Free Press Standard 9/27/18

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FREE PRESS S T A N D A R D

C o n t i n u i n g To P r o u d l y S e r v e C a r r o l l C o u n t y S i n c e 1 8 3 1 $1.00

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Thursday, September 27, 2018

State Cuts funding for Meals Suspect on 4-wheeler apprehended after chase, in a Backpack program automatic pistol found

There have been many times when kids come to school on Monday morning desperate for something to eat.

By NANCY SCHAAR

FPS Correspondent

Cassandra Nicholas, Family Support Specialist for Carrollton Schools

By CHRIS MODRANSKI

FPS Correspondent

Children in the Carrollton school district face hunger on weekends due to a cut in funding from the state. Every Thursday afternoon members of the Caring, Helping and Sharing (CHS) Club meet after school in the cafeteria. This special group of students pack meals that are sent home with children on Friday afternoons. The children may not have nutritionally balanced meals over the weekend without these additional meals. The Meals in a Backpack program is in jeopardy of being eliminated for the 275 students that receive them each week in the Carrollton school district. The program has been funded through the Maternal and Child Health grant from the Ohio Department of Health. A recent allocation of funds at the state level will cut that funding for providing these needed meals. The grant was supposed to be for three years, but has only been given to the school for two years. The third year funding has been dropped by the state. The state says they have redesigned the program into a competitive grant and has removed Blessings in a Backpack funding as an option. The funding expires Sept. 30, 2018. The 36 week long program costs about $22,000 to operate and when broken down that is about $2.50 per student each week. The grant provided enough funding to feed about 200 students each year and Utica East Ohio made a one-time donation of $8,000 to cover the rest of the students for the year. Students that qualify for a free or a reduced lunch qualify for the weekend meals but their parents must opt into the program. There are about 1,100 students in the Carrollton school district, which is about 50 percent of the student population that could qualify, but only 275 have chosen to participate in the program. “Most families will find a way to survive if the program cannot be funded but there are a handful of children that won’t have anything to eat for the weekend for various

Caring, Helping and Sharing Club (CHS) advisor, Belinda Mach, with the meals packed by members of the Carrollton high school club.

reasons. There have been many times when kids come to school on Monday morning desperate for something to eat,” said Cassandra Nicholas, Family Support Specialist for Carrollton Schools. The meal bags consist of two breakfast items, two lunch items, and two snacks. “Because we have food insecurity in our community, we have kids who are in situations where there may not be enough food in their household to meet their nutritional needs and that is not the fault of the child. It is ultimately what’s best for the children,” said Nicholas. Donations of any amount are being sought to fund the Blessings in a Backpack program. After Sept. 30, these meals will no longer be provided.

See FUNDING, PG. 4

Carroll Electric Cooperative celebrates year of progress Carroll Electric Cooperative, Inc. celebrated a year of progress and outstanding service at their 2018 annual meeting held Aug. 25 at the Carroll County fairgrounds. A total of 472 members, community leaders, and guests were in attendance. Incumbents Gary Snode, Harold Sutton, and Frank Chiurco were re-elected to three-year terms each to the Carroll Electric Board of Trustees, representing Districts 1, 4 and 8 of the cooperative’s territory, respectively. In thanking members for their participation in their cooperative, Board President Harold Sutton said: “Listening to you, our member-consumers, sets Carroll Electric apart from other utilities. When you make a comment to an employee, send a note in with your bill, or talk directly to a board member, we are listening. The value of your comments is immeasurable, and they help us set policy and provide better service to all members,” Sutton added. In his annual address, Larry J. Fenbers, CEO and general manager of Carroll Electric, reported that considerable progress has been made in implementing the cooperative’s ongoing strategic plan. This includes upgrading computer systems to protect against cyber threats, enhancing credit card payment processing, and improving outage communication to members. Fenbers also discussed the many strides the cooperative has made to improve system performance. “We replaced the transformers in both our Ross substation and Petersburg substation. During the next year, we will replace the transformer at our Sugar Grove substation as well,” he stated. Fenbers also detailed the cooperative’s tree-trimming efforts. This year, Carroll Electric will be trimming areas served by the Mohawk, Sugar Grove and Springfield substations, and portions of the Washington substation area. In 2019, trimming will be completed in the Washington substation area and in the entirety of the Summitville substation area. Carroll Electric will also continue to address dead ash trees that pose potential problems to system reliability. Fenbers commended Carroll Electric employees for their excellent service and for posting an impressive safety record in the past year. “I am happy to report that we completed the past year without any lost-time accidents,” he said.

