South Bend Mayor and Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg is ramping up his outreach to Democratic Party superdelegates with a phone call to them outlining the scope of his 2020 presidential campaign. The outreach suggests Buttigieg’s campaign is looking beyond the early primary states to the possibility of a convention fight for the nomination.. ...Read Full Story
Michigan State Police say they’ve been flooded with false calls about active shooters, following mass shootings over the weekend. Lieutenant Mike Shaw says the calls have been about active shooters in several cities.. ...Read Full Story
The high number of drownings in Lake Michigan this year and rescues in the water off South Haven have some folks thinking about bringing life guards back to the north and south beaches. The South Haven City Council received a presentation Monday evening regarding lifeguards. Mayor Scott Smith says they will look into the issue.. ...Read Full Story
By Doug Cunningham. ...Read Full Story
Power is out to a good chunk of downtown St. Joseph this afternoon. Indiana Michigan Power says over 11-hundred customers are impacted, and the outage started just before 12:30. The Berrien County Courthouse is closed for the rest of the day, as is the Berrien County Administration Building due to the outage. County officials say those will reopen at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. The utility expects the lights to be back on around 5 tonight. WSJM News is told the cause of the outage is work being done to dismantle and rebuild the power plant next to Clementine’s Too.. ...Read Full Story
A change is coming at Southwestern Michigan College. After 18 years as president, Dr. David Mathews is retiring, and his last day will be December 31. Mathews joined SMC in 1997 as Dean of Arts and Sciences and Instructional Innovation, and became vice president of instruction the next year. He was appointed the school’s seventh president in 2001. The college says he’s developed and executed 18 consecutive balanced budgets, with investments in student success and facilities improvements all being done within those constraints. Under his guidance, the SMC Foundation grew from $1.3 million in assets to over $12 million, which Board of Trustees chairman Thomas Jerdon says has had a “huge impact” on wider scholarship availability for students.. ...Read Full Story
Voters in the city of Benton Harbor will be narrowing down the field of mayoral candidates today. Six candidates are on the ballot: Mayor Marcus Muhammad, City Commissioners Juanita Henry, CF Jones, and Ron Singleton, along with Margie Carter and Jamie Davis. Commissioner Henry urged as high a voter turnout as possible during last night’s city commission meeting.. ...Read Full Story
The South Haven City Council has voted not to adopt an initiated ordinance to prohibit the manufacture and sale of recreational marijuana. The Concerned Citizens of South Haven submitted a petition with over 100 signatures to prohibit recreational marijuana. The city council voted to put the issue on a public ballot in November. Mayor Scott Smith says he didn’t like what they were being asked.. ...Read Full Story
It’s National Health Center Week, and community health centers are celebrating their largest patient reach ever.. ...Read Full Story
Efforts are underway to improve the relationship between Michigan State Police and Benton Harbor residents. At Monday night’s city commission meeting, Public Safety Director Dan McGinnis said he and interim city manager Ellis Mitchell were able to get a change made.. ...Read Full Story
The upcoming decommissioning of the Palisades nuclear power plant will be the topic of a public meeting by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission this fall. The NRC will hold a webinar this Thursday at 1 p.m. in conjunction with the 11 forums staff will hold across the country at sites of soon-to-be-closed nuclear power plants. No date or location has been set as yet for that meeting regarding Palisades. The Covert Township power plant is set to be shut down in 2022, but decommissioning the facility will take several years of work after the reactor is idled for good. Entergy agreed to sell the facility last August to Holtec International for the decommissioning. That sale includes the transfer of licenses, spent fuel, and Nuclear Decommissioning Trusts.. ...Read Full Story
A 53-year-old man is in critical condition at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo after being hit by a SUV on East Napier Avenue near Columbus in Benton Township this morning. The Benton Township Police Department says David Snyder suffered a broken leg and head trauma in the crash, which closed down Napier for a few hours just after 11 a.m. The driver involved has been identified as 48-year-old Georgette McKinney. According to police, Snyder was walking in the outer lane near the fog line when he was hit. Both Snyder and McKinney are from Benton Township. He was airlifted to the Kalamazoo hospital after first being taken to Spectrum Health Lakeland in St. Joseph.. ...Read Full Story
A proposed ordinance to ban the manufacture and sale of recreational marijuana in South Haven is on the city council agenda for tonight. It comes from a petition initiative by a group calling itself Concerned Citizens of South Haven, and spokesman Don Bemis says the council has some options.. ...Read Full Story
