Local News

The Valparaiso Police Department is seeking interested participants for the 2025 Citizens’ Police Academy.  The department’s citizen academy provides an opportunity for community members to experience what it is like to be a Valparaiso Police Officer and is returning in 2025. The academy is designed for attendees to meet police officers and learn about their assignments, specialties, and daily operations.  There are several topics featured throughout the program, including presentations on all agency divisions, training, public information, drone team, bike patrol, crash investigations, School Resource Officers, evidence collection, K9 unit, traffic enforcement, and many more. The academy will meet on

Rogers Lakewood Park is reopened to the public Thursday. The Parks Department recently completed habitat restoration work on nearly 30 acres of parkland, removing invasive species to improve the health of the ecosystem. Valpo Parks says that while the park may look a bit different, they’re excited about the future of this revitalized space. They are asking the public to stay on designated trails and use caution as some woody debris may remain.

The Chesterton Fire Department announced that the town hall is now open, around the clock, as a warming shelter, according to the Town of Chesterton. It will remain open through Saturday morning, Feb. 15. Dangerously cold weather is also in the forecast next week, at which time the CFD is set to re-open the town hall. People whose furnaces fail or are underperforming may accordingly seek the relative comfort of the town hall, 726 Broadway, at the northeast corner of Broadway and North Eighth Street. Enter the building, then look for the double doors directly ahead. “Conditions at the Chesterton

HAMMOND and WESTVILLE, Ind. — Purdue University Northwest (PNW) Associate Professor of Nursing Julia Rogers was awarded the American Association of Nurse Practitioners’ (AANP) 2025 Award for Outstanding Contributions for the state of Indiana. The AANP State Award for Outstanding Contributions recognizes nurse practitioners (NPs) who demonstrate exceptional impact in advancing the NP profession at the state level. Nominees must excel in at least four key areas, including professional leadership, educational advancement, research contributions and community impact. Selection criteria emphasize the nominee's proven track record in fostering health care innovation through evidence-based practice, mentorship, strategic partnerships and advocacy efforts. Selected

Indiana Conservation Officer Bryce Klimek, who serves Pulaski County, has been selected as 2024 District 10 Officer of the Year. Klimek has served as a conservation officer for 22 years. He served in Porter County before transferring to Pulaski County. In addition to his normal duties as a field officer, Klimek serves as a field training officer, sonar operator, background investigator, and passenger for hire inspector, all for the Department of Natural Resources Division of Law Enforcement. District 10 includes LaPorte, Porter, Lake, Newton, Jasper, Starke, and Pulaski counties. The district award puts Klimek in the running for the Pitzer Award,

"Power of The Purse" ia back at Uptown Social in Michigan City on Thursday March 13, 2025 from 6pm-9pm. Each year Women United of La Porte County hosts Power of the Purse, an exciting designer purse raffle event that brings local women leaders (and men too!) together to have fun, network and support the financial stability impact work of Women United and the United Way of La Porte County. A fabulous Italian buffet dinner will be included with each ticket provided by The Waterford Inn! An OPEN BAR, specialty drinks, and other raffle opportunities will be available. Dress is business casual. Sponsorship will help us create

On Wednesday February 12th at approximately 2:43pm officers responded to the area of the Willowcreek Bypass south of Crisman Road in reference to a report of a motor vehicle collision involving a Portage Fire Department ambulance. Initial reports indicate that a white 2013 Chevrolet Equinox was traveling southbound over the Willowcreek Bypass at an unsafe speed for the road conditions. The combination of excessive speed and snow-covered roads caused the driver of the SUV to lose control and cross the center line into the northbound lanes. The SUV side-swiped a northbound delivery truck before striking a Portage Fire Department ambulance

La Porte County Issues Travel Advisory LP Co Alert: La Porte County has issued a Travel Advisory. Routine travel or activities may be restricted in areas. Individuals should use caution traveling. Allow extra time. Be safe. #wims

The Indiana State Police Criminal Investigations Division at the Lowell Post has initiated a criminal investigation into a video that has been shared on social media in regards to a dog that was being transported on a flatbed trailer. One of their detectives and an off-duty K9 unit located the endangered canine that was being transported as well as having identified a suspect. Police said on Tuesday they held the dog in a safe, undisclosed location and said the dog would receive treatment. Further information will released on Thursday, police said. Police would like to note that the pictured dog

La Porte County Sheriff Ronald C. Heeg is announcing some preliminary data from the 2024 Annual Report. The report will contain crime related and statistical information in the following areas: calls for service, offenses, arrests, crashes, citations, and warrants. “The crime related data within this year’s report reveals some significant decreases in several categories.” “With that though, traffic safety remains a concern due to increases in a couple categories,” stated Sheriff Heeg. The number of calls for service in 2024 decreased by 9%. A total of 25,718 calls for service were answered by deputies of the Sheriff’s Office last year

