Local News

Indiana is one of seven states with a law allowing police to seize firearms from those considered a risk to themselves or others. And new research shows that these so-called "red-flag" laws are working to help prevent tragedies. According to a study conducted by Aaron Kivisto, an assistant professor of clinical psychology at the University of Indianapolis, in the ten years following enactment of Indiana's risk-based firearm seizure law, firearm suicides decreased 7-point-5 percent. The study also looked at Connecticut, the first state to pass such a law, and found a 1-point-6 percent reduction in firearm suicides immediately after its

The La Porte County Master Gardener Association will be hosting a meeting open to the public on Thursday, July 5th at the Purdue Extension – La Porte County Office located at 2857 W. State Road 2, La Porte, IN. The meeting will feature Zully Alvarado, presenting Accessible Gardening. Zully has been disabled most of her life, and will be sharing gardening tips that she’s learned along the way. She will also tell us about some of the projects her organization, Causes for Change, is involved in. She will discuss accessibility of public and private spaces for gardening. There will be

The Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR) is holding its annual public hearing on June 19, 2018 at the Indiana Government Center South Building, Conference Room C from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. DOR’s public hearing provides customers and stakeholders the opportunity to provide feedback and share their ideas on how the agency can improve policies, processes and procedures. As a new feature to promote accessibility and transparency in the process, those who are interested but unable to attend the hearing can visit DOR’s Facebook page where it will be streaming live for the first time. The public can also submit

Yesterday, U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly met with representatives from the Indiana chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to discuss ways to help prevent suicide in Indiana. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released a report stating that suicide has now become the second-leading cause of death among 15- to 34-year-olds, and that the suicide rate in Indiana has risen 31.9% since 1999. Donnelly has been a leading voice in the Senate to improve mental health care and address the scourge of suicide. Those efforts have included authoring legislation that has been enacted to combat suicide among

The Michigan City Police Department congratulated Sergeant Ken Havlin for being selected as this year's Indiana State Fraternal Order of Police "Chris Anton" award recipient. The prestigious "Chris Anton Award" was named after the late Chris Anton, former Sheriff of Lake County and long-time active member of the Fraternal Order of Police. The "Chris Anton Award" was developed and named after Chris Anton in recognition of his many years of dedicated service of the Fraternal Order of Police. Chris Anton exemplified the true meaning and spirit of the Fraternal Order of Police with his involvement for many years as an

The American Legion, Department of Indiana's Centennial Commemorative Coin is a 2.5", textured raised and recessed, hand-painted, antique brass piece that proudly displays the Indiana Torch and 19 Stars, representing Indiana as the 19th State of the Union and our Hoosier Legion motto, We Change Lives on the back. The American Legion, founded by WWI veterans in Paris, France and chartered by Congress in 1919, is the largest Veterans Service Organization in the world. We advocate and support our nation's wartime veterans, their families and our communities. Show your support and help bring in the first 100 years of continued

Teens in grades 7-12 are invited to a new offering at Queen of All Saints Catholic Church in Michigan City: Ignite . The free, week-long event takes place July 16-20 from 6-8 pm each evening and is a twist on classic vacation bible school. Teens of all faith backgrounds are welcome, though programming will rely heavily on Catholic teachings. Activities for the week include a bonfire and s’mores with seminarians, SoulCore prayers and stretching, stewardship of the natural environment, a visit from the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, creating blessing bags for area homeless, and a movie night with popcorn.

Join the Greater La Porte Chamber of Commerce for Coffee Talk, a networking event for La Porte area business people. The event will take place on June 19th at Silver Birch of Michigan City, 4400 E. Michigan Boulevard, from 8:00 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. This version of Coffee Talk will be Speed Networking, where each attendee will have the opportunity to speak to each other one-on-one for 2 minutes at a time. This event is free of charge, and coffee will be provided. These events highlight a nonprofit or community-based member of the Chamber at each meeting. The community member

Possible changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program now under debate in Congress could overwhelm the faith groups that run some of Indiana's hunger-fighting programs. Rules added to SNAP, formerly food stamps, under a proposal in the House could include much tighter income and work requirements for eligibility. States where those tactics have been tried report more people showing up at food banks and pantries. Andrew Green with Shepherd Community Center in Indianapolis says the problem is, they're already feeding as many people as they can. Supporters argue tighter rules could save the government money by forcing people to get

The 1920’s will be alive in the Barker Mansion gardens during the June 24 Midsummer at the Mansion event. The first-time event will hearken back to Catherine Barker’s social life in the 1920’s, when she was a young woman known to make bathtub gin and patronize the finest clubs in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris. The midsummer event begins at 7 pm Central Time. The garden will be the primary setting for the event, but guests will be able to tour all three floors of the historic home. Games of the era, including bocce ball and croquet, can be played

