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Thursday, May 25, 2023
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Volume 10, Issue 21
Oberlin College celebrates Class of 2023 CARISSA WOYTACH THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
OBERLIN — What Richard Powers remembers from college, he can fit on a single sheet of paper. Looking out at Oberlin College and Conservatory’s Class of 2023 on May 22, he said he hoped they’d scribble a few notes in the margin of their own college memories. Powers, who received an honorary doctorate in humanities from the college Monday morning, is a Pulitzer Prizewinning novelist known for works that blend science, technology and the human experience. But looking at the soon-to-be Oberlin College alumni — some of whom had traded their standard black mortarboards for bright yellow hard hats — he told them a synopsis of his life in college and just
after graduation. That included following his high school crush to the University of Illinois. She’d applied to Oberlin’s Conservatory but was rejected. If she’d have come to the Ohio school, he’d have followed her there just the same, he said. But instead, he went to the University of Illinois as a physics major, following in his father’s footsteps. “My girlfriend and I lived in the same dorm,” he said. “Working hard, but often wondering why.” It was the late 1960s and the country was tearing itself apart, he said. But the real threat he saw was not in the doomsday clock of the atomic bomb, but the environmental havoc humans had created that he learned about in a physical chemistry lecture. “It was in that weird mix of daily discovery, intellectual awakening (and) steady OBERLIN COLLEGE PAGE A2
Joe Womack, Africatown leader and activist watches as Tommie Smith raises his fist in the air, the gesture was made famous when Smith raised his black-gloved fist during the playing of the National Anthem at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Patting him on the back is Richard Powers, a Pulitzer Prize winner. The three men were all awarded honorary degrees from Oberlin College. BRUCE BISHOP | The Community Guide
Lorain County JVS celebrates grads KEVIN MARTIN THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
distracted humans and flew straight into a tree in the backyard. At first, Archie would have nothing to do with Wilson and the other friends and neighbors trying to get him inside, Wilson said, so they tried to give him space for a couple of hours to see if he would come back down on his own. “The issue with cockatiels is they can’t really fly down, they’re not very good at just dropping straight down,” Wilson said. “They have to kind of glide and work their way — especially because he’s an indoor, younger (bird), he’s not used to flying from
LORAIN — More than 400 graduates in the 2023 class of the Lorain County Joint Vocational School were celebrated May 18 at Black River Landing as they crossed the stage and plotted the next phase of their lives. Students received diplomas in multiple disciplines from the school, which serves 13 districts across Lorain County offering career technical education for students in grades nine through 12 and adult learners. Principal Tina Pelto offered a few lessons to graduates. “Students, what a difference a day makes,” Pelto said. “Yesterday you were high school seniors grateful to get out of school 10 minutes early. And today you are high school graduates. Today is a day of celebration. But I’m here to talk to you about tomorrow. Because tomorrow you start all over again.” She encouraged graduates to not be afraid to start something new, to find and surround themselves with people who build them up and to learn to let go of the little things in life, saving their energy for the true battles in life to come. “As a freshman in adulthood, this is your moment to shine once again,” Pelto said. “In your time with us, you have shown us your brilliance, your tenacity, your talent and your creativity. Now it’s time for you to go out and show the world. Congratulations Class of 2023.” Graduating senior Aniya Qualls (Midview) spoke on behalf of the Class of 2023, reflecting on her time at JVS and the lessons she has learned along the way. Qualls is the outstanding senior in JVS’ cybersecurity and networking program and is heading to Baldwin Wallace University in the fall, where she hopes to pursue a career as a cyberthreat analyst. Qualls said JVS is unlike other public high schools, providing the space to discover and plot your own future with the long list of programs and the opportunity to grow with students from the 13 interconnected schools that make up JVS. “We’re not in high school anymore, which is relieving but also scary,” she said. “It’s all a big mystery. There’s so much unknown about the future. Things can change in an instant. Whether you go about life with a plan or
ARCHIE PAGE A3
JVS PAGE A3
JEFF BARNES | The Community Guide
Kevin Wilson pets his cockatiel, Archie, after retrieving him May 16. Archie spent the weekend outside, after escaping Wilson’s Wellington home during a cookout.
Escaped cockatiel reunited with owner CARISSA WOYTACH THE COMMUNITY GUIDE
WELLINGTON — Archie had quite the adventure, not to mention the scare he gave his owner. The 7-month-old cockatiel got out during a cookout May 12, much to owner Kevin Wilson’s dismay, and spent the next four days exploring Wellington. “That’s my baby,” Wilson said. “I love all my animals, but that is my baby.” Normally, the small gray and yellow bird can be found on the back of
Wilson’s gaming chair in the living room of his Wellington home, or riding contently on his shoulder. Wilson and his significant other have had Archie for the past five months — getting the fledgling cockatiel from The Bird Loft in Amherst after the couple won money using some free bets after sports betting became legal in Ohio. And in that time, Wilson and Archie have developed a deep bond and routine, learning each other’s personalities. But instead of his usual routine on Saturday, Archie seized an unexpected opportunity of an open door and
INSIDE THIS WEEK Amherst
Workshop Players celebrate 75 years ● A3
Oberlin
Affordable housing discussed again ● A4
Wellington
Graduates cross the stage ● A5
OBITUARIES A2 • CLASSIFIEDS A3 • CROSSWORD A7 • SUDOKU A7 • KID SCOOP A8