Articles by Mike Rhodes

Kiwanis Club of Muncie Donates 472 Dictionaries for Muncie Community Schools’ Third Grade Students

By: Ana Pichardo— Muncie, IN —At the Muncie Community Schools (MCS) School Board meeting on Tuesday, November 15th, the Kiwanis Club of Muncie presented the corporation with 472 dictionaries—one for each third grade student—in partnership with The Dictionary Project. The Kiwanis Club provided dictionaries to enrich students’ learning experiences. “If a child has their own dictionary to take home with them, it increases their ability to learn and their ability to be involved,” said James Warrner, Lieutenant Governor of the Muncie…

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A Hometown Family Christmas

By: Kathy Huggler — Muncie, IN—America’s Hometown Band presents its holiday season concert for 2016 on Saturday, 5:30 pm, December 17, at the Emens Auditorium in Muncie, on the Ball State University campus at 1800 W. Riverside Avenue. It’s a Holiday outing not to be missed, and it’s also a chance to support and show your appreciation for the very fine hometown musicians that make up the band and who enrich the Muncie community with many free concerts throughout the year….


Edible Muncie Video Highlights Challenges of Local Food Deserts

By Erin Moore, Ball State Office of Community Engagement— Muncie, IN—The local non-profit organization Edible Muncie of Delaware County has unveiled a new video, Stop Gap, to document the transportation challenges faced by residents who live in one of the Muncie’s food deserts. Food deserts are defined by the USDA as places where at least 500 people reside more than one mile from a supermarket or large grocery store. Edible Muncie is working to eliminate food insecurity and food deserts in…


Five Delaware County Nonprofits Receive Grant Funding From Community Foundation

Muncie, Ind. – The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc., awarded $68,500 to five nonprofit organizations during the last Quarterly Competitive Grant cycle of 2016. The Community Foundation’s purpose is to improve the quality of life in Muncie and Delaware County for this generation and generations to come. Quarterly Competitive Grants are awarded to fund projects for which there is a demonstrable community benefit in one of the following areas of interest: arts and culture, human services, economic…


Al Holdren’s “Secret Families Christmas Charity” to Take Place December 3rd.

By: Al Holdren — Muncie, IN—In December of 2004, Chris (my wife) and I decided to not buy presents for each other for Christmas and use the money to provide a family in need with a tree and presents for the holiday. The story begins with two tables setup in the garage, Chris and my two daughters, Katie and Maddie, a few Santa hats and some wrapping paper and bows. As the presents were being wrapped, my brother-in law, arriving…


John Carlson: What I learned at McDonald’s

By: John Carlson– Millennials don’t eat Big Macs. Disturbing news of this cultural disconnection came via The Wall Street Journal not long ago. When I was a high school kid earning $1.05 an hour working at my hometown McDonald’s, I’d have given anything for a Big Mac, but we had only hamburgers, cheeseburgers and fish sandwiches to choose from. Life was very bleak back then. Now, young people are too busy munching their fancy-schmancy McGriddles, McMuffins and Chicken McNuggets to…


Muncie Business Leaders Named to Indiana Chamber Board

Indianapolis, IN — Two Muncie-area business leaders, Casey Stanley and Mike Stewart, have been named to the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, effective immediately. Stanley is vice president of product management and marketing for Ontario Systems in Muncie; Stewart is executive vice president and chief banking officer for First Merchants Bank, which is headquartered in Muncie and has operations throughout the state. They are among the more than 100 Indiana Chamber board members who are presidents, CEOs and high-level executives…


Everything for Your Photo Enthusiast at Jacks Camera Shop

By: Mike Rhodes— Did you know that one of Indiana’s most prestigious and renowned camera stores is located in downtown Muncie? Jacks Camera Shop is located at 300 E. Main Street, and has an extensive line of cameras, flash units, camera accessories, picture frames, lighting gear, camera bags, tripods/mounts, DSLR/smartphone microphones, SD cards, used photo equipment and more. Take a look at some of their used equipment and pricing in the photos below. Any of the products below would make great gifts or stocking…


Grains & Grill…A Destination Restaurant Worth the Short Trip to Fairmount

By: Mike Rhodes— If you are looking for a destination restaurant, instead of heading south to Indy, why not try going a few miles north instead? Try heading to Grains & Grill in Fairmount, IN. They have a well deserved reputation for having very good food. Joanie and Barry Howard are the owners. Kevin Grider is the chef, and he has a knack for coming up with extremely unique touches and flavor combinations that make Grains & Grill a highly…


RACER Trust Sells Property in Muncie, IN to M&M Bus Co., Inc.

MUNCIE, Ind. — RACER Trust has sold approximately 1.2 acres of a 66.5-acre industrial property in Muncie to M&M Bus Co., Inc., a local school bus contractor that has leased the paved lot for bus parking since 1988. The lot is located at the intersection of South Elliott and West 7th streets, directly east of the main portion of the RACER Trust property. In January 2016, RACER Trust completed the sale of approximately six acres on the south side of West 8th…