MARTINSVILLE The Martinsville Youth and Development Center hosted its inaugural fundraising dinner Tuesday. It was an evening of reflection and celebration of the six years it took to get there. “Many people said this wasn’t possible, but on our journey the last six years of building this youth center, businesses would say, ‘We’ll donate to you once you get open.’ Well, we need money to get open,” Steve Keefe, president of the board of directors for the youth center, said. “We’re here in lieu of what all our naysayers said and we’re proud of that. As I stand here tonight, there’s many, many people I need to thank for myself and our board.” Keefe took the time to thank the board members for all they had done to make the center a reality and to help keep the doors open. One early supporter Keefe thanked was Jill Curry, who until recently worked for the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. Keefe credited Curry for her assistance in writing a grant to get funding for the center. “I botched up the first application I did so bad on asking for a half-million dollar grant that I begged her to come here, that I’d buy her lunch if she met me here in this unheated, cold and dilapidated building and help teach me how to write an OCRA grant application,” Keefe said. Keefe said there were plans to name the center in honor of the Tedrow family for their donations which helped make the center possible. Keefe introduced Ron Tedrow to say few words regarding the honor. Tedrow said his family was grateful, but it was an honor which should go to someone else. “Fundraising is the lifeblood any organization like this. We’re here tonight to raise money. Your gifts are critical and they are appreciated. But as a story to tell, ‘They gave money,’ it doesn’t really resonate. It doesn’t inspire. It doesn’t give you goosebumps. That dog won’t hunt,” Tedrow said. “So let’s compare that story to another story. The story of a man who devoted most of his adult life in service to the youth of Martinsville. He helped as many as 2,000 young boys, most of them underprivileged, over a span of many years. From his modest earnings as a porter at the sanitariums, be built a club house, he taught them right from wrong, he took them to church. He showed them that he cared. “Of course I’m talking about Albert Merritt,” Tedrow said. “Now this was a black man in a white town; he must have encountered some resistance, but he carried on. He showed that courage and that character and in other words, he taught by example. Now that’s a story that’s been told around here for the best part of a century and I suppose it’ll be told long after I’m gone. And so, ladies and gentlemen, that’s why we’re naming the center (after) Albert Merritt.” Mark Jaynes, a native son of Morgan County and the current voice of the Indianapolis 500, spoke next. Jaynes thanked those in attendance for all they do for the children of Martinsville and said the work being done at the center was vitally important. “Each life you touch is in the early stages of a journey, regardless of their age, their socioeconomic background or environment, all have dreams and they have the desire to achieve those dreams,” Jaynes said. “They simply lack the tools, not the talent or skill, but they lack things like dedication, commitment and drive and maturity. And I think that’s where we as adults with our influence can come and help kids.” He cited the influence his elementary school principal had on his career path, saying he was a big Reds fan and wanted to be a professional baseball player. The principal said after seeing him play for three days, he should rethink things. “Now, before the sting of that could set in, fortunately he said, ‘With your obvious love of sports and inability to keep your mouth shut in class, you ought to think about a career in broadcast or journalism,’” Jaynes said, adding his principal advised him on how to research those careers and contact various broadcasters, disc jockeys and others. Jaynes said there were other teachers who took him under his wing, including his driving instructor Dave Oberle. Jaynes said Oberle helped Jaynes get a position as a manager with the Monrovia High School football team. Jaynes had to choose between going on a family vacation or continuing on as a manager; he chose the latter. He also picked up a job calling in football and basketball scores to WCBK, and if he missed his deadline, he would not be paid. “I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was starting to get the tools I’d needed to have things pay off for me someday,” Jaynes said. He urged those in attendance to invest time in the children who came to the center, as others had done for him. “Be honest with them, but do so in a way which challenges them but make sure it encourages them as well. Don’t be afraid to let them fail, just don’t let them quit and if they do, they’ll never know how close they came to succeeding and that’s why you can’t let them quit,” Jaynes said. Martinsville Youth and Development Center is located at 165 Morton Ave. and can be reached at martinsvilleyouthcenter@gmail.com, shelby@martinsvilleyouthcenter.org and 765-558-8137. The rec center can be reached at 765-558-8145. For more information, visit martinsvilleyouthcenter.org.

MORGAN COUNTY Veterans are one of the more vulnerable populations in the United States. A January 2009 survey found that 16 percent of homeless adults in a one-night survey were veterans despite the group making up only 10 percent of the population. The Hoosier Veteran Assistance Foundation is a United Way-affiliated organization which works to provide housing for homeless veterans. One area that’s of great need is transportation. Veterans need reliable transportation to get to their jobs, as well as medical appointments and the normal errands which accompany simply being a person living in 2017. The HVAF began a bike program after learning from veterans that access to a bike would make their lives easier. “It was just another need in the community. Any veteran who comes to HVAF is provided supportive housing. We’re able to provide them with transportation,” Debra Des Vignes, vice president of communications for HVAF, said. “We’ve got vans that take them to medical appointments…Many of our veterans (were) coming up to us saying ‘Gosh, a bike would really help. I could have the freedom of just going when I need to, going to the grocery store.’” The bikes are valuable for the veterans because they give them independence and allows them to travel where public transportation might not go. Compared to other cities, public transportation in Indianapolis is limited and in a rural area like Morgan County, it’s non-existent. “Any time you eliminate a barrier, whether it’s housing or transportation and basic needs like food, clothing and hygiene items, it makes (you) one step closer to becoming fully self-sufficient. I think a bike is a perfect example, whether you’re in Indianapolis or Morgan County; all of our homeless veterans can benefit from this mode of transportation,” Des Vignes said. The demand for bikes exceeds the amount donated. Des Vignes said that bikes go out as quickly they come in. “We have many bikes that come into our HVAF offices downtown and they go as quickly as they come in. We have two clients that I can think of who it really changed their lives they were able to get to medical appointments they might have missed had it not been for that bike donation,” Des Vignes said. “From January to April, we had about 59 bikes that were donated HVAF offices downtown. We were able to disperse those bikes as quickly as they came in. We don’t have a set number, but the bikes are critical.” There is also a health benefit to the bikes. Veterans no longer have to walk everywhere if they lack transportation and it can help those with mobility issues put less stress on their bodies. “To be able to have a bike (means) not having to rely heavily or solely on mass transit or friend or family member taking you to and from,” Des Vignes said. “You have the freedom to be able to manage your time efficiently and effectively. Any time we get a bike donated here HVAF, it goes to one of our homeless veterans in need and it goes a long way. It gets a lot of mileage.” There is always a need for donations to HVAF. Bicycles are helpful, but there’s also a need for food, clothing items and hygiene products. Though HVAF is based in Indianapolis, it disperses items to where they are needed in counties across the state. For more information about HVAF, visit hvafofindiana.org or call 317-951-0688. HVAF is located at 964 N. Pennsylvania St., Indianapolis.

