You will see some restrictions on Interstate 65 between Columbus and Walesboro starting Friday night.

The Indiana Department of Transportation says that the left lane of northbound 65 will be closed starting at about 9 p.m. Friday night through 6 a.m. Saturday morning between the 65 and 66 mile markers.

Crews with contractor Force Construction will be removing a temporary barrier wall and moving equipment. Traffic will be slowed through a series of rolling roadblocks, with traffic reduced to 45 mph for 5-10 minutes at a time.

INDOT says you should use extra caution and watched for slowed traffic in the area. There will be electronic message boards and queue trucks to warn drivers of the restrictions.

The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

Columbus police say that there are still spots available for Saturday’s teen precision driving course.

The course includes classroom instruction and hands-on driving at a closed driving track. Students will be taught vehicle dynamics and safety tips as well as legal aspects of driving. At the track, students will learn to how to make safe panic stops, safe evasive steering maneuvers and off-road recoveries. Students will practice their backing skills and parallel parking skills.

The class is from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Columbus Police Department. The cost is $25.

You can sign up here. 

A Tennessee man is accused of stealing dozens of scientific calculators and medicine from a Columbus Walmart store.

According to Columbus police reports, officers were called to the Whitfield Drive Walmart at about 4:45 Saturday afternoon about a possible shoplifting suspect. Police say that 51-year-old Gregg Lestingi of Oak Ridge, Tennessee stashed calculators inside of a mailbox which he then bought at the self checkout line.

When police confronted Lestingi in the parking lot they noticed what appeared to be stolen merchandise in the vehicle. A search revealed more calculators and over-the-counter medicine supplements. The value of the stolen property was estimated at more than $8,500. Police believe that he intended to sell the items on the internet.

He was arrested on preliminary charges of theft and possession of a controlled substance.

Evidence photo courtesy of Columbus Police Department.

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development is partnering with Ivy Tech Community College to provide training in tech skills to 5,000 Hoosiers.

The agencies announced that the statewide initiative, which includes Amazon Web Services, will allow access to cloud computing education courses and certifications to students in high school and community college. The goal is to train and certify Hoosiers over the next two years to take cloud computing jobs in their communities.

Amazon Web Services will provide free professional development, technical training, and certification exams for educators who will begin teaching cloud computing courses to their students starting next fall.

To learn more about cloud training offerings at local education institutions and how to enroll, you can go to www.ivytech.edu/cloud-technologies.

The deadline is coming up on Saturday to sign up for free and low-cost testing through Schneck Medical Center affiliates.

Schneck Foundation, Schneck Primary Care and Schneck Family Care are holding upcoming Vitals & Vials screenings. Participants can have their blood pressure, pulse, oxygen level, and height and weight checked free. Other tests will include a metabolic profile test for $40, thyroid-stimulating hormone and prostate specific antigens tests for $30 each.

Tests will be offered in our area from 8 to 10 a.m. on August 7th at Schneck Family Care Jennings County on N. State Highway 3 in North Vernon and at Schneck Professional Building in Seymour, from 8 to 10 a.m. on August 21st . There will also be tests in Scott and Washington county Schneck facilities.

You can register by July 31st by calling 812-524-4244.

The American Red Cross is looking for your help as the agency is reporting a severe blood shortage.

The next Bartholomew County Red Cross blood drive will be held from 1 to 6 p.m. Monday at Hope Moravian Church, 202 Main Street in Hope.

Other upcoming area donation events include:

• Aug. 10th: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., YMCA Greensburg, 1 YMCA Way
• Aug. 12th: 2 p.m. – 7 p.m., Tea Creek Baptist Church, 5280 S. Co Rd 300 W., North Vernon

You can schedule an appointment to give blood by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org, or calling 1-800-RED CROSS

Organizers of this weekend’s Moonlight Loop bike ride say there are still spaces available for bicycle riders and volunteers. Moonlight Loop is an an evening fundraising ride to benefit Friends of Animal Care Services in Columbus.

The ride will start at 9 p.m. Saturday night. Modeled after the Indy N.I.T.E. ride cyclists will make a loop around the City of Columbus, passing several architectural landmarks along the way. This is the seventh year for the ride. Since its inception, the event has netted more than $73,000 to care for the animals at Columbus Animal Care Services.

Registration and additional information about the event is available online at www.columbus.in.gov/animal-care-services/moonlight-loop/. Registration is $30 through Friday and $35 on the night of the ride.

If you want to volunteer you can call (812) 376-2505.

An event this weekend in Hope will honor two long-time area educators.

There will be festivities as well as a dedication of the The Glen S. Keller and Barbara S. Johnson Memorial Garden at the Simmons School – One Room Schoolhouse, from 2 to 3:30 on Sunday.

Susan Thayer-Fye, Johnson’s sister, explains.

She says that the pair worked to rebuild the schoolhouse and to provide programming for it.

The afternoon will include games, music and treats including an ice cream social and strawberry shortcake. The memorial garden includes a section of strawberries started by Johnson as a way to provide the dessert to the students who visited the historic, restored school building. That’s according to HSJ Online, the Hope news website.

The schoolhouse is behind Hope Elementary School on State Road 9.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Area Visitors Center.

A man who was shot by Columbus police last month is now facing an attempted murder charge for firing a shot at an officer, according to Indiana State Police.

The incident happened early on the morning of June 27th, when an out-of-town homeowner was alerted through remote security video that an unknown man was on his property. The homeowner called 911 and Columbus police were called to the home in the 3300 block of Woodland Parkway at about 4:12 a.m.

38-year-old Jacob D. Rice allegedly refused to comply with police commands and fired a shot at police, before he was shot once. Rice was taken to IU Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis for treatment.

According to Indiana State Police, Rice was released from the hospital on July 19th and arrested on a warrant from an unrelated case. Rice is now being charged with attempted murder, unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, theft of a firearm and theft of property over $750.

The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce is looking for nominees for awards to be given at the upcoming 90th Annual Awards Dinner.

You can make a nomination for the Business Hall of Fame in the small, medium and large categories, for Young Professional of the Year and Spirit of the Chamber Awards.

Nominations are being accepted until August 13th. You can pick up a nomination form at the Jackson County Chamber offices or online at Jackson CO Chamber dot com (www.jacksoncochamber.com.)

The dinner will be held September 16th at Pewter Hall.