Wanda English Burnett, Editor

The bodies of Charles P. Hacker, 42, and his wife, Karen Hacker, 40, were found inside their residence just west of Milan on Monday, March 24.

Police responded to a 911 call about 4:50 p.m. on Monday, with the caller saying they believed two people could be dead inside the home. Officers from the Milan Police Department were first on the scene. Upon entering the residence, they discovered the bodies of a man and woman. Investigators from the Indiana State Police and officers from the Ripley County Sheriff’s Department also responded to the scene.

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

At the regular meeting of the South Ripley Community School Corporation Board of School Trustees held March 17 patron Jerry Gilpin said he believed some students should receive an apology from school personnel. Gilpin spoke first on the agenda and noted that he was not happy with how the freshmen cheerleaders had been reprimanded after they had gone to a game. Gilpin says the cheerleaders, (his daughter is one of them), were yelled at by school personnel after they attended a game, where they didn’t even cheer, (They couldn’t because they didn’t have a sponsor present) but, their photograph appeared in the local newspaper after their team won the game. “They were just there to support their team,” noted Gilpin.

Ripley County announces debt free status

Cathy May, Contributing Writer

Ripley County will soon be debt free. The Ripley County Council voted at its March meeting to appropriate $800,000 from the Cum Cap Development Fund to pay off the Ripley County Jail Bonds. This makes Ripley County one of the few, if only, counties in the state that are debt free.

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

All Bobbi Little could do was light some candles, get her little rat terrier Cricket, and go to bed. “I could hear the water hitting the side of the house and I knew it was getting higher,” she told The Versailles Republican, in an interview shortly after she was rescued by firemen Matt Jeffries and Dwight Bauman.

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

Police from three states, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, became involved after a car was stolen from a Versailles residence late Friday night, March 14.

According to Versailles Town Marshal Joe Mann, the call that a vehicle was missing came in about 12:57 a.m. Saturday morning. The car had actually been taken earlier, but not reported until that time. The marshal immediately began the process of looking for the vehicle and noted with the help of dispatcher Amanda Smith, was able to work together eventually with two other states until the matter was resolved.

Easter Bunny makes early appearance

See photo and infomation inside...

Beth Rumsey, Staff Writer

“I would like to commend the highway department for a job well done,” said Commissioner President Robert Reiners at the March 10 meeting. According to Reiners, the crews worked on Saturday and Sunday to clear the roads. They did an excellent job, he said. Commissioner Lawrence Nickell commended courthouse maintenance worker Johnnie Lohrum for snow removal on Sunday around the courthouse. “He did a great job," said Nickell.

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

“It gets better. There’s more to the story.”

Those reassuring words were whispered a few years ago by David Shivers, pastor of the Hopewell Baptist Church, to his young daughter as they watched the reenactment of the Easter story.

Area schools to to hold kindergarten registration

Beth Rumsey, Staff Writer

Kindergarten registration is underway for area schools. According to Indiana state law, a child must be five years of age on or before August 1 in order to attend kindergarten during the 2008-2009 school year. A birth certificate and immunization record will be necessary in order to complete registration.

The Ripley County Health Department offers immunization by appointment. Parents can call the health department at 689-0506 to schedule an appointment. Margaret Mary Community Hospital, Batesville, offers a walk-in immunization clinic every Tuesday evening from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. There is no appointment necessary. For more information, parents can call 934-0699. Immunizations cannot be given without an immunization record at either clinic. Minimum requirement for the state of Indiana are five doses of DPT; four polio vaccines; two doses of MMR; three doses of hepatitis B; and a chicken pox vaccination or record of the chicken pox disease.

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

Former police officer, military man and Indiana lottery official, William C. Foreman, 62, will spend the next eight years on home detention for his part in a lottery scheme that affected the little town of Cross Plains. That decision was made last Friday, February 29 in a Marion County Superior Court.

Cathy May, Contributing Writer

Both agenda items for the March meeting of the Ripley County Area Plan Commission sailed through. Last month, the application by Robert Gartley and Victoria Altieri was tabled because of a no action vote. This month, primary approval was granted for Altieri Estates Subdivision 10-0-1 with Jeff French abstaining. The two-lot subdivision is located at 6665 N. County Rd. 850 E. in Milan. This item created some controversy last month when neighbors said that Gartley was a registered sex offender and they didn’t want him living next to their children.

Sunman Town Council remembers long time attorney
Eastern Avenue name change discussed

Wanda English Burnett, Editor

The February Sunman Town Council meeting began with a moment of silence for Jack Kellerman who was the Sunman town attorney for more than 30 years. He was remembered as a person who loved to talk to people from all walks of life. He will be greatly missed by the Sunman Town Council. Amy Streator, a member of the Kellerman Law Firm, was appointed as the new town attorney.