Lorain County Community Guide 5-30-24

May

Happy 200th, Lorain County

“Happy birthday to a place we all call home.”

That was the greeting offered by Lorain County Bicentennial Committee Vice Chairman Garry Gibbs on Friday in his welcome remarks to open a special historical program and meeting of the county Board of Commissioners celebrating the 200th anniversary of the formation of Lorain County and its original Board of Commissioners in 1824.

The day’s initial festivities took place on the steps of the old Lorain County Courthouse on Second Street in downtown Elyria, before the county’s jurists gathered in the Justice Center on Court Street for a presentation on the history of the county’s Common Pleas Court, which also turned 200 on Friday.

A crowd gathered on lawn chairs under the shade of trees in Ely Square and on folding chairs on the sidewalk in front of the Old Courthouse — opened in 1881 at a cost of $200,000, according to local historian Don Hilton — to watch commissioners conduct “old” business and announce new

business alike.

When Lorain County was founded in 1824, there were only 24 states in the Union, the daily wage was 44 cents, and members of the First Congregational Church United Church of Christ in Elyria held their first services in a log cabin, Gibbs said.

Commissioners Jeff Riddell, David Moore and Michelle Hung read biographies and brief histories of their 1824 counterparts — Benjamin Bacon, Asahel Osborne and John S. Reid, respectively — while county Treasurer Dan Talarek gave an account of Edmund West, his long-ago predecessor.

The board also did a brief reenactment of West’s 1824 appointment to the position of county treasurer, which took place at the first-ever county commissioners meeting on May 24, 1824.

Joining the three sitting commissioners on Friday were five of the eight living former commissioners: Ted Kalo, Lori Kokoski, Matt Lundy, Sharon Sweda and Mary Jo Vasi. The other three who did not attend Friday are George Koury, Michael Ross and Tom Williams. Vasi, the first woman ever elect-

BRUCE BISHOP / CHRONICLE

A crowd gathers Friday to celebrate Lorain County’s bicentennial near Ely Square in downtown Elyria.

ed to the Board of Commissioners, thanked “everyone” in Lorain County for allowing her to serve in the “humble” position from 1989 to 2004. Calling attention to a number of historical displays by her organization as well as the Elyria Black Legacy Connection surrounding the Old Courthouse steps, Lorain County Historical Society Executive Director Kerri Broome called the county’s bicentennial “a very

important time to learn about our history.”

Also announced Friday was that Sept. 29 is the scheduled date for the dedication of a countywide memorial to Gold Star families, to be built next to the existing Lorain County Police Memorial on Courthouse Square between Court Street and Middle Avenue in Elyria.

A Gold Star family is one that has lost a family member in the military in the line of duty.

Blacks collaborate to tell their history

The Community Guide

The Elyria Black Legacy Connection is working with other Black history and genealogy groups in Lorain County to make sure Black stories are not left out of Lorain County’s bicentennial.

The Black Legacy Connection teamed up with the Oberlin African-American Genealogy and History Group and the Lorain Black History Project to spotlight 200 years of Black history in Lorain County.

“I wanted to make sure the Black presence out in Lorain County was not missed during this celebra-

tion of the bicentennial,” EBLC founder Ethan West said.

“I wanted to get Lorain, Elyria and Oberlin, as the cities with the highest populations of Black citizens, to do some kind of joint collaboration.”

Phyllis Yarber-Hogan of the Oberlin African-American Genealogy and History Group said that in her experience, being forgotten in an event such as this was a very real concern.

“It’s absolutely important that we have a presence at these (bicentennial) events,” she said. “Because we were here, and it’s important

for everybody to understand that. So often we’re left out of events like this.”

Seeking collaboration on that goal, the Black Legacy Connection teamed up with the Oberlin African-American Genealogy and History Group and the Lorain Black History Project.

Yarber-Hogan said that in her more than two decades working on preserving and sharing Black history, relationships between Black organizations in different cities had been competitive, even adversarial.

“In my experience — and I’ve

been around a long time — this is the first time that Lorain, Elyria and Oberlin have worked together in this way,” Yarber-Hogan said.

“It’s been a wonderful collaboration, it really, really has, and this is the first time that it has happened in my memory.”

West said that looking back at the history of Lorain County, there was a tradition of the Black communities in Elyria, Lorain and Oberlin working together.

“I don’t know where that died off. Sometimes you just kind of get into your own city and stay there, and take pride in that.”

Dave O’Brien

The Community Guide

One year after it filed a lawsuit against four of its insurance providers over their refusal to help pay a nearly $36.6 million judgment won by Gibson’s Bakery and its owners, Oberlin College has settled with the last two remaining defendants in the civil case.

“We are pleased that Oberlin has reached a confidential resolution with our insurers. Our settlement with our two primary insurers — Lexington and UE — is significant,” Oberlin College spokeswoman Andrea Simakis said Thursday. The college voluntarily dismissed its case May 17 against Lexington Insurance Company of New York, the last of the four insurance companies that it sued in 2023, according to Lorain County Common Pleas Court records. The Mount Hawley Insurance Company of Peoria, Illinois, was dismissed from the lawsuit on May 1, and United Educators Insurance of Bethesda, Maryland, and StarStone Specialty Insurance Company of Cincinnati were dismissed on April 17, according to court records. According to its lawsuit, filed in Judge Chris Cook’s courtroom in April 2023, Oberlin College had at least $75 million in insurance that would have easily covered the Gibson’s judgment and its own unpaid attorney fees. The college eventually paid the Gibsons after

Allen Art Museum closes for summer for upgrades

OBERLIN — The Allen Memorial Art Museum will be closed starting today as part of the latest step in Oberlin College and Conservatory’s Sustainable Infrastructure Program.

The project aims to transition the campus to a geothermal heating and cooling system and help attain carbon neutrality by 2025.

During the closure, the museum will get a facelift as well.

“We’re taking the opportunity to update the gallery, install new lighting and refinish flooring,” said Stacie Ross, communications manager for the Allen. “The museum will feel very fresh in the fall. Some of the galleries have not been updated in 15-plus years.”

The museum is expected to reopen

in early September.

