Early Bird eNewspaper 042918

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THE EARLY BIRD NEWSPAPER

WEEKEND EDITION - APRIL 29, 2018

THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE GREAT DARKE COUNTY FAIR!

Eight Darke County students honored with 20 Under 20 award RYAN BERRY

MANAGING EDITOR editor@earlybirdpaper.com

GREENVILLE – Darke County Economic Development (DCED) and the Auglaize Mercer Business Edu-

cation Alliance (AMBE) joined forces for a third consecutive year to honor students who continue to get an education while discovering the employment opportunities in the region either through actual work

Costly meth clean up continues at DC Jail SUSAN HARTLEY

STAFF WRITER shartley@earlybirdpaper.com

DARKE COUNTY County Commissioners on Wednesday approved an emergency resolution to accept quotes without bids for the methamphetamine cleanup at the county jail. “The Ohio Revised Code allows us to forgo competitive bidding for emergencies of under $100,000,â€? said John Cook, facilities and safety manager. Commissioners approved a total of $75,142 for duct replacement and clean up at the jail, which will remain closed until work is completed. Cook and Deputy Chief Mark Whittaker joined forces to solicit quotes for the work, which has begun and will hopefully be completed by the ďŹ rst of May, Whittaker said. The cleanup follows an incident on Tuesday, April 17, with parole violator, Stephen A. Garner, Jr. of Ansonia, who had several baggies of meth on his person at the time he was being processed at the jail. According to Chief Deputy Mark Whittaker, Gardner ended up throwing a bag of meth at staff, contaminating the jail and causing illness to four corrections ofďŹ cers, with additional jail staff becoming sick the following day. In all, 12 sheriff’s ofďŹ ce employees became ill from the contaminated air, Whittaker said, but all are back to work. There were “no extensive illnesses,â€? among staff, Whittaker said. Garner was arrested following a request from the Adult Parole Services, Whittaker explained. Garner also was treated for exposure to the meth and was eventually transported back to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation in Orient. The April 17 incident will be forwarded to the Darke County prosecutor, Whittaker said, for possible charges. As for restitution for the clean-up costs, Whittaker said it would be up to the judge as the case progresses. “We probably would want to ask about that, but that amount of money would be hard to recoverâ€? from a prisoner, Whittaker said.

According to Commissioner Mike Rhoades, the county is spending approximately $60 per day per inmate to house prisoners in Miami and Mercer counties. “Every day the jail is down costs the commissioners,â€? Cook said of the necessity to pass the emergency resolution. “It is an emergency,â€? Commissioner Mike Rhoades said of the need to accept bids immediately. As of Wednesday, approximately $18,000 had accrued for housing inmates at these two county jails. Commissioners, along with Whittaker say they are pleased with the assistance being provided by both Miami and Mercer counties. According to Whittaker, both sheriff ofďŹ ces immediately stepped up to help with the transfer of prisoners, calling in offduty staff to return to their respective jails. “We really appreciate Chief Dave Duchak (Miami County) and Chief Jeff Grey (Mercer County). We called them late at night,â€? he said, noting both chiefs immediately asked “what can we do to help.â€? Cook also praised employees at the Darke County Jail when the decision to evacuate was made. “People quickly pulled together to evacuate the inmates to neighboring jails,â€? he said. Work at the jail will include replacement of air handler 5, which provides air ow into the jail’s inmate intake area – booking, processing, control room, holding cells, visitation booths, and adjoining hallway. Besides the air handler replacement, all other existing duct work will be cleaned as a precaution. “Every possible thing is to ensure the safety of the public and inmates is being done,â€? Rhoades said. “We are looking to do something with the system to shut it offâ€? in the case of a future similar situation “so it won’t be spread anywhere else.â€? Whittaker also said he was grateful the white powder turned out to be meth, since the same amount of fentanyl and carfentanyl have proven to be deadly.

experience or internships. Eight students from Darke County, including ďŹ ve from the Greenville Career Technology Center, were honored with the award. Tamala Marley, workforce development coordinator for DCED, pointed out DCED and AMBE have been proactive in ďŹ nding solutions to meet the region’s workforce demand for today and in the future. She said they learned early on that businesses and schools needed to work closely to meet that goal. She said, “When students are given opportunity to learn and work outside the school building, learning inside the school building takes on new relevance.â€? Kyle Mills, a student at Upper Valley Career Center and Bradford High School, was recognized for his work at Norcold. According to his teacher, Alan Wuebker, Mills has earned straight A’s. Jerry Kincaid, of Norcold, said Mills knew what he was doing when he came to the business. Rianna Apple, a student at Greenville Senior High School and the Career Technology Center, earned the award for her work at the Brethren Retirement Community as a State

Tested Nursing Assistant. Jessica Davis, of BRC, said patients love her and coworkers are able to depend on her. Brooke Rademachir, a student at Miami Valley Career Technology Center and Arcanum Butler High School, currently attends school and work at The Workshop Learning Center. Michelle Drees, of The Workshop Learning Center, called her a fantastic worker. Rademachir will continue with the business after she graduates and plans to attend Edison in the fall to start work on Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education. Jacob Subler, a student at Greenville Senior High School and Career Technology Center, has been partnering with Mote & Associates and has plans of his continuing his education in the engineering ďŹ eld. Jerry McClannan, of Mote & Associates, said Subler has a done a variety of jobs, but will get more experience this summer when he goes out on jobs with the company’s surveyors. Chevy Quinter, a student at Miami Valley Career Technology Center and Mississinawa Valley

Students honored include (front row) Rianna Apple, Ronald Nischwitz, Brooke Rademachir, Chevy Quinter, (back row) Jacob Subler, Connor Null, Wyatt Shoemaker, and Kyle Mills.

