Tri-State Living • September/October 2017

September/October 2017

TOP DOGS

Service, therapy dogs provide for community

Union Township home has nautical theme

Vivek Neginhal, MD

Steve Lochow, MD

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from the publisher

Dog tales close to family’s heart

T

his edition has a particular special meaning for Leslie and I. We have a nephew, Christopher, who has special needs.

Christopher had a stroke at birth, which has caused him to have seizures.

He is now 21 years old and has his second seizure dog, Hamilton. He is a beautiful Golden Retriever, as was his first Golden Retriever, named Mr. Hope. These are amazing dogs. They can alert adults when a seizure is coming, so that he can be put in position so he will not fall and hurt himself. The dogs can actually tell when a seizure is coming on by smelling the change in his saliva. Hamilton goes everywhere with Christopher, including church.

His parents, Penny and DJ, had to go for two weeks with Christopher to train with Hamilton. While these seizures

dogs can be pretty expensive, upwards of $20,000, there are businesses that will sponsor seizure dogs. May God bless those businesses that donate for this cause.

Christopher’s mother, Penny, does not limit him. We went to the roller skating rink and yep, this 20-year-old, who has trouble walking, has his Momma strapping on skates. He had the biggest smile on his face. I looked over at his dad who said, “I would like to be that happy!” So DJ held Christopher up as his son rolled around the rink, smiling the whole time.

Service dogs do make a huge difference in people’s lives!

Tri-StateLiving September/October 2017

GARY PALMER is a Louisiana native and the interim publisher of Tri-State Living magazine and The Tribune.

DJ, Hamilton, Christopher and Penny pose for a family photo.

Tri-State Living is published a minimum of six times per year by: Ironton Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 647, Ironton, Ohio 45638 • www.tristateliving.com • 740-532-1441.

Advertising rates and information available upon request. Subscriptions are $30 annually; $60 for international subscriptions. Please make checks payable to Ironton Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 647, Ironton, OH 45638. Send us your feedback. Snail mail: Tri-State Living, P.O. Box 647, Ironton, OH 45638. Email: feedback@tristateliving.com

EDITORIAL

ADVERTISING

PHOTOGRAPHY

Gary Palmer, Interim Publisher

Shawn Randolph, Advertising Director

Jessica St. James, Photographer

Dustin Melchior, Staff Writer

Doug Pinkerton, Sales Consultant

J. Bird Cremeans, Contributor

Heath Harrison, Staff Writer

Hilary Keller, Sales Consultant

Robert Stevens, The Gold Studio, Contributor

Mark Shaffer, Staff Writer

PRODUCTION

news@tri-stateliving.com

Dawn Nolan, Contributor

Kandi Thompson, Creative Director

advertising@tri-stateliving.com

Kelli Jameson, Composing

photos@tri-stateliving.com

Jeremy D. Wells, Staff Writer

Contents | September/October 2017

30

8

24 “

My daddy would go to random places and buy me boxes of books, and I’d just store them.

”

— Cathy Black

16

‘In the Biz’ | Page 24

8 ON DISPLAY w River museum holds

maritime memories

living 16 IN THE SEASON w Fuhrmann Orchards has

been in business 60 years

shopping 24 IN THE BIZ w Consigned Books is the place

for literature fans

September/October 2017

TOP DOGS

30 TREASURES w Cardinal Wishes has

unique antique items

Service, therapy dogs provide for community

Union Township home has nautical theme

arts & culture

on the cover Some canines are more than just man’s best friend. Service and therapy dogs provide comfort, aid in their community roles.

Tri-StateLiving | 5

Contents | September/October 2017

feature 33 TOP DOGS w Some canines are more than

just man’s best friend

homes

62

48 SHOWCASE HOME w House brings the beach to

Union Township, Ohio

food

33

62 IN THE KITCHEN w Blazer’s serves comfort

food, pastries 65 FROM THE COOKBOOK w German potato salad soup

a warm fall treat

in every issue 4 FROM THE PUBLISHER w Dog tales close to

family’s heart

65

66 THE LAST WORD w Appalachia needs more

positive news

66 6 | Tri-StateLiving

48

arts & culture Tri-StateLiving

up close Point Pleasant museum showcases history of region’s waterways

p. 8

arts & culture | On Display

Rolling on ...

River museum an immersive experience

J

Story, Photos Heath Harrison

ack Fowler, the executive director of the Point Pleasant River Museum and Learning Center, said the venue he oversees has been a growing attraction.

“The first floor opened in 2003,” he said. “A year later, in 2004, we opened the second floor. We added the aquarium in 2008 and then the simulators in 2009.”

The museum, located at 28 Main St., is dedicated to the history of the waterways of the Tri-State area and has exhibits detailing life on the rivers back to the 1800s.

Fowler said the city of Point Pleasant owns the building, while the museum, a 501(c)(3) organization, owns its contents. Funding comes from donations, grants and fundraising events, he said.

Fowler, who previously worked as a production manager at Kaiser Aluminum, said he left the company in 8 | Tri-StateLiving

2009 and took a job running a housing authority, around the time his cousin became mayor.

“He said ‘Jack would build the river museum,’” he said, adding that, though he never worked on the river, he was known for his familiarity with its history and impact on the area.

