Weekend crash kills Miami County woman

PERU — A Miami County woman died over the weekend as a result of a two-vehicle crash.

At 8:54 a.m. Saturday morning, troopers with the Indiana State Police responded to an accident on U.S. 31 at 400N. Preliminary investigation found that a 2004 Chevrolet driven by Rowena E. Hahn, 69, Peru, was traveling eastbound on 400N when it failed to yield for a stop sign at the intersection of U.S. 31. Her vehicle was struck broadside by a southbound 2008 Mercedes driven by Jack Hires, 77, Valparaiso.

Hahn was pronounced dead at the scene. She was wearing a seat belt; however, the impact was too severe to prevent her fatal injuries, police say.

Hires and his passenger, Dorie Hires, 72, Valparaiso, were taken by ambulance to Dukes Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. They, too, were wearing seat belts, which police believe reduced the severity of their injuries.

The Miami County Sheriff’s Department, Miami County EMS, the Miami County Coroner’s office and the Mexico Fire Department assisted at the crash scene.

School holding book, art fair

WALTON — Thompson Elementary School is holding its 2009 Scholastic Book Fair from Feb. 17 through Feb. 20 in the school library.

The library will be open from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. each day for classrooms to make purchases.

An open house for the community will be hosted by the library from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17. At that time, patrons will be able to make purchases of selected new books such as best sellers, chapter books and picture books.

Proceeds from the book fair will benefit Thompson students and the library.

The book fair will be held in conjunction with the Art Show from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 17.

Hoosier Riverwatch workshop offered

KOKOMO — The Kirkendall Nature Center in Kokomo’s Jackson Morrow park will host a Hoosier Riverwatch workshop in April.

Riverwatch is a statewide program that supports volunteer water quality monitoring of local waterways. Workshop participants will learn about stream ecology and tools for assessing water quality through several fun activities both indoors and outdoors. Teachers and home school educators may be especially interested in this workshop as many of the activities can be adapted for use with all grade levels and are cross-referenced with state teaching standards.

The workshop will take place in two sessions from 5:30 to 9 p.m. on April 28 and April 30 at the Kirkendall Nature Center in Jackson Morrow Park, Kokomo. Participants must attend both sessions. The workshop is free of charge and open to individuals of high school age or older. A mature younger person may attend with an accompanying adult. Registration is required. Please call the Howard County Soil and Water Conservation District at (765) 457-2114, Ext. 3, or the Clinton County Soil and Water Conservation District at (765) 659-1223, Ext. 3.

Stillwater holding mom’s time out

Stillwater Academy, 500 Helm St., will be offering Mom’s Time Out beginning Feb. 25.

This program will give moms an opportunity to run errands while their children are enjoying social interaction, art, music, stories and games.

This service will be provided from 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesdays and/or Fridays at the school. Children 18 months to 5 years of age are welcome. The cost is $6 a day.

Anyone interested should call (574) 753-3211 on any weekday morning for details to reserve a space for their child.

Willard to teach class at Warsaw

ROCHESTER — Shirley Willard, Fulton County historian, will teach a class as part of The Big Read at Warsaw, sponsored by Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne.

The class will consist of two Saturday mornings: Feb. 14 and 28, from 10 a.m. to noon, at Warsaw Center. Cost of the class is $35.

Joe Hamilton, Warsaw, will be there to share his Potawatomi history. He is a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and a descendant of Abram Burnett, who was on the 1838 Trail of Death from Indiana to Kansas.

For more information, see ipfw.edu/warsaw and click on non-credit courses. To sign up, call (260) 481-6619 or (574) 269-6562.

Waste district offering grants

The Cass County Solid Waste District has a total of $2,000 to offer in grants this year. Applications for the grants are available at the office, 502 High St. and must be received at the office two weeks before the board’s March 26 meeting. The grants will be reviewed and likely awarded at the April meeting.

The money must be used to promote waste reduction in some way. It also can be used to buy items made out of recyclable material. Since the amount is relatively small this year, applicants are encouraged to think in terms of $500 to $1,000 when applying.