Bluffton's 45th annual arts and crafts festival moves into Bluffton's Main Street with countless craft booths, business exhibits and lots more.
Set up starts as early at 6 a.m. The show offically starts at 9 a.m. and continues to 3 p.m. Jerry Burkholder, for the 15th year, is the craft show director.
In between there's an opportunity for the entire family to have a great time in downtown Bluffton. Here's what else is on the schedule:
• Hard Rock Llama Co., will show a variety of young and adult llamas. You'll find them on Vine and Main.
Story and photos by Monty Siekerman
Ada hosts the Northwest Conference track and field events.
Prelims were held on Thursday. The finals are set to begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday, continuing until about 2 p.m.
Thursday saw many competitors from the 10 schools, as well as many spectators. Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for students.
Looking for conference championships are athletes from Ada, Allen East, Bluffton, Columbus Grove, Crestview, Delphos Jefferson, Lincolnview, Paulding, and Spencerville.
Liberty Conservation Club will be hoppin' this weekend with their monthly fish fry on Saturday and annual fishing derby set for Sunday.
The fry, which features fish and chicken, is open to the public. Cost is $8 for all you can eat.
The popular fry is held the second Saturday of each month, except August, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Sunday's fishing derby will feature $1,000 worth of fish that have been added to those already there. Some of the added fish, mostly cat and pan fish, have been tagged.
Ada fourth graders may open the village's next restaurant.
This spring, in art class, fourth graders considered their favorite foods, according to Kristie Steiner, art teacher. (Earlier this year, if you recall, third grade students created art pizza. Click here for a quick review.)
Steiner describes the clay food project this way: "Students were asked to choose what food they wanted to make, practice making it with modeling clay, and then create it. After it was fired they painted them to resemble the actual food.
Ada Academic Boosters Reading Carnival is Friday, May 13.
Students from Kindergarten through fifth grade will participate.
According to the boosters, the carnival serves as a reward for students for their reading efforts made throughout the school year.
Students receive tickets for reading. The tickets are then used to play games or to win prizes. The carnival also offers chances to win books from a guessing game.
The Liberty Conservation Club's annual fishing derby is Saturday, May 14. The club's derby takes place at the club's ground at 1552 State Route 235, north of Ada. Call 419-234-5795 for more details.
Ada third graders witnessed a great lesson on seat belt safety this week.
Michael Harnishfeger, Ada police chief, used SAFER Bob the Egg in his demonstration.
"For the past 12 years, when I ask the kids what we should name the egg, our crash test dummy, the name has always been "Bob."
He adds: "This is a very valuable lesson in seat belt use. We crash the car with Bob in a seat belt and he survives. When we take the belt off, Bob is ejected from the car and cracks. An excellent visual and great reminder to always wear your seat belt.
Two pairs of students and faculty from the Ohio Northern University Raabe College of Pharmacy have been named recipients of the 2016 American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Walmart Scholars Program.
Each student-faculty pair will receive a $1,000 scholarship to attend the AACP Annual Meeting and the AACP Teachers Seminar in Anaheim, Calif., from July 23-27, 2016.
Dr. Brittany Long, ONU HealthWise resident, and her faculty mentor, Deirdre Myers, pharmacy practice instructor and assistant director of student services at Ohio Northern, received the first award. Long and Myers are both Ohio Northern pharmacy graduates.