Fowler said the museum’s goal is “to create interest in the river,” including industry along it, its aquatic life, the many vessels that travel on it and the people involved.

“We preserve the past and present and want people to see it through the

On Display | arts & culture

Tri-StateLiving | 9

arts & culture | On Display

eyes of the past generation,” he said.

One of the museum’s biggest attractions, of which Fowler is particularly proud, is its pair of simulators, which enable visitors to pilot a variety of vessels, including a barge, a tugboat and speed boat, in multiple locations, climates and times of day.

When the simulators were installed, Fowler said a company was hired to go out and take thousands of pictures of the junction of the Kanawha and Ohio rivers in Point Pleasant.

The result is an accurate recreation of conditions on the local waterfront, including details such as the flood wall murals on the West Virginia side.

It gives the experience of piloting a boat on an inland river,” Fowler said.

The two simulators are synced, so that two pilots can be on the river at once.

“If you run it correctly, you can see the other one coming,” Fowler said. “We can put up two, so that, if I’m steering one, we can see one another’s boat.”

Fowler can change the location to a number programmed in the system, including the Kanawha in Charleston, San Francisco Bay, New York’s harbor, and approaching the island of Manhattan near the Statue of Liberty.

Climate conditions can be changed, with fog, wind, rain and snow added, or the time of day changed to night, requiring a headlight to see conditions.

Fowler said the simulators are popular with visiting groups of schoolchildren, who he said like running the speedboat.

“It’s visual, and the sound goes along with the speed,” he said. “But we run more than one thing.”

The simulators are not just for entertainment purposes, though. Fowler said the radar 10 | Tri-StateLiving

On Display | arts & culture

function allows them to be used for training and the museum is one of only two locations in the east which allow people to get U.S. Coast Guard certification for inland river radar using a simulator.

“The only other places are Paducah, Kentucky and Memphis, Tennessee,” he said.

“It’s a three-day course.”

Also on the second floor is a replica wheelhouse, complete with a working bell.

Exhibits at the museum are not limited just to the Point Pleasant area.

Fowler said the collection contains items connected to the Ohio, Kanawha and Mississippi river system.

“If it’s river-related, we’ll take it,” he said.

Both floors of the museum contain several replica ships, some donated by collectors and others paid for and commissioned by donors, recreating vessels such as the Delta Queen, the Queen of the West and many sternwheelers and steamships.

One model is based on a sketch of a ship created by explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark during their 1804-1806 expedition from St. Louis to the west through the newly-purchased Louisiana Territory.

“What they built was like an ark to bring things back to Thomas Jefferson,” Fowler said of the ship.

On the museum’s first floor is a 2,000-gallon aquarium, measuring 18 by 15 feet and three feet deep.

“It has fish from the Ohio and the Kanawha,” Fowler, said, noting the catfish, large-mouthed bass and bluegills among the tank’s inhabitants.

One of the most noteworthy sections of the museum is its exhibits on the Silver Bridge disaster.

The suspension bridge was built in 1928 and connected the cities of Point Pleasant and Tri-StateLiving | 11

arts & culture | On Display

Gallipolis. On Dec. 15, 1967, the bridge collapsed, its decks packed with rush hour traffic during the Christmas season.

A faulty eyebar joint was the cause of the disaster, which claimed the lives of 48 people when the vehicles were dumped into the river, followed by the collapse of the roadway itself.

“With all the concrete and steel, they never had a chance,” Fowler said, speaking of the recovery efforts, where divers brought up the victims’ cars from the river bottom. “Two of them were never found.”

The museum hosts, in a glass case, a scale model of the bridge, which Fowler said was used by federal investigators in their efforts to determine the reason behind the collapse. A small blue flag on the model marks the site of the failed joint.

The museum is well-versed on the tragedy, with staff members writing a book on the events.

Exhibits include a full-scale replica of the eyebar, which measures a few feet across, and the museum has several films in its collections for viewing, including the 1928 parade opening the bridge, as well as a local television documentary on the disaster.

The museum also boasts an extensive collection of historical photographs, including 12 | Tri-StateLiving

On Display | arts & culture

shots of the 1913, 1937, 1942 and 1948 floods that devastated cities along the Ohio.

Fowler said visitors could easily spend a lengthy time at the museum, in order to see all of its contents.

“It takes about two hours,” he said.

And across the street, they can find more history, at TuEndie-Wei State Park, which commemorates the 1774 Battle of Paint Pleasant between early settlers and Chief Cornstalk of the Shawnee. The chief, who later made peace with the settlers, but was murdered during a diplomatic visit to Fort Randolph, is buried on the grounds of the park.

The museum regularly

schedules special events, such as the dragon boat races in the past, which Fowler said he’d like to see resume, to its spring Shanty Boat night fundraiser, which features dinner, music and thousands of dollars worth of door prizes.

Fowler said building the museum has been a rewarding experience.

“It’s been fun putting it together,” he said. “This is our 18th year.”

The Point Pleasant River Museum and Learning Center is open year round, TuesdayFriday, from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and Sundays from 1-5 p.m., excluding major holidays. For more information, visit, www. pprivermuseum.com. a Tri-StateLiving | 13

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Tri-StateLiving

up close Peaches are just one of the products grown at Scioto County’s Fuhrmann Orchards

p. 16

living | In the Season

GENERATIONS

of farming Fuhrmann Orchards have been raising produce for 60 years Story Dawn Nolan | Photography Jessica St. James

F

or almost 60 years, the Fuhrmann family has been growing fresh fruits and vegetables on their farm and orchard in Southern Ohio.

