ORCHID: To Youngstown police and members of the Project Impact crime-fighting team for their noteworthy achievements in reducing violent crime in the city this summer. Impact’s partnership among city police, Ohio State Highway Patrol, the FBI, Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Marshals Service, Ohio Adult Parole Authority and the Ohio Investigative Unit achieved unprecedented success over the summer. Between June 18 and Sept. 1, Youngstown recorded zero homicides, and its 2025 homicide toll on Sept. 1 stood at eight. That’s still far too many but represents a major reduction from the 17 it had recorded by the start of September 2024. Such undeniable success should give impetus to lengthening the spring and summer initiative to ensure a similar impact in making Youngstown as safe as possible all year long.

ORCHID: To the Catholic Diocese of Youngstown for launching a special task force on school safety and security in the aftermath of the horrific mass shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis last month. The task force will bring together law enforcement, first responders and school leaders to coordinate best practices and make building-specific recommendations, according to the diocese. In addition, comprehensive safety inspections of every school in the six-county diocese began last week in Mahoning County. We commend Bishop of Youngstown David Bonnar and Dr. Stephen Jones, superintendent of Catholic schools, for their expeditious and responsible actions to ensure maximum safety for all students. For as Bonnar himself put it, “Even in our churches, it seems, our children are not completely free from danger.”

ONION: To those irresponsible and dangerous individuals who continue to insist on driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana or other drugs. A checkpoint and saturation patrol by the Mahoning Valley OVI Task Force on a recent Friday night made four arrests for impaired driving. That breaks a trend of zero OVI arrests at earlier checkpoints this year and illustrates that driving a motor vehicle under the influence remains a serious public safety danger. Through Aug. 30 of this year alone, the Ohio State Highway Patrol has handled 14 fatal OVI-related traffic crashes in the Mahoning Valley. It appears as if no end is in sight for the commendable but much-needed work of the task force and other law enforcers who work to keep impaired drivers off the roads.

ORCHID: To the Mahoning Valley Manufacturing Coalition for making a $10,000 donation to help make an exciting and forward-moving program at Choffin Career and Technical Center in Youngstown a reality. The city schools’ career center recently had an open house to unveil its brand-spanking new advanced manufacturing program and laboratory. Among the high-tech equipment in the lab are several 3D printers, robots, a machine for industrial plastics and learning systems for basic hydraulics, electric relay controls, pneumatics, alternating and direct current electronics and measurement tools. The new program complements excellently other AM initiatives in the Valley, such as America Makes and the Youngstown Business Incubator. More importantly, it has great potential to train young people for exciting and plentiful growth-industry jobs.

ORCHID: To Jim Henshaw for his dedicated 15 years of making the Austintown Senior Center one of the biggest and best facilities for mature adults in the Mahoning Valley. Henshaw, who is retiring at the spry age of 84, has overseen tremendous growth in programming and membership over the past decade and a half at the center. Back in 2010, the new ACS began with Bingo nights but over the years, Henshaw has overseen expansion to many games and amusements, healthy physical activities and classes in everything from cooking to the Spanish language. As a result, the center’s membership has skyrocketed from about 400 to 1,400 today. Township Trustee Rob Santos was effusive in his praise of Henshaw: ” I greatly appreciate his long service and dedication to our senior center and our seniors. The next individual who takes the position has some pretty big shoes to fill.” Truer words never have been spoken.

ORCHID: To Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel for organizing and leading a new statewide fitness challenge for youngsters in grades 4-8. The former president of Youngstown State University visited Struthers Middle School last week for a pep rally with participants for the Team Tressel Fitness Challenge that officially begins Sept. 8. From our perspective, the program has tremendous potential for success in improving the physical and mental health of children. Unlike other programs, such as the President’s Fitness Test, no one-size-fits-all regimen of activities is thrust upon the children. Instead, they get to choose from a variety of activities and set their own goals, thereby heightening motivation levels and determination to succeed. We’re confident that with Tressel at the helm, the 160,000 middle schoolers taking part in the challenge will go the distance to meet or beat their goals.