Local News

All La Porte County educators are encouraged to attend this year’s virtual Summer Technology Conference on June 3, to gain practical, “use it in classroom tomorrow” technology solutions to classroom needs.   To register, visit https://bit.ly/3wjCBQk by May 27. The conference is led by the La Porte County Public Library and Unity Foundation of La Porte County.  This year’s conference again features Matt Miller, author of Ditch that Textbook and Tech Like a Pirate, who will be presenting new content applicable to teachers of all grade levels and subjects and regardless of whether they attended last year. In 2021, over 200

Horizon bank is welcoming Julia Harris-Diaz as a Bilingual Branch Manager of their La Porte office located at 301 Boyd Blvd. Harris is fluent in Spanish. She will oversee the daily retail operations along with managing sales and service of the branch. Harris has 14 years of banking experience. She was in the previous positions of teller, customer service representative, supervisor of the Wolves Student branch located at Michigan City High School and Assistant Branch Manager. Harris is a Member of the Diversity and Inclusion Advisor Resource Group at Horizon Bank; is a graduate of Leadership LaPorte County and member

A fatal crash occurred Wednesday night on I-80 according to the Indiana State Police.  At approximately 11:00 p.m., police responded to a two-vehicle crash between a semi tractor-trailer and a passenger car that had occurred on Interstate 80 at the 15.3 mile-marker in the eastbound lanes. The 15.3 mile-marker is just east of the Ripley Street exit. The crash resulted in both vehicles catching on fire and claimed the life of one individual. Preliminary crash investigation by Trooper William Carlson determined that the Chevrolet was stationary in the roadway for an unknown reason when it was struck by the semi

The Valparaiso and Portage Police Departments  announced Wednesday that they were the recipients of a donation of four Phillips brand, FRX model automated external defibrillators (AEDs).  The AEDs were purchased from Lakeshore CPR & Safety Training at a special price and donated by the Northwest Indiana Dental Society.  The life-saving equipment will be assigned to officers of each department’s respective patrol divisions.  The Valparaiso Police Department stated that, “having this equipment at the ready in police vehicles already dispersed throughout our cities will allow first responders to arrive at scenes more rapidly, where such equipment is needed.  During these heart

A man is facing charges, including false informing, after a vehicle accident in La Porte.  On Tuesday officers were dispatched to the intersection of Boston Street and Brighton Street for a vehicle accident.  After arriving, officers were informed by a witness that a male driver involved in the accident fled on foot down Brighton Street to a specific address.   During the investigation the suspected male driver was identified as Robert Kampf and the passenger of the vehicle was identified as Robert's grandmother, Shirley Kampf by several witnesses.  Robert returned to the scene of the accident. Robert denied to officers he

The Michigan City Police Department says it is continuing extra VCR patrols to proactively to combat a recent uptick in gun violence in Michigan City. While out conducting patrols officers seized two handguns, drugs, and made two arrests during recent traffic stops. On Sunday, May 15, at approximately 11:30 p.m., an officer conducted a traffic stop for a moving violation in the area of Oak Street and Belden Avenue. A K9 Officer and his K9 assisted the other officer with a free air sniff and the K9 made a positive alert for the presence of narcotics in the vehicle. As

The following is from the U.S. Small Business Administration regarding working capital loans due to economic Losses from 2021 frost and freeze: “The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is reminding small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations that June 20 is the filing deadline for federal economic injury disaster loans in Michigan due to frost and freeze from April 2 through June 25, 2021. Low-interest disaster loans are available in the counties of Allegan, Alpena, Barry, Berrien, Cass, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Emmet, Kalamazoo, Kent, Mackinac, Montmorency, Muskegon, Otsego, Ottawa, Presque Isle, Saint Joseph

Three Felony arrests were recently made during recent Violent Crime Reduction (VCR) patrols in response to the recent increase in gun violence in Michigan City. Police Chief Dion Campbell has immediately implemented Violent Crime Reduction (VCR) patrols to proactively combat this violence in Michigan City. Three officers made the arrests of the three separate individuals on Thursday, May 12, while working VCR Patrols. At around 10:30 p.m., a vehicle was observed driving at excessive speeds and a traffic stop was conducted. The driver, identified as 31-year-old Nicholus Wilke of Michigan City, was found to have outstanding warrants out of Porter

The La Porte County Symphony Orchestra (LCSO) has announced the 2022 Hoosier Star finalists. Youth: Lauren Eggleston, South Bend Savannah Holley, Michigan City Luke Housman, Rensselaer Krishaa Motycka, Terre Haute Addison Stout, Fort Wayne Adult: Laurel Blankenship, La Porte Maddy Haskell, Lake Station Jessica Johnson, Michigan City Shania Povlock, La Porte Julia Thorn, Crown Point These 10 individuals will compete, in their respective divisions, for the title of Hoosier Star. The 1st place Adult and Youth winners will receive a $1,000 prize. The 2nd place Adult and Youth winners will receive a $500 prize. Each finalist will sing a song