After current owner Paul Fuhrmann’s parents, Karl Peter “Pete” and Susan Fuhrmann got married in 1958 and Karl, a baseball player for the Cleveland Indians Farm Team, blew out his shoulder, the couple settled in Wheelersburg.

“My grandparents had 40 acres, and there was a free place to live at the old farmhouse, so my parents moved out here,” Paul said. “My grandparents had a small planting of peaches, apples, vegetables and beef cattle.”

Fast forward to the 1980s, and Paul’s brother, Karl Peter “Pete” Fuhrmann IV, returned to the farm after graduating from Michigan State. Paul, who studied agricultural economics at Purdue — where he met his wife, Leanne, came back in 1987.

“The plan was for me and my brother to take over for Mom and Dad,” Paul said. Sadly, Paul’s brother passed in 1990. Four years later, his dad passed.

“That left Mom and me,” Paul said. “Leanne helped when she could, but she was also working at Ohio State as a horticulture research assistant.”

16 | Tri-StateLiving

In the Season | living

Tri-StateLiving | 17

XX | Tri-StateLiving

In the Season | living

At the same time that the farm was expanding, Paul and Leanne’s family was, too. The couple had triplets: Melanie, Jeremy and Andrew in 1998. They joined sisters Lora (born in 1992) and Abby (born in 1995).

“Me and my four siblings have grown up on the farm,” Abby said. “We were brought up doing things in the orchard.

I’ve been attending farmers markets since I was 10. It’s something I love to do. We’ve learned to appreciate what we do and the hard work that goes into it.”

Now, each of the children are following their own paths — Lora is an athletic trainer, Abby is in her senior year at OSU studying math and science education, Melanie is studying agriculture at OSU, Jeremy is going to Purdue and has enlisted in the National Guard and Andrew will be studying fermentation science at Eastern Kentucky — but continue to help out on the farm, which now spans 340 acres.

“We are the largest growers south of 70,” Paul said.

Ninety of those acres are in Wheelersburg and 250 are in in Lucasville, where the orchard is located.

“We have 40 acres of apples,” Paul said. “The majority of our apples come from Lucasville. The orchard is on hilly

terrain, and the higher altitude is better for growing.”

“However, we don’t do pick-your-own because it’s not easy to get up to,” Abby added.

Out of the 34 apple varieties the Fuhrmanns grow, some of the biggest sellers are Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Jonathan, Fuji, Law Roman, Matsu and Honeycrisp. Two new varieties: Evercrisp, a mix between Fuji and Honeycrisp, and Somerset are being planted next year.

“We’re excited to get some new ones out and be the first in our region of Ohio to have them,” Abby said.

To showcase their harvest, Fuhrmann Orchards is hosting the third annual AppleFest on Oct. 14 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

The event will feature apple tastings, apple desserts, hot cider and slashes as well as pumpkin painting, corn maze and orchard wagon tours.

“It’s a chance for us to show people what we do, that they can come to us for local fruits and vegetables and that we do this full-time,” Abby said. “It’s also our way of saying ‘thank you’ to our customers.”

Though they are a staple, Abby added that apples aren’t the only item available during the fall months.

Tri-StateLiving | 19

20 | Tri-StateLiving

“We’ll still have some produce — tomatoes, green beans, peppers,” she said. “And in October and November, we’ll have pumpkins, gourds, squash … all the different fall necessities.”

The family also offers school tours in September and October.

“We give an overview of how apples are grown, let them tour our packing facilities, go through the corn maze and the orchard, and they get to take a little pumpkin back with them,” Leanne said. “It’s our way to educate future consumers because people are so far removed from the farm these days.”

In addition to the farm, which is typically open to the public from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday - Friday and 8 a.m.5 p.m. on Saturday from around mid-July to Christmas (“We don’t stop selling until everything is gone,” Abby said), Fuhrmann Orchards also sells to Deemer’s Super Market in Wheelersburg, Minford IGA and Westside IGA in Portsmouth, The Wild Ramp in Huntington and Food Fair locations in Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky.

During farmers market season, Fuhrmann Orchards can be found in Portsmouth on Tuesdays, King’s Daughters

Medical Center in Ashland on Thursdays and Kyova Mall in Ashland on Saturdays.

“Leanne and the kids do all the farmers markets,” Paul said.

Abby added that the family is trying to expand their supply of apples into the local school systems.

“A handful in our county have decided to buy apples from us weekly,” she said.

Schools, after-school programs, restaurants and other places interested in sourcing apples and/or produce from Fuhrmann Orchards only need to get in touch.

“We try to do a lot,” Abby said. “We’re always out and about.” a

FUHRMANN ORCHARDS 510 Hansgen

www.facebook.com/pg/

Morgan Road,

fuhrmannorchards

Wheelersburg, Ohio 740-776-6406

@fuhrmann_orchards

Tri-StateLiving | XX

2nd Year in a row!

Last year, OLBH was selected to the annual Best Places to Work in Kentucky list. Now, we are proud to announce that OLBH has made the 2017 version. OLBH was one of only nine hospitals in the state to make the list, issued annually by the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and the Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management.