The project, which has been going on for the past five years around campus, also involves some careful and meticulous storage of the museum’s 15,000 works of art.

Construction crew members need background checks to work within the proximity of the priceless collection, which includes Roman, Greek, Egyptian and Renaissance art, to name a few.

“One of the galleries was closed last week and next week another gallery will be closed,” Ross said. “Some of the storage areas have had work done. When they start working on some of the offices, people in the first-floor offices will be out of the building for summer. The Education Department has to clear out their entire offices — and they have a lot

of stuff.”

Just because the museum is closed, that does not mean patrons will be without art. Enthusiasts can still explore the museum digitally with Allen Augmented Reality amam. oberlin.edu/aar for virtual tours and the Allen App amam.oberlin.edu/app.

Education partnerships will continue and the museum will still cosponsor the annual chalk walk.

“Other events and programs at the museum really follow the semester at Oberlin College,” Ross said. “Speakers and events will begin again then.”

That includes the well-loved Oberlin College art rental program. For updates, visit amam.oberlin.edu/enews.

Contact Christina Jolliffe at ctnews@chroniclet.com.

COURTESY KEVIN G. REEVES

Allen Memorial Art Museum in Oberlin will close for renovations this summer with a targeted reopening date sometime in September.

Christina Jolliffe The Community Guide

Dave O’Brien The Comunity Guide

98 names of county’s Vietnam dead called

A bell is rung after each name at Vietnam Memorial in Amherst

Dave O’Brien

The Community Guide

AMHERST — For 37 years now, family and friends, veterans and others have gathered each year to read the names of the 98 men from Lorain County who gave their lives in the Vietnam War.

These days, the memorial is held at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Lorain County on North Lake Street, a somber day of remembrance and often tears.

For each name read by volunteers, all of them veterans or supporters of veterans, a bell is rung.

Visitors pass by a group of 98 chairs, each one empty save for a short biography and details of each of the fallen attached to them, and a field of 98 red ceramic poppies planted in remembrance.

Each poppy, created by Avon Lake High School art students as part of a class project, is etched with a name of one of the 98 fallen.

This year was much the same at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Lorain County, where at least 100 people gathered Saturday to honor those lost in the war half a world away from their homes.

After decades, and as those who gather to remember the 98 become fewer and fewer and the war isn’t in the public memory anymore, why keep doing it?

Bill “Snoopy” Brokop, a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War, asked that question. He was just as quick to answer it.

“Because we’re here and they’re not,” he said, gesturing toward the memorial to his left as Saturday’s ceremony wound down.

The men on the memorial, organizers and participants said, never again got to see their parents or siblings, while others never got to start their own families, or will never know their children and grandchildren.

After ringing the bell in honor of those who didn’t come home, Brokop said well-wishers are welcome to thank him for his service on Veterans Day.

Just not on Memorial Day.

“Memorial Day is not for me. It’s for them,” Brokop

Wellington’s McCormick wins kindness challenge

The Community Guide

McCormick’s three fifth-grade classes earned second place -$2,500 -- in Kindland’s national Kindness Games’ Student Kindness Challenge that ran from February to May of this year.

Each class selected a student to record each act of kindness on a form provided by Kindland.

The three classes amassed a total of 118 acts of kindness, led by Erin Sumpter and the other two fifth-grade teachers.

Nathan Morris and Ron Kisner helped coordinate the McCormick challenge.

Sumpter’s class of ultra kind students won an internal fifthgrade challenge.

Kindland Wellington treated each class to ice cream.

Kindland is a program of the Cleveland-based Values-in Action Foundation founded by Stuart Muszynski.

Each of Wellington’s schools has pledged to be a Citizen of Kindland.

PHOTO PROVIDED

Nadia Greer, a 2024 Wellington High School graduate and the district’s Kindland Ambassador, holds a replica of the check.

LETTERS

Letters to the editor should be:

• Written to the editor. We do not allow open letters or those to specific residents, politicians, or groups.

• Concise. There is a limit of 350 words on letters.

• Polite. Letters that use crude language or show poor taste will be rejected.

• Opinions. We reserve space for letters that share a unique perspective. Press releases are not letters and will be considered for publication in other parts of the paper.

• Free of advertising, product or service endorsements or complaints, poetry, language that could raise legal problems, or claims that are measurably false.

• Signed. Include your name, address, and daytime telephone number for our records. Up to two signatures.

• The deadline to submit letters is 10 a.m. each Monday. They are used on a space-available basis. We reserve the right to edit any submission for length, grammar, spelling, and clarity, or to reject any submission.

said of the 98.

“May their names never be forgotten,” said speaker and U.S. Army veteran Don Attie, commander of the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 20 in Lorain.

More military memorials, including an Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial in Lorain and a Gold Star Families memorial in Elyria, are planned in the near future.

The Gold Star Families memorial is likely to break ground this summer and be installed by September, ac-

GIBSON’S

From A1`

the Ohio Supreme Court refused to hear its appeal. Its lawsuit did not give an exact dollar amount the college spent on legal fees to fight the bakery and its owners in court. As a private institution, Oberlin College is not bound by the same public records laws that a public university might be held to in a similar situation.

When its insurance companies refused to pay, and mediation with at least one of them failed, Oberlin College sued.

Lexington and United Educators in particular “engaged in a systematic, multiyear effort to avoid their coverage obligations by attempting to shift responsibility from the Gibson lawsuit to each other” or other insurance companies, Oberlin College said in its lawsuit.

Both companies allegedly had opportunities ahead of the Gibson’s Bakery trial to settle the case for a fraction of its eventual cost, and Oberlin College allegedly demanded they do so, according to Oberlin College’s lawsuit.

Lexington failed to pay “a single cent” and Oberlin College was met with “complete abandonment” by United Educators after the company refused to renew the insurance policy it had held for 34 years, according to the lawsuit.

The original jury verdict and damages stemmed from the aftermath of student protests over the arrest of three Oberlin College students for attempting to shoplift from Gibson’s Bakery in November 2016.

The students later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor crimes including attempted theft, aggravated trespassing

cording to the Lorain County Veteran Services Commission.

