On Thursday morning, a nervous, shivering, but excited Kaitlyn Schultz drove to school for the very first time. However, the 16-year-old sophomore at Central Montcalm High School did so traveling not more than 15 miles an hour with a freezing wind in her face, all while sitting atop her late great-grandfather’s crank-engine farm tractor from the 1930s.

About 60 percent of your body is water, Your brain is 70 percent water, your lungs 90 percent. Every day, you must replace about 2.4 liters of water through drinking and the foods you eat. That’s something residents of Stanton can do with a little more confidence now, thanks to a host of recent improvements to the water system there.

With the general election right around the corner on Nov. 6, state legislators used Monday’s one-hour Legislative Luncheon at Montcalm Community College to update and inform those in attendance on six ballot proposals that voters will decide.

A body was located inside a building after a barn fire early this morning just south of the village of Sheridan. The Sheridan Community Fire Department responded to the fire at 2:34 a.m. to 6681 S. Sheridan Road (M-66) north of Sessions Road.

Welding students at the Montcalm Area Career Center (MACC) are settling into a new room remodeled to provide a safer atmosphere for the students. The Montcalm Area Intermediate School District (MAISD) Board of Education moved the location of their meeting Wednesday to be held at the MACC to take a tour of the new welding room.

The Montcalm County Law Enforcement & Courts Committee meeting was all about animals on Tuesday. An animal return policy, a kennel ordinance, an exotic species ordinance and the dog census were among the topics of discussion.

The general store at Heritage Village lodges the post office and, just like in days of old, is a place where children flock to buy their penny candy and homemade pickles from a crock. The store, located near Montcalm Community College, has a menagerie of historical artifacts on display and is one of 26 restored buildings in the quaint Heritage Village that aims to preserve the past.

MCC Create! has kicked off for its first event at Montcalm Community College. “MCC Create! is a campus-wide art competition, inspired by ArtPrize in Grand Rapids,” said Gary Hauck, dean of instruction and faculty at MCC. “All students, instructors, staff members and alumni were invited to enter works of art — both two-dimensional and three-dimensional.”

A four-month summer hiatus of monthly legislative luncheon meetings came to an end Monday as many curious minds gathered at Montcalm Community College to listen to what local legislators have been up to since last informing the public in May. Sen. Judy Emmons, R-Sheridan, and Rep. Rick Outman, R-Six Lakes, took some time to update a crowd of more than 30 people on recent endeavors in Lansing, providing details on bills and other information relevant to District 70.

Montcalm County is now home to five new medication drop-off box locations. The fifth box was unveiled Monday in the lobby of the Montcalm County Sheriff’s Office in Stanton. Additional locations include police departments in Carson City, Greenville, Howard City and Lakeview.