News Briefs
Gavarone to speak
State Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, is scheduled to give a presentation to residents of Woodcreek Village, 103 Woodcreek Boulevard, Walbridge, on March 4 at 10 a.m. in the complex clubhouse.
Gavarone will address the group primarily on the state’s Homestead Exemption but will take questions from the group on other topics. The presentation is part of the Neighborhood Watch program sponsored by the Lake Township Police Department.
For more information, call Ron Craig, crime prevention specialist and community policing officer for the Lake Township Police Department, at 419-481-6354.
Quilters to meet
The Maumee Bay Country Quilters’ Guild will meet Tuesday, March 7 at 6:45 p.m. at Northwood Church of God, 3375 Curtice Rd. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Speaker Cindy Hoffman will discuss “Sewing Antiques and Teaching in Africa.” Visitors and new members are welcome. The visitor’s fee is $10. Yearly membership is $35.
Genealogy classes
Oregon-Jerusalem Historical Society has partnered with The Genealogy Investigator to offer classes on how to research family genealogy.
This course can be purchased as a six-week package or as individual classes. The first class, “Writing Your Story,” will be held at Brandville School Museum, 1133 Grasser St., Oregon, Wednesday, March 15 at 7 p.m.
Special OJHS member pricing is $20 per class or $110 for all six classes. Nonmembers will pay a higher per-class fee.
Call Kitty at 419-376-9491 to reserve a spot.
Girl Scout
cookie booths
“Cookie booth season” is open for Girl Scouts of Western Ohio. To find nearby cookie booths, connect with a troop for local delivery or purchase cookies online for donation, visit gswo.org/findcookies.
Through March 19, area Girl Scout entrepreneurs will be out and about the community at local businesses, holding drive-through cookie booths, setting up cookie stands in their neighborhoods, and taking orders online using the Digital Cookie platform.
This year, Girl Scouts are selling nine cookie varieties, including classic customer favorites such as Thin Mints, Tagalongs, Samoas, and last year’s newest cookie, the brownie-inspired Adventurefuls.
Starting Monday, Feb. 27, consumers can order cookies – including the new Raspberry Rally cookie – for shipment directly to their doorsteps. Raspberry Rally, a sister to the Thin Mint, featuring a crispy, raspberry-infused center, is offered exclusively through digital channels for direct shipment only.
Every Girl Scout Cookie purchase helps girls learn entrepreneurial skills and powers adventures for them. Girl Scouts use their cookie earnings to better their communities, explore the outdoors at camp, plan trips, have fun experiences with their friends, and more.
Girl Scouts in our area also donate thousands of cookies each year to local military organizations and food banks through the council’s Gift of Caring program.
Work on the wild side
African Safari Wildlife Park is hiring for more than 50 seasonal full-time and part-time positions for its upcoming 55th season.
Opportunities are available in every department of the park, including admissions, retail, food service, groundskeeping, landscaping, animal care and education.
Applicants must be 14 years of age or older, however, certain positions, such as animal care, are open to ages 18 and up only and require a valid driver’s license. No previous experience is required for most positions.
“If you’re an animal lover looking to gain hands-on work experience, develop your skills and make new friends, African Safari Wildlife Park is the place for you,” said park director Kelsey Keller. “Join our team and work on the wild side.”
The park offers flexible scheduling, bonuses for regular attendance, recognition and rewards for standout employees and free admission for friends and family of employees.
Learn more or apply at africansafariwildlifepark.com/employment.
Letters From Home
Singers plan show
The Letters From Home Singers will present “The 50 States Tour” Friday, March 3 at 7 p.m. at Maumee Indoor Theater, 601 Conant St.
As the official Ohio stop of their “50-States Tour,” Letters From Home will bring back the style of the USO with a high-energy performance featuring Erinn Dearth and Dan Beckmann. The duo has performed more than 900 shows across the United States for veterans and their families, and performed at the 75th Anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, France.
The show features singing, tap dancing, jokes and audience interaction. Tickets available online at LettersFromHomeSingers.com and at the Maumee Indoor Theater box office.
Wood Co. court
upgrades hearing
assistance technology
Courtroom proceedings can be complicated to understand, even without the presence of audio inadequacy. When intricate details of a case are unable to be heard, serious consequences can result.
Recently, the Wood County Courthouse upgraded its already compliant technology systems to the most up to date
hearing assistance devices to ensure all people interacting with the court can engage and feel included.
The new “Listen Technologies” devices provide a dedicated personal audio feed to individuals in the courtroom. These devices are available to persons with hearing impairments, and to anyone who may wish to use them.
