Judge: Head Start case dismissal stands
as well as his order dated Feb. 25, 2022, dismissing the charges against both defendants.
ELYRIA — Lorain County
Common Pleas Judge Chris Cook has denied requests by the city of Lorain and several of its former employees, as well as former assistant county prosecutor Jonathan Rosenbaum, to overturn his rulings in 2022 dismissing the charges in the 1990s Head Start child abuse case.
The city also was acting on behalf of several former Lorain police officers when both it and Rosenbaum filed motions Dec. 9 seeking “relief from judgment.”
The parties had asked Cook to vacate both an order he handed down Dec. 29, 2021, granting Nancy Smith and Joseph Allen permission to seek a new trial,
He refused, ruling that the city and Rosenbaum “lack standing to be heard in this matter and have not sought leave” to intervene in the case, nor had they given any reason why they should be permitted to intervene.
“These motions seek relief from certain rulings and entries made by this court a number of years ago in this criminal case,” Cook wrote. “The basis for the filing of these motions is not entirely clear as none of the movants are parties to this action.”
“Should they wish, the city movants and attorney Rosenbaum may seek leave to intervene as outlined above. But for now, cased closed,” he wrote, ordering the city’s motion and
Rosenbaum’s motion both stricken from the record.
Cook also wrote that he was concerned the victims in the case, who have a right to be heard, weren’t aware of the filings.
He further speculated that the case had to do with a pending wrongful conviction lawsuit against the city, some of its former police officers, Lorain County, Rosenbaum and the mother of one of the victims that Smith filed in February in U.S. District Court. That case remains in front of U.S. District Judge David Ruiz.
That speculation “may, or may not, be accurate,” Cook wrote.
Message seeking comment on Cook’s ruling were left for Rosenbaum and Lorain Law Director Pat Riley.
Background
A jury convicted Smith in 1994 on felony charges of rape, attempted rape and gross sexual imposition. Common Pleas Judge Lynette McGough sentenced Smith to 30 to 90 years in prison, while Allen got five consecutive life sentences on his charges. All their appeals were denied until 2009, when then-Common Pleas Judge James Burge found Smith was entitled to a new sentencing hearing on technical grounds. Allen also was freed at that time, on bond pending further rulings. Burge threw out the case against Allen and Smith in June that year, but in 2011 The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Burge had overstepped his authority and reversed his order. Further appellate courts rulings upheld Allen
A chance encounter at Midway Mall made everyone’s heart grow three sizes
RINI JEFFERS FOR
ELYRIA — The Grinch was just walking across the food court inside Midway Mall on Sunday, looking to steal his way into some children’s holiday photos, when he spotted her. Across the way stood a tiny little white-haired lady near the Giving Tree, dotted with the Christmas wishes of underprivileged children in the county.
“This woman’s eyes locked on him and his on hers and it was kind of like this corny slow motion movie where they started to sort of walk to each other with their arms open wide,” said the Grinch’s mom, Amanda Rundle.
“He’s 6-foot-4 and she is so tiny and he was just so gentle with her, and she’s telling him ‘I love you so much’ and I was like ‘What is happening here? What is this, a made-for-TV movie?’”
The big green Grinch and the little woman pulled apart, while she was still gazing up into his crooked smile. “You don’t know how much you’ve made my day. I’ve been crying all day but God blessed me when I saw you coming in, you just changed my whole day around.”
Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools ends centennial celebration with dedication of time capsule, and other top stories from December 29, 2024.
They chatted a minute, sorting out this unusual meeting of The Granny and The Grinch, in the middle of a mostly empty mall dressed for holiday cheer. The Grinch is Jordan Newson, 20, Rundle’s son. Rundle is an Elyria photographer and during the holiday season she often takes photos of Newson, dressed as the Grinch, with families or at events. They
had come to the mall Sunday to do a photo shoot that included Newson “photobombing” or stealing into photos with little girls, acquaintances of Rundle’s. Rundle said the “Grinching” season was her idea to help her and her son during Christmas, a particularly hard time of year for them after losing her grandmoth-
er in December, 11 years ago.
“She was our hero, our superman. When she passed away right before Christmas, it just wasn’t the same. We felt very Grinch-like on Christmas because it’s hard to celebrate when the glue of your family isn’t there
and Smith’s convictions, and the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear the case.
Having served 14½ years behind bars, Smith eventually reached an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office in 2013 that granted her freedom but didn’t eliminate her felony conviction. She never went back to prison. Free for more than four years from 2009 to 2013, Allen also struck a plea deal with the Prosecutor’s Office that sent him back to prison for 10 to 25 years but left him eligible for parole. In January 2021, Burge became chief of staff at the Prosecutor’s Office when J.D. Tomlinson was elected prosecutor. Later that same year, Tomlinson said the Head Start convictions were unjust, and that he was looking to
Elyria suing insulin producers for ‘price gouging’
is awarded some kind of recovery from the claim.
Elyria is pursuing a lawsuit against six major drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers over an alleged decadeslong insulin “price gouging scheme.”
Late last month, City Council voted to approve the city entering into an agreement with Avon Lake attorney Brian Balser to represent the city’s claim that it was intentionally overcharged for insulin over more than a decade.
Law Director Amanda Deery told The Chronicle that Balser would work on contingency, so the city would only pay him if it
Balser told The Chronicle that the lawsuit, which he plans to file in the next 10 days, accuses three major insulin producers and three pharmacy benefit companies (PBCs) of working together to raise the price of insulin charged to entities that self-fund their insurance. Self-funded entities pay for employee health care and benefits out of a fund they set aside, rather than relying on a third-party insurance company.
Elyria, along with many other entities, may have overpaid for insulin by more than 75 percent over
State Highway Patrol: Two dead in two crashes during Christmas holiday
Two people were killed in crashes on Ohio roadways this Christmas holiday, the State Highway Patrol said Thursday in a news release.
The two-day Christmas reporting period began at midnight Dec. 24 and ended at 11:59 p.m. Dec. 25. Of the two people killed, one was not wearing a safety belt, and neither were in Lorain County.
Troopers working in Lorain County responded to 110 incidents, the third most statewide over the holiday, the Highway Patrol said.
Statewide, troopers arrested 44 people for DUI and 11 for illegal drugs. Troopers also issued citations for 84 safety belt and 31 distracted driving violations and assisted 434 motorists.
During last year’s four-day Christmas holiday reporting period, from Dec. 22-25, 2023, 12 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes on Ohio roads.
The public may dial #677 to report dangerous or impaired drivers, as well as drug activity, on Ohio roads.
OWEN MACMILLAN THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
DAVE O’BRIEN THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
GRINCH PAGE A2
PHOTO PROVIDED
Donna McKinney and Jordan Newson met by coincidence at Midway Mall on Sunday, then found each other through social media to make friends.
Elyria man gets 10 years in prison for fentanyl trafficking
An Elyria man was sentenced Dec. 19 to 10 years in federal prison for his role in a fentanyl trafficking scheme that stretched from central Pennsylvania to Lorain County.
Damonico Henderson, 60, of Pemberton Drive, was sentenced by Judge Matthew Brann of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Henderson pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. Upon release from prison, he will be on supervised release for five years.
