Friday, April 26th, 2019

Tri Star receives $100K donation

Peoples gives funds for project

By Tom Stankard
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

Peoples Bank President-elect Dan Broering, left, and

President Jack Hartings, right, present a donation check of $100,000 to Tri Star Career Compact students Tim McEldowney, Danielle Hall, Libby Keck and Riley Muhlenkamp for the new Tri Star 2.0 facility on Thursday morning.

CELINA - Peoples Bank officials on Thursday donated $100,000 for Tri Star Career Compact's new 2.0 facility being built on State Route 703.
Bank president Jack Hartings and president-elect Dan Broering presented the check to Tri Star Director Tim Buschur and interactive media students. The money will help fund the Star Room, which will be used for hosting community events and adult education classes.
"We're pleased to be a part of this," Hartings said.
Buschur led check presentation attendees on a tour of the new facility, noting the Star Room is intended for the whole community, not just Tri Star students.
"This is a community center, and we're all about the community because it's our lifeblood," Hartings added.
Peterson Construction crew members have completed 65 percent of the $25 million project located on 15 acres across from Wright State University-Lake Campus.
Fanning-Howey Associates designed the 100,000-square-foot facility to resemble a corporate office rather than a traditional school building, Tri Star Assistant Director Brian Stetler has said. It will consolidate the compact's 15 career programs under one roof with 19 classroom and laboratories.
Having all students in one central location will take the quality of their education to the next level, Hartings said.
Interactive media students Jayden McEldowney, Danielle Hall, Libby Keck and Riley Muhlenkamp said they're excited to take classes in the new facility next school year.
Taking classes at Tri Star helps them prepare for college and meet new friends they wouldn't normally meet, Hall said.
Support from the community has been "amazing," Buschur said, as several companies in addition to Peoples Bank have made donations to the project totaling $1.9 million. Other funding comes from a 15-year, 0.95-mill bond levy passed in 2016 by 79% of Mercer County voters and 69% of Auglaize County voters. The state will cover $8 million of the project's cost with the levy covering remaining $17 million.
"It shows support we have and the needs for these type of jobs," Buschur added. "It's a testament to the kind of people in this community."
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

Peoples Bank President Jack Hartings, right, gestures as he talks with President-elect Dan Broering while they tour the new Tri Star Career Compact facility on Thursday morning.

Additional online story on this date
Health system secures rights to name field, gym
ST. MARYS - The field at Memorial High School's new athletic complex will be called "Grand Lake Health System Field" after a $300,000 donation from health system officials. [More]
Subscriber and paid stories on this date
Haulette Manufacturing to add 10 jobs
CELINA - A manufacturer of racks and containers is expected to undergo a $750,000 on-site expansion and add 10 new jobs.
Haulette Manufacturing Inc
MENDON - A local farmer will make a second trip to Nebraska to help with recovery efforts after the devastating flooding earlier this year.
"It's
CELINA - Three counts of sexual battery against a former kindergarten teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy have been dropped after Mercer County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Ingraham granted a motion by her defense attorney.
CELINA - Democrats in small, rural areas such as Mercer County can achieve victories at the polls by connecting with voters on issues that matter locally, the president of the Ohio Democratic County Chairs Association stressed to a large gathering on Thursday night.
CELINA - A trial date has been set for two former Celina restaurateurs accused of tampering with records and telecommunications fraud.
Kang Yong Ch
WAPAKONETA - Auglaize County Commissioner Don Regula highlighted some of the county's successes of the past year, such as the sale of Auglaize Acres, and spoke of some improvements to come during the Wapakoneta State of the City, County and Schools event on Thursday.
CELINA - U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, announced nearly 250 sites where Ohioans can safely dispose of unwanted and unused prescription drugs on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.
CELINA - Heavy rains on Thursday night left water running over several Mercer County roadways.
While no roads had been closed at press time, several roadways had taken on high water, according to the Mercer County Sheriff's Office.
FORT RECOVERY - Thomas More University was one of the first schools to reach out to Payton Jutte, and the Fort Recovery senior made his choice for college and to play men's basketball at the NCAA Division III college in Kentucky on Thursday.