La Porte—La Porte High School's Music Department demonstrated exceptional talent at the Indiana State School Music Association (ISSMA) Vocal and Piano Solo and Ensemble Contest, held Saturday at Valparaiso High School. In a remarkable showing, 88 La Porte students earned 125 Gold Division medals, and 12 performances advanced to the State Finals in Indianapolis. "I’m really proud of our students’ commitment to musical excellence that made this contest so successful," said Thomas Coe, LaPorte High School's Choir Director. "They prepared the solos and most of the ensembles with minimal help and completely outside of class time. The Gold ratings confirm

The City of La Porte is reminding the public that with winter weather expected for today, remember that Nest LaPorte is open for those who need to get out of the elements. This temporary emergency shelter at the former train depot (809 Washington) is open now through the end of March. The hours are 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. nightly.

Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for our area. Below are details from the National Weather Service: For the counties of: Elkhart-Lagrange-Steuben-Noble-De Kalb-Starke-Marshall-Whitley- Northern La Porte-Eastern St. Joseph IN-Northern Kosciusko- Southern La Porte-Western St. Joseph IN-Southern Kosciusko-Cass MI-St. Joseph MI-Branch-Hillsdale-Northern Berrien-Southern Berrien-Williams-Fulton OH- ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM EST /NOON CST/ WEDNESDAY TO 7 AM EST /6 AM CST/ THURSDAY... * WHAT...Snow expected, mixed with freezing rain and sleet. Total snow accumulations between 2 and 5 inches, heaviest across northwest Indiana and southern Michigan. Ice accumulations up to a tenth of an inch. * WHERE...Portions of northern

The Indiana DNR is seeking public input on deer population management through an online survey. Deer Biologist Joe Caudell said the following in a statement: "The Indiana DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife needs your help to best manage deer populations in the state. For that purpose, we invite you to take the Annual Deer Management Survey. You are receiving this survey because you are part of the Division of Fish & Wildlife customer database, and we are interested in the input of deer hunters as well as all Indiana residents. This survey will ask about your perceptions of deer

Ivy Tech Community College will host a free workshop, from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23, for students and parents to apply for financial aid, according to the Town of Chesterton. The College Goal Sunday workshop will be held on the Ivy Tech Valparaiso campus. The workshop will assist Indiana students in filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), required of students who want to be considered for federal and state grants, scholarships, and federal student loans at most colleges, universities, and vocational/technical schools nationwide. The FAFSA must be completed and filed by the State of Indiana’s

Monday, State Rep. Pat Boy’s (D-Michigan City) House Bill 1380 passed unanimously out of the House of Representatives. The bill would exempt motor driven cycles and lightweight electric vehicles from the annual electric vehicle supplement fee. Boy released the following statement on the passage of the bill through the House. “First, I want to thank my fellow co-authors and House colleagues for their support on this crucial piece of legislation. As the bill moves to the Senate, I am optimistic about the continued bipartisan support in creating an eco-friendlier Indiana.” The bill now moves to the Senate.

News release, Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM): The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) has $300,000 available in funding help Solid Waste Management Districts (SWMDs) in Indiana to implement waste tire cleanup projects. Eligibility is limited to SWMDs located in Indiana. Grants will be awarded up to $10,000. The application period for Waste Tire Cleanup Grants has been extended to Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. IDEM held two webinars to help potential applicants understand and navigate the grant application process. These webinars provided information on the grant program, application guidelines, timelines and requirements. Applicants who did not attend a live

The Salvation Army Michigan City Corps and Community Center and Versiti Blood Center of Indiana are hosting a blood drive today in Michigan City from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Central Time at 1201 South Franklin St. See more information on the Salvation Army of Michigan City Facebook page.      

A Winter Storm Watch is in effect for several counties of northwest Indiana, Chicagoland and southwest Michigan: Counties: Northern La Porte-Eastern St. Joseph IN-Southern La Porte-Western St. Joseph IN-Cass MI-Northern Berrien-Southern Berrien- ...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING... * WHAT...Heavy snow possible. Total snow accumulations of 6 or more inches possible. * WHERE...Portions of northern Indiana and southwest Michigan. * WHEN...From Wednesday afternoon through Thursday morning. * IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult. The hazardous conditions could impact the Wednesday evening and Thursday morning commutes. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Snowfall rates of an inch per hour are possible,

Health Foundation of La Porte (HFL) has announced a change to its grant timeline for 2025. This year, HFL will accept grant applications addressing strategic priorities (Healthy Children, Healthy Living, and Healthy Minds) and Healthy La Porte requests on a rolling basis. HFL will not have two separate grant cycles. This shift to a rolling basis extends what has been referred to as Cycle 1, absorbing the grantee partners who may have been planning to apply in Cycle 2. This transition is meant to foster ease of applying for grantees and increase HFL’s response times to grant applications. Rolling Grant