MARTINSVILLE Memorial Day will see the return of the Anything on Wheels Car Show to Martinsville. This will be the seventh edition of the show which was originally started as a fundraiser for reunion of the Martinsville High School class of 1966. Three years ago, the stewardship of the show passed to the Martinsville High School class of 1974. The group uses the show as a fundraiser for their class reunion as well and there are plans to turn it over in the next year or two. Kim Fishel, chairman of the Anything on Wheels Car Show, said the class of 1966 turned it over after saving up for their 50 year reunion and she got involved because she has a relative in the class of 1966. Fishel credits the use of advertising for the growth in the show — last year over 150 vehicles were in the show. What also helps is the show was awarded a grant from Visit Morgan County for the last two years. “We were able to advertise and promote way outside of Morgan County,” Fishel said, adding the promotional campaigns worked and brought in participants from beyond Martinsville and Morgan County. “Probably 60, 70 percent of the participants were from outside Morgan County.” Fishel said she hopes this year’s show will be bigger than last year as the class of 1974 changed things slightly for the shows they’ve hosted. Location is one thing as the show began at John R. Wooden Middle School and was moved to the square. Fishel said the move in venue was a boon for the show as many merchants agreed to open on Memorial Day during the hours of the event. It’s a relationship that benefits both involved — businesses get a shot at making some sales and in the event of inclement weather, there are places show attendees can wait out the storm. “When we moved it downtown, we asked all the merchants on the square to be open. Quite a few of them that would be closed on Memorial Day are open,” Fishel said. She said the group knew nothing about car shows when they initially took it over, but the presence of gearheads in the class of 1974 was of great help. “We’ve just been learning and we approach it as a business opportunity and business day and run it that way. So far it’s been pretty successful for us,” Fishel said. As the show falls on Memorial Day, it will acknowledge the holiday with a ceremony beginning at noon. Veterans in attendance will meet near a large American flag for the ceremony and chaplain Kurt Ennis, a member of the class of 1974, will offer a prayer. Indiana Spirit of 45 will play Taps and World War II veteran John Jackson will lead the recitation of “The Pledge of Allegiance.” Bryan Jackson, another member of the class of 1974, will perform “The Star Spangled Banner.” Veterans in attendance will receive food coupons donated by local businesses. Ten percent of the proceeds of the show will go to a local veteran organization which Fishel said was a fan of a program at the VFW. Best in show earns a glass trophy and $100 cash. There are also several awards for categories like best paint job, best engine and other traditional car show awards. Registration will be from 9 a.m. to noon and the show will run until 3 p.m. May 29 on the square. Cost per entry is $15 per car. and awards will be given out at 2 p.m. Lunch will be served from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/anythingonwheels2015/.

MARTINSVILLE — The month of May might as well be the month of April for the sheer amount of rain that’s fallen on Morgan County in the past few weeks. This time of year, the weather is usually nicer and suitable for outdoor events, temperatures are reasonable and the sweltering humidity associated with June and July is uncommon. The inaugural Fine Arts Frolic held at Charles L. Smith Elementary School Saturday was forced to roll with the changes. Fear of further precipitation caused the events to move inside, but that was part of the organizers’ plans. The event was a celebration of the elementary school’s plan to become a fine arts academy next school year. Currently, students at the Martinsville school have gotten a taste of the future with fine arts Fridays. The energy is different at the school and students get really excited about integrating the arts in different areas of study. “We are thrilled by the turnout today,” said Kari Palma, Smith Elementary music teacher. “For this being our first Fine Arts Frolic, we are just absolutely, over the moon, super excited that so many of our kids from Smith and all kinds of other children from all kinds of other places are coming to join us, have a great day with our school here and with our community artists from The Art Sanctuary, from the Woodridge Music Academy, from Elite Dance and (so many others). The kids are having so much fun.” The event Saturday showcased the many ways art, music and even physical education and dance intersect. Community organizations and local vendors set up shop in booths in school hallways and in some cases, classrooms. Guests could roam portions of the school to sample different areas of the fine arts. The stage in the multipurpose room that serves as gymnasium and cafeteria among other things was where the Tom Fiddlery Band performed, before ceding the room to a Zumba class. Other activities in the gym included temporary tattooing, a bounce house and a beloved classic of gym classes past: a multi-colored parachute. Cars filled the parking lot of Smith Elementary, the lot of neighboring Bell Intermediate Academy and portions of Columbus Street. The energy in the halls of the school was palpable. One classroom featured actors from the Merry MAC Theatre and gave students an opportunity to don costumes and try their hands at treading the boards. “I just saw a play with the Merry MAC Players, and it was adorable,” Palma said. The weather cleared and the sun came out, which meant that the duck dash 2K fun run could take place outside. It featured a special guest: Smith Elementary School principal Kyle Stout in an inflatable duck costume. The costume was a big hit with the students. Many were excited to pose for a photo with their principal in such a ridiculous getup. The prizes for the run were trophies, 27 total, including one for the fastest girl and one for the fastest boy. The remaining trophies were duck-shaped. Robert Gee helped organize the duck dash and spoke of his love for art. “Whoever is going here next year, I’m so jealous that you guys get to do the art. I grew up doing art myself and I love it, I wish I did it more,” Gee said. Gee explained the route of the event and discussed the group he runs on Facebook: Motivate Martinsville. “It kind of has inspirational stories for people locally, and if you ever think you can run longer, we have some 2K runs once in a while and some of the other 5K events in Martinsville, we’d like to see you out there. And if you wanted to, you could even move up to a 5K,’ Gee said. And then, with sounding of his duck call by Principal Stout, the runners were off. If looks like a duck, walks a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck. Substitute success for duck when talking about the Fine Arts Frolic, and you’re as near to the truth of the matter as can be.

