New life for old coal: Minelands and power plants are hot renewable development spots
by Robert Zullo, Indiana Capital ChronicleNovember 28, 2023 Petersburg — AES Indiana’s Petersburg Generating Station, which towers over the White River here in southwest Indiana, has been burning coal to generate electricity since the late 1960s. That era, though, will come to an end soon. Two of the power plant’s four coal-burning units have already…
Trace Adkins headlining 4th annual Red, White & Brauen Music Fest
Huntingburg — Multi-Platinum Country Star TRACE ADKINS will headline the 4th Annual Red, White, & Brauen (RWB) Music Festival on Saturday, August 24, 2024. The event, presented by Shoe Sensation and produced by Rally Point Events, will move to a NEW location, League Stadium in Huntingburg, Indiana, in 2024. The Kentucky Headhunters, War Hippies, and Tyler…
New helpline available for teens feeling sad, anxious, lonely or angry
Nationwide, more than four in 10 youth felt persistently hopeless in 2021, and 1 out of 3 students experienced poor mental health. To help deal with this mental health crisis, the National Alliance on Mental Illness recently launched the NAMI Teen & Young Adult HelpLine. The free, nationwide service provides a safe space for young…
Celebration Singers will host four free concerts in December
The Celebration Singers Community Choir is pleased to announce their 2023 Christmas concert schedule. Featuring approximately 60 singers from Dubois, Spencer and Pike Counties, the all-volunteer choir will present four FREE concerts in December. Including both Sacred and Secular Christmas music selections, these one-hour concerts are sure to warm the heart. The public is cordially…
Visit Dubois County launches second annual “Making Winter Memories” giveaways
As the Christmas season approaches, Visit Dubois County is thrilled to announce the “Making Winter Memories” giveaways, a festive campaign designed to spread joy and create unforgettable memories during the holiday season. At Visit Dubois County, we believe in the power of making memories and what better time to do so than during the magic…
A tree lighting tradition
Friday afternoon, hundreds gathered at the Sixth Street Fire Station to meet with Santa Claus — portrayed by Ed Lemond — before parading down his cottage on the Square. The annual event has had a few changes over the years, but the essential elements of Santa Claus, his cottage, and a giant decorated Christmas tree…
Southeast Dubois Schools receives $100,000 to support literacy
Ferdinand- Pine Ridge and Ferdinand Elementary will benefit from a $100,529 grant to support literacy for kindergarten to third-grade students. Southeast Dubois County School Corporation was among the 72 benefactors of the Competitive Science of Reading Grant through the Indiana Department of Education in partnership with the Lilly Endowment. The grant awarded nearly $15 million to…
Dubois County Rotary Club hosts Economic Futurecast Luncheon: Mixed economic bag predicted for 2024
People flocked into the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center Atrium last Thursday, November 16, for the Rotary Club of Dubois County’s 19th annual Economic Futurecast Luncheon. One of Rotary’s most popular events, the organization hosted a panel of experts from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business who predicted trends in the national, Indiana and global economies for…
Democratic Party files for recount in Jasper District 4
The Dubois County Democratic Party has filed a petition for a recount in Jasper’s District 4. In a race that saw 512 votes cast, the District 4 council seat changed hands by a difference of two votes, allowing Republican Vince Helming (257 votes) to oust incumbent Democrat Dave Hurst (255 votes). The petition filed by…
Days Inn transformed into Clarion Pointe
Hemang and Darshana Shah recently celebrated a new chapter for their longtime Jasper hotel, Days Inn. For 30 years, the property has served the area under the Days Inn nameplate, but after undergoing extensive renovations, the hotel has been transformed into the Clarion Pointe. Jasper city officials and representatives from Visit Dubois County were on…
Community
Business
Açai XPress opening in Jasper
Laisha Carradero knew she had found something special the first time she tried açai berries. Laisha is originally from Puerto Rico, and her children visit family there in the summer….
Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari unveils Gravy Boat Coach at 2024 IAAPA Expo
Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari unveiled the custom-designed gravy boat-shaped coach for Good Gravy! at the 2024 International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo in Orlando, Florida on…
Seufert Construction recognized for construction safety, education and culture
Ferdinand — Seufert Construction achieved the Accredited Quality Contractor credential from Associated Builders and Contractors. ABC is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Accredited Quality Contractors program in 2023, and only…
SVB&T reports steady Q3 earnings amid challenging environment
Jasper — SVB&T Corporation, parent company of Springs Valley Bank & Trust, announced its third quarter 2023 earnings results this week, reporting steady performance amid a challenging economic climate. The…
LETTERS/OPINION
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A tree lighting tradition
Friday afternoon, hundreds gathered at the Sixth Street Fire Station to meet with Santa Claus — portrayed by Ed Lemond — before parading down his cottage on the Square. The annual event has had a few changes over the years, but the essential elements of Santa Claus, his cottage, and a giant decorated Christmas tree…
Onward: Dr. Scott Beckman
Dr. Scott Beckman, 62, liked to kid with his patients at Jasper Obstetrics and Gynecology that he was a late bloomer. When you start your medical practice at age 40, the joke works. Scott enrolled in Indiana University’s School of Medicine at age 32. By that point, he’d already found success in Dubois County’s medical…
Halloween Bash!
Sunday, multitudes of juvenile monsters, mythical creatures, and a mixture of contemporary pop culture icons of video games and cartoons filled the Jasper Public Library for the growing annual Halloween Bash. According to Library Director Christine Golden, the event has been a successful way to introduce more people to the library and its services. It…
Celebrating death and life
In connection with the multicultural elements of the area, the Jasper Community Arts is hosting a Diá de Muertos altar at the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center. The large display located in the lounge area between the two galleries was built with the assistance of volunteers from Jasper Community Arts, Asociación Latinoamericana del Sur de Indiana (ALASI), student…
Cutting shirt tails
On Wednesday, Reece Katterhenry made the trip to the BMV for the rite of passage so many 16-year-olds look forward to; he was going to test for his driver’s license. Weighing a bit heavier on his mind, though, was the larger challenge coming Thursday evening when he planned on completing his first solo flight at…
Round 2 of annual Public Safety Community Day
While Clint Stewart’s idea for a water balloon battle between kids and public safety personnel was met with a few groans in its first year, this year, the veteran water balloon battlers were eagerly anticipating a second round. Stewart brought the idea for the special day highlighting public safety services like EMTs, firefighters, conservation officers,…
Riverwalk of dreams
Artist Laura Pommier began work on an immersive mural underneath the 3rd Avenue/State Road 162 Bridge along the Jasper Riverwalk over the past weekend. Pommier’s chosen design covers the walls and ceiling of a section of the underside of the bridge. It will allow strollers an underwater view featuring flora and fauna found around Indiana…
2023 Jasper Strassenfest Parade
Hundreds of entries meant a fantastic opportunity for parade-goers for some great entertainment and plenty of treats at the Jasper Strassenfest Parade on Sunday.
