Stories from Friday, June 24, 2011

To the Editor: I have been asked to support a new endowment for the fairgrounds. I said yes without hesitation and I would like to tell you why. First, I am not a Putnam County native. I married into this great place in 1988. I have found myself very welcomed here from my first job in the courthouse to teaching at South Putnam and now Cloverdale schools. ...

To the Editor: I read with dismay the letter to the editor (June 17 opinion page) about the different dialogue in "The Music Man." The script for the stage version of "The Music Man" was written before it was adapted into a musical. Both the libretto for the stage production of "The Music Man" and the screenplay for the movie were written by Meredith Willson...

Here we are, right on the cusp of the dog days of summer and -- how convenient -- a new study from the journal Learning and Behavior concludes that dogs have "canine telepathy." Now, I doubt seriously that literally means your dog can read your mind. But it does contend that dogs are at least born with the ability to hazard a guess at what we humans are thinking...

Beans are one of the best home garden vegetables you can grow. There are many different varieties to try and they are relatively easy to grow. With some bean varieties you can even get two crops a year. You can plant one crop in the spring and one in the fall...

The Putnam County Community Foundation is seeking 501(c)(3) nonprofits, churches and units of government to be partners in serving the local Putnam County community. Preliminary grant applications are being accepted now and are due Aug. 1. They may be picked up at the Foundation office, 2 S. Jackson St., Greencastle, or downloaded at www.pcfoundation.org...

BRAZIL -- The Brazil Concert Band, under the direction of Janelle R. Huber, will present "Peaches and Cream" at 8 p.m. Sunday, June 26 at the Forest Park Bandshell, rain or shine. The concert is free and open to the public. Huber is a senior instrumental music education major at the School of Music at Indiana State University. She is the 2011 recipient of the Presser Scholarship and a winner of the 2011 ISU Concerto Competition...

City Police A 20-year-old Poland man was arrested on theft charges early Wednesday, Greencastle City Police reported. Wayne F. Burk was lodged in the Putnam County Jail after Capt. Mike Hanlon stopped his vehicle on Arlington Street and reportedly found the suspect in possession of stolen property...

Mr. Steven A. Clearwater, 62, of Bainbridge, passed away Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. Born Nov. 5, 1948 in Greencastle, the son of Richard and Bernice (Hochstetler) Clearwater, he attended Belle Union schools and graduated from Fillmore High School class of 1966. Steve was a veteran of the Vietnam War, having served in the United States Navy...

The Raccoon State Recreation Area will hold its annual Beach Bash and fireworks display Saturday, July 2. Festivities begin at 10 a.m. with a sand-sculpture contest for all ages. Games, including tug-of-war and a water-balloon toss, begin at 1 p.m. Visitors can cap off the day with an evening of fireworks, beginning at dusk. The fireworks are co-sponsored by Raccoon SRA, Bellmore Volunteer Fire Department and the Raccoon Lake/Union Township Property Owners Association...

BAINBRIDGE -- Charlie Boller is an Indiana State Police officer and until the final seconds of the North Putnam School Corporation special board meeting Thursday he was also the president of the school board. After the other board members addressed different issues in individual comment, Boller took a brief moment to announce to the board and public that he was resigning as president of the board. He will remain a member of the board...

Two Greencastle teens are spending their summer putting the needs of others above their free time. Nicolette Peters and Rebecca Moore, who will be freshmen at Greencastle High School in August, are raising money for 2-year-old Aidan Mitchell and his family. Aidan suffers from cystic fibrosis, and his older sister is a friend of Nicolette and Rebecca...

Barbara Fuson stands back when she paints; holds the brush at arm's length, considering, as she works, just what the paint is doing. When the painting she works on begins to run insubordinately, she picks her board up horizontally and shakes, taps and "bumps" it until it obeys...

South Putnam's girls basketball and golf programs will look much different next year. Long-time head coach and current Central Elementary principal Debbie Steffy decided to step down in her head coaching positions recently. Steffy said her decision to walk away from her coaching roles was a tough one, but one that she hopes will benefit the students of Central Elementary in her administrative capacity...

When Lori Richmond walked into the packed meeting room at the Greencastle Community School Corporation's administrative office Thursday evening, all eyes were immediately upon her. No decision had been announced, but as this new person shook hands with each board member, the decision about to be made was clear...

The roads here in Greencastle and Putnam County have serious problems. I'm sorry to disappoint anyone who thinks this is going to be about chuckholes -- it isn't. The simple answer there is, if the state doesn't provide the money, the county can't repave the roads...

Mrs. Maxine E. (Edmondson) Ludlow Reasor, 92, of Greencastle, passed away Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at her Autumn Glen residence. Born Dec. 12, 1918, in Clayton, she was the daughter of Ralph and Osie (Scott) Edmondson and a graduate of Clayton High School class of 1937 and 1940 graduate of Central Normal College. In 1945 she married Chester Ludlow. They later divorced and in 1972 she married Walker Reasor Jr...

CLOVERDALE -- Cancer patients suffering from hair loss due to their treatments have a new resource in Putnam County. Lynda Brackin of Inspirations Salon recently became the local representative for the American Cancer Society Wig Bank. Brackin said she felt this was a way to make a positive contribution in a field she understands...

Amanda Millican, the daughter of Brett and Audra Millican, is the winner of the 2011 St. Paul the Apostle Ladies Guild Memorial Scholarship. Millican is a graduate of North Putnam and will be attending Purdue University, majoring in pre-pharmacy. Millican is seen receiving the scholarship from Mary Margaret Rissler, president of the St. Paul Ladies Guild.

On the heels of a Class A misdemeanor charge in Putnam Superior Court last week, two felonies and another misdemeanor have been filed against a Putnam County official. He is also facing unpaid leave in the wake of the charges. Kim Hyten, 43, Fillmore, county planner and emergency management director, faces charges of Class D felony strangulation and criminal confinement and Class A misdemeanor interference with the reporting of a crime. He was charged last week with Class A misdemeanor domestic battery...