The list’s selection process is based on an assessment of a company’s employee policies and procedures and the results of an employee survey. The list’s selection process is based on an assessment of a company’s employee policies and procedures and the results of an employee survey. 350 employees at OLBH were surveyed.

OLBH is well known for the quality care received by patients, now with the hospital’s second straight showing on the list, OLBH is earning the reputation as one of the state’s best places to work.

OLBH has more than 1,400 employees who work hard not only for patients, but at contributing to a healthy work environment. It’s that work that makes this honor possible.

shopping Tri-StateLiving

up close Consigned Books in Ironton offers something for everyone

p. 24

shopping | In the Biz

In the Biz | shopping

Explore

new

something

Cathy Black's love of literature, music fills the shelves of Consigned Books Story Dawn Nolan | Photography Jessica St. James

O

ver the years, Cathy Black has amassed a significant collection of reading material.

“My daddy would go to random places and buy me boxes of books, and I’d just store them,” Black said.

It was a conversation about her collection between Black and her daughter that eventually led Black, an Argillite resident, to open Consigned Books in April 2015.

“I’ve done a little bit of everything, but having a bookstore is something that I’ve always wanted to do,” Black said. “It’s always been in the back of my mind.”

For a time, Consigned Books was located in Ashland’s Pendleton Art Center, but after AK Steel’s Ashland Works plant closed, Black decided to switch gears and focus solely on her e-commerce website.

Black said Sam Heighton, of Ironton aLive, helped her find her current space, 221 S. Third Street in Ironton.

Consigned Books opened its storefront on Black Friday Tri-StateLiving | 25

2016. “We took off with a boom,” she said. “Ironton is really trying to revitalize. There are new shops: Cardinal Wishes, Gypsy Hearts, Decadence, the Chat Room Cafe, Dick’s Music … Of course, Unger’s has been a monumental stone in the community … There’s also plans to bring in big businesses to add more jobs.”

Consigned Books’ shelves are filled with current and collectible/rare titles, as well as audiobooks, vinyl records — 45s, 78s and 33s — CDs, DVDs and even sheet music. The items are from Black’s own collection, estates that Black has done as well as individuals who have decided to consign.

“I have over 100 consignors,” Black said. “People are downsizing, seniors are cleaning out their closets, and they don’t want these things thrown out. They’d rather them be put to good use.”

At this point in time, Black said she has so much inventory that she’s on the hunt for a warehouse.

“I have books everywhere,” she said. “There’s probably 26 | Tri-StateLiving

“

Neighbor buying from neighbor, thus neighbor helping neighbor… that’s my slogan.

”

— Cathy Black

25,000 books that are waiting to be put on a shelf,” she said.

“It’s kind of a block right now.”

Those interested in consigning must call or email Black first. You’ll be added to a waiting list and sent instructions on how to proceed. Consignors receive 40 percent of the sale, and dividends are paid quarterly.

In the Biz | shopping

“People don’t realize how much work is involved in getting things ready for sale,” Black said. “Items need to be in good or better condition and clean.”

To price items, Black uses the Goldmine Grading Standard and a lot of research. Most items start at $3 and go up.

“People can save here,” Black said. “A lot of my prices are less than half the retail price.”

More importantly, each sale not only helps the local business and consignors, but also the city itself.

“Neighbor buying from neighbor, thus neighbor helping neighbor… that’s my slogan,” Black said. “I want to be a blessing because I know if I’m a blessing to others, God will bless me. That’s how it works. He gets all the glory … We’ve seen some hard times economically in the Tri-State area.

This city needs sales tax, and when people buy here, I pay my sales tax, and it helps. So when people shop at my store, they’re helping their community.”

In addition to the store, customers can make purchases

on Consigned Books’ website, and if something isn’t listed, Black said just get in touch with her. “Not all of our inventory is on there,” she said. “Email or call if you’re looking for something in particular. I’m happy to help.”

Black hopes that having a Consigned Books storefront will encourage area youth to read.

“We’ve seen the dumbing down of our children, and I’m hoping I can be an encouragement because there’s so much more to learn besides video games,” Black said. “The Lord tells us, ‘Without knowledge, my people perish.’ We need to get our kids reading again. There’s so much to learn, and it just opens up the imagination. It helps them to be more successful.”

As a way to draw in the community, Consigned Books hosts a Poetry Night every Friday.

“You can read your own work or someone else’s,” Black said. “It doesn’t matter. We just want to have fun.”

The store also has two book signings a month, on the Tri-StateLiving | 27

In the Biz | shopping

second and fourth Saturdays from 2-4 p.m. Black is happy to stock books from local authors, too. “I want to be a platform for them,” Black said. Local authors that sell their work in the store receive 70 percent from sales.

Local artists are also invited to bring their work.

Currently, Consigned Books features pieces from Jane Bennett, Pati Payne, Tami’s Simple Creations and Lisa Webb.

“Anybody else that wants to bring art is welcome to,” Black said. “I just take a 20 percent commission.”

Another aspect of customer service Black provides is local delivery for $2.

“So, if there’s a book someone needs and they can’t make it here, I’ll take it to them if it’s within 15 miles of the store,” she said. Black does gift wrapping for $2 as well and is working on an email Christmas catalog.