Items stolen in St. Joseph Township are slowly being recovered by police. In Facebook posts, the township police department says several bicycles reported stolen in the Fairplain area along with the city of St. Joseph and Shoreham areas have been found and they’re asking those who have been victimized to call to see if their bike is among those recovered. Additionally, police say they’ve been able to take in several items believed stolen from vehicles in the township. Those include a digital camera and a handheld gaming system. Proof of ownership will be needed to claim those items. Police say in late July, there was a rash of vehicle larcenies, with items being swiped from unlocked cars and trucks in neighborhoods north and south of Napier Avenue.. ...Read Full Story
Dowagiac authorities are confirming the death of a couple over the weekend was a murder-suicide. Investigators say 41-year-old Jason Clark shot his 49-year-old wife, Tonia, before turning the gun on himself. She called 9-1-1 Saturday night to report the shooting and was still alive when police arrived, but died after being taken to Borgess-Lee Memorial Hospital. Police say a child was also at the home at the time, but he was not hurt. The shooting happened in the Clark family home in the 300 block of McOmber Street, and remains under investigation.. ...Read Full Story
It’s easier than ever for Lake Michigan College students to transfer their credits to any university in the state. It’s thanks to the launching of a new website, mitransfer.org, from the Michigan Transfer Network. It’s designed to simplify the search process for schools and their transfer requirements. The new website is the result of the 2018 state budget and replaced a site that had been up since 2007. The updated portal came about after two yeas of development by the Michigan Community College Association, the Michigan Association of State Universities, and the Michigan Independent Colleges and Universities, all of which are based in Lansing. LMC provost and vice president of academic affairs Leslie Kellogg was part of the committee that oversaw development of the new site.. ...Read Full Story
Longtime Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson has died at his suburban Detroit home months after announcing he had pancreatic cancer. The 80-year-old Patterson died Saturday in Independence Township, halfway through a seventh term leading the affluent county. Detroit Free Press columnist Carol Cain was a longtime friend and remembered Patterson in comments on Michigan’s Big Show.. ...Read Full Story
With high school graduates across Michigan preparing to head off to college, the Michigan Department of Treasury is offering them some advice on seeking financial aid. Office of Post-Secondary Financial Planning Director Anne Wohlfert tells WSJM News students need to know about the the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. That’s the first step. But don’t just assume a loan is the only way to go.. ...Read Full Story
Saying “enough is enough” following the weekend mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, Congressman Fred Upton is calling for action. The St. Joseph Republican says Congress needs to pass bipartisan Red Flag laws to give law enforcement and mental health officials “the tools to deny weapons capable of such carnage from being on the streets.” Upton says a “common sense response” to mass shootings in the United States is “way overdue.”. ...Read Full Story
Berrien County Commissioners are looking at the possibility of a small increase in the parks millage. At a meeting of the board of commissioners last month, Commissioner Bill Chickering said there are big parks expenses on the way as various improvements at parks around the county are made. He told WSJM News he heard from Berrien County Parks Director Brian Bailey that Bailey has been crunching some numbers.. ...Read Full Story
Southwestern Michigan College has dedicated a portion of its Fred L. Mathews Library to a former trustee who passed away in 2017. The Carole A. Tate Teaching and Learning Center was officially dedicated last month. SMC says the center is located in the Mathews Library, one of SMC’s three original buildings. Carole Tate served on the Southwestern Michigan College Board of Trustees for 18 years, and was the only trustee from the Van Buren County portion of SMC’s district. She died on October 7, 2017 in Arizona. SMC Board of Trustees Chairman Thomas Jerdon says “Carole was an exceptional trustee” who he had the privilege of serving with. Throughout her career, Tate worked as the Van Buren District Library children’s librarian and as a media specialist for Lakeshore, Marcellus, and Decatur public schools.. ...Read Full Story
Dowagiac police are investigating the shooting deaths of a couple Saturday night. A 911 call came in just before 9 p.m. Saturday of a woman shot by her husband in the 300 block of McOmber Street. When officers arrived, they found the 41-year-old husband dead and the 49-year-old wife still alive after being shot. She died after being rushed to Borgess-Lee Memorial Hospital.. ...Read Full Story