According to court records, Henderson and two co-defendants from Pennsylvania manufactured and sold more than 600 grams of fentanyl, carfentanil and fentanyllike compounds. The crimes occurred between 2015 and 2019 and were investigated by the FBI and Pennsylvania State Police.
FBI agents searched Henderson’s house at 353 Pemberton Drive in Maslyk Estates on June 15, 2019, seizing undisclosed evidence and towing several cars.
INSULIN FROM A1
the past decade, Balser said.
“The bottom line is there was an increased health cost to these municipalities, counties and school boards because they were paying inflated (insulin) prices,” Balser said. “So that impacted their ability to provide affordable care for their employees and beneficiaries.”
Balser said Elyria is the first entity in the county he had worked with to file such a suit.
The drug companies named in the suit are the “big three” insulin producers; Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi. Those three companies produce roughly 90 percent of the global insulin supply.
The other companies to be named in the coming lawsuit are three of the largest pharmacy benefit companies; CVS Pharmacy, Express Scripts and Optum.
The alleged price gouging scheme was laid out in a Senate Finance Committee investigation that was concluded in 2021. The investigation found that the six companies worked together to drastically inflate how much self-funded entities were charged for the insulin used by people on their plan.
Entities across the country are filing similar suits against the named companies, and all of the cases will be heard together as
anymore,” she said. “I came up with the Grinch idea and we go see families and do Grinch photos to take our mind off of things. It makes memories for them even though we’re struggling with our own.”
The white-haired woman gave them her name too, told them her granddaughter was with her and told them whenever she had hard times, it helped her to know her granddaughter was with her. That was especially meaningful to Newson, since her son seemed to soak in those words from a grandmotherly figure he hadn’t heard in so long: “You’re an angel. God bless you. You made my day.”
In real life, Newson, who is on the autism spectrum, is not a hugger. “He’s usually anti-people-ish in normal situations,” she said, while Newson agrees.
“She reminded me of my grandmother,” he said. “I was just trying to hold back emotions.”
part of a multidistrict litigation lawsuit. In this format, the cases will undergo discovery under one federal judge in New Jersey, who may then decide all the cases or send them back to their home districts.
Balser said that the lawsuit is not a class-action lawsuit, meaning that any self-funded entity which may have a claim over the alleged price gouging must file its own individual complaint in order to receive any compensation.
“Cities, towns, counties and some school systems basically have incurred the higher cost for these inflated insulin prices,” Balser said. “It’s the self-funded (entities) that are taking the hit.
… With the multidistrict litigation, everything gets sent to the federal court in New Jersey because of our similar claims, but with this, each self-funded complainant is gonna have their own set of damages. They’ll have to go back a number of decades to see how much money was actually paid out.”
The alleged scheme
In the face of rising insulin prices in 2019, the Senate Finance Committee launched an investigation into the cause of the increase.
The investigation was released in 2021 and revealed
In his Grinch suit, Newson is a different man.
“Something happens in Whoville when that Grinch costume comes on. He becomes the Grinch. He moves like him, he acts like him, he has the voice down pat. I don’t know how to explain it,” his mom said.
One time a woman hired Rundle and Newson to “Grinch” her best friend, who had recently become the guardian of her grandchildren. The children were enchanted by Newson, sitting in a circle around him and singing “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” and ended with him rolling in the snow outside with the kids, long after the photo shoot ended.
“They didn’t want him to leave.
They were so excited they got the Grinch to finally say ‘Merry Christmas’ they followed him outside,” Rundle said. “If I’ve done nothing else right in my lifetime, I’ve got an amazing kid.
He has the softest heart you’ll ever know.”
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that PBMs and the big three insulin producers had worked together to drastically increase insulin prices despite no improvements in the efficacy of the drug or significant increase in production costs.
PBMs are third-party companies that create a health insurance plan’s formulary, the list of drugs that are covered by that plan. They essentially work as a middleman between drug producers and insurance providers, including selffunded insurance providers like Elyria.
Drug producers pay PBMs in the form of rebates, a portion of the final sale price of a drug that is kept by the PBM.
The Senate investigation found that to maintain their placement on formularies, insulin producers have offered increasingly exorbitant rebates to the big three PBMs, primarily since 2013.
In one example outlined by Beyond Type 1, a nonprofit advocacy group for people with diabetes, insulin producer Sanofi offered PBMs rebates of between 2 percent and 4 percent in 2013, but by 2018 it offered a 56 percent rebate for the exact same product.
These meteoric rises in rebate offers were mirrored between the big three insulin providers, which in turn increased the total prices of their drugs at a similar rate to maintain their own profits.
According to the American Diabetes Association,
The Grinch and The Granny parted ways without exchanging phone numbers but Rundle took to social media later that day, asking in a community Facebook page if anyone recognized the woman or her granddaughter.
Within an hour, she had the contact information for the woman, who turned out to be the grandmother of a long-time acquaintance of Rundle.
“She told me her grandma came home, talking about how she met the Grinch and he turned her whole day around,” only to find out it was someone she knew, Rundle said.
Her name is Donna McKinney, who might be the opposite of the Grinch in every way. A grandmother of 10 and greatgrandmother of 28, McKinney heads up the Sharing Christmas program that makes and delivers homemade meals for the elderly, the shut-in, the lonely or anyone needing a meal for the holiday that would not otherwise have
nationally insulin spending nearly tripled from $8 billion in 2012 to $22.3 billion in 2022, with the new cost falling largely on self-funded entities and individuals without health insurance.
All these trends together led to the Senate investigators accusing the three largest insulin producers and three largest PBMs of working “in lockstep” to artificially inflate prices.
“A vial of insulin back in 1996 went for like $33, we get to 2017 they’re up to $300 a vial and this is stuff that’s needed to save your life,” Balser said. “The big thing is first we have the price-fixing among the three main pharmaceutical companies who were basically in lockstep, and then you have the kickbacks and rebates to the pharmacy benefit managers. Basically, that’s all passed on to the self-funded entities like (Elyria).”
Balser said that PBMs that work with self-funded entities would tell an entity that it was receiving a deal because the PBMs would give them a rebate back for money the entity spent on insulin for the people it insured.
But, Balser said, a study from the University of California found that for every $1 offered as a rebate to self-funded insurers, like Elyria, PBMs and producers increased the total cost by $1.17.
“They’ve worked together and have done these illegal kickbacks to inflate the
one. It is entirely funded by donations, and entirely run by volunteers. Wednesday will be her 35th year making sure the least are not forgotten on Christmas Day.
“It was one of those days that you just wake up and you’re gloomy,” she said. She had a lot of last-minute work to do, getting ready for the holiday feast that is set to serve 633 people, delivered by almost 200 volunteers. “And I have a few little great-grandkids that I’m not going to get to see at all this year. And I saw him come in and I said to my granddaughter ‘take my purse, I’ve got to go get my picture taken with that Grinch.’”
“I was so excited, I thought to myself, ‘They’ll think Grandma Donna’s a hero! And off I went, walking towards him with my arms open,” she said. “I found out afterwards he’s been sad because he doesn’t have a grandma.”
She is sending copies of the
price, but yet they make the self-funded entity believe that they are actually giving them a rebate,” he said. “... They gave the illusion that they were passing on a benefit when they really weren’t.”
Elyria’s claim
Balser previously represented Elyria when the city participated in a national class-action lawsuit against major producers of opiates. This case is different, he said, because along with not being a class-action lawsuit as the opiates case was, the damages the city incurred can be calculated much more precisely.
