Never before have presidential campaigns criss-crossed so often across northern Indiana as they did in 2008.

As senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama slugged it out for the Democratic nomination, they paid unusually close attention to our state and area, long established as Republican strongholds.

Clinton campaigned at Mishawaka High School. Her husband — former President Bill Clinton — campaigned in Warsaw while daughter Chelsea spent Cinco de Mayo answering questions at La Bamba here in Goshen.

Obama went on to win the nomination. In August, Obama came to Concord High School and spoke to roughly 1,500 people inside a packed McCuen Gymnasium. Obama went on to defeat Republican nominee John McCain.

As our area reveled in Obama’s visit, the reality of the circumstance was clear. Just two days after Obama told us he wanted to start “rebuilding America,” local RV manufacturers resumed announcing job cuts. It’s estimated more than 3,000 RV-related jobs have been lost since summer. The unemployment rate in the Elkhart-Goshen area hit 12.4 percent in November.

It was a tough year.

We also lost longtime State Sen. Marvin Riegsecker to illness and soldiers James P. Snyder, Travis Hunsberger and Kristopher Rodgers to war.

May they all rest in peace.



— Michael Wanbaugh

Managing editor

First day of year brings back memories of ’78

January

1 — On the first day of the 2008, Goshen receives 13.3 inches of snow, the most one-day accumulation since 14 inches was recorded nearly 30 years ago during the blizzard of 1978.

4 — The Federal Emergency Management Agency denies Nappanee’s appeal for federal storm recovery aid. An F-3 tornado leveled part of the town on Oct. 18, 2007.

9 — Flood emergency declared for the Elkhart River as temperatures rise and snow melts.

18 — Mel Trowbridge, a former fifth-grade teacher at Waterford Elementary School, is sentenced to 35 years in prison for sexual misconduct with minors.

19 — State Sen. Marvin Riegsecker announces he won’t run for re-election because of medical reasons.

25 — Nappanee is the first community to receive money from Indiana’s new disaster relief fund. Gov. Mitch Daniels presented city leaders with nearly $200,000.

28 — Trial of Fred Mott for the 1991 murder of Kari Nunemaker begins. After less than a week of testimony, a jury takes a little more than an hour to find Mott guilty.

February

25 — A 6-year-old Concord Township boy is found dead in the Elkhart River. It is believed he was playing and fell through the ice.

March

18 — Sheena L. Kiska, 23, is found stabbed to death in her Bristol apartment complex.

25 — Ground is broken on the new Concord Junior High School at C.R.s 11 and 24. The $37.5 million project is scheduled to be complete by 2010.

27 — The new Department of Motor Vehicles branch opens in Linway Plaza.

28 — Sen. Hillary Clinton campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination at Mishawaka High School.

31 — Goshen Building Commissioner Mike Leasor retires after 14 years on the job.

April

4 — Sen. Barack Obama campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination at Wayne High School in Fort Wayne.

24 — After an extensive study, Fairfield Community Schools Superintendent Tom Tumey recommends the corporation not redistrict.

25 — A 10-year-old Harrison Christian School student is shot by a hunter while playing during recess. The school is located southwest of Goshen. The shooting was ruled accidental and the boy’s injuries were not life threatening.

25 — Monaco Coach Corp. announces it will cut 600 jobs, nearly half from its Wakarusa plant.

May

2 — Former Mayor Mike Puro resigns as Goshen’s redevelopment commissioner to become town manager of Shipshewana.

3 — Former President Bill Clinton campaigns for his wife, Hillary, at Warsaw Community High School.

5 — Chelsea Clinton campaigns for her mom by attending a Cinco de Mayo celebration at La Bamba in Goshen. About 150 people attended the event.

10 — Army Staff Sgt. James P. Snyder, 48, of Nappanee, is killed while serving his third tour of duty in Iraq. He was formerly of Syracuse.

13 — State Sen. Robert Meeks of LaGrange announces he won’t seek re-election because of health issues.

17 — The body of James H. Bradshaw Jr., 44, of Topeka is found in the Earthmovers Landfill on C.R. 26, Elkhart.

20 — Officials receive $900,000 grant to extend the Pumpkinvine trail two miles.

June

8 — Former Sen. and 1996 Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole speaks at the Goshen Center for Cancer Care.

10 — Body found in Goshen Millrace under Jefferson Street Bridge. The man is later identified as Gullermo Hernandez Lopez, 22.

12 — Fairfield English teacher Steve Hershberger, 44, drowns in Costa Rica while trying to save a student. He and about 30 other students were in the country as part of an Educational Foundation Spanish tour.

17 — New, $25-million Parkview LaGrange Hospital opens.

27 — Staff Sgt. Travis Hunsberger, a Goshen native, is killed by an improvised explosive device while on a foot patrol in Afghanistan. He was 24 and a 2002 graduate of NorthWood High School.

28 — More than 200 minors are cited during a police raid of the 7 Segundo’s bar on south Third Street.

July

1 — Newmar Corp., one of Nappanee’s largest employers, announces layoffs.

3 — Dutchmen Manufacturing in Goshen announces it will cut 116 jobs.

13 — Newell’s Dress Shop, a fixture in downtown Goshen since 1880, closes after four generations in business.

18 — Monaco Coach announces the layoff of 1,400 workers from its plants in Wakarusa, Nappanee and Elkhart.

August

6 — Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama campaigns at Concord High School. Roughly 1,500 pack McCuen Gym to see Obama, who would go on to defeat Sen. John McCain for the presidency.

8 — Keystone RV in Goshen announces it will layoff 290 employees.

9 — RV manufacturer Pilgrim International in Middlebury announces it will layoff 160 workers and temporarily cease operations.

12 — Newmar Corp. in Nappanee announces more layoffs, bringing the total to an estimated 312.

16 — Staff Sgt. Kristopher Dan Rodgers of Burr Oak, Mich., formerly of Howe, is killed in Afghanistan when a roadside bomb explodes near his vehicle. He was 29 and a 1998 Lakeland High School graduate.

September

13 — Immigration agents detain five workers at the China Buffet restaurant in Goshen.

15 — Fire destroys the vacant Western Rubber complex along south 10th Street. The fire is ruled suspicious.

18 — Three Goshen Middle School students are arrested after poking 16 classmates with blood-testing lancets.

30 — Sen. Marvin Riegsecker dies at age 71. A retired pharmacist, he served 32 years in elected office, the last 20 as a state senator.

October

25 — Republican vice-presidential candidate Gov. Sarah Palin, campaigns for Sen. John McCain at a rally in Fort Wayne.

27 — In light of struggling local economy, Goshen Community School leaders pull the corporation’s $42.5 million renovation plan off the table.

28 — Three deadly crashes close the Toll Road near the Bristol exit at mile marker 101.

November

10 — Goshen College is blasted by conservative national radio host Mike Gallagher for its long-standing practice of not playing the National Anthem before sporting events.

17 — Jayco Corp. announces it will close its Starcraft trailer plant in Topeka, eliminating 244 jobs.

20 — Coachmen Industries Inc. announces it will sell its RV group to rival Forest River in a deal that ends up being worth $42 million.

December

8 — Jayco announces it will close its Wakarusa Entegra plan, eliminating another 130 jobs.

20 — Ice storm in northern Indiana leaves 77,000 without power.

20 — Debris from 2007 Los Galanes grocery store fire, cleaned up by new owners. Before the purchase, the debris remained on the land in large piles.

26 — Freezing rain paralyzes the area as Elkhart County declares a “Level 1” snow emergency, ordering all non-emergency vehicles off the road.