Preparations are underway for the next National Night Out, the event where police agencies all over the country mingle with the public and offer demonstrations in order to foster better relationships with the people they serve. In St. Joseph, the Night Out will be August 6 at Maiden Lane Community Park in the township. The gathering will include several local police and fire departments, a Jaws of Life demonstration, fire trucks and police cars, stations where parents can get the fingerprints of their kids taken, hot dogs, soda, chips, and ice cream, this year from Culver’s. The National Night Out will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 on the 6th and everyone’s invited.. ...Read Full Story
A Berrien County Health Department report shows 26 people lost their lives to suicide in the county last year. Spokesperson Gillian Conrad tells WSJM News Berrien is following national trends on that front.. ...Read Full Story
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has sent a letter to the Michigan Public Service Commission asking it to require utility companies with smart meters to automatically credit consumers’ bills for prolonged power outages. Nessel last month reminded utility customers in the state there is a law allowing them a $25 outage credit when they experience a power outage that lasts longer than 16 hours. The credit is available as long as there isn’t a general emergency taking place. Nessel’s office says customers can also receive the credit when there’s been a failure to restore electric service within 120 hours after an interruption that occurred during catastrophic conditions, or when there are repetitive interruptions of the same circuit more than seven times in a 12 month period. In her letter to the MPSC, Nessel noted electric service interruption rules were written years before the implementation of smart meters. She says the new tech should make the credit automatic. You can see Nessel’s letter to the MPSC right here.. ...Read Full Story
A 53-year-old Buchanan man is expected to face multiple charges upon his release from Memorial Hospital in South Bend for a crash that killed four people Friday. The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department has identified him as Dub Collins, who is in stable condition and is being held on a Michigan Department of Corrections Parole Detainer.. ...Read Full Story
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is warning swimmers to stay away from structures like breakwaters and piers in the Great Lakes. The Detroit District’s Cindy Jarema tells WSJM News the high water levels mixed with wind make for dangerous currents.. ...Read Full Story
A 22-year-old Benton Harbor man is hospitalized following a chase with police on Friday night. The chase ended in a crash on Colfax near Messner around 8:40 p.m.. ...Read Full Story
The United Way of Southwest Michigan is preparing to give away school supplies in Cass County. Volunteer United’s Julee Laurent tells WSJM News the Cass County School Supply Spectacular will get kids school-ready with full backpacks.. ...Read Full Story
A couple pieces of legislation intended to help protect the Great Lakes have the support of Congressman Fred Upton. He tells us the two bills introduced last week have bipartisan backing. They are the Great Lakes Coastal Resiliency Act and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Reauthorization Act. The second one would continue the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative for five years. Upton says it’s currently set to expire at the end of 2021.. ...Read Full Story
The Pokagon Fund has awarded a $5,000 grant to the United Way of Southwest Michigan to expand Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Harbor Country. The United Way says this means more kids under the age of five living in Harbert, Lakeside, New Buffalo, Sawyer, Three Oaks, and Union Pier will get a jump start on school-readiness with books mailed each month to their homes. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library mails books to the homes of enrolled young people from birth until they turn five years old. The United Way of Southwest Michigan offers Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to preschool children in Berrien and Cass counties for free. There are currently 195 children enrolled in the program in the Pokagon Fund service area.. ...Read Full Story
The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a crash in Buchanan Township on Friday that killed four people. It says the crash happened shortly after noon at North Main and Miller Roads. A 2007 Ford Fusion was traveling at a high rate of speed on Miller Road when it’s believed to have run a stop sign striking a southbound 2000 Honda Accord. The driver and passenger of the Fusion were taken to South Bend Memorial Hospital for treatment. There were four people in the Accord, and all four were killed. They have been identified as 66-year-old Robert Klint, 60-year-old Melissa Klint, and 22-year-old Landyn Klint, all of Sawyer, and 52-year-old Kent Williamson of Virginia. Police say alcohol and speed appear to have been factors in the crash. A detailed report will be submitted to the Berrien County Prosecutors Office once it’s completed.. ...Read Full Story
The American Civil Liberties Union has sent a letter to Governor Gretchen Whitmer speaking out against the possible closing of Benton Harbor High School or any potential state takeover of the district. ACLU Racial Justice Project staff attorney Mark Fancher tells WSJM News the main issue the organization has with such a move is that it would deprive the community of its political rights.. ...Read Full Story
