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Distribution: 1,193 Emails
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Dear Neighbor,
As much as I hate to say it, when the school busses start rolling around the neighborhood, the summer is over. Weather wise, not really though. We still have plenty of nice weather left. Actually, my favorite time of the year is Fall. But I know there's one more summer concert I would like to see at Lock 3 and then we will move the party indoors to see Prince at the Goodyear Theatre in October! I hope you got to enjoy the outdoors this summer! Oh, I have to remember this - or my wife will remind me - the Metro Parks will be offering their Fall Hiking Spree starting today, September 1...thru November 30th. It's the 58th annual!! If you like to hike, check out Metro's website here and get on a trail!
As I continue with this newsletter's 2022 new feature, "Project Spotlight," check out my article below about the NoHi Cafe on N Main Street. They have really good food at reasonable prices.
Enjoy my newsletter for September! If you need to reach me...my home phone number is 330-805-4625. Or you can leave a message on my city cell phone, 330-256-7223. You can also email me at ward2@akronohio.gov. It's easy to receive this newsletter too. Tell your neighbors to go to my website, www.AkronWard2.com, scroll down to Ward 2 Word Monthly Newsletter Sign-Up. Fill in the required fields and click Submit.
All the best in this great City of Akron...in this great Ward 2!
- Phil
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New to Constant Contact emails? Check out the last 3 months! |
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Here's what's making headlines in your neighborhood! |
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Project Spotlight: NoHi Cafe
Let's highlight & support newly owned businesses in Ward 2
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The NoHi Cafe is a project of the North Akron Community Development Corporation (NACDC). It is located at 778 N Main Street. The NoHi Cafe is a commercial kitchen incubator for Culinary Art Entrepreneurs wanting to get into the food industry. The cafe provides these budding entrepreneurs with a fully equipped commercial kitchen, technical assistance and business support to help build their brand and strengthen their systems. In August, they celebrated their 3-year anniversary!
My friend Frank Vaccaro and I visited on Taco Tuesday. It was good! What kind of taco would you like? Traditional? They have that. Caribbean Jerk Taco, Korean Beef, and a Nigerian taco? What? So many choices but I settled for the Caribbean. Frank went with the Traditional but after some chips and salsa and a few drinks, I received a $11 bill. I thought they made a mistake! But the food at NoHi is very cheap, and delicious to boot.
When you walk in, the barmaid takes your order at the counter and then you can go sit down. In the other "dining room," there is a lot of pictures painted by Jennings Middle School art students. Wow, you could of fooled me. I didn't ask, but I think they are for sale. NoHi has an outside patio they set up on for the weekends only. Overall, the restaurant is nice and clean. Frank and I had a great experience. So add this one to the list of Ward 2 establishments where you won't be disappointed!
NACDC Executive Director, Justin Chenault, points out that the success of the NoHi Cafe has been noted with 72 participants and $210,000 in revenue returned to the Culinary Arts Entrepreneurs. Five of these participants have opened their own restaurant like Totally Baked Pizza. Some have invested in their own food truck!
Thank you NHCDC for your vision and investing in our North Hill Community. May you be blessed with continued success in Ward 2!
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Project Recognition: LA Alterations
Hats off to businesses with 30 or more years service in Ward 2!
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Everybody wants to look good. Whether you're going to the prom or getting married, you'll want to stop in LA Alterations to make sure you do look good. Licia Danford has been sewing since she was 16 and is a pro at it. Her specialty is leather goods, coats, jackets, purses, you name it. One step into her shop at 526 Fouse Avenue and the leather racing coats are the first thing you see on up on the wall...along with 1,000 spools of thread! Although her location has been in the ward since 2002, she has been in business since 1991. That's a lot of stitching! There's not one busy time of the year she tells me. Every day is busy for Licia and her employee, Danielle. Talk about being on pins and needles to meet deadlines, lol. After all, there's weddings every week and bridesmaids that need their dresses altered. So what else needs altered? Well add formal wear for women to the list. A lot of men are frequent customers too because not only do their suits need altered, their dress slacks and casual wear are important items to be altered also. Oh check this out guys...did you know your belt should be buckled on the third hole? I had no idea!! I know your tie should touch the top of your belt. But LA Alterations can alter your belt! You should stop in the shop if you can "fit" this into your schedule, lol.
Even if you need a patch sewn on any of your clothing items. They are patch masters. LA Alterations is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 8AM to 5PM, Wednesday until 3PM. Saturday, 8AM till Noon.
