After 20 years of entertainment and service to the Richmond community, nonprofit InConcert announced it would pause operations after its 2025 season. The organization shared the news on its Facebook page on Dec. 29. In the statement, InConcert President Liz DeMao expressed gratitude for the numerous sponsors, partners, volunteers, performers and patrons that made InConcert […]
Author Archives: Lorin Williams
Lorin Williams is a reporter for the Western Wayne News.
Hagerstown council honors heroism
A humble feat of heroism was acknowledged at Hagerstown’s Jan. 5 council meeting. Hagerstown High School junior Cale Schmitz received the Citizen of the Month recognition for his lifesaving actions last November. Council member Chris Blaase described how Schmitz and his father, Bryan, were involved in a head-on collision the weekend before Thanksgiving. Schmitz, despite […]
Funding cuts cause nonprofits uncertainty
Oak Park Church has become a beacon of service to the community’s most vulnerable. Its multiple outreach efforts are all supported by revenue from the Oak Park Early Learning Academy’s childcare services. But with last year’s budget cuts to federal social services, the church finds itself in a fiscal bind. “We saw a 30-plus percent […]
Early arrival for Reid’s New Year’s Day baby
Amanda and Cody Lane celebrated the new year by welcoming a new life at 5:18 a.m. on Jan. 1. Cade Lane, the Richmond couple’s newborn boy, received the honor of being Reid Health’s first baby born in 2026. Cade, weighing 7 pounds, 14.8 ounces, was an early surprise as Amanda was scheduled to be induced […]
Warming center opens
Richmond’s Emergency Warming Center is a collaborative nonprofit effort led by Oak Park Pentacostals and LifeSpring Church South. Located at 501 S. Seventh St., the center opens when the temperature is 25 degrees or below and has enough volunteers. Entry is from 6-9 p.m. with 20 cots available on a first-come, first-served basis to men, […]
Tigers cheer historic bid to nationals
When Hagerstown High School’s cheer coach, Kayla Vinson, lands in Orlando, Florida, in January, she will have completed two firsts — her first time at Disney World, and the school’s first national cheer competition. In November, the Hagerstown Tigers participated in the 2A Game Day division at the Hoosier Cheer Coaches Association Spirit State competition. […]
67-year-old pedals past expectations
Jim McKinney is living proof that it’s never too late to chase one’s passion. After a 22-year hiatus, the 67-year-old retired music teacher came back around to his: BMX racing. The Richmond rider recently competed in the Race of Champions during the 2025 USA BMX Grands at SageNet Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Among the 3,000 […]
Dot Foods opens on-site family health center
For 11 years, the Dot Foods distribution center in Cambridge City has provided in-house health care to its employees and their families. This year, the company broke ground on a new on-site facility to expand this benefit. The company celebrated the opening of the new Dot Family Health Center with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. […]
Authenticity, community inspire winery
Indiana might not be known for wine-making, but it was home to the country’s first successful commercial vineyard. Now, a recently opened Cambridge City business is building on that legacy. Jean Jacques Dufour and John James Dufour Jr. settled the first commercial U.S. vineyard in 1802, just above the Ohio River in Vevay, Indiana. It […]
Recycling grant, project updates fill Hagerstown Council meeting
Business owner and former park ranger Jessica Gregory’s environmentally sound proposal was one of many items approved at the Dec. 1 Hagerstown town council meeting. Gregory submitted a request to the town to apply for a 100% reimbursable grant for tire recycling. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management grant secures $10,000 to purchase equipment and […]
