Two huge inflated rats met the workers on the Marathon pipeline when they came to work this morning at the former Rockwell plant site in Kenton. With the intimidating rodents were about 70 protesters from the Laborer’s International Union of North America with representative of the Pipeliners Local Union 798 and Ohio Laborer’s District Council.

VAN WERT — After 40 years of fighting fires, Dunkirk native Jim Steele is ready to let someone else respond to the call. He is retiring on Feb. 9 as Van Wert Fire Chief, a position he has held for the past 19 years.

ADA — Before becoming Wilson Sporting Goods, the Ada-based factory on North Liberty Street was home to Ohio-Kentucky Manufacturing and produced everything from basketballs, baseball gloves, boxing gloves, punching bags and footballs, just to name a few. Flash forward to 1955 when Wilson purchased the building, the site became the world’s only football-specific factory and the location of every football produced for the National Football League, including those for the biggest sporting event in the country, the Super Bowl.

McGUFFEY — Mike Kis is not one to shy away from a challenge. So naturally, he’s facing his first role as superintendent head-on with enthusiasm.

Walking up the stairs shared by two downtown Kenton buildings is a step back in time. Uncovered from mounds of plastic positioned to drain water from a leaky roof are the remains of a clothing retailer that apparently closed more than 70 years ago.

ROUNDHEAD — The Hardin County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a report of a woman being sexually assaulted by an unknown man Thursday evening. The alleged incident took place in Roundhead Township in the southwestern corner of the county, said Sheriff Keith Everhart.

When motorists are stopped by deputies in Hardin County for traffic violations, the ticket they are handed soon will be created by a computer. The new E-tickets are expected to make the stop quicker for the public, more efficient for the courts and safer for the officers, said Sheriff Keith Everhart.

MOUNT VICTORY — Seventh-graders at Ridgemont offered their view of what a city in America might look like 100 years from now. The six students – Mason Stuck, Lane Underwood, Landon Newland, Ashtin Elliott, Lily James and Adaline Buckenroth – created a functioning city for the Future City Building competition held Jan. 14 at Columbus State Community College.

The Hardin County Sheriff is encouraging residents to be vigilant in their daily lives following a report of a woman being sexually assaulted by an unknown man Thursday evening. The reported assault originated in Roundhead Township in the southwestern corner of the county. “The sheriff’s office is working with very limited information at this time,” said Sheriff Keith Everhart in …

ADA -- In keeping with the spirit of a capital campaign at his alma mater, Craig O. Pierson and his wife, Kay, of Bowling Green, have made an impact on future students at Ohio Northern University and his profession through a recent lead gift to the university’s “Campaign for Engineering: Building Impact at ONU,” an endeavor to fund a new building for the T.J. Smull College of Engineering.