MARTINSVILLE — IU Health Morgan celebrated the completion of a new entrance for the holidays with an open house event on Saturday. The event was held months after the entrance was completed in late December 2016 with the hopes for better weather in the warmer months. That didn’t happen. To paraphase poet Robert Burns, the best laid plans of mice and men oft go astray. Heavy rain in the early part of the day forced the organizers to make use of their contingency plan. Some of the activities moved inside, such as a free Zumba class. Several activities were set up under an awning for the entrance of the newly renovated first floor. There was a bounce house and an inflatable pop-a-shot game. The latter gave guests a chance to refine their shooting stroke with miniature balls, some in the retro red, white and blue color scheme of the American Basketball Association. There was also another Indiana staple: cornhole. “The rain caused us to move things inside, but as you can see, we’ve got a lot of activity, a lot of things going, so we’re very pleased with this turnout. It’s a great day, so hopefully more people will show up,” said Larry Bailey, president of IU Health Morgan. At the Kona Ice cart, guests could receive a free cone of the frozen treat from 1 to 3 p.m. It was a popular item; Artesian cheerleaders queued up in front of the cart following a free Zumba session. Set up next to the WCBK booth was a grill for hot dogs — those savory snacks were up for grabs while supplies lasted. And while those events caught the interest of a lot of attendees, there was another reason the open house was held — to inform those attending of the kind of services offered at IU Health Morgan. “One of our goals today is to give tours, tell people about all the services we have to offer: radiology, wellness, physical therapy, occupational therapy, emergency. Full range of service, pretty much any medical service you would need at a local level,” Bailey said. IU Health Morgan has offered open houses in the past, but never on this scale. “This one we really wanted to play it up and do it on a large scale, just because of our $13.5 million dollar investment, to celebrate that.” Bailey said the idea came from the marketing department at the hospital. “As we went along, we had open houses at the surgery department, open houses when the emergency department opened. We said, ‘When we get the whole thing done, let’s have a big open house. So our marketing department did a lot of the planning. So thanks to them for putting this all together,” Bailey said. Many IU Health Morgan staff members and others affiliated with the hospital were out to support and enjoy the event. “This is an awesome event. It’s great to open the facility up to the community and invite folks here to give tours and let everybody know what an awesome job we’re doing here,” said Rick Hendrickson, a member of the hospital board. Hendrickson said this style of open house seemed to offer greater flexibility to community members who might be interested in coming but also have full schedules on Saturdays. “I think having it open for a period of time where people can come and go, I think that’s a great way to do it. Everybody on a Saturday is busy, so it’s nice to have it open so folks can fit into their schedule,” Hendrickson said.

MARTINSVILLE The Martinsville Community Band will hold its spring concert at 7 p.m. Monday at First Baptist Church, 1109 E. Columbus St., Martinsville. The last two years the band performed movie themes. This year the group is changing things up by performing songs about Indiana or written by Hoosier composers. “Last year was the bicentennial and everyone did so much stuff and it was constant bicentennial and then it was Dec. 31 and everything stopped,” Stephanie Resler, president of Martinsville Community Band, said. “ So we’re kind of piggybacking on all of that and kind of saying ‘Hey, it’s not over yet, we celebrated, let’s close it out.’ So it’s kind of timely, plus we couldn’t’ have learned all of this last year.” Resler said it was a nice change of pace for the band members as previously, they would only get one or two new songs for the concert. “I know for myself I’ve enjoyed the challenge of learning all this brand new music and we have some really difficult pieces in here as well. I think everyone has been really determined with what we’re trying to do,” Resler said. Martinsville Community Bands Director Jim Reed said he typically plans the music for the spring concert a year ahead of time. The setlist for the concert is centered on the classics. “We have Hoagy Carmichael, Cole Porter, kind of the classics. Those are kind of the main ones,” Reed said. “Then we have ‘On the Banks of the Wabash.’ We’re doing ‘Way Back Home In Indiana,’ which is kind of a jazz version of ‘(Back Home Again in) Indiana.’ We wanted to do something a little different. One that I thought was pretty neat, we’re doing ‘Red’s White and Blue March’ that’s Red Skelton.” Reed said they would also perform a piece by Newell Long, who was a director at Indiana Universoty. Reed said Long’s niece is a member of the band. “One other one we’re doing is by Fred Jewell and he’s a composer from Worthington, Indiana, and his music was used for circus music. We thought that would be a fun one to do,” Reed said. State Senator Rod Bray plans attend as a guest speaker. The band will end the concert by playing theme from “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” The suggested donation for admittance to the concert is $3, which helps funds a $1,000 scholarship which the band will award during the concert, a change from previous years. “We’re actually going to give it at the concert, which is new for us this year. We had quite a response from the schools in the county. And so, the committee went through everything and chose one of the students here from Martinsville. He’s going to come and we’re going to present it to him so people can see what their donation is actually going to. We thought that would be nice,” Resler said. The Community Band of Martinsville performs at functions year round, from a patriotic concert near the Fourth of July to the Fall Foliage festival to events at schools. “We’ve been asked to play at a nursing home this year, which is exciting. We’re really looking forward to that. So pretty much anywhere we can get out and be heard and seen and give back,” Resler said. The Community Band is always in need of donations to help fund their scholarship, as well as donations of old instruments for use by members of the ensemble. To learn more about the group, visit martinsvilleband.wixsite.com/main.

