Bluffton University will present its 126th performance of Handel’s “Messiah” at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 12, in Yoder Recital Hall. While tickets are free, seats need to be reserved at www.bluffton.edu/tickets or at Marbeck Center.
Dr. Bo Young Kang, director of choral activities, will conduct the oratorio. Soloists along with the Bluffton Choral Society including students, faculty, staff and community members will be accompanied by an orchestra.
UPDATE: Santa will be in the alley between Roots and Webb Insurance (111 and 105 S. Main) after riding the in the antique fire truck in the parade.
The 35th annual Bluffton Blaze of Lights will be celebrated on the evening of Saturday, November 27 in downtown Bluffton. The Blaze, as it is known, begins with a festival--including a parade, entertainment, and ceremonies--that attracts some three to four thousand people. A great number have seen the Blaze many times, but let’s describe it for the first-time visitor and those reading from a distance.
Linda Kay McCoy, 71, passed away November 25, 2021 at Mercy Health-St. Rita's Medical Center, Lima. Linda was born February 26, 1950 in Sioux Center, Iowa to the late Gerrit and Kathleen (Van Royan) Rozeboom. On June 19, 1971 she married Richard McCoy.
Communities in Northwest Ohio are receiving more than $41.6 million in low-interest rate and principal forgiveness funding from Ohio EPA to improve wastewater and drinking water infrastructure and make other water quality improvements.
Ottawa, which supplies water to Bluffton, is receiving $8.27 million to improve the city’s drinking water treatment plant building’s interior and exterior, including measures to help address the potential impact of harmful algal blooms on the water system. This loan includes $3.78 million in principal forgiveness, which does not have to be repaid.
The Swiss Community Historical Society of Bluffton and Pandora has announced the return of the traditional Christmas Open House at the Schumacher Homestead, 8350 Bixel Road, Bluffton. The event will be extended over two days, from 3-6 p.m. on December 4 and 5, giving visitors the chance to view the farmhouse by daylight and candle light.
Visitors can tour the decorated house, make a dipped candle, shop in the Christmas shop and enjoy refreshments around a fire in the backyard.
The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center at Bluffton University recently celebrated its 35th anniversary with an open house. Also this fall, center director Louise Matthews resigned after working there for 26 years.
A committee of faculty and staff is evaluating the direction of the Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center, as part of “We Flourish,” the university’s 5-year strategic planning project.
UPDATE: Et Cetera Shop will have extended hours, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., on Saturday, Nov. 27.
Saturday, November 27 is Small Business Saturday, a “shopping holiday” that supports local businesses. In a village the size of Bluffton, you might say every day is “shop small” day. But it’s still a great time to say “thank you for being here” to our local merchants and to enjoy the Blaze of Lights festival.
Many shops will be open later than usual for the Blaze of Lights. Some note that they’ll stay open “as long as there are shoppers!” (noted here with “?”).
Linda "Lin" R. (Obenour) Rumer, 73, passed away unexpectedly November 23, 2021 at Blanchard Valley Hospital, Findlay. She was born February 22, 1948 in Bradenton, Florida. Linda married the love of her life Daniel F. Rumer who preceded her in death on July 26, 2010.
Lin attended Elida High School and graduated from Bluffton College with an education degree. She taught elementary school at Shawnee Maplewood and Ada. In her spare time, she enjoyed quilting, crafting and gardening. Lin was a member of multiple quilting clubs and also the Bluffton Presbyterian Church.
The Bluffton University women's basketball team saved its best for last on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. Bluffton finished on a 19-6 jag after Heidelberg knotted the game at 45-45 with 8:52 to play. The Student Princes fell to 1-5, while Bluffton moved to 2-1 with its second straight victory.
AAA predicts that nearly 2.2 million Ohioans will be traveling between Wednesday, Nov. 24 and Sunday Nov. 28, a large increase compared to 2020. Nearly 90% of these travelers are driving to their destinations.
