Making the shoe fit
Bluffton University football player Brad Swavel talks with a student at Padua Academy in Indianapolis during a shoe distribution at the school Jan. 27. Roughly 170 students in kindergarten through fifth grade received new shoes—as well as socks and a drawstring backpack—through an effort coordinated by Samaritan’s Feet International and the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference. Swavel, a Bluffton senior from Marion, along with junior Ryan Aelker of New Bavaria, were among first-team all-HCAC players from the 2014 season who traveled to Indianapolis with their coaches for the second-annual event. The student-athletes washed the children’s feet and gave them new socks before fitting them with the new shoes. Each HCAC school designated one conference contest during the season as a “Barefoot Game” to raise awareness and funds. The conference ultimately raised roughly $7,000 for Samaritan’s Feet, a Charlotte, N.C.-based nonprofit. (Photo courtesy of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference)
Stories Posted This Week
Thursday, November 12, 2026
- Bluffton Middle School Honor Roll for 1st Quarter, 2026-2027
- Bluffton alumni to discuss lives and vocations in ministry
- Letter: Honoring 20 years of land preservation in West Central Ohio
- Prairie restoration research program on Nov. 20
- Bluffton Lions to hear presentation on humanitarian and disaster relief
- Separate the wheat from the chaff: Multi-ingredient botanicals for cholesterol
- Bluffton Council recap: $5,000 donated for Blaze lights installation
Wednesday, November 11, 2026
Tuesday, November 10, 2026
- Beavers sports roundup, November 2-8
- Veterans invited to Bluffton American Legion programs on Veterans Day
- James Raymond Harrod, Jr., 64, was a PGA professional
- Nathan Ulrey, 46, served in the Navy Seabees
- Letter: Thank you, Coach Richards
- Big Brothers Big Sisters launches 2026 year-end giving campaign
- Socktober drive collected 659 pairs for local distribution
- Jeanne Previte, 80, owned and operated Jeanne's Kitchen
- Bluffton Elementary Honor Roll for 1st Quarter 2026-2027
- Lego scarecrow earns GROB top honors from voters
- Former Blufftonite is lieutenant governor-elect of South Carolina
- University to stage costume drama that mixes emotion, humor and contemporary references
- Bluffton High School Honor Roll for 1st quarter of 2026-2027
- Nov. 13 chamber program on Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities
Monday, November 9, 2026
- Healing and life beyond incarceration explored at Forum
- Nov. 12 opportunity to learn Mahjong
- Door hanger craft class at Pandora library, November 17
- BPL after school movie, November 16
- Hailey's Wellness and Massage provide chair massages at Senior Center
- Bluffton area Women in Business Meeting November 19