CELINA - Mercer County Commissioner Jerry Laffin on Thursday afternoon administered the oath of office to his successor, Brian Miller, who will take over on Jan. 2, signaling a changing of the guard and a new era of leadership.
Laffin, a Republican and the longest-serving commissioner in Ohio, announced in January 2023 that he would not seek a 12th term in office. His 44-year reign as county commissioner will come to an end on Jan. 1. [More]
NEW KNOXVILLE - As one of three unbeaten girls' basketball teams in the Midwest Athletic Conference heading into last evening's contest at New Knoxville, Marion Local wanted nothing more than to march into Christmas week remaining unscathed and sitting one game out of first place in the MAC standings. [More]
PIQUA - Cover crops are a useful tool for farmers looking to control soil erosion, increase soil nutrients and suppress weeds, Mercer Landmark conservation agronomist Michael Watercutter said Thursday morning at Apple Farm Service and Edison State Community College's first Farm Forum.
CELINA - Mercer County commissioners have asked department heads to keep their budgets tight next year as they deal with a shortfall in sales tax collections for the first time in ages.
NEW BREMEN - The New Bremen Board of Education on Wednesday established a capital project fund to set aside monies for district improvements, including renovating the kitchen/office, replacing the kitchen dishwasher and renovating the track and athletic stadium.
St. Henry comes back to beat Minster in key MAC contest
MINSTER - St. Henry converted a plethora of Minster turnovers into points to overcome a 12-point deficit and post a 43-35 Midwest Athletic Conference victory Thursday night at the Wildcat Gymnasium.
CELINA - After suffering second half letdowns that turned into overtime losses the past two games, Celina needed to have something break their way on Thursday in Western Buckeye League play against Van Wert.
Brittyn Bruns' buzzer-beating 3-pointer lifted Parkway to a 32-29 come-from-behind victory over Fort Recovery in Midwest Athletic Conference girls basketball action on Thursday night at Panther Gymnasium in Rockford.
Schwieterman Pharmacies will shutter its remaining locations in New Bremen, Minster and Coldwater on Dec. 31, ending a community-based approach to health care that dates all the way back to 1916.
The business, owned by Dale Bertke of Minster, made the announcement on its Facebook page this week, thanking patients and customers for their patronage over the last 108 years. Staff are helping customers transfer their prescriptions to other pharmacies. [More]
St. Henry travels to Auglaize County for battle of conference leaders
By Gary R. Rasberry
The third full week of Midwest Athletic Conference girls basketball play tonight features an early anticipated matchup between two teams at the top of the standings.
St. Henry, off to a 6-0 start to the season and holding a half-game lead in th [More]
COLDWATER - Coldwater school officials are crafting a new policy for next school year to address new artificial intelligence, including how it will be used, what applications are acceptable and how private data can be protected.
COLDWATER - The Mercer Health Marion Campus in Maria Stein saw nearly 10,000 primary care visits in its first year of operations and is expected to experience many more when a new cardiology practice opens next month.
Mercer County Board of Health met last week for a regular session meeting and appointed Dr. Jonathan Winner as the health commissioner for the Mercer County Health District on a part-time basis, according to a news release.
Two or three generations ago it was only in the two or three weeks preceding Christmas that the toy stores displayed their merchandise; and the grocery stores lined up their wooden pails of gum drops, hard mix, creams, jelly beans and nuts.
With roughly a third of the season compete in Germany's Basketball Bundesliga (Federal League), MLP Academics Heidelberg is on top of the standings at 8-3.
MINSTER - Minster Local Schools officials expressed an interest to village councilors on Tuesday night in working with the village to complete a proposed land swap.
Schools superintendent Josh Meyer and board of education president Rich Bruns discussed the possibility of the school district obtaining about 11.5 acres of land adjacent to the school campus. The land is presently the site of the village swimming pool, a shelter house, a tennis court and parking lots. [More]
Parkway takes two from Celina in girls-boys doubleheader
By Gary R. Rasberry
CELINA - The boys and girls basketball doubleheader between Parkway and Celina came up with a pair of competitive games and included a little bonus basketball.
Colbie Smith's bucket with 18.9 seconds remaining in regulation allowed Parkway to tie Celina, then the Panthers outscored the Bulldogs 7-4 in the extra session to get the 43-40 overtime win in the first game of Tuesday's twin bill at the Fieldhouse. [More]
VAN WERT - A Portugal-based company providing sustainable packaging solutions for dairy companies such as Dannon will establish its first U.S. manufacturing plant in Van Wert.
An interview with the North Pole's busiest jolly ol' elf
NORTH POLE - Amid the chaos of elves feverishly building toys, reindeer practicing their route in the sky and Mrs. Claus making sure everything is in tip-top shape for the night everyone is looking forward to, Santa talked to The Daily Standard in an exclusive interview.
CELINA - Mercer County Board of Elections members on Tuesday voted to maintain the status quo on polling sites for the 2025 election cycle, meaning Mendon-Union precinct voters will continue to cast their ballots at the Rockford Community Building.
CELINA - The arrest of a 24-year-old Florida woman earlier this month on election fraud charges was set in motion when Mercer County Board of Elections staff determined a signature on a petition did not match the one on file at the office.
CELINA - A former Coldwater school bus driver that allegedly pulled a student up by his hair pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced to two years of community control sanctions in Celina Municipal Court last week.
MINSTER - School board members on Monday night approved the resignation of longtime school board member and current board vice president Sandy Schulze.
Fort Recovery used a 12-2 second quarter burst to get the lead, then held off St. Marys down the stretch for the 44-37 victory in girls basketball action on Tuesday night at Grand Lake Health System Court.
Everything in life comes to an end. Whether it's a season, a year, a month, a week, or a day.
Seasons are particularly important to me as it marks transitions in the fishing world. It's always a change in where the fish will be, where the fish will hide, or how they act or respond to bait. [More]
Oneda M. Horstman, age 93 of Botkins Rd. New Knoxville, Ohio, passed away at 8:35 AM on Sunday, December 15, 2024 at Elmwood Assisted Living, New Bremen. [More]
Stephanie N. Elliott, 26, Jacksonville, North Carolina, formerly of New Bremen, died Dec. 6, 2024, along with her unborn daughter, Seraphena Cruz. [More]
ST. MARYS - St. Marys city councilors on Monday night during a committee-of-the-whole meeting reviewed and made amendments to a set of proposed public participation rules previously introduced late last month.
CELNA - School board members on Monday night agreed to spend $1.06 million in local school building funds for additional seating at the high school gymnasium and features for an auditeria/cafetorium in the new grades 7-12 building.
CELINA - A Celina resident with a Venezuelan ID was arrested for theft at the Celina Walmart on Sunday after stealing nearly $1,200 in merchandise on four different occasions.
FORT RECOVERY - Although no action was taken, Fort Recovery councilors Monday heard updates from the planning commission, including several rezoning requests it has received.
FORT RECOVERY - In a short meeting of the Fort Recovery Board of Education Monday, superintendent Tony Stahl recommended for board members to potentially create a separate capital fund for the districtwide facility project.
COLDWATER - As tough of a challenge as Coldwater gave Ottoville on Monday, turnovers hampered the Cavaliers, as they committed 17 turnovers in the first half.
New Knoxville used a good start to both halves and snapped a three-game losing streak in defeating Houston 46-32 in non-conference girls basketball action on Monday night in Shelby County.