The La Porte County Sheriff’s Office will be increasing patrols as part of the national “Click It or Ticket” enforcement campaign ahead of Memorial Day weekend. For the next three weeks, deputies will be out in full force making sure drivers and passengers are buckled up and children are properly secure. Their goal is to reduce the number of traffic injuries and fatalities from lack of seat belt use, a continuing concern. Data from the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute (ICJI) shows that unbuckled motorists make up almost 40% of all passenger vehicle deaths in the state. The overtime patrols are

Purdue University Northwest (PNW) graduates should possess three key character traits — integrity, respect and courageousness — in order to be more successful in their careers and lives, keynote speaker Alfredo “Al” Sori, a 1989 PNW graduate, prescribed to the Class of 2022 on Sunday, May 15 at PNW’s spring commencement ceremony. Sori, who graduated from PNW with a bachelor’s degree in construction management, was a longtime leader and manager of large-scale construction operations and industrial engineering projects with Kiewit, Inc. He most recently served as division manager of Kiewit subsidiary Mass Electric Transportation before retiring. The university hosted an

The City of Portage on Monday gave an update to the ongoing construction at Founders Square. The city stated on their Facebook page regarding the construction that “Much of it is completing the finishing touches to the renovations at Founders Square and the creation of Founders Plaza just east of the police station.” They also said additional parking for the Founders Square area is being completed. The city went on to state, “Directly north of the police station will be a 47-car lot and on the east side of the drive into the police station (on the west side of

The South Shore Line announced Monday that in order to accommodate a scheduled rail delivery in relation to the Double Track NWI project, the South Shore Line will bus midday passengers to stations between Carroll Ave. and Gary/Chicago Airport (Clark Rd.), effective Tuesday through Thursday, May 19. The Gary busing is in addition to ongoing busing between Carroll Avenue and Dune Park stations. -Weekday westbound trains 14, 116, 18, 118, 20 -Weekday eastbound trains 7, 107, 9, 109, 11, 111 Buses will arrive and depart with passengers to match our published train schedule between Carroll Ave. and Gary/Chicago Airport. Westbound

The Town of Porter Police Department is reporting that a suspect is in custody after an armed robbery in Porter County.  Police said on Monday at around 2:30 p.m. dispatch received a 911 call about a vehicle that was stolen from a gas station in the 1400 block of West U.S. Highway 20. It was reported to dispatch that the suspect displayed a firearm. Officers from the Porter, Burns Harbor, and Chesterton Police Departments responded to the area. Officers immediately began canvassing the area for the stolen vehicle and began interviewing witnesses and victims at the scene. Officers learned that

Detectives from the Indiana State Police Lafayette Post are investigating an officer involved shooting with the assistance of detectives from the Lowell Post that occurred on Cline Ave., just north of I-80 in Lake County. A preliminary investigation revealed that just after 3:00 p.m., the Indiana State Police received a report of a possible theft that had occurred in Homewood, IL. While searching for the suspect vehicle, Porter Police Department received a 9-1-1 call that a male, later identified to be 18 year-old Rashawn Thompson, from Chicago, exited a 2010 Chevrolet Impala and stole a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu from a

The following is an update from NICTD on the South Shore Line (NICTD) Double Track NWI Project construction that is ongoing: GARY- MILLER STATION AREA All buildings have been demolished for the construction of the station and parking lots in Miller. New sewer work has begun in both the west and east parking lots. Parking is available but temporarily restricted while work near Miller Station progresses. Vehicular and pedestrian access from Melton Road (US 20) will be closed, the driveway from Old US 12/Dunes Highway will remain open. Construction activities may be taking place on the shoulder of Dunes Hwy. Upcoming

Representatives of various civic organizations attended the Michigan City High School (MCHS) Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) Awards Ceremony on May 12 to present their respective awards to cadets. The ceremony was held to recognize the MCJROTC cadets for significant achievements in numerous program activities such as military drill, marksmanship, physical fitness, community service, and superior academic performance. Cadet Major Declan Rice also received an academic scholarship from the Michigan City chapter of the Marine Corps League. The following cadets were recipients of the following civic organization awards: -Daughters of the American Revolution: Cadet Corporal Alexandra Reed

A boost in the health and fitness of Franciscan Health employees is matched by a boost in the Franciscan Health Foundation’s Employee Emergency Fund, thanks to a challenge won by a team in Franciscan Health Michigan City’s Family Birth Center. Franciscan WellCare completed its 12-week Healthy You in ’22 program, with more than 400 co-workers participating. Money collected through a small entry fee helped pay for prizes for those who met their goal.  The “Womb Raiders'' team in Michigan City had the top performance based on weight loss and activity points. The team received not only a traveling trophy, but

NIPSCO is starting construction Tuesday to perform routine maintenance work near the intersection of Colorado Street and U.S. 30 in Hobart. The company says this work is part of the company’s overall plan to enhance, modernize and upgrade the natural gas system in the NIPSCO service territory to ensure customers continue to receive a safe and reliable source of energy for future years. To ensure the safety of local residents and onsite crews, maintenance work is being performed from 5:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on a portion of U.S. 30, specifically the east and westbound lanes turning onto South Colorado