Each year, different antique vehicles like planes, cars, tractors and more are displayed for visitors and Marion residents to see.

Ray Johnson, the founder of the event, said he did not expect the event to take off.

“It all started in 1991, and we had an idea,” Johnson said. “We did not dream that here, 34 years later, that we would still be doing it.”

Johnson said the event originally started as a fundraiser for the Marion High School band. This year, the Grant County Rescue Mission fundraised the event through their all you can eat pancake breakfast.

Brad Terhune, the executive director of the Grant County Rescue Mission, said he was happy that the event still takes place so the rescue mission can still be beneficiaries.

“We get a lot of support from people who come out and eat,” Terhune said. “We also have people that come up to volunteer, so we’ll utilize up to maybe 200 volunteers to serve breakfast.”

Johnson said the beauty of the event is that it is an all-out community event. Many people from all over the country come to display their vehicles.

“This year we are showcasing a 1942 Curtis P-40N Warhawk,” Johnson said. “We are also showing a 1962 Beech Bonanza, a vantage airplane that flew around the world.”

Adrian Eichhorn, the owner of the Beech Bonanza, said he heard about the event through Johnson and originally planned to attend last year but had some scheduling conflicts.

“I fly for a living and was in Europe at the same time last year,” Eichhorn said. “I got back the night of, and there were pretty bad thunderstorms, so I decided not to come last year.”

Eichhorn shared that he bought and restored his Beech Bonanza back in 1990 and has taken it all over.

“2015 was the first time I flew it around the world,” Eichhorn said. “The most memorable flight for me was flying over Omaha Beach where over 10,000 soldiers lost their lives, because I’m a veteran and remember that time.”

Eichhorn said the best part about the event was getting to meet others who are passionate about their vehicles and being back in the Midwest.

Phil Martin, the co-owner of the Life Star Pulse Owners Group, has been attending the event with his wife for 20 years.

Martin said that his group attends the event as part of their national rally to show support.

“We love to come out and participate in the silent display to help support Ray Johnson, who I have been friends with for 20 years,” Martin said.

With the Fly-in Cruise-in having a big turn out this year, Johnson said that he hopes the event will continue to grow and help support the community in the future.

Holly Jones was hired as Principal for Kendall Elementary. Jones has worked in education for 14 years with eight years as a school administrator.

“I applied for the job not knowing it would be in the middle of the school year. When I interviewed with the committee they stated that they hoped the person would be able to start after spring break,” Jones said.

Jones said she was serving as assistant principal at Fort Wayne Community Schools when MCS Superintendent Stephanie Lockwood offered her the job.

“As an assistant principal it is your goal to eventually become a principal. I thought this was a great opportunity and made sure I was able to make that move in the middle of the year,” Jones said.

Jones said her goals for the remainder of the school year are to build relationships with families, students and teachers in the Kendall Community.

“We want to make sure that we keep pushing the kids and make sure they are engaged. We want to keep everybody on track to reach that May 22 date to see where we are and where we need to go,” Jones said.

Kyle Mealy was hired as Chief Financial Officer for the district.

MCS Superintendent Lockwood said she was happy to welcome Mealy as the new CFO.

“His wide range of experiences will bring great value to our district,” Lockwood said.

Mealy previously served as superintendent at Wes-Del Community Schools for nearly eight years as well as in principal, assistant principal, athletic director and teacher capacities.

“Superintendent Lockwood asked if I would be interested in interviewing so I came in and met the team. I just really fell in love with the people,” Mealy said.

Mealy said he is looking forward to working alongside Superintendent Lockwood and the school board.

“I look forward to supporting their vision for Marion from the financial aspect of things and I am really excited for where Marion is headed,” Mealy said.

Co-owner of Lola’s, Krista Brown, said that people often say there is nothing to do in Marion. In response to this, Lola’s hosted a trivia night to help people see that there actually are things to do locally. 

Trivia night was designed with Lola’s vision in mind. Nicholas Hindes, the MC for the evening, said, “The vision was really to support the values and the vision of Lola’s.”

