Local News

The Board of Directors of Bolt for the Heart, the organization is thanking the cities of Michigan City and La Porte, Franciscan Health, The Play for Jake Foundation, ACME Communication, Horizon Bank and Peepers and all the walkers and runners for making the 4th annual Bolt for the Heart 5K and 10K walk / run on Oct. 29 a great success. “The turnout, venue, weather and enthusiasm was fantastic, the La Porte County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) stated. “Law enforcement teams from La Porte County were represented and led by La Porte County Sheriff John T. Boyd, Chief Steve Forker of

The following is a list of upcoming mobile food distributions by the Food Bank of Northern Indiana:   Tuesday, December 13, 2022 – Starke County 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. CT *While supplies last. WHERE: Knox United Methodist Church, 201 S. Shield St., Knox, IN 46534 *This is a USDA distribution and will serve 250 households.   Wednesday, December 14, 2022 – LaPorte County – Turkey Distribution Noon – 2 p.m. CT *While supplies last. WHERE: Kingsford Heights Community Center, 515 Wayland Rd., Kingsford Heights, IN 46346 *This distribution is provided by Beacon Health System and will provide turkeys for

A man with multiple warrants on charges was arrested after a police pursuit, according to Michigan City police. Thursday night around 11 p.m. officers were working a special Street Hawk patrol for gun violence and firearm offenses. An officer observed a GMC Sonoma had committed traffic infractions while following behind it, along the west side of the city.  The officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the Sonoma but the vehicle failed to stop and fled from police south out of the city limits, police said.  Officers continued to pursue the fleeing vehicle and notified surrounding agencies of the

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana – Franciscan Health Crown Point and Franciscan Health Michigan City were among five Franciscan Health hospitals to be recognized by the Indiana Hospital Association (IHA), in partnership with Gov. Eric J. Holcomb and State Health Commissioner Kris Box, MD, for their commitment to infant and maternal health through the INspire Hospital of Distinction recognition program. The recognition was announced Thursday at the IHA Labor of Love Summit in Indianapolis. INspire, funded by the Indiana Department of Health’s Safety PIN grant, was developed to implement the delivery of best practice care for Hoosier moms and babies and recognize hospitals

Tickets are on sale now for the NIBC LaPorte Invitational on Jan. 5-7 at the LaPorte Civic Auditorium. This three-day event features 10 of the best high school basketball programs in the nation, featuring 30 of ESPN’s top-ranked recruits. This is your chance to see the future all-stars of the NCAA and NBA, right here in the City of La Porte. Buy tickets at: www.viewstub.com/LaPorte-NIBC.

The Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife, Indiana DNR Law Enforcement and Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry are jointly encouraging hunters to donate deer to help feed those in need. Hunters donated  879 deer to help stop hunger in 2021. The organizations are hoping to make it to 900 donations this year. You can help reach this goal by donating your harvested deer to the Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund to help hungry Hoosiers during the upcoming seasons. Last year’s donations provided 181,304 meals. That averages to 206 meals per donation. The Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund provides grants to Hoosiers Feeding the

The Michigan City Police Department is collecting winter items for those in need. They are in need of hats, scarfs, gloves, socks, backpacks etc. This is for new items only. Any items can be dropped off in the lobby at MCPD. The collection date ends on Jan. 15 See the departments flyer for contact information.

The Portage Police Department and their officer Lt. J. Maynard were recently recognized with awards for community outreach. The Portage Police Department says that several years ago they had set goals to become more involved in community outreach, to increase positive interactions with their citizens, and to increase their partnerships with local groups working to improve the community. Thursday morning, at an awards ceremony hosted by the Porter County HUB Coalition (Substance Abuse Council), the Portage Police Department and specifically, Lt. J. Maynard were recognized for some of the work done in these areas during 2022. PPD received a Community

Longtime La Porte County Sheriff’s Office employee Vern Hohnke recently retired.  He served the Sheriff’s Office for 35 years, having been hired in August of 1987. Vern served for five Sheriffs and worked in the jail for several years before transitioning to Courthouse Security where he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. The La Porte County Sheriff's Office says Vern was a dedicated employee who was extremely passionate about his duties.

The Indiana Health Department’s Labor of Love Summit focusing on maternal health took place Thursday in Indianapolis. Indiana’s infant mortality rate rose slightly in 2021 primarily due to an increase among Hispanic infants, while the rate for non-Hispanic white infants improved slightly and the rate for non-Hispanic Black infants remained unchanged, the Indiana Department of Health announced Thursday. The statewide 2021 infant mortality rate rose to 6.7 per 1,000 live births, up from 6.6 in 2020. The Hispanic infant mortality rate rose from 6.0 to 8.1 per 1,000 live births, while the rate for white infants fell from 5.5 to

Michigan City Transit made the following statement on Thursday regarding a service detour on Route # 4: “Due to South Shore double track project, Route # 4 is unable to provide service to Cooper St., Willard Ave., and 10th Street. “Route #4 will resume regular route service at Willard Ave. and 9th Street. “Michigan City Transit apologize for any inconvenience to our riders, we are unable to safely and timely re-route service to this area.”

