P
The Waite murals get new life See page 15
February 4, 2013
FREE
RESS
Barn quilt See page 16
Serving The Eastern Maumee Bay Communities Since 1972
M
Ottawa County
Public urged to comment on sales tax By Larry Limpf News Editor news@presspublications.com
Club hosts wine tasting The Hungarian Club of Toledo recently hosted a wine tasting. Pictured, Norm Heineman, of Bowling Green Beverage, showcased six European wines for the event. Heineman is a member of the Heineman family, which continues to own and operate the Heineman Winery at Put-in-Bay. (Press photo by Ken Grosjean)
Woman needs help saving her dog In Northwood, East Toledo, Rossford and Perrysburg, Wind Bearheart and her dogs Chance, a Husky, and Grizzly, a Newfoundland, have become de facto celebrities. The three have been seen around town, Bearheart on her sled with wheels, being pulled by her dogs as she ran errands, visited friends and went sightseeing. Bearheart, who is disabled and does not drive, has counted on her furry friends for transportation as well as companionship. Now, after a serious car accident, Bearheart finds herself trying to raise money to save one of her dogs. On Tuesday, January 22, Bearheart was a passenger in a vehicle traveling back to Northwood after visiting with her son, Shane Baumgartner, a paramedic/firefighter at Station No. 9 in Whitehouse. The car that contained Bearheart and her dogs was traveling down County Road D, in Fulton County, when a vehicle on County Road 3 broadsided the car, which was totaled. Bearheart was airlifted to The University of Toledo Medical Center in serious condition. “I had head injuries, broken bones in
Common People, Uncommon Challenges 50 stories of inspiration
“
My mom did not want to ask for help and she is embarrassed by the whole thing.
“
By Melissa Burden Special to The Press
my face, and injured ribs,” Bearheart said. “I have to see a trauma doctor and a plastic surgeon.” At home and in pain, Bearheart is more concerned with Grizzly’s injuries. According to Bearheart, Chance was taken to the fire department in Whitehouse, where he was cared for by her son and his fellow firefighters. Although sore, Chance came out of the accident relatively unscathed. But not so for Grizzly, who is 14 months old and weighs 165 pounds. He was taken to an emergency veterinary clinic to be treated for leg injuries and a dislocated hip. “My son took him to the clinic and
then he brought him home,” Bearheart said. “The next day, his hip popped out again. He also has a large gash on his front leg.” Bearheart’s son then took Grizzly to the West Suburban Animal Hospital in Sylvania where he was looked at by Dr. Gary Thompson. “Dr. Thompson said Grizzly most likely is going to need to have hip replacement surgery in Columbus,” she said. “The estimated cost is $6,000, and that does not include physical therapy if he needs it.” Unfortunately, Bearheart drained her savings with the first vet bill, as well as her own medical costs, and is unable to afford the surgery. “I am more worried about Grizzly right now,” Bearheart said. “He is unable to walk a lot right now and he is my main concern.” Although the driver of the other vehicle did have insurance, the insurance company will not pay for the veterinary bills because Grizzly is considered personal property, Bearheart said. Dogs are family “My dogs are much more than property,” she said. “We go to the meat market,
Continued on page 4
Q
uote of The Week
I feel your pain with the Woodville Mall. Aggie Dahar See page 11
Continued on page 4
Read about the heroes living in the homes next to you. In these 50 short stories, Press columnist John Szozda tells the stories of common people who have met uncommon challenges with vision, courage, passion and determination. These men and women include the Genoa grandmother who helped
by John Szozda
The Ottawa County commissioners have set Feb. 21 and 26 as the dates for public hearings to accept public comment on a 0.25 percent sales tax that is expiring at the end of June. The hearings will start at 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. respectively and will be held in the county’s emergency operations center in Port Clinton. To bolster the county’s general fund, the commissioners levied the additional tax in 2010 and it went into effect July 1 for three years. With the emergency tax, the county’s total sales tax rate is 6.75 percent. The emergency portion generated $392,317 in 2010 and the base tax generated another $4.9 million. In 2011, they generated a combined $6.3 million; $1.25 million from the emergency tax and a little more than $5 million from the base tax. The commissioners noted in the county’s 2011 annual report that without a concerted effort to contain costs and the additional revenues from the emergency tax the general fund would have had a deficit of $892,487. They cited falling local revenues and doubts the state would reimburse local governments to meet the costs of required programs and services when they enacted the emergency tax. Jim Sass, a county commissioner, said the board of commissioners have two options if they want to extend the emergency tax: approve a resolution to continue it, which would be subject to a voter referendum, or put it on the November ballot as an issue for voters to decide. He said the tax was needed to maintain the status quo for the county budget and not expanding services or programs. The Ohio Department of Taxation defines a sales tax as a “trust” tax to be collected by retailers and certain service providers when they make taxable retail sales.
solve her daughter’s murder, the Polish-American boy who survived gruesome medical experiments during WWII and the woman, once a victim of fear, who fought back against crime and founded CrimeStoppers. The
For your copy of John Szozda’s book, send $15 to The Press, Box 169-J Millbury, OH 43447 or call 419-836-2221.
PRESS
Metro Suburban Maumee Bay