Fortman Insurance Services, Inc., celebrated its first anniversary in Bluffton on July 1.
The Ottawa-based company opened a branch office at 115 N. Main St., Bluffton, in the former Book Reviews store front on July 1, 2011.
Fortman's expansion to Bluffton took place due to the expanding number of clients outside Putnam County, according to Catherine Fortman.
"The need to expand to a second location made sense. Because the business had several customers in the Bluffton area, the expansion into Bluffton made sense," she said.
The Hancock County Sheriff's Office is conducting increased patrol from July 3 through July 5 thanks to grant funding from the Ohio Traffic Safety Office, according to Sergeant Matt Kinsinger of the patrol.
Deputies will pay particular attention for violations such as driving under the influence, and failure to yield and speeding; all of which are leading actors in fatal crashes. There will be zero tolerance for driving under the influence and seat belt violations.
Fallen trees, branches, and other debris after the recent storm have many area residents out cleaning up their yards and neighborhoods. The Allen County Health Department is issuing a reminder to all residents to be sure that they are up- to-date on their tetanus vaccination.
By 9 a.m. today, (July 3) AEP Ohio had restored power to
approximately 55 percent of the 660,000 customers affected by the
catastrophic storms that moved through the state June 29 and the
additional 20,000 outaged by the July 1 evening storm.
Meteorologists continue to show the threat of possible thunderstorms
through the end of the week. Temperatures are forecasted to remain in the mid-90s throughout this period.
You might called the Saturday, July 14, Bluffton Taste of Summer "Italian Heritage Night," or perhaps its an Italian-American summer festival.
Bluffton's Taste of Summer continues with an evening of food and entertainment at Jeannie's Restaurant, on Vine Street, from 4 to 9 p.m., Saturday, July 14. The event is part of a summer series sponsored by the Bluffton Area Chamber of Commerce.
The event is family-oriented and is open to the public.
Here's Bluffton looking from Main Street west toward what is now the university campus. We've established that these photos were taken in 1948. Watch for more information concerning why we know the exact date.
You must look closely to realize this is a photo of Bluffton. Several structures here no long exist. Check the St. Mary's Catholic Church on the right center of the photo.
In the center left you'll notice a very narrow Vine Street between Lawn and Spring.
Bridge Bereavement Services is offering a "Writing Through Grief" workshop for those grieving the current or past death of a loved one.
The workshop will be held Monday, July 16, and Monday, July 23, from 6 to 7 p.m. at Van Buren State Park, 12259 Township Road 218, Van Buren.
Through this event, participants will use various writing techniques to investigate, express and process grief. No previous writing experience is needed and journals will be provided.
Several members of the Bluffton Lions Club were recognized for various achievements. The complete list of honorees is in the current Lions newsletter. It is available to Icon viewers as an attachment at the bottom of this story.
In a recent Blog post, Dr. Allen Power, MD, tells the following story. (Dr. Power is an Eden Mentor at St. John's Home in Rochester, N.Y., and Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Rochester.)
One consequence of opening a new living space like our Green Houses is that it lays bare some aspects of institutional care that never occurred to me before. This seems to happen with regularity these days. Here's a story.
Frank V. Evilsizer, Jr., of Ada died at 3:31 a.m. July 1, 2012 at Bluffton Hospital. He was born Oct. 9, 1987 in Lima to Frank and Sandy Dunifon Evilsizer Sr. and they survive near Ada. He was married to Kaitlin Gossard and she survives.
Evilsizer was an avid outdoorsman and loved to fish and hunt. He was a member of the Bluffton and Hog Creek Sportsmen's Clubs. He was also a Michigan football fan.