The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety has issued an open murder warrant for a suspect in a Wednesday triple shooting. The department says it’s looking for Eric Holbrook. He’s one of two suspects in the incident, while the other suspect, a 24-year-old man, is in custody after being shot in the altercation. Police have not said what led to the shootings in the 800 block of Superior late that afternoon. Killed was 29 year old Arsenio Jordan, while a 32-year-old woman was also injured. Anyone with information on Eric Holbrook’s location is asked to contact police.. ...Read Full Story
The undercover investigation by the Humane Society of the United States into testing on more than 30 beagles at Charles River Laboratories in Mattawan is being credited with an international policy change. The testing was for a pesticide to be sold in Brazil, and the Humane Society says that nation has just announced changes to its animal testing requirements. Kathleen Conlee is the vice president of animal research for the Humane Society of the United States, and tells WSJM News they’re very pleased by the change.. ...Read Full Story
A crash just outside of the city limits of Buchanan has killed four people. According to police, one vehicle ran a stop sign on Miller, slamming into another car on Main around noon on Friday. Two people are being treated for injuries at South Bend Memorial Hospital, and one of them had to be airlifted there. No names have yet been released. No further details have yet been made available.. ...Read Full Story
A memorial will be dedicated later this month to Michigan State Police Trooper Allan Peterson, who was the 34th MSP officer to die in the line of duty in 1981. The event will be at the Lake Street railroad crossing in Bridgman, where Peterson and other officers responded to a train derailment on August 7, 1981. Peterson was assigned to the inner perimeter of the scene, around 100 yards from the wreckage, and was exposed to a poisonous acid that was thought at the time to be toxic, but not lethal. He woke up at home in Three Oaks on August 29 with a severe coughing spasm, and died while being rushed to St. Anthony’s Hospital in Michigan City, Indiana. The autopsy determined the cause of death to be heart failure from hardening of the arteries, but years later, officials revealed the medical complications of his death were directly related to the exposure to the toxic gas from the derailment. Peterson served in the U.S. Coast Guard prior to joining MSP and was survived by his wife and two daughters. His memorial dedication will be at 8:12 a.m. on Thursday, August 29, and is open to the public.. ...Read Full Story
The fourth annual “Breastfeeding on the Bluff” in St. Joseph will be tomorrow in Lake Bluff Park across from the St. Joseph Public Library. The Berrien County Health Department is putting it on as part of the 2019 Global Big Latch On, which is a worldwide breastfeeding awareness celebration during which moms across the world are linked in simultaneous breastfeeding. Registration begins at 9:30 am, with the Big Latch On getting underway an hour later at 10:30.. ...Read Full Story
(East Lansing, MI – AP) – Michigan State University’s new president is on the job. MSU says Samuel Stanley Jr. officially took office Thursday, two months after he was hired by the school’s governing board. In a written statement, he says he’s proud “to join the Spartan community.” Stanley was president at Stony Brook University in New York. He is MSU’s first permanent leader since Lou Anna Simon resigned in January 2018 amid the Larry Nassar scandal.. ...Read Full Story
(Delhi Township, MI – AP) – Governor Gretchen Whitmer says suggestions that she has opened the door to delaying the elimination of debt in Michigan’s teacher retirement system to help boost road spending are “overstated.” The Democrat said Thursday there’s “ultimately a long-term cost of pushing off (the) paying off of our debts,” and using such a mechanism would mean “we’re forgoing opportunities in the future.”. ...Read Full Story
It’s Summer Jam weekend for our sister station, 97.5 Y-Country. The 21st annual event will be Saturday at 4:30 featuring co-headliners Tyler Rich and Jameson Rogers. Begun in 1998, the event has featured young, rising country stars and was part of the old Venetian Festival from 2005 until that ended in 2011. Y-Country’s Matt Malone reminds us some of the acts we’ve brought through over the past 21 years have been Toby Keith, Blake Shelton, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, and Lee Brice.. ...Read Full Story
Southwest Michigan has a rich history of growing and shipping fruit, and a special program on the topic is happening at the North Berrien History Museum in Coloma. It’s set for August 17 and is called Agriculture History Day. Museum Executive Director Jack Greve spoke with WSJM News about what’s planned... ...Read Full Story
Set for this Saturday is the region’s premier summer snowmobile race. To be held at Nimby Pond in Buchanan, the Snowmobile Watercross Race will feature dozens of the winter machines, says Nimby Pond’s Mark Schutze.. ...Read Full Story
The St. Joseph Township Police Department is dealing with a rash of thefts from vehicles. Police Chief Randy Leng spoke with WSJM News.. ...Read Full Story