MARTINSVILLE The Martinsville Youth and Development Center will hold its inaugural fundraising dinner from 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the center, 165 Morton Ave., Martinsville. Youth center director Shelby Wilson said the center couldn’t do what it does without the support of the community. “Our goal is to have only one fundraiser each year and that way we can possibly keep our sponsorships for next year or grow them or get new or interchange... We don’t really want to have to ask a lot of people for money. We want to be self-sustainable is our goal. The community has been fantastic thus far,” Wilson said. There will also be a fundraising dinner and Mark Jaynes, the voice of the Indianapolis 500, will lend his famed voice to the cause. Jaynes was at the top of the list for the center as he has local ties. “He is from Morgan County and I know that one of the board members, they have an acquaintance that knew him. So they reached out to him and he was more than thrilled to participate in this. He was the first one we went after and I think he’s going to be a great fit and a great choice for our dinner,” Wilson said, adding the dinner falls during the week leading up to the Indy 500. There will also be a silent auction at the dinner which includes items such as a week stay at a condo in Fort Myers Beach, tickets to Indianapolis Indians games, a football signed by members of the Indianapolis Colts and a signed Magic Johnson jersey. “We have a couple of yearlong memberships at Reps Fitness. We’re trying to put together a big gift card basket. We don’t have that completed yet, but that’s something we’re working on. It’s a lot of nice, quality stuff,” Wilson said. The Food Guys — a catering company based in Indianapolis — will provide the dinner. Wilson said the MYDC wanted to hire a company from Morgan County, but many of them were unavailable that day. “The food looks absolutely delicious. It’s salmon, filet, veggies, cheesecake and chocolate cake. It’s a pretty well rounded menu,” Wilson said. Wilson said the dinner was hitting goals the center had set and they were pleased with the number of tickets they had sold. “We’re at a comfortable seating right now, 90 to 95 is probably the most we’ll have. It’s perfect. Not that we wouldn’t want more people here, but just for the space we have, we don’t want people crammed,” Wilson said. Wilson said those who weren’t able to attend the dinner could get involved with the center in other ways. “Mentor Monday is a great way to come talk to the kids. Another great way is not even donating monetarily, (but with) their time. We have a lady who comes in on Thursdays and teaches the kids dance lessons and that’s a big hit with the kids, gets them active, gives them something to look forward to at the end of school,” Wilson said. For more information about the dinner, contact Wilson at shelb@martinsvilleyouthcenter.org or at 317-446-5044 or visit martinsvilleyouthcenter.org.

MARTINSVILLE Tuesday was the grand opening for Activate Health and Wellness Center, a project nearly a year in the making. Staff members and their dependents from the Metropolitan School District of Martinsville, Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corporation and Nineveh-Hensley-Jackson United School Corporation are eligible to use the clinic. The process for the clinic began last June when Martinsville drafted a request for proposal. MSD of Martinsville Superintendent Dr. Michele Moore said the whole process took around nine to 10 months. “We had an acute care clinic several years ago. We wanted to move to a wellness model through our insurance trust and the insurance trust, we had a new insurance rep, J.A. Benefits, and they were real progressive in looking at total wellness for employees and we wanted to take advantage of that,” Moore said. Richland-Bean Blossom and NHJ share the same insurance trust and were quick to get on board with the clinic. “They did the RFP and we just kind of piggybacked on where we asked if we could have a certain percentage of our employees participate and being in the same insurance trust, how we had that conversation and it was a good mutual agreement,” NHJ Superintendent Dr. Timothy Edsell said. Edsell said the clinic would be very beneficial for NHJ employees living near it. “It’s a great opportunity for our employees to come over here that live close to Martinsville and use the clinic, get access to all the different wellness tips and events. We’re excited to be this close and take use of it,” Edsell said. Dr. Mike Wilcox, superintendent of Richland-Bean Blossom, echoed Edsell in his assessment of the clinic and its potential to benefit school employees. “We’re from the same insurance trust and of course a lot of our folks live this way. This was a great opportunity to them to have the clinic closer. Where we’re at, that gives us the Spencer clinic, the Monroe clinic and now the Martinsville clinic. It serves our people that live this way really well,” Wilcox said. The Martinsville clinic isn’t the first instance of Activate partnering with schools. Lisa Arvesen, operations manager of the south region for Activate, said the Martinsville clinic was one of many. “We’ve got quite a good number of schools throughout the Activate footprint. Activate completely started out in Indiana, has about 30 clinics in the state of Indiana. We are now spreading out throughout the Midwest, west coast, as well as east coast,” Arvesen said. Arvesen said that the mission of Activate is to help the school employees take charge of their health by giving them adequate support and greater access to healthcare. “So many times we see that people don’t have access, they can’t get in to be seen, and so when you look at all of the planning and going back over a year ago, the sales process and see the clinic come to fruition such as this as well as seeing how some of the people have already participated and had a visit at the clinic,” Arvesen said. There are already several MSD of Martinsville employees with a sense of ownership in the clinic: the men who got it ready. Josh Thacker, Bob Thacker, Dave Johnson and Sam Arnes — members of the maintenance staff — helped transform a building on the property of John R. Wooden Middle School into a clinic. It was a process that took 12 weeks. The men worked eight-hour shifts on Saturdays and Sundays while putting in their normal hours five days a week at school. “It’s a lot of ownership in it, a lot of pride, just a lot of respect in what was created. On the build portion, too, these guys only worked weekends. So it was basically 12 weekends straight through, seven days a week. They worked the normal shift and then worked over the weekend to get it knocked out, so a lot happened,” Arnes said. The four men completely gutted the building, cut concrete out and did drain work. It helps that the four members of the maintenance staff had experience and the skills for that work. “A couple of these guys have experience building homes from a previous profession. So it really worked out. We had the skill level, the trades. Dave (Johnson’s) been here 42 years in the district, and he just knows everything about everything. So it was a good combination of work, staff and time to get it completed,” Arnes said. The Activate Health and Wellness Center, located in the former Food Service/Technology Building at 909 S. Main St., is open from 6:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays and 6 to 11 a.m. Fridays. It is closed Saturdays, Sundays and major holidays.

