By HOLLY GASKILL, MARK
MILLER & RYAN WALKER
There were quite a few notable stories in Wells County this year — many of which followed contention between both elected and appointed boards and elected officials.
Perhaps the best representation of which is the ongoing issue of Jefferson Township fire protection, which topped the News-Banner’s editorial staff’s annual review of the year’s most significant stories. To determine this ranking, staff reviewed all 2024 editions, compiling a list of significant moments and stories that marked the year and impacted the community.
A mere four votes separated the five top stories and two stories tied for fourth.
The following are summaries of the top 10 stories, as determined by the News-Banner’s editorial staff.
1. Jefferson Township fire protection.
For nearly eight months, the advisory board for Jefferson Township feuded among themselves, and with the town of Ossian and the Ossian Volunteer Fire Department about future fire protection.
The parties differed on the division of costs, who would cover which expenses, how it would be billed, and, ultimately, a 2025 fire protection agreement. The often emotionally-charged discussions were accompanied by large audiences interjecting with their own frustrations.
On one such occasion, township board member Tim Baker walked out of the meeting. Several months later, a police officer repeatedly intervened to remind the board members to “act like men” after the discussion devolved into screaming.
A 2025 agreement was ultimately approved on Oct. 22 — but not without its own snags.
The approved agreement included a township fire department budget. However, on Oct. 28, the township board members approved a different budget for the fire department, with Baker saying the township needed to prepare if the town of Ossian did not adopt the fire agreement.
In December, Baker alleged misconduct because township trustee Larry Heckber submitted the earlier approved version of the budget to the Department of Local Government Finance.
Additionally, Baker and fellow board member David Haiflich have continued to discuss the agreement as a temporary placement — possibly until the township can begin a separate fire department.
2. Anthony Castleman sentenced.
Anthony Castleman was sentenced to 85 years in prison for first-degree murder and a habitual offender charge on Nov. 12 — the first anniversary of when the body of Bernice “Dianna” Eubank’s body was found outside her rural Markle home.
Castleman was Eubank’s grandson and lived with her at the time of the murder. A warrant for his arrest was issued on Nov. 13, 2023, and he was located over a month later in Rochelle, Georgia.
Castleman was eventually extradited to Huntington County in February 2024, and a five-day trial followed in October.
The prosecution called 26 witnesses, including Castleman’s family members, crime scene investigators and forensic experts. The defense called several witnesses, most notably Castleman.
In his testimony, Castleman claimed the murder had been ill-timed with his impromptu “spiritual retreat.” Castleman was grilled by Huntington County Prosecutor Jeremy Nix, particularly about the presence of Castleman’s DNA at the crime scene and sperm DNA in and on the body.
Castleman denied any involvement and repeatedly claimed he had been framed. “I’m a piece of (expletive), I’m not going to lie. But I’m not a murderer,” he said on the stand.
The jury found Castleman guilty after less than 30 minutes of deliberation. They then heard additional evidence for the habitual offender charge and found Castleman guilty in just nine minutes.
Special Judge Samuel Conrad issued the maximum sentence for both charges, calling the brutal murder a “shocking and heinous crime.”
3. Solar Energy.
A zoning petition from Paddlefish Solar triggered a countywide debate over farmland use.
The company has secured leases for approximately 3,000 acres in southern Wells County, as well as agreements with the county government for a 10-year tax abatement, road use and decommissioning. Their petition for a “zoning layer” on the agricultural land, however, received a unanimous “do not pass” recommendation from the Area Plan Commission in March after the board heard overwhelming dissenting public comments.
Hundreds flooded the following Wells County Commissioner meeting, where the commissioners were expected to either uphold or differ from the APC’s recommendation. The decision was ultimately postponed for over a month, as those opposing and supporting the solar farm showed up in droves to board meetings and those opposed protested at a primary candidate forum.
Paddlefish representatives then informally rescinded the petition as they decided to “regroup.” Other companies have secured land leases in northern Wells County, but none have applied for zoning or other agreements.
Paddlefish Solar can re-apply for the zoning layer on or after March 8, 2025. In September, representatives appeared before the APC in preparation to re-apply.
It was subsequently revealed that at least two commissioners had received death threats regarding the issue.
4. Wells County Chamber of Commerce seperates from the Economic Development Commission.
After months of discussion with local officials, the Wells County Chamber of Commerce dropped its partnership for economic development after the resignation of former executive director Chad Kline.
Initially, the county government deferred approval of a contract renewal with the chamber after the chamber board had moved to downsize its boards members, eliminating some representation from local officials. In the aftermath, the parties went back and forth on a list of key performance indicators for reporting activities and measuring success.
Though a resolution appeared near, so did the end of the first quarter without financial backing from local municipalities. The city of Bluffton and the county governments agreed to continue funding through June as the parties continued to negotiate the contract.
However, Kline ultimately announced his resignation on March 19. An email from the chamber to its members the same day added, “We will work with the Wells County Commissioners, city of Bluffton and our member towns and governmental entities in an effort to have the economic development services historically provided by the Chamber instead be provided with the leadership of local government.”
In October, the city of Bluffton, town of Ossian and Wells County governments partnered together to hire Jessica Beste as economic development director. An interlocal agreement to house the Economic Development Commission has not yet been signed.
4. Health officer resigns.
Issues at the Wells County Health Department — the N-B’s top 2023 story — continued into 2024, beginning the year with a Jan. 10 hearing to remove Dr. Kay Johnson from the role of health officer.