The system is also designed to wirelessly connect with hearing aid devices equipped with telecoils, so that any affected court participants may participate in the proceedings without the use of a headset. When a judge determines a particular piece of evidence or audio submission might be challenging to pick up, he or she may pause the proceeding to distribute the devices to jurors, members of the public or participants – even if they had not already been requested.
Judges Matthew Reger, Mary “Molly” Mack, Joel Kuhlman and David Woessner have employed the new devices within Courts #1, #2, and #4, the Domestic Relations Court and the Probate Court.
“Because of the sensitive nature of what we do, courts are held to a higher standard when it comes to accessibility of communications,” Court Administrator Brandy Hartman said, “In Wood County, we are pleased to have the means to meet and exceed those expectations so that we can provide the best experience to all who interact with our courts.”
Nominations sought
The Northwest Ohio Women’s Business Council is seeking nominations for the inaugural Women’s Entrepreneurial Distinction Ovation (WEDO) Awards.
The awards will be presented in May, in conjunction with National Small Business Month.
WEDO Award categories include Rising Star, Legend, Second Act, Trailblazer and Thriver. Nomination is open to women who own at least 50 percent of a business in Northwest Ohio counties, including Lucas, Sandusky, Ottawa and Wood, as well as Allen, Crawford, Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Paulding, Putnam, Seneca, Van Wert, Williams and Wyandot counties.
Learn more at nwowbc.com
Board meetings set
The Board of Trustees of the Northwestern Water and Sewer District has updated its meeting schedule for February and March. Meetings will be held at The District’s Board Room at 12560 Middleton Pike, Bowling Green, at 7:30 a.m. on the following Thursdays:
• March 2 (rescheduled from February 23).
• March 16 (rescheduled from March 9).
• March 30 (rescheduled from March 23).
Regular meetings will resume on the second and fourth Thursday of each month beginning April 13.
Bridge closure
Ottawa County has contracted with R&I Construction to work on the bridge on Linker-Portage Road over Sugar Creek, between Smith and Netcher roads.
The work will require the full closure of the bridge and no through traffic will be permitted.
The bridge is scheduled for closure Feb. 27 through April 27.
A detour route will be posted.
Live! In the House
welcomes 6th Edition
The 6th Edition Vocal Ensemble will bring jazz with a bit of pop thrown in to the Pemberville Opera House Saturday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. The concert is part of the ongoing Live! In the House Concert Series presented by the Pemberville Freedom Area Historical Society.
Tickets are $12 and are available at Beeker’s General Store, 226 E. Front St., Pemberville, by calling Carol at 419-287-4848 or at the door. The Pemberville Opera House is located at 115 Main St.
A talented jazz vocal group with a rich, sophisticated sound, 6th Edition has been winning over audiences for 20 years with a diverse repertoire, from the American Song Book to Stevie Wonder.
The group was formed in 2001, born from the inspiration of their experience working with the legendary John Hendricks at the University of Toledo. Friends Kim Buehler, Kevin Eikum, Lori Lefevre, John Johnson and Lisa Young had been involved in studio jingle singing and ensemble work. They each had solo careers as well.
Together as The 6th Edition, they produced a CD, “It’s About Time,” while performing throughout the Midwest. They have also performed with the Toledo Jazz Orchestra and the Toledo Symphony Orchestra.
Toledo Helps Ukraine
plans Feb. 25 event
When the war on Ukraine began on Feb. 24, 2022, Alona Matchenko and Hope Luther, law students at the University of Toledo, mobilized help quickly to assist Ukrainians impacted by Russia’s unlawful invasion. The result was the creation of a nonprofit, Toledo Helps Ukraine/4UA.org.
Now, a year later, the bombing, killing and crimes against humanity continue in Ukraine. As we approach the one-year mark of the invasion of Ukraine Toledo Helps Ukraine/4UA.org, in conjunction with St. Michaels’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, will present an event welcoming Ukrainians that THU has helped to bring to safety to through the U4U initiative.
The event will be held Saturday, Feb. 25 at 1 p.m. at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church Hall, 135 Walnut St., Rossford.
THU/4UA.org will provide the community with an update on the ongoing work of Toledo Helps Ukraine/4UA.org and offer the Ukrainian refugees whom they have arranged to come to Ohio an opportunity to meet and enjoy some camaraderie and fellowship.
Alona Matchenko, co-founder of 4UA.org, will speak to the community about the work of the nonprofit over the past year and its current needs, including welcomers and sponsors for Ukrainians anxiously awaiting to come to the United States. THU/4UA.org will also have items available for sale to support the work of the non-profit.