The Landmark Columbus Foundation will receive a $100,000 gift towards the foundation’s endowment.

The foundation is announcing the gift through the Tracy L. Haddad Foundation towards a $3 million campaign goal for the architectural group.

Haddad serves as president of the Tracy L. Haddad Foundation and vice chair of the Landmark Columbus Foundation Board of Directors. She said that Columbus dares to dream in design and the Landmark Columbus Foundation “ensures those dreams have the support they need to endure, evolve, and include more people.

Landmark Columbus Foundation launched the endowment drive as a way to support its initiatives including Exhibit Columbus, Progressive Preservation and the Columbus Design Institute. The foundation’s goal is to continue to care for, celebrate, and advance the cultural heritage of Columbus and like-minded communities.

The foundation hopes to reach the $3 million goal by the time the Exhibit Columbus installations launches this summer on August 15th. The campaign has already raised $2.3 million, with support from regional foundations, individual donors, and community leaders.

Haddad’s donation will be celebrated at an event in May called High Five Day. High Five Day will include the foundation’s annual report and will be May 6th from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Upland Columbus Pump House. The event will be free and you are invited to attend.

You can get more information at landmarkcolumbusfoundation.org

Indiana Gov. Mike Braun is declaring a state of emergency for several area counties after last week’s devastating storms and flooding.

According to the governor’s office, the declaration is in effect for 30 days. He said the move allows allows the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to begin providing financial assistance to impacted communities who have eligible expenses under the State Disaster Relief Fund program.

Among the 18 counties covered in the declaration were Bartholomew and Brown counties, along with Clark, Crawford, Dearborn, Delaware, Gibson, Hamilton, Harrison, Lake, Madison, Marshall, Martin, Owen, Perry, Posey, Spencer, and Warrick counties.

Braun said in the statement that it is his hope that residents, businesses, and local governments will be able to access needed resources and assistance as they assess and recover from these devastating weather events.”

Bartholomew County officials are reminding you to make reports on any flood-related damages you have had on your property.

According to Bartholomew County Emergency Management, homes or businesses that have been damaged during the flooding that started last Wednesday, are urged to report the damage. You can file a report by calling emergency management at 812-379-1680 or by leaving a comment on the Bartholomew County Emergency Management Facebook page.

You can also file damage reports through the statewide 211 system, by calling 211 or 866-211-9966, Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to complete a damage report over the phone. You can also go online to file a report at IN 211 dot org and clicking on Damage Reporting.

Photo: State Road 11 during the weekend flooding. photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

The Columbus City Band will be holding its spring concert on Sunday.

The concert will feature music from the big band era and the Great American Songbook. A Regional High School Art Gallery will be on display before the show starts at 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon at The Commons.

The concert is free and you are invited to attend.

The Columbus City Band is a volunteer organization that has been performing here since 1843.

The Bartholomew County Historical Society will be celebrating Chuck Taylor Day this summer, and is offering you the chance to buy custom, Columbus themed Chuck Taylor All Star shoes.

Tied in with the Historical Society’s new exhibit on the history of basketball in Bartholomew County will be Chuck Taylor Day on Saturday June 7th. The day will feature basketball themed activities, bands, a kids zone and more. It will be held around the historical society museum on Third Street in Columbus from 3 to 8 p.m. that day.

Taylor, a Bartholomew County resident, Columbus High School graduate and former basketball player, is best known for creating the Converse All Star tennis shoe.

In celebration of the inaugural Chuck Taylor Day, there will be a line of custom All-Star shoes available, featuring the Columbus Dancing C’s design by Paul Rand. The low-top shoes are available for pre order with a $100 donation to the Bartholomew County Historical Society and high-top shoes will be $110.

Orders must be placed by Tuesday, April 22nd.

You can make your order at the historical society museum on Third Street in Columbus or you can make a purchase here: https://bartholomewhistory.org

Several groups are organizing a Forestry Field Day on Saturday in Jackson County, where you will have a chance to learn more about forestry management techniques.

Organizers say that the field day will be about five miles southwest of Medora in southern Jackson County. Directional signs will be posted on major roads and highways in the area.