more inside

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Deputies were called when a man or a woman was reported to be riding a 4-wheeler on Pebble Rd. wearing a ski mask and wearing some type of vest. After finally being apprehended, James Bronson Alazaus, 19, of Van Jack St., Carrollton, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, possessing a defaced firearm, and failure to comply with an order of an officer and fleeing. Deputies responded and spoke with a man on Alamo Rd. who had taken a photo of Alazaus. The red 4-wheeler photo showed a person in a black ski mask and a camo vest. Calls continued to come in regarding the masked rider. Deputies followed Alazaus as he drove off the road into a dead end area near VoAsh Lake. Deputy Troy Watson stopped the suspect, drew his side arm and pointed at Alazaus, but Alazaus jumped back on the 4-wheeler and took off again. Watson ran into the wooded area and again spotted Alazaus trying to

free himself from the ATV that was against a tree. Again, Watson drew his sidearm and told Alazaus to stop and get on the ground. Alazaus continued to try to free the ATV and himself from the tree. When Watson was about 8 feet from him, Alazaus allegedly drew a handgun from his waistband and tossed it in front of him into the woods. Alazaus was cuffed and taken to where other deputies were ready to assist. When the area was searched, a large silver automatic pistol, identified as a Ruger Mark II, was found near the area where the suspect was apprehended; it had one live 22caliber round in the chamber but did not have a magazine. The serial numbers appeared to have been ground off of the gun. Deputies received slight injuries of scratches and cuts. “Officers responded and acted appropriately in this situation. Concealed weapons are always a great concern and officers never know what may happen in a tense situation with a suspect. Extensive training keeps deputies ready for any situation they encounter,” stated Carroll County Sheriff Dale Williams.

Change of plea, sentencing hearing scheduled for Sherrodsvile man involved in crash A change of plea and sentencing hearing is scheduled for this Thursday for a Sherrodsville area man involved in a 2017 traffic accident which resulted in serious injuries to a 22-year-old Dellroy woman. Christopher C. Ericksen, 25, of 6211 Fable Rd. SE, Sherrodsville, is expected to withdraw a former not guilty plea to a March 6, 2018, indictment charging him with aggravated vehicular assault, a 3rd degree felony, vehicular assault, a 4th degree felony, and two counts of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, each 1st degree misdemeanors. According to Carroll County Prosecuting Attorney Steven D. Barnett, Ericksen was involved in

motor vehicle crash Sept. 26, 2017, with another vehicle on SR 39, west of Dellroy. Prosecutor Barnett said the crash resulted in serious injures to Kimberly Jo Locker of Dellroy, who sustained serious injuries as a result of the crash that required her to be air lifted from the crash scene. Locker remains hospitalized and has requested Thursday’s court proceedings via Skype. The request has been approved by Carroll County Common Pleas Court Judge Dominick E. Olivito Jr. If convicted Ericksen could face prison terms of up to 60 months and a $10,000 fine for the aggravated vehicular assault charge and up to 18 months and a $5,000 fine for the vehicular assault conviction.

Carrollton Council prepares for fall, sets leaf pickup times By NANCY SCHAAR

FPS Correspondent

Re-elected to the Carroll Electric Board of Trustees for three-year terms each (from left) are Harold Sutton, who represents District 4; Gary Snode, District 1, and Frank Chiurco, District 8.

“To help continue this trend, we have joined with three other cooperatives and hired a shared safety consultant. This helps ensure that we stay in compliance with safety rules and continually look for ways to improve our performance,” he added. Fenbers also announced that because of Carroll Electric’s strong financial position, the cooperative was able to return more than $545,000 in capital credits to members. Capital credits – a distinguishing feature of membership in an electric cooperative – are annual operating margins disbursed to co-op members based on the individual member’s share of electricity purchased from the cooperative over time.

See CELEBRATES, PG. 2

sports P.6

school P.8

Carrollton council met briefly Monday evening and approved the yearly Homecoming Parade held Wednesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. Fall leaf bags are available in the lobby of village hall for residents use. Leaf pick up will be Fridays and bags must be placed on the curbs. This will continue through Nov. 30. Council approved resolutions for appropriations. An increase in fees charged to the water department required a transfer of funds to cover the extra charges through the end of the year. In other business council: - MET in executive session to

discuss the contract of a public employee. No action was taken following the session. REMINDED residents Scarecrows on the Square will be held Saturday, Sept. 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. A special presentation will be made at 1 p.m. - APPROVED hiring Doug Miller as a fireman for the village. He has been a firefighter since 2000. - LEARNED the fire department closed on the house recently purchased to be used as training. Updates have been made and lockers installed. - HEARD that Baxter, the village K9, was recently on Channel 9 News while undergoing training at Bethany College.

Man arrested after fleeing deputies By NANCY SCHAAR

FPS Correspondent

Deputies responded to a call asking for a wellness check on a vehicle off the road on Sept. 19 about 8 p.m. Captain Jonathan Kampfer and Deputy Kyle Trsinar responded. Kampfer found two people passed

crossword P.9

classified P.11

out in a car parked on Colony Rd. After seeing the deputies, the driver drove off ignoring repeated orders to stop the car. Deputies gave chase to the vehicle through numerous county and township roads. A Salineville police officer also tried to help with the pursuit.

See ARRESTED, PG. 3


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Free Press Standard 9/27/18 by Harrison News-Herald Archive - Issuu