Jon Anderson’s favorite projects are the ones that almost don’t happen.

Anderson is the president and chief executive officer of AP Development LLC, an Indianapolis-based real estate development company that is overseeing the rehabilitation of Huntington’s UB Block. It’s a project that qualifies as one of Anderson’s favorites because it has saved historic buildings for which demolition loomed.

Indiana Extension Homemakers Week is Oct. 15 to 19 and a display was used during September to highlight the local homemakers’ activities for Huntington County at the Huntington Branch of the Huntington City-Township Public Library.

This month members of the Huntington County Extension Homemakers will read books to the preschoolers at Head Start. The organization reads to the children four times a year. In preparation for the event, the extension homemakers made 72 book bags to give to the children at the first reading to keep their books in.

The Huntington County Humane Shelter says animal abandonment is on the rise in the county, sometimes with dangerous or even fatal consequences.

“Abandoning animals at the shelter is a very big problem, and a lot of people don’t realize that the majority of them do not stay there,” says Huntington Animal Control Officer Jean Wilson. “If they do not bring them in during our business hours when we ask them to and they just leave them on the property, we can’t guarantee that they are safe.”

It was a distraught Terry and Sue-Ellen Sommers who called Huntington County’s 911 Dispatch in the wee hours of Thursday, Sept. 13, when they were at their wits’ end over the behavior of a beloved member of their family.

Capt. Dennis Marak will take his message right into the Opera House Saloon when he preaches at the Forks of the Wabash Pioneer Festival on Sunday, Sept. 23. The old-fashioned, non-denominational worship service begins at 9 a.m. at the “saloon,” located on the Huntington County Fairgrounds.

“I’m honored to be part of it. Since the Salvation Army has been here since 1889, we have been an integral part of what the county has done and has accomplished, and we continue to do,” he says, “I just think it’s a real privilege.”

There’s no time like a family gathering for a special announcement.

And at Easter, J. David Carnes, MD, and his wife, Janice, received surprising news from their daughter, Colleen.

“She said, ‘Oh, by the way, I’m going to donate a kidney this summer,’ says Carnes, a Huntington native who practices with Parkview Physicians Group – Family Medicine and sees patients at Parkview Huntington Hospital. “She was very committed and comfortable with her decision. So we said, ‘Oh, OK, then.’ We were all for it.”

A national “hip hop” rapper known for his rapid-fire lyrics is coming to give a concert in Huntington, thanks to the efforts of a local artist.

Kyle Schnepp, of Huntington, known on the local hip hop scene as “Lyrical the Miracle Man,” is organizing the multi-artist show, which will feature David McCleary Sheldon of Kansas City, MO, also know as Mac Lethal, as its headliner.

The second annual Huntington Chalk Walk is set for Saturday, Sept. 15, at the Huntington County Courthouse square from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Artists of all ages and ability levels will have the opportunity to adorn small or large sections of sidewalk with their finest chalk art. Chalk will be provided while supplies last. Participants will have from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. to work on their art.

Artists from all across Huntington County have been sprucing up 41 fire hydrants around town, painting cartoon figures on them in Huntington’s downtown district and other major points throughout the city. The artists, many of them well-known, include members of the Creative Abilities, Pos’Abilities and Little River Art Group as well as the Essential Skills class from Huntington North High School.

The Parkview Huntington Family YMCA will soon start offering a youth golf program.

While one of the goals will be to teach the fundamentals of golf to children between the ages of 6 and 8, there will also be another, more important goal for the program, says Tim Allen, its organizer.

“It does introduce the game of golf to kids, but it is really, honestly, more about teaching good conduct and behavior and etiquette and manners and, honestly, how you treat people,” he says.

The Huntington BBQ Festival returns for its second year on Saturday, Aug. 25, giving hungry patrons an all-you-can-eat meal and a vote for the best barbecue while helping two local ministries at the same time.

The event takes place from noon to 6 p.m. at the Parkview Huntington Hospital Show Arena at the Huntington County Fairgrounds, rain or shine. Organizer Brenda Rosen says with a theme of “Feed the Hungry,” all proceeds from the festival will go to the New Life Meal Ministry and the Salvation Army’s food pantry.

The 13th annual Ride 2 Provide is set for Saturday, Aug. 18, at Markle Park.

While the motorcycle ride that the event is known for will commence at noon, a variety of other activities will be taking place both before and after that time.

The aim of all those activities is the same: raising funds for a good cause.

When Bryden Ricker was at the local YMCA, he was inspired to do what he could to help others less fortunate than himself. So, he asked his mom if he could sell some lemonade.

“He kept begging me to do a lemonade stand, and finally I said yes,” says Jana Ricker, Bryden’s stepmom. “After we got it set up, that’s when he said he wanted to donate to Riley.”

There will be wheels – and deals – throughout the town of Zanesville Saturday, July 28, as the Lions Club Summer Festival gets underway. Lions Club member Melba Edwards says there are plenty of opportunities for people to not only come view the events planned for the day, but also sign up and become part of the festivities.

New this year is a co-ed softball tourney, which will be held at the Lions Club Ball Diamond, Edwards says.

From “Zero” to “Hero,” the 14 Huntington County United Way Pacesetter companies who will lead the charge in the 2018 fund-raising campaign were exhorted to go above and beyond, by just 5 percent more this year.