Attie said plans for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial are to install another flagpole for the Honor and Remembrance flag to fly next to military branch flags, the American and Ohio flags on the grounds, which were dedicated in 2007.

“Hopefully coming soon,” he said.

Contact Dave O’Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.

charges and underage purchase of alcohol, served no jail time, and read statements in court saying store clerk Allyn Gibson had the right to chase the main perpetrator out of the store and that his actions weren’t racist. Oberlin College students protested outside the bakery for two days following the arrests, handing out flyers alleging — without providing any concrete evidence — a long history of racism at the bakery. Former college Vice President and Dean of Students Meredith Raimondo was accused of supporting student protesters during the protests, including personally handing out flyers.

The Gibsons sued in 2017 after college officials refused to apologize or issue a statement saying the family wasn’t racist. No evidence of racism by the Gibsons or the bakery was presented during the 2019 civil trial, and numerous members of the community testified the Gibsons and their bakery were not racist.

In text messages and emails presented in court, Oberlin College officials profanely mocked the bakery and its products and threatened to “rain fire and brimstone” on the business.

The trial in Judge John Miraldi’s court ended with a jury awarding the Gibsons $44 million in damages. Miraldi capped the actual award at $25 million, citing Ohio law limiting civil judgments.

After three years of appeals by the college, the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear the case. The final judgment included $6.5 million in legal fees to the Gibsons’ attorneys and interest earned on the judgment during the appeals process.

Contact Dave O’Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien @chroniclet.com.

Chairs, each representing one of the 98 men from Lorain County who died in the Vietnam War, sit on the grounds of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial of Lorain County in Amherst on Saturday.

DAVE O’BRIEN / COMMUNITY GUIDE

Amherst grads told ‘be driven, persevere’

Dave O’Brien The Community Guide CLEVELAND — Perseverance.

Determination. Resolve. Tenacity. Doggedness. Getting through and getting over. This year’s Amherst Marion L. Steele High School graduates of the Class of 2024 had that drive, their peers and educators told them on Saturday before they crossed the stage to receive their diplomas at the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University.

Family and friends erupted in cheers as the green-clad soon-to-be graduates processed to their seats on the floor of the arena. They did so standing up — but that hasn’t always been the case, high school Principal Joseph Tellier told his graduating seniors.

That’s because “every one of us has been knocked down before,” he said.

Tellier used as one example the Comets football team, which struggled in recent years, going 0-10 in 2021 and 2022. That was before the 2023 team won three games, ended with a 3-7 record and “changed the culture” in the process.

The high school’s Scholastic Challenge team on May 20 got its first Lorain County Academic Championship since 2015 and only its third since 1991 in the Scholastic Challenge radio quiz show on WEOL AM930/FM 100.3.

In the quiz show’s history, Amherst had finished in second-place more than any of its competitors, but “we changed that nar-

rative,” Tellier said, the pride obvious in his voice.

Superintendent Mike Molnar told the students, “Your past may influence your future, but does not determine it.

“Just as you have drawn strength and inspriation from your ancestors, future generations will find guidance and wisdom in the paths you’re about to create.

“You are part of an unbroken chain, a continuum that links the past, the present and the future.”

Student speakers’ messages to their peers were also about the importance of family, love and support.

The Class of 2024 includes 19 students going into the military, including several to national military academies.

Valedictorian Dane Janis is one of those bound for the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. In his speech, he called it “an honor” to be graduating with his friends and thanked his siblings and parents for their love and support.

“Success is not the most important thing” in life, Janis said. It’s “love and happiness” that make life worth living.

Janis said he would trade being valedictorian “for another four years of time with my friends and family.”

Ethan Homolya, the class’ representative at Lorain County Joint Vocational School, said what he learned about himself in the last four years will carry him into his aviation studies at Bowling Green State University.

Amherst Steele is winner of county Scholastic Games

The Community Guide For the first time since 2015, Amherst Marion L. Steele High School has won the annual Lorain County Scholastic Games radio quiz show, defeating a team from Avon Lake High School on May 20.

Amherst Steele got 360 points to Avon Lake’s 230 in the finals.

It is Steele’s third championship victory in the program’s 34-year history. It won the program’s very first championship in 1991, but attempts to return to the victor’s circle faced stiff competition over the years, according to producer and host Jim Mehrling.

“Amherst appears to have been a second-place finisher more than any other school; it’s nice to see them win!” he said. The show has been presented each week since January on WEOL-AM 930/FM 100.3 radio. Sixteen area schools took part in 2024.

Amherst’s winning threemember team consisted of Mort Wilson, Aiden Workman and team captain/ senior Mark Vitelli, who won the program’s Standout Scholar Award.

The Standout Scholar is the student who contributed the most to his or her team as determined by scorekeepers and includes a $50 prize each time it is awarded.

It was Vitelli’s second such award this year. Workman also was a two-time

Standout Scholar Award winner in earlier programs.

The Avon Lake team boasted team captain Dylan Missal, a three-time Standout Scholar Award winner; Alex Chmiel, who won the Standout Scholar Award earlier this year; and team member Madeline Waggoner.

Steele took control in the final two rounds of questions, which have the highest scoring potential. Vitelli tallied 90 points for round four alone.

The broadcast is archived online, along with all of the previous programs of the current season, at weol.com and standoutscholars.com.

Scholastic Games is the longest continuously running program of its type in the region.

Producers hope to return with a 35th season in January 2025.

The program is supported by Nordson Corp., the Community Foundation of

Lorain County and the Nord Family Foundation.

Area colleges and universities participate by providing $1,000 tuition credit awards for allocation by participating high schools. Participating for all or most of the program’s 30year history were Lorain County Community College, Oberlin College, Ursuline College, Ashland University, Heidelberg University, John Carroll University, Lake Erie College and Tiffin University. Twelve different schools have won the championship. Amherst joins Avon Lake (2001, 2005, 2020) as a three-time winner. Avon High School has won four times (2009, 2016, 2017, 2019) and there are three five-time winners: Elyria High School (1992-1994, 1997, 2000), Lake Ridge Academy (2006, 2010, 2021-2023) and Olmsted Falls High School (20112014, 2018).

