SPENCERVILLE__The Bluffton High School cross country teams competed at the Spencerville Bearcat Invitational meet on Saturday, September 12, with the Pirate girls coming in second among a five-team field in the Black Division race.
GIRLS RESULTS
Pirate Xandra Gatchel finished second in the girls meet with a time of 21:16. Teammate Tessa Tarplee came in fourth in 22:15.
Coldwater captured the girls team crown with a mere 22 points. Bluffton tallied 75 points to nose out Bellmont (Ind.) by three points for second.
By Anne Blunk, MSW, LISW-S
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Psychiatric Center of Northwest Ohio
Heading back to school means new routines, new classes, and, for some children and teens, new anxieties. Stomachaches may start before school begins, with no fever or clear cause—just a worried feeling that keeps showing up. Irritability, difficulty sleeping, frequent “what ifs,” and an overall sense of dread may also appear.
On Friday, September 4, Bluffton High School football players were honored on Senior Night at Harmon Field. They are pictured here, flanked by their families and are listed in order below. Students performing in band, cheer and flag are pictured in Fall 2026 BHS seniors celebrated on Harmon Field.
On Friday, September 4, the Bluffton High School seniors who perform on Harmon Field as part of the Friday Night football festivities were honored. Here are the band, cheer and flag seniors flanked by family members and listed in order below. The football seniors are pictured in Fall 2026 BHS football seniors celebrated on Harmon Field
9/11/2026 FACEBOOK__Business phone lines remain out of service for all three Mennonite Home Communities locations in Bluffton. This outage remains a widespread issue, affecting thousands of customers. Some customers have had service restored, but MHCO does not have any update regarding the timeframe for service restoration.
The following temporary phone numbers have been set up for each location:
BLUFFTON__The Bluffton High School volleyball team defeated visiting Elmwood in a non-league four-setter on Thursday, Sept. 10.
The Pirates improved to 6-4 with the home comeback win. They lost the first set 18-25, then regrouped to capture the final three games 25-14, 25-11, 25-17.
Taylin Goldman and Gracie Warren paced the Pirate hitting attack with 11 kills apiece. Warren also hustled up 11 digs, while Goldman made nine digs.
Howard Thornsberry, December 4, 1939-September 7, 2026, was a devoted husband, father, and man of faith. He worked very hard in the produce industry to provide for his family. He enjoyed golfing and watching his Cleveland Guardians every chance he had.
BLUFFTON__The Bluffton High School boys soccer team lost a 2-1 battle to visiting Liberty-Benton in a non-league match on Thursday, Sept. 10 at Steinmetz Field.
The Pirates fell to 4-3-2 with the tough defeat. Perennial power L-B improved to 6-2-1 after securing the victory.
All three goals were scored after intermission, with the defensive battle tied 0-0 at halftime.
Weston Johnstone netted the Bluffton goal. Pirate keeper Ryan Blount was credited with seven saves.
9:00-11:00 a.m. Open House
Memberships, sponsors, donations needed to create museum
By Paula Pyzik Scott
The Bluffton Ohio Historical Society (BOHS) is among 300 entities taking part in Open Doors, a state-wide celebration of Ohio history, heritage and preservation. BOHS will have access to the former Lawson's Dairy building at 314 N. Main St. just in time for the Open Doors event.
The society is purchasing buildings at 302 and 314 N. Main St. owned by Gary Kirtland and most recently occupied by Stratton Auto Group.
