Reverend Dennis Smith spoke on the history of Lutheranism, on Wednesday (March 6) at Messiah Lutheran Church in Constantine. The program is one a series of mid-week studies of various denominations during Lent, entitled “God is Still Working-Understanding our Christian Traditions.” Lutheranism as a religious movement originated in the early 16th century Holy Roman Empire as [...]

Six weeks into the renovation of a historic downtown building in Constantine, Matt and Char Ryan are enjoying the discovery of old items which give clues to earlier owners. The 160-old-building last housed the Jay & Kay Floral Shop, and is located at 145 S. Washington Street. The Ryans plan a total restoration down to the lathe boards, and hope [...]

The turnout was small, but the sentiment was clear in a special election Tuesday (February 26th) as voters in Constantine rejected an ordinance providing for the appointment of the village clerk and the village treasurer. Unofficial results from the balloting show that Ordinance No. 239 was turned down with 86 ‘no’ votes compared to 42 [...]

Members of the Gov. John S. Barry Historical Society discussed the status of several ongoing historical projects at a meeting on February 19 in the Constantine Township Library. It was reported a second grant applied for by the village to restore the pergola at the Pioneer Park-Cemetery, located at Mill Street and Florence Road in Constantine, has been turned down.  Deann Buckhold, a [...]

The Village of Constantine has been awarded a Blight Elimination Program grant that will help fund demolition of an unoccupied and deteriorated building at 1005 South Washington Street. As reported earlier this week in the River Country Journal, the village is among 34 municipal, township and county entities statewide that will share in $15 million in [...]

Kathy Schuen gave a program on ”Understanding our Christian Traditions-God is Still Speaking” on the politics of the Congregational Church-UCC on Wednesday (February 20) at Messiah Lutheran Church in Constantine. It was one of a series of Lenten mid-week services. Schuen received ministerial training through the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, in the Lay Ministry Training Program. [...]

The Constantine Fire Department has currently raised over $4,100 of the $7,000 needed to purchase the five (5) AEDs (automated external defibrillators) that they are looking to purchase for the (2)Constantine Fire Department, (2) Constantine Police Department and the (1) Constantine Village Office. The Constantine Downtown Brainstormers are coming together and asking for your support [...]

All 370 students at Eastside Elementary School in Constantine celebrated “100 Day” by enjoying a sausage and pancake breakfast on Wednesday (February 13).  Students counted to 100 before they ate. Principal Jessica Barth said the breakfast represented the number 100, with the “one” being a link of sausage and two round pancakes formed the “zeros.” [...]

“The water system in Constantine is back in service.” That’s the report from Village Manager Mark Honeysett in an e-mail message at 5:17 p.m. Wednesday (February 13th).  The announcement followed a report issued at 4:18 p.m. that indicated an interruption in water service in the village because of a water main break at South Washington [...]

The Village of Constantine has announced that the water service in Constantine is turned off. The announcement came in an e-mail sent at 4:18 p.m. Wednesday (February 13th).  According to the announcement, “There has been a water main break on S. Washington at 5th Street and the Department of Public Works from both Constantine and [...]

Plans for the US-131 bypass of Constantine were in the spotlight Monday evening (January 28th) during a Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) open house at Constantine High School. The two-hour event – from 5 to 7 p.m. – offered the chance to learn more about the project and pose questions to MDOT representatives.  It came [...]

The construction of the US-131 bypass around the Village of Constantine, a project slated to begin on February 4th and be completed in November, will be the focus of a Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) open house Monday evening (January 28th) at Constantine High School. MDOT representatives will be on hand to discuss the project [...]

Dear Editor, This poem, “The Farmers’ ‘Undeveloped’ Land”, by Joyce Lambert of Kouts (IN) appeared in the January 11 issue of my Farmer’s Exchange.  I think it expresses how people in charge of our natural resources feel.  Look at how much of our forests are being cut down, which our wildlife are using as their [...]

A report on the deteriorating condition of the Barry Home Museum in Constantine was a part of the John S. Barry Historical Society meeting held Tuesday (January 15th). Don Kufeldt presented the report during the meeting at Constantine Township Library.  Photos for the report were taken by George Murphy. Historical Society members have decided the [...]

Old National Bancorp has announced plans to acquire 24 retail Bank of America branches in Northern Indiana and Southwest Michigan – including one in Constantine. For more on the story from MLive, click on the following link:  Indiana-based Old National Bank to acquire Bank of America branches in Southwest Michigan and Northern Indiana.

Mark Voege and his wife, LeeAnn Farmer, have collected a wealth of information on their lovely historic home located on South Washington Street in Constantine, and are always interested in acquiring more. Voege is an art teacher at Kalamazoo Central High School and he does pottery. LeeAnn teaches special education at the middle school in Marcellus, and is president of the [...]

Messiah Lutheran Church in Constantine performed the cantata “Candles & Carols” on Christmas Eve. The cantata is a tradition which began in 1946, according to Rev. Dennis Smith. Theo Outman is choir director. Pianist is Thom Britton. Refreshments were served following the event. Source:  Story and photo contributed by Angie Birdsall.

North and South Washington streets in Constantine were graced by luminaries on Christmas eve. Several dozen volunteers assisted the village’s Department of Public Works in placement of the luminaries in a project that took an hour.  Several churches also set them out. Source:  Story and photos contributed by Angie Birdsall.

FaithFinders Church in Constantine held a Christmas party Saturday (December 22). More than 80 attended the party for members and their families. Church leaders served a turkey dinner with all the trimming, plus ice cream for dessert, and distributed presents.  “This is to show you we appreciate what you do for us during the year,” [...]

A 52-year-old Constantine man was killed in a car/pedestrian accident in Constantine shortly after 6 p.m. Sunday (December 16). According to a news release from Constantine Police Chief Jim Bedell, Michael Osborn was crossing South Washington Street (US-131) in front of the Dollar General Store when he was struck by a northbound vehicle driven by [...]