MARTINSVILLE Commencement exercises for Tabernacle Christian School took place Thursday evening for the 15 senior class members. Reminiscing and nostalgia were some of the major themes of the evening, whether in the addresses given by the student speakers or in the remarks of commencement speaker Pastor Bruce Burkett, who graduated from Tabernacle Christian School a decade prior. The ceremony began with the standard playing of composer Edward Elgar’s “Pomp and Circumstance.” Pastor Jesse vonBergen gave the opening invocation. “Lord, thank you so much for this school that you established here in Martinsville. Thank you for these 15 seniors, Lord for their lives and for their accomplishments and for their potential for the future,” vonBergen said. The choir, which included many of the graduating seniors, performed “You Are God.” Salutatorian Jared Schoolcraft was the first of ceremony’s student speakers. He thanked his classmates, the staff of the school and his parents for helping him along the way to graduation from high school. Schoolcraft’s address blended sincerity with good-natured ribbing. “Thank you, Ms. Alexander, for instilling in me a love of music. Thank you, my parents, for instilling in me my work ethic and my classmates for instilling in me patience,” Schoolcraft said. He reflected on notable moments in his final year of high school, such as one classmate dabbing after scoring a goal in soccer. Schoolcraft also mentioned a quote from a teacher which had stayed with him. “One quote that has always stuck in my mind is Mrs. Smith telling us, ‘The one thing we have failed to learn from history is to learn from history.’ One thing that I hope we all can do moving forward with our lives is to learn from our past mistakes as well as our past successes,” Schoolcraft said. This year’s class featured two valedictorians, Chloe Baughman and Charissa Alexander, both students having earned an identical GPA of 3.97. Baughman spoke first, beginning her remarks with a lighthearted nod to Mark Antony’s speech following the assassination of Julius Caeasar in the play of the same name. “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears…sorry, wrong speech,” Baughman said. Baughman used her time to thank her classmates, teachers and parents for all they had done. She mentioned a poem she had read in preparation for the speech which spoke of the end of high school, doing things like closing a locker for the last time and seeing classmates for the last time, but she also encouraged those in attendance to live boldly, to take chances and try new things. The Tabernacle Ambassadors performed “Always by Our Side” between valedictorian addresses. Alexander joked she wouldn’t let her speech go longer than an hour, eager as her classmates were for summer break. Alexander reflected on the past four years and what she had learned from teachers and classmates alike. She also drew from the test of faith the title figure undergoes in the Book of Job. “Job’s testimony is preserved for us today to be encouraged that whatever trials God has given you, he has a bigger purpose in mind. Whether a trial is something common to all high schoolers, like learning to deal with other personalities or struggling with algebra or the trial of something more personal, God has something great in mind,” Alexander said. Bruce Burkett, pastor at Lighthouse Baptist Church in Cortez, Colorado, gave the commencement speech. Burkett, a 2007 alumni of Tabernacle, drew partially on the Book of Ecclesiastes for his remarks. “To everything there is a season and a time to ever purpose under heaven, a time to be born, a time to die. A time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted and in verse 4 it says there’s a time to weep, a time to laugh, there’s a time for sorrow,” Burkett said. Burkett reflected on the decade in between his high school graduation and Thursday evening and offered advice to the graduates for how they might navigate the world beyond high school. “Perhaps you’ll be able to come back and you’ll still be serving the Lord, because as a senior in high school, you launch out into young adulthood, you make a decision, ‘As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,’” Burkett said. The graduates were given their diplomas following the commencement address and flipped the tassels on their mortarboards, then heard a benediction by pastor David Zempel, leaving to the strains of “Hymn to Joy,” a piece based on the melody of the fourth movement of Symphony No. 9, Beethoven’s final symphony, a composition written late in his career and life. It was a fitting capstone for the ceremony and for high school, a triumphant and optimistic way for the graduates to begin the next chapter of their lives.

MARTINSVILLE Charles L. Smith Elementary School will celebrate its transformation next year into a fine arts academy with the Fine Arts Frolic from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the school, 1359 E. Columbus St., Martinsville. The event will give parents, potential students and community members alike a peek into what the Fine Arts Academy has to offer. “We just want to invite the whole community, because we are so thrilled since the school board just last month said, ‘Okay, you’re good to go, you get to be a fine arts academy,’" Kari Palma, music teacher at Smith, said. "So we thought let’s have a fun day, kind of like a carnival, but instead of just focusing on games, let’s give it a fine arts focus. So we’ve got plenty of different things, with different kinds of art that the kids can participate in. We’ve got music, we’ve got dance, we’ve got games and community partners." Some of those community partners include Zumba by Heather Roberts, the Tom Fiddlery Band and actors from the Merry MAC theatre. The Art Sanctuary, Pam Hurst of the Sterling Butterfly, the Morgan County Farmers Market and Elite Dance Studios will have booths at the event. The community booths will be an opportunity for event attendees to get information about various art-related courses and activities they can participate in around Martinsville and Morgan County. “The Merry MAC players are coming and they’re going to have a stage set up so they’ll have some people performing but also encouraging students to put on outfits and performing with them,” Smith art teacher Chapin Schnick said. Schnick said there would be several opportunities for attendees to make art, including a mural and sidewalk chalk art, as well as a string art board. Additionally, there will be elements of a carnival including a bounce house, face painting and temporary tattoos, along with some games. “We’re going to play just some recreation games like cornhole, ladder golf, giant, Jenga and we’ll have a 2K duck dash," Smith physical education teacher Tammy Cheesman said. "Our principal (Kyle Stout) might show up in a duck costume. The first place boy and the first place girl will get a trophy and we’ll have a lot of little duck trophies that we’re going to give the first 25 who cross the finish line. So it’s a family fun run." The Smith PTO will have refreshments available for purchase including popcorn, nachos and sno-cones. Cheesman said it was a good chance for students interested in attending the school and their parents to check out the school and learn a little bit about what the fine arts academy has to offer. “We intentionally did it on a Saturday so that it would be accessible. It’s not just on a school night for our school,” Palma said. Schnick said students at Smith have an opportunity to act as ambassadors for the program because of their experience on Fine Arts Fridays. “This semester, since we’ve been piloting the fine arts academy, our students kind of already have an idea of how the arts integration will work, luckily they can kind of champion it with their families because they’re already aware through our Fine Arts Fridays and things that we’ve had throughout the year what we’re going to offer,” Schnick said. Palma said the fine arts integration was valuable because it made students want to come to school, such as the time this past year when students had recently learned about making mandalas, a diagram, chart or geometric pattern that represents the cosmos metaphysically or symbolically which often exhibit radial balance. “I had line them up against the wall, but they were slipping. ‘Just put them flat on the floor and then that way they can’t fall’ so I went to door ‘Bye, bye, have a great day!’ and the kids had (formed a mandala) with the guitars,” Palma said. Palma said it was a sign the students were invested and truly thinking about what they were learning while also being excited by it. “For us, the standard is if we are saying we wish we could have had this as kids, then we’re on the right track, that’s what we want,” Palma said. The Fine Arts Frolic will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday at Charles L. Smith Elementary School. The event is free to the public and will be held rain or shine.

