If you are looking for a new feline friend, Columbus Animal Care Services wants to help you out on Saturday.

The agency will be holding a Kitty-Palooza on Saturday at Nexus Park, the former Fair Oaks Mall. The city animal shelter will be bringing more than 30 cats and kittens to the center for the one-day adoption event.

The event will include reduced adoption fees of $40. that will include spaying or neutering, up to date shots and microchipping.

If you are a renter, you should bring any rental agreement or contract that shows you are allowed to have pets, or a way to contact your landlord.

If you are hoping to bring a new pet home, you should bring a cat carrier, as only a limited number of cardboard cat carriers will be available.

Kitty Palooza will be from noon to 4 Saturday at Nexus park on 25th Street in Columbus.

Columbus is taking applications for the next session of its public safety citizens academy.

According to Columbus police, the academy has been offered since the 1990s and more than 1,000 residents have taken part.

The free 11-week course gives participants a look behind the scenes of public safety agencies in the city of Columbus and Bartholomew County. In previous classes, students have learned about the Columbus Police Department Bomb Squad, SWAT Team, Criminal Investigations, Narcotics/Vice Units, County Jail and K-9 Division. They have also fired weapons on the police gun range and used Columbus Fire Department equipment to cut open a wrecked vehicle and put out a fire correctly with a fire extinguisher.

The sessions begin on Thursday evenings starting February 13th from 6 to 9 p.m. in the evening. There will be no class during Spring Break with the last scheduled for May 1st. To take part you must be 18 and undergo a criminal background check.

You can find a link to sign up here: https://www.columbus.in.gov/police/info-documents/public-safety-academy/

Big Lots is announcing that it will be closing all of its stores after a deal to bail out the struggling company fell through.

The closings would affect all the remaining stores, including those in Columbus, Seymour, Shelbyville. The closing of a store in Franklin had already been announced earlier this year.

The Ohio based company announced plans to start going-out-of-business sales at all remaining store locations after a deal with Nexus Capital Management fell through. Corporate officials have also filed a notice with the state of Ohio indicating that layoffs of more than 550 employees at their Columbus headquarters will begin by the end of the month.

All layoffs are expected to be completed by April.

The company had announced in October that it was closing Nearly 500 stores across the country after the retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Story courtesy of TTWN Media Networks

The Bartholomew County Solid Waste Management District is accepting several Christmas related items at the Columbus and Bartholomew County Recycling Center starting the day after Christmas.

According to organizers, you can recycle wrapping paper that does not contain ribbons or bows, and is not foil or shiny paper. Strand Christmas lights are also being accepted. And live Christmas trees can be recycled at the Yard Waste Site next door to the Recycling Center on South Mapleton Street. You will need to remove decorations, lights and stands from the trees.

The holiday recycling will be going on from this Thursday to Friday January 17th during normal hours, Monday through Friday 7:30 to 4:30 p.m.

The recycling center will be closed on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

You can get more information at bcswmd.com

Bartholomew Consolidated Schools are partnering with Cummins to expand Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math initiatives across the district.

According to the school district, Cummins is making the partnership through its READY program, which focuses on STEM education strategies. The program is meant to provide students access to resources designed to ignite curiosity, to foster critical thinking, and to prepare students for the future workforce.

Danette Howard, Cummin’s global director of education said the goal of the READY program is to help 1 million students get on a pathway to education and career success by 2030.

Cummins involvement will allow BCSC to expand robotics programs, to hold real-world field trips and coding and engineering events, and to provide hands-on learning experiences for students across BCSC’s elementary, middle, and high schools. School officials say the program is possible through a shared commitment to equitable education systems and high-quality learning environments.

Photo courtesy of Bartholomew Consolidated Schools

Some customers of Nashville Utilities are under a boil water advisory after work on a water main.