The Michigan City Parks & Recreation Department & The Michigan City Redevelopment Commission invites the community to attend the Ribbon Cutting for Grand Opening of the Bismarck Hill Restoration Project & Trail System on Saturday, June 16th at 9:00am. The Ribbon Cutting will be followed by an interpretive trail hike. Those attending are asked to meet at the Guy Foreman Bicentennial Amphitheatre in Washington Park, 6 on the Lake. The Park Department, with funding through the Michigan City Redevelopment Commission, conducted a restoration project on Bismarck Hill, a set of three sand dunes encompassing approximately 30 acres just east of

Attorney General Curtis Hill announced he will work with the Indianapolis Fraternal Order of Police (Lodge #86) to build a bridge between police officers and the public. In May, the Indianapolis FOP launched a multifaceted initiative called #ThinkBigger aimed at educating the public about best practices for interacting with law enforcement. As part of its outreach mission, the Indianapolis FOP has pledged to contribute up to $25,000 to public education and awareness about “do’s and don’ts” during encounters such as traffic stops. The Indiana State FOP has endorsed the plan and agreed to contribute an additional $25,000. Among other proactive

August 18 and 19 from 10:00AM to 5:00PM guests can come to Lubeznik Center for the Arts (LCA) for Northwest Indiana's premiere art festival: Lubeznik Arts Festival (LAF). There will be over 100 national artist and community booths for the public to enjoy as well as a delicious array of food for all tastes and an art scavenger hunt for families. Now in its 37th year, LAF attracts thousands of shoppers and art enthusiasts to Michigan City's North End. Held on the third weekend in August, this festival features contemporary art and food. It draws repeat visitors from Chicago, South

On Friday, the Senate Agriculture Committee released the draft text for the 2018 Farm Bill, which contains a number of provisions championed by U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly that would benefit Indiana agriculture and the state’s rural communities. Donnelly, who serves on the committee, helped craft the bipartisan bill and earlier this week reiterated priorities for the bill that were developed after holding 12 listening sessions with nearly every segment of Indiana’s agricultural community. The Donnelly provisions included in the bill would help improve risk management tools, expand market opportunities, promote voluntary conservation activities, combat the opioid epidemic, support rural communities

The U.S. Small Business Administration is reminding eligible Private NonProfit (PNP) organizations in Indiana of the July 5 deadline to submit disaster loan applications for physical damages caused by severe storms and flooding from Feb. 14 through March 4, 2018. PNPs located in the following counties are eligible to apply: Benton, Clark, Crawford, Dearborn, Elkhart, Floyd, Fulton, Gibson, Harrison, Jasper, Jefferson, La Porte, Marshall, Newton, Ohio, Perry, Porter, Spencer, St. Joseph, Starke, Switzerland, Vanderburgh, Vermillion, Wabash, Warren, Warrick and White in Indiana.

Special Olympics of Lake County & SPLASH are holding a fundraising event for only $8.00 The Special Olympics Family Splash Party Fundraising Event at Deep River Waterpark is on Wednesday, July 18th. A 5pm early entry Event starts from 6:30pm - 8:30pm. Open to the public Tickets are limited to first 2500. If all 2,500 have not been sold.Purchase tickets in advance for $8.00, at the South Lake County Community Service, 1450 E. Joliet St., Special Olympics will also have tickets available at the group entrance on Wednesday July 18th at 5pm for 10 dollars Wednesday July 17th at 5pm

Lakeshore PAWS dog rescue will be hosting its 6th Annual Pup Crawl event from 5-10 p.m. June 16 at the Central Park Plaza Home to the Porter Health Amphitheater in downtown Valparaiso. The free event will feature tons of fun including music by The Crawpuppies, a beer and wine tent, activities for children, local food and pet vendors, and many available dogs to meet. Feel free to bring your friendly dog or dogs and take part in the big dog walk/parade, which steps off at 6 p.m. Registered participants of the walk will receive a commemorative T-shirt and goody bag.

Historic sites in Michigan City will become museums for one night only during the Barker Mansion’s newest programm: pop up tours. Through partnerships with area institutions, guests will get an insider’s look at significant structures which feature a connection to the mansion’s rich legacy. The group will depart from the Barker Mansion at 7 pm and walk to the locations of that night’s tour together. Heritage Interpreter TJ Kalin will point out significant architectural sites during the short walk. July’s pop up tour will highlight St. Mary the Immaculate Conception. The July 7 event will meet at the Barker Mansion

August 18 and 19 from 10:00AM to 5:00PM guests can come to Lubeznik Center for the Arts (LCA) for Northwest Indiana's premiere art festival: Lubeznik Arts Festival (LAF). There will be over 100 national artist and community booths for the public to enjoy as well as a delicious array of food for all tastes and an art scavenger hunt for families. Now in its 37th year, LAF attracts thousands of shoppers and art enthusiasts to Michigan City's North End. Held on the third weekend in August, this festival features contemporary art and food. It draws repeat visitors from Chicago, South

U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and 33 other senators sent a letter on Friday to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Labor Secretary R. Alexander Acosta, and HHS Secretary Alex M. Azar urging the administration to restore 12-month terms for short-term, limited duration insurance plans, which were available for two decades before being prohibited by Obama administration rules in 2016. The senators also urged the administration to clarify that issuers can offer renewal guarantees for STLD plans as a consumer option.