The Columbus Fire Department welcomed two firefighters to the department after they were sworn in by Mayor Jim Lienhoop during

Tuesday morning’s Board of Public Works and Safety meeting at City Hall. Capt. Mike Wilson, CFD spokesman, says the new firefighters were hired to fill vacancies left by the recent retirement of Lieutenant Tony Shipley and Firefighter Doug Harrison, who, collectively, had 52 years of service.

Capt. Wilson says that Mayor Lienhoop swore-in 25-year-old Eric Brown and 27-year-old Derrick Chitwood. He says that Brown is a resident of Hope and a 2010 Graduate of Columbus North High School. Mr. Brown is a 2014 graduate of the University of Southern Indiana where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Care Administration. Brown is also a member of the Indiana National Guard, where he has served since 2012.

Chitwood is a Columbus resident and a 2008 graduate of Liberty County High School in Bristol, Florida. Wilson explains that Chitwood is a certified Paramedic and Rope Rescue Technician. He is also employed with the Columbus Regional Health Ambulance Service where he has served since 2012. Chitwood has 4 years of fire service experience as a volunteer firefighter with the Columbus Township Fire Department.

Wilson says that both firefighters will undergo a department orientation and training program before receiving their shift and station assignments.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is asking for your help locating this week’s most-wanted fugitive.

Judy Jackson, department spokeswoman, says that detectives are looking for 34-year-old Jessi Elizabeth Baldwin. She is described as a white female, 5’4″ tall and weighing 156 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. Authorities say that Baldwin also has multiple tattoos. She is wanted on a warrant for Failure to Appear.

If you have any information on Baldwin’s whereabouts, you are asked to contact Capt. Dave Steinkoenig at (812) 565-5940. You may also call the Sheriff’s Department Tip Line at (812) 379-1712 or send an email to: sheriff@bartholomew.in.gov. Authorities stress that information and tips can be left anonymously.

The Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund is in desperate need of gently used toys.

The Cheer Fund is boxing up toys for delivery and has found some holes in their inventory. Specifically, the firefighters are looking for people to donate toys for girls and boys, ages 8 to 12. Toys can be dropped off at any city fire station or at the United Way building on 13th Street, just behind the Bartholomew Consolidated School headquarters building and across the street from Sans Souci.

The firefighters are still boxing up packages for delivery and looking for volunteers to help with that. You can volunteer tomorrow or Friday nights with boxing starting at 6 in the evening. That’s also at the United Way building.

The Cheer Fund is Bartholomew County’s oldest charity and provides Christmas presents and food to about 1,500 children during the holidays.

The town of Hope and its volunteer fire department have had a rough relationship in recent years.

Firefighters approached the council looking for about a 5 percent increase in department funding last night, but Town Council members decided to hold the line for next year.

The firefighters were looking to increase their contract to $80,000 a year, citing increased utilities and the department’s share of a matching grant to fund a new fire truck.

That was on top of a 10 percent increase last year. Fire Chief Randy Wood said the fire department barely made it through this year, as it tries to complete construction on a new fire station, while still operating the old fire station off of the Town Square.

Council President Clyde Compton said he would not support the runaway growth of the department’s funding.

Councilman Ohmer Miller said he has been a proponent of the department, but he also has pressed them to do more fundraisers. Those requests largely fell on deaf ears, Miller said.

Council members agreed to no more than a 2 percent increase, voting 4-1 to send the proposed contract back to the firefighters. Councilman Jonathan Titus said he calculated that a two percent increase would be $77,594 a year.

Councilman Greg Sims voted against the measure. He said he did not want to see any increase to the firefighter’s contract.

The town of Hope will be kicking off a new holiday tradition next month. The Heritage of Hope organization plans to install a computerized light show  synchronized to music at the bandstand on the Hope Town Square.

The not-for-profit group is putting up the initial money to put up the lights, controller and computer programs to operate the lights but will be looking for sponsors interested in helping out. The hope is that more people will want to come to the town to eat dinner or go shopping after watching the lights display. Organizers hope the nightly displays will begin Dec. 1st.

The Hope Town Council agreed to the use of the bandstand at its meeting last night.

The city of Columbus is planning changes to three of the city’s bus routes and wants your opinion.

The will be holding an open house tomorrow to show off the changes to the city’s bus routes. The ColumBUS route changes will be on routes 1, 2 and 3 and city officials say that the changes will help capture new commercial and service business locations, as well as address concerns over passenger safety and bus route timeliness. The open house will be from 8 to 4 tomorrow at the city’s transit office, which is across the parking lot from Mill Race Center on Lindsey Street.

A public meeting to get your thoughts on the routes will be held at 10 a.m. Friday in the council chambers at Columbus City Hall.

You can also call to leave comments at 812-376-2506 or email transit coordinator Cindy Setser at csetser@columbus.in.gov.

Representatives from Rightway Fasteners are slated to appear before the Columbus City Council Tuesday night.

Robin Hilber, with the Office of Community Development, says that the company will ask for $3.9 million in tax abatements for new equipment that will create six new jobs. She says that the equipment is to replace a zinc-plating line that has grown obsolete. Hilber adds that the company believes this new equipment may help to grow an additional 15 jobs over the next three years.

Hilber says that Rightway Fasteners is a success story that Columbus likes to see. She noted that when the company first arrived 25 years ago, they had approximately 15 employees. Now the company employs some 300.

The City Council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday at city hall.

A Columbus School Resource Officer was recently selected to represent East Central Indiana as an Indiana School Resource Officer Regional Representative.

Lt. Matt Harris, Columbus Police Department spokesman, says that Officer Julie Quesenbery, an 11-year veteran of the department, will assume this duty in January. CPD says that Quesenbery will be responsible for sharing information about school trends with the 50 officers in her district, as well as help with officer training.

Columbus Chief of Police Jon Rohde stated, “Officer Quesenbery’s selection to represent the area resource officers is a testament to her hard work and dedication to the youth of our community, and reflects the quality of officers we have on our department.” Larry Perkinson, Student Services Director for the Bartholomew County Consolidated School Corporation added, “BCSC is proud of all the effort of our school resource officers. We think they are the best in the nation.” He called Quesenbery’s selection “well deserved.”

Gov.Mike Pence says he will complete his term as Indiana Governor before heading to Washington to become vice president.

Pence’s term expires 11 days before he’s sworn in as Donald Trump’s vice president, but there had been speculation that job might call him away earlier, especially since Lieutenant Governor Eric Holcomb will succeed him either way. Network Indiana is reporting that Pence says he’ll be traveling to New York and Washington a lot, but says he will not resign early. Pence says he plans to “finish strong,” and leave a strong fiscal foundation for Holcomb to build on.

Pence and Holcomb met briefly with reporters after a closed-door Cabinet meeting. The Vice President-Elect borrowed Holcomb’s slogan in praising him as a governor with the vision to take Indiana to the next level.

Columbus police raided an underage drinking party on Friday night, arresting 9 juveniles and four adults.

Police were called to a home in the 3700 block of West Suburban Court at about 10:15 Friday night after a noise complaint was made about the party.

At the home, officers found several underage people drinking in a garage and in the basement. Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus Police Department reports that officers arrested nine teens ranging from 14 to 17 years old and they were taken to the Bartholomew County Youth Services Center.

Four 18-year-olds adults were also arrested including Benito Araujo of Seymour; Sarah Patrick, Elizabeth A. Ortega and Kennedy Staggs, all of Columbus. The adults were taken to the Bartholomew County Jail.