Community Efforts increase to save bank building

By John Shiflet Harrison News-Herald Staff Writer

After the Harrison News-Herald article of May 26 about saving the old Uptown Bank building (pg. 5) came out, a public outpouring of support appeared and is steadily gaining momentum.

Invitations for reader comments from the article brought forth responses that helped provide insight into the reasons people feel the lofty 1905 Beaux Arts building is worth saving and reconstructing.

A person from Cadiz now living in Columbus wrote about sweet memories from earlier times in the thriving business district. The memories included numerous mom-and-poptype retail stores that provided neighbors with convenient shopping choices within walking distance instead of miles away.

The overall impression made was that the old bank building was like a cherished old family heirloom. Maybe it should have been discarded years ago, but despite its sad condition, it still has great sentimental value and creates a strong sense of place and permanence.

CIC Consultant Ken Mason continues to seek out additional funding sources and shares that progress is being made. On June 14, a preliminary informal meeting took place at the Ranch to Table Restaurant with owner Shelley Cof- felt, local historian Susan Adams, myself, and a local official who was there as a caring private citizen and lover of Cadiz history. Ideas and suggestions about additional steps to be taken were discussed, including whether a more formal task force or group would help focus efforts more efficiently in the short time before the temporary demolition delay ends in August. When the bank was new, it was a highly visible symbol of community pride and prosperity.

Adams shared that the former law office of John A. Bingham originally stood on the bank building site. Our local post office was recently renamed in Bingham’s honor. I would modestly propose that the reconstructed bank building be renamed the Edwin Marion Long Building in honor of the extraordinary Cadiz builder who constructed the bank building in 1905.

Long chose the monumental Beaux-Arts style and used gleaming white carved limestone for the elegant facade to demonstrate refinement and architectural sophistication. That proud heritage can be regained by renovating the facade and shell back into a functional structure that meets modern standards and can endure for generations to come. Besides the original proposal to adapt the building for office space, additional suggestions included repurposing the building as a local historical society and genealogy museum.

Another proposal was to create three luxury downtown condominiums with a hotel-like lobby sitting area, an elevator and staircase, and a rooftop repurposed as a common entertaining area and observation deck. Given how near it is to the courthouse and county offices, configuring it for dedicated county-office use also seems feasible.

The Columbus resident who fondly remembered Cadiz, was so convinced that saving the Uptown Bank building was the right thing that he boldly requested an invitation to the ribbon-cutting ceremony. So, the choices are clear: spend $110,000 (CIC contract figure) or more for another demolition and the permanent loss of an Uptown landmark, or, save our proud heritage and reconstruct a familiar old building to be useful again for generations to come.

Those who pay attention to current trends are aware of communities like Wheeling which is now using the town’s architectural legacy to energize new business development and bring more tourists into town. Cadiz has just as many reasons to do the same. Comments and suggestions are always welcome at vintrest@yahoo.com or 740-320-4084

Big Brothers Big Sisters of East Central Ohio will present Ask a Big at the Main Library of the Tuscarawas County Public Library System on July 18 at 6:30 p.m.

The program will be a frequently-asked-question session for those interested in becoming a mentor to area youth. BBBS requires a minimum of four hours a month from volunteer mentors, which can be done through their community or school-based programs.

The mentorship program through Big Brothers Big Sisters provides guidance, wisdom, encouragement, and support to assist mentees in accomplishing their goals and achieving their full potential.

A current mentor and staff member from BBBS will be on hand to answer questions about services and programs provided to youth in Tuscarawas, Carroll and Harrison counties. They will discuss camp opportunities, individual assistance and resource connections.

Those interested in volunteering or becoming mentors with BBBS are encouraged to attend. The time commitment is not large but it makes a world of difference to the child served by the program.

Registration for this program is required. Register online at www. tusclibrary.org or by calling 330-364-4474.

The county’s Main Library is located at 121 Fair Ave. NW in New Philadelphia.

Independence: It’s worth fighting for

By Pastor Ken Staley

This coming Tuesday is Independence Day. So, on July 4, 1776, the colonies declared their independence from England. The King wished us well and peace reigned throughout the land with everyone living happily ever after.

Well, not exactly. Most of the time, declaring independence from someone who wants you to be very dependent on them, can actually ramp up trouble like you’ve never seen. It doesn’t matter if it’s a government, community, family, or Satan himself. There are just some folks out there who don’t want to let go. The mindset is this: “You have a lot of nerve thinking you can get along without my input.”

For King George, it was our taxes and an arrogance of entitlement that said, “You belong to me.” But you don’t need to be a king to suffer from that thinking. There are battered women hiding in homeless shelters all across our land whose ex-whatever believed everything I just described.

From a spiritual standpoint, the Bible declares that Christians have an enemy whose three-fold aim is to kill, steal and destroy … and he’s very good at what he does. As followers of Jesus, we declare our independence from the world’s system by living according to the standard of righteousness as laid out by Jesus himself. That’s when the fireworks begin. Jesus told his followers, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” (ESV)

Some Christians try to play both sides against the middle. You know, go along to get along. But if you’ve kept up with current events, it’s become quite evident that we live in an era where we are being forced to choose sides. It reminds me of Christian song lyrics I heard that said “Dark is darker, light is lighter, wrong is wronger and right is righter.” I know, it’s not good English but it gets the point across.

As our founding fathers experienced, there comes a point where you just have to say “enough!” As followers of Jesus, we must confront the compromise of sound doctrine and the temptation to be chummy with worldly philosophies that water down the truth of God’s Word. The apostle James wrote, “Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God?” (NLT) He certainly did not mean for us to not love, care, and pray for a lost and dying world, but rather that we should not adopt the social mores of the current age to make ourselves more acceptable to pop culture. The world doesn’t need Jesus “lite”, only truth will do. The old hymn still rings true today, “Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross.” As we celebrate our country’s independence on Tuesday, let every follower of Jesus celebrate spiritual independence from a broken worldly system and anything that compromises our walk with Jesus.

Pleasant Grove Methodist at 9:30 a.m. and Harrisville Methodist at 11 a.m.