Brown said that part of Lola’s vision is community and creating a space where people want to be.

“One of the values of Lola’s is to really create a warm space for people to experience community; for people to experience love,” Hindes said.

Every seat at trivia night was filled. People gathered together and experienced community, as was the vision. Dottie Sonderstrom, a member of the winning team, said she enjoyed talking with her teammates between questions. 

Soderstrom said her favorite part of trivia night was getting together with people that she doesn’t see on a regular basis.

Hindes said his favorite part of MC-ing the event was watching the teams celebrate their correct answers. 

Lola’s looks forward to creating more opportunities for the community in Marion in the future. The next trivia night will be on March 13th.

LifeWise Academy is a national organization based in Franklin County Ohio that provides optional release time religious education to elementary and middle school students. Public school students are allowed up to two hours per week of religious education as long as it takes place off school grounds, with the consent of a parent or guardian and takes place through a privately funded program. 

School Board Member Andy Horner, said that while the board will still support local organizations, they cannot give their support to LifeWise Academy at this time. 

“I think everybody locally is well-intentioned, well-meaning and they want what’s best for the community,” Horner said. 

The Ark Christian Ministries’s Andrew Hale, the community member who originally presented the plan to the board, was not at the meeting. 

Instead, Hale sent a letter that Superintendent Sheri Hardman read to the board. 

“LifeWise Academy lines up with our vision by using Bible teaching, and we are sad that the school board didn’t agree with us on this program, as we know the impact this could have,” Hale said in the letter. “We do not want to move forward with this program that doesn’t have the acknowledgement of the school board administration as we honor our relationship over running this certain program.”

Hale said that his organization has decided not to take any further steps towards bringing LifeWise into Oak Hill at this time. 

The Ark Christian Ministries planned on providing vehicles to take Oak Hill students to and from the church where LifeWise was going to be held during the school day. 

School Board Member Scott Dubois said that the board is still looking forward to working with Hale in the future despite their refusal to acknowledge the LifeWise plan. 

“When I met with him, I reiterated that multiple times, ‘Andrew, this is not against you, this is not personal or vindictive, anything of that nature,’” said Horner. “So, I think we were in a good place when we were done with our meeting.”

Unified Robotics is a STEM program designed for kids with and without disabilities to be able to compete together. On Saturday, students from schools all over Grant County came together to compete. 

Students work with their team to build and design a robot which they then use to complete missions and earn points. Lisa Graham, the Executive Director of the Grant County Special Education Cooperative, said the competition helps kids learn important life skills. 

“Critical thinking, having high expectations, working under pressure, being part of a team, those are all things we have to do, all of us,” Graham said. “Whether we’re in school, whether we’re adults, we all have to learn to work together and so this is a perfect example in a safe, fun environment.”

By completing missions, Graham said students can win medals and ribbons. Each team also decorates a table and can win a prize for best decorations at the end of the competition. 

This is the fifth year the competition has taken place. Graham said she has seen the engagement grow from parents and students each year and this year each team even handed out small gifts to opposing teams. 

“That’s cool too because you’re building friends, not just within your own group but within the bigger group and that’s cool,” Graham said. 

Taylor education and engineering students even help with the competition. Each team gets paired with an education and engineering student who are there to help and cheer their team on. 

Carrie Willoughby, a Taylor education major, said that even though she doesn’t know anything about robotics she enjoyed getting to see the kids’ excitement and getting to learn from them.

“I just think it’s really cool to be a part of so many schools from the community and just to learn more about their involvement and just the different type of programs they have for all types of kids,” Willoughby said. 

Parents and grandparents also got to learn more about their kids and the things they enjoy. Shelly Obenchain, a grandparent from North View Elementary, said she loved getting to see her grandson learn teamwork and do something he enjoys.

“It’s so exciting because I don’t get to see, with school and stuff, you don’t get to see what they do,” Obenchain said. “You hear about it, but to actually see them do it hands on, it just warms the grandmother’s heart.”

