Hundreds of little girls are dreaming of a special night with that special guy.

Those dreams will come true later this month at the Daddy-Daughter Dance, undeniably the most popular event sponsored by the Huntington Parks and Recreation Department.

“I kind of describe it as a little bit like prom for kids and their dads,” says Sharon Cuttriss, who coordinates the dance as well as other parks department activities throughout the year.

In today’s high-tech world, one can never be too wary – especially if one is a Senior Citizen.

Scam attempts seem to be on the uptick in Huntington County, and it’s not even official tax season yet. Some area residents – all of them over age 55 – say they have been inundated with calls, informing them their sensitive information has been compromised by scam artists who are actually trying to pry their personal information from them. And more and more, the crooks’ prime targets are the elderly.

Vehicles bearing black and yellow Huntington Area Transportation emblems are a common sight around Huntington County.

Huntington Area Transportation – or HAT, for short – is a free public transportation service offered by the Huntington County Council on Aging.
Retiree Mike Brennan, of Huntington County, is a driver for HAT.

And on a recent trip to Daytona International Speedway, in Daytona Beach, FL, Brennan gave HAT some exposure at the racing venue, which is among the most famous in the world.

Monday was not only a night for laughs, it was a night of pride, as the Huntington County Chamber of Commerce reviewed its accomplishments the past year and what it hopes to accomplish in the new year ahead.

At the chamber’s annual dinner on Jan. 21, Executive Director Steve Kimmel told about 150 attendees to relax and enjoy the evening, as awards were presented, followed by some fun.

A 60-day experiment that gives Huntington’s homeless a warm place to sleep at night could reveal some interesting statistics about the status of homelessness in the community.

Rev. Jimi Staton, pastor of New Life Ministries, says when the New Life Fellowship, located at 313 E. Franklin St., opened its doors at the first of the year, on the first night they had one person take advantage of the warmth inside – and the sleeping quarters housed in its basement.

When Conner West, of Huntington, was fighting acute lymphoblastic leukemia, one of the casualties was his senior season on the Huntington North High School varsity football team.

Ultimately, West beat leukemia. And, fittingly, with the fight behind him, he found his way onto a football field once more.

Only this field wasn’t Kriegbaum Field, the home of West’s Huntington North Vikings. Over a thousand miles away from Huntington, the venue was Raymond James Stadium, in Tampa, FL, the home of West’s favorite football team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

As Chris Newton’s tenure as sheriff of the Huntington County Sheriff’s Department begins, he describes the department as a “well-oiled machine.”

He credits that to his predecessor, Terry Stoffel, whom he served under for eight years as the department’s chief deputy. Stoffel was a mentor to him during that time, shares Newton, and his tutelage prepared him for the opportunity to succeed him.

A move by Pathfinder Services Creative Abilities has led to not only new digs, but a new market – and new friendships.

The art studio, the clients of which are artists with primarily developmental disabilities, moved from its former home on Theater Avenue after the lease ran out on its building Nov. 1, and landed at Café of Hope, a ministry of Life Church, located at 900 E. State St., Huntington. Those with Creative Abilities, Café of Hope and Life Church say it’s a partnership made in heaven.

Over the past several decades, Bob Crispen has literally put the rubber to the road in helping people – namely, children in need of specialized medical services.

Recently he reached a milestone and his personal goal, making his 365th trip chauffeuring kids and their families to a Shriners Hospital for Children.

On Dec. 3 he surpassed that goal with trip No. 367 – one for each day of a leap year plus an extra for good measure.

As the season drew to a close for the Huntington North High School girls’ swim team this past February, Alayna Stroup had reason to smile. The sophomore had qualified for the second day of competition at the formidable Warsaw Sectional. Competing in the 100-yard backstroke for the Lady Vikings, she achieved a clocking of 1:13.51.

It was her fastest time ever.

A recently-opened residential ministry – modeled after one already    in operation in Huntington – is already near capacity, as young women struggling to overcome the throes of opioid addiction find their recovery grounded in faith.

When the 16th annual Shop with a Cop night gets underway on Tuesday, Dec. 18, Huntington County Sheriff Terry Stoffel will have extra manpower to help underprivileged kids shop for Christmas. Now, he just needs some donations.

Tatjana Pasalic Karr once played in a poker tournament where there was a lot more at stake than money.

Karr currently works for Joseph Decuis, in Roanoke, but before that, she covered poker events all over the world, working for poker tours and media outlets.

Members of the newly launched USS Indiana will enjoy some northern Hoosier hospitality when they dine on hand-breaded tenderloins from Huntington’s Nick’s Kitchen, compliments of Huntington County’s commissioners.

A ceremony marking the Virginia-class nuclear submarine’s entry into active service in the U.S. Navy was held Sept. 29, in Port Canaveral, FL, and each of the Hoosier state’s 92 counties sponsored its commission.