JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER Freeman Academy will be represented five times while Menno will compete in three different categories at the 2021 State Oral Interpretation Festival Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3 and 4 at Huron High School. All advanced through the local, District 3B and Region 2B competitions, the most recent of which took place at the First United Methodist Church in Mitchell last Tuesday, Nov. 16. Freeman Academy sent its entire slate of region performers on to state. Here’s a closer look:

The Courier is making this story available on both members and non-members alike. If you support this type of community journalism and are not a member of The Courier community, please consider becoming one. JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER More than two years ago, in September of 2019, the worst flooding in the history of Wolf Creek Colony decimated the Hutterite community.

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER Organizers charged with Schmeckfest never once thought that COVID-19 would be the end of the festival that, since 1959, has celebrated the Germans-from-Russia heritage on which this community was founded. But the pandemic has certainly had an impact. Schmeckfest as it has been known since it debuted in 1959 was canceled in both 2020 and 2021, and even as those associated with the Freeman Academy Auxiliary plan for the festival’s return in the spring of 2022, they can’t be 100% certain about how exactly it will look.

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER Tage Ortman was in middle school when his oldest brother, Trey, led Canistota/Freeman to back-to-back football championships in 2018 and 2019, and a freshman last year when his other brother, Tyce, quarterbacked the Pride to a third-straight Class 9A title. This Thursday in Vermillion, the youngest of the three Ortman boys will have his chance to lead Canistota/Freeman to glory once again — this time in the Class 9AA ranks.

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER The city of Menno is continuing with plans to develop lots for housing immediately east of the Menno-Olivet Care Center. Mayor Darrell Mehlhaf told The Courier early this week that the city is providing infrastructure for 2 ½ blocks on the east side of Menno. That includes utility hookups going in yet this fall, with the construction of the roadway to follow. Alfalfa Street will be extended to the south and connect with Juniper going west. The development will provide new space for approximately a dozen homes.

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER It was the third set of Freeman Academy/Marion’s Region 5B match at Centerville on Monday night and the Bearcats were winning. Players were covering the court, connecting at the net and cheering each other on, smiling through a lead that stood at 9-4, then 12-7, then 15-11. And then? Then it was over.

Note: The Courier is making this available to both subscribers and non-subscribers as a courtesy. If you appreciate this type of community journalism, please consider taking out a membership.  

JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER The city of Freeman and members of the Freeman City Council last week were threatened with a lawsuit by Lawrence West, owner of The Whiskey House, a new restaurant opening in Freeman. West appeared before the council at its Oct. 19 meeting and said he would sue the city for failing to address his application for a liquor permit.

JEREMY WALTNER - PUBLISHER The Freeman City Council moved closer toward finalizing its Main Street project last week by approving a design throughout the business district that features extended curbs that slope to zero grade at the intersections of Third and Main and Fourth and Main. The design also includes a 3 ½ foot strip of aggregate concrete as part of the sidewalk from Railway to Fifth that adds both a visual cue and a decorative element.

JEREMY WALTNER  -  PUBLISHER A survey made available to Freeman Public School District patrons this fall generated overwhelming support for school leadership to engage in dialogue with neighboring districts regarding both athletic cooperation and school consolidation.