Editorials

Orchids and onions

ORCHID: To Chris Stanley, a history teacher at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School in Youngstown, for organizing the nonprofit group called Classroom 2 Capitol. The group hopes to raise $50,000 to send two busloads of students and parents from the Youngstown City School District to Washington, D.C., to view our federal government in action next school year. Classroom 2 Capitol sounds like the perfect investment opportunity for those philanthropic individuals and groups seeking to advance and enhance civics education in urban schools.

ORCHID: To Kelly Bruner, mother of Jeremiah Bruner, a student at Hilltop Elementary School in Canfield, for donating a "Buddy Bench" to the school's playground. Students who feel lonely can go there during recess, where other children can join them to talk or play. As the school principal pointed out, the Buddy Bench is a great tool to foster friendship and empathy skills among children.

ONION: To Caleb Hall, 25, of Niles and all others who misuse social media as a weapon. Hall pleaded guilty last week in federal court in Youngstown to one federal count of interstate communication of threats. In part of the state's case, he said he'd like to "spray down" an entire family with an assault rifle. We're glad Hall was brought to justice, and we hope authorities continue to remain vigilant in hunting down those using social media for antisocial, threatening and disturbing rants.

ORCHID: To students and staff at Boardman Glenwood Junior High School for their work sprucing up their school and enhancing Spartan pride. They have gone to work to paint and improve a key portion of their school. Thanks to a nearly $2,000 grant for paint and other supplies, students, teachers and staff recently rolled up their sleeves and got to work on a series of about 100 outdoor panels that have faded to a brown from the original school and district color of bright maroon. The large group of students and staff is scheduled to complete the project today. What a commendable and fitting way to mark Global Youth Services Day, being observed today.

ORCHID: To organizers of the Youngstown State University Relay For Life for successfully launching the 2021 season of relays in the Mahoning Valley. The relays, which serve as the largest fundraiser for the good works of the American Cancer Society, had to be downsized, held virtually or scrubbed last year due to COVID-19 restrictions. This year, we're pleased to see plans sprinting forward for other traditional relays in Canfield, Niles and Warren later this spring and summer. The Canfield event will be a consolidated Relay for Mahoning and Columbiana counties.

ONION: To residents who use insecticides or other means on their own to destroy bees and swarms of bees in our communities this spring. According to local beekeepers, swarm season has arrived earlier than usual this year, but those swarms do not pose any great risk because the bees are in their "docile" phase. Beekeepers and others warn of impending danger if an ongoing decline in the world's bee population continues. Not only would the honey industry be threatened, so, too, would their vital role in pollination. For those who seek safe and responsible swarm removal in Mahoning County, the Columbiana Mahoning Beekeepers Association offers information and contacts at

www.cmcba.net. In Trumbull County, call 330-883-9312 or 330-984-8395.

ORCHID: To the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center Governing Board, as well as key staff at the school, for moving forward on constructing a new building on the MCCTC campus to expand programming in such areas as heating, air conditioning, solar panel installation, wind turbines and electric-vehicle charging stations. We're pleased to see the vocational and technical school grow with the times and getting in on a ground floor for preparing young people to meet the needs of our fast-emerging green-energy industries.

editorial@vindy.com

SCRIPTURE

So that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth.

Philippians 2:10 NASB

Editorials

Orchids and onions

ORCHID: To the Youngstown State University bowling team for finishing in the Final Four of the NCAA's National Collegiate Women's Bowling Championship. "What a resilient group. I'm so proud of the effort," YSU bowling coach Doug Kuberski aptly said. The Penguins made an impressive show in their first trip to a national competition, and we're confident they will be a force to be reckoned with next season as well. Roll on, champs!

ORCHID: To the newly hired artistic leadership team at The Youngstown Playhouse. Each of them has local ties and an impressive background in theater arts. They include Joshua William Green of Youngstown as artistic director, Kayla Boye of Warren as executive director and Tyler Moliterno of Boardman as new associate artistic director. After a year of limited productions because of the relentless COVID-19 pandemic, this new team already has exciting production plans in the wings for this summer and the 2021-22 season. Take a bow, Joshua, Kayla and Tyler!

ONION: To the irresponsible hooligan who fired shots in a funeral home parking lot in Campbell this week disrupting the solemnity of the service. According to Campbell police, gunshots let loose toward a car in the parking lot of a funeral at Jerusalem Baptist Church on Wilson Avenue. Fourteen spent rounds of a .45-caliber gun were recovered by investigators. Once apprehended and convicted, the shooters deserve nothing less than the maximum punishment allowed.

