Lawmaker talks to school stakeholders

Editor’s note: This is the first in a two-part series on local school officials’ attempts to have input into state education issues. DAVE MOSIER/independent editor Local school officials have been holding sessions with state lawmakers to receive information on Governor John Kasich’s biennial budget proposal, as well as provide input on Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requirements […]

Gasoline prices dip with lower oil prices

Submitted information Average retail gasoline prices in Ohio have fallen 7.4 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.13 per gallon on Sunday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 5,345 gas outlets in Ohio. This compares with the national average, which has fallen 1.3 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.29 per […]

VW Peony Festival information provided

Van Wert independent/submitted information The special day of the peony flower has been the first Saturday in June since the late 1900s. Van Wert County’s peony farms, which grew many varieties of the flower seen as a symbol of romance, wealth, and respect around the world, helped earn the small city of Van Wert recognition […]

Alice M. Bell

Alice M. Bell, 86, of Van Wert, passed away at 5:42 a.m. Saturday, March 11, 2017, at Lima Memorial Hospital. She was born in Van Wert on May, 3, 1930, a daughter of Charles and Mary (Herminghuysen) Stegaman, who are both deceased. She married to James E. Bell, who survives in Van Wert. She is survived […]

Mary Alice Kaiser

Mary Alice Kaiser, 84, of Van Wert, passed away at 6:40 p.m. Saturday, March 11, 2017, at Lutheran Hospital of Indiana in Fort Wayne. She was born June 12, 1932, in Ridge Township, the daughter of Edward and Mildred (Mosier) O’Leary, who both preceded her in death. On September 24, 1955, she married Donald Leroy […]

Robert E. Zuber

Robert E. “Bob” Zuber, 73, of Spencerville, passed away peacefully with his family at his side at 9:14 a.m. Saturday, March 11, 2017, in the Van Wert Area Inpatient Hospice Center. He was born January 14, 1944, in Lima, a son of Raymond O. and Virginia M. Savidge Zuber, who are both deceased. On January […]

District finals

The Elida Fieldhouse was packed for Friday’s game between No. 1 seeded Delphos St. John’s and No. 2 Crestview for the Division IV district finals. The Blue Jays won the game, 48-36, to advance to regional tournament play at Bowling Green State University (see game story and photo on the Sports Page). Bob Barnes/Van Wert […]

Riedel talks with school officials

State Representative Craig Riedel (R-Defiance) met with local school officials during a nearly two-hour meeting held in the First Federal Lecture Hall of the Niswonger Performing Arts Center of Northwest Ohio. The discussion centered on a number of school-related subjects, as well as wind energy setbacks (a full story on the meeting will be in […]

First Federal hires MSVW program mgr.

VW independent/submitted information A local financial institution has announced the hiring for Main Street Van Wert Program Manager Adam Ries. First Federal of Van Wert announced Friday the hiring of Ries, a Van Wert native who has been MSVW program manager for the past six years. Ries is a 2006 graduate of Van Wert High […]

Riedel votes for state bond bank measure

Submitted information COLUMBUS — State Representative Craig S. Riedel (R-Defiance) announced the Ohio House’s passage of legislation that would create a state bond bank to be administered by the office of the State Treasurer. House Bill 54, sponsored by Reps. Bill Blessing (R-Colerain Township) and Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green), authorizes Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel to […]