It’s the opening day of Visit Indiana Week, a promotion of the Indiana Destination Development Corporation that runs through May 25.

All Indiana state parks, state recreation areas, and reservoirs (on.IN.gov/stateparks) that charge a daily gate fee will waive it for all guests that Sunday, making it a great time to explore a property you’ve never visited before or return to an old favorite.

Many new features and improvements await this season. At Tippecanoe River State Park, restoration work has been completed on the fire tower. At Brown County State Park, seven fully remodeled family cabins and nine renovated rustic cabins have been improved. At Potato Creek State Park, the campground dumping stations have been improved. Across the State Park system, several pollinator habitats have been enhanced and acres of invasive species have been removed. Learn about the many more improvements at dnr.IN.gov/state-parks/about-us/whats-new.

Before you visit, make sure to sign up for the Indiana State Nature Passport at visitindiana.com/indiana-passports/explore. Doing so is also free, and it makes you eligible to earn prizes by checking in when you visit a passport location.

The Greencastle Farmers' Market starts Saturday.

The downtown local vendors market is open from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.

The city has multiple parking lots with ample parking Click this link https://www.cityofgreencastle.com/resources/downtown-parking for maps and descriptions of where to find these lots.

Governor Eric J. Holcomb is directing flags to be flown at half-staff statewide in honor of the Peace Officers Memorial and Police Officer Week.

Flags should be flown at half-staff from sunrise until sunset in Indiana on Wednesday, May 15, 2024. Gov. Holcomb is asking Indiana businesses and residents to lower their flags as well.

Free legal help is available Tuesday at the Putnam County Courthouse.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announces alternating lane closures will be coming to U.S. 40 in Putnam County.

Beginning on or after Monday, May 13, crews will be closing one lane at a time with flaggers between County Road 800 W and U.S. 231.

This will allow crews to do geotechnical road evaluations and take samples of the pavement for future road improvements. Work in this area is expected to last a couple of weeks but is weather-permitting and subject to change.

Beginning on or after tonight, Friday, May 10, crews will be closing the left eastbound lane of I-70 between C.R. 300 E and C.R. 200 E in Clay County to replace in-road sensors. 

Work will take place overnight. INDOT advises drivers to please slow down and keep worker safety top of mind.

The National Association of Letter Carriers' annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive will be held on Saturday.

The letter carrier food drive, which began in 1993, is the country's largest single-day food drive.

Each year, the Stamp Out Hunger drive is held on the second Saturday in May. Letter carriers in cities and towns across the United States collect donations of non-perishable food items left by residents near their mailboxes before that day's mail delivery.

One in eight Americans, including millions of children, elderly and veterans, are unsure where their next meal will come from. The timing of the letter carrier food drive is significant--by spring, food pantries are largely depleted of winter holiday food donations, and school lunch programs are about to close for the summer.

Anyone wishing to participate should place a bag of non-perishable food items by your mailbox this Saturday.  

Throughout life there are many different situations that an individual can experience while at home, on the farm, at work, or when relaxing with family.  These situations can be wonderful experiences or they could be a disaster such as a flood, tornado, fire, or accident.  To assist rural families in planning for various disasters, Purdue Extension and the University of Nebraska hosted an Emergency Preparedness for Rural Families program series in March.  This series started with the development of an emergency action plan.

An emergency action plan is designed to provide farm families and emergency personnel clear and concise information about the farm if a disaster would occur.  It is best for the entire family and staff on the farm to work together to develop the plan as a way to increase awareness of potential emergency situations and provide different perspectives on how situations can be addressed. 

An emergency action plan should include:

1. locations of hazards and risks identified on a farm map;
2. communication plans between family/employees/emergency personnel;
3. development and placement of disaster kits;
4. information on how to evacuate and/or shelter in place; and
5. location financial plans/important records.

One of the harder parts of developing the emergency action plan is the map.  A farm’s emergency action plan map should include all of the locations involved in your operation along with an inventory of your equipment and your livestock.  If you have multiple sites/fields within your operation, you may want to add GPS coordinates, physical addresses, and common descriptions your family may know, such as “West Pasture,” “Hilly Field,” or “Grandpa’s Field.” You will want to mark where grain bins, fuel tanks, pesticide storage, manure pits, well heads, etc. are located.  Your map can be made by hand or could be developed utilizing a computer and computerized mapping. Put enough detail into the map, so that if an emergency happens and individuals need to look at it, they can figure out where everything is and prevent the situation from becoming worse.