2023 Jasper Strassenfest in full swing
The 2023 Jasper Strassenfest continues Friday through Sunday. This year, the festival celebrates the city’s designation as the 2022 Strongest Town in the USA and the 20th year of ROJAC, Redevelop Old Jasper Action Coalition. ROJAC was instrumental in transforming the Patoka River Front into a celebration of Jasper’s Rich German History. Those projects paved the…
A sweet life
The pick-up truck’s headlights illuminated the empty road as beekeepers Jerry Apple, 87, and Dan Schroeder, 46, drove to Jerry’s Jasper home after dropping the last of 20 hives at watermelon farms in Washington. “There’s only three things on the road at 2:30 in the morning,” Jerry said. “Turkey trucks, drunks and beekeepers.” The late…
Massive production brings Oz to life at Jasper Arts Center
It is nothing short of spectacular witnessing the controlled chaos of the hundreds of young extras, supporting artists, stage crew, actors, actresses, lighting, wardrobe changes, set piece movements, singing, dancing, and laughing on the journey along the yellow brick road to the ultimate climax of self-actualization and inner strength in the Actors Community Theatre production…
Dodge; it’s in the name
The Jasper Park and Recreation Summer Program offered up several rounds of dodgeball in the Cabby O’Neill Gymnasium Wednesday morning. Kids aged six to 14 took turns attempting to dodge flying balls of all sizes and colors for about an hour. Through multiple rounds, no clear winner could be determined, but a fun time was…
Birdseye bubble fun
The Jasper-Dubois County Public Library provided a special bubble play time at the Birdseye Town Park Tuesday afternoon. Kids were given access to a special formula concocted by Gayle Edelen, the library Maker Space Coordinator. She says it has to be mixed a day in advance. She does so in special five-gallon buckets that are…
Shaving cream-coated fun
The Jasper Volunteer Fire Department joined in the shaving cream fun at the annual Shaving Cream Wiffleball game held at Bohnert Park in Jasper on Friday. With rules as slippery as the Wiffleballs and shaving cream-covered field, the firefighters and hundreds of kids that turned out had a great time, with everyone walking off the…
The Process: A photo
The runners got together at 7 a.m. on the Fourth of July for a special training run with breakfast afterward. I showed up at 8:15ish and took this photo. There are a couple more, but nothing worth sharing. Breakfast was some fruit and cinnamon rolls, and KJ made pour-over coffee in his Chemex. The group…
The Process: Running to the Heartland
This will seem a little different than the typical story you find here. Considering how to create a story around the timeline leading up to The Heartland Half Marathon, I decided to allow the audience to see how the sausage is made — or at least give a little peak into the process. I hate…
2023 PRIDE
The 2023 Dubois County Pride Festival was held at Dave Buehler Plaza on the Riverwalk Saturday. Here are a few photos.
Here we go!
Luis asks if they have any bandaids. He is resting on the couch in Scott and Laura Garrison’s living room, and his heels are bleeding from the five-and-a-half mile ruck that began before daylight. The four other guys that joined in for the heavy circuit around Ferdinand spread out in the living room. One, Jacob,…
Beautiful Saturday highlights 20th Chalkwalk, more
Saturday, crowds head to the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center for the 20th Annual Jasper Chalkwalk and Redevelop Old Jasper Action Coalition celebration. Here are a few photos of the day.
Beautiful friendship creates meaningful moment for 100-year-old pilot
Ruth King is a pretty private person. She admitted as much Thursday as she expressed her discomfort with being the center of attention in a media frenzy over a special birthday gift from her dear friend, Brenda Hartke. But flying brought out the smile. Ruth is turning 100 years old on May 12. Nearly everyone…
Vroom! Vroom! Kiwanis Car Show on full display
Huntingburg’s Fourth Street was filled with cars, trucks and other “Things” Saturday morning and afternoon for the annual Huntingburg Kiwanis Car Show.
Memorial to Fallen Heroes of the War on Terror
The traveling Fallen Heroes Memorial was put on display over the weekend at the Fourth Street entrance to Market Street Park. The memorial is made up of 7,040 dog tags with the names of those servicemembers killed since 9-11. Each tag includes the date of their death. The 50 stars represent all Gold Star families…
JMS presents ‘Annie JR’
The Jasper Middle School Performing Arts is set to bring “Annie JR” to life at the Jasper Middle School Auditorium this Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door. Directed by Mrs. Courtney Heberer as well as student directors Ava Claire Werne and Tali Fleming, the performers will bring the…
‘Oklahoma!’ sweeps through Forest Park
Forest Park High School thespians will present the musical classic Oklahoma! this week. The Forest Park production directed by Chuck Bradley is based on Lynn Riggs’ 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs, which tells the story of farm girl Laurey Williams and her courtship by two rival suitors, cowboy Curly McLain and the sinister farmhand Jud Fry….