MARTINSVILLE There were two themes on display in the Martinsville High School Auditorium Wednesday night during the all orchestra end of the year concert. Reading the cover of the program would make one immediately apparent: John Williams. The second and arguably more important theme was accomplishment. The hard work of the students was celebrated and awards for improvement, perseverance and hard work were given out. “It was the first year with Bell Intermediate Academy and John R. Wooden (Middle School), we’ve been able to have just sixth graders at one school and seventh and eighth graders at one school. So we took both the seventh and eighth grade to ISSMA competition this year,” orchestra director Jordan Korth said. “The seventh graders got gold in their division and the eighth grade orchestra you see in front of you got silver in their division. They went in the higher group than we’ve gone in the orchestra for a while and they only missed gold by about one and a half points.” Korth said the high school jazz orchestra group received gold at competition and for the first time in 20 years, the high school hosted a contest. The sixth grade orchestra began the evening with a medley of John Williams themes from a variety of films, including “Jurassic Park” and “Jaws.” String instruments have one of the most difficult learning curves and the fact that the sixth graders were able to play plucked string style required by pizzicato in “Peanut Butter and Celli” speaks volumes about their hard work and dedication to their instrument. The sixth grade ended with a piece titled “Sourwood Mountain.” The seventh grade orchestra continued the movie theme with a one-two punch of “Hanging Tree” from “The Hunger Games” and a medley of themes from the Harry Potter films. “Intensity” capped the seventh grade portion of the program. “Spy vs. Spy” was first on the list for the eighth grade orchestra. Roth said the piece had a Latin feel to it. The eighth grade played the most recent Williams piece on the program, “Rey’s Theme,” from “The Force Awakens.” The final piece, “Gypsy Tale,” featured what Korth described as three distinct characters he hoped the audience would pick up on. The Martinsville High School played a split set, both portions featuring Williams. The somber “Theme from Schindler’s List,” which features the inflection of Jewish folk song and melody was in the first half. The first set ended with “Wilds Gallop” and then it was time to hand out awards to orchestra members before the closing set, during which the orchestra was joined by brass and woodwind players. The final set began with “Promenade,” a reccuring theme from Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” The evening ended with the Indiana Jones theme from “The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” iIt was the familiar theme which has graced theaters since “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” but the addition of melodies and themes that suggested the South American setting of the most recent film. It was a night which really showcased the hard work the students and their director put in over the school year and something of which the performers could be truly proud.

MOORESVILLE Mooresville Christian Academy had its annual fundraising event on Saturday at Jones Crossing Banquet and Event Center. MCA had auctioned items off in prior years, but this year’s event added a new wrinkle: a sit down dinner and big-time guests. Former Cincinnati Reds Glenn Braggs and Tom Browning joined former Indianapolis Colts member Marlin Jackson and current member of the Indiana Pacers, Glenn Robinson III, at the fundraising event. Attendees of the event got a chance to interact with the athletes and in some cases, share a table with them. Rick Brewer, head of the school, prayed for the families attending the event and thanked the sponsors of the school and the athletes for attending the event. Prior to the live auction, guests had a chance to bid on items as part of a silent auction using their mobile phones. A variety of items were up for bidding in both the silent and live auction, including sports memorabilia, vacations and household goods. After the dessert portion of the meal, Glenn Braggs gave testimony about how his faith grew and he became a more devoted Christian. “I gotta tell you, I’m really excited about being here tonight because I don’t really get a chance to do this too often, get a chance to share my testimony,” Braggs said. “I do a lot of appearances for the Reds and I do those types of things. I’ll be honest with you, I don’t really like to do it that often, because it’s so personal for me.” Braggs discussed his childhood, being the 11th of 12 children and said though his family was poor monetarily speaking, they were rich in so many other ways. Braggs credited his parents for that. “My parents did an amazing job having us feel good about ourselves and just knowing the blessings that we had, the things that we had to be thankful for,” Braggs said. Braggs said he was raised in the church, but he didn’t live out his faith as an adult. “In my early years, I knew of God, but I didn’t really have a relationship with God,” Braggs said. “It’s kind of like how you all know me as Glenn Braggs, the former Red that made the catch in the 1990 World Series, or Tom Browning as the guy that pitched a perfect game. Marlin Jackson is the guy that made that incredible interception. You guys knows of us, but you don’t really know us like the way my family knows me or the way my close friends know me.” Braggs said he would act a certain way around his friends who were Christians that was different from the way he acted around his friends who were not. It wasn’t until he met his wife, Cindy Herron, that he became more active in his faith after seeing how she lived out hers. Braggs talked about how it was a matter of perspective, citing a time where he was in a slump and felt that more playing time would help with that. Braggs spoke of the importance of the three Ts — tithe, time and talent, or giving 10 percent of their blessings, giving adequate time to God and using their talents to help others — as a way for Christians to live out their faith. Following Braggs’ testimony, Browning and Jackson joined him on stage along with Rick Brewer, head of Mooresville Christian Academy, to answer questions from the audience. Robinson had to leave the event early for a standing weekly appointment with a child with leukemia at Riley Hospital for Children. Jackson told about how he was able to pick off Tom Brady by knowing the tendencies of Brady and from watching film of the San Diego Chargers/New England Patriots game from the week before. Browning jokingly asked Jackson if the ball was underinflated. Browning told the story of how he came to watch part of a Cubs/Reds game from a rooftop outside of Wrigley Field. After the question and answer session, the athletes returned to the crowd and took time to pose for photos with guests. Brewer thanked several people, including his son Ryan and Brett Crabtree, a former player of Brewers who helped him get in contact with the athletes. “This night could not have happened quite like it did if it wasn’t for Mr. Brett Crabtree. He really helped make a lot of connections with the former players, contacting their agents and getting all set up,” Brewer said. “Also, one of the guys that we actually brought in to understand social media, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I’m over 50, so social media is not necessarily at the top of my priorities. My son is kind of a social media guru, he is a singer and a performer so he would pop in every once in a while and all dreary eyed and say, ‘Here’s what you need to do to increase your impact by social media.’ That is my oldest son, his name is Ryan, he has been a tremendous help for us through this.” The auction raised several thousand dollars for Mooresville Christian Academy and judging by the response of those in attendance to the special guests, it would be well worth it to try a similar event next year. Brewer said he was already looking into getting guests, focusing on actors and actresses who are faith-based.

