You can enjoy music and story-telling at a Saturday event at the Columbus Learning Center and help orphaned African children.

Song & Story: Grimm and Gulley will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the auditorium in the learning center, on Central Avenue. It will feature Columbus singer-songwriters Tim Grimm and Jan Lucas-Grimm, as well Phillip Gulley, a national best-selling author and Quaker pastor.

Tickets are $25 for the live show, or $15 to watch a live stream. Proceeds will go to benefit the Granny Connection. The group formed in 2008 and focuses on raising funds to help African grandmothers and their orphaned grandchildren. In some countries in sub-Saharan Africa, up to 60 percent of AIDS orphans are living in extreme poverty in grandmother-headed households.

You can buy tickets at Viewpoint Books or at granny connection dot org.

Masks will be required.

There is an opportunity tomorrow night to take a guided night-time tour of the Exhibit Columbus installations.

Anne Surak, director of Exhibit Columbus will be leading the night time tour, from 7:30 to 8:30 starting at 408 6th Street and will end at the Midnight Palace installation on Brown Street. The tour will wrap up with the showing of two short films at the Midnight Palace installation, outside of the former Sears store.

Prior to the tour, there will be a conversation with the creator of the short films. Designer-educator Cyrus Peñarroyo and filmmaker-anthropologist Julius-Cezar MacQuarie will be taking part in a conversation about the physical, emotional and mental toll of those who work the night shift.

The conversation will be from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Exhibit Columbus headquarters at 408 Sixth Street.

You can RSVP for the conversation, the tour and the short films by clicking here. You can find more information about Exhibit Columbus at exhibitcolumbus.org.

Columbus has a new director for the city utilities department. The utility board members approved Roger Kelso for the new role, at their meeting this week.

According to the agency, Kelso has been a consultant for Arcadis Inc. since 2015, where he advised clients on water and sewer projects. Before that he held leadership roles in several roles, including a stint as town manager for Nashville from 1995 to 2002 and as president of the Nashville Town Council.

Kelso will replace long-time director Keith Reeves, who returned to serve as interim director in April.

Kelso is a 1988 graduate of Purdue University, with a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Engineering.

Local communities are getting shares of nearly $102 million dollars in state grant money to fix their roads.

Gov. Eric Holcomb announced yesterday that 218 Indiana communities had been approved for Community Crossings matching grants through the Next Level Roads program with a total of $101.9 million dollars being granted. Applications are evaluated based on the need, the current conditions and the impacts to safety and economic development. To qualify for funding, local governments must provide local matching funds. Larger communities must provide a 50 percent match, or 25 percent for smaller communities.

Among local communities, Bartholomew County will receive just over $137,210, Columbus $519,100, Hope $106,416, Greensburg $475,439,  Nashville $287,782, North Vernon $401,539,  and Seymour with $943,792
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Three people were arrested after shots were fired in the 2500 block of 14th Street in Columbus early Tuesday morning.

According to Columbus police reports, officers were called to a home at about 5:55 a.m. Tuesday morning. Police say that their investigation revealed that 44-year-old Benji L. Smith of Columbus fired a gun at a vehicle that drove by his home. That came after an online argument. The driver of the vehicle was uninjured and police recovered a .22 caliber shell casing from the driveway.

Smith was arrested on preliminary charges of intimidation with a deadly weapon, criminal recklessness with a firearm, and maintaining a common nuisance.

A search of the home uncovered narcotics, drug paraphernalia, multiple firearms and a large amount of cash. Police also found 30-year-old Trevin L. Colglazier of Columbus hiding under a mattress. He was wanted on an outstanding warrant and arrested.

A woman at the home, Jessica S. Smith, is being accused of maintaining a common nuisance.

Indiana State Police are offering safety tips this Halloween. Trooper stress that the most important thing this holiday is health and safety while trick-or-treating and getting everyone home safely.

