The burned out remains of the Richard Simpson home stands along Bailey Road on Monday morning. Photo by Josh Sigler
By The Paper Staff
An early morning fire Monday, April 16, at a home on South Baily Road is under invesitagion.
Noble Township Fire Department responded to the blaze at the Richard and Jennifer Simpson home, 3166 S. Bailey Road at 2:18 a.m., according to Fire Chief Nathan Zinn.
The residents were not at home at the time of the incident.
Joe Halderman signs a letter of intent to continue his football career at Taylor University. Looking on are his parent Kari and Howard Halderman.
By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com
As a freshman at Northfield High School, Joe Halderman approached coach Brandon Baker and asked what he needed to do to play for the Norse.
“I just want to play varsity,” Baker said Monday, April 16, recalling the conversation. “I told him, ‘We’re going to be short lineman in a couple of years. He said, ‘I’ll do it.’ And that’s how he became a lineman. He just wanted to be on the field.”
The hard work and effort paid off for Halderman, who on Monday signed a letter of intent to continue his football career at Taylor University.
By Bill Barrows
I have spent an enormous amount of time researching and analyzing the game of baseball -- the game that I love. I have picked up different pieces of philosophy down through the years from a number of coaches and players, some that I have met, but most I have not met. Baseball is a game of discrete episodes rather than of flow, unlike basketball or soccer or hockey, baseball allows contemplation and conversation and a general awareness of where you are.
Why do we care so much about high level sports? We are more tribal, than we, in our modern vanity, like to acknowledge. We are creatures built----hard wired for primal allegiances. Baseball, as is sport, is junk food for the spirit, a narcotic, opium for the masses who understand it and indulge in it.
By Eric Christiansen
echristiansen@nmpaper.com
NORTH MANCHESTER -- Manchester proved to be too tough for Wabash as the Squire girls tennis team swept the Apaches for a 5-0 Three Rivers Conference win.
The Squires dropped just six games in singles play with Kelsey Eichenauer leading the way with a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles over Lexi Hartley.
At No. 2 singles, Halle Briner also won 6-2, 6-1 over Brooke Irgang, and Lydia Little blanked Bella Carrillo 6-0, 6-0 at No. 3 singles.
By Joseph Slacian
jslacian@thepaperofwabash.com
The Wabash City Schools board approved creating an education foundation for the district.
While creating foundation was unanimously approved Feb. 6, it still is not a reality.
Superintendent Jason Callahan and board attorney Jordan Tandy are exploring various options for the foundation, and will present a recommendation when the study is complete.
“As we do things like the Hall of Distinction, we have alumni that come back and want to give to Wabash in some kind of capacity or in some kind of way,” Callahan told the board, explaining why the foundation is needed. “Right now we really don’t have a receptacle to receive that money in, especially a 501c3 that is a tax benefit to the giver. We feel like we need to establish that.”
Tandy discussed two ways the district could go in creating a foundation.
One, available under state statute, is to create a Public School Endowment Corp., he said.
“It is a separate, special entity under the law,” he explained. “It gives the school flexibility to support programs and different things for the benefit of the school. That would be its own, separate 501c3 that we could create.”
The other would be creating an affiliation with the Community Foundation of Wabash County.
Community Foundation executive director Patty Grant is expected to speak with the board at a future meeting, he said.
“There’s pros and cons with either (option),” Tandy said.
This is the second time the board has explored creating such a foundation.
“We started one in 2000, but we never really fully created it,” Callahan said. “There was a lot of official stuff that happened. But I don’t know really why – I couldn’t find it in the minutes – it never happened.”
In other business, the board:
-- Waived facility rental fees for the Kiwanis Spelling Bee on Feb. 8 and the Special Olympics track meet on May 12.
-- Hired Katina Schram as a full-time bus driver effective Jan. 31.
-- Accepted the resignation of Courtney Wrisk, as bus monitor for the special needs route effective Feb. 2.
-- Approved Kate Carter as the O.J. Neighbours Elementary School café bookkeeper effective Jan. 8.
-- Accepted the resignation of Jessika Taylor as a paraprofessional at Neighbours effective Feb. 2.
-- Approved Alysia Olson’s request for maternity leave beginning April 9.
-- Approved Janet Sparks for after school tutoring beginning Jan. 15 through the end of the third nine weeks.
-- Approved a stipend for Angel Hostetler to continue her teacher of record responsibilities during the third nine weeks.
-- Approved a recommendation to alter Abbey Arwood’s Be Well stipend for the second semester, allowing her to tend to a personal issue that has arisen.
-- Accepted Heather Burton’s resignation and the hiring of Elizabeth Burns as Neighbour’s librarian, effective Feb. 5 and Feb. 6, respectively. It also approved retaining Burton at her current hourly rate to work with Burns on an as needed basis. The retainer will not exceed 20 hours and would occur prior to June 30.
-- Hired Jon Denney as a paraprofessional at Neighbors beginning Feb. 1.
-- Accepted the Family Medical Leave Act request from Amy Degitz beginning Feb. 19, and using her sick days during that time.
-- Accepted the resignation as Rick Forrester as part-time teacher aide for Wabash Middle School effective Feb. 23.
-- Approved Heather Jessee as Winter Guard director for the 2017-18 school year.
-- Hired Khristian Atchison as math teacher effective Feb. 22.
-- Approved the recommendation to pay math teachers Joey Till, Justin Denney and Tyler Olson their hourly rate to teach a class during their prep to help fill a vacant math position at Wabash High School.
-- Hired the following as coaches for the 2017-18 spring sport season: Bill Barrows, assistant varsity baseball; Nick Hentgen, reserve baseball; Mike Vinopal, assistant boys track; Mike Denney, varsity girls track; Katelin Vogel, assistant girls track; Sarah Cole, assistant girls tennis; John Yoakum, varsity girls softball; Brad Wagner, assistant girls softball; Katie Cromer, middle school track head coach; Beth Barden, middle school track assistant coach; Tyler Niccum, middle school baseball head coach; John Davis, middle school softball head coach; Stacie Parrett, middle school football assistant coach; Lyndsi Schenkel, middle school soccer head coach.
-- Approved the recommendation to create a business position for Wabash City Schools.