A record number of Hoosiers are in the hospital due to COVID-19. As of noon on Sunday, over 34-hundred patients were in Indiana hospitals with the virus. Of those, 968 were in the ICU. That is 17 more intensive care unit patients than the day before, and more than any other time during the pandemic.

Bartholomew County had 51 people hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Sunday, according to the Columbus and Bartholomew County COVID-19 Community Task Force. That is down slightly from the high of 55 that was hit on Nov. 22nd.

The Indiana State Department of Health announced 5,713 new cases yesterday and 38 more deaths from the disease. Those deaths happened between November 24th and 29th. The seven-day all-test positivity rate in Indiana is 10.8 percent.

Bartholomew County is one of the most giving counties in the state, according to a recent study.

Financial technology company Smart Asset uses IRS data to look at which communities were the most generous. Specifically, they looked at the percentage of people in a county make charitable donations and at how much of their income they give to charity.

Bartholomew County ranked 10th in Indiana, according to the company. Just over 5 and a half percent of the county’s population had itemized charitable contributions and residents gave 1.21 percent of their income to charity. The study shows that Hamilton County saw more than 14 percent of its population making donations, giving it the top spot on the list. And Boone County gave 2.29 percent of its income to charity, putting it at second on the list.

You can get more information at smartasset.com

On this Giving Tuesday, Heritage Fund: The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County is encouraging you to donate to the ongoing Love Where You Live campaign. Organizers hope to raise $150,000 that will be invested for the long-term benefit of the community.

Tracy Souza, Heritage Fund’s president and CEO, said the campaign not only celebrates the many ways that Bartholomew County is a special place but also helps ensure that those thing that make it special will continue long into the future.

Community members who make a donation to the campaign will receive a decal featuring the 2020 Love Where You Live logo design. It was created by Jenni Kiesler of Keywords Company who specializes in custom typography, and chalk art.

Donations can be made by mail to Heritage Fund at 538 Franklin St. in Columbus or online. You can get more information at heritagefundbc.org.

Bartholomew County is making plans for when the health department eventually receives the COVID-19 vaccine. The County Commissioners yesterday morning approved the purchase of a new, super-cold freezer for vaccine storage.

Amanda Organist with the health department said that the department is trying to prepare for when it receives the community’s COVID-19 vaccines, which are expected early next year. No actual timeline has yet been established on when the vaccines will start being available. As things stand, she said the department does not have a big enough freezer for all the doses needed for the community, nor one that will keep the vaccine cold enough. She said estimates are that the second wave of vaccines will need to be kept at 15 to 30 degrees below zero.

Commissioners approved the purchase of the freezer from Noblesville based Helmer Scientific for just over $14,000, the only bidder for the contract. The cost of the freezer is expected to be reimbursed from CARES Act funding, Organist said.

Columbus Regional Health will be one of the first locations in Indiana to receive the COVID-19 vaccines  allotted for some front-line health care workers.

Exact details are not yet available, but hospital officials said that CRH will be a vaccination site for a four-county region during the first phase of the vaccine roll-out. The first phase will be targeted at a very specific group of people in the health care industry.

Police say a Columbus man crashed a stolen truck into an apartment early on Thanksgiving morning.

Columbus police officers were called to the crash in the 1500 block of 27th Place at 3:07 Thursday morning and found the truck had plowed through the wall of a vacant apartment all the way to its tailgate, causing a gas leak and a fire.

Authorities found 29-year-old Zachary D. Perry stumbling about in the area. Officers determined that the truck had been stolen from one of Perry’s family members.

He was arrested on preliminary charges of auto theft, leaving the scene of a property damage crash and operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Police Department

Bartholomew and surrounding counties all remain in the orange, or serious spread category, on the Indiana State Department of Health’s color-coded COVID-19 map.

As of Sunday’s numbers, Bartholomew County has 65 new cases and a 7-day positivity rate of 10.8 percent. In other area counties, Decatur had 15 new cases, Jennings 46, Jackson 49, Brown 4, Johnson 106 and Shelby County 49. Shelby County had two new reported deaths, and Johnson County had one. The most recent death in Bartholomew County was on Thanksgiving Day, bringing the county total to 65.

Indiana added 4,335 new cases yesterday and 24 more deaths, for a state total of 5,418 deaths. The seven-day all-test positivity rate in Indiana is just under 11 percent.

Indiana State Police troopers were recognized recently for their work saving lives in our area.

Sgt. Stephen Wheeles was awarded a Bronze Star for rescuing a driver from a sinking car after a crash last November on State Road 11 in Jackson County, Indiana. Witnesses reported a car had driven off of the road into the water and the female driver was trapped inside the sinking car. Wheeles entered the water and broke the back window of the car, cutting his hand and arm . Both the driver and Wheeles were treated and released at Schneck Medical Center in Seymour.

Three troopers received Lifesaving Awards for saving a driver trapped inside a burning truck off of U.S. 31 in southern Bartholomew County in April 2019. Sgt. Bryce Harris, Senior Trooper Brent Lykins, and Trooper Robert Jonas responded to a two-vehicle crash where one of the drivers was entrapped. Harris and Bartholomew County Deputy Andrew Whipker worked to control the fire while Lykins and Jonas pulled the driver through the back window of the truck.

The 2019 “Trooper of the District” for the Versailles District was awarded to Senior Trooper Matthew Holley. Holley leads the Indiana State Police-Area IV Crash Reconstruction Team.

While online retailers are trying to get you to spend money today on Cyber Monday, not for profit groups are looking for your help tomorrow for Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday is organized to encourage folks to give back in ways both big and little in an effort to transform their communities and the world for the better.

The United Way of Bartholomew County is asking for you to consider donating to its Holiday Assistance Fund tomorrow to help ensure that all children in the community have gifts to open on Christmas. Their goal is to raise $5,000 tomorrow, so the community can spend about $75 on each child in need.

With the pandemic, the need is expected to be greater than ever this year.

You can donate by going to uwbarthco.org and clicking on Donate Here.