Summer in Michigan means road repair and construction and that is certainly true this year in our corner of the state. Hundreds of union workers who operate heavy equipment went on strike Wednesday. The labor dispute with Rieth-Riley, which has a location on Townline Road in Benton Harbor, has 88 state and local contracts. We spoke with MDOT’s Nick Schirripa to find out if any local projects are being delayed.. ...Read Full Story
There will be an open house this weekend at Fort St. Joseph in Niles. The Niles Historical Association says people can come out to see the site on Saturday, August 3 and Sunday, August 4 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It says the open houses are a chance for anyone to learn more about one of the most important French colonial sites in the Great Lakes region. Those who attend can talk with Western Michigan University archaeologists, watch period demonstrations at the Living History Village, and see excavations. The effort is a partnership between the city of Niles and WMU.. ...Read Full Story
Rolling into Benton Harbor and St. Joseph this month will be the YMCA’s Veggie Van, courtesy of Spectrum Health Lakeland. Spectrum’s Kelsey Haynes tells WSJM News the Veggie Van is a mobile farmer’s market loaded up with fresh fruits and vegetables from local growers. The green machine will make two stops in the area this month. First will be at the police National Night Out next Tuesday from 5 to 8 at Dwight P Mitchell City Center Park in Benton Harbor. Haynes says a registered dietitian will be there giving advice, there will be cooking demonstrations, and everyone can get some goodies.. ...Read Full Story
The investigation continues into a Wednesday triple shooting in Benton Harbor that left one dead. The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety says it has located two persons of interest in the case and interviewed them. Felecia Lee and Ashanti Lee have been released pending further investigation. Police continue to look for Dondrell Blackamore as a third person of interest. They’re also looking for shooting suspect Eric Holbrook. The other shooting suspect, a 24-year-old man, was shot in the incident and has not yet been arraigned. His name has not been released. Killed in the shooting was 29 year old Arsenio Jordan. Also injured was a 32-year-old Benton Harbor woman who is listed in stable condition. The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety says anyone with information on the incident is asked to contact its tipline at 269-927-0293. You can also submit tips to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-342-STOP. Police have still not said what led to Wednesday’s shooting, which happened in the 800 block of Superior shortly after 4:30 p.m.. ...Read Full Story
Work will soon be underway to transform a former Whirlpool property at 150 Hilltop Road in St. Joseph into the new corporate headquarters for United Federal Credit Union. The financial organization has hired Benton Harbor-based Pearson Construction Company to be the general contractor for the renovations. Chief operating officer Stacy Fillmore tells WSJM News the decision to go with Pearson was an easy one.. ...Read Full Story
Congressman Fred Upton has put his support behind legislation intended to ensure migrants detained at the border are given certain standards of care. The Short-Term Detention Standards Act was introduced by Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin, who traveled to the southern border with Upton and the Problem Solvers Caucus in July. Upton says the bill outlines Customs and Border Protection responsibilities to those who are apprehended.. ...Read Full Story
Four child pornography charges and one count of possession or sale of a taser are faced by a Paw Paw man. He was arrested by troopers from the Michigan State Police Paw Paw post following a search warrant being carried out at his home. The Michigan State Police Computer Crimes Unit, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force says Kevin Molz was downloading large amounts of child sexually abusive material, and they seized digital evidence from the home.. ...Read Full Story
The ink is drying on the contract for new St. Joseph Public Schools superintendent Dr. Thomas Bruce. The school board unanimously approved a three-year contract Thursday morning, with an annual salary of $158,000. His first official day on the job will be in two weeks on August 15 as he takes over for Ann Cardon.. ...Read Full Story
The drowning death of a 37-year-old Paw Paw man in Porter Township’s Cedar Lake is under investigation by the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Department. The man is believed to have suffered a medical incident that caused him to fall out of his boat into the lake shortly before 3 p.m. Wednesday. A resident who lives on the lake called 911 after seeing his boat going in circles and hearing him yelling for help. That witness tried unsuccessfully to get to the man, and he was pulled from the water by emergency responders and relatives who were also boating on the lake. The man was pronounced dead at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo. His death is not considered suspicious, and his name has not been released.. ...Read Full Story
