Articles by Mike Rhodes

Fred Reese and Charlie Sursa. Photos provided.

Positivity April 27, 2019

Fred Reese and Charlie Sursa Recognized By Meridian Health Services

By: Meridian Health Services— Muncie, IN—Philanthropic endeavors have leaders who believe in the cause and champion for it!  For a decade, Charlie Sursa and Fred Reese have been particularly instrumental in Meridian’s philanthropic efforts and are being recognized as recipients of Meridian’s 2019 Spirit of Meridian Award. Philanthropy means the love of humanity—it is the pulse of not-for-profit organizations such as Meridian Health Services. Through the passion and dedication of Sursa, Reese and Meridian’s board and staff, Meridian has grown and…

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Yorktown Elementary School students in Randy Reffett’s fourth-grade class use Legos with additional science materials to create simple machines that are programmed using a coding app on an iPad. The Legos and materials were purchased with support of a Robert P. Bell Education Grant. Photo provided

Non-Profit April 26, 2019

Teachers Awarded $2,693 for Creative and Innovative Classroom Projects

By: Kallie Sulanke— Muncie, IN—Delaware County teachers will receive $2,692.76 for 8 projects in Robert P. Bell Education Grants from The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc. Across the county, 1,000’s of students benefit from Bell Education Grants each year. Awards of up to $450 are available through the Bell Grants program. Funded projects are creative or innovative classroom projects designed to stimulate learning in students. All Delaware County teachers are invited to apply during any of the four grant…

Napping on the love seat is a lot easier than it looks. Photo by: Nancy Carlson

Carlson April 26, 2019

John Carlson: If You Snooze, You…Win?

By: John Carlson— In my younger years, I was never much of a napper. As far back as kindergarten, I have vague memories of being in class as our matronly teacher, Miss Alexander, passed out our milk cartons and graham crackers, and I’d think, “Yo! Sweet, toots!” Well, way back then I probably didn’t actually think of Miss Alexander as “toots.” Probably I thought  something more like, “Ooh, goody gumdrops!” But as enthusiastic as I was about milk-and-cracker time, I…

Pictured L-R: Jason Newman, Sue Godfrey, and Ken Hudson. Photo provided

Non-Profit April 25, 2019

Muncie Non-Profits ‘Tee Up’ for Joint Golf Outing May 24

By: Kate Elliott— Muncie, IN— Three Muncie non-profits have teamed up to create the inaugural Community Cup Golf Outing to be held at 9 a.m. Friday, May 24, at The Players Club, 6610 W. River Rd. Teams of four are invited to register for the event, which supports Big Brothers Big Sisters of East Central Indiana, the Whitely Community Council and Boys & Girls Clubs of Muncie. Sue Godfrey, executive director of BBBS, said the partnership emerged following Shafer Leadership…

Students editing their video as a team during Summer Film School. Photo by: Stuart Cotton, Muncie Public Library

Non-Profit April 23, 2019

Sign Up for Free Summer Film School at Muncie Public Library

By: Susan Fisher— Muncie, IN—Muncie Public Library (MPL) will host free Summer Film School for teens in grades 8-12. This program puts professional equipment in students’ hands every day for three weeks as they gain video production and editing experience. “Students who participate in the film school will create professional video projects that will give them an advantage when approaching colleges and careers,” said Dan Allen, Technology Coordinator at MPL. He added that each student will create six video projects…

Photo by: graphic stock

Opinion April 22, 2019

We Are All in “Tech” Now – And We Better Work Together to Seize the Moment

By: Casey Stanley, Vice President, Marketing and Business Development, Ontario Systems— Muncie, IN—Every business is in tech now. But you likely know that. The technology that powers your business has become just as essential to success as the product or service you provide. Every sector – from finance to agriculture to transportation to healthcare to government to media – is subject to this truth. Another truth is that as the United States experiences this economic revolution, there will be winners and losers. We…

Customer Cheryl Minor folds her clothes during the LAUNDRY LOVE event. Photo by: Nancy Carlson

Positivity April 22, 2019

Free Laundry Event Brings Neighbors Together

By: Nancy Carlson— Muncie, IN—Riverside/Normal City Neighborhood Association (RNC), in partnership with Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, held an event called LAUNDRY LOVE this past weekend. With a grant from Thrivent, the partners provided a $10 roll of quarters to the first 25 families who came into the White Spot Coin Laundromat, the only one in the neighborhood. Brian Schrieve, the White Spot’s owner, said “Clean clothes are like a new haircut. They make you feel good about yourself.” Sixty percent…

Chris Mullett. Photo provided

Business April 22, 2019

Mullett Design Group Brings New Graphics To Area Schools

By: Stacey Shannon— Muncie, IN—After Chris Mullett graduated from Ball State University with a degree in visual communications, he headed to Indianapolis to work. When he and his wife were ready to start a family, they wanted to be back in Muncie. He decided to open his own company, Mullett Design Group, LLC. This year will mark his fifth year in business, and Mullett said the Muncie community has been great for his business. While he offers a full gamut of…

A beautiful pair of bald eagles stare off into the distance. Photo by: David Ray Smith

Carlson April 21, 2019

John Carlson: Eagles Inspire Lofty Thoughts

By: John Carlson— History books teach us when our Founding Fathers were considering the animal to best symbolize the United States of America, Benjamin Franklin recommended the turkey. OK. Good enough, Ben. You could have picked worse. I have a soft spot for turkeys myself. Granted, it’s especially true when they are baked and sliced, with the slices piled between two pieces of rye bread generously slathered with mayonnaise. Still, it’s hard to imagine anyone thinking our forefathers erred in…

The Space Walrus in competition. Photo provided

Education April 20, 2019

Muncie Robotics Team Heading to World Competition

By: Michelle Kinsey—  Muncie, IN—Local robotics Team 1720, The PhyXTGears, has had an “out of this world” season. And it’s not over yet. On Wednesday, April 24, the team will travel to Detroit, Mich., for the FIRST World Championship competition. The team, ranked third in the state, qualified for the prestigious competition after finishing second (for the third year in a row) with its robot, Space Walrus, at the IndianaFIRST State Championship in Kokomo April 12-13. This is the fourth…