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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2013
Small Business Saturday, Buckeyes-Wolverines day collide DUSTIN ENSINGER densinger@civitasmedia.com
DUSTIN ENSINGER | Gazette
Tammi Furlong, owner of Fundamentals, prepares for Small Business Saturday.
Lammon to seek nod for judgeship
Downtown Delaware merchants hopes to be swamped with customers today during Small Business Saturday, but some fear shopping enthusiasm will be sapped. Small Business Saturday, created by credit card giant American Express to encourage people to shop locally, falls one day after the biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday. This year, it also happens to land on a very big day for central Ohioan, the annual showdown between Ohio State and Michigan on the grid-
iron. “I was a little disappointed when they said it was a noon game,” said Tammi Furlong, owner of Fundamentals. Nonetheless, Furlong expects to see an influx of customers as she has on Small Business Saturday in years past. “Every year it gets bigger,” she said. “I’m having people mention it ahead of time.” Furlong hopes this year’s focus on independent bookstores will draw folks into the store. The movement, “Indies First,” is in conjunction with Small Business Saturday. Denise Fleming, a Caldecott Honor Award winning
artist and Toledo resident, and J. Patrick Lewis, former U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate and a Westerville resident, will be in the store from noon to 5 p.m. The store will have specials on the authors’ books. Fundamentals will also be televising the game. Jenni Willis, co-owner of Carousel Closet, is also concerned about Small Business Saturday falling on the day of Ohio State’s biggest rivalry, but she is also concerned that consumers will be tapped out after the busiest shopping day of the See COLLISION | 3
Running for a cause Eric Anthony of Dublin crosses the finish line first at the second annual Delaware Turkey Trot. On Thanksgiving morning, nearly 900 runners gathered behind Meijer on Sunbury Road for the 5K. The event, organized by Grace United Methodist Church, registered 896 runners and raised more than $19,330 from registration fees and donations for the Autism Society of Central Ohio. In 2012, the Turkey Trot raised more than $5,000. Race organizers said that runners from as far away as Florida registered to run on the chilly holiday morning. The race also included shorter children’s runs. See related photo on Page 2.
DUSTIN ENSINGER densinger@civitasmedia.com
Pam Lammon hopes to become Delaware County’s first female judge. The local attorney aims to succeed Delaware County Juvenile Court Judge Kenneth J. Spicer, who is prevented by Ohio law for running for another term. She will face Delaware County Ju ve n i l e M a g i s t rat e D ave Hejmanowski in the Republican primary to fill the seat. Lammon was raised in Cleveland and began her professional career as a nurse. She switched gears and enrolled in law school in 1987. She moved to Delaware in 1992 and opened a private practice. She continues to maintain her nursing license. “I’ve handled literally thousands of cases over the almost 22 years I’ve been practicing as a trial attorney,” she said. Lammon said she decided to get in the race at the urging of a Republican Party Central Committee member. “I’ve never been politically active until I was asked to consider this six months ago,” she said. Lammon said Judge Spicer has done a great job on the court, and she hopes to carry on his legacy. “He’s just moving in the right direction to meet the needs of troubled teens and troubled families,” she said. However, she did say she would look to restructure the court in order to save taxpayers money. “Overall, I have a vision for the court,” she said. Her transition from attorney to judge would be a smooth one, she said. “To me it would be a seamless transition because I’m there daily, anyway,” she said. “Families have been and will continue to be my passion, whether as a nurse, an attorney or as a wife and mother,” she said The primary will be See JUDGE | 3
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STACY KESS | Gazette
Dog Park committee holds first meeting GARY BUDZAK
gbudzak@civitasmedia.com
The City of Delaware’s newly formed Dog Park Planning Committee recently held its first meeting. The six-member committee came up with a mission statement/goal “to create a dog park that adds to the quality of life in the City of Delaware” at its meeting on Nov. 21. “I’d like it to be in the top 10 in the country,”
said committee chair Lori Midkiff. “Let’s make it something we can all be proud of,” added vice chair Don Shannon. The next objective for the committee is to establish a location for the dog park. Parks Superintendent Stacy Davenport said that a park could be considered at Blue Limestone, Smith, Mill Run Wetlands park, another city park or a city-owned property that hasn’t been devel-
oped. He said that a park without a parking lot would add to the cost of the park. Shannon said he hoped a location would be determined by March 2014. The dog park, which costs an estimated $75,000, would be open in the spring or summer of 2015. Members also discussed the design parameters of the park. Among the topics was how many sections it would have.
Some said there should separate sections for dogs over and under 30 pounds, while others suggested additional sections in case the grass is worn down or a water feature. Also discussed were rules for use of the dog park, such as owners need to pick up after their dog. Members said they hoped that owners would be self-policing about clean-up and dog
behavior. Davenport said he would invite Darren Hurley, Worthington’s Parks and Recreation Director, to speak at a future meeting about his experiences in opening a dog park. City Council approved the formation of a committee that would make recommendations “on the planning, siting and development and operation of a Dog Park” at its meeting on Nov. 11.
Delaware Highway Patrol names Trooper, Dispatcher of the Year STACY KESS
skess@civitasmedia.com
The Ohio State Highway Patrol Delaware Post named its Trooper of the Year and Dispatcher of the Year this week. Trooper Nicholas Shaw and dispatcher Michelle Thrash were honored with the 2013 awards. “This is the best recognition you can get,” Shaw said. “It says something highly of you if it’s a recognition you can get.” Thrash agreed. “It means a lot,” she said. “It was a shock at first, but then I’ve seen that my coworkers were pleased with my work.”
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The awards are given to a trooper and dispatcher chosen by their peers at the post. “It’s from the people you work with every day,” Shaw said. Shaw’s peers chose him for his leadership abilities, professional ethics, courteous treatment of others, enthusiastic work attitude and cooperation with supervisors, peers and the public, said Post Commander Lt. Kevin Knapp. Knapp said Thrash was chosen by management and other dispatchers and communications technicians for her award based on her technical job knowledge and ability, enthusiastic work attitude, teamwork and prompt
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and courteous response to the public’s requests for information and assistance. Thrash, 43, of Etna, joined the Highway Patrol in 2002 as a trooper after her first husband passed. She said she needed a career to support her and her daughter. She worked first at the Lancaster post then joined the Athens post and worked for the Governor’s Detail under Taft and Strickland before joining the Delaware post. After she was injured earlier this year, Thrash transferred into the role of dispatcher. “It was a hard transition but I’ve made the most out of it and I’m still with the division,” she
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said. “I was asked today if I miss being a trooper and I said yes.” Thrash, who beat breast cancer seven years ago and married her husband Cecil in March, said the honor has made that transition easier. Shaw, 34, of Centerburg, joined in 2002 and graduated the academy in February 2003. He said he wanted to be a state trooper from the time he was 8 years old, when his uncle was stopped by a state trooper as he was driving Shaw and his cousins home from a movie. “I was impressed and that image stuck with me,” he said.
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