Local News Archives

The chief of the Pokagon Tribal Police Department will be honored with an award from a southwest Michigan Boy Scout council this week. Chief William Lux has been picked to receive the 2020 Soaring Eagle Award from

A state of emergency is now in place in the state due to the first presumed positive cases of coronavirus in Michigan. Governor Gretchen Whitmer made the announcement late Tuesday night “We’re taking every step that we

Benton Harbor Area Schools Superintendent Andrae Townsel is working to ensure there won’t be a repeat of a bullying incident at the International Academy at Hull that was caught on video and put online last week. At

Some informational sessions on an invasive insect that threatens hemlock trees will be held this month by the Van Buren Conservation District. It says the invasive hemlock wooly adelgid eats away at the trees, possibly posing an

Interfaith Action of Southwest Michigan is planning a series of presentations on refugees for this month. The group, which represents churches and other faith-based organizations around the area, says angles to be addressed include who refugees are,

2020 brings the third year for the Hopeful Home Fund, an initiative started by Berrien County Treasurer Bret Witkowski to collect donations for helping homeowners on the verge of foreclosure due to personal hardship. Witkowski says a

From the Associated Press — Officials say wreckage from a freighter that sank in Lake Huron around 115 years ago has moved toward Michigan’s shoreline due to high water levels and waves, weakening the ruins further. The

Congressman Fred Upton is asking the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services to update its policies to better respond to the COVID 19 threat. He tells us a supplemental budget bill passed by the House last week

From the Associated Press — A Michigan lawmaker has introduced a bill that would require school districts to include a 24-hour suicide prevention hotline number on student identification cards for grades 6-12. The Detroit News reports that

20 years ago this week, Michigan passed its primary seat belt law, which has since gone on to save more than 3,400 lives. However, Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning spokesperson Kendall Wingrove says not all are

From the Associated Press — Michigan is the largest of six states with Democratic primaries on Tuesday, and it could redefine what has become a showdown between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. But many Michigan primary voters

The family of the young boy seen in a viral video being beaten up at Benton Harbor’s International Academy at Hull elementary school is speaking out. The video has been removed from Facebook since being posted up

The Redskins name is going away in Paw Paw. The school board last night voted to retire the nickname at the end of this school year at the urging of superintendent Rick Reo. “Even the most die-hard

The Southwestern Michigan College Board of Trustees has appointed Tracy D. Hertsel of Vandalia to fill a vacancy on the body. The action was taken at a Monday special meeting, and the vote was unanimous. Hertsel is

High costs are preventing nearly one in three Michigan adults from taking a needed medication. However, solutions to help bring down the price of prescription drugs could be around the corner. The new Prescription Drug Task Force

The Van Buren District Library is planning a presentation on the history of Silver Beach this month. Education coordinator Kay McAdam tells WSJM News Silver Beach Carousel Society President Suz Schalon and Connie Yore, the curator for

Senior citizens in Van Buren County are being invited to a meeting with Michigan State Police this week on how to avoid scams. Trooper Jacob Bailey will hold the meeting at the United Methodist Church in Gobles

One of the two who survived being shot during the massacre in Kalamazoo in February 2016 carried out by an Uber driver is a finalist for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s Citizen Honors Award. Tiana Carruthers

The coronavirus continues to spread across the country, and Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist says it’s just a matter of time before the virus arrives in Michigan. Gilchrist says even though there are no confirmed cases in the

Benton Harbor Area Schools superintendent Andrae Townsel is aware of a video that was posted to Facebook and had thousands of shares through the weekend of an incident at International Academy at Hull in which a first-grade

A video has surfaced of an attack by several classmates on a first-grade student at Benton Harbor’s International Academy at Hull elementary school last week. Posted to Facebook, the video had been shared over 2,000 times as

A Benton Harbor area church is planning to hold an egg drop event next month in St. Joseph Township. Overflow Church Pastor Brian Bennett tells WSJM News they’ll have a helicopter drop eggs on to the American

The much-anticipated turnaround plan for Benton Harbor Area Schools being drafted by a state-proposed advisory committee will soon be released to the district’s board of education. At this past week’s school board meeting, Benton Harbor Area Schools

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is promoting the 211 hotline this month. Analyst Jon Breems tells WSJM News 211, run by United Way organizations around the state, connects people with help when they’re struggling.

The Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven will continue its Maritime Lecture Series this month with a presentation on a shipwreck discovered in Lake Michigan in 2018. Museum Education Director Ashley Deming tells WSJM News the presentation

The state of Michigan is working to promote the Michigan Education Trust with events planned throughout the spring. MET Director Robin Lott tells WSJM News the trust is a way for parents to lock in today’s tuition

The Michigan Department of Transportation says two lanes of westbound I-94 in Berrien County were blocked from traffic on Saturday afternoon while firefighters put out a grass fire. The Lincoln Township Fire Department responded to the scene

Applications for the position of Berrien County Treasurer are now being taken as current Treasurer Bret Witkowski plans to step down next month. Berrien County Administration says a committee made up of Probate Judge Mabel Mayfield, Berrien

The team name and mascot for Paw Paw High School could soon be changed after years of controversy. The team is currently called the Redskins, but some allege it’s offensive. Previous meetings to discuss dropping the name