MARTINSVILLE American Legion Post 230 hosted a benefit Saturday for the family of Isaiah Hacker. Isaiah 2, was diagnosed with stage 4 hepatoblastoma on Feb. 6. He had been hospitalized since then, but was recently well enough to leave Riley Hospital for Children, and he was well enough Saturday to make an appearance at the fundraiser. The event was the brainchild of Rayna Bowman, a family friend. Activities during the fundraiser — which ran from noon to 11 p.m. Saturday — included a cornhole tournament and an all-day concert. The event was all-ages until 7 p.m., when the festivities moved indoors and the music continued. The outdoor portion of the event featured gorgeous weather with a nice breeze and a picturesque blue sky as a backdrop. Each picnic table was adorned with a jar featuring a picture of Isaiah to weigh down the tablecloth, preventing the breeze from catching hold and carrying it off. And then there were the green T-shirts. Guests at the event donned green T-shirts emblazoned with #IsaiahStrong on the front. On the back was a list of sponsors and other organizations that assisted with the fundraiser in a variety of ways. Debbie Ream, Isaiah’s aunt, was touched by the outpouring of support from the community. “I really appreciate it. I thank everyone for all their help, an overwhelming response,” Ream said. She said two nurses who took care of her during a battle with colon cancer stopped by to drop off a check for $500. “(Isaiah’s mother, Khristy Hacker-Snyder) needs the help, it’s been a long struggle. Isaiah’s been at Riley since Feb. 6. I’m really happy, I think we’ll have a larger crowd around 5,” Ream said. Things were slow early on during the event, but Ream expected more people to arrive after Little League wrapped up for the day. “A lot of them that are coming are at baseball. I think it’ll be more crowded later on. And after 7 p.m., no kids, I think it’ll be a big pickup then,” she said. Ream praised Bowman’s efforts to help out Isaiah and his family. “That Rayna Bowman has been wonderful. She pulled most of this together,” Ream said. Ream also was especially grateful to Shawn Gibson, who secured a donation from his employer, Indianapolis Power & Light. Gibson stopped by Saturday to drop off a check for $900. He said he felt it was necessary after meeting Isaiah and his family. “I met the family at another event and just felt like I should try to help them in any way I could. So I went to my company and the people who are building the new power plant on Blue Bluff (Road),” Gibson said. He said he thinks it is important to give back, especially for someone in as much need and as young as Isaiah. “I think that’s the way everybody looks at it,” Gibson said. Isaiah’s mother said the event was “very touching,” and she planned to be there all night. Hacker-Snyder said she was looking forward to seeing the people attending the event. “(I’m) looking forward to seeing everyone having a good time,” she said. Another chance to help Ream said she will be hosting a golf benefit for Isaiah at 2 p.m. June 17 at the Martinsville Country Club. Ream said food will be provided after the 18-hole golf tournament and there will be door prizes and other giveaways. Entrants also will receive a sleeve of golf balls. For more information about Isaiah Hacker or to make a donation toward his medical bills, visit gofundme.com/isaiah-lee.

MARTINSVILLE It took a week longer than expected due to inclement weather, but the Morgan County Farmers’ Market has returned to the Morgan County Courthouse square for a season full of fresh produce, handcrafted goods and tasty food items that can’t be found anywhere else. It was a gorgeous Saturday, the sun high in a blue sky dotted with clouds as fluffy and white as raw cotton. A light breeze played upon the scene and temperatures were in the low 60s, climbing as the morning went on and the market neared the end of its first Martinsville session of the season. In other words, conditions were ideal for a stroll past the booths. “So far today we have eight vendors, and we’ve had a steady crowd come through. Everyone seems to be really happy that the market’s back for the season. So we’re looking forward to it and just getting bigger,” said Danie Becknell, one of the volunteers at the market. Though the number of vendors was small and the produce limited — Gray’s Plants and Produce had fresh kale, arugula, red leaf lettuce and onions available — more will arrive as the weather warms and more and more fresh, local produce is available. “We don’t tend to get produce until the end of June, beginning of July, so when that starts coming in, we get a lot more vendors with produce and a lot more customers,” Becknell said. Saturday marked the second year of Copper Valley Farms selling their foodstuffs in Martinsville. Stephanie Wilkins was selling root beer bread, breakfast cookies and cinnamon rolls. Wilkins echoed Becknell in her assessment of the market so far. “Beginning of the year, we’re doing pretty well. It always ramps up as more produce starts popping in. It seems to be going all right so far this year,” Wilkins said. Wilkins said her favorite part of having a booth at the farmers’ market is the experiences she has talking to people. “Interacting with people is nice and it’s fun when they like the things that I make,” she said. Some of them become regulars and come back frequently to see if Wilkins has any of their favorites up for sale. “I do have people that come and ask for specific things, because I don’t have everything every week, but I do have people that do want their breakfast cookies or their root beer bread,” Wilkins said. She said if people are interested in purchasing items, they can contact her through social media. “We do have a Facebook page, Copper Valley Farms, and if somebody messages me on there, we can work something out.” Marketing Mooresville This week was the second week of operation for the farmers’ market in Mooresville, also part of the Morgan County Farmers’ Market Association. The weather permitted vendors to set up shop on May 2, and though conditions weren’t exactly pleasant, turnout wasn’t bad, considering the weather, according to Teresa McClelland of My Felicity Creations. “It was very cold that day and windy. It was OK but it was better than we expected,” she said. McClelland said she hopes to promote the market more, as it seems not many people are aware of the existence of it. She said she hopes that by the end of the season, more people will know of the market. “Like, in Monrovia, they don’t know we have one and that’s close, all of Morgan County, Marion County and everywhere. We just want to get more knowledge out there of what we’re doing,” McClelland said. She said she expects a greater turnout when more produce is available. “We’ll have a lot more produce as soon as the weather gets warmer,” McClelland said. If you go The Morgan County Farmers’ Market is held from 3 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays at Mooresville Friends Church, 50 N. Monroe St., Mooresville, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays on the Morgan County Courthouse square in Martinsville. For more information, visit the Morgan County Farmers’ Market Facebook page.

