in accordance with the student handbook and parents were involved.

“Ongoing efforts will ensure that this type of inappropriate behavior does not continue. This will be a priority of school administration and local law authorities. A law enforcement investigation is ongoing,” said the release.

Although social media posts are ongoing regarding the incident, WCS said the matter was handled as soon as the behavior was brought to light. The release said the district is “committed to safety and security of all students and would like to thank the continued support of our school resource officers and partnership with the local law enforcement.”

Family Sponsors Being Sought For

Tippecanoe Valley Miracle Tree Program



AKRON – Anyone looking for a way to give back this Christmas season can sponsor a family in need within the Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. through the Miracle Tree program.

Miracle Tree has been a holiday tradition in the Rochester community for more than a decade thanks to the Mill Creek Missionary Church, but because of an increase in the amount of people from the Tippecanoe Valley area seeking assistance, the decision was made to expand the program.

Trees were set up Saturday at Bell Memorial Public Library in Mentone and also Akron Carnegie Public Library in Akron. Families throughout the Tippecanoe Valley community who have expressed an interest in receiving help this year will be assigned a number. Those numbers will then be placed on ornaments and hung on the trees. The number lets a potential sponsor know how many children are in the family and their ages.

“Each family will have a wish list for the sponsors to use when shopping, filled with clothing sizes and toys requested,” said Darren Parker, a former instructor at Tippecanoe Valley High School and a member of Mill Creek Missionary Church.

If a person, business or organization is interested in sponsoring a family, they simply take an ornament from the tree and give it to the circulation desk at either library. The sponsor is then provided a wish list for that family with items the children might want for Christmas.

Sponsors wrap the gifts they purchase and then return them to Splendor Boats in Silver Lake for sorting and delivery. To avoid any confusion, there are specific instructions on each wish list on how to mark the gift after it has been wrapped so organizers know which gift belongs to which family and child.

Gifts must be returned by Dec. 6. Gifts will be distributed to each family on a special night in December. The church will cater a meal, provide activities for the children and take family pictures.

The Miracle Tree assisted over 125 families, provided Christmas gifts for more than 350 children, and fed more than 550 people at the culminating event night in 2018.



Titus Hosts Seminar For

Planning Wills, Estates



Titus Funeral Home will host a “Wills, Estates and Pre-Planning Seminar” with Havrilla & Nolin Attorneys at Law of Warsaw.

Join Titus for a free educational seminar and a complimentary dinner at 6 p.m. Nov. 19 at Titus Funeral Home and learn how to plan for the "what if's" in life.

Attorneys from Havrilla-Nolin Attorneys at Law will share how you can act today, through wills and estate planning, to protect your family and your assets in the future. And you'll learn from the Titus Funeral Home staff how pre-planning services can guarantee today's costs and take the burden off of your family. Bring questions.

The event is free, but registration is required by Friday. To register, call Sara at Titus Funeral Home at 574-267-3104.



Tractor Supply Hosts CCS Pet Food Drive



A pet food drive for Combined Community Services will be held at Tractor Supply Company, U.S. 30E, Warsaw, on Nov. 23.

Dog food, cat food or monetary donations of any kind are welcome (funds will be used to buy pet food).

John Parker is the directory of emergency assistance for CCS. He said, “We see pet companionship as key to wellbeing for pet owners. And many of the folks we help have pets. So, we want to help feed people and pets. We seem to run out of cat food first, though we need both cat and dog food to help us keep pets in their homes. The goal this year is to get enough pet food to get these pets through the winter months so they can stay with their families. We don’t want those families to have to rehome their pets.”

The CCS Pet Food Drive will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. If people can’t make it that Saturday, they can contact One Dog at a Time Rescue at 574-527-7085 or message One Dog at a Time on Facebook. ODTR can arrange for donation pick-up and deliver to CCS.

For more information, contact One Dog at a Time Rescue, P.O. Box 76, Warsaw, IN 46581. The website is at www.odtr.org, email is at [email protected].



Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary

Preparing Fruit, Nut Orders For Pickup



The Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary will have the orders for the annual fruit and nut sale ready for pick-up from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Home & Family Arts Building, Kosciusko County Fairgrounds, 1400 E. Smith St., Warsaw.

Extra nuts and fruit are available for sale those days, according to Kim Hart and Ann Pinnick, sale coordinators.  

"The Auxiliary has sold nuts since the early 1970s," said President Teri Jarrette. "We appreciate everyone purchasing products that helps us support serving ‘others’ through The Salvation Army."  

For more information, go to www.sawarsaw.org.



WCS Responds To School Fighting



On Nov. 5, a teacher at Lincoln Elementary contacted administration and the school resource officer about students who were fighting in the restroom, according to a press release from Warsaw Community Schools.

It was later determined students had created a "fight club" they were posting on social media. Immediately, local law enforcement partnered with school administrators to contact families and put an end to the behavior. Students were disciplined in accordance with the student handbook and parents were involved.

“Ongoing efforts will ensure that this type of inappropriate behavior does not continue. This will be a priority of school administration and local law authorities. A law enforcement investigation is ongoing,” said the release.

Although social media posts are ongoing regarding the incident, WCS said the matter was handled as soon as the behavior was brought to light. The release said the district is “committed to safety and security of all students and would like to thank the continued support of our school resource officers and partnership with the local law enforcement.”
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

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