A Schmeckfest sign hangs on the north wall of Freeman Academy's maintenance building Friday morning. Photographed through racks that will be used in preparation for the upcoming Schmeckfest Drive-Thru, the familiar red and white imagery represents the festival that began in 1959 as a celebration of the Germans-from-Russia Heritage on which this community was founded. Because of COVID-19, Schmeckfest as it has come to be known will not be held for a second year in a row.

Melting snow and ice form patterns on the cement Thursday morning following the moisture from the day before. As expected, it rained for much of the day on Wednesday before turning to snow later, leaving a dusting across the area. But it won't last long; milder temperatures and sunshine had already melted much of it by mid-morning on Thursday.

This sign stands as a reminder that, for the third Wednesday in a row, the Missionary Church will be making hot meals available at the church between the hours of 5 to 6:30 p.m. for anybody who wants one. The effort comes out of the "care about your physical and spiritual needs" and will conclude next Wednesday, March 17. The church is located at the corner of Sixth and Albert streets.

Given the mild temperatures of the past week, it's no surprise to see one of the surest signs of spring out and about — the robin redbreast. It was a breezy but warm weekend and start to the workweek, with highs on Tuesday expected climb into the 70s. Enjoy it while it lasts, though, because a significant cool down is coming.

This shows the backside of the Freeman Area Veteran's Memorial along Sixth Street on a breezy Monday morning, March 8. Temperatures remain above average to start the week, but will return to normal soon, with a chance of rain on Wednesday. 

This photo shows the old Salem Mennonite (South) Church as it was when it served the congregation for a 50-year stretch in the 20th century. The striking building was erected in 1916-17 and served as its parishioners’ place of worship until a new structure was built on the same grounds, but farther from the road, in 1966 — that was the church building that was destroyed by fire in 1985.

Freeman Academy junior Quincy Blue stands with head coach Austin Unruh following Friday's night's Region 5B loss to Viborg-Hurley. Blue was honored by his coach, teammates and fans after scoring his 1,000th career point earlier in the night. Needing just four points, he hit the mark with a three-pointer in the first half of the game and finished with 22 points. He is the second player for the Freeman Academy/Marion Bearcats to reach 1,000 career points in the last two seasons; Gavin Pankratz did it last year.

This was the reaction of the Menno crowd after Morgan Edelman scored with 1 minute 40 seconds left in the Wolves' SoDak 16 game against Herried/Selby Area Thursday night, March 4 at James Valley Christian. Edelman's bucket gave her team its first lead of the game at 45-44, but the Wolverines responded and hung on to a 49-47 win in what was a wild finish to a wild game. Menno ends its season 15-7 while Herried/Selby Area takes a 20-3 record into the state tournament. Full coverage next week.

The Menno girls basketball team poses for a photo outside The Cutting Edge salon, which is owned and operated by Kristi Diede — mom to junior Raygen Diede — after practice on Wednesday. The Wolves will take the court tonight in the SoDak 16 at James Valley Christian against Herried/Selby Area beginning at 6:30 p.m. A pep rally is planned in Menno early this afternoon and the team is scheduled to leave at 3:15 via an escort from the Menno Fire Department. Watch for a report on the game late tonight.

It's not spring yet — the new season doesn't officially begin until March 20 — but it sure feels like it with the weather as of late. Sunny skies and highs in the 50s have melted the snow and prompted people to forgo their coats when going outside — something that will continue through the weekend. These geese flying northwest Wednesday morning were just another sign that weather patterns are changing.