St. John’s High School will present “Once Upon a Mattress” at 7:30 p.m. today and Friday in the Robert A. Arnzen gymnasium. Tickets are available by calling 419-692-5371. General admission tickets and reserved seating are available both nights. Above is the cast. “Once Upon a mattress” is based on the story “The Princess and the Pea” by Hans Christian Andersen. The book was written by Jay Thompson, Marshall Barer and Dean Fuller with music by Mary Rodgers and lyrics by Marshall Barer. In this story, a love-sick nobleman seeking to marry his sweetheart does his best to find his ruling prince a suitable bride so that he himself may wed. No one in Prince Dauntless’s kingdom is permitted to marry until the prince himself exchanges vows — a problem hindered by the fact that the prince’s overprotective mother, Queen Aggravain, has thus far thwarted all efforts to marry her son. This does not sit well with the honorable Sir Harry, a man whose heart longs to wed the fair Lady Larken, and after a long and arduous journey specifically designed to find the prince a bride, Sir Harry returns to his kingdom to present Princess Winnifred of the swamps. Immediately stricken by the princess, Prince Dauntless sets into motion plans for a lavish wedding as his scheming mother cooks up a test that’s sure to send his marital plans awry. The St. John’s production features a cast of 30 students grades 8-12. The musical is directed by Susie Slawinski, St. John’s choir director.

OTTAWA COUNTY — On Wednesday, the annual Area I Envirothon was held in Ottawa County. Fifty-nine teams competed in the day-long event which involves tests in the five areas of aquatics, forestry, wildlife, soils, and current environmental issues. This year’s theme was “Grasslands and Range Management.”

The top four teams out of each of the five area competitions qualify for State Competition held in June. At the state competition, the same five areas of testing are included, as well as a presentation by the teams on the current environmental issue, this year dealing with grazing and grassland issues.

Team 1 from Fort Jennings qualified for state by finishing first out of the 59 teams. Team 2 from Fort Jennings finished fourth. This is the 16th consecutive year Fort Jennings has qualified for state competition.

The state event will be held at Deer Creek State Park on June 10-11.

One Year Ago
An unexpected find by a Putnam County trapper will have a permanent home. Monday evening, the Putnam County Historical Society was given a rare river otter Ryan Brinkman caught in western Putnam County in December. Since local residents are not allowed to trap river otters, it was suggested the accidental find be presented to the Historical Society so everyone would have a chance to view the otter.

25 Years Ago – 1988
Jefferson music department will present its annual spring concert Friday in the Middle School auditorium. The high school choir will present a collection of songs from the 1900s ragtime to 1940s swing called “Nickelodeon.” The show includes soloists Melissa Bowers, Heather Barnes, Audra Cano, Lisa Sherrick, Mark Downey, Shane Lear and Lee Plescher.

Delphos Area Chamber of Commerce held its fifth annual dinner-dance benefit Saturday evening at St. John’s Annex with 130 people attending. Mel Westrich, master of ceremonies, announced the following new members for the year: A & J Woodworking, Country Hutch, Topp Chalet, Paper Town, Aero Printing, Knippen Truck & Auto, Line-Up Restaurant, Ron Spencer Real Estate and Tri-County Tree Service.

The Van Wert SWCD wants to remind you that each of us has a connection to natural resources. The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) is celebrating the 58th year of Stewardship week April 28 – May 5. The 2013 Stewardship Week is themed, “Where does your water shed?”

Gary Weck acts as the Chairman for Van Wert SWCD. The District was formed to assist people in Van Wert County with the protection and conservation of natural resources for all residents by providing technical, educational, and financial assistance. During Stewardship Week, Van Wert SWCD will provide each 4th grade student with a red bud seedling to plant at home and a presentation will be given on the benefits of trees, also placemats will be distributed to area restaurants with the theme of

“Where does your water shed?”.

Clean water is important to everyone, “says National Association of Conservation Districts President Earl Garber.” “Watersheds come in all shapes and sizes. They cross county, state and national boundaries. Every inch of the land on planet Earth is part of a watershed. In the continental U.S., there are 2,100 watersheds; if we include Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico, the count rises to 2,267. No matter where you are right now, you are in a watershed.”

Less than 1-percent of all of the water on our planet is fresh water. The average citizen in the United States uses 70 gallons of water every day; and this does not include the water it takes to manufacture the automobiles, clothing, and food we depend on each and every day. Take time to learn about your local community water supply sources, and volunteer for river, stream or beach clean-up days. You can make a difference.

To find out more about your  local  watershed, including an app for your computer and smart phone, visit: www.epa.gov/mywaterway.

The Van Wert Soil and Water Conservation District will hold a Pond Clinic at 6:30 p.m. on May 21 at the Karen Jean Myers pond at 9835 Richey Road, Van Wert.
The clinic will feature presentations on pond construction, stocking the pond, liability of a pond, and aquatic vegetation management.

The clinic is free of charge and is open to the public. It will be held weather permitting. Contact the Van Wert SWCD at 238-9591 if the weather is questionable. Participants are encouraged to bring a lawn chair. Refreshments will be provided by the SWCD.

Directions to the clinic are from Van Wert: take State Route 224 west to Richey Road, turn north and go 0.7 miles. House and pond on the east side of the road. Signs will be posted.