WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University police arrested a Lafayette man Tuesday (Dec. 30) for allegedly stealing computer equipment from the Meteorological Laboratory at 1305 McCormick Road.

Kevin R. Critser, 28, 3320 Mystic Lane, Lafayette, was charged with burglary and theft, said Purdue police detective Sgt. Matt Rosenbarger.

Police responded to an alarm at the building at 12:50 a.m. Tuesday. As officers stopped to open a gate into the area, a car approaching from the gate’s other side quickly turned around and sped off, Rosenbarger said. Police entered the area and found an abandoned blue Mitzubishi Eclipse stuck in the mud near the Purdue tennis complex.

Police obtained a search warrant for the vehicle and found computer equipment allegedly taken from the laboratory, Rosenbarger said. The car was registered to Critser, who was later found at the Country Villa Apartments in West Lafayette with an acquaintance. He was detained for questioning, and then arrested at 1 p.m.

Burglary is a Class C felony punishable by up to eight years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Theft is a Class D felony punishable by a maximum of three years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Ice on the roadway is being blamed for the deaths of two motorists this morning (12/26) in the 9900 block of US 231 S.

The Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to a single vehicle personal injury crash in the 9900 block US HWY 231 S. Preliminary investigation indicates that the vehicle was traveling north on US 231 when the driver lost control of the vehicle due to ice on the roadway. The vehicle, a 1999 Suzuki Grand Vitara, left the east side of the roadway, slid through the ditch and struck a tree on the driver’s side of the vehicle before coming to rest.

Emergency personnel arrived to find three occupants entrapped in the vehicle. The driver, Billy E. Johnson (49), and front passenger, Beth A. Johnson (50), were fatally injured at the scene. The rear passenger, Bradley W. Johnson (20), was extricated from the vehicle and transported to Home Hospital. Bradley W. Johnson was admitted to Home Hospital in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries. The front occupant airbags did deploy however none of the occupants were believed to be wearing seatbelts. Responding personnel reported ice covered roadways in the area at the time of the crash. Alcohol and or illegal drugs are not believed to be a factor in this crash.

Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstructionists were dispatched to assist with the investigation. The Randolph Fire Department and Tippecanoe Ambulance Service also assisted with the investigation. The crash is still under investigation at this time.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Supercenter chain Meijer has given its first donation of gift cards to Food Finders Food Bank as a part of the company’s “Simply Give” holiday donation program. The program launched in November at all 185 Meijer stores and will provide much-needed Meijer gift cards to 185 local food pantries in the communities where its stores are based.

“We are very pleased to be chosen by the Lafayette Meijer store as their food pantry,” said Katy Bunder, Executive Director of Food Finders. “The need we are experiencing this season is unprecedented, and the donations we are receiving from Meijer and its customers will be crucial to helping us fulfill our mission of feeding the hungry in the Lafayette area.

The Meijer Simply Give program began in November. To participate, Meijer customers can purchase a $10.00 Meijer Food Pantry Donation Card at special displays throughout the store, as well as inside Meijer gas stations. The $10.00 amount reflects a typical bag of groceries at Meijer. The donation cards purchased by Meijer customers are then converted into Meijer Gift Cards and given to the local Food Pantry selected by each store.

In addition to the gift cards Meijer is donating $100,000 in gift cards to help the participating food pantries stock their shelves this winter. This gift will be divided among the 185 participating food pantries.

The program will continue through December 24. At the completion of the program Meijer will donate all of the proceeds to Food Finders Food Bank.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Heart of America Grazing Conference scheduled for Jan. 21-22 in Columbus, Ind., will help growers take advantage of improved grazing systems.

“We hope to create an awareness of some of the niche markets that exist such as raising pastured pork, pastured poultry, replacement dairy heifers or grazing stocker calves,” said Brad Shelton, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service educator and co-conference planner. “If youre selling commodity beef at an auction barn, you have to take what they are willing to pay, but you can help determine your own bottom line with value-added products.

“If you can become more efficient and utilize your pasture and land, reduce costs on feed and fertilizer, you are likely to be more profitable in these uncertain times.”

Shelton said organizers also hope attendees receive a better understanding of grazing in general.

The conference, at the Holiday Inn, will cover a variety of topics, including forage growth and development, ultra-high stock density grazing, getting started in management-intensive grazing, and improving the existing management-intensive grazing system, Shelton said.

