SALUTE TO VETERANS B1
Your Community newspaper serving Colerain Township, Green Township, Groesbeck, Monfort Heights, Pleasant Run, Seven Hills, White Oak E-mail: northwestpress@communitypress.com We d n e s d a y, N o v e m b e r 1 1 , 2 0 0 9
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Volume 92 Number 40 © 2009 The Community Press ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Letters to Santa
Hey kids! It’s time to start writing your letters to Santa and send them in to the Community Press, where they will be published on Wednesday, Nov. 26. Please send your brief letter to Santa to Melissa Hayden, Santa’s Helper, 394 Wards Corner Road, Loveland, OH 45140 or via e-mail to mhayden@communitypress.com. Be sure to include your child’s name, age, the community you live in and the Community Press paper you read, as well as a telephone number we can use to contact you if we require additional information. You may also include a non-returnable photograph (or JPG image) that may appear with your letter. Letters and photos are due no later than Friday, Nov. 13.
Terry Highbrook, a volunteer at SON Ministries, fills a bag with food at the pantry.
Economy affecting food pantries By Jennie Key jkey@communitypress.com
Area food pantries are feeling the effects of a slumping economy. With the highest unemployment rate in 26 years, the country’s economic news has been bleak, and pantries are seeing a rise in requests for help. Bunny Borchelt, executive director for Serve Our Neighbor Ministries, says requests have easily doubled this year over last, and she is receiving requests for help from unexpected places. “I had clients this summer with master’s degrees who couldn’t find work,” she said. “They have spent their savings, their 401Ks, everything. It is a good thing that unemployment benefits have been extended. It is hard out there.” SON, in operation since 1981, is in the basement at Groesbeck United Methodist Church, 8871 Colerain Ave. It is supported by a number of local churches. SON Ministries is an ecumenically and community supported food pantry for anyone living in Zip code areas 45239, 45247, 45251, or 45252. Borchelt said individual donations are down as well, as many former financial supporters are finding they need to tighten their belts. “Many of our supporters were older people living on their investment income or dividends,” she said. “They just don’t have it to give.”
Right up your alley
Any idea where this might be? We didn’t think so. Time to go hunting in the neighborhood to see if you can find it. Send your best guess to northwestpress@community press.com or call 853-6287, along with your name. Deadline to call is noon Friday. If you’re correct, we’ll publish your name in next week’s newspaper along with the correct answer. See last week’s answer on B5.
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JENNIE KEY/STAFF
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Bomber run
St. Xavier High School senior runner Chris Hanson runs in the Division I State Championships at Scioto Downs in Columbus Nov. 7. Hanson’s 29th place finish at 16:33.03 helped the Bombers to a second-place finish.
The pantry is moving into a busy holiday season with shelves more bare than she likes to see them. “I have been praying a lot, and doing my best to trust God for it,” she said. And there are also bright spots: an unexpected $1,000 donation from Cincom employees, a benefit spaghetti dinner scheduled Nov. 7 at White Oak Christian Church will help, and local schools and their holiday food drives are always a blessing. Corpus Christi Catholic Church has operated a food pantry since 1985. It is located in the basement of the parish center at 2014 Springdale Road. Lena Spath, a longtime worker at the Corpus Christi Church Food Pantry, said there is a greater need in this economy, and local businesses and the community have risen to the challenge. “Yes, there is greater need,” she said. “But it always seems like when there’s a need, there grows a great compassion to meet it. We have had an increase in donations not only from our parishioners, but also from companies. We are keeping up, I think.” Spath said the pantry is now looking for donations of turkeys and the trimmings associated with holiday dinners for Thanksgiving and looking ahead to Christmas. “Some people would rather just give money and that’s fine,” she said. “We take it and we fill in where we need things.”
Trustee victors looking to set goals By Jennie Key jkey@communitypress.com
With the election dust settling, Colerain Township’s newly-elected trustees are looking ahead to set goals for the community for the coming year. Incumbent trustee Jeff Ritter said he is eager to begin serving his second term with newly-elected trustee Dennis Deters. “I think we are all going to work well together, and the township is going to move in a good direction,” he said. Ritter said he wants to stress economic development in the new year. “We are going forward with the
Deters
Ritter
Colerain Avenue streetscape and will be looking for options to support development at Northgate Mall,” he said. Ritter said he has talked with Colerain Township Administrator David Foglesong about the possibility of having a staff retreat in January so the new board can set goals and objectives.
“We are looking at finding a low-cost alternative that will give us a sufficient off-site buffer and allow us to travel home in the evening to avoid the hotel fees,” he said. “We want something that will be productive and cost efficient.” Deters says being elected to the board was gratifying after the work of the campaign. He will be attending executive sessions as an observer to get up to speed on the issues, and says he is eager to begin the work. He says initially he wants to get his bearings, but prioritizing how the township spends its resources is important to him. Once he is sure the budget is in
By the numbers
Here are the unofficial results for the Colerain Township Trustee race; two to be elected for four- year terms. Dennis P. Deters – 9.917 (39.67%) Jeff Ritter – 8,657 (34.63%) Thomas J. Hart – 6,424 (25.07%) There are 41,278 registered voters in Colerain Township and 17,835 voted, making the township’s turnout rate about 43 percent. order, Deters also says economic development opportunities should be looked at by the board. He welcomes a staff retreat and says he is looking forward to his new responsibilities.
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