Opiate lawsuit damages were paid out based on a formula established in the courts, but in the case of insulin price increased Balser said the city can determine exactly how much it paid for insulin for its beneficiaries and compare that amount to what it should have paid without the exponential increase in rebates for PBMs.
Balser said that he does not yet have a final number for what Elyria’s monetary damages claim will be, but expects it to reflect the “frightening” increase in the price of insulin over the past decade.
“I think it (the final claim amount) is going to be very surprising,” he said. “In terms of the dollar amount that not only Elyria, but other self-funded entities have paid.”
photo of she and Newson to every great-grandchild, even the one who is 28 and in the military. “And the grandkids, too. I’m showing Grandma Donna and the Grinch to all of them.”
After Newson got her phone number through the magic of social media, he sent her a message. “It was so nice to meet you. I think my heart grew three sizes today.” He signed off with love from “your Grinchy Buddie Jordan.”
She responded, telling him there are always hugs and love for him, her “Grinchy new adopted grandson.”
On the way out of the mall, Rundle and Newson found a painted rock left behind for others to find. It was marked with an angel.
“We had a Hallmark movie’s worth of moments in one day,” she said. They plan to go to brunch sometime after the Grinching season.
New year, new faces
reverse them.
Supported by Tomlinson, in December 2021 Allen and Smith asked Cook for permission to seek a new trial and then for a new trial, with the understanding that Tomlinson would then ask Cook to dismiss the nearly 30-year-old charges.
That’s exactly what happened, over the objections of Rosenbaum and several victims in the Head Start case. Smith, who was already out of prison, had her charges dismissed. Allen, who had been free on bond since December 2021, was totally freed by Cook’s February 2022 order.
Rosenbaum motion
In his motion, Rosenbaum laid out the history of the case, noting that Burge had “improperly and illegally acquitted Smith” after the Ohio Supreme Court ruled he didn’t have the jurisdiction
to do so.
Burge, he wrote, was ordered to resentence Smith but never did. She then “voluntarily” entered into an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office and was released with time served.
That agreement, Rosenbaum wrote, forbade Smith from suing over her prosecution because she agreed to “not pursue any civil or equitable actions in connection with this case, including, but not limited to, any claim for wrongful incarceration.”
That sentencing agreement, Rosenbaum wrote, was “cast aside without evidence, without a hearing, and without notice to the city of Lorain, county of Lorain” the police defendants and Rosenbaum. When that agreement was terminated, it “paved the way” for Smith to sue for wrongful conviction in federal court and the state for wrongful imprisonment, Rosenbaum wrote. Reinstating Smith’s sen-
tencing agreement would halt her federal case, he argued, saying that the sentencing agreement was a contract and that he was unaware of “the existence, contents, and termination of the sentencing agreement.”
Rosenbaum argued he is an “indispensable party who was provided neither notice nor an opportunity to be heard as an intended third-party beneficiary to the Sentencing Agreement which is a contract.”
“Nancy Smith still has her benefit to the bargain while Rosenbaum has lost his,” he wrote. “It is hard to imagine a more unjust scenario.”
Her conviction and admissions in the sentencing agreement she signed with the Prosecutor’s Office were legitimate, Rosenbaum argued.
He further argued that Tomlinson’s actions helping to dismiss the charges opened the county up to lawsuits and financial liability, and that the entire
Several new elected officials in Lorain County were sworn in ahead of the new year.
Lorain County Common Pleas General Division Judge Donna Freeman, a Democrat, and Lorain County Commissioner Marty Gallagher, a Republican, were sworn in Dec. 20.
Freeman’s six-year term starts today. Gallagher’s four-year term started Jan. 1.
During a ceremony at the Lorain County Justice Center early Friday afternoon, Domestic Relations Court Judge Frank Janik III swore her in, while Lorain County Bar Association President Adam Bryda presented her with her robe.
Later that day, state Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville, swore in Marty Gallagher in the Lorain County Administration Building. Gallagher’s mother, Donna Gallagher, held the bible he was sworn in on.
On Dec. 23, Tony Cillo was sworn in as the new Lorain County prosecutor at the county Justice Center on Court Street in Elyria. Common Pleas Judge Chris Cook, left, administered the oath of office. An Avon Lake resident, Cillo is a Republican, a former assistant Lorain County prosecutor, former assistant Ohio attorney general and most recently was associate director of the Lorain County Drug Task Force. He defeated incumbent Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson, a Democrat, in the November general election. Cillo’s term begins Jan. 6.
With at least 100 family members, supporters, attorneys and fellow judges present, Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Giovanna Bremke took the oath of office Dec. 27 at the Lorain County Justice Center.
Bremke replaces Judge James Miraldi, who was not allowed to run again for judge due to age limits. A veteran defense attorney in private practice, she will take over the Lorain County Recovery Court from Judge John Miraldi, who did not run for re-election. Judge Melissa Kobasher administered the oath of office with Judge Bremke’s husband, Myles, and sons John, Daniel and Robert attending.
Upper left: Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Giovanna Bremke took her oath of office on Dec. 27 | STEVE MANHEIM.
Middle left: Lorain County Common Pleas General Division Judge Donna Freeman took her oath of office on Dec. 20 | CARISSA WOYTACH.
Lower left: Lorain County Commissioner Marty Gallagher hugs his wife, Joanna, after being sworn in on Dec. 20 | CARISSA WOYTACH.
Upper right: Lorain County Prosecutor Tony Cillo took his oath of office on Dec. 23 | PROVIDED.
basis for Smith and Allen being granted a new trial based on newly discovered evidence prior to their charges being dismissed was false.
“In light of these facts and admissions it is clearly against public policy, impugns the criminal justice system, and ‘has the tendency to injure the public welfare’ to permit Smith to walk away from her misconduct while suing the governmental entities and employes that brought her to justice,” he wrote.
Smith, Allen and their defenders including the Ohio Innocence Project have long argued that they were unjustly convicted of child sexual abuse at trial. They alleged the children who accused them of abuse were coached by parents or Lorain police, and that the children couldn’t pick Allen out of a videotaped lineup without help.
In an email, Ohio Innocence Project Director Mark Godsey dismissed
Rosenbaum’s motion as “ridiculous.”
He added in a follow-up email that he wasn’t even aware of the city’s motion, because he wasn’t served with a copy of it.
“I was only aware of Rosenbaum’s filings,” Godsey wrote.
Richard Parsons, an attorney for Joseph Allen, said he had no comment on the motions because they were only were filed in Smith’s case, not in his client’s case.
Lorain motion
In its motion, the city argued that Tomlinson had no legal authority to amend Smith’s 2013 sentencing agreement in 2021.
The 2021 amendment to the 2013 sentencing agreement “is not a plea agreement that falls within the prosecutor’s authority, nor is it a determination in the outcome of a criminal case,” the city argued.
Also, only the Board of
Commissioners has the authority to enter into contracts on behalf of the county, and the prosecutor can’t enter a contract without the board’s approval, the city argued. Furthermore, the Prosecutor’s Office is “legally obligated to protect public funds of the county” but is acting against public policy, the city argued. The city also made arguments against the existence of “newly discovered” evidence that led Cook to grant permission for a new trial, a new trial, and a dismissal of charges.