The members of Amherst’s winning team are, from left, Aiden Workman, Mark Vitelli and Mort Wilson.

PHOTO PROVIDED

DAVE O’BRIEN / COMMUNITY GUIDE

Members of the Amherst Marion L. Steele High School Class of 2024 file past the high school orchestra just prior to commencement Saturday at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland.

OC grads protest Gaza war at commencement

Carissa Woytach

The Community Guide

OBERLIN — Hundreds of Oberlin College graduates turned their backs on the college at graduation ceremonies on Memorial Day in protest of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, and the college’s alleged financial ties to pro-Israel companies.

During remarks from board of trustees Chairman Chris Canavan and President Carmen Twillie Ambar, some students, many with Palestinian keffiyeh scarves draped around their shoulders, silently stood and turned their backs to the stage.

When Ambar made her remarks ahead of conferring degrees to each of the more than 600 graduates, someone with a bullhorn led a chant of “Free Palestine” and “If we don’t get it, shut it down.”

The protest at Tappan Square on Monday morning comes weeks after a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the college’s Wilder Bowl, demanding an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and the disinvestment of the college from pro-Israel companies.

The issue was referenced in student speaker Julia Maskin’s address

An online letter from the Class of 2024 to the college pledged to “never donate money to Oberlin College until the college fully divests from every company that facilitates, invests in or supports the Israel occupation of Palestine.”

It is unclear how many of the Class of 2024 signed the pledge, but Maskin referenced “hundreds of graduates” in her remarks, noting those graduates were telling the university what they think it means to be an Oberlin student.

Maskin quoted author Audre Lorde, who addressed Oberlin graduates in May 1989 with a reminder that they were citizens of the most powerful country in the world, but a country that “stands upon the wrong side of every liberation struggle on Earth.”

“I want to take this moment to acknowledge the fact that we are celebrating our graduation today at a time when there are no celebrations and no commencement ceremonies in Gaza, because there are no universities left to have them,” Maskin said, receiving resounding applause and cheers from her fellow graduates. “In addition to being graduates from the school that pioneered racial and gendered integration in American higher education, we are also graduates from a school that invests in companies that profit from the destruction of universities, homes and lives thousands of miles away.”

Maskin continued referencing Lorde’s 35-year-old speech and its decrying of antisemitism, homophobia, sexism, South African apartheid, income inequality and the occupation of Palestinians.

Standing on the stage before her peers, Maskin said she did not have all the answers, but implored her fellow graduates to listen to Lorde’s words and think critically on what the past four years would mean once they move on from Oberlin.

Commencement speaker Rhiannon Giddens, Class of 2000 and recipient of an honorary Doctor of Music degree at Monday’s ceremony, also held a moment of silence for the lives lost in armed conflicts across the world — Palestinians included alongside the victims of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in Israel, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine, Myanmar and Ethiopia.

Giddens is a GrammyAward-winning musician, performer, composer, scholar, lyricist and winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Music for her opera “Omar,” based on Omar ibn Said’s memoir. Said was a Muslim man from West Africa who spent much of his life enslaved in North Carolina.

Giddens said with a laugh she remembers little of what her commencement

Graduates

College turn their backs to the college’s board chairman and president during the commencement in support of the college “fully divesting from every company that facilitates, invests in or supports the Israel occupation of Palestine.”

speaker said more than two decades ago, but hoped those seated in Tappan Square on Monday would take something from her remarks 24 minutes, days, months or years into the future.

She spoke of privilege — not inherently good or bad, but just something that is — and how each person must be aware of what privilege they possess and share it as much as they can.

“As you go out into the big world and meet the people who will become the cast of your life, judge not — for you do not know the choices those people have been given,” Giddens said.

She hoped graduates would dive into whatever they do with no expectations, but look for those who can help along the way.

When Giddens was 18 years old, she chose Oberlin College to study opera — despite having little to no knowledge of Western classical music and being unable to read sheet music, she said.

She arrived on campus excited to be done with chemistry and mathematics and focus on music, only to find herself wholly overwhelmed with the mountain of work compounded by her inability to read music.

the opera world was where she was meant to be, she said.

Instead, she returned to North Carolina and fell in love with Contra dance — a folk dance similar to line dancing — and taught herself the banjo and fiddle while working a corporate administration job to pay the bills.

Growing from her first days of being “awful” on both instruments to collaborating with Beyoncé on the pop star’s latest album, “Cowboy Carter,” Giddens reminded graduates to be open to not knowing how things will look in their lives.

“It’s great to have a goal, but be aware that you may not know what the path to that goal will look like, nor the final shape of that goal will be,” she said. “We are not great enough, nor big enough, nor smart enough to know what the world may have in store for us.”

Giddens recognized the challenges the Class of 2024 and their generation faces, and their life’s work is to protest — to push for liberty, and both celebrate and hold humanity accountable to the idea that “until all of us are free, none of us are free.”

Class of 1951, with the Alumni Medal for her work on campus as a student, and as an alumna that included the formation of the Status of Women Committee; Oberlin’s Parents Program; and serving as administrative liaison for Oberlin’s first LGBT community organization, the Gay Union. Cooper, 94, lives at Kendal at Oberlin and remains active in the community, including auditing courses and volunteering at the Allen Memorial Art Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright house.

Paul Thornell plants an elm in the center of campus in honor of his great-great-grandfather, George Vashon, Oberlin College’s first Black graduate.

Tree planted in honor of first Black grad

OBERLIN — A sapling elm now marks the center of the Oberlin College campus where George Vashon once walked.

She remembered crying in her voice teacher’s studio, and instead of being told to figure it out, her professor offered her a lifeline of cassette recordings so she could learn the songs by ear.

“(That) gave me the confidence I needed to get my feet under me and soon afterward I learned how to use the library, and after that I was off to the races,” Giddens said. “… I always look for those folk who throw a life raft when I need it, not the one yelling at me to just swim better.”

When Giddens first came to Oberlin College her plan was to be an opera singer and perform at The Metropolitan Opera. But four years later, she was not sure

Whether that protest takes the shape of a Pulitzer prize-winning rap album, U.S. Rep. Katie Porter’s, D-Calif., whiteboard and markers, an encampment, sit-in or slow, systemic change, she said there are many ways for each Obie in the audience to show up.