Among the safety suggestions from state police:

• You should make sure that your children have a flashlight, glow stick, or reflective material on their costumes, so they can be seen clearly during the low light hours.
• Children should always be accompanied by an adult when trick-or-treating. You should have a plan if groups get separated including having a charged cellphone and ask an adult for help.
• You should always walk on the sidewalk and not in the roadways. Also make sure to look in both directions before crossing the road.
• Children should never enter the house of a stranger.
• All treats should be inspected by an adult before they are eaten.

State police are asking all motorists to slow down and drive with caution in area neighborhoods this weekend. Keep an eye out to protect the safety of children who might not be paying attention.

The Red Cross says that a serious shortage of blood and platelets continues and urges you to make an appointment to donate soon.

According to the agency, the current blood supply is the lowest the Red Cross has seen this time of year in more than a decade. At least 10,000 more donations are needed each week in the coming weeks to meet patient needs. The upcoming holiday season always presents seasonal challenges to blood collection.

Upcoming local Red Cross blood drive locations include:

• Nov. 3rd from 2 p.m. – 7 p.m., Parkview Church of the Nazarene, 1750 East State Road 46, in Nashville.
• Nov. 9th from 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., Bartholomew County Library, 536 5th Street in Columbus
• Nov. 13th from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 4850 W. Goeller Road in Columbus
• Nov. 15th from 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., First United Methodist Church, 240 Poplar St., North Vernon
• Nov. 19th from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., Developmental Services Inc., 2920 10th Street, Columbus
• Nov. 19th from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., Hauser High School, 9423 N. State Rd 9, Hope
• Nov. 23rd from 3 p.m. – 7 p.m., Jennings County High School, 800 West Walnut Street in North Vernon.

Because of expected rain, Seymour is changing up a Sunday event to celebrate the new Burkhart Boulevard railroad overpass.

City officials say you can come anytime between noon and 3 p.m. to walk, jog, run or ride a bike on the 2-mile stretch of road beginning at the roundabout. The planned parking area will be changing. It now will be along the dead end road leading west from the roundabout on South O’Brien Street near Silgan Plastics.

The Fraternal Order of Police will be grilling hot dogs near the 1-mile mark of the route and will have bottled water, Halloween candy and a limited amount of cookies from Laura Jo’s Cookies available.

The bypass will open to vehicles after a ribbon cutting at 9 a.m. Monday morning.

Weeks after the arrival of Afghan evacuees at Camp Atterbury, the Indiana National Guard continues its work there in support of Operation Allies Welcome.

According to reports from the Guard, about 150 members are working in a variety of roles, including warehouse operations, administrative support, and facility maintenance for the active duty service members and federal workers who are managing the operation.

“Camp Atterbury has spearheaded a whole of government effort that encompasses the best of our Hoosier values,” said Col. Michael Grundman, Camp Atterbury commander, in a press release. “Indiana National Guardsman in conjunction with state agencies and individual volunteers from all walks of life continue to perform beyond my expectations.

“They have truly put their heart and soul into supporting our Afghan guests as well as our active duty partners involved with Operation Allies Welcome.”

The Indiana National Guard is also working to help collect donations for the Afghan nationals. This includes nine armory locations for donation drop-off, staffed by Guard members for the collection of donations. Guard members are also transporting those donations to Camp Atterbury.

The Indiana Guard Reserve has nearly 80 volunteers helping with sorting, packaging, and distribution of donations.

Photo credit: Pfc. Jordan Corfman, an Infantryman with 2nd Battalion, 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment, Bravo Company, plays thumb war with an Afghan child while supporting Operation Allies Welcome at Camp Atterbury, Ind., Oct. 25, 2021.  U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Trinity Carter / 14th Public Affairs Detachment

A local lawmaker wants candidates for school board to have to declare their political party.

State Rep. Jim Lucas, a Seymour Republican, said this week said voters need to know where school board candidates stand on the issues, and he thinks having them run as a Republican or Democrat will help.

Lucas says voters often don’t know the politics of the people running for school board until it’s too late. Lucas says there is already plenty of politics on local school boards, he says having candidates declare a party would just bring those politics out into the open.

Story courtesy of TTWN Media Networks Inc.