“When determining whether to grant leave to Smith for her to file a motion for a new trial, the court relied upon an incorrect standard and made an incorrect finding such that the plain language” of Ohio Criminal Rules “and the body of existing case law in this state is clearly violated,” Riley and attorney John McLandrich argued on the city’s behalf.
As we do every year, The Chronicle-Telegram editorial staff looked back at the past 12 months to determine the stories that, in our collective view, defined the year that was. These are the top 10 local stories that our reporting staff covered in 2024.
1. Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson faced controversy over a $100,000 taxpayer-funded employment settlement to his former employee and girlfriend, Jennifer Battistelli, that was paid in October 2023.
Soon after, Tomlinson faced a public records lawsuit over his refusal to release documents related to the settlement. Through her attorneys and a draft Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint that never was filed, Battistelli accused Tomlinson of being abusive.
Tomlinson denied the abuse allegations.
He and his chief of staff, James Burge, later faced felony charges brought by the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office in Elyria Municipal Court for allegedly trying to intimidate Battistelli into not testifying against them and tampering with evidence.
Tomlinson also was accused of attempting to bribe Battistelli.
Tomlinson lost the general election to Republican Tony Cillo on Nov. 5. The felony charges were dismissed Nov. 15 when Battistelli failed to appear in court for a hearing.
2. The April 8 solar eclipse saw Lorain County plunged into darkness on an otherwise sunny day.
The once-in-a-lifetime event brought visitors from across the country to Northeast Ohio, where the path of totality stretched through events throughout the county.
The event lasted about three minutes and 54 seconds and saw the moon block out the sun, with the ring of the sun’s corona visible through eclipse glasses or filters on telescopes — both in ample supply at events last spring.
Those events included three couples tying the knot
in brief wedding ceremonies in Wellington. The eclipse also coincided with the Guardians home opener.
The lead-up to the event saw projections of as many as 700,000 to 1 million visitors to Lorain County alone, with cities preemptively limiting parking ahead or changing traffic patterns. In reality, about 100,000 to 500,000 came to the Buckeye State.
Lorain County will not be in the path of totality again until 2444. Ohioans will not have another total solar eclipse until 2099.
3. After years of uncertainty and speculation, the future of the Midway Mall in Elyria finally began to take shape in 2024.
In May, members of the Lorain County Port Authority Board voted unanimously to sell the mall property to Industrial Commercial Properties (ICP) for the sum of $17 million.
The Cleveland-based property and development company has said it plans to spend another $25 million to redevelop the 58-acre property into a mixed-use business park.
The ICP proposal was selected over the other finalist seeking to buy the property, The Center for Food Innovation, which had plans to turn the mall into an indoor farm that would have been the first of its kind in the U.S. ICP and the board, which bought the mall in late 2023, are still finalizing the contract, but Port Authority Director Jim Miller said in November that a deal was imminent.
4. Lorain County property owners learned over the summer that their property values would increase by 31 percent on average in the new year, increasing their property taxes substantially. The change came with the release of the Lorain County auditor’s reappraisal process that is required every six years.
In July, Auditor Craig Snodgrass told The Chronicle-Telegram that the increase was driven by several factors, including the
A look back at 2024
housing market and property transactions across the region.
Though Snodgrass also said that the subsequent increase in taxes would not also be 31 percent, property owners expressed frustration.
In the subsequent general election in November, school levies across the county went down hard; with only one school levy, a Columbia schools renewal, succeeding on Nov. 5.
Avon Superintendent Ben Hodge said he felt the failures were due in large part to the property value increase coupled with more general economic anxiety.
5. Lorain County government will look different in 2025 after voters elected a new county sheriff, prosecutor, commissioner and two new judges.
Of the five newly elected officials, four are Republicans.
County Sheriff Phil Stammitti and Common Pleas Judge John Miraldi did not seek reelection, while Common Pleas Judge James Miraldi could not run again due to age limits. Commissioner Michelle Hung, a Republican, and Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson, a Democrat, lost their reelection bids. (James Miraldi and John
are cousins.)
Jack Hall, a Republican, beat Democrat Rich Resendez for Stammitti’s office. Republican Tony Cillo defeated Tomlinson.
Republican Marty Gallagher beat Hung in the Republican primary in March, then beat Democratic candidate Tony Dimacchia in November.
James Miraldi will be replaced by Giovanna Scaletta-Bremke, a Republican who defeated Democratic candidate Dan Petticord in November.
John Miraldi will be replaced by Donna Freeman, a Democrat who defeated Republican candidate Richard Ramsey.
6. On Nov. 20, Alex Louks was shot and killed by his mother, Risa Louks, according to the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office. She then set their Amherst Township house on fire and took her own life, authorities said. According to Lorain County Coroner Dr. Frank Miller at the time, Alex’s death appeared to be a clear case of murder, and death by suicide by Risa Louks.
Alex Louks was 9 years old and attended Powers Elementary School in Amherst.
On Dec. 15, school officials and community mem-
bers gathered at the school to commemorate the life and memory of Alex. Community members brought stuffed animals, one of Alex’s favorite things growing up. They were donated to the Amherst Police Department to help other children in moments of crisis.
7. Lorain County Commissioners David Moore and Jeff Riddell, both Republicans, approved a multimillion-dollar contract with the Multi-Agency Radio Communications System, or MARCS, for county emergency radio communications in December 2023.
That happened nearly a year after they rescinded a prior agreement the county had with Cleveland Communications Inc., or CCI, for the same purpose.
The move angered county first responders who preferred CCI’s system over MARCS. CCI sued the county and the commissioners and that lawsuit is pending in U.S. District Court.
In February, county Sheriff Phil Stammitti told commissioners he has control of Lorain County 911 under state law. The county Prosecutor’s Office couldn’t represent both him and the commissioners in the dispute.
The commissioners hired an attorney who gave an opinion rejecting Stammitti’s claim, but refused to hire an attorney for Stammitti.
In August, Lorain County Common Pleas judges appointed attorney Charles Schneider to represent Stammitti in the fight.
8. Strong thunderstorms moving in off Lake Erie in early August caused downed power lines, fallen trees and widespread damage in northern Lorain County.
Beginning on Aug. 6, high-speed winds, including tornadoes, left more than a third of the county with-
out power. Meteorologists from the National Weather Service said severe winds, which hit 60 mph in Vermilion and 59 mph at the Lorain County Regional Airport at their highest speeds, caused the most damage. The Weather Service reported that the storm created five separate tornadoes, one of which touched down in Avon Lake and another in nearby Bay Village.
The tornado in Avon Lake started in the Miller Road area before traveling across the area as far as Rocky River before abating after just under 12 miles. It registered as an E-F1 on the Fujita scale, reached maximum wind speeds of 110 mph and had a maximum width of 200 yards.
The fallout from the storms took several weeks to completely resolve, with FirstEnergy crews working daily to restore power and city service departments cleaning up fallen trees.
9. Three men were shot and killed by police officers in Lorain County this year. On Jan. 12 Lorain County SWAT members shot and killed Brian Dawson, 60, following a standoff in Carlisle Township after he reportedly shot at SWAT team members at Sheldon Woods following a lengthy standoff.