“The only time institutional change happens is when as (Bayard Rustin) put it ‘angelic troublemakers’ get to work,” Giddens said. “The front lines and the strategy room are intimately connected and we forget that … it is important to emphasize that our salvation lies in each other.”

In closing, Giddens sang Peggy Seeger’s “How I Long for Peace,” asking the audience to join in the chorus.

Oberlin College presented Nancy Dandridge Cooper,

It presented John Gates and Linda Myles Gates the Award for Distinguished Service to the Community for their work serving immigrant populations in Oberlin and beyond. That work includes being members of the Oberlin Overground Railroad Coalition in the 1980s, hosting refugees from El Salvador and Guatemala on their way to seek asylum in Canada; and were founding members of the Santa Elena Project of Accompaniment (SEPA), to provide support for Guatemalan refugees returning home after fleeing Mexico during the country’s civil war.

Alongside Giddens’ honorary doctoral degree, Dr. Kathryn Anastos, Class of 1975, received an honorary Doctor of Science degree for her work in HIV/AIDS research and treatment. For more than 40 years, Anastos provided medical care for individuals, especially women, living with HIV in New York, and leading research on HIV and HIVrelated cancers in several African countries.

Canavan recognized two would-be graduates who died before crossing the stage on Monday: Helen Hastings, 18, and Tyler Reid, 21.

Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.

On Sunday afternoon, Vashon’s great-great grandson Paul Thornell threw the last bit of dirt onto the base of what will one day be a towering tree in Tappan Square.

Vashon was the first Black man to graduate from Oberlin College, earning his bachelor’s degree in 1844 as valedictorian of his class. He earned an honorary Master of Arts degree five years later.

But when Thornell and his family visited the campus during an RV trip in 2020, he noted there was no commemoration to his late relative.

As Vashon’s 200th birthday neared, Thornell reached out to Oberlin College President Carmen Twillie Ambar who immediately agreed a marker should be placed on campus, not only in commemoration of Vashon but in acknowledgment of the college’s long commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, she said.

“I’m glad that we’re doing this in this moment. It’s never too late to do the things you should do.” Thornell was first introduced to his great-greatgrandfather’s accomplishments at about 10 years old, he said, more than 100 years after the man’s death. Vashon’s granddaughter, Francis Vashon Atkinson, said she was thankful to be able to talk about the stories she heard as a child.

“It’s really notable that so many lesser-known Black Americans who fought to advance race in various ways, Vashon’s name does not always receive the historical attention that his achievements are deserving of.”

at Oberlin

CARISSA WOYTACH / COMMUNITY GUIDE

Summer concert line-up

John Benson The Community Guide Memorial Day weekend is naturally the kickoff to summer.

Now that it has come and gone, the Northeast Ohio concert season is exploding with seemingly every band from every genre in some form or another making their way through the area.

Here’s a look at the outdoor and big arena shows coming the Rock Hall City area this spring and summer:

Cleveland Browns Stadium

100 Alfred Lerner Way, Cleveland (Ticketmaster.com)

n Rolling Stones, June 15

Yet another casualty of the pandemic was the Rolling Stones’ canceled 2020 Rock Hall City gig for its “No Filter Tour” show at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Now Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood (sadly, drummer Charlie Watts died in 2021) are touring new album “Hackney Diamonds,” the group’s first featuring new material since 2005, with a show booked for Cleveland Browns Stadium. Also, no joke, the tour is being sponsored by AARP, which is both appropriate and hilarious.

n Billy Joel & Rod Stewart, Sept. 13

Blossom Music Center

1145 W. Steels Corners Road, Cuyahoga Falls (Livenation.com)

n NEEDTOBREATHE, June 1 (Saturday)

n Kenny Chesney, June 6

n Foreigner & Styx with John Waite, June 12

Exactly a year after Foreigner came through Northeast Ohio on its (wink-wink) farewell tour, the classic rock act has announced a co-headlining summer jaunt with Styx that includes a show at Blossom Music Center. Joining the platinum “Juke Box Hero” and “Mr. Roboto” bands will be opener John Waite.

n New Kids On The Block with Paula Abdul & DJ Jazzy Jeff, June 14

n Hank Williams Jr., June 21

n Dave Matthews Band, June 25

It wouldn’t be summertime in Northeast Ohio without an annual visit by the Dave Matthews Band. Touring its new album “Walk Around The Moon,” the popular jam band of sorts makes its way back to the area for a Blossom Music Center show.

n Niall Horan, June 26

n Third Eye Blind, July 5

n Norah Jones with Mavis Staples, July 11

n Luke Bryan, July 12

n Train & REO Speedwagon, July 15

It’ll be a night of sing-along hits — from “Drops of Jupiter” and “Hey, Soul Sister” to “Keep On Loving You” and “Take It On the Run” — when the Train & REO Speedwagon co-headlining tour rolls into Ohio for Blossom Music Center show.

n Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire, July 16

n Alanis Morissette, July 17

n Sam Hunt, July 19

Country music superstar Sam Hunt — who recently appeared at the 2024 CMT Music Awards — is celebrating the release of his new EP “Locked Up” with a summer tour that includes a Blossom Music Center show.

n Red Hot Chili Peppers, July 22

n Totally Tubular Festival, July 28

n Sammy Hagar, July 29

n Primus & Coheed and Cambria, Aug. 5

n Hozier, Aug. 6

Known for radio hit “Take Me To Church,” Hozier last year released his third studio effort, “Unreal Unearth,” which despite being snubbed by Grammy Award voters is something special. The Irish artist is currently riding high after the success of his hit new song ““Too Sweet,” from his new EP “Unheard.”

n Thirty Seconds To Mars, Aug. 7

n Dan + Shay, Aug. 9

n The Queens of R&B: Xscape & SWV, Aug.

