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Volume 51, No. 20
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CHESTERLAND NEWS Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Your Community Newspaper Since 1967
Kathi’s Tailors Tack Stitches Up a Must-See Bridal Fair March 9
By Beth Brown editor@geaugamapleleaf.com
Kathi Roloson, owner of Kathi’s Tailors Tack in Chester Township for the past 35 years, has never been one to shy away from a challenge. She got her start in alterations in Nashville, Tenn., where she was honored to work on garments for some of the biggest stars of the time, including Johnny Cash and Charley Pride. Roloson does not like to focus on the celebrity clients of her past, however, preferring to treat each of her present customers with care and attention as they walk through the doors of her shop. “I’ve always loved to sew,” Roloson said in a recent interview, as she gestured around her shop.
“People have a misconception when they hear the word ‘tailor.’ I tell them, if they can’t make a garment, they’re not a tailor. There are things that have to be taken into consideration when you alter a garment. It’s not just taking up waists and hems. You have to understand construction.” When Anna Fahringer joined Roloson’s shop a year and a half ago, she noted an increase in the amount of bridal requests she was receiving. Intake swelled from roughly 15 to 60 weddings per year, in part thanks to Fahringer’s experience as a bridal specialist. With a major in apparel design and nearly a decade in bridal alterations, Fahringer’s skills added to Roloson’s. See Bridal Fair • Page 10
Lindsey in Lockdown After Report of Suspicious Man Staff Report At 12:30 p.m. March 1, three Lindsey Elementary School students reported seeing someone, possibly with a gun, in the woods near the playground, West Geauga Schools Superintendent Richard Markwardt and Chester Township Police Chief Mark Purchase said in a letter to district parents. “The school was placed in lockdown temporarily as police investigated the situation,” they said. “No
evidence was discovered to substantiate the report of an individual and/ or weapon being in the vicinity.” The lockdown was lifted at approximately 1:30 p.m. “However, as a precaution, students remained indoors for the balance of the school day and students who walk to and from school (were) retained at the building until parents pick(ed) them up at the end of the school day,” the officials said, adding the district resource officer remained on site.
BETH BROWN/KMG
Anna Fahringer and Kathi Roloson displays a dress that features the bustling work available through their tailoring and alteration services.
The First One Hundred Years Chester Township Fire Levy on May 7 Ballot By Sylvia Wiggins 911 . . . What is your emergency? Whether you have a fire or are in a motor vehicle accident, or a loved one has a medical emergency, minutes matter. You can be thankful Chester Township Fire Rescue is on the job. Residents were not so lucky 100 years ago. Community-based fire protection began in 1923. At that time, the local telephone operator received emergency calls.
She, in turn, called a list of volunteers who went to the scene. By 1925, Chester Township Trustees had purchased some fire extinguishers which were placed in various homes and businesses. Then a fire call number — 3456 — was established. It rang in four different homes, but volunteers still only had those hand-held fire extinguishers to combat the flames. Things changed dramatically at the beginning of World War II See Levy • Page 8