On April 18 members of the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Task Force shot and killed Derrick Smith, 34, while attempting to serve a warrant against him for a missed court date. Smith reportedly attacked officers, stabbing one in the neck, before he was shot. Smith was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and was not medicated at the time.
North Ridgeville police shot and killed Jason Norris, 41, on May 8. Norris, from Tennessee, was a suspect in the shooting death of his girlfriend and drove to North Ridgeville in a stolen Jeep. Lorain police shot and wounded burglary suspect Dustin Lee Terry, 26, on Oct. 7. Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson ruled all the shootings justified.
10. Parents and school districts across Lorain County wrestled with the emergence of LifeWise Academy this year, as it worked to expand its religious-release program in local public schools.
The academy, a Christian nonprofit based in Hilliard, seeks to provide Bible-based education for public school students during school hours. A Facebook group in opposition to the organization, Parents Against LifeWise, has amassed more than 7,000 members.
In Lorain County, LifeWise set up programs in Firelands Schools and Black River Schools. Multiple school districts in the county, including Elyria Schools and Vermilion Schools, passed policies limiting release time for religious instruction.
In December, the General Assembly passed a bill requiring districts to out students’ gender identities to their parents and mandate a religious release time policy.
Miraldi
Creativity abounds at Kwanzaa celebration
RICHARD PERRINS THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
LORAIN — Dozens of Lorain residents gathered at Harrison Cultural Community Center on Saturday afternoon to paint as part of a Kwanzaa celebration.
The paint party was led by Jeff Pye, a local artist with a studio in the center’s building on Hamilton Avenue in Lorain. He prepared tracings of a kinara, a seven-branched candleholder traditional to Kwanzaa, for attendees to put their own designs onto.
The Harrison Center opened 30 years ago, using the aging building once used as an elementary school to host community engagement events. Eva Johnson joined the center as its program manager just this month and the Kwanzaa paint party was one of her first events.
“This is our first time, getting started here,” Johnson said. “People have given me other ideas that I’d love to incorporate next year.”
Johnson said the art workshop was a way to harness the celebration of the holiday into a creative pursuit.
“That’s one of the principles we’re celebrating,” Johnson said. “(Pye) told everyone to be creative
RICHARD PERRINS | The Community Guide
Main: Linda Capers, of Lorain, adds some finishing touches to her kinara design at a Kwanzaa paint party at Harrison Cultural Community Center on Dec. 28.
Above: Jeff Pye explains the significance of each of the seven candles on a kinara. Kuumba, the principle Pye wanted to celebrate on Saturday, means creativity.
— this is your candle. It’s based on the Kwanzaa kinara, but they paint it how they want it to be.”
The kinara holds candles representing the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Typically, the kinara holds a black candle in the center, with three red candles on its left and three green candles on its right.
The black candle represents the African people, Pye said — the red candles represent their struggles and the green ones repre-
sent their futures.
On Saturday, he said, the group celebrated kuumba, one of the holiday’s principles that means creativity. He told attendees, when painting their own kinaras, to “do it their own way.”
In his career as an artist, Pye said people often ask him why he chose certain colors or pushed certain boundaries. His answer to that question has always been “because it’s me.”
“That’s my theme for the day,” Pye said, in between
demonstrating brush techniques to attendee Hessana Ralston. “I want them to feel free to think outside the box… It’s a day to be them, to put no limits on art, because I like to see people be able to express themselves freely.”
This year, Kwanzaa runs from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1. For more information on events at Harrison Cultural Community Center, visit harrisonccc.org, call (440) 244-0359 or email info@ harrisonccc.org.
Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools ends centennial with time capsule dedication
A year’s worth of celebrations and commemorations came to an end on Dec. 28 evening for Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools.
The district celebrated its 100th year in 2024. At halftime of Brookside High School’s basketball game against Open Door Christian of Elyria on Saturday, Superintendent Michael Cook dedicated a time capsule to be opened in 50 years.
“Who knows what public education will be like in 50 years — it’s exciting,” Cook said after the ceremony.
“The community support has been amazing throughout the celebrations this year.”
The time capsule was an initiative by the district’s Centennial Celebration Committee, which planned for it to be placed in a display case at the entrance to Brookside High School.
The committee conceived of the plan back in December 2023 and debuted the box itself at its board meeting on Aug. 8.
The box is small and wooden, and has the district’s centennial celebration crest etched on one side. Constructed by members of the North Coast Community Woodshop, a nonprofit woodworking organization in Sheffield Lake, it was made to stand the test of time.
Sandra Jensen, a member of the district’s school board and of the celebration committee, said organizers took suggestions throughout the year for items that would go into the box.
Eventually, the committee decided on a litany of items that would best represent what life was like for a Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools student, teacher or community member in 2024.
Those items include newspaper clippings, proclamations from State Sen. Nathan Manning and State Rep. Gayle Manning, solar eclipse glasses and letters written by current high schoolers.
The committee held events throughout the year to honor the centennial, including a parade over the summer and commemorations for the Class of 1979, Jensen said.
Jensen said the capsule is a way to capture a moment in time. With uncertainties in the field of education, she said she hoped the district will be in good shape when the capsule is opened in 2074.
“We’ve always tried to make our schools really vibrant places, where everyone feels welcome and everyone gets to do their best,” Jensen said. “It really touched me … to think if schools will still be like that in 50, or 100 years.”
Judge denys Alfred Cleveland’s new trial request
murder of Marsha Blakely, on Monday said he was “disappointed with the decision.”
ELYRIA — A Lorain County judge has denied a request by attorneys for convicted killer Alfred Cleveland and Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson to reconsider their request for permission to seek a new trial for Cleveland.
In a two-sentence ruling dated Dec. 23, Common Pleas Judge Christopher Rothgery rejected the Dec. 17 request by Tomlinson, representing his office, and Ohio Innocence Project attorneys Lauren Staley and Shantya Goddard, who are representing Cleveland.
“The court finds that the joint motion is not welltaken and is therefore denied,” Rothgery wrote. Tomlinson, who had joined with the Ohio Innocence Project and a number of other attorneys seeking to free Cleveland and his three co-defendants in the 1991
“Alfred Cleveland, Benson Davis, John Edwards, and Lenworth Edwards deserve justice. I hope one day they get it,” he said.
“We’re of course disappointed with how the judge handled the joint motion, and we’re still weighing our next steps,” said Lauren Staley, one of two Ohio Innocence Project attorneys representing Cleveland.
“The bottom line is, Al Cleveland is innocent, the prosecutor also believes that he’s innocent, and it’s a travesty that he has to spend another day with this conviction hanging over his head,” Staley said. Cleveland, Davis, John Edwards and Lenworth Edwards are known by their supporters as “The Ohio 4.” All four were convicted by juries in Blakeley’s murder, convictions that have been
upheld by every state and federal court and appeals court to hear the cases.
Cleveland and Lenworth Edwards are free on parole. Davis and John Edwards remain in prison.
Attorneys for the four men have said witness William Avery Jr. lied when he implicated them in Blakely’s murder, and that there is no physical evidence linking them to the crime.
Avery has recanted his testimony in 2004 and again in 2006, saying he lied on the stand. Given a chance to testify on Cleveland’s behalf at a hearing in 2008, he refused and said he didn’t want to go to prison for perjury.
Rothgery ruled Dec. 16 that no new facts or evidence had been uncovered that would lead him to granting Cleveland permission to seek a new trial.