10

n Kidz Bop Live 2024, Aug. 11

n Barbie The Movie: In Concert, Aug. 12

n Tedeschi Trucks Band, Aug. 13

Billed as one of the best live acts touring today, Tedeschi Trucks Band — led by husband & wife guitarist Derek Trucks and singer/guitarist Susan Tedeschi — is bringing its “Deuces Wild Tour” to Ohio with Blossom Music Center date. Opening is Margo Price.

n Hootie & the Blowfish, Aug. 15

n Glass Animals, Aug. 21

n The Doobie Brothers, Aug. 22

n Rob Zombie & Alice Cooper, Aug. 28

God bless Alice Cooper who at the age of 76 will be spending the summer touring with Rob Zombie on the co-headlining “Freaks On Parade 2024” bill, which includes a Blossom Music Center date.

n Pitbull, Aug. 29

n Avril Lavigne, Sept. 6

n Cage The Elephant, Sept. 9

n Stone Temple Pilots & +LIVE+, Sept. 10

After the pandemic forced them to cancel their 2020 show in Cleveland, the Rolling Stones will perform June 15 at Browns Stadium.

n “Outlaw Music Festival Tour,” Sept. 12

Nearly a decade after it started, the “Outlaw Music Festival Tour” continues to draw an annual impressive lineup. Take for instance this year’s Northeast Ohio bill featuring headliners Willie Nelson & Family, Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and Southern Avenue appearing at Blossom Music Center.

n Parker McCollum, Sept. 13

n Sum 41, Sept. 15

You know we’re all getting old when Sum 41 announces retirement, sort of. Supposedly the Grammy Award-nominated “Fat Lip” band is threatening to break up after the release of final album “Heaven :x: Hell” and last tour. The “Tour of the Setting Sum” includes a Blossom Music Center date.

n Vampire Weekend, Sept. 19

n The National & The War On Drugs, Sept. 21 The National and The War On Drugs are teaming up for the co-headlining “Zen Diagram Tour” which has a Blossom Music Center date. The former act is touring its two 2023 albums — “First Two Pages of Frankenstein” and “Laugh Track” — while the latter, quite frankly, is due for some new music.

n Meghan Trainor, Sept. 27

Jacobs Pavilion 2014 Sycamore St., Cleveland (Axs.com)

n Chappell Roan, May 28

n Khruangbin, May 29

With its unique psychedelic aesthetic that seamlessly fuses soul, R&B and rock, Khruangbin is known for memorable shows on the festival circuit. Now the Texas trio is touring is fourth studio album, “A La Sala.”

n Orville Peck, June 7

n Jacob Collier, June 12

English singer-songwriter Jacob Collier is finally coming stateside and making good on the promise to visit the Rock Hall City. Originally scheduled for a spring 2023 at Jacobs Pavilion, the talented and highly sought-after artist — touring in support of new “Djesse Vol. 4” — has booked a June 12 show at the scenic venue located on the shores of the Cuyahoga River.

n A Day To Remember, June 14

n Goose, June 16

n Walker Hayes, June 20

n Brothers Osborne, June 29

Recently nominated for Best Country Album and Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 66th annual Grammy Awards, Brothers Osborne has announced its upcoming “Might As Well Be Us Tour” includes a Cleveland show.

n Slightly Stoopid and Dirty Heads, July 11

n Wish You Were Here, July 20

n Warren Haynes, July 26

n 311 & AWOLNATION, July 28

n Sad Summer Festival, July 29

For those Warped Tour fans who miss the annual punk-minded tour, this year’s “Sad Summer Festival,” which makes a stop at Jacobs Pavilion, may do the trick. The lineup includes Warped Tour vets and newcomers Mayday Parade, The Maine, The Wonder Years, We The Kings, Real Friends, Knuckle Puck and Daisy Grenade.

n mike., Aug. 2

n John Fogerty, Aug. 3.

n Stephen Sanchez, Aug. 7

Known for 2021 hit song “Until I Found You,” Stephen Sanchez recently released a deluxe version of his 2023 debut album, “Angel Face.” The throwback singer-songwriter is

touring the project with a summer jaunt that includes a Jacobs Pavilion date.

n Lamb Of God & Mastodon, Aug. 9.

n Iration & Pepper, Aug. 10

n Bush, Aug. 13, After two Northeast Ohio appearances last year, Bush returns to Cleveland this summer with an August show at Jacobs Pavilion. The multiplatinum band is touring in support of its recently released greatest hits affair. Opening will be Jerry Cantrell and Candlebox.

n Koe Wetzel, Aug. 21

n The Avett Brothers, Aug. 23. The Avett Brothers has announced a summer tour. Two years after playing Jacobs Pavilion, the folk-minded outfit returns to the Rock Hall City amphitheater.

n King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Aug. 24

n O.A.R., Aug. 25

n Mitski, Sept. 3.

After roughly a decade in obscurity, indie singer-songwriter Mitski is finally garnering mainstream attention. Not only did her 2022 song “This Is a Life” earn an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song, but her latest effort, “The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We,” includes the charting single “My Love Mine All Mine.” Next up is a tour stop at Jacobs Pavilion.

n Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Sept. 10

n Clutch, Sept. 19

Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse One Center Court, Cleveland (Rocketmortgagefieldhouse.com)

n Lauren Daigle, Toz

n Keyshia Cole, June 21

n Janet Jackson, June 25

It appears as though Janet Jackson is finally going to make good on a promise to bring her tour to Northeast Ohio. It was more than a half-decade ago when the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee had to reschedule a tour due to her unexpected pregnancy. Next up, her “Black Diamond World Tour 2020” was a casualty of the pandemic. Now the “Ms. Jackson’s Together Again 2024 Tour” includes Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse show.

n AJR, June 27

n Justin Timberlake, July 7

n Martin Lawrence, Aug. 3

n Missy Elliott, Aug. 14

Less than a year after getting inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Missy Elliott has announced a massive summer tour. As one of the most significant and influential hip-hop/R&B artists, the pioneer brings her “Out Of This World — The Missy Elliott Experience Tour” to Northeast Ohio for a Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse date. Opening will be Busta Rhymes, Ciara and Timbaland.