Huntingburg teen’s dream for special needs festival coming to fruition
When Maleah Dearing received the special assignment in her seventh-grade language arts class at Southridge Middle School, she knew exactly what she would do. Tasked with creating a special event or festival with a group of students she was teamed up with, Maleah drew upon her life experience with her nephew, Isaiah. Isaiah was born…
Bowling fun
The Optimist Club of Jasper Youth Bowling League is underway, with 83 bowlers ranging from first through eighth grade taking part in a fun hour of bowling at Eastown Recreation Center Saturdays. The league is held in the spring and fall and usually fills up. Here are a couple of photos from Saturday’s fun.
Making waves for a good cause
With numbers rivaling the first year of the event, organizers of the annual Dubois County Plunge were enthused with the 68 people that ran into the frigid water of Ferdinand Forest Lake Sunday afternoon. In all, $5,705 was raised at Sunday’s plunge, bringing the total up to $56,865 over the 12 years the event has…
Night to Shine: Back on the dance floor
Night to Shine returned to its full prom-like experience Friday evening at Redemption Christian Church in Jasper. The event is part of the Tim Tebow Foundation’s initiative. In a special broadcast during Friday’s Night to Shine at Redemption, Tebow and his wife welcomed the guests to the prom. About 175 special kings and queens participated…
Dressing up
The dancing, karaoke and other festivities will again fill Redemption Christian Church on February 10 when Night to Shine returns after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Saturday, the church hosted a Dress Shop matching the honored guests with their gowns for the upcoming prom-like event. Dresses are still available, as well as suit…
Making new friends
Wednesday was a special day for children enrolled in Headstart at Tri-Cap. They were invited to participate in the Cops and Kids program offered through the local Fraternal Order of Police #138 Wood Capital Lodge. Members of the local law enforcement family were teamed up with the special shoppers to find needed clothing items and…
Mass celebrates grand church’s reopening
Saturday, St. Joseph Catholic Church celebrated the nearing completion of a multi-year, multimillion-dollar renovation hosting a Mass and dedication of the altar. The church was nearly full as Bishop Joseph Siegel led the congregation through the special ceremony, blessing the church and anointing the altar before holding communion. Plans for the renovation began in 2014….
Gifted grapplers: Boy and girl wrestlers’ progress ‘fulfilling to see’
Huntingburg — Local youth wrestlers are getting an early jolt with Southridge Wrestling Crew. Drew Songer, a volunteer and wrestler from the class of 2010 Southridge alumnus, is helping usher in these future boy and girl wrestling Raiders. He is one of several former wrestlers helping Crew coach Dan Rauscher, also a former Raider grappler,…
Huntingburg’s Christmas celebration continues
Downtown Huntingburg was filled with folks this past weekend as the seasonal Christmas celebration continued with ice skating in Market Street Park Friday and Saturday, as well as a special Candlelit Christmas parade Saturday evening. Here are a few photos.
Christmas comes to Jasper
The Christmas season officially opened up in downtown Jasper Friday afternoon with the lighting of the annual Christmas Tree and Santa settling into his holiday home on the Square. Here are a few photos of the event. Santa Claus will be in his house on the Square over the weekend from 12 to 3 p.m….
