Around Christmas time every year, my dad gets a panettone cake from his work. That is one of the few things I have ever eaten that contains candied orange peel.

Earlier in the winter, I noticed we had some visitors. Five beautiful male pheasants were meandering around our property. With a colorful, intricate plumage, these birds intrigue me. Surviving the pheasant hunting season, they seem to have no definite home nor means to feed themselves.

“Do you think they’ll be OK?” I asked my husband one day.

I wasn’t certain, and if we could do anything about it, I’d sure feel better.

We have Al Capone, John Dillinger and other bootlegging-era gangsters to thank for a federal gun law that also made it harder for shooters and hunters to protect our precious hearing.

That law is rapidly changing and could add a piece of equipment to our shooting bags and hunting rifles that will forever alter the ear-damaging gunshots heard at shooting ranges and deer woods.

Heather Knaup and Keith Knaup, of Hatley, announce the birth of a son, Sawyer James Knaup, born Dec. 19, 2025. He weighed 9 pounds 5 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long.

Sacred Heart Catholic School has recognized second grade students who completed their reading logs from Thanksgiving through Christmas break for class with certificates. Front row, from left, are Joseph McDougal, Elijiah Radek, Wyatt Zoellner and Alfred Gueths. Back row, from left, are Olivia Kast, Rylea Cumberland, Aliyah Redmerski, Elli Farley, Ava Carroll and McCoy Miller.

The Knights of Columbus Bishop Fox Council 2836 announced a charitable donation to Lakeland Industries on Dec. 17, underscoring the organization’s ongoing commitment to community support and local partnership.