ORCHID: To the winners of the 2021 Diocese of Youngstown Golden Apple Awards for outstanding teachers and administrators in schools within the six-county diocesan system. This year's honorees include Kyle Anda of St. Joseph the Provider Elementary School in Youngstown, Jennifer DeMain of St. Charles Elementary School in Boardman and Paulina Montaldo and Matthew Sammartino, both of Ursuline High School in Youngstown. The winners all exhibit strong professional development, commitment to students and schools, leadership attributes and service to their church and community.

ORCHID: To Mahoning County Common Pleas Court Judge John Durkin and drug court administrator Amy Klumpp for succeeding in graduating 10 members of this season's felony drug court participants. The program, which has served as a model for others in the state and the nation under Durkin for more than two decades, allows participants to have felony charges expunged through successful completion of the intense rehabilitation and education regimen. This session proved particularly challenging because of COVID-19 limitations. But judging from the praiseworthy words of its now drug-free graduates, the program's results were worth the extra effort.

ONION: To irresponsible owners of vicious animals, including pit bulls, who allow them to terrorize neighborhoods. In Girard this week, Mayor James Melfi told city council that a pit bull has been running loose in the city. And in at least one case, another dog had been attacked and killed. Melfi and other city leaders vow to get tough -- as they should. We urge that city -- and every local community -- to give their dangerous-animal ordinances teeth by strictly enforcing them and fully punishing reckless owners.

ORCHID: To Boardman Glenwood Junior High School teachers Tim Harker and Eric Diefenderfer for leading a volunteer staff of teachers, administrators and maintenance staff to build the Spartan Disc Golf Course on the school grounds over its recent spring break. A $2,700 grant provided seed money for the project, but the exemplary teamwork of the group made the project a reality and an asset for students and community members alike.

ORCHID: To Coco Crisp, this week named new manager of the Mahoning Valley Scrappers Major League Baseball Draft League team. During his 15-year career in the Majors, Crisp amassed an impressive record. He played in 1,586 games from 2002 to 2016, most notably with the Cleveland Indians. Crisp's name and talents are sure to bring star power to the team, fresh this season in its new role as a training ground for top college and high school prospects.

editorial@vindy.com

Editorials

Orchids and onions

ORCHID: To Youngstown Police Officer Joe Wess Jr., a member of the department's K-9 unit, for his heroics at the scene of a deadly shooting at Utopia, a Youngstown nightclub, last Saturday. Officer Wess responded to the East Midlothian Boulevard scene shortly after the multiple shooting was reported. A rapper was killed and two others injured at the club. Wess quickly went into rescue mode, placing a tourniquet on the severely bleeding leg of the female victim, likely saving her life. Police Chief Carl Davis aptly said after the shooting, "Officer Wess' lifesaving actions should be recognized and lauded." We second his praise, particularly at a time when many police officers are being vilified for the actions of a very few bad apples. The heroism of Wess represents the rule, not the exception, in modern policing.

ONION: To Tom Stalf, former president and CEO of the Columbus Zoo; and Greg Bell, former chief financial officer for the zoo, for offenses against them outlined in an investigation sponsored by the zoo and released this week. According to the report and another investigation by the Columbus Dispatch, the two executives arranged for relatives to live in houses owned by the zoo and used its marketing sporting-event tickets for their own personal use. Other charges involve personal use of zoo vehicles and ignoring required competitive bidding for a $2 million project. The wealth of violations the two face point to a need for much more stringent oversight by zoo board members.

ORCHID: To the Austintown Fitch High School Concert Choir for becoming the first choir members from throughout the United States to perform without facial masks for about 400 service members who care for and fly President Joe Biden's helicopter. The fine performance Tuesday carries on a proud and praiseworthy 49-year tradition of the choir of entertaining American veterans over their spring break.

ORCHID: To Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. and Denise DeBartolo York for being included this week in Forbes' magazines annual listings of billionaires in the United States. York's family owns more than 90 percent of the 49ers, according to Forbes. Over the years, the DeBartolo-York family has singled itself out with generous philanthropic donations to such worthy groups and organizations in the Mahoning Valley, such as Youngstown Sate University, the DeYor Performing Arts Centre, Akron Children's Hospital, the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown, the United Way and others. The Mahoning Valley natives who have made a name for themselves as majority owners of the 49ers have never forgotten their roots, which is clearly visible through their ongoing philanthropy.

ONION: To those responsible for a series of four random shooting incidents in Youngstown in a matter of hours Tuesday night. Fortunately, the depraved criminal actions injured no one at homes on Hunter Avenue and Rosedale Avenue on the South Side and Lauderdale Avenue on the North Side, plus another on the street in the area of West Glenaven and Oak Hill avenues. Damage, however, was done to the public perception of security of all of these neighborhoods. Police should spare no resources to track and prosecute the culprits who have no regard for public safety and human lives.