Southwestern Michigan College has opened up some of its career training facilities to middle school students this summer. It says eight Niles Middle School students came to the Niles SMC campus in July to learn how to weld. It may have been the hottest week of the summer, but the kids didn’t beat the heat so much as bend it to their will, plunging pieces they created by melting metal to 3,000 degrees into water. Welding instructor Allyson Starrett says she got interested in the trade as a young person when she attended a similar camp. Niles High School Career and Technical Education Director Carrie George partnered with YMCA and wrote a grant to provide the welding camp. SMC says the camp will hopefully get the students more interested in CTE. It notes welders are in high demand because almost every industry needs them. Salaries range from an average median of $41,000 to more than $100,000.. ...Read Full Story
Police are investigating a Wednesday triple shooting in Benton Harbor. It happened around 5 p.m. in the 800 block of Superior. Berrien County Sheriff Paul Bailey tells us one person is dead and two others are injured. Police say they have a 24-year-old suspect, who is one of the injured, in custody. They’re also looking for 21-year-old Eric Holbrook, who is considered a suspect. The deceased has been identified as 29-year-old Arsenio Jordan of Benton Harbor. A 32-year-old Benton Harbor woman is the third victim, and she is recovering. According to WSBT, police want to speak to three persons of interest. They are 17-year-old Ashanti Lee, 42-year-old Felicia Lee and 20-year-old Dondrell Blackamore Jr. Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call police. The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department is assisting the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety in handling the case. Police have not said what led to the incident.. ...Read Full Story
Lake Michigan College is gearing up to hold the grand opening of its new Welch Center for Wine and Viticulture. The center located at the Benton Township campus will be the home of LMC’s winemaking program. It will feature a new grape press, large tank and bottling rooms, a dry storage area, and a laboratory. Also, the center will house two classrooms, three offices, a workroom, and an open commons area for wine tasting, community education classes, and special events. The $7 million facility is 14,000 square feet and is named in honor of Mike and Lisa Welch, who are longtime supporters of Lake Michigan College. The dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony will begin at 4 p.m. on August 27 followed by a public open house. In 2017, LMC opened up a tasting room in Baroda where people can sample wines made by the students.. ...Read Full Story
There will be a tire collection event this week in Benton Harbor. The Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety says Tire Rally 2.0 will be Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Dwight P. Mitchell City Center Park. City residents can drop off unneeded tires so they can be disposed correctly. The last tire collection event held in the city, which was in May, resulted in more than 1,600 tires being dropped off. Police note this week’s event is for Benton Harbor city residents only, and they will check IDs. The collection is for tires only, and not other trash. Anyone with questions can call the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety.. ...Read Full Story
The Disability Network of Southwest Michigan will hold a workshop this August to teach people about what counts as an assistance animal and what doesn’t. The network says “Do’s & Don’ts: Assistance Animals” will be held August 23 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at its office on Lakeview Avenue in St. Joseph. Those who attend will learn the difference between service animals and emotional support animals. The Disability Network says many people are confused about the specifics regarding service animals. The workshop will also delve into the laws regarding what type of assistance animals are allowed in different places and whether an establishment can deny access to an assistance animal. The event will be free to attend, but you have to register. You can do so right here. You can also contact Miranda Grunwell at (269) 345-1516, extension 120.. ...Read Full Story
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is planning another volunteer stewardship day at Grand Mere State Park near Stevensville this weekend. It says those who attend will pull spotted knapweed and Canada thistle from the open areas. Removing the invasives will allow native plants to thrive. Those who volunteer are advised to wear long sleeves and long pants. Also, bring some gardening gloves, a hat, and some water. The volunteers will do their work from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday, August 3. Everyone will meet at the end of Willow Drive.. ...Read Full Story
Police are investigating a triple shooting in Benton Harbor. It happened around 5 p.m. in the 800 block of Superior on Wednesday. Berrien County Sheriff Paul Bailey tells us one person is dead and two others are injured and being treated at a hospital. No information has been released on a suspect. Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call police. The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department is assisting the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety in handling the case.. ...Read Full Story