According to the town, the advisory is due to the relocation of a water main in the Salt Creek Trail area. Affected addresses include:

• 103 Willow St., 105 Willow St.,
• 30 Hawthorne Dr., 50 Hawthorne Dr., 200 Hawthorne Dr., 111 Hawthorne Dr.,
• 55 E Willow St., 72 W Willow St.,
•  51 E Chestnut St., 75 W Chestnut Dr., 51 W Chestnut Dr.,
• 100 Maple Leaf Blvd.,
• 501 SR 46 E, 551 SR 46 E.

Under a boil water advisory, you should bring water to a full boil for three to five minutes before drinking it or using it in food preparation. The boil water advisory is in effect until 4 p.m. Monday afternoon.

If you have any questions you can call Nashville Utilities at 812-988-5526.

Several local communities are receiving federal funds to help repair residents’ homes.

According to Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, the cities of North Vernon and Seymour are each receiving $350,000 in owner-occupied rehabilitation grants available through the Community Development Block Grant program. The grants empower communities to directly fund homeowners of low-to-moderate income to make needed repairs on their homes. Eligible repairs include roof repair or replacement, ADA accessibility, heating and cooling replacement, lighting and electrical upgrades, and water heater replacement.

The office announced more than $3.6 million in various grants to 20 Indiana communities today.

Crouch, Indiana’s secretary of agriculture and rural Development, said “Each of these grant programs will contribute to improving the lives of Hoosiers” and she said the communities “are committed to investing more into their residents and community development.”

Note: This story has been edited

A Columbus man has been arrested, accused of child pornography related charges.

According to the Indiana State Police, troopers received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about six months ago, indicating that a man was sharing possible child pornography images on social media. The investigation involved several warrants and subpoenas being issued and led to 56-year-old Michael E. Lawless of Columbus.

On Wednesday, troopers along with Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department deputies and the United States Secret Service, served additional search warrants on Lawless in Bartholomew County.

Lawless was arrested on felony charges of distribution and possession of child pornography, troopers say.

The Bartholomew County Prosecutor’s Office also assisted in this investigation.

The Indiana ICAC Task Force encourages Hoosiers to report online exploitation, solicitation, and enticement-type crimes against children to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The NCMEC website can be accessed through the ICAC Task Force website located at internetcrimesagainstkids.com. Suspected criminal activity may also be reported to your local law enforcement agency.

Two local farmers will continue as leaders of the Indiana Corn Marketing Council.

The council is announcing that elections were held recently and Greensburg farmer Tim Gauck will continue as president of the organization while Matthew Lucas of Brownstown will continue as vice-president.

Gauck grows corn, soybeans and wheat on his farm in rural Decatur and Rush counties. He was first elected to the council board in 2017 as an at-large member, chosen by farmers across the state. Gauck said expanding the availability of higher blends of ethanol and exporting Indiana-grown corn to new markets around the world are among the council’s priorities.

Lucas farms in a partnership with his father, James, and grows corn and soybeans on their farm in Jackson County. His farm also finishes 24,000 hogs per year. He represents District 8 which includes 10 counties in southern Indiana including Brown and Jackson counties.

The Indiana Corn Marketing Council was established by the Indiana General Assembly to promote the interests of corn growers in the state.

A large grant from the Lilly Endowment and donations from community partners will be providing $3.8 million to boost mental health care and drug treatment options in Jackson County.

The endowment announced a $3.4 million grant this week, which will fund three projects in Jackson County. Those will include an outpatient mental health facility at the Indiana Health Center in Seymour, the creation of three substance use recovery homes through Centerstone and the training of peer recovery coaches as well as crisis intervention training for area rescue workers.

Dan Davis, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Jackson County , explains

Davis talks about the mental health facility

Davis explains the need for the recover homes

Davis says that the mental health unit is expected to open in 2025 along with one of the drug treatment houses. He said that Jackson County currently has no recovery homes to offer those trying to overcome drug addiction.

In addition to the Lilly grant, community partners have pledged $400 thousand dollars toward the efforts. Those include the Jackson County and Seymour governments, the Schneck Foundation, The Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress and the Community Foundation.

The grant was announced with  othesr statewide through the Lilly Endowment’s Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow initiative.