LifeWise Academy is a release time religious education program headquartered in Franklin County Ohio that operates in 12 states across the country. 

The program focuses on teaching the Bible to elementary and junior high students during school hours. The program is permitted by law so long as it is privately funded, takes place off school grounds and parents sign a permission slip for their child. 

The idea of opening a LifeWise chapter in the Oak Hill School District was first presented to the school board during their January meeting. 

Andy Horner, a school board member, said that while board approval is not needed for LifeWise to start a chapter at Oak Hill, one of the 10 steps to start a LifeWise chapter is to get the school board to acknowledge the program. 

“The school board can’t endorse anything,” Horner said. “But LifeWise likes to know and have it on file that the local school board has seen the plan and acknowledges the plan specifically on school letterhead.”

Horner said that he has done personal research into LifeWise, and found some things that stuck out to him as red flags. 

“I think everybody locally is well-intentioned, well-meaning and want what’s best for the community,” Horner said. 

The program would take place off school grounds at Open Door Fellowship Church.

Curriculum 

Lifewise lessons can range anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes or longer depending on the school district and age range.

Lois Stump is a LifeWise teacher in Ohio’s Shawnee school district.

“Some of the classes are super, super short, like 20 minutes,” Stump said. “So sometimes what they do is they try to, if you have a 20 minute class period, on the bus ride over, they start the lesson.”

Stump said that every LifeWise lesson is composed of three elements, called the head, heart and hands. 

“So the head part is the general concept you want them to learn, and the heart aspect is what you want them to internalize and believe,” Stump said. “And the hand aspect is the practical application, like a LifeWise character trait such as trustworthiness and loyalty.”

The curriculum was created in conjunction with the gospel project, a program that Katie Helser, a LifeWise teacher in Ohio’s Allen East school district, said was basically used in churches.

Andy Horner said he is concerned about how hard it was to access this curriculum. 

“Their curriculum is not available online, and the lack of transparency from a group that reports to be teaching character is troubling to me,” Horner said.

Horner said that he filled out a form to access the content where he was asked to enter his name, physical address, email and phone number. He also had to check a box indicating whether he was a parent, community member, church leader or member of the press. 

“To me that means they intend to treat different people differently,” Horner said. 

Horner said that once he got a digital copy of the curriculum, he was allowed to look over the material for 48 hours before he lost access. 

LifeWise settled a copyright lawsuit against Indiana parent Zach Parrish last year after Parrish shared LifeWise curriculum on Facebook. 

Travel and Insurance

Release time religious education programs must take place off school property and must either walk or ride a non-school vehicle to a second location.

Lois Stump said that she personally picks kids up for LifeWise and drives them to the meeting place.

“(Stump) does only for her group because her classes are as small as–  I think her largest class has three students in it” Shawnee LifeWise Director Ruth Ann Stover said. “All the other students that we have are transported by LifeWise buses that are branded for LifeWise and carry additional liability coverage.”

For Oak Hill, Horner said students participating in LifeWise would be bussed to Open Door Fellowship Church using vehicles provided by Ark Christian Ministries. 

Andy Horner said he is concerned about kids getting hurt or getting into an accident going to and from school. 

“One, I don’t want a kid to be hurt, but two, who’s going to pay for that?” Horner said. “Those are the kinds of things as a school board member that I have to worry about.”

Missing Classes

Lois Stump said that for her school district, students are missing study hall at the middle school level and computer or art classes at the elementary level. 

For Helser’s school district, LifeWise is considered an equivalent to a leadership class taught at the fifth and sixth grade level. 

The tentative time for Oak Hill’s LifeWise program is during eighth period. 

“I was talking to somebody who has a kid who has eighth period math, and so if they (the parents) opted to take them out for this, they’re going to miss a core curriculum like math,” Andy Horner said. 

Horner said also the program communicates to kids that it is okay to miss electives. 

“We have such a limited amount of time with kids anyways, that I just don’t want to miss more time,” Oak Hill Superintendent Sheri Hardman said. 

