ORCHID: To the Youngstown State University tennis team for defeating Cleveland State University to capture the women’s 2025 Horizon League championship Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and thereby gain an automatic bid into the NCAA championship tournament. The league title is YSU’s eighth in program history, the second-most in the history of the Horizon League. YSU aces seized the day with a superlative performance in singles matches at the tourney. Orchids, too, must go to YSU women’s golfer Neeranuch “Tiam” Prajunpanich for winning the individual title at the Horizon League Women’s Golf Championship last month. These league championships, on top of the national championship for the YSU women’s bowling team, truly make spring 2025 a season to remember.

ONION: To those irresponsible motorists who attempt to get cheap thrills through reckless street-racing. Recently, a 19-year-old man was arrested in Youngstown after police allege he was part of a relatively new phenomenon called “takeovers,” which are defined as illegal gatherings where drivers perform reckless stunts and block intersections often in front of rowdy crowds. Another recent street-racing episode near downtown Youngstown involved two four-wheelers and two street bikes speeding and careening onto sidewalks. Unfortunately, those careless hooligans got away. For the safety of other motorists and innocent pedestrians, we urge all police agencies to enforce laws against these life-threatening hijinks as aggressively as possible.

ORCHID: To Youngstown firefighters Scott Thomas, Tommy Gibbs and Joseph Koziel, as well as Travis Birch of the Brookfield and Fowler fire departments, for their above-the-call-of-duty heroism that has earned them Fire Service Valor Awards from the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office and Ohio Department of Public Safety. The three Youngstown firemen rescued many trapped inside the Realty Tower downtown that exploded last May. “Amid significant destruction, the three individuals risked their lives to initiate daring rescue efforts and save the lives of others,” the state fire marshal said. Birch is credited with saving the life of a woman from a fire at her Vienna home last July. Clearly these men’s keen life-saving skills merit the honor and recognition they will receive at the 44th annual Ohio Fire Service Hall of Fame & Fire Awards ceremony May 14 in Columbus.

ORCHID: To Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries and Aim Transportation Solutions for their strong and critically needed partnership recently observed at a 30th anniversary celebration. Aim, a Liberty-based family-owned truck and trailer leasing company, has been providing crucial services to transport donated clothing, household goods and numerous other items to Goodwill’s 10 regional stores. The support and collaboration between the nonprofit and the trucking business have made for a perfect marriage over the past three decades in compassionately serving the needs of thousands of Goodwill’s vocational rehabilitation clients.

ONION: To Republicans in the Ohio House of Representatives for taking a meat cleaver to a valuable environmental program in its version of the 2026-27 biennial budget for the state. Specifically, the House cut Gov. Mike DeWine’s H2Ohio program by about 45%. H2Ohio has helped restore over 16,200 acres of wetlands, provided habitat for wildlife, reduced flood risks and created new recreational and educational opportunities across the state. Some 3,200 state farmers have enrolled in the water-quality program. From our perspective, its clear results deserve the full funding proposed by DeWine and not the axing of nearly half of its good works for the state’s lakes, rivers and streams.

ORCHID: To Bernadette Bilick of Warren for winning the prestigious Hope Award for Lifetime Achievement for 2025 from the Hope Foundation of the Mahoning Valley in Canfield recently. Bilick, a 41-year worker at the Northeast Ohio Children’s Rehabilitation Center in Howland, clearly advances the mission of the foundation to assist chronically and terminally ill children with hope and support through her compassionate services as a physical therapist. Other finalists for the award also duly recognized were Pamela Brown of Youngstown with the Community Corrections Association, John Crowder of Newton Falls with Newton Falls Exempted Village Schools, Cheryl Ryan of Struthers with Struthers City Schools and James Sutman of Youngstown with Golden String Inc.