Cleveland’s attorneys and Tomlinson then argued Rothgery misapplied the law, relied on “an unrea-
sonable interpretation of fact” and ignored their re-investigation of Cleveland’s case when he made that ruling.
Through an attorney, two members of the Blakely
family also notified the court that they oppose new trials for The Ohio 4 and their attempts to have the murder convictions overturned and charges dismissed.
A message seeking comment on Rothgery’s ruling was left for Jonathan Rosenbaum, the former assistant Lorain County prosecutor who handled Cleveland’s case.
BRUCE BISHOP | The Community Guide
Alfred Cleveland speaks to the crowd at a rally for the Ohio 4 in Ely Square in downtown Elyria. At far right is another member of the Ohio 4, Lenworth Edwards.
DAVE O’BRIEN THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
RICHARD PERRINS THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
RICHARD PERRINS | The Community Guide Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Superintendent Michael Cook, center, dedicates the time capsule at halftime of Brookside High School’s basketball game Saturday, Dec. 28.
Statehouse sees bills passed, sent to governor
Lorain County representatives in the Ohio Statehouse sponsored multiple bills that were signed last week by Gov. Mike DeWine or are headed to his desk for his signature.
Senate Bill 100, sponsored by state Sens. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville, and Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, dealt with electronic tracking, impaired driving and tobacco laws.
According to a description provided by the governor’s office, the new law “generally prohibits a person from knowingly installing a tracking device or application on another person’s property without the other person’s consent or failing to remove or ensure removal of such a device or application from another person’s property if the other person gave consent and subsequently revokes it.”
A violation would be a first-degree misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of 180 days in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000, and a fourth-degree felony in certain circumstances such as repeat offenses, according to a news release.
“This legislation is the result of investigative reporting that found Ohio law does not explicitly outlaw the use of electronic tracking devices as a means to stalk others,” said Manning, chairman of the state Senate Judiciary Committee. “Senate Bill 100 will hold people who use electronic tracking devices for nefarious purposes accountable for their actions and will protect vulnerable Ohioans.”
S.B. 100 also authorizes “collecting oral fluid as evidence in suspected OVI cases,” and increased fines “for repeatedly selling tobacco products to minors and to apply the public nuisance law to places where such sales occur,” according to a description.
House Bill 308, sponsored by state Reps. Dick Stein, R-Norwalk — whose district includes portions of Lorain County — and Sean Brennan, D-Parma, increased the term of standard oil and gas leases for state land; made changes to the Ohio Broadband Pole Replacement and Undergrounding Program; expanded the purposes “for which money derived from certain disposal fees on construction and demolition debris may be used by a board of health;” and included “energy generated by nuclear reaction as green energy.”
House Bill 78, co-sponsored by state Reps. Joe Miller, D-Amherst, and Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, amended sections of state law regarding member eligibility for the State Teachers Retirement System board.
The state Senate also concurred on House amendments to S.B. 237, co-sponsored by Manning and state Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, which “creates a judicial process to prevent meritless lawsuits that attempt to intimidate individuals for exercising their Constitutional rights,” according to a news release.
The bill will prevent Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, also known as SLAPP, “which aim to stop a person or group from using their First Amendment rights when discussing public issues,” according to the sponsors.
“This bill will help protect freedom of speech on public matters, ensuring Ohioans can exercise their Constitutional rights and dismissing these cases early in the process to save them time and money,” Manning said. H.B. 315 also is going to DeWine for his signature. According to Manning, the bill includes provisions of S.B. 198 he and state Sen. George Lang, R-West Chester, championed that provide inmates with resources when it comes to finding jobs, housing and other needs after they are released from custody.
JVS students create storybooks for visually impaired readers
GARRETT LOOKER THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
PITTSFIELD TWP. — For the past several months, engineering, technology and design students at the Lorain County Joint Vocational School have been creating storybooks for elementary students in Cleveland and Akron.
But unlike most books found on a shelf at a school’s library, these books are different.
None of these books have a cover. There aren’t any pages of paper, either.
Instead, these storybooks have been 3D-printed. In the place of printed words stand the small, raised bumps of Braille code for visually impaired students.
“I’ve been trying to come up with new ways of getting the students excited to learn, but yet still have relevance in engineering,” said Stormy Rush, JVS instructor of engineering, technology and design.
With the leadership of Rush, the Braille storybook project was created to not only give back to communities, but to show students that their work can have an impact.
“I hope that they will get out of it that there are people around us that are different, and different is good,” Rush said. “And they should kind of try to help the collective, too.”
In total, 35 3D-printed storybooks will be delivered to visually impaired elementary students who attend Cleveland metropolitan and Akron public schools. The storybooks range in topics, from comic book heroes to ghost stories and are uniquely shaped to reflect the story subject.
From crafting the actual stories to designing how the books would be printed, JVS students have had a hand in the process the entire way, Rush said. In the final stage, each book takes roughly six hours to print.
“I didn’t realize you could 3D-print Braille,” said junior Samantha DeCara. “I think it’s going to help them a lot. It’s a useful technique, and it’s going to help them read and be able to learn how to do things. … I think that’s really special to me.”
Nicholas Aponte agreed.
“I really feel the joy of helping people in general, but mostly the younger generation, especially kids,” said Aponte, who is also a junior.
The idea of Braille storybooks came to Rush last summer. Thinking of a friend’s child who is deaf, Rush wondered how some individuals live with disabilities.
Rush wondered how children learn with disabilities.
At that moment, the seeds of Rush’s Braille project were planted. From there on, Rush began contemplating how she could make an impact — thinking of ways to give back to “underserved populations and schools” while also giving her own students
the challenge of something unique and fulfilling.
“We seem like we’re living in a day and age where, like, we’re not as easily focused on other people,” Rush said. “So I’m trying to open up their eyes to different individuals that could potentially be their peers at one point.”
The Braille storybooks are expected to be delivered early in the next semester, Rush said. That’s when students will fill a bus and travel to Cleveland and Akron to hand deliver the projects to the students who will receive them.
To beef up the educational aspect of the project, Rush and her students teamed up with Lori Wilfong, associate professor at Kent State University. Wilfong has taught and researched literacy and writing for more than 20 years.
Wilfong aided Rush and the students by connecting them with the Cleveland and Akron school districts.
“It was such a neat way to show the students the impact that their ideas can have,” Wilfong said. “We want our engineers to really think of the human that’s at the center of everything.”
To Rush, JVS’s Braille storybook project has multiple layers of importance. Not only is it about helping students who face disabilities, and not only is it giving students the opportunity to witness their work’s impact.
For Rush, this project is to show that anyone can become an engineer, too.
“I’m a firm believer that the engineering career field can bring success for anyone in any facet depending on what your passion’s for or what your interest is,” Rush said.
Beyond disability, Rush reflected on how the jobs of the field she works in are predominantly filled by men. In recent years, women have ac-
counted for roughly 14 percent of the engineering workforce in the U.S., according to government data.
Anyone can be an engineer, Rush said, “no matter what your gender, no matter what your disability.”
Rush’s Braille storybook project is an example of breaking barriers and focusing on inclusivity for all students to have the opportunity to study subjects in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), said Cheryl Fridenstine, public relations and marketing coordinator for JVS.