Alternative Programs

While LifeWise is a national company that helps communities take advantage of release time religious education laws, they are not the only option for families looking to give their kids religious education. 

Oak Hill has a Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter and Kids Hope, a mentoring program run by Converse Church of Christ. In this program, teachers identify kids who are struggling and pair them with a volunteer from the community. 

In other areas, communities have started their own programs similar to LifeWise. 

Sheena Eickholt started Planting Youth, another Ohio-based release time religious education program, with her husband. 

Eickholt said she was asked to be a part of LifeWise, but turned down the offer because she could not teach from her preferred version of the Bible. While LifeWise emphasizes character development, Planting Youth is more focused on evangelism.

Andy Horner said he is not opposed to a smaller program like Planting Youth, which operates at the local level. 

Sheri Hardman said that after school programs for character development have been available in the past. 

“Probably 10 of our kids that needed it the most went, and they were so excited,” Hardman said. “They did the climbing wall and they taught lessons through those activities, and like those are the kids that come home every night to no one.”

LifeWise, or any similar religious education program, is allowed to meet regardless of whether or not the board votes to acknowledge them.

The next Oak Hill school board meeting is Feb. 10 at 6:30 p.m.

On Saturday morning, local and international James Dean enthusiasts gathered to celebrate the reveal of a new James Dean Birthsite Memorial in downtown Marion. 

Layla Price-Bodkin, the Supervisor of Marketing & Community Development for the City of Marion, said James Dean is a global legend. Price-Bodkin said that she thinks it is important to recognize Marion as his birthplace. 

 Price-Bodkin said the greatest challenge to making the event happen was the weather. 

 “We’ve dealt with a lot worse weather. We can get through anything: hail, storms, snow, absolutely anything here in Marion,” Price-Bodkin said.

Many people braved the rain, hail and slick sidewalks to attend the event. A small film crew from Toronto, Canada made the trip to document the moment. 

James Dean fan Adam Bretherton grew up watching Dean’s work with his dad. Bretherton said he is hopeful this will help spread [Dean’s] influence in Marion.

 Bretherton encourages younger generations who may be less familiar with Dean’s work to check out his films. 

Indiana State Representative Lori Gross-Reaves shared why Dean’s story matters to her and her family. Her youngest son, Casey, is an actor who played the role of the young Dean at the Community School of the Arts as a boy.

Gross-Reaves said Dean serves as an example to her son of someone who could be born in Marion, raised in Fairmount, and then make it in Hollywood. 

The apartment building Dean was born in was torn down in the 1970s. 

 “A lot of people thought that it was a big mistake to do that.” Price-Bodkin said. 

Under Mayor Morrell’s administration, the city deeded the property, making the memorial possible. 

Gross-Reaves said, “his (James Dean’s) life brings a message of hope that it doesn’t matter where you were born, what class you were born into, that hopes, dreams, talent and determination can take you very far.”

The comprehensive plan will focus on providing gathering spaces for the community, growing local businesses, preserving the small-town charm, and improving the downtown area in order to take advantage of the traffic coming in from the two-state roads that intersect in Swayzee. The plan was drafted through a partnership between the Swayzee Economic Development Corporation and Ball State University’s Urban Planning Department

The Grant Connected article detailing the presentation of the comprehensive plan can be found here.

One part of the 10 year plan is to have a co-op grocery store or farmers market. Town council member Rhonda Fagan said she wants to see that come to fruition. 

“People coming together, I’d like to see food trucks there, I’d like to see picnic tables set up,” Fagan said. “I’d like to see a Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon, just a community coming together.” 

Fagan said there are a lot of local artisans and people in Swayzee that grow produce. 

Having a farmers market and local produce shops could be a big draw for out-of-towners to help grow the local economy. 

Town Council President Aaron Travis said he hopes people will buy into the idea of a farmers market. 

“It’s the things like that, that we can at least make available, that we can encourage, “Travis said. “I hope that people will buy in and will engage with it.” 

Water infrastructure had some fairly low ratings on Ball State’s infrastructure survey. 

