Marshall County Council Approves Appropriation for Public Defenders

The Marshall County Council approved an additional appropriation for Marshall County Superior Court No 2. for pauper counsel.

Judge Dean Colvin explained that the shortfall in the budget is due to a contract with the public defenders.

“In regards to the contract that we have with our current public defenders and the request we made in 2013 to cover 2014 expenses in the additional increase in pay that we provided when we reorganized in the public defenders fund, we have now come to a point where we are in a shortfall. It’s primarily due to that new contract.”

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Lighthouse Autism Center Still Considering Marshall County Expansion

Officials with a Mishawaka-based Autism treatment center say there is definitely a need for a facility like theirs in Marshall County. Lighthouse Autism Center co-founder and Controller Sandy Maggioli says their open house last week drew a lot of people who are passionate about the issue.

A physician who sees children with autism, community leaders, parents and grandparents were among the 50 or so people in attendance. Maggioli says she wants to hear from families in Marshall and surrounding counties whose youngsters could benefit from the intensive, one-on-one Applied Behavior Analysis treatment Lighthouse Autism Center offers.

“We probably already have five or six families that are driving to Mishawaka and Warsaw that would be interested in attending the centers. If we can find five to six more, it would probably be worth our while then to open a center in that area,” Maggioli said.

“I think there are still quite a few people out there waiting to be heard from, so we want to give that some time to kind of get out there in the community and get some response. We’re probably thinking maybe in three to four weeks that we might have an idea then come back and take a look at the spaces that are available in Plymouth. We’ll try to make a decision at that point,” Maggioli added.

Find more information about Lighthouse Autism Center online at http://lighthouseautismcenter.com/.

United Way of Marshall County Blitz Week

The United Way of Marshall County has a busy week planned. Volunteers will be visiting businesses in the community to distribute information about United Way. They will be in Bremen on Wednesday and in Plymouth on Friday.

The volunteers will be accepting contributions from businesses to go towards the community. United Way of Marshall County Executive Director Linda Yoder says these visits show businesses how United Way can help.

“What we’re doing again is at the very core. We are providing support for agencies all across the county that are providing social services,” said Yoder.

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