Rough road to recovery for Griffith boy

Griffith resident Blake Loudenber, pictured here in March 2012 when he was 8, continues to recover from surgery that gave him a new kidney.

Baseball hat DNA leads to bank robbery charges

Portage police cars sit outside a the Chase Bank at Willowcreek and Lute Roads in Portage after it was robbed on Monday, May 14, 2012.

Baseball hat DNA leads to bank robbery charges

The Lake County Police helicopter searches an area near Breckenridge Apartments in Portage after a nearby Chase Bank was robbed on May 14, 2012.

Consider all options on animal shelter

Porter County Animal Shelter veterinarian technician Ashley Dec plays with a few of the dogs rescued from a Westchester Township home in this January photo. The dogs were being housed across from the animal shelter at a converted chapel.

Jackson urges development of Pullman area as national park

A woman walks by some homes in the Pullman Historic District on the South Side of Chicago in May.

Jackson urges development of Pullman area as national park

In late May, Flowers line the side of a home in the historic Pullman neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago. U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. wants to make the Pullman neighborhood a national park.

Porter County Rescued Dogs

Porter County Animal Shelter veteranarian technician Ashley Dec plays with a few of the dogs rescued from a Westchester Township home in January. The dogs were being housed across from the animal shelter at a converted church building.

Johnny Mathis

Livemercial CEO Johnny Mathis stands at the reception desk of his company in Valparaiso in this Times file photo taken Jan. 12, 2010.

Skaters, bikers elected to skatepark committee

Tristan Hoopingarner, of Portage, rides on his bike at the Woodland Park skatepark in March.

Search for Roxanne Shah

Authorities from the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore search the Mount Baldy area for missing Indianapolis woman, Roxanne Shah, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011.

Bird count at the dunes

Local residents are invited to participate in bird counts at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and Indiana Dunes State Park.

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Valparaiso University sophomore Chelsey Dunleavy, center, plays soccer with Franklin Elementary sixth-grader Cesar Aceves in April during a visit by the East Chicago elementary school students to the VU campus.

Steel outlook

Smoke billows from a stack at ArcelorMittal's Burns Harbor facility. Fitch Ratings said through the end of the second quarter, most steel producers should show benefits of prices rising more than costs, improved capacity utilization and improved demand for value-added steels

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Portage Master Patrolman Flora Akers-Ryan recently learned she has breast cancer. A benefit is planned for Saturday in Portage which will include a poker run and a fundraiser.

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Majestic Star I casino revenues plunged to $8.67 million in June, an almost 21 percent drop from last year's June take. Majestic Star II revenues were down 7.9 percent. Northwest Indiana casino revenues in June were down $1.25 million from a year ago, a sign the recession blues are starting …