n Jeff Lynne’s ELO, Sept. 14

n Tom Segura, Sept.26

n $uicideboy$, Sept. 27

Featuring rap cousins Ruby da Cherry and $crim, New Orleans duo $uicideboy$ — which seamlessly meld hip-hop and hardcore — have set a spring release for its next full-length album “New World Depression.” What will follow is the annual “Grey Day Tour,” with a show booked for Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

n Twenty One Pilots, Sept. 28

n Aerosmith with the Black Crowes, Sept. 29

Roadtripping

n Headbangers unite. That’s the annual rally cry regarding Central Ohio’s Inkcarceration festival, which this year takes place July 19 through 21 at the former Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield. Headlining this year are Breaking Benjamin, The Offspring, Godsmack, Halestorm, Shinedown and Bad Omens. Tickets are on sale now at Inkcarceration.com.

n Fans of Pearl Jam unhappy the band didn’t include a Northeast Ohio date on its upcoming summer tour can still check out the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame act. Supporting its latest album “Dark Matter,” Eddie Vedder and company have booked two shows (Aug. 29 and 31) at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Tickets are now on sale at Ticketmaster.com.

Contact John Benson at ndiffrence@att.net.

Savage will perform Wednesday at Blossom Music Center.

Columbia comes from behind to beat Black River

The Black River Pirates jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third inning and led 6-0 in the fifth inning.

However, Columbia came back to take the lead in the sixth inning and then Logan Menge hit a walk off RBI to win the game, 8-7, in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Photos by Russ Gifford The Community Guide

Columbia’s Jacob Sanders (1) celebrates with Logan Menge after his game winning RBI single in the seventh inning.

Columbia’s Logan Menge throws to first base for an out against Black River.

Black River’s Johnny Kray makes the throw to first base for an out against Columbia.

D3 DISTRICT SEMIFINAL AT MEDINA

Columbia’s Jose Rivera gets an RBI double against Black River.

Black River’s Evan Ladina gets an RBI double against Columbia.

Taste history in Amherst Taste of History, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 14 and June 15 at Sandstone Village, 763 Milan Ave., Amherst. A unique military living history event focusing on the food and rations that fed soldiers across all eras. Sample military chow through the ages available for donation. Military displays, shooting demonstrations, home front and camp follower displays, kids’ activities, vendors and more. Free shuttle and parking at Amherst Junior High School, 548 Milan Ave., Amherst. Registration to be a reenactor or a field kitchen for the event is free. Vendor registration is $50. Registration is available at https://www. mhpg.us/tasteofhistory. For more information, please contact the Amherst Historical Society (440) 988-7255 or office@amhersthistoricalsociety.org.

Picnic for a Purpose in June

Primary Purpose Center “Picnic for a Purpose”, starting at 2 p.m. June 1 at The Lodge in New Russia Township, 46300 Butternut Ridge Road, Oberlin. Visit primarypurposecenter.com for more information. Sandstone car, bike show in Amherst Sandstone Village Car and Bike Show, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 2 at Sandstone Village, 763 Milan Ave., Amherst. Rain or shine. Car registration: 9 to 11 a.m. day of show. Cars should enter through Jefferson Street for registration. Dash plaques to the first 200; photo area; goody bags for first 100 registrants. Free entry for spectators. Free parking and shuttle from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Amherst Junior High School, 548 Milan Ave., Amherst. Village buildings and shops will be open; food vendors; 50/50 raffle; basket raffles and more. For more information, please contact (440) 988-7255 or office@ amhersthistoricalsociety.org.

UCC making stuffed cabbage Hungarian cabbage roll sale, 9 a.m. to noon, June 7 and 8 at Community of Faith UCC, 9715 East River Road, Elyria. Cost is $15 per uncooked dozen. Orders accepted through May 24 by calling (440)309-6828 or the church office at (440)322-3781. Please specify pick up date when placing your order.

Drive to Thrive fundraiser

First annual “Drive to Thrive,” 5 to 8 p.m. June 14 at NAPA, 1020 East Broad St., Elyria. $10 registration fee, all makes and models. Dash plaques for the first 50 cars; 50/50 raffle. Non-perishable food donations accepted. Proceeds benefit The Bread of Life Ministry. Rain date: June 21. www.elyriabreadoflife.org

Sports Foundation fundraiser June 18

T3 Sports Foundation fundraiser, gates open at 6 p.m., first pitch at 7:05 p.m. June 18 at the Lake Erie Crushers Stadium, 2009 Baseball Blvd., Avon. Tickets are $13 each. Proceeds benefit athletes in need as a portion of ticket sales and 50/50 Raffle proceeds will go directly to the T3 Sports Foundation. Tickets can be purchased at fevo-enterprise.com/event/T3Foundation.

FICTIONAL FATHERS

ACROSS

1. Ice cream treat, pl.

6. Albanian money

9. Desertlike

13. Like Bananas Foster

14. Paleozoic ____

15. O. Henry’s specialty

16. Printer brand

17. Always, to a poet

18. Extended family member

19. *”Breaking Bad” father

21. *”The Lion King” father

23. Unit of length of yarn

24. “____ Me Maybe”

25. *____ Anderson, he knew best?

28. The Supremes, e.g.

30. Subject matter, pl.

35. Same as ayah

37. Plural of #14 Across

39. Like less processed grain

40. Kind of shark

41. U.S. Airline

43. Short for “and elsewhere”

44. Opposite of digest

46. Flabbergast

47. Like Gulf Stream

48. Most achy

50. Not much (2 words)

52. Reggae’s cousin

53. Rapunzel’s abundance

55. Maintenance closet staple

57. *____ Rock of “Everybody Hates Chris”

60. *”Finding Nemo” father

63. Golfer’s sun protection

64. Aloha prop

66. Only daughter of Michael Jackson

68. Not active

69. Emergency Medical Services

70. In the cooler (2 words)

71. *Opie’s father

72. Egyptian boy king, for short

73. Button on electrical outlet

DOWN 1. Nth degree

Not many

Turkish money 4. Online troublemaker

Mike Brady’s children, e.g.

Malicious

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,

Officers killed in line of duty honored

The Lorain County officers killed in the line of duty since 1983 were recently honored for their bravery.