As Black prepares to celebrate Consigned Books’ one-year anniversary in Ironton, she’s also thinking about the future. “I’m looking at opening up satellite stores in Portsmouth and maybe Gallipolis,” she said. “I want to expand for sure.”

Consigned Books is located at 221 S. Third Street in Ironton. Current business hours are: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Monday - Thursday and 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, call 740.237.4063 or visit consignedbooks.com or facebook.com/pg/ consignedbooks. a Tri-StateLiving | 29

in time

shopping | Tri-State Treasures

Back

Find antique decor, gifts and more at Cardinal Wishes in Ironton

Antique school desk, Sears & Roebuck. $120

Kerosene can. $50

30 | Tri-StateLiving

Tri-State Treasures | shopping

Murano glass. $25 Ramon’s thermometer. $125

Carousel horse. $20

Tri-StateLiving | 31

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Top Dogs | feature

Top Dogs These canines are more than just companions, they have a job to do.

Tri-StateLiving | 33

Top Dogs | feature

Stacey & Midnight Moon Story Dustin Melchior | Photography Robert Stevens, The Gold Studio

T

herapy dogs are those trained to provide comfort and affection to people, whether it is in schools, hospitals, nursing homes or any other situation that would require such a dog.

Portsmouth resident Stacey Sammons has been involved with Therapy Dogs International for seven years, and currently handles 4-year-old, 180-pound English Mastiff, Midnight Moon, as her active therapy dog.

“I’ve always wanted to do something like this,” Sammons said of handling a therapy dog. “I work in a school kitchen, and I had seven dogs at the time, so I started looking into getting started with therapy dogs.”

Sammons works in the kitchen at Portsmouth West High School, but said she takes Midnight Moon to four nursing homes and the public library in Portsmouth, various hospitals, Portsmouth West Elementary School and

even to some Portsmouth courts in some cases.

“My favorite part about having a therapy dog is going into nursing homes or a hospital, and having the nurses come out and say that that’s the first time they’ve seen someone smile all week,” Sammons said. “You don’t realize it, but people really enjoy having that time to spend with a therapy dog, and when people know the dog, that tickles me to death.”

She also added how much she loves the kids when she takes Midnight Moon to the elementary school, as part of Therapy Dog International’s Tail Wagon Tutors program, in which children have the opportunity to read to the therapy dog.

Before Sammons started with Midnight Moon as a therapy dog, she previously handled two other therapy dogs, Little Bear and Jetta, who are now retired, although they still live with Sammons.

Tri-StateLiving | 35

Midnight Moon has many distinctions and awards since becoming a therapy dog and is currently working to receive his Therapy Dog International Gold for 500 visits, and Sammons also sent off for Midnight Moon’s Novice Trick Dog Award, but is still waiting to hear back on that.

Therapy Dogs International is a non-profit volunteer organization, founded in 1976 in New Jersey, dedicated to the regulation, testing and registration of therapy dogs and their handlers for the purpose of visiting various places where therapy dogs are needed. The organization registers all kinds of dogs, which are at least 1-year-old and have passed the TDI temperament evaluation for suitability.

Currently, Sammons and her family have six dogs, including Midnight Moon, Bug, a 5-year-old Papillon who her daughter handles as a therapy dog, retired therapy dogs Little Bear and

Jetta, and two dogs who are just pets.

Sammons and Midnight Moon have a public session as well, where the public is invited to interact with him from 2-4 p.m. on the first and third Saturday of each month at the Portsmouth Public Library.

Kayla & Bug Like her mother Stacey Sammons, Kayla Sammons, 17, has been involved with Therapy Dogs International for the past five years, handling Bug, a 6-year-old Papillon.

Kayla attends Portsmouth West High School, and attends the same places as her mom with their therapy dogs, except for schools due to her being in school herself.

“I really like when you go

somewhere with the dogs, and people tell you how happy they are,” she said.

“Just to be able to see their faces when they see the dogs makes it all worth it.”

At the time her mom was getting involved with Therapy Dogs International, she said she also wanted to be a part of handling a therapy dog.

“We already had the dogs, and then we trained them to be able to pass the test to become therapy dogs,” she said of Bug and her mom’s therapy dog, Midnight Moon. “In order to be able to take the test, the dogs must be at least a year old.”

Other qualifications of the TDI test include the dogs having a sound temperament through a temperament evaluation and an evaluation of the dogs’ behavior around people who use various types of equipment, including wheelchairs and crutches.

Because Sammons isn’t able to go on as many visits with Bug as her mom with Midnight Moon, Bug currently only has her Therapy Dog Active Award for 50 visits, but is working on moving up.

Kayla and Bug are also at the Portsmouth Public Library with Kayla’s mom and Midnight Moon for the public to have a chance to visit with the dogs from 2-4 p.m. on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

Tri-StateLiving | 37

feature | Top Dogs

Top Dogs | feature

Jeffery & Dolan Story Mark Shaffer

D

olan is pretty lucky for a former shelter dog.

The black lab was dropped off at the Cincinnati Lab Rescue in early 2016.

While it could have meant sitting in a kennel waiting for somebody to take a liking to him, the rescue employees saw that the then-two year old dog had a certain quality to him.

So they contacted the Columbus Division of Fire to see if Dolan had what it takes to be an arson dog. It turns out he did.