High School, has also partnered with Norcold to receive work experience. Lee Nelson, of MVCTC pointed out Quinter is putting in 40 hours of work at Norcold and is on the two-weeks on, two-weeks off apprenticeship program. Kincaid said, “He is very prepared.� Connor Null, a student at Greenville Senior High and Career Technology Center, has been gaining work experience at White Springs Golf Club. According to his teacher, Dara Buchy, Null is a secondyear member of the Supply Chain Management program. She pointed out he has been a very strong force in the program’s ability to raise over $14,000 for Special Olympics over

the past two years. Ronald Nischwitz, a student at Greenville Senior High School and Career Technology Center, was honored for his work with SVG Motors. The marketing program senior works 30 hours a week at SVG. Paul Mayo, of SVG, said he is a great worker, always on-time and very reliable. Wyatt Shoemaker, of Miami Valley Career Technology Center and Franklin Monroe High School, is partnering with Ramco. He is also doing the twoweeks on, two-weeks off apprenticeship program offered through MVCTC. Damon Miller, of Ramco, said Shoemaker is very motivated and his attention to detail is fantastic.

Candidates share opinions on issues facing Ohioans SUSAN HARTLEY

STAFF WRITER shartley@earlybirdpaper.com

GREENVILLE – Six Ohio House Republican candidates ďŹ elded questions from audience members during the Darke County League of Women Voters Candidate’s Night, held at the American Legion Hall on Monday. Moderating the event, Eileen LitchďŹ eld emphasized the League’s goal was to provide “unbiased factual information to help voters make decisionsâ€? regarding the May 8 Primary. The six House candidates included Travis Faber, Aaron Heilers and Susan Manchester from the 84th District, which includes northern Darke County, and George Lovett, John “Budâ€? O’Brien and Jena Powell, 80th District candidates representing the southern portion of the county. Also in attendance Monday were three Democrats running for the 8th Congressional District – Dr. Vanessa Enoch, Matthew Guyette and Ted Jones. All three were given time at the end of the forum to introduce themselves and their platforms. Mike Stegall, Republican incumbent for Darke County Commission, also was given two minutes to speak to attendees.

Stegall’s opponent, John Kennedy, last week opted out of participating in the League’s Candidate’s Night, following suit with 80th House candidate J.D. Winteregg. Both Republicans cited they believed the League was “too left-wing� to host the forum. “I’m not surprised,� Stegall told the Early Bird of his opponent bowing out of the event. “It doesn’t surprise me. What does he stand for? We don’t know because he really hasn’t said.� During his two-minutes, Stegall told the audience “I think you know what has happened during the last eight years. My opponent chose not to show up tonight. That’s unfortunate. We don’t know what he stands for.� Due to Kennedy being a no-show, the League had to modify their policy to not allow Stegall to answer questions about his candidacy. The six House candidates addressed their concerns about the state’s opioid crisis, education woes, Second Amendment rights, Medicaid expansion, and eliminating government regulations. The importance of job creation and workforce development also was addressed. One question – How will President Trump’s trade tariff’s affect our lo-

Six candidates for Ohio House Districts 80 and 84 faced audience questions during the Darke County League of Women Voters Candidate’s Night Forum on Monday. (Susan Hartley photo)

cal farmers? - had all six Republicans voicing concerns over the negative impact already taking place by China’s reaction to impose import taxes on U.S. goods, including agriculture products from Ohio. “China targeted this area,� Faber said. “We’re seeing the effects already, not just with steel, but our local agriculture.� Heilers, a Shelby County farmer, said he would be a “stronger voice to the federal government� on these types of issues if he were to be elected. O’Brien said he believed “we can’t overreact, but see how it plays out� as far as the tariff issue. To the question ‘are there some limits to the Second Amendment you can support?’ all six candidates answered “no.� Susan Manchester said she believed “adding mental health issues� should be looked at for those seek-

ing to purchase or carry a weapon while arming teachers should be a local level decision. As for reducing government regulations, Powell said she was not in favor of new taxes and was for “getting healthcare back to a free market system.â€? O’Brien, who currently serves as a Miami County Commissioner, said he was not in favor of any new taxes, but does support local government making ďŹ scally sound decisions. “Local government is where the rubber hits the road,â€? he said. Miami County attorney and former Tipp City councilman and mayor, Lovett said he believed there was “no need to bring in new revenueâ€? to the state’s coffers. “The state is looking well ďŹ nancially,â€? he said. Heilers agreed. “We don’t have a revenue problem in the state of Ohio. We have a spending problem.â€?

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