MORGAN COUNTY The Nutrition Outdoor Activity and Health Network Program is a new endeavor aimed at improving the health of residents of Morgan County, starting with students residing in the county in grades seven through 12. The program will encourage healthy eating habits and the importance of an active lifestyle by introducing students to different physical activities such as canoeing, hiking and climbing. Participants will also receive guidance in proper nutrition and learn how to make healthy meals. “We hope for it to become a county-wide program, that’s our end goal. If it’s successful, we’ll be able to offer it in the future to anybody in the county that’s in need or would like to do it,” director of Bradford Woods Shay Dawson said. The program is a collaborative effort involving the Indiana University School of Public Health, the Kendrick Foundation and the Community Foundation of Morgan County. The 2016 America’s Health Rankings Annual Report ranked Indiana the 39 healthiest state. Morgan County ranked 41 out of 92 counties in the Robert Wood Foundation’s 2017 ranking of Indiana counties. “Bradford Woods is part of the School of Public Health at Indiana University and it’s kind of an issue that we know is a need. There are not as many physical education classes that are offered. We know it’s a need in not only Morgan County, but also most counties throughout the state and really most rural counties in the United States,” Dawson said. Dawson said that the Kendrick Foundation focuses on funding programs that address health issues in Morgan County and Bradford Woods was a good fit because of the outdoor center’s history of working with children. “We’ve been serving kids for over 60 years, so we’ve partnered with the Morgan County folks, Martinsville elementary schools since 1957. It just seemed like a really good fit for the county,” Dawson said. There is space for a total of 20 participants in the program. Dawson said that there were currently seven students interested in the program. Priority will be given to those with the highest BMI or highest risk for diabetes and those with the greatest socioeconomic need. Those not chosen for the program will be given resources for physical fitness and nutrition. The N.O.A.H. Network program includes one week at Bradford Woods from June 25 to June 30. It falls during the first session of the Environmental Explorers Camp. While N.O.A.H. campers will get a taste of the traditional camp experience, their program will differ slightly from that of the Environmental Explorers Camp. “We’ll make sure there’s a lot of fun physical activity during the day and we will be cooking some of our own meals during camp, which will be a little bit different than some of the other camps. We’ll still be in the dining hall for a lot of them, but we’ll have the ability to introduce some really healthy, good meals,” Dawson said. “But that week should just be a blast, to be able to work on these physical activities and introduce new ways. You don’t have to just get on a treadmill or lift weights. There’s ways you can hike in Morgan-Monroe State Forest or go kayaking or go climbing and canoeing and do that is a group.” Participants will get a chance to experience Bradford Woods with their family from July 7 through 9. The group will stay together for weekly meetings from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays from Aug. 1 through May 22, 2018. Dawson said he hopes the program will be a way for students to make new friends and that they will support each other during the nearly year-long journey. “The kids get to come back every Tuesday throughout the Fall and the Spring to take part in fun activities, physical activities through the fun and engaging recreational pursuits here like climbing, canoeing, hiking and cooking our kitchen. We’ll have some fun cooking challenges, you can imagine like Chopped and some of those types of things. We’re going to try to do that with healthy food. So it should be really fun,” Dawson said. Dawson said that by the end, he hopes campers have found 10 to 15 healthy dishes that they can cook and enjoy. They’ll learn how to budget and make healthy choices when shopping for themselves. Along with the week of camp, the family weekend and the weekly meetings, participants in the camp will receive a free FitBit, a $200 Kroger gift card, a $200 gas card and a pass to the YMCA and Youth Development Center. “It’s a one-year grant, but we have enough funding for 20 scholarships. As soon as those are done, we’ll look at if the program works. We’re gonna get feedback from everybody. We’ll change the program based on feedback from the clients. Keep things they want, if they want to add things, we’ll add it,” Dawson said. “And the reason it’s free is we want to be able to refine the program so we can get it ready for the county, so it can go county-wide and be more widely available as an ongoing thing where people really enjoy it.” Contact Tommy Means at 765-349-5109 or at wtmeans@indiana.edu for questions about the N.O.A.H. Network Program. Visit bradwoods.org for more information.

MARTINSVILLE Rustic Gatherings is a new enterprise from the Leonard family in Martinsville which will host weddings in a barn on their property. The venture came about from the enjoyment the family experienced last summer hosting weddings for family friends. “We had a few weddings last summer for friends and family and it was really fun helping them out to get things ready for their wedding and we liked seeing how they could transform the barn into their own personality, their unique style. It was just nice to see the transformation from one wedding to another and it was a good time. So we thought this might be something we might like to do and be a part of,” Cheryl Leonard said. Cheryl said the process for getting the barn ready to host weddings was fairly smooth though there were a couple hiccups understanding the regulations required by the state. “Other than the safety issues, adding additional staircases, it's really not been too bad. We did hire an engineer and an architect and a consultant to work with the state. It was kind of challenging understanding what the state needed,” Cheryl said. She said they had initially planned to handle on their own renovations, but had hired an architect, engineer and consultant to make sure everything was up to code and to help transform the building from agricultural to commercial usage. While the Leonards work on the the barn wedding business, they are also still in the business of farming, which can lead to a lengthy work day. “Long days, but it's all enjoyable. The farming is great and we love to farm and this is exciting,” Cheryl said. According to Dean Leonard, they grow corn and soybean, as well raise around 50 head of Black Angus cattle a year. “We farm about 1,500 acres with the family and it works out,” Dean said. The Leonards consist of Cheryl and Dean and their three children, Cody, 2; Tony, 14; and Autumn, who is married to Duke Jones. Together the couple have two children, Deegan, 6, and Lyla, 2. When it comes to the corn and soybean crops, Dean said they were mostly used in feed. “We take most of it to the local feed mill and it's used for feed and a number of things,” Dean said. Cheryl said the couple hadn’t had a chance to visit other barn wedding sites, but had priced their venue competitively with others. “We tried to keep our prices down so we're more affordable for smaller weddings,” Cheryl said, adding it was a deliberate choice as they wanted to make a barn wedding affordable to those interested. “I wouldn't have wanted to spend a lot of money. For our own wedding we chose a barn wedding. So I wanted to keep it affordable for people like us,” Cheryl said. Dean said the couple just enjoyed the experience of hosting nuptials. The goals for the first year of the business were modest. Cheryl said they hoped to have 10 or 11 events by the end of the year. The venue currently has several weddings scheduled, the first of which is set for July with several more to follow in September and October. “We love new beginnings, so it's nice to be part of the weddings and someone's new beginnings as a married couple and for their special day,” Cheryl said. Rustic Gatherings is located at 1776 Mahalasville Road, Martinsville. For more information, visit rustic-gatherings.com or call Cheryl at 765-318-5820.