February 2023

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In response to our Superbowl Sunday article on Bluffton College standout Elbert Dubenion, Icon reader Ron Geiser shared the attached photo (HERE), noting:

Here is Dobe's name on Buffalo Bills stadium ring of heroes. 

For more details on the Ring of Honor, a.k.a. Wall of Fame, visit https://www.buffalobills.com/team/alumni/wall-of-fame. Dubenion was inducted to the Wall of Honor in 1993.

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On February 6, several Girl Scout troops from Bluffton toured the Clymer Wildlife Museum in Columbus Grove. 

One of the owners, Gary Clymer, and his grandson Thayne Clymer gave the girls a tour of the museum, which includes wild game from all over the world and a separate display of preserved fish, like the 12' long 500# Blue Marlin. 

With their tour guides' permission, the girls were able to feel the very short bristly hair on an elephants foot and a fossilized woolly mammoth's tusks as well as one of its teeth. The wooly mammoth had been found sticking out of a melting glacier years ago, during one of the Clymers' northern expeditions.   

The moose head in the picture is actually mounted at the height, the moose would stand in the wild.

Sixteen scouts and seven adults were in the tour group. The troops included Juniors (Troop Leader Whitney Utendorf, Asst. Troop Leader Jessica Pratt), Cadettes (Troop Leader Kelly Honse, Asst. Troop Leader Whitney Utendorf), and Seniors (Troop Leader Kelly Honse, Asst. Troop Leader Victoria Goddard).

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My mother, Joanne Niswander, passed away on October 8, 2022. I was fortunate to get all of her journals. I have not been able to look at them yet, but feel so blessed to have them and will start reading them someday soon…. Maybe starting on Valentine’s Day.

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The attached agenda (p. 1-2; supporting documents p. 3-54) for the 7:00 p.m. Village of Bluffton regular council meeting on February 13 includes:

LEGISLATION

1st reading of an ordinance approving annual approprations for 2023.

1st reading of an ordinance amending rules and regulations for Maple Grove Cemetery.

3rd reading of a resolution adopting a Complete Streets policy.

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Ann Elizabeth Shumaker, age 90, formerly of Bluffton, Ohio, passed away Tuesday, February 7, 2023 in Kirtland, Ohio. Due to failing health, she had recently relocated to northeast Ohio to be near her granddaughter, Beth. 

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ArtSpace/Lima will host the 35th Annual Kewpee High School Art Invitational from February 15-March 1, 2023.

Kewpee Restaurants have sponsored this exhibition and will once again highlight student artists from area high schools. Artists from eighteen area high schools entered work to be exhibited.

The work is categorized in nine areas: Ceramics, Digital Media, Drawing, Jewelry, Mixed Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture.

There are awards in each of the entry categories, a Best of Show, and a Dr. Sullivan Award. Awards will be presented during the opening reception on Wednesday, February 15, from 6:30-8:00 pm.

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Bluffton High School students interested in taking College Credit Plus courses next school year need to watch the required CCP Virtual Presentation online along with their parent.

The presentation can be found HERE along with frequently asked questions, CCP Presentation Slides and the CCP Intent to Participate/Enrollment Form. You must apply to each college by its deadline as well as return the signed form by April 1.

If you have questions, contact counselor Dr. Elizabeth Smith at 419-358-794 or [email protected]

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Four team records set and 13 swimmers qualify for Districts

Additional photos at BlufftonPirates.com Facebook

The Bluffton High School boys and girls swim team competed on Saturday, February 11 in the North West D-2 Section 5 meet in Lima, Ohio at the YMCA. Bluffton joined sixteen other teams: Ada, Celina, Elida, Fostoria, Kenton, Lima Bath, Lima Central Catholic, Lima Shawnee, Marion Local, McComb, Minster, New Breman, Ridgemont, Saint Marys Memorial, St Henry and Van Buren. 

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In the wake of World War I, the U.S. Bureau of Naturalization inserted a new question into the application for prospective citizens: “If necessary, are you willing to take up arms in defense of country?”

Dr. Duane Stoltzfus, professor of communication at Goshen College, discussed the immediate impact the question had on pacifists during “Love of Country Distilled to a Question: When Pacifism Becomes a Litmus Test for Citizenship.” The Feb. 7 presentation in Yoder Recital Hall served as Bluffton University’s C. Henry Smith Peace Lecture for 2023.

“Well-meaning but overzealous government officials, with WWI on their minds, added a hypothetical question to test the loyalty for incoming foreigners,” explained Stoltzfus. “The question should be recognized as having little value and of flying in the face of the nation’s historical commitment to C.O.s.”

Mennonites, who had previously been welcomed warmly for their farming skills, and other conscientious objectors now faced courtroom battles, judges who had the power to grant or deny citizenship at will, and even the Supreme Court.

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The Allen County Bike and Pedestrian Task Force will be hosting a meeting for youth in Allen County who are interested in joining the Allen County Youth Bike and Pedestrian Task Force. This meeting will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 22, at the Lima Council Chambers, 50 Town Square, Lima.

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