From Pulaski County Health Department

In February 2011, the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) announced that the Immunization Program would no longer support using publicly purchased vaccine for the immunization of individuals with health insurance.

The implementation of this policy has been delayed until March 1, 2012 for some local health departments.

Pulaski County's unemployment rate jumped to 7.6 percent in December, up from 7.0 percent in November, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development reported Tuesday (Jan. 24). The rate was 8.4 percent a year ago.

The state's December rate remained at 9.0 percent (seasonally adjusted), the same as November and October. The December 2010 rate was 9.5. The U.S. rate fell to 8.5 percent (seasonally adjusted) in December, down from 8.7 percent (revised) in November. A year ago, the national rate was 9.4 percent. 

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2012 Halleck Community Service Award which will be presented at the Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce's annual meeting in March.

The award was established by the Chamber in 1979 in honor of long-time physician and civic leader Dr. Harold J. Halleck. It is awarded annually to an individual who has selflessly given years of time and talent in a variety of endeavors to serve the Pulaski County community. Deadline for nominations is Friday, Feb. 3.

The Friends of the Panhandle Pathway will hold their annual membership meeting at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday (Jan. 31), at the Royal Center Town Hall, 104 E. North St.

Election of officers and board members will be held. All interested persons are welcome to attend. For more information call 574-643-3771 or 574-946-4267.

Candidate filing for Pulaski County offices in the 2012 election began Wednesday (Jan. 11), in the office of county clerk Tasha Foerg in the courthouse, Winamac. Filing will continue until 12 noon, Friday, Feb. 10.

Candidates who have filed for office to date are as follows: (This information will be updated regularly through Feb. 10)

Classes on several basic computer skills will be offered in January and February at the Purdue Extension Pulaski County office in Winamac. Afternoon or evening classtime are offered, and the cost is $25 per class.

Also a free evening class on "Tips About Facebook" will be offered. Register for any class by calling the Extension Office at 547-946-3412. The class schedule is as follows:

Ivy Tech’s Logansport campus preparing for third annual scholarship fundraiser

LOGANSPORT —  Ivy Tech Community College Kokomo Region’s Logansport campus will hold its third annual scholarship fundraiser on Saturday (Feb. 11), at the Logansport campus located at 1 Ivy Tech Way.

The "For the Love of Education Valentine’s Ball" will feature dinner, dancing, an art show, and silent and live auctions. The black tie event starts at 6 p.m. Tuxedo Junction, a local jazz and swing band, will provide the entertainment.

Youth Hunter Education classes will be held in February on three consecutive Saturday mornings, sponsored by the IDNR.

The classes will run from 8 a.m. to 12 noon, Feb. 4, 11 and 18, at the Pulaski County Highway Garage, U.S. 35 N, Winamac. Call Ray Rausch at 574-946-3858 to sign up.

A series of classes on "Dining with Diabetes," a new approach for dealing with Type 2 diabetes, will be held in February, sponsored by Purdue Extension in partnership with the Northwest Indiana Community Action Agencies.

The classes will be taught at the Starke County Library in Knox on Feb. 6, 8, 13, and 29.

Drivers can get updates on changing road conditions across the state by phone or computer, reports the Indiana Department of Transportation.

Drivers calling 800-261-ROAD (7623) will be informed about specific roads—good, fair of difficult.  A website for updates is online at www.trafficwise.in.gov. This Trafficwise site includes views from traffic cameras at various locations across the state, plus National Weather Service watches and warnings. Click here http://indot.carsprogram.org/main.jsf for a map that shows road conditions.

Grocery store prices declined slightly during the fourth quarter of 2011, according to a quarterly survey from Farm Bureau.

Indiana Farm Bureau’s latest “market basket” survey, an informal survey of grocery prices released every quarter, shows that the 16 food items on the survey cost an average of $49.60 cents, down 73 cents from the 3rd quarter survey.

STATEHOUSE – After nearly 35 hours of testimony, debate, and discussion over the past year House Bill (HB) 1001 Employee’s Right to Work passed the Indiana House of Representatives 54-44 late Wednesday (Jan. 25).

Rep. Jerry Torr (R-Carmel) authored and House Speaker Brian C. Bosma(R-Indianapolis) co-authored House Bill 1001, Employee’s Right to Work which bans unions from collecting mandatory dues from workers. The statehouse was full of union protestors, who shouted as the House debated the issue for two hours Wednesday.

The Pulaski County Historical Society held its annual membership meeting Thursday (Jan. 19), at the Pulaski County Public Library, Winamac. 

Steve Morrison was re-elected president, and Kathi Thompson will serve as vice president. The remaining officers are secretary Ryan Harrison and treasurer Lin Morrison.

FRANCESVILLE - The West Central School Board received an update at its Thursday (Jan. 19) meeting on the installation of the school corporation's new wind turbine, and information on the testing period.

Tony Kuykendall from Performance Services presented the board members with information on the completion of the wind turbine installation. His company is now waiting on NIPSCO to complete their part of the project before the 120 day testing period can begin. The benefits of net metering for the electricity versus the feed-in tariff was were also discussed.

WINAMAC - The Winamac Town Council held its annual organizational meeting Tuesday (Jan. 17) at its first meeting of the new year. John Plowman was elected council president.

Among business items, it was reported that the Star City sewer project has hooked into the wastewater plant and operations will begin in March or April. Downspouts and sump pumps from homes/buildings are not to go into the sanitary sewer, and a door-to-door check for violations will begin in spring. Homeowners/business owners will have 60 to 90 days to correct the issue.

Pulaski County Sheriff Mike Gayer has released his department statistics for 2011, in an effort to keep the public informed on the activities of the sheriff's office.

Vehicle crashes in the county were down by almost 40 from 2010. Burglaries were almost the same, but thefts were up by 23. Battery cases were down by about half. The police receive a public call about every one-and-a-half hours, on average, every day of the year. 

WINAMAC - The Winamac schools will likely return to the traditional semester schedule next school year to facilitate meeting state requirements for assessment accountability, the Eastern Pulaski Community School Board learned at its Jan. 9 meeting.

Also at the meeting the board was presented with three generous donations, two establishing funds for a new grand piano for the music program, and to enhance technology education at the elementary school, and a third to purchase school supplies. 

The Pulaski County Economic Development Commission outlined its goals for 2012 at its Jan. 3 meeting, with a focus on development of a Pulaski County Center for Agricultural-Renewable Energy (PC-CARE).

The PCEDC (also known as the CDC) also plans to devote substantial effort to local entrepreneurial development in the coming year. A summary of the commission's January meeting follows:

WINAMAC - A Winamac eye doctor and his pharmacist wife plan a four-month visit to Haiti, working with New Vision Ministries, to help with efforts to provide eye care and other medical services to residents there.

The Caribbean island nation was devastated by an earthquake two years ago, and the needs remain great in all aspects of the rebuilding efforts for the country.