After eight weeks of training last summer, Dolan learned how to sniff out the nine different types of fluids used to start arson fires and other tasks that make for an arson-investigating dog.

After an official graduation ceremony in April 2016, Dolan was assigned to Jeffery Heft, an Ohio State Fire Marshal arson investigator and volunteer firefighter with the Madison-Jefferson Fire Department in Oak Hill.

The duo became the first K-9 arson team based in southern Ohio.

Heft said that Dolan has no qualms about walking in front of the handler, which is important for a dog doing an investigation.

“They want one that will get out there, one that doesn’t cower behind his handler,” Heft said. “Plus, they do an evaluation and if the dog doesn’t work out, they can have the option to take him back to the shelter.”

Tri-StateLiving | 39

There are a lot of things arson dogs have to be unfazed by, like the sounds of a running fire engine.

“The trainers will put a toy under a fire truck and see if the dog will go and get it without hesitation,” Heft said. They also have to be willing to go into a burned out building and sniff around looking for the common types of accelerants used in arsons such as gasoline, diesel fuel, lamp oil, kerosene, lighter fluid, charcoal fluid, paint thinner, camping fuel and distillate based stain removers.

Heft said Dolan has investigated a number of possible arson scenes in the past year.

“And he’s done very well,” he said. “His main purpose is to assist us. A dog can pinpoint an area where a possible accelerant was used. Depending on burn patterns, an investigator might say it began in a certain room, but with the dog, you can pinpoint where the fire started.”

Dolan was taught that, if he smells a chemical accelerant, to sit down in front of the spot, as his way of alerting his handler.

Anything the dog alerts on is sent to a state lab for testing.

While most dogs just eat of a bowl of food, Dolan has to work for his. Whenever it is mealtime, Heft runs Dolan through his paces of looking for accelerants. When he finds it, Heft gives him food as a reward.

“So everyday, he has to work that’s how he gets fed,” Heft said. “He is fed out of my hand. It keeps him sharp and pinpointed on his job.”

And since they could get called out to investigate a fire scene, Dolan doesn’t have a regular feeding schedule so he is ready to work at any time.

“He never goes without eating for hours at a time, he just doesn’t have a set schedule,” Heft said. “He needs to be ready to go. But he definitely is not underfed, that’s for sure.”

Before Dolan came to southeastern Ohio, fire investigators had to call for an arson dog from Columbus or northern Ohio, which meant a couple hours of waiting.

Now, there is an arson dog in southwest Ohio, too.

“So now, I can cover for him and he can cover for me,” Heft said.

Heft said that being a dog handler is a life-changing event.

“You have to make arrangements for them all the time, like if you go on vacation,” he said. “I haven’t even had him stay with another handler, though. He just goes with us and

we continue training, even when we’re camping. Even on vacation, we have to work on our training.”

Heft said he and Dolan are always together.

“It’s like we are strapped together sometimes. It’s not like I can just call a neighbor to feed him if I am out of town,” he said. “He has to be worked. But on his off time, except for having to work for 10 minutes or so to be fed, he’s like any other dog. He loves to play fetch and run with my other two dogs. He’s still definitely a pup. He’s a go getter.”

Tri-StateLiving | 41

Top Dogs | feature

Scott & Kilo

L

Story Dustin Melchior

awrence County Sheriff’s K-9 Kilo, and his handler, sheriff’s deputy Scott Wilson, spend most of their time patrolling the county’s schools during the school year.

Kilo is a German Shepherd just over a year old, who took over for Wilson’s previous K-9, Hemi, a 13-yearold Belgian Malinois who retired earlier this year after 10 years of service.

“We’re still going to be full-time in the schools once the school year starts up again,” Wilson, the county’s school officer, said. “We’ll go through the schools once a month, or a few times a month, to keep the drugs out.”

Wilson said that he and Kilo, previously Hemi, don’t start going around the schools to check lockers until middle school in the sixth grade. However, he uses his time with Kilo at the elementary schools as kind of a show and tell, often with a story book about an officer and his K-9 before coming out with Kilo to bring the story to life.

The reading program was started about four years ago with a third grade class at Burlington Elementary, and has grown to include South Point Elementary, Dawson-Bryant Elementary and others.

Wilson, who is a member of the Ohio School Resource Officers Association and the National School Resource Officers Association, said he enjoys being the officer at the Lawrence County schools along with his K-9. His previous K-9, Hemi, was also a member of both associations before retiring.

Tri-StateLiving | 43

“My favorite part about being the school resource officer is being able to help the kids of the county when needed, and building rapport with the students,” Wilson said. “Over the past years of being in the schools, I believe I’ve made an impact by just being present within the buildings.”

Wilson said that marijuana is the only drug that has been found in the schools since he started as the school officer, adding that he’s pleased with that since the opioid epidemic is so prevalent in the area.

When not in the schools, Wilson and Kilo assist with keeping drugs off of the streets during traffic stops or whenever needed.

Although Hemi is now retired, he still lives with Wilson and Kilo, though Wilson said the two dogs don’t get along that well, but he is hoping that will improve.

“Overall, being a K-9 handler is a great opportunity. I was very excited when I was appointed to the position,” Wilson said. “I want to try to keep the drugs out of the schools and off the streets. This is my second K-9, and the bond you build with the dogs is amazing.”

