For the past several years, Hillsboro resident Gordon W. Yuellig has placed a manger and nativity display outside the Highland County Courthouse in uptown Hillsboro.

The Southern State Community College Board of Trustees opened its Wednesday, Dec. 8 meeting with a moment of silence for former professor Bill Horne, who passed away last week at the age of 70. The college hosted a memorial service for Mr. Horne on Dec. 4.

Highland County Sheriff Ronald D. Ward congratulates Al Martellotti for his five years of volunteer service with the Highland County Sheriff’s Office.

Farmers have an abundance of what Ohio’s next governor, John Kasich, wants to see more of in government: common sense. Speaking at the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation annual meeting in Columbus, Kasich applauded farmers’ work ethic and personal responsibility, and said it will take some of those qualities to get the state back on track.

As Ohioans begin to face the winter heating season, AEP Ohio is launching two new programs designed to make residential customers’ homes more comfortable while helping them to lower their energy bills. AEP Ohio is now offering in-home energy assessments and audits to help customers identify energy efficiency improvements and earn rebates that can save money.

Ohio hunters took 104,442 white-tailed deer during the state's popular, week-long deer-gun season, which ran November 29 through December 5, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife. In 2009, hunters killed a preliminary total of 114,633 deer during the same time period.

In a Dec. 6 meeting at the White House, Ohio Representative-Elect Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville, urged the Obama administration to step up efforts to rebuild America’s nuclear power industry.

A silent snow fell outside the campus of Southern State Community College in Hillsboro Saturday, as family, friends, colleagues and students assembled to honor "an old hog farmer" whose legacy of learning, integrity and commitment to community lives on through the thousands of lives he touched.
 From humble roots on a farm in the Sugar Tree Ridge area, Bill Horne, who died Dec. 1, became a man who inspired those around him, through his actions and his lectures, calling education "the great equalizer." He worked to constantly remind people that "one person can make a difference."

A former treasurer for the village of Lynchburg pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of theft in office.
 In Highland County Common Pleas Court Friday before Judge Rocky Coss, Angelique Balon pleaded guilty to the two counts of theft in office. As a result of the agreement, the state determined the third count be dismissed.

Highland County and Southern State Community College lost a loyal friend this week, when Professor Bill Horne passed away early Thursday morning at Bethesda North Hospital in Cincinnati, after suffering a heart attack. He was 70. Professor Horne, a graduate of Whiteoak High School, had been an associate professor of economics at Southern State Community College for more than 25 years.

Highland County and Southern State Community College lost a loyal friend this week, when Professor Bill Horne passed away early Thursday morning at Bethesda North Hospital in Cincinnati, after suffering a heart attack. He was 70. Professor Horne, a graduate of Whiteoak High School, had been an associate professor of economics at Southern State Community College for more than 25 years.

Less than half an inch of accumulation in Highland County led to slippery roads Wednesday.  
 According to the National Weather Service, scattered snow showers were expected in the area mainly before 10 p.m., with a low around 20 degrees anticipated. West winds were between 8 and 13 mph. The forecast showed a total nighttime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

A former public official may enter into a plea agreement this week on charges of theft, stemming from a investigation through the Auditor's Office of the State of Ohio.
 Angelique M. Balon, former treasurer for the village of Lynchburg, was indicted by a grand jury in Highland County Common Pleas Court on Sept. 17, on three charges of theft in office, two of which are felonies of the third degree; and one of which is a felony of the fourth degree.