Local News

The Michigan City Washington Park Zoo’s bidding is now open in their 2021 Facebook auction supporting their animal care program and habitat improvements. The 2021 auction features over 60 zoo-nique items. The auction is open until Dec. 13 at 9:00 a.m. The zoo gave out some tips and rules for the auction: “1.) The winning bid must be on this Facebook page if this post is shared. Only bids on that page will be used. 2.) Bids will end at 9:00 am (12-13-2021). 3.) All items will need to be picked up or have arrangements made no later than Dec.

The South Shore Line announced that they are thanking local educators for their hard work this school year, by inviting teachers to ride the SSL for free December 22 – 29 on all weekday, weekend, and holiday trains. To ride, educators will need to present a valid school ID. See more information at MySouthShoreLine.com .

The final Veteran Free Day of the year at La Porte County Historical Society Museum will be on Saturday, Dec. 11. The museum is celebrating National Guard Founding Day. Although the National Guard was founded on Dec. 13, as that falls on a Monday this year they’re honoring it early. Veterans from any branch are welcome to visit the Museum free of charge this Saturday as a thank you for their service.  

The Ogden Dunes Street Department is no longer picking up brush for 2021 and the last day for leaf pickup will be this Friday, December 10th, 2021. Please try to get your remaining leaves out as soon as possible. If leaves are out after Friday, they will NOT be picked up. Leaf and brush pickup will resume at a date to be announced in the spring.

The Purdue Top Farmer Conference, a management program for farmers that features some of the nation’s top experts on farm management, farm policy, agricultural finance and marketing, will take place Jan. 7, live via the Zoom meeting platform. Frank Mitloehner, a University of California, Davis professor of animal science, air quality extension specialist and the conference keynote speaker, will discuss animal agriculture’s path to climate neutrality. Mitloehner is a sustainability expert who has spent nearly two decades studying the relationship between the livestock industry and air quality. His research sheds new light on the impact of livestock emissions on climate

The City of La Porte says if you are looking for gift ideas, TransPorte punch tickets are good for 10 rides and never expire. Drivers will pick passengers up right at their door and take them anywhere in City limits. General passes are available for just $30, and Senior/Disabled passes are $22.50. For more information, contact TransPorte at 219-326-8274.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announced on Tuesday that in response to some customer service cases, their maintenance forces are taking on the task of clearing vegetation and trash from behind the sound wall on I-80/94 in Lake County. INDOT said that over the years, the area behind the wall that stretches for miles along the Borman Expressway, has become overgrown and a dumping ground for trash. INDOT said there’s standard debris such as papers, food containers, etc. but also larger items like mattresses, televisions and even a car in one spot. The maintenance teams are making clearing the areas

Governor Holcomb Tuesday announced the placement of Indiana’s first-ever naloxone vending machine at the St. Joseph County Jail in South Bend. The machine is one of 19 to be placed in the state and will be available for use by the public. Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a medication approved to reverse an overdose from opioids and is given when a person is showing signs of opioid overdose to block the deadly effects of the overdose. Each kit includes a single dose of naloxone, instructions for use, and a referral to treatment for substance use disorder. The machine holds

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12, 2022 AT 3 PM – 6 PM Event by Chesterton Physical Therapy, Inc. 3190 Willowcreek Rd, Portage, IN 46368-4424, United States Light Refreshments provided

Mayor Tom Dermody and the Board of Public Works & Safety today announced the hiring of Craig Phillips as the new Director of Community Development & Planning for the City of La Porte. A Michigan native, Phillips’ resume includes planning experience in cities such as Elkhart, Valparaiso and more recently, Michigan City. Dermody said with his more than 20 years of professional experience, he anticipates big things from Phillips in the coming months. “We are thrilled to welcome Craig and his abundance of experience to our team,” Dermody said. “La Porte is on a roll and we are excited for

Healthcare Foundation of La Porte (HFL) awarded $6,502,170 in grants in 2021, bringing HFL’s total investment in the community to over $30 million since HFL’s founding in 2017. Dedicated to empowering La Porte County residents to live healthy and well, HFL makes grants to advance its strategic priorities of Healthy Children, Healthy Living, and Healthy Minds and responds to community health and wellness needs outside of these priorities through Healthy La Porte grants. HFL supports efforts to strengthen nonprofit organizations in La Porte County through Healthy Partners grants and grants AED equipment to help community members survive cardiac arrest through

