Centerville leaders are gathering residents’ support before applying for $50,000 to update plans guiding future decisions and growth. Before its Aug. 13 regular meeting, council conducted a public hearing to collect comments for its application to Indiana’s Office of Community and Rural Affairs. The town’s share for Lochmueller Group’s work would be $9,600. The town’s […]

Author Archives: Millie Martin Emery
Millicent Martin Emery is a reporter and editor for the Western Wayne News.
Ideas, help sought for 2025 fair
Wayne County’s next 4-H fair is being planned for June 21-28, 2025. Organizers say they are always looking for ways to improve the fair and bring the best entertainment possible, although they have to work within a budget. Potential committee members or fair sponsors, or those who have suggestions about what they’d like to see, […]
Dad: New playground ‘a great asset’
With shouts, giggles and a frequently clanging bell, kids gleefully tried new playground equipment dedicated Thursday, Aug. 15, in East Germantown. It’s just a block north of U.S. 40, next to the Boys & Girls Club of Wayne County’s Wayne Bank Unit, 519 Queen St., and open to kids from across the county and beyond. […]
Town employee suggests ending water fluoridation
Cambridge City is considering eliminating the addition of fluoride when treating water, but Indiana dental and health experts urge council to reject the change. During council’s Aug. 12 meeting, town employee Chris Stapleton suggested removing fluoride. After a discussion, members decided to table the matter until their 6 p.m. Sept. 9 meeting at town hall, […]
2 manufacturers closing doors
Although Wayne County has gained jobs and investments from some recent business consolidations, corporate leaders have decided to wind down operations at two Richmond plants. Valerie Shaffer, Economic Development Corp. of Wayne County president, said EDC staff are working with human resource teams for TBK America and Champion Target to help connect their former employees […]
2 schools score 100% IREAD passage rates
Two Wayne County schools had all their third and/or second graders pass Indiana’s most recent reading test. Some others weren’t far behind. Rose Hamilton Elementary School, part of Centerville-Abington Community Schools, and Community Christian School in Richmond, both earned 100% on the 2023-2024 Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination, or IREAD, assessment. Northeastern Wayne Elementary was […]
Archway Days offers mechanical bull, car smashing
This is the 36th year for Centerville’s Archway Days, and the festival will have about seven dozen vendors and activities. The festival will take place from 3-11 p.m. Friday, Aug. 23, and 9 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, in Maplewood Park, just a couple blocks north of the stoplight at U.S. 40 and Morton Avenue. […]
Elementary school car line concerns addressed
Centerville-Abington Community Schools officials listened to two different perspectives about student drop-off and pickup concerns at Rose Hamilton Elementary. During their Aug. 14 meeting, they took parent Rikki Madden’s comments under advisement. Madden, who helped create an online petition with 300-plus signatures, said the newly implemented plan isn’t working. Later in the meeting, board members […]
RCS board declines to approve equity policy
Although several Richmond Community Schools board members said they appreciated the work that community members put into writing an equity policy, board members didn’t support its full implementation. Board members conducted an in-depth discussion at their Aug. 14 meeting, describing conversations they’ve had with Richmond Education Association’s Racial Equity Coalition members and their individual reviews […]
Schools lift extra security precautions
Several Wayne County schools tightened security for about 90 minutes Monday morning after a reported domestic situation raised safety concerns. Richmond Police Department received an anonymous call at 8:27 a.m. Monday from an individual claiming to have taken his wife hostage and to be en route to a local community school with a bomb, according […]