5th Grade: A student walked into class and said, “This is the best part of the day.”

2nd Grader: “Thank you God for LifeWise.”

Teacher: “What do we learn about at LifeWise?” Student: “We learn about Jesus and all He has done.”

Teacher: “Why do you come to LifeWise?”

~ Elementary Students: “To learn about God and Jesus!” “To learn Bible” “The Bible is true” “To learn about how God loves us and about Jesus.”

~ Jr High Students: “To learn to evangelize so I can make heaven crowded!” “To learn about the Bible and more things and how things happened in the past. I love being here!” “To learn more about God, Holy Spirt and Bible”

~ High Schoolers: “To get closer to God and make me a better human being.” “To learn more about God, Jesus and the Bible.” “To make my connection with God better and learn more about His life.” “Because I want a stronger relationship with God.” “I come to get closer to God and learn more about God, through the school day and with friends.” “I am coming to LifeWise to further my relationship with God and continue to grow as a Christian and learn more about the Bible.”

Questions

1st Grader: “Is God actually real?”

5th Grader: “If God is up there, how was the devil made?”

5th Grader: “What would have happened if Adam and Eve didn’t eat the apple?”

Student: “How did God get here?”

Student: “How did God get made?”

East Allen County Schools (EACS) proudly honored former Board of School Trustees member Terry Jo Lightfoot during the ribbon cutting ceremony of the new Leo Fieldhouse, officially dedicating the state-of-the-art facility in recognition of her more than 20 years of outstanding service, unwavering leadership, and extraordinary commitment to East Allen County Schools and the Leo community.

Throughout her years of dedicated service, Lightfoot demonstrated a deep passion for public education, a steadfast commitment to student success, and a genuine love for the community she so faithfully served. Her leadership, vision, and tireless advocacy have enriched the lives of countless students, staff, families, and residents throughout the district.

Terry Jo Lightfoot’s legacy is not simply measured by the number of years she served, but by the countless lives she touched, the relationships she built, and the lasting difference she made.

The dedication of the new Leo Fieldhouse serves as a fitting and lasting tribute to a woman whose commitment to education and community has helped shape the future of East Allen County Schools.

For generations to come, this facility will stand as a reminder of her dedication, service, and belief in creating opportunities for ALL students.

East Allen County Schools extends its heartfelt appreciation to Terry Jo Lightfoot for her remarkable years of service and the enduring impact she has made on the district and the Leo community.

While her years of service on the Board may have come to an end, her legacy will continue to inspire generations of students who walk through the doors of the new Leo Fieldhouse.

Thank you, Terry Jo Lightfoot, for more than two decades of service, leadership, and love for the EACS community. Your legacy will live on!

East Allen County Schools (EACS) proudly celebrated the official ribbon cutting of the new Leo Fieldhouse on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, marking an exciting and historic milestone for the Leo community and the entire EACS district.

The new state-of-the-art fieldhouse represents EACS’ continued commitment to providing outstanding facilities and opportunities that support students, staff, and the community. This impressive addition to Leo Jr./Sr. High School will serve as a valuable resource for athletics, student activities, school programs, and community events for generations to come.

The ribbon cutting ceremony brought together district leadership, school board members, local dignitaries, staff, students, and community supporters to celebrate this remarkable achievement and the bright future it represents.

More than just a building, the new Leo Fieldhouse represents an investment in students, a commitment to excellence, and a lasting legacy for the Leo community. It is a place where students will develop teamwork, leadership, discipline, and school pride while creating memories that will last a lifetime.

East Allen County Schools extends its sincere appreciation to everyone whose vision, dedication, and support helped make this project a reality.

As EACS continues to grow and enhance educational opportunities throughout the district, the new Leo Fieldhouse stands as another example of its commitment to Educating ALL students for success.

By: Makenna Manz, Paulding FFA Reporter

It’s that time of year again, the Paulding FFA is starting their annual fruit fundraiser. The event kicked off on Thursday, October 8th, and will end October 30th when all orders must be put in the google form by the Paulding FFA member. Our members will be offering citrus fruit, nuts, Ohio apples, BBQ sauce, beef jerky, pineapples and butter braids. 

This year, the chapter will also be offering new types of beef jerky. This is one of the Paulding FFA Chapter’s largest fundraisers with all proceeds going to benefit the chapter and its members. 

If interested in some fruit or other items please contact the Paulding FFA Chapter Ag department at 419-399-4656, extension 1170, or one of your local Paulding FFA members. 

The items will come in and be delivered the week of December 2nd. We want to thank the community in advance for their continued support of our Paulding FFA Chapter. 

Paulding High School announced their September Students of the Month. They are the following (l-r): Freshman: Piper Pease, Sophomore: Addy Halter, Junior: Aly White, Senior: Audrey Stoller.

Teagan Bland, Audrey Etter, and Elizabeth Cortes-Becerra earned Paulding Middle School’s September student of the month for their respective grades. Each student received a month-long movie pass for their family to the Van Wert Cinema and a yard sign. Congratulations ladies!

This summer, the Wayne Trace High School Gymnasium got a much-anticipated refresh as the gym floor was sanded and professionally refinished, giving the space a new look for our students, athletes, staff and community. The refinishing is part of the regular long term maintenance needed to preserve the gym floor and keep it in good working order. The updated finish has brought a noticeable brightness to the gymnasium, and a new design for the entire floor has given the gym an updated look.