Thank you, Licia for over 30 years of great service all around this city and making us all look good. We are lucky to have you on North Hill!
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Northeast Akron Knights of Columbus Annual Corn Roast |
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North Hill's Knights of Columbus hosted their 41st Annual Corn Roast and Membership Drive last Saturday at the FOP Lodge on Waterloo Road. I'm sure many of you have heard of the Knights of Columbus or the "KofC." In case you haven't, here's a quick history lesson: The Knights of Columbus were founded in 1882 by Fr. Michael McGivney to provide support and financial resources to Catholic men and families who were coping with the loss of their sole provider. The Knights were named in honor of Christopher Columbus. The KofC is a Catholic family fraternal service organization but its membership is restricted to catholic adult males only. Today, there are over 2 million "Knights" and over 16,000 "councils" around the world. That's right, we are world wide!
Our North Hill council is Council 3529 and is comprised of mostly members from St. Anthony, Blessed Trinity (St. Martha) and the closed Christ The King Church. We have approximately 120 members and we are always recruiting new ones with exciting events like when we hold the corn roast. Our order is dedicated to the principles of charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism. By holding fun fundraisers like Golf outings, Reverse Raffles, Night at the Races, etc, we raise money for charities such as The Blessed Trinity Food Pantry and Stewart's Caring Place. We have also donated money to the Soap Box Derby and the "Super Kids Race." Meetings are the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm at Blessed Trinity (inside Frey Hall.)
Last Saturday's event was a blast! Twenty-year member Joe Prebonick and thirty-five year member Kevin McGuire were roasting the corn starting about 2pm. Honorary brother and thirty-five year member Jim Hurley and yours truly were grilling plenty of DeVitis mild and "sicilian" sausage perfectly to the delight of the crowd. Brothers Bob Thome (21-year member) and Bill Blankenship (5-year member) tended bar. Chairman Terry Rowan (6-year member) hustled side dishes like pasta salad and rigatoni to round out the menu. Brother Rowan also encouraged members to bring a dessert. Ha! You would of thought it was an Italian wedding with all the cake and cookies! No time to diet that night, let me tell ya. Of course plenty of beverages to wash everything down...beer, wine, pop and coolers. A crowd of 105 enjoyed the feast & were definitely welcomed to go thru the line one more time - if their stomachs had any room.
Keep this event in mind for next time. The Knights do it every year and all are welcome...men, women, family and friends. Even my brother Paul Lombardo flew in from Tampa just to sink his teeth into the cracklin' corn. You do not have to be a member to come to an event. But if you are interested in joining our Northeast Akron KofC council, contact our Grand Knight, John Conley at 330-604-2332 or jconley3507@yahoo.com.
Thank you Knights of Columbus for being a staple in the community and for all that you do for families in need. It is great to have your presence in our ward since 1954!
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North High School Football Victory!
Vikings defeat Wickliffe 8-7
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Normally when your high school football team wins on Friday night, it's not a big deal this early in the season. But if you are Coach Doug Miller and you are trying to resurrect a football program that hasn't tasted victory since October 4, 2019, it is a BIG DEAL! Congratulations are in order for the North Football program this month because the kids have worked hard and bought into what Coach Miller and his staff have drilled into their heads since summer workouts began. Some coaching points are:
- Stay together and you will be able to win as a team and not just a bunch of individuals
- Do not quit and no arguing with each other
- Do your job, have fun, and play ball
Riding a 21-game losing streak as of last Friday night, the Vikings took it to the Wickliffe Blue Devils on their home turf and beat them 8-7. To open the game, senior Darrin Jenkins returned the opening kickoff 85 yards for the touchdown to give North a 6-0 lead. Then on the ensuing series, Wickliffe drove down the field for a touchdown. After the extra point, the Blue Devils were on top of the Vikings 7-6. It stayed that way until halftime. North's defense was lights out in the second half as the Vikings smelled blood. Wickliffe faced a fourth down late in the fourth quarter and was forced to punt. The Blue Devils center snapped the ball over the punter's head in the end zone and Viking junior Bernard Jackson tackled the punter for the safety! Then North's defense did their part again to seal the win. North won 8-7!
The bus ride home must of been crazy fun since this was North's first victory in three years and it's second victory in almost eight years. Now the Vikings can strive for what would be another milestone - multiple wins in the same season. This hasn't been accomplished since 2014. But the Vikings can do it! The Cuyahoga Falls Tigers are next up on the schedule this Friday Night.