During the 4.5-hour hearing, health board members claimed that Johnson had failed to perform her statutory duties, particularly regarding staffing issues at the department. Johnson asserted that there were never complaints about her leadership prior to the board’s unanimous vote to initiate the process for her removal. She also alleged county officials had instigated the staffing issues by overstepping their leadership.
The hearing was heavily attended by the public, who split between recognizing the need for more leadership within the department and that the matter had not been handled properly.
Immediate action was deferred, and on Feb. 16 it was announced that the county had reached a settlement with Johnson. She voluntarily resigned from her role as health officer but retains her full salary through 2026 as an as-needed consultant to the department.
Dr. Brandon Huggins was later appointed to fill the health officer vacancy.
6. Juvenile kidnapped from Zanesville.
On the cusp of the New Year, an 11-year-old girl was taken from her Zanesville home by three adults from South Dakota. They were found in Iowa County, Wisconsin, using license plate readers and reports tracing their location to a Kwik Trip convenience store.
Zachary Delozier, Sara Gaudino and Isaiah Schryvers were eventually extradited to Wells County and charged with kidnapping, a Level 5 felony. Gaudino and Scryvers took plea deals, each receiving three years in prison for the charge.
Delozier, who has been referred to as the leader of the group, was also charged with child molesting, a Level 1 felony. He was later indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana and local charges were dropped without prejudice. Delozier is charged with transportation of a minor with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years.
Delozier is currently scheduled for a jury trial in April if a plea deal is not met.
7. Lutheran Health Network, Meridian Health Services downsize.
Over the span of three months, Lutheran Health Network and Meridian Health Services announced the closure of three services in Bluffton — RediMedi, Bluffton Regional Medical Center’s labor and delivery unit, and Meridian Women’s Health Clinic.
For the labor and delivery unit in particular, LHN attributed the closure to trends in lower birth rates at rural hospitals.
“The smaller numbers of births occurring in the region and at our hospital have made it difficult to secure and retain the specialized staff and providers necessary to provide this service,” said Chief Administrative Officer Julie Thompson in a May 14 press release. “Our childbirth programs have been high performing through the years, but with the impact of fewer and fewer births here, we are taking this action now — always keeping what is best for our patients front and center.”
The women’s health clinic, which was jointly run by LHN and Meridian Health Services, announced its closure in a Facebook post the following day.
RediMed’s closure was referred to as a consolidation of LHS services in a press release. The building in northern Bluffton has since been bought by Parkview Health for family medicine and OB/GYN services.
8. Norwell girls’ basketball wins semi-state title.
The 2024 season for Norwell girls’ basketball will be one they will never forget.
On Feb. 17, the Knights took down the No. 1 Hamilton Heights Huskies 64-50 to advance to the state’s semi-state championship later that night. Then, it was over within a few minutes as the Knights crushed Bremen 64-20.
For Norwell, it was the second time appearing in the state championship game in school history, and first since 1977.
Norwell ended up falling 63-60 to No. 3 Gibson Southern in the final but this did not overshadow the accomplishments the team had to get there.
“This incredible group,” Norwell head coach Eric Thornton said after winning the semi-state. “I can’t put it into words right now what this team means to me. You have a lot of dreams as a coach to be a part of a team that can go to the state championship.”
9. Fatal crashes.
Wells County had the highest number of fatalities in vehicle accidents in 2024 since 2018. Five people lost their lives in four incidents.
Wells County Sheriff Scott Holliday shared statistics dating to 2003. While this year was higher than most, Holliday remembers 2007, the highest total since 2003 when 10 people died.
“I remember that year,” he said. “There were at least a couple multiple-fatality accidents.”
This past year’s only multiple-fatality accident occurred March 17 and involved a dirt bike, an ATV and a passenger vehicle. It claimed the lives of two teenagers, Keaton Osmun and Lillian Ellenberger.
Clarence Cantrell, 91, was struck while crossing Main Street at the Washington Street intersection in the early morning hours of June 7 while another teen, Aiden Nunley, died of injuries sustained in a head-on crash on S.R. 116 near County Road 200 West July 19.
Another accident on S.R. 116, this one on Bluffton’s southeast side, occurred Oct. 30 and took the life of eight-year-old Rose Irwin. No criminal charges came from any of the accidents.
10. Solar eclipse.
It hadn’t happened since 1809, and will not happen again until 2099: a total solar eclipse in Wells County. Hence, at least for three minutes on April 8, 2024, virtually everyone in the county was doing the same thing — gazing at the sky.
Local officials were told to expect at least 20,000 visitors. Wells County Sheriff Scott Holliday reported that the county’s license plate reading cameras registered approximately 12,000 vehicles entering the county, much more than double any previous day’s tally.
Schools closed and the roads came to a standstill. Ouabache State Park was filled to capacity by noon, the local YMCA hosted a watch party which filled the parking lot and large field, and an estimated 800 people filled Ossian’s Archbold-Wilson Park. Since the county was on the northern edge of the total eclipse path, traffic from the north was particularly heavy. But visitors had also traveled from across the nation and as far away as England, Ireland and Italy.
Bluffton-Harrison Middle School also participated in a special weather balloon, carrying equipment to photograph the eclipse’s shadow on Earth. Blessed by good weather, the day was marked as a success as the balloon eventually landed just 10 minutes north of Bluffton, Ohio.
Altogether, the day was marked as a success, putting a national spotlight — or more accurately, a lack thereof — on Wells County for a day.
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