ORCHID: To Erik Vargo, 18, a senior at Cardinal Mooney High School in Youngstown, and to Emily Bennett, 16, a junior at Lakeview High School in Bazetta for bringing honor and distinction to themselves and their schools by winning national silver medals in the highly competitive Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Vargo won his award for an emotional photograph titled "Heartbreak on the Hardwood" about a hard loss for the Youngstown State University basketball team. Bennett won hers for her painting, titled "The Year Was 2020," in which the anguish produced by the COVID-19 pandemic screams out front and center.

ORCHID: To local teens Lena Dunkerly and Giovanni Milleto, both of St. Patrick Church in Hubbard; and Michael Joseph Wilson of St. Stephen Parish of Niles for earning this year's prestigious Diocesan Eagle of the Cross Award. The annual awards recognize teenagers with model dedication, integrity, values and promise for church and society.

editorial@vindy.com

SCRIPTURE

He has paid a full ransom for his people. He has guaranteed his covenant with them forever. What a holy, awe-inspiring name he has!

Psalm 111:9 NLT

Editorials

Orchids and onions

ORCHID: To the Ohio National Guard for the big lift it gave to Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley when it needed it most. Men and women from the guard have been helping the indispensable food bank meet its skyrocketing demand for assistance over the past full year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Just how much of an increased demand? In 2019, Second Harvest distributed 11 million tons of food in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties. In 2020, that figure zoomed to nearly 16 million tons. Sadly, the need for community assistance and for the guard's capable work in delivering it will not be ending anytime soon.

ORCHID: To Rose Ann Lubert for earning a proclamation of honor from Girard Mayor James Melfi recently. Lubert was recognized for her 20 years of work as director of the Girard Free Library and for the many community services the library provides. Lubert, who has now retired, and her staff have overseen much growth in resources and community services over those past two decades of the 102-year-old library system. In so doing, they have ensured that the public library remains more relevant than ever.

ONION: To the M.J. Joseph Development Corp. for its negligence in failing to follow through on its promised development of a large chill-can production and research campus on Youngstown's East Side. Although some buildings have been constructed and a handful of employees reportedly have been hired, the company has reneged on its pledge to have the facility operating with at least 150 workers by 2021. The city of Youngstown is absolutely correct in its plans to file suit, seeking about $2 million in damages for costs associated with waterline work and tax credits. We hope company leaders can get the project back on track, but the city cannot wait forever.

ORCHID: To Sheetz Inc. for its $1.75 million investment in expansion at its state Route 46 store and service station in Austintown. The project will bring five additional lanes of diesel fuel pumps, a truck scale and expanded parking. The expansion will allow truck drivers to fuel up and have a safe place to stay for the night. We hope other businesses also recognize that the Interstate 80 / state Route 46 interchange ranks among the busiest in the nation and follow Sheetz's wise investment lead.

ORCHID: To Charles Shasho, Youngstown's deputy director of public works, for moving swiftly to finally demolish one of the city's most unsafe and useless eyesores -- the Crescent Street Bridge. With bids for the work coming in hundreds of thousands of dollars below the estimate of $950,000, we see no reason for the city's Board of Control not to authorize acceptance of the lowest bid of $580,000 from a Struthers company for the project when it meets April 15. Then, at last, this popularly-called "bridge to nowhere" can be gone, and the land it occupies can be redeveloped.

ONION: To state Rep. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, for his recently introduced legislation to authorize bars in the state to remain open until 3:30 a.m., one hour past the longstanding required 2:30 a.m. shutdown. While we can understand Cutrona's underlying desire to help businesses recoup losses suffered from shutdowns in 2020 from the COVID-19 pandemic, we fear keeping liquor-serving businesses open an additional hour may have unintended negative consequences, including a spike in drunken-driving accidents, injuries and deaths.

ORCHID: To the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp. for its ongoing successes in revitalizing homes and neighborhoods throughout the city. Most recently, its achievements won it a featured segment on the WORLD Channel's "America Reframed" series. The YNDC episode titled "The place that makes us" and shot over several years, aired last week but is available for online streaming at worldchannel.org. It also will be a part of the esteemed Cleveland International Film Festival this year. We're pleased to see the good works of YNDC Director Ian Beniston, his staff and his legions of hearty volunteer workers get the national and international recognition they so deserve.

editorial@tribtoday.com

SCRIPTURE

And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.

Matthew 28:2 ESV