White River Broadcasting’s Sam Simmermaker, the dean of Indiana sports broadcasters, has announced his plans to retire at the age of 92 after 64 years on the air in Columbus.

Community members are talking about Sam’s legacy.

Chuck Wells, a former Columbus East athlete and owner of the Overhead Door Company, talks about how Sam influenced local sports.

Wells remembers when Sam first interviewed him as an athlete.

Wells reflects on Sam’s approach to covering young athletes

Sam’s last daily sports updates will be next Friday, May 24th. There will be a special AM Columbus broadcast that day from 11 to 1 to celebrate Sam’s career. You can check it out here on News Talk 1010 WCSI and 98.1 FM.

Photo: News Director John Clark and Sam Simmermaker talk in the WCSI studio.

Local law enforcement officers will be holding a memorial service Friday morning in downtown Columbus to recognize officers who have fallen in the line of duty in the last year.

According to the Columbus Police Department, this year’s service will honor 137 fallen law enforcement officers, including seven from Indiana. Those to be honored include

• Deputy Timothy J. Guyer of Johnson County.
• Deputy Sheriff John Durm of Marion County.
• Sgt. Heather Glenn with the Tell City Police Department.
• Indiana State Police Trooper Aaron N. Smith.
• Michael R. Keel with the Indiana Department of Corrections.
• Indiana State Police Master Trooper James R. Bailey.
• Deputy Asson Hacker of Vanderburgh County.

The ceremony will be held at 9 a.m. Friday morning at the Public Safety Plaza at Second and Jackson Streets in Columbus.

The event is free and you are invited to attend.

Centra Foundation is announcing this year’s winners for the Loretta M. Burd scholarships for graduating high school students and adults.

Named in honor of Burd, who retired from Centra Credit Union after 47 years, the scholarship program is designed to help local students pursuing a college or technical school education.

The $2,500 high school scholarships are given out with one for each community Centra Credit Union service center. In our area, the scholarship winners are:

• Carly Otte and Evan Martinez from Columbus East High School
• Jaden Alba and Kenzie Pendleton from Columbus North High School
• Lani Coffey, Southwestern Jr. Sr. High School
• Leslie Austin, Brown County High School

Centra Foundation also awards $2,500 adult scholarships for adult or non-traditional students who have returned to school to pursue a degree or certification. Organizers say the scholarship places value on well-rounded students, with a strong work ethic and community involvement.

Locally this year’s adult scholarship winners are Christina Shaw and Stacy Workman-Wyatt from Columbus and Tanner Bowman from Nashville.

Burd began working at Centra in 1965, rising to become president and CEO in 1987. She retired in 2012, but continued to serve on the board of directors until 2022.

The South Central Indiana Master Gardener Association will be hosting its annual plant sale on Saturday.

Organizers estimate that there will be around 900 plants for sale including including perennials, annuals, houseplants, vegetables, and herbs. The Association is the local chapter of the Purdue Extension Master Gardeners program, providing the community with educational opportunities and events.

The plant sale will be at the Bartholomew County Public Library plaza on Fifth Street from 9 to noon on Saturday. A rain date is set for Saturday, May 25th.

Catalyst Columbus will be holding an inaugural pitch competition next month so local entrepreneurs can showcase their business ideas and are looking for businesses to take part.

The competition is open to businesses in Bartholomew, Jackson or Jennings counties with an annual revenue of less than $200 thousand dollars.

Each company will have five minutes to make their pitch, followed by a three minute question and answer session with expert judges.

Cash prizes are sponsored by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and Duke Energy.

Applications are due by June 1st. You can get more information by contacting Dan Nash at the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce. His email is [email protected].

The event will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on June 15th at the Columbus Learning Center on Central Avenue. It is free and you are invited to attend.

Catalyst Columbus provides access to resources, expert coaching, and support dedicated to empowering startups and entrepreneurs.  It is supported by the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce, the City of Columbus, and Heritage Fund: The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County.

Bartholomew Consolidated Schools are announcing a new assistant superintendent of human resources.

According to the school district, Dr. Erin Stalbaum will start her new role on July 1st. She most recently worked in the Monroe County Community Schools and previously worked at Kokomo Schools, the Indiana Department of Education and was a teacher in Greenwood for nearly a decade.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from Ball State University in elementary education, a masters in education leadership from IUPUI and a doctorate in educational leadership from Indiana State University, where she also serves as an adjunct professor.

A pet food pantry distribution is set for Thursday afternoon at the Columbus Municipal Airport.

Friends of Columbus Animal Care Services will be holding their Furry Friends Food Bank giveaway from 4 to 5:30 p.m. or until the food runs out. The pet food will be distributed in the airport parking lot at 4770 Ray Boll Boulevard in front of the Charlie 119 cargo plane.

The purpose of the pantry is to assist community members in need to keep their pets in their homes and out of area shelters. If you take part you should stay in your vehicle and the food will be brought to you.

Cat food will be distributed in 4.5 pound bags and dog food in 14.5 pound bags.

Friends of Columbus Animal Care Services is the non-profit partner of the city-operated animal shelter.

State Road 7 south of Vernon will be closing for up to seven weeks, starting Monday.

According to INDOT, contractors will be replacing a small drainage structure just south of the State Road 7 and State Road 3 junction. The official detour will take traffic from State Road 3 to State Road 256 and to State Road 62.

The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

The Paul H. Rohe Company will be the contractor for the project.

INDOT urges you to slow down, to drive without distractions, to use extra caution and to be alert to worker safety in all work zones.