HAMMOND, Indiana – Northwest Indiana families facing food insecurity will have extra help thanks to a $20,000 grant from Old National Bank Foundation to Franciscan’s Health’s Fresh Start Market and new Food Rx Program. The Franciscan Health Foundation partnered in 2021 with the Food Bank of Northwest Indiana to create a three-phase Food Insecurity Program to address food insecurity across the region. Franciscan Health Foundation Director of Development MinDee Richard said the expansion of the Food Insecurity Program would not be possible without the financial support from Old National Bank Foundation. “The program will directly partner with vulnerable populations to

Michigan City Area Schools on Wednesday addressed a fix to a glitch in the PowerSchool app. MCAS stated on their Facebook page, “Attention, Families: We've been made aware of a glitch with the PowerSchool Mobile parent portal app that is causing data not to sync. The fix for this is to uninstall and then reinstall the app on your phone. (This free app is available in the App Store and on Google Play.)”

The South Shore Line announces that it will again offer a “Buy 1 Get 1 Free” promotion, applicable for January monthly tickets. All monthly tickets purchased for the month of January 2023 will remain valid throughout February 2023. Passengers purchasing a paper January monthly ticket should plan to keep that ticket and use it through February, and passengers purchasing a digital January monthly ticket via the mobile app will see a February ticket uploaded to their accounts prior to Feb. 1. For passengers who receive tickets through an employer benefit program such as Wage Works or Commuter Benefit Solutions, these

La Porte County Parks announced that the Red Mill playground is complete. The Department stated, “We know it’s cold but come on out and check this out!” A grand opening is planned in the spring. See a 360 degree photo on Facebook on the La Porte County Parks Facebook page.

Mayor Duane Parry is proud to announce the award from the Indiana Department of Transportation grant match for street paving. Michigan City received the full amount requested, just under $700,000.00. Below are the streets that will be paved in 2023 using the grant match. Cherry Street from Hendricks St to S Woodland Ave (there are no homes with Cherry St addresses) Cloud Street 200 – 400 blocks               Dewey Street 100 – 700 blocks Douglas Ave: 200 – 400 blocks   Fir Street 100 – 600 blocks Francis Street 100 - 200 blocks  

NIPSCO is encouraging income-eligible customers struggling to pay their gas utility bill to apply for additional energy assistance programs available beginning Dec. 1 through May 31. Programs such as NIPSCO Hardship, SERV (Supply Energy Resources to Veterans) and SILVER (Seniors in Indiana Low-Income and Vulnerable Energy Resource) offer a one-time benefit of up to $400 per year to those who qualify. SERV is an income-eligible assistance program available for active military and eligible veteran NIPSCO customers who need financial assistance with gas residential utility charges. To participate, customers must be an active member of the United States Armed Forces or

The Town of Chesterton announced it has been awarded another 50/50 Community Crossings state infrastructure grant. This grant is in the amount of $383,772.75, which is the full amount for which it applied, according to the Town of Chesterton. The grant will be used next year for three paving projects: East Porter Ave. between South Calumet Road and Ind. 49: East Porter Avenue between Indiana 49 and 250 East; and four streets in Westchester South, Primrose Circle, Olivia Court, Grace Lane, and Kathryn Court. The Total estimated cost of the three projects: $757,297.06. More information on the grant can be

The City of La Porte stated on Tuesday that the street department has begun the second round for leaf pick-up this week. As they did with the first round, they will work clockwise around the city. The city noted there were several factors that pushed the pickup back this year with “leaves falling late, early snow and heavy winds, to name a few.” See the City of La Porte Facebook page for additional updates on leaf pickup.

Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez on Tuesday joined the United States Secret Service Chicago Field Office in thanking dozens of Lake County Sheriff’s Department police officers for helping bring down a “large-scale” counterfeiting suspect to justice. “The work of these officers was critical to the investigation, and execution of a search warrant,” Martinez stated on social media.  “More than $150,000 in counterfeit U.S. currency was recovered along with rifles, handguns, ammunition and drug paraphernalia.” Almost 30 Lake County police officers participated, including SWAT operators, SWAT snipers, Drug Task Force Regional Enforcement Team, Uniformed Patrol Division, Aviation Unit and a police