At Obi’s Barbeque, house manager Malia said things may shift with students gone but they remain busy. 

“Yeah you feel it when IWU comes back but with people being out of school some of them do stay here and their parents will come to visit them. School’s out for kids, everybody’s able to get out and do more,” Malia said. 

She said that summer brings Obi’s busy catering season. 

“A lot of people tend to get married in the summertime, so we also do a lot of catering,” Malia said. 

Obi’s plans to expand this coming summer with hopes to open a new location in Hartford City by mid-June. 

Ashley’s Ice Cream is preparing for its first full summer under new ownership. Tyler Hewitt bought the business in November and said he is looking forward to what the season brings. 

“I haven’t got to experience summer yet but I have seen the couple of warm days we’ve had, we’ve been slammed and lined up out the door,” Hewitt said. 

Hewitt said that with many students gone there might be a shift, but recognizes the presence of Marion’s local community. 

“I’m sure there’ll be an effect with IWU and Taylor going home, but at the same time, I think Marion’s a big enough community where we’re still going to have a lot of people coming in,” Hewitt said. 

Hewitt said Ashley’s is planning a series of summer events, including a movie night, concert and outdoor games. 

“I think, like, sky’s the limit for the courtyard, so I’m just trying to get more ideas of stuff to have out there,” Hewitt said. 

Elevate Nutrition is preparing to celebrate its one-year anniversary. Owner Kayla Taylor said she is looking forward to the shop’s celebration in May.

“May 16 we’re gonna have a big party treated like a customer appreciation day, where there’ll be special shakes, giveaways,and lots of decor for everybody to celebrate the one year,” Taylor said.

“There’s always some absolutely amazing work in there, and they have everything from photography to watercolor, you know, kind of a neat combination of different media,” Librarian Barbara Enslen said. 

The categories include oil, acrylic, watercolor, drawing, mixed media and photography. Winners of each category will receive cash prizes. 

Laurie Gates, Grant County Art Association secretary said she is excited for this year’s show. 

“Every year is a little different, we never know if we’re gonna have more oils, more acrylics, more watercolors or what,” Gates said. 

Last year, Judy Keilholtz, a Grant County Art Association member won best of show. 

“This year I’ve been too busy to really put much into the show but I’m looking forward to seeing all the other artist’s work,” Keilholtz said. 

Adults 18 and older can enter up to six pieces.Each entry costs $10 and must be submitted on April 5, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on the second floor of the Marion Public Library. 

Entry forms are available at the Marion Public Library reference desk or can be requested by emailing grantcountyartassociation@yahoo.com. 

The art will be on exhibit from April 5 through May 1, 2025.

The event will feature new updates, bingo, prizes and food served by The Kitchen Company, a program designed for career training for people with disabilities. 

“Denim and Diamonds every year is an opportunity for us to partner with the community and celebrate people with disabilities, the families and children that we serve in Early Head Start, and share updates,” Allbaugh, CEO of Carey Services said. “We wanted to bring the community into our facilities here on our main campus in Marion to really let folks see where  the magic is happening,” 

Kelly Scher, vice president of advancement at Carey Services, said recent renovations also influenced the decision to host the event on campus. 

“So this year’s Denim and Diamonds is being held on our campus in Marion. This is being done as a way to showcase some of the new space that we have renovated in the last year and a half and talk through some new and exciting things that we have in vision for the future,” Scher said. 

Each year, Denim and Diamonds celebrates diversity and inclusion through its dress code. 

“When you think of denim and diamonds, you think of your denim as being more casual and your diamonds a little more dressed up. And so that’s similar to the idea that we’re very different from one another,” Scher said. 

“When we all come together, we make a great community that’s diverse and inclusive, and that’s what we celebrate. So we encourage people to dress however they want,” Scher said. 

In the past, attendees have ranged from those in T-shirts and jeans to others in elegant evening gowns. 

Teresa and Troy Cass have attended Denim and Diamonds for the past two years. “It’s been a true celebration, the years we’ve attended,” Teresa Cass said. 

A large goal of the event is to help raise money and awareness around Carey Services and their mission.

“I think this event allows the community to not only financially support Carey Services, but get an inside look at all Carey Services has to offer,” Teresa Cass said. 

The chocolate walk is an opportunity for local, small businesses to volunteer and pass out chocolate candies to the community. 

Dawn Conwell previously sat on the Historic Marion board and spearheaded this year’s chocolate walk. 

“It’s something fun that the community can participate in, also getting the community involved in supporting a not for profit,” Conwell said. 

This year, Historic Marion was chosen because they’re newly formed. 

“A lot of the people on the board either work downtown or are business owners downtown, and just really have a heart for, you know, making the downtown a better place,” Conwell said. 

Abby Hewitt, a staff member at Ashely’s Ice Cream, described some of Historic Marion’s initiatives. 

“They’re working on getting some new murals, benches, enhancing the green space, thinking about ways that they can improve the building facades and whatnot,” Hewitt said. 

Ashley’s Ice Cream gave out chocolate ice cream as their contribution to the event. 

“We’re actually giving out a miniature scoop of ice cream since that’s, you know, kind of what we do here,” Hewitt said. 

Julie Harbert and Gary Harbert both participated in the chocolate walk as a part of their Valentines celebration. 

“The chocolate cheesecake that we got looks really good, and all of it looks really delicious,” Julie Harbert said. 

The Hive Mind Market gave out Rob’s Kitchen chocolate cheesecake. 

Rebecca, the owner of Hive Mind Market, was intentional about supporting a small business during the event as a small business owner herself. 

“It was important for me to support a local maker, to help promote them and connect them with the community,” Rebecca said.