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Your Community Press newspaper serving Blue Ash, Montgomery, Sycamore Township, Symmes Township
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
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BECAUSE COMMUNITY MATTERS
Montgomery father biking for charity Marika Lee mlee1@communitypress.com
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Montgomery father is biking 700 miles in seven days to raise money and awareness to rare immune disorder. Sam Chamberlin is one of about 20 cyclists taking part in 700 Miles to Hope, which is put on by the Matthew and Andrew Akin Foundation. The foundation raises money for research and awareness for hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, or HLH, and was founded by Justin and Kristin Akin in honor of their sons, who both passed away from the disease. “They very easily could have crawled into a hole and recovered from that, but they dedicated themselves to research for the disease and helping families that are dealing with the disease,” Chamberlin said. Chamberlin met the Akins in 2010 at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital when his daughter Maya, who also has HLH, was getting a bone marrow transplant. Children’s “Cincinnati saved my daughter’s life and
we’ve been trying to do as much as we can to help out. This is the first time I have had enough time to do the bike ride,” Chamberlin said. The ride starts Sept. 12 in central Mississippi. The riders follow the Natchez Trace to Nashville and then make their way into Cincinnati Sept. 18. “For the last, about four miles there is going to be a police escort into Cincinnati and all the way to Children’s,” Chamberlin said. Cincinnati Children’s will host a conference for doctors to raise awareness about HLH. “It is a very challenging disease because it is hard to diagnosis and couple that with not enough awareness. It is believed a lot of kids are undiagnosed,” Chamberlin said. HLH is an immune system disorder that acts similar to a cancer by attacking red blood cells. Donations can be made to Chamberlin and the other riders through the foundations website, www.matthewandandrew.org/700-miles-to-hope. Want to know more about what is happening in Montgomery? Follow Marika Lee on Twitter: @ReporterMarika
THANKS TO SAM CHAMBERLIN
Sam Chamberlin, of Montgomery, is biking 700 miles in seven days with the Matthew and Andrew Akin Foundation, which raises money and awareness for HLH.
Two Sycamore music groups picked to play conference
MICHAEL CLARK/THE COMMUNITY PRESS
The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Beacon Point office in West Chester Township.
Community Press staff moving After almost 20 years, Community Press editorial staff is moving from its office at 394 Wards Corner Road in Miami Township to the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Beacon Point office in West Chester Township. The move will be completed by Monday, Sept. 21. The new address is 7700 Service Cen-
ter Drive, West Chester, OH 45069. The office can be accessed from Cox Road, between Tylersville Road and Liberty Way, across from Voice of America Park. The circulation department is also moving, to 648 Mt. Moriah Drive, Cincinnati 45245. We hope you will visit.
CURRYING FAVOR... 7A
BREAKING FROM THE PACK
Sri Lankan cook Triset DeFonseka publishes third cook book.
Keep up with high school cross country’s top runners. See Sports, 1B.
Two Sycamore Junior High School music groups were chosen to perform for music educators from throughout the state. The Sycamore Junior High School orchestra and the eighth-grade band were both chosen to play at the Ohio Music Education Association conference Jan. 28-30 at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati. Junior high orchestra director David Smarelli said it is uncommon for two groups from the same district to be picked. “It is even more uncommon to be in the same building,” eighth-grade band director Ryan Lamb said. Smarelli said it is the ninth time the orchestra has been picked to play, but the first time the band has been chosen. Smarelli and Lamb both submitted recordings in May to audition for the conference. “It is probably one of the biggest honors for the state level to bestow, especially the way the process works. Last year’s eighth-graders made the recording and now the current eighth-graders get to perform so it really gives the whole program a sense of pride and accomplishment,” Lamb said. Lamb said the groups are preparing
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MARIKA LEE/ THE COMMUNITY PRESS
Ryan Lamb conducts members of the eighth-grade band at Sycamore Junior High School. The band and the Sycamore Junior High School orchestra were chosen to play at a music educators conference.
for the conference and special guests will join the students for the performance. “It is a little bit more music than we might be playing at one concert. In the middle of the school year for us to perform 30 plus minutes of music at a junior high level is a substantial amount of material,” Lamb said. Want to know more about what is happening in the Sycamore Community Schools? Follow Marika Lee on Twitter: @ReporterMarika
Vol. 52 No. 25 © 2015 The Community Press ALL RIGHTS RESERVED