A big pre-game party rally is being planned at the North Hill Gameday Grille, 1019 N Main Street. Owner Dean Kerkesner is cooking up sloppy joe's for teachers and any other educators. Other snacks will be available and then everyone is car caravanning to the game at Cuyahoga Falls High School at 6:15pm. This includes white shoe polish for your car windshield! GO VIKINGS!! The after-party victory party will be right back at the Gameday Grille as they will be open til 1 AM!
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Project Light It Up! Starting Up!
Annual review of streetlights the next two months
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The Fall '22 tour of all 216 Ward 2 streets will take place during the month of September and also in October. I'll be cruising around the neighborhood the next 60 days to ensure we have all lights on before Christmas. I want to make sure Rudolph can see in case his nose burns out, lol. I'm hoping that there shouldn't be that many lights that need fixed this year as in past tours. If there is, I will be "shocked" lol. I'll tackle streets beginning with A thru L in September. The streets beginning with M thru Z will be checked & fixed in October.
So far in three years or in various tours of the ward, I have turned in 761 faulty lights. 409 in 2019; 159 in 2020; and 193 in 2021. We'll see what happens this month. I'm not always out to break any records, but I just want all streets to be lit up. By reporting the faulty streetlights to Ohio Edison at FirstEnergyCorp.com, they usually say the light will be fixed within a week. But that's when just the bulb or photocell needs changed out. If there's a wiring issue, that may take more time. Santa Claus, I got your back! I'll keep you posted.
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Ward 2 Good Neighbor of the Month:
Chaney Florek
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Sometimes, just asking for a small favor you never know that a big prayer may be answered. Such was the case when a Keeney Avenue resident asked a Lynn's barmaid, Chaney Florek, about her overwhelming yardwork. What started out as a small request to get the grass cut, Chaney took things to the next level and recruited about a dozen volunteers to overhaul her customer's house. "I knew we could do more than that!, Chaney told me. It wasn't as much as cranking up the lawnmower, edging, raking and blowing grass off the sidewalk. These folks got into it deep with chainsaws and sawzalls too! After about 4 hours...or actually 48 man hours, the little yellow house was in ship shape. What a terrific job by Chaney's crew! Thank you to all the landscaping angels, Tashiana Clark, Markie Few, Debbie Forrest, Paul Schutte, Damion Silcox, Nick Murrano, Brian Kufchak, Larry Bunner, Tommy Lawson, Linda Anderson, and of course Chaney!!
Thank you Chaney for caring so much about not only the person in need, but our Ward 2 neighborhood. Congratulations on your 2022 Good Neighbor Award!
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Ward 2 Community Meeting
Summit County Fiscal Officer Kristen Scalise speaks to Ward 2 crowd!
Held on the last Wednesday of the month
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Residents get a good lesson on many functions of the County Officer
A crowd of 65 residents came out Wednesday evening to meet and greet Summit County Fiscal Officer Kristen M Scalise. County Officer Scalise brought members of her office like her Chief of Staff, Jack LaMonica and another office assistant, Stephanie. Scalise has been the Fiscal Officer for 11 years now. She holds many titles - I couldn't keep up! She is a Certified Public Accountant, a Certified Fraud Examiner, she on the Board of Directors for the Summit County Land Bank, she manages the county divisions of Auditor, Recorder, and Treasurer. Whew! Kristen, when do you have time to eat?
But the crowd loved it. They had many questions for her. They were very satisfied to know that she takes care of our tax dollars and "balances to the penny" every day. That's music to this accountant's ears too! Along with that, she oversees the recording of deeds, maps for all 270,000 parcels throughout the city, and is very proud of the fact that Summit County is the first county in the state to offer a Veteran's Identification Program.
As the Auditor, she pays the county's bills, runs the payroll for the county, and disburses the taxes back to the schools, zoos, library's, and townships we are all assessed for on our property taxes. Lastly - or like I said, I was trying to keep up - you know all the weights and measures we pay for? Gas at the pumps, a pound of ham, etc...these measures all are certified thru her office.
Finally, it was an "Italian Cookie Fest" at the my ward meeting. Recipes provided my my mom, Mary! Also, Addie Zampelli provided her Italian Biscotti cookies with cranberries. But there were also plenty of pizzelles, my version of a biscotti cookie with icing, and Peggy Lombardo's Italian Ricotta cookies . All were on hand for the crowd to enjoy with a beverage. It was like an Italian wedding! Plus, we had hot buttered popcorn! Which reminds me...after all those goodies at the meeting, maybe I can get someone from the fiscal office to come check out my bathroom scale. I think it may be overstating pounds, lol.