“Having the programs be able to come up with these specialized projects that put them — the instructor, the students — out in the community really then showcases it on a more intimate level of what you can learn in a career tech education setting,” Fridenstine said.
Fridenstine said young girls are “told they’re not smart enough for the STEM world.”
“What Stormy’s doing here and bringing that to a fourth, fifth or sixth grader, it’s changing that narrative for them, their families, their community,” Fridenstine said.
Stormy Rush has been instructing engineering, technology and design at JVS for nearly 20 years. Back in 1995, she graduated from the vocational school.
Since becoming an educator, she has watched as other students at the school were able to serve others through their work, whether that be in cosmetology or giving oil changes.
In all that time, Rush has wanted to prove that engineering students can help the community, too.
“In engineering, there’s really nothing you can do on a dime for other people,” Rush said. “I just wanted to kind of make the kids feel compassion for the people and see how they could potentially make a difference in a kid’s life just by something simple.”
St. Mary’s celebrates Christmas with 15th annual community dinner
As Audriana Bitar walked between the tables where guests were seated, she balanced a heaping plate of food in each hand.
Audriana, 9, was one of the children volunteering Wednesday at the annual Christmas dinner hosted by St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Elyria. Multiple generations of families gathered to volunteer and help those in need.
The church handed out 500 meals of roast beef, mashed potatoes and green beans in the event’s 15th year.
It was a complete Christmas dinner, organizers said — one that brought the community closer together.
“Being able to give back, being the change you hope to see,” said Jerry Schill, who volunteered to prepare the food. “It’s really fun to bring the community together with a common cause, common purpose. And not only the volunteers that have been coming back for 15 years and helping on a consistent basis, but even our guests. So they’ve become friends.”
The Christmas dinner has become an annual tradition for St. Mary’s. Beyond bringing individ-
uals together who may need help, it builds bonds between generations of families, Schill said.
“That was the intent behind beginning the holiday meals program to begin with,” Schill said.
Between taking plates of food to tables, Audriana said she likes to help those in need.
“It’s fun to help people,” Audriana said. “It feels happy that I get to help them.”
For Audriana, there was nothing else she would have rather spent Christmas Day doing, she said.
“I want to be here,” Audriana said.
Community members dined with one another and spoke of years past, hardship and hope.
Edward Leinweber has been coming to the St. Mary’s Christmas Dinner for four or five years. It was a “beautiful” meal, he said.
“I feel a part of it, I always do,” Leinweber said of the community.
For Angela Brightwell, Wednesday was her first time coming to the annual holiday event.
“Now we’re fortunate,” Brightwell said. “We can eat together no matter what you think the situation is because you always can bring life to somebody, you never know who it is.”
Brightwell recognized the impact of the community coming together. From now on, she’ll be
coming to the Christmas dinner every year.
“I feel like that’s what I need to do,” Brightwell said. “If I don’t do nothing else, it’s for the community. To come sit together. … We are all family.”
On the other end of the gymnasium, Joni Marra darted back and forth from table to the stage where rows of hats, gloves and socks were lined up. As people would pass by, Marra would ask them if they needed anything, at times insisting they take whatever they would want to stay warm.
Marra, who is from Avon Lake,
had traded in her holiday to help those in need. So did every other volunteer there on Wednesday. But Marra hadn’t thought of it that way, she said. She had come — to a church she doesn’t attend — on Christmas Day because the need is here, she said.
“It just feels natural,” Marra said with a laugh. “I don’t feel like I’m giving up. It’s not an either or, it’s an and. … I don’t care where the need is. I don’t care. A need is a need.”
To the left of the socks, hats and gloves were baking tins full of
cake mix, soda and sprinkles — a dessert to take home. The tins were complete with instructions on how to create the baked good without the use of oil or other items, things that some people may not have on hand, Marra said.
The cake ingredients were put together by St. Mary’s Girl Scout Troop 50371, Marra said. It was just another piece of the community coming together and having an opportunity to truly connect, she said.
“Each one of these people bless me,” Marra said. “It’s not just religious. It is human.”
Between handing out hats and gloves, Marra looked out to the room full of people. Volunteers of all ages — including Audriana, the 9-year-old who was helping pass out food with her grandfather — went from table to table, refilling cups, passing out homemade baked cookies and taking more orders.
“It’s like when you put a pebble into a still pond — place of impact — those ripples will go out,” Marra said. “That’s what’s happening for those kids. They are feeding the hungry. And you don’t have to be homeless, you’re hungry, that’s why you’re here. It’s community.”
GARRETT LOOKER | The Community Guide
JVS engineering, technology and design instructor Stormy Rush speaks with students about their Braille storybooks.
GARRETT
GARRETT LOOKER | The Community Guide
Jerry Schill volunteered Wednesday by helping prepare hundreds of meals for the annual Christmas Dinner for St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church.
Workshop
Players
TIME: Monday, January 27, 2025 at 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, January 28, 2025 at 7:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Workshop
Players Theater
44820 Middle Ridge Rd.
Amherst, Ohio
SYNOPSIS: In the early 1960s, loyalty, duty and friendship conflict with one another in suburban London when an ordinary family is enlisted by MI5, Britain’s intelligence agency, to keep watch on its neighbors and best friends who, the Jacksons are shocked to discover, are suspected Russian spies.
Note: Actors must be able to play the ages indicated. Some characters have British accents.
ROLES:
Barbara Jackson (40s) –Stay-at-home English wife and mother who becomes increasingly distressed over the government’s intrusion into her home
Bob Jackson (40s) –Husband and father, generally content with life, who must balance family stability with duty to country
Julie Jackson (16-17)
– Bright, outgoing British high school student who, of course, spends time with a boy of whom her mother disapproves Stewart (40+) – Courteous but quietly intimidating MI5 agent who treats candor as just another item in his toolbox
Helen Kroger (45+) –Vivacious, slightly vulgar but inoffensive American neighbor of the Jacksons whom Bob describes as a “Dizzy Lizzy”
Peter Kroger (50+) –Helen’s husband, an affable
BULLETIN BOARD
The Lorain County Community Guide Bulletin Board is for local nonprofit and not-for-profit events. Items are published on a space-available basis and will be edited for style, length, and clarity. Send your items to news@lcnewspapers.com
antiquarian book dealer whose mysterious business activities mask more nefarious schemes
Thelma (25-35) – Wellmannered “ex-regular army girl” assigned to the Jackson home by Stewart to surveil the neighborhood Sally (25-35) – Pleasant second agent assigned to the Jackson home by Stewart (appears briefly in Act II)
Auditions will consist of readings from the script.
Production dates are April 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, and 13, 2025. For more information, contact the director, Brad Sales, at hanlons razor@msn.com
Genealogy meeting
Join us for a free online program titled “Expanding your Prussian Search: Beyond Church Records”. Stephen Wendt will give this presentation at the monthly meeting of the Lorain County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogy Society on 7 p.m. Jan. 13. Sometimes, Prussian research problems cannot be undertaken using church records alone. Gain a better understanding of the importance of pursuing non-church records in historical Prussia with numerous examples and resources.