Getting Raider Field ready for Regional
When the sun didn’t make an appearance over the three inches of snow on Raider Field Saturday, a call out for help on social media was made. After the word went out on Facebook, an army of snowblowers, shovels, and more showed up to help get the field cleared off. “Raider Pride was never so…
Rock Steady: Fighting Parkinson’s a punch at a time
A group of folks fighting the long-term effects of Parkinson’s Disease meets at the Ferdinand YMCA a couple of days a week and beat the crap out of padded posts, speed bags and a dummy named KJ (which stands for Kristen Junior in memory of a previous coach). It’s 12 rounds of intense station-to-station work…
Honoring veterans
On Saturday, nine living World War II veterans were honored during the annual Dubois County Veterans Day Observance held at the Holland VFW. According to Dubois County Veterans Council President Kent Schreiner, the nine men recognized for their service during the war are the few living veterans the council was able to locate for the…
Huntingburg family’s life of adversity filled with triumphant faith
Faith, acceptance, and resilience are the waters the Werne family swims in daily. While many would be overwhelmed by the adversity and challenges they have faced and continue to face, they bear it with a view on the eternal found in their trust in God. A new book written by Laura Seger McAninch through extensive…
Turning 50 with friends
Monday and Tuesday mornings provide the fleeting moments when John Songer can take time just to think and maybe imagine what the next stage of his business looks like. He doesn’t open until 4 p.m. on those days. “I can come in, and I’m still working, but there’s nobody here,” he explained. “The ghosts don’t…
Running to Honor & Remember
OFS hosted a special 5K/10K at Cool Springs on Saturday. The event raised money to assist the national organization Honor & Remember’s mission to recognize and honored military veterans who have died while on duty or otherwise since the inception of our country. A 13-mile ruck was also held in recognition of the sacrifice of…
Vintage connections create everlasting memories
When their names weren’t announced as the first place winner during the Dubois County Motorcycle Club’s Show & Shine, it was okay. Jason Green and his son, Jon, felt good about their chances to place in the annual contest. Then, second place was announced. It went to another Jeep. Jon had seen the two winners;…
Rain or shine, the parade is a hit
The Jasper Strassenfest closed with its annual parade Sunday afternoon. A brief shower failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the crowds lining Jackson and Main streets though. Here are a few photos of the event.
Gratitude transcends history, connects families
The myriad of emotions overwhelmed Denny Spinner as he held a photo of the hotel in his hand. It was just an old postcard featuring a prominent building on what could be considered the main street of the small town of Woerth in France. But the postcard had been given to him by 93-year-old Anna…
Tate’s super ear
Mark Seibert almost always wears a hat. It slides over the bionic ear on the back of his head. But in church, his cochlear implant is a magnet for stares. No hat to cover the silver dollar size disc attached to the back right side of his head, he feels the eyes — at least…
Girl power
Addy’s world was silent as she reached down and prepared to lift the bar. “I knew there were people cheering me on,” she remembers. “But I didn’t know, because when you get up on the platform, you can’t really hear it. You just kind of blank out. Everything goes away.” Her coach, Whitney, didn’t want…
Now it is my turn
Standing in the Indiana State House a few weeks ago, Dani Calderon was overwhelmed for a moment. She had accompanied a group from Dubois County invited by State Senator Mark Messmer to attend a committee hearing on Senate Bill 138. The bill would have given undocumented students access to in-state tuition and funding. However, it…
Shining thru the rain
The annual Night to Shine event hosted by Redemption Christian Church in Jasper was relegated to a drive-through event again in 2022. That didn’t stop the kings and queens from showing up to receive their special crowns and gifts to an entourage of fans and paparazzi for the Shine Thru Parade. Despite the rain and…
A measure of a life
They stood up one after the other. His grandson went first. Junior regaled the funeral service with a winding story about a fancy car and looking at big houses with his grandfather. It ended with the pair of best friends sharing a metaphorical elbow jab and wink as they told Doc’s wife, Cathy, of their…
Ruger is here to build
Ruger Kerstiens always planned on returning to Jasper. On the surface, the reasons Ruger wants to live here are easy. Cost of living, excellent schools, community pride, plenty of activities, growing opportunities, his family and its business. But it’s also driving by his grandfather Jerome’s farm with the fall sunrise covering the hills in that…
Kindness endures, the flowers are for you
The flowers are meticulously planted by hand with seeds so tiny that it only takes a teaspoon to create a brilliant splash of color on the busy street corner in Jasper. They are a gift from Leo Eckerle to the many occupants of the passing cars. He considers it his job to go out in…