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Three dead in grocery store shooting
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ELKHART, Ind. (AP) — A man fatally shot two women in a northern Indiana grocery store Wednesday night and was lining up to shoot a third person when police officers tracked him down and killed him, authorities said.

Elkhart police received a call about a gunman at Martin's Super Market about 10 p.m. Wednesday, Indiana State Police Sgt. Trent Smith said Thursday.

The 22-year-old gunman used a semi-automatic handgun to shoot and kill a 20-year-old employee and a 44-year-old shopper, Smith said. The victims' bodies were found about 12 aisles apart.

Smith said two police officers responding to the scene heard a gunshot as they entered the near-empty store. They dashed to that area and found the shooter pointing his gun at a third person. Smith said the man then aimed his gun at the officers and that's when they shot him dead.

Smith applauded the officers' swift response, saying there was no doubt they saved lives.

A large knife was also found near the gunman's body, he said.

No further details about the victims and gunman have been released, but Smith said there was no indication that the shooter knew the victims. Smith said the man lived in the area.

"At this time, it appears that it's just random," he said. He did not elaborate.

The Indiana State Police will investigate the shooting because the Elkhart Police Department was involved in the shooting, Smith said.

"We do have a lot of things to look at as far as video surveillance," Smith said, noting that state and city police were also interviewing witnesses.

Martin's Super Market posted a statement on its Facebook page, saying: "Thank you to our community for your thoughts and prayers tonight. We will comment further when we can do so responsibly and appropriately."

Elkhart is in far northern Indiana, just south of the Indiana-Michigan border, and about 15 miles east of South Bend.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community