Stories from Thursday, July 14, 2011

On June 29, Rotary Club of Greencastle transitioned to a new fiscal year by thanking outgoing President Robert Green, and welcoming David English as its 2011-2012 President. 2010-2011 was a busy year for the service club. It awarded grants totaling $4,000 to twelve different charitable organizations and projects: Reality Store ($200), Summer Enrichment Program ($1,500), The Giving Tree ($250), Toys for Tots ($200), Away Home Shelter ($100), Light up the Park ($50), Building Tomorrow ($1,000), Relay for Life ($100), Mary Allison Children's Trust ($250), American Red Cross ($100), Australian Relief Project ($100), and Move out Day ($150).. ...

A new Master Gardener class will be starting on Aug. 16. The purpose of the Purdue Master Gardener Program is to teach people more about growing plants and to more effectively extend information related to plants to the community. The programs specific aim is to provide information and technical assistance in the areas of gardening and home horticulture through the use of trained and certified volunteers...

Edith Marie Clements, 81, of Greencastle, residing in St. Augustine, Fla., since 1994 was called home to the Lord on Tuesday, July 12, 2011. She was born Oct. 31, 1929 to parents Ross and Dessie Mae (Smith) Hood. Edith worked for GTE as an operator and retired May 31,1982 after 32 years and 10 months of service. ...

Sandra K. Smith, 63, of Greencastle, formerly of Indianapolis, passed away on Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at IU University Hospital. She was born on March 16, 1948 in Indianapolis and was the daughter of the late Robert Lawrence Miller, Sr. and Dorothy Maxine (Bennett) Miller...

CLOVERDALE -- When is a plane crash not a plane crash? When there is no crash site to be found. That was what happened in southwestern Putnam County Wednesday evening after a small plane was thought to have crashed north of Interstate 70, a couple of miles west of Cloverdale...

The Putnam County Community Foundation has announced that Ellie Ypma has established a new endowment supporting its Community Grants Program. Ed and Ellie Ypma each worked for nearly four decades at DePauw University -- Ellie as registrar and associate vice president and Ed as a professor of psychology -- enriching the lives of countless students...

At a Statehouse ceremony Wednesday, Lt. Governor Becky Skillman awarded a $600,000 Community Focus Fund grant to the Town of Bainbridge to fund a storm water infrastructure project. The Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) administers the grants, which are funded through the federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.

Jake and Tanner's Kid's Best Friend Camp will be held at the DePauw University Lilly Center on July 25-27 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day. The basketball camp is for boys and girls entering kindergarten through tenth grade. Thanks to sponsors, and a volunteer staff, all proceeds go to charity. ...

BY CAINE GARDNER Film Critic The tale of "the boy who lived" cast its spell on moviegoers 10 years ago and the Harry Potter franchise hasn't slowed since. When word came out the final film "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" would be released as two films, some cried foul. Most thought it was a moneymaking ploy, but fans still flocked to see the first installment of the "Deathly Hallows"...

Barney may be the famous big purple dinosaur, but it's a big blue dinosaur named Oxford that commanded the attention of the Greencastle City Council Tuesday night. Taking advantage of revised state legislation in regard to so-called "dinosaur buildings," the Council unanimously endorsed a resolution designating the 57.45-acre property at 370 Manhattan Rd. as an economic revitalization area...

BLOOMINGTON -- Folks still living in Greencastle may, from time to time, wonder what it is that has happened to the prodigal sons and daughters who have ventured forth from our streets, fields and houses. To be sure, each would have quite a story to tell. In the case of a few young men, though, one needs not wonder...

The Greencastle High School Cross Country fundraiser will take place Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at AutoZone.

Deloris (Rouch) Butts, 83, of Pendleton, formerly of Greencastle, died Thursday, July 14, 2011, at her home. She was born in Terre Haute on March 31, 1928, and was a Greencastle resident for most of her life until moving to Pendleton in March of this year...

Claude Dotson, 88, of Greencastle, formerly of Indianapolis, passed away on Monday, July 11, 2011 in Putnam County Hospital. He was born on Sept. 27, 1922 in Portageville, Mo. to William and Amanda Belle Dotson. Claude was the widow of Laura Dotson. He was the owner and operator of Claude's trim shop in Indianapolis for 30 years retiring in 1988...