David Ray will lead the tour of his property, showing his oak management techniques. That will include learning more about and viewing recent prescribed burn areas, learning about forestry best management practices and enhancing habitat for wildlife. There will also be discussion of financial assistance available to help landowners manage their forests.

There will also be information about conservation programs from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Organizers caution that the tour will involve walking in a hilly forest, sometimes on rough terrain. You should wear appropriate clothing and footwear for a morning in the woods.

A free lunch will be provided.

The Forestry Field Day will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, with check ins starting at 9 a.m. and the tour beginning at 9:30 a.m.

The event is being organized by Let the Sun Shine In-Indiana and the Indiana Forestry and Woodland Owners Association.

The event is free but registration is required. You can find  more information or register here: http://www.letthesunshinein-indiana.com

Photo and map courtesy of Let the Sun Shine In-Indiana

Railroad crossings around Columbus will continue to be closed periodically as crews make repairs.

According to Legacy Excavating, the contractor for the project on the Louisville and Indiana Railroad tracks, the company will be making crossing repairs in the Columbus area.

The contractors are announcing an overnight closing just west of the intersection of 3rd and Lindsey Streets on Saturday. That will be from 9 p.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday. This closure will affect all westbound SR46 traffic and all southbound Jonesville Road traffic.

Other upcoming closures will be from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Those include:

• South Gladstone Ave  north of Kreutzer Drive will be closed on Tuesday.
• South Marr Road  east of South Gladstone Ave and south of Roadway Drive will be closed on Wednesday, April 16th

Company officials say they recognize that the closings may cause some inconvenience and seek your understanding and cooperation. They say you should plan accordingly and use an alternate route if necessary.

The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

It is expected to be another cold night across Central Indiana.

The National Weather Service has issued a freeze warning tonight, with temperatures as low as 27 predicted in some areas. The freeze warning is in effect from midnight until 9 a.m. Saturday.

The final river flooding in our area from last week’s storms is expected to end shortly.

This morning East Fork White River in Seymour is just about six inches above the 12 foot minor flood stage, according to river gauges. The river is expected to drop out of minor flooding any time now. The river crested at 19.78 feet, about nine inches above the major flood stage on Sunday afternoon.

Photo: East Fork White River on Saturday afternoon, overlooking the site of the former dam just north of the Indiana American water plant.

A man’s body has been recovered from the Driftwood River after last week’s flooding.

According to Bartholomew County authorities, the body of a man was recovered from the river by the county water rescue team at about 3:20 p.m. Thursday afternoon near the Lowell fishing site, which is at the intersection of County Road 325W and Lowell Road.

The man has been identified as 62-year-old Darrell Voelz of Columbus according to the Bartholomew County coroner’s office. Deputies say that friends of Voelz evacuated from cabins in the area of the 5000 block of North 250W on Saturday due to the flooding, but Voelz opted to stay behind and hadn’t been seen since.

Authorities have been searching for Voelz since his disappearance was first reported on Saturday. In the midst of the river flooding, the water rescue team searched the area where Voelz primitive riverside cabin was reportedly located, the surrounding area and checked area residences on Saturday but could not find him.

On Wednesday, his friends reported again that he had not been seen and deputies went back to search the area. After the floodwaters retreated, they the site of the cabin, which appeared to have burned to the ground before the floodwaters overran the area.

An autopsy has been scheduled and the death investigation continues.

Photo: The flooded area on Driftwood River where a makeshift cabin had been located. Photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

A Seymour woman died in a crash earlier this week on U.S. 50.

According to the Indiana State Police, rescue workers were called to the crash at about 6:20 a.m. Tuesday morning at the intersection with Stevens Way on the west side of the city. Police say that 41-year-old Anna E. Grove was driving east bound on U.S. 50 when she attempted to turn north in front of a box truck. The box truck, driven by 55-year-old David Gosman of Greenfield collided into the passengers side of Grove’s car.

Grove was taken to Schneck Medical Center by Jackson County medics, where she was pronounced dead by the Jacskson County Coroner’s office.

Gosman was not injured.

Troopers say that crash reconstructionist were called to the scene. The westbound lanes of U.S. 50 were for more than two hours while the crash was investigated and cleaned up

The investigation remains ongoing.

Troopers were also assisted at the scene by Seymour police and firefighters.