Purdue Extension and Indiana PREPared encourages all farm families to spend time developing an emergency action plan.  They have a dedicated website developed with information on why you should develop a plan, how to develop a plan, and a template that can be used to develop a plan.  Within their “Tips and Guidance” document, they have suggestions on how to develop the map and what you should include on the map.  To access this information, please visit https://www.purdue.edu/engineering/ABE/INPREPared/farm-emergency-plans/ or contact Purdue Extension – Putnam County at 765-653-8411 for a paper copy of the documents.  These free resources are available to help families become more prepared for future disasters.  

If you would develop an emergency action plan, please realize these are living documents and should be updated periodically.  Additionally, these documents should be located in spots where someone can quickly grab it and utilize it when a disaster occurs.  Therefore, it is best to have an electronic copy available, but also paper copies available in strategic places that individuals can quickly access.

Visit our homepage at www.extension.purdue.edu/putnam or you can contact the local Purdue Extension Office by calling 765.653.8411 for more information regarding this week’s column topic or to RSVP for upcoming events. It is always best to call first to assure items are ready when you arrive and to RSVP for programs. While many publications are free, some do have a fee. Purdue University is an equal access/equal opportunity institution. All times listed are Eastern Time.

Upcoming Events:

May 7 – Primary Election Day, all county offices closed including Extension

May 15 – All 4-H Livestock must be enrolled in 4honline. Firm Deadline.

May 15 – Registration deadline early 4-H Roundup and other state workshops.

June 3 – ServSafe Food Manager course and exam in Montgomery County – register at https://cvent.me/vNk1k9 by May 27.

The Town of Roachdale is seeking any interested and qualified residents to submit a letter of interest and resume for consideration on an opening on the Roachdale Town Council. 

The move comes after the resignation of Mark Ketchum. Those wishing to be considered should have their letter of interest and resume to Roachdale Town Council no later than May 13 at 4 p.m. All letters must contain a physical address, valid address and phone number. In addition, they must be placed in a sealed envelope marked, "Town Council Vacancy." The town has asked that letters be hand delivered to the Town Office, 205 N. Indiana Street or be mailed to PO Box 198, Roachdale, IN 46172. 

In order to be considered, candidates must be a registered voter and reside in the town limits of Roachdale. 

Once the letters are in on May 13, the Town Council will hold an executive session at 6:30 p.m. to consider all applications, create a list of prospective candidates and make one initial exclusion of prospective candidates from further consideration. If needed, the council will whittle the list down to three candidates, who will be notified via email. The finalists will be asked to come to the town council meeting on May 16 for a series of interviews. 

Governor Eric J. Holcomb is directing flags to be flown at half-staff statewide in honor of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service per President Joe Biden.

Flags should be flown at half-staff from sunrise until sunset in Indiana on Sunday. Gov. Holcomb is asking Indiana businesses and residents to lower their flags as well.

Greencastle will host Heavy Trash Day on Saturday, May 4.

Spring installment of the 2024 Putnam County tax statements is due Friday, May 10.

The fall installment is due Tuesday, November 12.

If you do not receive your bill, you can request a duplicate by contacting the Putnam County Treasurer’s Office via phone 765-653-4510 or e-mail treasureroffice@co.putnam.in.us . Failure to receive a statement will not relieve you of paying taxes and / or penalties that may be due.

Taxes may be paid at any of the following banks located in Putnam County: First Financial, First National, Old National, North Salem State, Everwise Credit Union, or Tri-County. You must bring your tax statement if you want to pay at the bank. The banks will not accept payment after the due date.

Taxes may also be paid online at https://enoticesonline.com/put or https://www.certifiedpayments.net/ using bureau code 3115129.

If you mail your payment, the envelope must be postmarked on or before the due date to ensure a penalty is not assessed. The Putnam County Treasurer’s Office will accept cash, check, money order, or credit/debit cards in the office. Payment by debit/credit card or electronic check will incur a processing fee. There is also a drop box located on the east side of the courthouse building to drop check or money order payments.