Features

After the sudden loss of a young family member, one Huntington family is hosting a March Heart Screening for those ages 10 to 25 on Saturday, March 5.

Leading up to Valentine’s Day, Monday, Feb. 14, Salamonie School students were able to participate in a special fundraiser, sponsored by the Salamonie Student Council.

The fundraiser project, which was a stuffed puppy sale, began in January. The sale ended on Tuesday, Feb. 8, and the Student Council was able to sell more than 200 stuffed puppies to their fellow students.

Kappa Kappa Kappa members will celebrate the philanthropic sorority’s 121st anniversary later this month, and Mayor Richard Strick issued a proclamation recently to mark the occasion and declare Feb. 20 through 26 as Tri Kappa Week in Huntington.

The sorority, commonly known as Tri Kappa, was founded in Indianapolis on Feb. 22, 1901, to promote charity, culture and education throughout Indiana. Just more than five years later, Huntington’s Chi chapter was founded on Sept. 9, 1906.

The Huntington North High School students in Terry Stoffel’s Criminal Justice class were given a unique opportunity to help raise funds for the upcoming Post Prom – by hosting a “Jail and Bail” event with some well-known names and faces acting as inmates for the day, tasked with the goal of raising funds for Post Prom 2022.  

Riverview Middle School student Lynnsey Degitz won the Huntington County spelling bee on Tuesday, Feb. 8, by correctly spelling the word “allergenic.”

Degitz has been her school’s spelling bee winner each of the last four school years, and last night marked her second time winning the countywide competition.

Roanoke Elementary School student Lane Canvin finished as the runner-up in the competition.

A local charity organization is asking for help from the community with two major needs. Huntington County Blessings in a Backpack provides food for hundreds of Huntington County school children each weekend throughout the school year, and the organization is currently in need of extra volunteers, as well as a new space for their food storage and bag packing.

Alayna Pohler and Della Nix are the Huntington Rotary Club’s Junior Rotarians for February.

Pohler is the daughter of Solomon and Julie Pohler. At Huntington North High School (HNHS), she is involved in Class Council, Rotary Interact Club and Student Athletic Board. She is also a battalion commander in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) and is part of the Raider team. Pohler’s other interests include photography, media, baking and volunteering at the Huntington County Humane Society.

The transition of leadership of the Huntington County Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors took place Monday, Jan. 10 at the January board meeting. The new directors assumed their roles on the board at the meeting held at Huntington University with a luncheon provided by Sodexo.

The leadership of the Chamber made the difficult decision to cancel the annual dinner for 2022. With COVID cases continuing to rise, the board believes large gatherings are still unwise.

Inspiration may sometimes be found in unexpected forms, and tragedy for one family can set in motion events to help other families that are in a dark place.

In May 2010, 34-year-old Huntington resident Colin Moriarity died as the result of an accidental drug overdose. It was a shattering loss for his family, and especially for parents Ardella and Richard Moriarity. Ardella admits the family has been searching for a way to bring something positive out of their heartbreak.

“For years, we have been thinking about some kind of tribute to Colin,” Ardella said.

Thursday, Jan. 13, marked a momentous occasion for Huntington County. Representatives from the Huntington County Sheriff’s Department, Huntington City Police Department, County Council, County Commissioners and more were present at the Huntington County Sheriff’s Office and Jail for a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the jail’s new expansion.

An alternative option for wellness is now available in downtown Huntington. Anyone seeking a path to wellness without using modern medicine or treatments is invited to visit The Amethyst Lotus, located at 35 W. Market St., Huntington.

The Amethyst Lotus is owned and operated by Lisa Brewer and Skydawn Bickel. They describe themselves as “yin and yang” because of how different they are, but they each agree that one could not have opened the business without the other.

On Friday, Jan. 7, Huntington Catholic School (HCS) attended an all-school liturgy service at SS. Peter & Paul Catholic Church, during which several awards such as spirit awards and birthday club book awards were handed out.
One other special award, known as the Christ the Teacher Award, was also handed out.

In the mid 1800s, the Moore/Corlew building came into existence at present-day 400 N. Jefferson St., Huntington. For a good portion of its existence, the brick building and its main level have been home to several downtown Huntington businesses, while the upstairs levels went unused for 75 years or more. Now, thanks to the efforts of Sara and Matt Wilcox, a new life has been breathed into the second and third floors, which are ready to be used as living spaces.

Huntington North High School (HNHS) junior Brooke Swaidner was recently named the second recipient of the Smart Girls Scholarship through the Terra Brantley Foundation and the Boys & Girls Club (BGC) Smart Girls Program. On Wednesday, Dec. 22, Swaidner received the $15,000 scholarship at the BGC of Huntington County with friends, family, club members and Terra Brantley Foundation members present.

BGC of Huntington County CEO Mandy Reber began the presentation by welcoming everyone and explaining a little bit about the Smart Girls Program.

For 30 years, Pam Crone has been a tour guide, planning trips and tours for interested parties and specializing in Senior group travel. She is the owner of Bucket List Tours with Pam and celebrated her years of tour guide experience on Wednesday, Dec. 15, with a celebration at the Huntington Historical Museum, which is one of her locations for Senior group travel trips.