The presenter, Stephen Wendt, MLIS, is a professional genealogist, instruc-
SYNONYMS
ACROSS
1. Half of half-and-half
6. *Gratuity 9. Remain unsettled
13. Pita, alt. sp.
14. Uncle Sam wants whom?
15. Played violin, e.g.
35. Frosts a cake 37. Leave in a bucket
39. *Parlor
40. Coating of aurum
41. Like many bathroom floors? 43. Border pass
44. Full of emotion (2 words)
46. Opposite of talker? 47. Tel ____, Israel
48. Auto____ website
50. *Module
55. Old-fashioned before
*Prevent
64. Single-____ plastics 66. Donkey + horse, pl.
All told (2
tor, and writer. He is the founder of Roots Quest and Tree Tidings Genealogy. Stephen assists global clients with their diverse genealogical needs. Originally scheduled for November but postponed due to illness, this program will help genealogists and family history enthusiasts learn about the vast wealth of information available for your Prussian research.
Guests can attend this free online presentation on January 13 at 7 pm. Request a link to this ZOOM meeting by emailing meetings@loraincoogs. org and asking to be added to the list.
Lorain County Metro Parks
● Murder Mystery auditions: 7 p.m. Jan. 7
Friends of Metro Parks of Lorain County will hold auditions for its annual murder mystery. Audionts will be held at the Carlisle Visitors Center, 12882 Diagonal Rd., LaGrange. It will be a cold reading from the script.
No experience is necessary.
Cast requirements for “Murder Without a Clue” by Paula Hilton are three men, three women. For questions or an alternate audition time, call (216) 544-3865.
● Garage sale
The Friend of the Lorain County Metro Parks will
host a garage sale 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 25 and 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Jan. 26. Sunday is $5 to fill-a-bag.
Donations for the garage sale will be accepted 1-4 p.m. Jan. 19, 1-7 p.m. Jan. 20 and 4-7 p.m. Jan. 22. Clothing, shoes, large furniture, Christmas trees, electronics, car seats and strollers will not be accepted.
For more information, call (440) 213-4273, or email skipthepenguin8@ gmail.com
Wellington School Board
The Wellington School Board’s organizational meeting 6 p.m. Jan. 7 at Westwood Elementary School in the superintendent’s office.
Amherst School Board
The Amherst School Board will hold its organizational meeting 5:30 p.m. Jan. 6 at Marion L. Steele High School’s creative learning center, 450 Washington St.
Indoor walking events
North Ridgeville Heart & Sole will host two indoor walking events on Jan. 13 and 14.
The events will include food demonstrations where participants can sample “energy bites” at the North Ridgeville Library branch. Walking events will be at the Ridge Campus of Lorain County Community College, 32121 Lorain Rd in North Ridgeville, from 5:30 p.m. until supplies run out.
Black River schools cut positions
SARA CRAWFORD THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
SULLIVAN — The Black River Board of Education unanimously approved eliminating two paraprofessional positions on Thursday for financial reasons and decreased student enrollment.
The board passed a resolution, implementing a reduction in force of nonteaching positions by abolishing positions and suspending employment contracts.
The reduction in force will eliminate a seven-hour, fulltime paraprofessional position and a four-hour, part-time paraprofessional position.
“At the start of the year in August, we found ourselves very thoroughly staffed in several areas — one being support staff paraprofessionals,” Black River Superintendent Anthony Stretar said. “We’ve since lost several students to outplacements.”
Stretar said that an out-of-district placement is a facility providing special education services to students whose needs were not met in their home district.
In special education, the staff is constantly looking for the least restrictive environment for the students to be educated in, Stretar said. If the current environment is not effective, they look at what would be a more effective way to allow a student to grow.
Stretar said Black River Schools partners with several outplacement facilities in Medina, Lorain, and Ashland counties to ensure students have the best option available for them.
In this scenario, Stretar said three students who were previously in programming that was supported by paraprofessionals have left.
Treasurer Robert Keuhnle said two of the three students are going to outplacement facilities, with the third now being homeschooled. The district pays for each student attending the outplacement facilities, Keuhnle said, which can be costly.
“This is something we need to be fiscally cautious about and keep a close eye on our staffing, given our financial place,” Stretar said. “When you consider that paraprofessionals work directly with the students getting outplaced, it was something we need to analyze for cost.”
The abolishment of the two paraprofessional positions and the resulting reduction in force and suspension of employment contracts will be effective Jan. 21.
Contact reporter Sara Crawford at (330) 721-4063 or scrawford@medina-gazette.com.
Sheffield to receive state loan for sewer replacement
Sheffield will receive just under $650,000 in loans from the Ohio Water Development Authority for wastewater and drinking water improvements.
As part of the OWDA’s Fresh Water Loan Program, five projects across the state were funded to make improvements to infrastructure, according to a release. Sheffield will use the funding to construct 2,900 feet of sanitary sewer along Detroit Road to replace aging sewers.
The village’s loan will be at 3.62 percent interest for 30 years. In total, the OWDA funded $2.5 million in loans across the state.
More information about the office’s financing programs is available at www.owda.org.
No injuries in Grafton Road fire
No one was injured in the fire that burned a building and included “multiple explosions” Sunday night off of Grafton Road.
The building was a large metal structure behind Laporte Inn at 2092 Grafton Road. The structure was about 4,000 square feet, or 40 by 100 feet, according to the Carlisle Township Fire Department, which was dispatched to the scene.
Start 2025 with smiles and laughs with thesesilly games!Being silly canbring smiles and laughs to your friends and family,too!
NewYear Guessing Game
Each player chooses something related to New Year celebration like balloons or confe The other players ask YES or NO question to try and guess what it is, asking no more than 20 questions. Each time someone asksaquestion with a answer, they have to and cluck like achick
Cut out these bingo cards and give one to each player
Once the game starts, everyone looks or listens for the words on their card
When you see or hear one of these words related to New Year’s celebrations, cross it out.
After one hour, time’sup! The player who crossed out the most words wins!
RESOLUTION PARTY TIMES SQUARE CALENDAR CLOCK 2025 CELEBRATE BALLOONS MIDNIGHT TIME RESOLUTION CONFETTI
Askafamily member foreach kind of word below. Then llinthe blanks to create a very sillystory to read aloud!
My parents like to hosta NewYear’s Eve party everyyear.And these parties arehilarious!
Dad likes to wear aparty hatmadefrom and____________. Momwears a_ _gown coveredwithsparkly They greet each of their guests by shouting “_________
kid! That is NOT howIdance! What the heck?
StinkySock Game
Double Dancer
Look closely! Only two of these dancers are exactly the same. Can you find them? Have a friend try, too!
Seat everyone inacircle. Quickly passapairofrolled-up socks around as music plays. When the musicstops, the person holding the socks leaves the game. The last person left is the Toe-tallyTops!
music plays as everyone begins to danceand _______. Uncle Ambrosehas a_ voiceand likes to _loudly
People bring lots of appetizers and_ snacks such as cheesy_ _________, sweet andspicy on toothpicks.AuntClaraalways lls thepunch bowl with , which the guests lookforward to each year
Howmany socksdoyou see here?
SillyHeadlines
As theclockstrikes midnight, everyone shouts “___________!”and many aredropped from upstairs onto thesurprised and delighted party guests.It’ssurea wayto start theNew Year!
With hundreds of topics,every KidScoop printable activitypack features six-to-seven pages of high-interestextra learning activities forhomeand school! Getyour free sample todayat:
©2024byVickiWhiting,Editor Je Schinkel, Graphics Vol. 41,No. 5