The Freeman water tower is framed by frosty branches Thursday morning, Feb. 18. And temperatures are warming.

That's Bruce Ebbesen standing in front of the Missionary Church in Freeman, where next week Wednesday, Feb. 24, anybody in need of a hot meal can pick one up for free. Drive-up service will be available from 5 to 6:30 p.m. on that day, and then each of the following three Wednesdays. The idea comes from Ebbesen with support of his church. You can read more about it in the Feb. 18 5-Minute Interview.

Steam from production at AMPI in Freeman rises into the frigid winter air Tuesday morning, Feb. 16. Highs in Freeman were around  15 degrees below zero at daybreak and are once again expected to remain at or below zero for the day. Freeman Academy and Menno schools both had late starts while Freeman Public canceled classes for the day; Tuesday's basketball doubleheader at Ethan is on as scheduled.

On this President's Day, The Courier reflects on George H.W. Bush's visit to Freeman on Feb. 5, 1988. Then the Vice President of the United States, the visit came fewer than three weeks before the presidential primary election — an election he would go on to win before becoming the 41st President of the United States the following January. About 1,200 people (including all Freeman Public students) attended Bush's visit, held inside what was then the Freeman High School gym — today the Freeman Community Center auditorium.

Those photo, taken earlier this year, shows the frozen pond of the Freeman Prairie Arboretum. Frozen is a good word on this day; Sunday morning dawned with a temperature well below zero, with today's highs expected to be around 7-below.

Tracks in a freshly-fallen dusting of snow show a dog on a walk on another below-zero morning — this one Saturday, Feb. 13.

This photo taken by Willard Waltner, who was famous for his photography from the 1950s into the 1980s, is appropriate on this cold stretch of days the region is currently experiencing. Highs are below zero Friday morning and temperatures aren't expected to reach double digits again until the middle part of next week. Lows this weekend will reach more than 20 below zero. The gentleman pictured here checking the thermometer is Herb Waltner, who was an uncle to Larry and the late Dr. Lonnie Waltner. 

The region remains in the deep freeze as the weekend nears, with highs in the single digits at best and lows well below zero. And the worst is still to come; temperatures this weekend aren't expected to get above zero.

Say hello to Courtney Unruh, who took over as CEO at Freeman Regional Health Service on Jan. 1 following the retirement of Nick Brandner. Unruh, a community native who returned to Freeman with her husband, Patrick, five years ago, is the subject of this week's 5-Minute Interview. Read it online later Wednesday and in print tomorrow.

These icicles hanging from the AMPI building near the corner of Main and Third streets illustrate the sharp cold air that has moved across the region. Highs are in the single digits at best and are expected to hover around zero heading into the weekend. It's the first sustained stretch of cold air the community has seen this winter.