The conference will begin with registration and a trade show from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Jan. 21, followed by a brief welcome and dinner.

Joel Salatin, owner of Polyface Inc., of Swoope, Va., will be the featured speaker. Salatin will discuss his operation, which includes the raising and marketing of salad bar beef, pigaerator pork, pastured poultry, forage-based rabbits and forestry products.

Early registration is due Dec. 19 and costs $65 per person or $55 for the second individual from the same farm or operation for the full conference. Early registration to attend one day of the conference costs $40 per person and $35 for the second individual from the same farm. After Dec. 19, registration costs $75 for the full conference and $50 for one day. Checks should be made payable to the Indiana Forage Council and mailed to Keith Johnson, 915 West State St., West Lafayette, IN 47907. Meals with registration after Jan. 15 cannot be guaranteed. More information and a registration brochure are available at http://www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/forages/

Topics and speakers include:

• Patriotic tribute, Garry Lacefield, University of Kentucky Extension forage specialist.
• Understanding forage growth and development of grasses and legumes, Ray Smith, University of Kentucky Extension specialist, and Lacefield.
• Ultra-high stock density grazing, Salatin.
• Getting started in management of intensive grazing, Robert Zupancic and Susannah Hinds, Natural Resources Conservation Service specialists.
• Keeping management-intensive grazing going, Charlie Carter, Carterly Family Farms in Thorntown, Ind.
• Marketing your farm-raised products, Salatin.
• Using sheep and goats in a grazing environment, Lori Snyder and Mike Neary, Purdue Extension specialists.
• Economic flexibility in grazing stockers and replacement dairy heifers, Dave Nuhring, Grazing Systems Supply.
• Alternative forages in our grazing operations, Keith Johnson, Purdue Extension forage management specialist; Brett Glick from Columbus; and Roger Robinson from Orleans, Ind.

A block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn at Columbus for $79 plus tax until Dec. 19. The hotel is located east of Interstate 65 at Exit 68 in south central Indiana.

For questions and more information contact Shelton at (812) 883-4601 or sheltonb@purdue.edu.

The conference is sponsored by the Indiana Forage Council, Indiana Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative, Missouri Forage and Grassland Council, Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative, Purdue Extension, Ohio State University Extension, University of Illinois Extension, University of Kentucky Extension, University of Missouri Extension and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.

ANDERSON, Ind. — Teams of high school students are invited to compete at the second annual Web design contest, offered by the Purdue College of Technology at Anderson/Muncie.

The event will be held from 9:15 a.m. to noon Feb. 27 at the Purdue campus at Anderson University Flagship Center, 2705 Enterprise Drive off Interstate 69, Exit 22.

All high schools in east-central Indiana are welcome to send teams, and there is no cost for schools to compete. Applications to enter must be received by Feb. 2.

Teams can create a Web site on any subject they choose and can compete in three classes: hand-coded sites, editor-created sites or flash/shockwave sites, said Gary Randolph, organizer of the contest and an associate professor of computer and information technology.

He said the objective of the competition is to challenge high school students to apply what they are learning about Web creation in school to create sites that educate and serve their communities.

At the event, students will present their finished work to the judges and other teams. The entries will be evaluated based on Web site content, design and style, coding, documentation, and the oral presentation. Students also will have the opportunity to hear a speaker from the Web design industry discuss Web application development.

The contest is sponsored by Innovative Technical Solutions of Pendleton, DELTEC Information Solutions of Muncie, ROAT Corp. of Fishers and WSI of Indianapolis.

Last year, 48 contestants from five area schools competed. The winning entries from 2008 are posted online at http://www.I69Exit22.com, a Web site for community engagement projects created by students at the Purdue College of Technology at Anderson.

Entry applications and additional details about the contest can be found at http://www.tech.purdue.edu/anderson/webcontest.

For questions about the contest, contact Randolph at (765) 648-2906 or gbrandolph@purdue.edu.

The College of Technology’s Anderson location offers bachelor’s degrees in industrial technology and organizational leadership and supervision, associate degrees in computer and information technology and organizational leadership and supervision, and courses in electrical engineering technology. The Muncie location offers an associate degree in mechanical engineering technology.