Detectives in the Delphi murders are seeking information on a fake social media profile they uncovered. While investigating the murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German, detectives with the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office and the Indiana State Police uncovered an online profile named anthony_shots. Police say this profile was being used from 2016 to 2017 on social media applications, including but not limited to, Snapchat and Instagram. The fictitious anthony_shots profile used images of a known male model and portrayed himself as being extremely wealthy and owning numerous sports cars. The creator of the fictitious profile used this information while

The Porter County Health Department is conducting COVID rapid testing from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday at the Porter County Expo in Valparaiso.  The testing will take place inside of a mobile trailer near the 4-H Building. Walk-ins are welcome. PCR testing is available Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. See both posts on the Porter County Health Department for additional information.   

“Computer Science Education Week” is being marked around the country this week (Dec. 6 through 10), and one way Michigan City Area Schools students are celebrating is through an “Hour of Code.” With the help of experts from the Michigan City Public Library, students at Lake Hills Elementary School are spending at least one hour this week during the school day to practice what Dave Fink calls “creative coding.” He described this as an opportunity for kids to explore their own ideas in relation to technology. Fink, an employee of the public library, works often with MCAS students throughout the year on a variety of STEM projects

Michigan City High School (MCHS) hosted and competed in a military drill meet held at the high school on Saturday, December 4th.  Schools from throughout Indiana and Illinois attended the meet.  It was sponsored by the Michigan City chapter of the Marine Corps League and the MCHS Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) Booster Club. Judges were provided by the University of Notre Dame Navy/Marine Corps ROTC.  Portage edged out Indianapolis Ben Davis and  Romeoville, Illinois to win the meet. “Hosting a drill meet is much work,” said MCHS Senior Marine Instructor Major Tom McGrath.  “Since it requires

Governor Eric Holcomb is directing flags to be flown at half-staff to honor the life of Senator Bob Dole. Flags should be flown at half-staff at the Indiana Statehouse immediately until sunset on Thursday, Dec. 9.   Holcomb also asks businesses and residents to lower their flags to half-staff.

The City of Valparaiso says they will extend leaf pickup until Dec. 10. The city says that due to the warmer temperatures, there was a delay in leaves falling this year compared to 2020. To offset the delay, the city asks residents to “be mindful of the short time frame remaining, especially if snowfall is on the horizon which will complicate collection.” They also ask that residents make a strong effort in taking advantage of the weather and to move their leaves to the right of way (not the street) as leaf crews work additional hours to complete the collection

Schererville Police have reported that the body of a missing Dyer man was recovered from a retention pond in Schererville this past Thursday.  At approximately 7:48 p.m. Thursday, a Schererville Patrol Officer located a parked and unoccupied light blue vehicle behind a business in the 700 block of US 41 (Indianapolis Boulevard). After running a license plate check of that vehicle, the officer learned it was registered to a missing person from Dyer, indiana.  The Schererville Police Department with assistance from other agencies and multiple K9's began a search of the area and located a deceased male in a retention

The LaPorte County Health Department gave a COVID update on Friday and provided resources and information on testing and vaccines. "The FDA has issued an extension of the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) allowing the use of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in individuals 5 years of age and older. The La Porte County Health Department is offering the Pfizer pediatric vaccine at our COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic located at 1007 Lincolnway, La Porte, IN. No appointment is necessary. La Porte County is again designated as ORANGE this week. Total positive cases for La Porte County: 17,749 Total La Porte County COVID Deaths: 265

Purdue University Northwest (PNW) gained approval from the Purdue University Board of Trustees to offer a Doctor of Technology degree. PNW plans to welcome its first students in the program beginning in 2022-2023, pending approval by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the Higher Learning Commission. The program will be the second doctoral degree offered by PNW, joining the Doctorate of Nursing Practice that has graduated nine students since 2015. All of the DNP graduates are employed as leaders in nursing, with some practicing in primary care or specialty care settings and others engaged in nursing education. The professional