44 | Tri-StateLiving

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homes Tri-StateLiving

up close It’s a pirate’s life for Jennifer and Brian Sexton at their beach-themed house in Union Township

p. 48

Showcase | homes

A MARITIME Union Township couple's home has a nautical theme Story Jeremy D. Wells | Photography Jessica St. James

P

irate ships and lighthouses might be the last thing you’d expect to find in the forested hills of Appalachian southern Ohio. But just north of Chesapeake, in rural Union Township, Jennifer and Brian Sexton have created a maritime paradise built around their love of the beach.

It all started with their pool, the couple explained. Their tiki-themed deck, complete with a crab shack-inspired pool house was their first outdoor project. After that, Jennifer wanted a place to put their hot tub, and the idea for the lighthouse was born. Working with reclaimed lumber, and doing all the design and work themselves, they next constructed the three-story lighthouse.

Tri-StateLiving | 49

homes | Showcase

The first floor features a completely removable wall, for hot tub replacement or repair work. A spiraling staircase leads to the second level, where Brian built a sauna, and a ladder from there leads up to the third floor, complete with a working light. The hard part, Brian explained, was getting

the angles correct, so that the lighthouse would taper as it went upward. “I’d never done anything like that before,� said Brian, who works as an independent flooring contractor, specializing in hardwood floors.

Tri-StateLiving | XX

Their next project was the pirate ship.

Nestled behind the lighthouse, and butting up against their pool deck and koi pond, the pirate ship also features three stories.

The first floor holds the game room, with a pirate themed pool table, and bar.

On the second floor an open-windowed kitchen allows the couple to grill food for their company while also keeping an eye on guests, or grandchildren, playing in the pool.

Tri-StateLiving | XX

homes | Showcase

56 | Tri-StateLiving

Showcase | homes

Across the deck, an antique-themed guest bedroom highlights some of the items that the couple has collected over the years, including a crystal chandelier that Jennifer made herself using an antique lamp as the base. Here, again, ladders provide access to the open third story on either side of the deck.

Going back downstairs, to the first level, reveals a pair of antique candelabras that have been modified by Brian to accept electrical lamp bulbs, instead of the candles they would have originally held. “It just adds to the pirate there,� Jennifer said of the flickering candle style bulbs that grace the wall behind a skeleton dressed in ragged pirate gear.

homes | Showcase

Most of the items used in their projects have come either from estate sales, or reclaimed building materials. This includes the cabin the couple built, on the site of an old well house, with lumber they purchased from an estate sale for $100.

They wanted to build the cabin to emulate an old, oneroom homestead, so that they could accentuate their antique collection. The well house site was ideal, they explained, because in the future they hope to utilize the well and install an antique pump for accessing the water there.

The wood purchase, though, ended up being more than the couple expected. As it turned out, the estate on which they were bidding belonged to a gentleman who owned a sawmill, so the extra wood they obtained was used to build the first floor of their pirate ship. The floors in the pirate ship came from various pieces of scrap wood from various flooring jobs Brian did, giving it a beautiful eclectic pattern

58 | Tri-StateLiving

of accentuating colors while maintaining a natural feel.

While such projects could easily have run into the thousands of dollars, the Sextons kept costs low by doing all the work themselves, working evenings and weekends to complete the pirate ship in just a year’s time. The other projects have been completed in a similar timeframe.

“I can’t imagine how much more we’d have gotten done if we drank coffee,” Brian teased of the late nights and long weekends spent designing, building and finishing projects.

Their projects are truly a sight to behold, and are evidence that it doesn’t take a lot of money to have nice things, just a creative mind, and a lot of elbow grease. a

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food

up close Ashland couple opens restaurant and bakery after years in food business

p. 62

food | In the Kitchen

Blazing

Ahead A

Story Dustin Melchior | Photography J. Bird Cremeans

Blazer’s offers comfort food and special baked goods

SHLAND — Irvin and Jessica Pereira opened up Blazer’s Restaurant and Bakery in Ashland earlier this year after a number of years in the restaurant and catering industry in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Jessica, who grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, said she has been in the hospitality and food industry for many years, attending Horry Georgetown

In the Kitchen | food

Technical College in Conway, South Carolina, for hotel and restaurant management before transferring to Florida International University in Miami, Florida. She has managed several hotels and restaurants in Florida and South Carolina.

“I wanted to learn how to carve ice, and a professor I had told me to call Irvin,” she said. “That’s how we met.”

Irvin is originally from Trinidad, and has been in the restaurant and food industry from a young age.

The couple eventually moved to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where they owned two restaurants, the Secret Chef Café and the Secret Chef by the Sea, as well as a couple of bakeries in the area, I See Pastries. When the Pereiras moved to Ashland, they sold their restaurants and bakeries, but still own Myrtle Beach catering company, I C Professional Catering, which has been the top caterer for Wyndham Hotels in the Myrtle Beach area for more than a decade.

“My father met a woman from Russell, Kentucky, and when they got married, they had their wedding reception here when it was the Chimney Corner,” Jessica said. “That was the first time we’d been to Ashland.”

Tri-StateLiving | 63

food | In the Kitchen

Jessica and Irvin said the reason the couple wanted to move to Ashland was to have more of a settled down, routine life for themselves and their four children.

