FOREST HILLS
JOURNAL
Your Community Press newspaper serving Anderson Township, California, Mount Washington, Newtown
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2013
75¢
BECAUSE COMMUNITY MATTERS
Police address crime rate By Forrest Sellers fsellers@communitypress.com
MT. WASHINGTON — Cincinnati Police have acknowledged crime is an issue in Mt. Washington. However, Capt. Paul Broxterman with Cincinnati Police, District 2, said various efforts by residents can make a significant difference. Broxterman spoke in front of a standing-room-only crowd to address concerns following recent media reports that crime levels had spiked in the community. “We have to be more vigilant,” said Broxterman during the Feb. 20 Mt. Washington Community Council meeting. Broxterman said burglaries and thefts from autos remain at high levels. According to a recent report, thefts from vehicles more than doubled from 2010 to 2011, from 65 thefts to 144. According to the same report, burglary and breaking and entering fell in 2012, but those crimes were up 14 percent since 2009. “We need to step up our game and drive these numbers down,” said Broxterman. Broxterman said involvement in programs such as the Neighborhood Watch and Citizens on Patrol can have a positive impact. Council board member Kirk Kavanaugh asked how Mt. Washington compared to other Cincinnati neighborhoods. Broxterman said Mt. Washington placed third behind Evanston and Madisonville in property crimes such as burglaries and breaking and entering. However, he said Mt. Washington was very low on the list in relation to violent crime. Broxterman said police planned to focus on Mt. Washington in 2013 to help reduce the number of property crimes. Police Detective Kelly Macbeth said in some cases prevention can be as simple as not leaving valuable items in the car. She also said residents should trust their instincts. If someone suspicious is seen going door to door or investigating the backyard of a home the police should be alerted, she said. Broxterman said neighborhood councils can play an important role as well through efforts such as Mt. Washington’s Neighborhood Improvement Committee, which monitors problem properties in the community.
Pauline Murrie of the Newtown Village Quilters made this quilt for veteran Don Bates of Newtown. JEANNE HOUCK/THE COMMUNITY PRESS
Comforting with quilts By Jeanne Houck jhouck@communitypress.com
C
NEWTOWN —
hildren clutch them as they head into sterile hospital rooms for medical treatment. Hospice patients facing sure death wrap themselves in them to keep warm. Veterans who have risked life and limb for their country display them proudly in their home. They are quilts made by the Newtown Village Quilters, who welcome newcomers to their Saturday morning quilting parties 8:30 to 11 a.m. at Moundview Community Center on Newtown Road in Newtown. “We work on our own (quilts), of course, but the focus of our group is for donations,” said Pauline Murrie, a member of the Newtown Village Quilters and the owner of Main Street Café in Newtown. “We give them to children’s hospitals, hospices and veterans. “If somebody is in need of a hug we’ll give them a quilt,” Murrie said.
Members of the Newtown Village Quilters have made and donated more than 300 quilts during the three years the group has been in existence. The quilters always are in need of fabric, quilt batting, fleece, sewing notions and cash – items people can donate by dropping them off at Newtown Town Hall at 3536 Church St. Whatever the Newtown
FOOD
INVESTIGATION
Rita Heikenfeld’s moist and buttery soda bread is sweeter than most recipes. Full story, B3
The cause of a fire that closed Laszlo’s Iron Skillet restaurant in Newtown remains under investigation. Full story, A2
Village Quilters doesn’t want it donates to other groups such as an animal shelter that uses the materials to make blankets and toys for abused dogs. Murrie said a core group of about five people and another 10 who participate sporadically make up the quilters. Anyone can join. You don’t have to be a resident of Newtown – or even female. Members also hail from Anderson Township and Milford. Two men have quilted with the ladies. Murrie said making and donating the quilts warms the hearts of quilters – especially when they see their painstaking work is put to good use. A couple years ago, she said, a mother buried her 6year-old daughter with a pink quilt decorated with animals made by the Newtown Village Quilters after the little girl became sick. “When (the little girl) got the quilt she was attached to it right away,” Murrie said. “She had it with her con-
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stantly. She wouldn’t even go to have her tests without it. “It was a source of security and comfort,” Murrie said. Veteran Don Bates, 86, of Newtown, said a quilt featuring an American flag that Murrie made for him in 2011 is a source of security and comfort to his loved ones too. Murrie was happy to honor Bates with a quilt, given that Bates served with the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1947 in the Philippines, where he earned a bronze star, and in Japan. An auctioneer who travels in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, Bates is chaplain of the Newtown Veterans Association and the American Legion Post 72 in Mt. Carmel. “When my kids and friends come over my house they flop down on the couch and wrap the quilt around them,” Bates said. Call Murrie for more information at 474-1422. For more about your community, visit www.Cincinnati.com/Newtown.
Vol. 52 No. 49 © 2013 The Community Press ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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