COMING
Wednesday Swimming event Commitment To Community
WEATHER: Slight chance of rain. High, 86, low 65. Page 3.
INSIDE: Five films about strong women. Page 5.
INSIDE: Lehman tennis duo wins sectional. Page 9.
M O N DAY, M AY 2 0 , 2 0 1 3
VOLUME 130, NUMBER 100
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Rain doesn’t put damper on The Big Day BY BETHANY J. ROYER Staff Writer broyer@civitasmedia.com PIQUA — The Big Day event leaders can now add the tagline: Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor … well, at least nor rain after Saturday as volunteers came out in droves reof gardless Mother Nature’s persnickety indecisiveness to clean up the city. it Whether was volunteers from Ginghamsburg Church U n i t e d Methodist renewing the landscape at the 36 East/I-75 Interchange, the Southview Neighborhood Association attending to Mote Park, Team Home Depot transforming the exterior of Sandra Getzendiner’s home, Piqua Rotary Club cleaning downtown, the Piqua Area Chamber of Commerce sprucing up Veteran’s Memorial Park, P&R Specialty Inc. attending to the trails, or Government Academy alumni re-paint-
ing safety zones at area schools, the rainy weather was greeted with a shrug of the shoulders and a multitude of smiles. “We’ve got some rain, but it is no big deal,” Bill Lutz said while in communication with Tony Miltenberger, director of adult discipleship at Ginghamsburg, who was an integral part of bringing church members for the Change the World initiative to the city project such as Keith and Cecelia Stoler. Not only members of the church, Keith on Ginghamsburg’s media team, the couple, “Live in Piqua, plus I work for the city,” said Cecilia who works in the health department. “I’ve been with the city 29 years and I was born and raised in Piqua. We’ve been married going on 32 years and we’ve always lived in Piqua.” Minus the rain, the Stolers were excited about the day’s event — their first time — with the com-
bination of living and working in the city along with being part of the church that brought them to volunteer. While Ginghamsburg members were busy at the another Interchange, group worked side-by-side at Sandra Gretzendiner’s home on South Main. Home Depot, Casto Landscaping, and members of the Housing Enhancement League of Piqua were busy painting, powerwashing and landscaping. ISAAC HALE/STAFF PHOTO “We are doing great,” Jason Pierce retrieves a brick from a fellow volunteer as he works at the resiMark Casto of Casto dence of Sandra Getzendiner on South Main Street Saturday morning as a part of “The Big Day.” With 15 organizations in addition to other volunteers, “The Big See Big Day/Page 2 Day” helped the city and its residents make Piqua a more beautiful place. ISAAC HALE/STAFF PHOTO
Amy Booher, along with other volunteers from Ginghamsburg Church, pull weeds on the I-75 and U.S. 36 interchange and prepare the area to be landscaped Saturday during “The Big Day” held all over Piqua. Ginghamsburg Church was one of 15 organizations, along with other volunteers, that pitched in during the day.
Call staffers win AP awards
Commish Curtain call for a class act to host state rep Editor’s Note: It is with sadness that we say goodbye to contributing writer John Hauer. He has provided us with a feature Class Act story for our Monday editions for the past five years. We will miss him and his stories about our Piqua teachers and educators. But, we wish him a happy retirement!
BY BETHANY J. ROYER Staff Writer broyer@civitasmedia.com PIQUA — State Representative Richard Adams will make a special appearance at Tuesday’s commission meeting to present an Eagle Scout state award. fter five years at Piqua High School This marks the second and 44 years in education, I am remeeting of the month that will host one ordinance tiring, again. I have written 170 and nine resolutions, be- Class Act stories. My purpose always has ginning with a first readbeen to share and showcase the amazing ing to authorize changing a zoning designation. Res- staff of Piqua City Schools. PCS and the olutions to be discussed Piqua community have been very good to will include amending a me, and I hope that I have been good for total payment to Physio- them. Control for purchase of an —Thank you and goodbye, additional one-year servJohn Hauer ice agreement, spare batteries, monitor paper and adapters. These items tie into a federal grant received by the fire department for the replacement of two heart monitor/deCOLUMBUS (AP) — repeatedly that the fibrillators that will soon Ohio’s unemployment state’s economy and its be outdated and must be rate fell slightly to 7 per- job market are getting cent in April after being stronger, but the process See Commish/Page 2 stuck at 7.1 percent the will be slow. two previous months, acOhio’s unemployment Index cording to state data re- rate peaked at 10.6 percent during the last half Classified ....................13 leased Friday. The mostly static seaof 2009 and early 2010 Opinion ..........................4 sonally adjusted rate so before beginning its trek Comics ..........................8 far this year followed downward. January Entertainment ...............5 months of incremental marked the first time the Local ..............................3 decreases, according to rate failed to decline or Obituaries......................2 numbers from the Ohio at least remain steady Sports.......................9-11 Department of Job and since July 2011. Weather .........................3 Family Services. But The U.S. Department Next Door ......................6 Ohio’s jobless rate still of Labor reported payNation ..........................12 has remained below the rolls expanded by national rate, which was 165,000 jobs nationally 7.5 percent in April and in April, and the 7.5 per7.6 percent in March. cent unemployment rate In April 2012, the Ohio was a four-year low. jobless rate was 7.4 per- However, analysts say 6 2 cent. the numbers don’t show 7 4 8 2 5 8 2 1 0 1 Ohio leaders have said explosive job growth by
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MIKE ULLERY/STAFF PHOTO
Ohio unemployment dips slightly any measure. State officials reported that the number of nonagricultural jobs in Ohio increased 7,600 in April, to 5,183,000, according to the latest business establishment survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor, in conjunction with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. The number of unemployed workers in Ohio in April was 400,000. That was down from 407,000 in March. The number of unemployed in the state has decreased 21,000 in the past year. Goods-producing industries in Ohio gained 800 jobs in April. The 2,400 increase in manu-
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facturing jobs offset job losses totaling 1,600 in construction and mining and logging. Private service-providing industries gained 7,400 jobs. Employment was up by 5,300 jobs in leisure and hospitality, along with gains in trade, transportation and utilities, and educational and health services. Job losses were seen in professional and business services, financial activities and information. Government employment was 746,000 for the month, down by 600 jobs. Losses in federal government employment outpaced gains in state government.
STAFF REPORT PIQUA — Piqua Daily Call Sports Editor Rob Kiser and Chief Photographer took home awards Sunday f r o m the ann u a l Associa t e d Press Society of Ohio awards b a n q u e t , KISER held in Columbus. The Call was notified in March t h a t the two editor i a l staffers h a d b e e n s e lected for spec i f i c ULLERY categories in sports and photography and would be awarded placement during Sunday’s event. The Daily Call is a Division 1 newspaper, which is based on a circulation up to 7,999. The following awards were presented Sunday.• Best Photographer, First Place, Mike Ullery. Judges comments: “Nice blend of quality news, feature and sports images.” • Best Sports Event Coverage, First Place, Rob Kiser, “State Track Meet.” See Awards/Page 2