Mark your calendars in September for the last Wednesday meeting on September 28th!! It will be a bundt cake bonanza! Guest speaker will be Summit County Juvenile Court Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio. Same place & time, 6:30pm at Patterson Park for social and snacks. (If you want a seat, 6:15, lol.) Meeting begins promptly at 6:45pm. Anybody that wants to make a bundt cake, please let me know!
Again, thank you to my set-up team...Jeff, Silvia, Tiffany, Frank, Patrick. My inventory specialist Carol & my sound engineer Gary Noland! I couldn't do this without you guys!
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Speed Table feedback requested! |
The City of Akron is trying to get more feedback from residents regarding the speed tables that have been installed around the city since spring. Let them know what you think by filling out this survey that has been set up here. It only takes 5 minutes to answer a few questions! You can also reach the survey by going to https://www.akronohio.gov/speedtablesurvey2022. Also, a website is available with background information and a "speed table request form" by clicking here or going to https://amatsplanning.org/akron-speed-tables.
Thank you for your feedback!
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Education Outreach Program Associate Angela Smith wanted me to pass this flyer along for all seniors that want to visit the Akron Zoo. Hurry up, it's tomorrow! The event includes discounted tickets and give-aways!
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Rooted in Christ Community Church, along with the fine folks from First Serve are hosting a bike repair and rodeo on September 10th from 10AM to 2PM. They will be teaching children how to repair their bikes and a bike riding safety course. Not only that, Pastor Rodney Bowden, who thinks he's a big wheel anyhow, will be serving hot dogs, chips and a drink! Gitty up!
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Peoples Bank First-time Homebuyers Seminar |
Good friend and fellow paison Anthony Genova will once again host a workshop for individuals, businesses, etc. to help you prepare for buying a home for the first time. The workshop consists of budget review, discussion of credit & FICO scores, review of all the steps of the mortgage process, and getting pre-qualified. Anthony is an Assistant Vice-President & Sr. Mortgage Consultant with over 20 years experience in residential lending. His goal is to provide first class customer service and offer the best advice to save you money on your next mortgage or refinance deal. His event will be on September 17th, at 9:15AM at The People Bank, 158 E Cuyahoga Falls Ave. You can also reach him at anthony.genova@pebo.com. Anthony...free pizzelles on the 17th?!
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Ward 2 Veterinarian Celebration of Life |
The family and staff of longtime North Hill veterinarian Keith D Bingham will celebrate his life on Saturday, September 10th. Clients are invited to stop by for a free hot dogs, chips and drinks inside the hospital...490 East Cuyahoga Falls Avenue. Master chef & sister-in-law Cathy Criss will be assisted by chief cook Terra grilling up all the goodies. Dr. Bingham was the North Hill Vet since 1977!
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International Day of Peace Celebration |
The North Hill Community Development Corporation (NHCDC) would like to invite everyone to their 2nd Annual International Day of Peace Celebration to remember, recognize and celebrate the North Hill Community's individual and collective efforts at ending racism and building peace. The annual worldwide event designated by the United Nations is a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire. The event is at People's Park. You can see the park around 768 N Main Street or you can park on Elma in the front of the Exchange House at 768 Elma Street.
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National Night Out Special Edition |
On September 15, watch your emails for a special Ward 2 Word Special Edition featuring all the fun that was had with this big community event. The Night out Against Crime will be held the first Tuesday in August every year at the Patterson Sports Complex. Again, it's an annual community-building campaign that is meant to celebrate community engagement within Akron. The event is sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch - an organization that encourages and builds the relationship between communities and the police.
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Check's in the mail
I heard about this man that was very stingy with his money. Just before his death, he made his wife promise him that she would bury him with the $50,000 he had saved. His wife reluctantly agreed. At the funeral, before they closed the casket, she sneaked this small wooden box beside him. Her best friend said, "Shirley, you didn't just bury him with the money, did you?" The wife said, "Of course I did! I'm a Christian. I cannot lie." The friend said, "You mean you just buried your husband with fifty-thousand dollars?" The wife said, "Yes, I did! I wrote him a check!"
In spite of these tough times, always laugh when you can. It's cheap medicine!
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Links to Phil Lombardo's social media |
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