The Swayzee Town Council approved the purchase of two water pumps. 

“We are going to replace one of the two well pumps,” Travis said. “One of the high service pumps, we have three, we are going to service number three. 

Travis said the services should happen within a couple of months. 

According to the Swayzee Way Vision Statement posted on Ball State comprehensive plan, “the Town of Swayzee envisions a vibrant and thriving future that fosters local business development, a rehabilitated main street, and public spaces that encourage socialization of residents, without compromising its small town charm and rich traditions.”

The full comprehensive plan is available for viewing at the Swayzee Economic Development Corperation Website

“How Marion Works” is a podcast hosted by Layla Price-Bodkin, Supervisor of Marketing and Community Development for Marion. The first episode was released on Monday, Jan. 13 and focuses on the City Development Department. 

In each episode, Price-Bodkin said she will interview government leaders about their department in hopes of answering any questions the community might have.

“I think that whether you’ve lived in the community for a long time, or you’re new to the community, or maybe you’re just here for a short time, like you’re a student at a school, and you just want to understand how a community operates this can give you a sense of how Marion works, but really how a city in general operates,” Price-Bodkin said. 

The podcast’s first episode featured Deana Vice, Neighborhood Association Coordinator for Marion. Vice said throughout the podcast she and Price-Bodkin discussed a variety of topics such as traveling town halls, citywide cleanup and their own personal backgrounds.

While the main focus of the podcast is on what each department does, Vice said she also thinks it’s important for the community to know who their leaders are. 

“I can’t stress enough when someone has an issue, it’s important that they know who to take that issue to so that they can get the problem fixed as quickly as possible,” Vice said. “That’s what we are here for.”

Not only did she get to share what she does for work, Vice said she also got to share a bit about her personal interests. She said she hopes listeners will be able to get to know her as a person and not just a government official. 

“I think it’s important to remember the human element in all of this,” Vice said. “We are all people. We are all just people who are working and thriving, living together, trying to make the city a better place because we all live here.”

Episodes will air biweekly on Mondays. Episode two will be released on Jan. 27 and will focus on the Transportation Department.

“It means I’m taking a step farther in my career in aviation,” said Karson Morrical, a junior at Mississinewa High School. “It’s a great opportunity for me to get a chunk of my flight training paid for.” 

There were high bars the students had to reach to receive scholarships. They had to have quality professional writing in their application essays, have 100% in the course to receive top honors, and show initiative and aptitude in class preparation and engagement. 

“This aviation program, I believe, is one of eight in the state available to students at this age,” said Mark Hobbs, the student community specialist for GRCC.

Whitney Gall, a senior at Eastbrook, received top honors for her work in the aviation program. 

“I feel like it’s really taught me how to kind of operate more like a professional setting,” said Gall. “I know Mr. Johnson does a really good job trying to, like, prepare us for the workplace and for college and kind of take stuff to the next level. 

What started in 2023 with $14,800 has grown to $27,500 in a few years.  

“It’s just really donor involvement. We’ve had donors step up in a major way to help make this happen,” said Mark Johnson, the Aviation Program coordinator. “It can’t happen on its own, it’s got to be through donor involvement.”

The Boren Foundation, founded in 1982, had a representative at the scholarship ceremony. 

A few years ago, Johnson had sent an application for funds to help the aviation program. 

 “I think we denied it, but once we got to learn more about the program and how it was helping the kids and area kids, as far as learning about aviation and it’s something that they want to pursue, we decided to get involved,” said Sally Briner, the executive director of the Boren Foundation

But what do the parents think about all of this? April and Chuck Morrical, the parents of Karson were in attendance at the ceremony. 

Karson Morrical was 16 when he first flew a plane and got his license a few months after that. 

“It’s really cool to see that he’s doing something that he really likes, and, you know, working toward a career that he’s gonna love,” said April Morrical.

Nathan McNeely said Mark Johnson has done a great job of bringing people together and being able to support the program that provides their students with networking opportunities and experiences they wouldn’t have without the program.