Wayne Trace Local Schools would like to extend a sincere thank you to our gym floor sponsor, The Antwerp Exchange Bank, for their generous support and investment in this project. Their sponsorship played an important role in making the gym floor renovation possible and reflects the strong partnership between our school and local business community.

Antwerp Exchange Bank is a locally owned and operated community bank with locations in Harlan, Antwerp and Payne, and a new location now open in Paulding. Their support of this project is a great example of the impact local businesses can have when they invest in the students and communities they serve.

This project also provided an opportunity to partner with other local businesses as well. The gym floor refinishing was completed by Heritage Floors, a Putnam County business, while the floor design and layout were created by Natural Design & Graphics, a Paulding County business. Partnerships like this allow us to make improvements that directly benefit our students and our community.”

The project required planning and adjustments throughout the summer and the start of the school year while the gym was out of commission. Seeing our students and community back in the gym and hearing the positive feedback on the new look has made the process well worth the wait.

“We are very excited about the finished product,” said Wayne Trace Athletic Director Kristen Stabler. “This was one of my first highly visible projects as Athletic Director, and there were a lot of details and decisions that our administration worked through together throughout the process. It has been rewarding to see the finished product and, most importantly, to hear the feedback from our students and community. Their excitement about the new look has made all of the planning and decisions that went into the project worthwhile.

“I also want to thank our coaches and staff for their flexibility and patience while the gym was closed for the project. Taking the gym out of commission for several weeks required adjustments and changes to practices, classes and other activities, and we truly appreciate everyone’s cooperation. 

Wayne Trace Local Schools is proud to have this project completed through the support and collaboration of local businesses and community partners. We are grateful to everyone who played a part in this project. 

HAVILAND, OH – The Wayne Trace Lady Raiders faced a tough challenge on their home court at The Palace on October 2, as the visiting Tinora Rams rolled to a three-set victory in volleyball action.

Tinora wasted little time establishing control, taking the opening set 25-16 before holding off Wayne Trace for a 25-19 victory in the second. The Rams continued their momentum into the third set, pulling away for a 25-14 win to complete the 3-0 sweep.

Despite the loss, several Wayne Trace players turned in solid performances. Amber Stoller led the Lady Raiders’ offensive attack with 11 kills, while Brenna Beining added six kills and a service ace. Megan Parker provided a strong presence at the net, recording three blocks.

Defensively, Kinlee Miller led Wayne Trace with eight digs, while Emma Whitman and Karsyn Troth each contributed seven. Whitman also added five assists and a service ace, while Olivia Zartman directed the offense with a team-high eight assists and an ace.

Tinora’s balanced offensive attack proved difficult for Wayne Trace to contain. Ella Schaublin directed the Rams’ offense with an impressive 35 assists while adding five digs. Macy Behnfeldt provided strong defensive support with 17 digs and contributed five assists.

The victory improved Tinora’s season record to 14-4, continuing an impressive stretch of success that has seen the Rams win 37 of their last 43 matches dating back to last season.

For Wayne Trace, the loss dropped the Lady Raiders to 4-13 on the season. Despite recent struggles on their home court, the Raiders have shown signs of improvement, posting a 3-2 record since snapping a five-match losing streak.

Prayer

1st Grader: “I love to pray. I pray at home, at night and in the morning.”

2nd Grader: “Can Jesus be talking to us right now and we hear Him?”

4th Grader: “Can we pray for the entire class time?”

Lesson

Teacher: “What was God warning?” 3rd Grader: “You will die if you eat the bad fruit.”

Teacher: “When the people looked at the snake on the pole they were healed!” 3rd Grader: “But it was not the bronze snake that did the healing, it was God!”

Teacher: “What is sacrifice?” 4th Grader: “To give God something that you really love!”

Teacher: “What does you must be born again mean?” 5th Grader: “It’s not going back into your mother’s womb, it’s repenting.”

Teacher: “What is grace?” 6th Grader: “Giving you something good you may not deserve.”

6th Grader: “We are made in God’s image to do His work, to help others.”

Character Education

1st Grade: A student ended up with a bag of crayons with not many colors in it. Another student shared theirs without being told to. This was showing great reliability – which is one of the 3Rs of classroom conduct in LifeWise.

Student: “Jensen didn’t have a glue stick, so I gave him mine.”

The Oakwood Elementary KA Sweet Kids and KB Super Kids recently completed ABC Boot Camp.  They spent 26 days reviewing and learning letters and sounds.  We celebrated with an ABC Parade through the school while the other grade levels lined the hallways to cheer us on!  We finished the parade outside so our families could see too. We also held our first Family Reading Day of the year outside.  It was a wonderful opportunity to share books, sunshine and time together.  Way to go, Sweet Kids and Super Kids! We’re proud of you.  Keep working hard in Kindergarten!

Pictured above are the 2026 Paulding High School’s Homecoming Court, crowning will take place Friday, October 9th at Paulding’s Homecoming Football game: (top, l-r) Junior Tyler Goyings, Senior Grady Arend, Senior Emmett Barnes, Senior Avery Cooper, Senior Jalan Manz, Sophomore Lincoln Manz, Freshman Tucker Stoller. Front Row Left to Right: Junior Gabby Stork, Senior Jayla Griffith, Senior Tori Schlatter, Senior Libby Breier, Senior Estie Pease, Sophomore Paityn Dobbelaere, Freshman Preslee Cline.