Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 131, Number 40, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 2 October 2008 — Page 1

Embrace the Pace

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Deadline iTie deadline to submit items for the Around WaNee Community Calendar is Friday at noon. For more information on how to submit a calendar item, call 773-3127 or e-mail [email protected]. Tornado remembered A local committee is planning a special event titled "The other side of the storm" to take place Saturday, Oct. 18 at the North Wood High School gym at 6:30 p.m. Guest speakers will be Mayor Larry Thompson and local meteorologist Mike Hoffman. Open swim announced The North Wood swimming and diving team and the Wa-Nee Waves swim team announce the return of open swim to the community at the North Wood High School pool beginning Oct. 5 and continuing the first Sunday of each month from 1 to 5 p.m. The fee is $2 per person and $6 per family. An adult must accompany children ages 14 and younger. Cub Scouts host shirt buy back Any previous Nappanee Cub Scouts who no longer wish to participate in the program can sell back their gently used shirts for $lO each. For more information, call Cub master Dave Lane at 773-7675. COB hosts bazaar, walk The Nappanee Church of the Brethren, 301 Mack Dr., Nappanee, will host its annual craft bazaar and cookie walk Saturday, Nov. 1 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Water aerobics Wa-Nee Continuing Education will offer water aerobics classes Mondays and Wednesdays from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. beginning with a 10-minute warm up, a 30 minute workout and a 10-minute cool down. The first class is Sept. 8 through Oct. 15. The second class is Oct. 20 through Nov. 26 at the North Wood High School pool. See AROUND, page 3 - • , r* m.. ty-'-.y; contact us •'•V Ailifitittr ftfjriair * . ,4§pi mmws . ICO tu * ML. .A.i g, rn a rv> ; PCX Bax 230 Napjanee, IN 46550 Hours. tniouen rncuiY u / tayfe i

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■Thompson leads girls' golf; team advances through Regionals, page 6

Wa-Nee schools see 113 decline

Hi# MrMifiu tlrfrirlinrl dy rVKinoy /yicranana Editor NAPPANEE When the results of this year's ADM count returned, they were not good for the Wa-Nee school corporation. Enrollment has once again fallen short, this time by 113 students. ADM, which stands for Average

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/MANDY MCFARLAND Rodney Nafziger (left) and Ryan Minnich stir a pot of Blackstone Soup. The pristine houses Dehiridlhem replace the ones that, less than a year ago, the Oct. 18 tornado left in piles of rubble.

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•Neighborhood celebrates survival By Mandy McFarland Editor NAPPANEE Tomatoes, com, beef, onions and community. Those are some of the key ingredients for the perfect pot of Blackstone Soup. Last Friday evening residents of the small subdivision on Nappanee's east end gathered to celebrate the restoration of their homes and of their lives nearing the one-year anniversary of the tornado that left many of their homes

Wakarusa chamber honors business success

8.. ki L. AA-F 1 1 oy manay ivicranaiKi Editor WAKARUSA The mood was cheery and the atmosphere light last Monday, Sept. 22 as the Wakarusa Chamber of Commerce celebrated its annual appreciation banquet. Following dinner and entertainment by ventriloquist Barbara Jean Paniel, chamber personnel handed out awards to local businesses and individuals who have made their mark over the last year in Wakarusa. The Large Business of the Year award went to Utilimaster. In its 35th year of production, Utilimaster came about during a time of significant decline in die recreational vehicle market Founder Richard Klingler was at the time head of Holiday Rambler Corporation, Utilimaster

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Daily Membership, affects the amount of state funding that a school corporation is allowed to receive. Fewer students means less funding. According to Wa-Nee school business manager Roger Zentz, the state projected in June a 3,245 student ADM count, and that Wa-Nee would receive about $753,394. However, Wa-Nee's actual ADM this year is 3,088.

in rubble. A tradition began several years ago for the residents to gather in September for Blackstone soup, based on the story "Stone Soup" in which different guests brought different ingredients for a special bowl of soup. The scene was very different from one year ago. The houses are again pristine, the yards well-trimmed, though the memory of that night will forever remain. "We're glad to be back," resident Tom McClung said. "It was quite an ordeal. It's hard to believe it's been a year already."

sought to make up for the decline by creating and building what is described as the first light-duty commercial vehicle on a cutaway chassis. Today they employ around 800 individuals. The Medium Business of the Year went to REM Industries, Inc. In its earliest days REM recovered dinette chair cushions for Newmar Coro, in the basement of Robert Miller. It later moved to Nelson's Parkway m Wakarusa and supplies hardwood and metal frame furniture to RV manufacturers, offices, churches, restaurants and funeral homes. The Small Business of the Year was ThompsonLengacher k Yoder Funeral Homes. Larry and Linda Thompson of Nappanee have owned the business since 1983 Sm CHAMBER, pagt 2

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/MANDY MCFARLAND Wakarusa Chamber of Commerce award recipients were (back row,.from left) Larry Thompson, Jody Lengacher, Mike Kitson, Jason Miller, Bob Miller, Kipp Barhydt, (front row, from left) LvKla Thompson, Tara Lengacher, Marcia Hummel, Opal Angtemyer and Nancy Avery.

•Apple Festival contest results continue to arrive, pages 2,4,8

"Our new money coming in is actually going to be less in 09 to the tune of about $5,300," Zentz said. ADM, according to Zentz, is not the actual student population, since kindergarten students are counted as only one-half of a student. "So when 1 say we have an ADM of 3,088 we actually have more kids than that," he said. "We have about

Resident Roxy McClung remembers the anxiety of various neighbors who were on vacation when the storm hit. "Within the first hour or two they were calling me," she said. "They heard it on the news and wanted to know if their houses were still there." Residents Lee and Emerson Minnich were one of those couples. "By the time we got home it was Friday night and dark," Lee said. "Everyone had the same situation, trying to get ouf what they could." For more firsthand stories, see the Advance news one-year special, which will appear in the Oct. 16 issue.

3,200 kids." According to Zentz, the loss in funding could result in even more cost cuts. "Obviously we're going to have to sit back and regroup and determine what needs to be done," he said. "More than likely, yes, there's going See SCHOOLS, page 2

Terra Group could call it quits By Mandy McFarland Editor NAPPANEE —The WaNee community received yet another economical blow last Wednesday, Sept. 24 when Terra Group, formerly Nappanee Window, announced the closing of several of its area plants. Many were surprised because the announcement came only months after Nappanee RV Components, one of Terra Group's plants, received an award for efforts to reduce its environmental impact thWUgh the "Recycled Rout-Out" program. Company president and CEO Steve Brenneman informed the Advance News in an e-mail that while last week's announcement sounds bleak, "there are some new developments (Friday) that are not final yet." Nappanee Mayor Larry Thompson responded to the growing number of local manufacturers forced to lay off employees or shut down altogether. "We're sorry to see any plant have to close," Thompson said. "We're sorry to hear this news on top of everything else that's happened but I'm confident that something can be worked out short-term." At press time no further information was available.