The list also includes five Lorain County residents killed while serving other municipalities. They are:

n Oberlin Police Constable Franklin Stone, killed June 4, 1881

n Wellington City Marshal George Brenner, killed July 17, 1883

n Rochester Marshal Spooner Crapo, killed Nov. 11, 1905

n Amherst Police Officer Rupert Becker, killed April 10, 1916

n Norfolk Southern Railroad Officer David Barnes, killed July 27, 1920

n Nickle Plate Railroad Officer Jack Laicy, killed Nov. 24, 1923

n Lorain Police Officer Fred Webber, killed Dec. 23, 1923

n Lorain Police Officer Charles Deal, killed Nov. 6, 1925

n Lorain County Sheriff Deputy Franklin Strohl, killed June 13, 1930

n Elyria Police Officer Howard Taft, killed Aug. 18, 1942

n Lorain Police Officer George Kirk, killed March 30, 1944

n Wellington Police Officer Edmund Smith, killed May 4, 1957

n Lorain County Sheriff Deputy Michael George, killed Jan. 9, 1961

n Lorain County Sheriff Deputy John Palermo, killed Jan. 21, 1964

n Oberlin Police Officer Robert Woodall, killed March 10, 1971

n Vermilion Police Officer Francis Smolka, killed Oct. 29, 1978

n Lorain County Sheriff Deputy Kenneth Tomaszewski, killed July 3, 1979

n Elyria Police Officer Bradley Scott, killed Aug. 27, 2004

n Elyria Police Sgt. James Kerstetter, killed March 15, 2010

n U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Officer Leonard Wilcox, killed Jan. 31, 1986

n Highway Patrol Trooper Robert Perez Jr., killed March 15, 2000

n Beaufort County Sheriff Deputy Dyke “A.J.” Coursen, killed Jan. 8, 2002

n Cleveland Heights Police Officer Jason West, killed May 26, 2007

n Highway Patrol Trooper Kenneth Velez, killed Sept. 15, 2016.

County Commissioner Michelle Hung presented a proclamation recognizing those killed in the line of duty in Lorain County, and nationally. Since 1786, more than 26,500 officers have been killed while on duty.

“We pledge to continue to keep their memory alive,” Pelko said.

Black River Landing stroll Friday

Take a story stroll from 10-10:45 a.m. Friday at the Black River Landing storywalk, 319 Black River Lane, Lorain. For birth through age 3 and caregivers. Walks will not exceed a half-mile. Preregistration required at LorainPublicLibrary.org/programs.

Hungarian Reformed ‘Blessing of Fleet’

The Hungarian Reformed Church Men’s Brotherhood in conjunction with Lorain County Stylers Car Club will sponsor the Vintage Cars and Motorcycles’ sixth annual Blessing of the Fleet at the Hungarian Reformed Church, 1691 E. 31st St., Lorain, from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot. The blessing takes place at 2 p.m. rain or shine, and all are welcome. A free chicken paprikash dinner will be offered to the first 50 vintage car and motorcycle owners. Additional dinners can be reserved/purchased by vintage owners in advance for $10 by calling (440) 773-2990 by May 24.

County continues program to send all the kids to camp that want to go

Lorain County Job & Family Services announced that it is continuing its partnership with local nonprofit agencies for an eighth year to send low-income children to summer camp.

The summer camps from June through September are for children 6 to 14 and include field trips, sports and STEM learning — science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The summer camps will bridge the gap in education from the end of the school year to the beginning of the next, JFS said.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, funds will allow the summer camps to be provided to families with incomes below 200 percent of the national poverty level.

“Research indicates that children who lack access to structured learning opportunities during summer break face academic setbacks,” according to a news release. JFS “is dedicated to combating this trend by offering engaging and enriching activities that stimulate intellectual growth and foster social development. By participating in the Summer Camp programs, children in our community are equipped with the tools and resources necessary to excel in their educational journey.”

The camps are successful in part due to the “extensive network of partnerships” JFS has with local nonprofits.

“We are thrilled to once again offer our summer camp programs to the youth of Lorain County,” JFS Director Barbara Tamas said. “Through these initiatives, we are not only investing in the academic success of our children but also empowering them to reach their full potential.”

Commissioners authorized more than $669,000 in TANF funds for the four summer camp programs on May 21.

The amounts received are: El Centro in Lorain, $251,252; Horizon Education Centers in North Olmsted, $216,200; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lorain County, $107,780; and Tower Educational Consulting Group Inc. in Lorain, $94,000.

Commissioner David Moore said in the news release. “These programs offer opportunities for our youth to continue and strengthen their learning experiences during the summer to help prepare them for academic success in the upcoming school year.”

-- Community News

Oberlin Chalk Walk returns June 22

One of Oberlin’s favorite summer events, Chalk Walk, returns from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. June 22. Local and regional artists will create imaginative chalk drawings throughout downtown Oberlin.

Oberlin Chalk Walk, in its 17th year, is a collaborative event organized by Allen Memorial Art Museum, Firelands Association for the Visual Arts (FAVA), Oberlin Business Partnership (OBP), Oberlin Heritage Center, and Oberlin Public Library.

Master artists this year include Wendy Mahon, Héctor Castęllanos, and Robin Van Lear. Local artists include Keith Joe Dick, Mandy Heinebrodt, Keith McGuckin, Karly West, and Beth Wolosz.

Artists contributing to the wall outside the Oberlin Public Library are Alex Borroni, Jan Dregalla, Terry Flores, Dana Juliano, and Cara Romano.

Smidgins

*”National Lampoon” father

Carl Jung’s inner self

T, in Greek

Creating theshapesofanimals,treesand faces using hand shadows is funand sometimes challenging. You’ll need adarkroomand a flashlightorsmall desklamp.Then, trytocreate some of the hand shadowsonthispage.See if youcan make your handshadow puppets speak or moverealistically. It takes some practice!

Match the hands to each of the animal shadows.

Canyou create these shadow

STEP2

Comical Shadows

in the newspaper

finda acter you like. On a eceofconstruction r, carefully draw the haracter’s outline. Cut tthe shape and tapeit apopsiclestick. Usea ashlight to project its adow on thewalland ee if your friends and family members can cognizethe character

STEP3

Je Schinkel,Graphics