Happy Monday, Blufftonites! Here are BlufftonIcon.com's top stories from the week that was September 29 - October 5. For a chronological look Icon content, visit blufftonicon.com/archive.
As your local school superintendents, we write to you not as politicians or advocates, but as fellow parents, community members, and stewards of the education system that defines the heart of Putnam County. We share your frustration with rising property taxes.
Robert H. Verb presents The James Webb Space Telescope (R) on Thu., Oct. 23 @ 6:00 p.m. at Bluffton Public Library. Verb, retired U.S. army officer and engineer, will discuss his involvement in the creation of NASA's largest and most powerful telescope: the James Webb Space Telescope. The presentation will include pictures as well as pieces and mineral samples for the audience to look at. There will be time for questions and discussion with the audience. Open to all ages; children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Register in person or online.
Nelson Welch,78, of Rawson, passed away on October 4, 2025. Nelson was born on December 6, 1946 at McComb Hospital in McComb, Ohio to the late Mearl and Ellen (Campbell) Welch.
He graduated from Cory-Rawson High School in 1965. As a young man he worked as a surveyor at Peterman & Associates, Findlay, United Aircraft Products, Forest and retired as a QC technician out of Rockwell International, Kenton.
Banned Books Week is October 5–11. This year's theme is "Censorship is so 1984. Read for Your Rights." This year's theme reminds us that the right to read belongs to all of us, that censorship has no place in contemporary society, and that we must defend our rights.
Books on display at our library will include materials that have been banned or challenged in libraries, booksellers, and schools across the globe. This list is compiled by the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom (ala.org/bbooks).
OCTOBER 2 MEDIA RELEASE__Mennonite Home Communities of Ohio will host their 4th Annual Gala on October 9, 2025. This year’s theme will be “Aloha Nights” and guests will be invited to wear their favorite Hawaiian attire. MHCO's Gala is a fundraising event to benefit the Mennonite Home Communities of Ohio Benevolent Care Fund, which provides support to care for older adults who have outlived their resources. We would also like to thank our Gold Sponsors–Citrin Cooperman, Hometown Pharmacy and the Water Equipment Company–for their ongoing generous support.
The Icon occasionally gets phone or email requests to print articles. Do you find yourself stymied by the steps required to print just the article and not the other items on the page?
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UPDATE: Print copies have been delivered to Bluffton Public Library, Bluffton Senior Center, Maple Crest, Musselman Library and the Village of Bluffton.
Dear Icon Highlights readers,
Welcome to the 6th monthly issue of a print version of the Bluffton Icon that is being distributed to our local libraries and a limited number of locations for in-house use. Highlights are a small slice of what appears online. In September 2025, we published 182 news items on BlufftonIcon.com!
The following five land transfers took place in the Bluffton Exempted Village School District for the month of September 2025 as reported on the websites of Allen County Auditor Rachael S. Gilroy and Hancock County Auditor Charity A. Rauschenberg.
ADRESS - SALE DATE - SALE PRICE - LAND USE - FROM/TO
AGRICULTURAL
7878 E Lincoln Hwy – 9/29/2025 – $3,300,000 – Agricultural Vacant Land – From Resa LLC to Racetrac Inc
