Blood drive set in Fort Recovery

The Red Cross will host a blood drive in Fort Recovery next week. 

The blood drive will be from 1 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Fort Recovery Elementary-Middle School, 865 Sharpsburg Road. To make an appointment, visit redcrossblood.org or call (800) 733-2767. 

Seeking help

As part of its AngelWish program, LifeStream Services is seeking assistance to provide help to isolated seniors during the holiday season.

The program coordinates delivery of food, personal care items and gifts to seniors and those with disabilities. Nearly 1,500 packages were delivered last year.

Those interested in participating can do so by volunteering to pack gifts or deliver bags, or by donating items such as peanut butter, soups, lotions, shampoo, deodorant, soap and toilet paper.

In order to participate, email [email protected], visit lifestreaminc.org/angelwish or call (765) 759-3372.

Entries available

Entry forms are now available for Jay County Chamber of Commerce’s Little Miss Winterfest pageant.

The pageant is open to Jay County girls ages 7 through 10. Judging will be based on poise, appearance and a 5-to-10-sentence essay.

Entry forms are available at the chamber office, 118 S. Meridian St., Portland, on its Facebook page or by emailing [email protected]. The entry fee is $25, and the deadline to register is Nov. 26.

The pageant is scheduled for 2 p.m. Dec. 1 in the auditorium at Jay County High School.

Offering support

The League for the Blind and Disabled will offer a visual impairment support group beginning next month at Swiss Village Retirement Community.

Fred Fulkerson of the League for the Blind and Disabled will lead the sessions. Meetings are scheduled for 2 p.m. Nov. 8 and Dec. 13. For more information, contact Swiss Village at (260) 589-3173.

To speak

Chuck Bragg, president of the Society of Indiana Pioneers, will be the featured speaker at the Jay County Historical Society annual meeting Nov. 13 at Asbury United Methodist Church in Portland.

Bragg, a 1956 graduate of Portland High School and a retired educator, will be wearing a replica uniform from George Washington’s Life Guard which he wore while acting as color guard commander of a unit participating in a ceremony in Paris, France, commemorating the end of the Revolutionary War.

The meal is set for 6:30 p.m., and the cost is $10 per person. Reservation and payment must be received at the historical society’s museum by 4 p.m. Thursday. No meal reservations will be accepted after that time. The museum is located at the end of East Main Street in Portland.

Bragg, a resident of Fishers, is a former history teacher and school superintendent.

Offering help

Low-income families can pre-register now for Upstart, a free, in-home, kindergarten readiness program that’s being offered in Indiana. The program not only provides internet access but also a computer for the household, which can be kept if families complete the program.

To pre-register, call (888) 982-9898 or visit waterfordupstart.org.

The program is designed to give kids a start in reading, match and science prior to kindergarten. It involves just 30 minutes a day five days a week.

The deadline for registration is Sunday.

Screenings set

Mercer Health will hold free breast cancer screenings with Dr. Alissa Perry from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday.

Information will also be available about the new 3D Mammography exams now available at the hospital.

For more information, call (419) 678-5216.