“We just wanted to have a change of pace,” Irvin said.

From the first time they were at the Chimney Corner for Jessica’s father’s wedding reception, they always liked that location and were eyeing it for a restaurant of their own when they moved back.

Blazer’s Restaurant and Bakery serves up American comfort food, with a lunch menu consisting of numerous sandwich, burger, salad, soup, side and appetizer options, and a dinner menu with appetizers, soups, burgers and entrees, including eggplant parmesan, rainbow trout, ribeye, grilled salmon, grilled chicken, meat loaf, surf and turf and more.

As well as having the restaurant, the couple still caters to anyone’s needs.

“Our menu is mostly American comfort food, but we can really do anything and everything,” Jessica said. “The menu is not limited, but rather just all we could fit on there.”

She added that for catering requests, they have even

64 | Tri-StateLiving

taken people’s own recipes and have made food from those.

The bakery at Blazer’s also has a full menu with a plethora of cakes in all different sizes, 12 different 10inch cheesecakes, specialty items, including chocolate covered strawberries, tuxedo strawberries and chocolate tulip cups, four kinds of cookies and 17 varieties of both pastries and pies.

Blazer’s is located at 1624 Carter Avenue in Ashland, Kentucky, and is open from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Friday, with lunch being served from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and dinner being served from 5-10 p.m. The restaurant is open in between, however, only appetizers are served. On Saturdays, the restaurant is open from 5-10 p.m. for dinner.

While there are no menu options available on Sundays, Blazer’s offers a brunch buffet from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., with items being rotated each week. The brunch buffet also features Irvin’s ice sculptures, which also change each week.

“We’re all about presentation, consistency and quality,” Jessica said. “We’re not a corporate entity, so we really strive to make the guests happy. We want to make our customers feel special.” a

From the Cookbook | food

German Potato Salad Soup Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 15 minutes Servings: 4 • 1 cup chopped onion • 1 cup chopped red bell pepper • 1 tablespoon olive oil • 2 cans (15 oz. each) READ German Potato Salad, chopped • 1 bottle (12 oz.) light beer • 3/4 cup reduced-sodium, fat- free chicken broth • 6 ounces (1 cup) diced ham, smoked turkey or sliced smoked sausage (optional) • 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional) • 1/4 teaspoon pepper • 1 tablespoon chopped parsley • Rye croutons (optional) • Crumbled bacon (optional)

In Dutch oven or 3-quart saucepan over medium heat, cook onion and bell pepper in oil until onion starts to brown, 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add potato salad, beer, broth and meat, if desired, and stir to combine. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt, if desired, pepper and parsley.

Serve topped with rye croutons and bacon, if desired.

Tri-StateLiving | 65

the last word

Changing the story O

ur region has a problem with “poverty tourism,” when an outside journalist parachutes into our community, makes broad assumptions, and writes an article that says, “Look at these poor drug-addicted Appalachians.”

Huntington and Portsmouth are normally the targets of these articles, which are widely shared on social media. I think it’s time we stand up for ourselves, push back, and change the narrative.

There is positive momentum. Huntington had a win in the America’s Best Communities competition (Portsmouth and Charleston were both semi-finalists) based on their revitalization plans. Both Huntington and Portsmouth were awarded brownfield remediation grants from the EPA to deal with cleanup activities. Both have targeted their riverfronts for redevelopment, and Ashland’s waterfront is already family and pedestrian friendly.

For the first time, communities in the Tri-State are working together to market our area to prospective businesses and expand the regional employment base.

Our Ohio team recently partnered with the West Virginia economic development team to market our region at an aviation trade show. This cross-border cooperation was previously unheard of, and it’s already paying dividends.

The Ashland Alliance announced the biggest “win” our community has seen in decades with the Braidy Industries facility. This project will not only be a boon to Greenup County, it will support small businesses in Portsmouth, and with its ties to the aviation industry, it’s the anchor of the Appalachian Sky initiative to attract aviation-related companies to the Tri-State.

The LEDC have long been leaders in economic development in the Tri-State. With over a dozen spec 66 | Tri-StateLiving

JASON KESTER is the executive director of the Southern Ohio Port Authority. He is also a long-time resident of Minford, where he has served as a volunteer firefighter since 1997. He is a member of the Ohio National Guard and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 and 2012. He is also a former Franklin County assistant prosecutor.

buildings constructed at The Point, including the recentlyannounced HWI project, Lawrence County routinely leads in total number of economic development projects. In 2016, Portsmouth was named a “Top 10” Micropolitan, earning this distinction with six economic development projects. Scioto and Lawrence counties are also working together to develop the Southern Ohio Industrial Corridor on U.S. 52. Both counties are working on a project on the county line. LEDC is working to redevelop a portion of the Dow Chemical site, and in April, Green EnviroTech Holdings announced it was bringing 200 jobs there.

The key takeaway is this: Please know that every time you see an article disparaging our community, there is a team of dedicated people getting up every day to make our region better. Through everyone’s hard work, we are making a difference. We need to stop focusing on what ails us, and instead look to the solutions. We should celebrate the wins, big and small. The only way we are going to change the “outsider” narrative on our community is by changing how we view ourselves. We are winning our fair share and making positive strides, and that’s something we should all be proud of.

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