The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation Board of Trustees approved grants totaling $1,029,476 at the November board meeting.

The total includes 17 responsive grants, seven president’s discretionary grants and 36 donor advised fund grants.

“The Foundation recently surpassed $75 million awarded in our history and this additional $1 million will be another step in a positive direction for Hancock County,” said Brian Treece, President & CEO of the Foundation.

“These grants are possible because of generous donors in our 30-year history. The generosity of these donors will have a lasting community impact.”

Among the grants awarded; The Family Center was awarded $500,000 for the principal payment on the building loan for the facility which houses 12 nonprofits providing a variety of services to residents.

West Ohio Food Bank was awarded $21,000 for additional food distributions and a pilot program in rural parts of Hancock County.

The Village of Arcadia was awarded $150,000 to implement the Community Heart and Soul program.

See the full list of grants awarded, and learn more about the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation, by clicking here.

The Coats for Christmas campaign is happening this week in Findlay.

Each year the organization helps those who are on a tight budget and in need of a winter coat and cannot afford one.

Coats for Christmas is asking area schools and some businesses, organizations, and individuals to collect and donate gently used winter coats.

City Uniforms and Linens cleans all of the coats, which is no small task because they generally collect more than 2,300 coats each year.

There is also a goal to have enough gloves and hats for everyone who comes to collect a coat.

In addition, blankets and socks will also be available at the event.

Coats will be collected from Monday, November 28th through Friday, December 2nd.

The coats can be dropped off at the new City Apparel business location at 116 E. Main Cross Street, which was the prior location of City Dry Cleaning.

Coats may also be dropped off at various Findlay City Schools and county school locations, as well as local businesses with donation boxes.

People who wish to purchase new coats, hats, mittens, or blankets for the event, can drop those off at the downtown YMCA Branch at 300 Lincoln Street in Findlay prior to Friday, December 10th.

Then on Saturday, December 10th and Sunday, December 11th, the East Branch YMCA will be transformed into a distribution center.

Anyone and everyone is welcome at the distribution and each person/family that does come is paired with a personal shopper.

Anyone can come get a coat and other winter gear on Saturday, December 10th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday, December 11th from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the East Branch YMCA at 1400 Manor Hill Rd. in Findlay.

(ONN) – Opponents of a proposal to make it harder for citizens to amend the Ohio Constitution are vowing to unleash the same activist coalition against it that repealed an anti-union law last decade.

Groups including the union-backed organization We Are Ohio criticized what Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose has dubbed the Ohio Constitution Protection amendment.

Opponents held a news conference and called the proposal a slap in the face to Ohio residents.

A joint resolution moving through the lame duck session would ask voters to require a 60 percent supermajority to approve future citizen-initiated amendments, instead of a simple majority.

The same standard would not apply to constitutional amendments advanced by lawmakers, which would still require a simple majority to pass.

The Findlay-Hancock County Public Library is once again giving library patrons the opportunity to share the joy of books with children during the annual Gift of Reading program.

Donations will support Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a free book-gifting program. A new carefully selected book will be mailed, in the child’s name, to his or her home each and every month from birth until he or she turns five years of age.

Each $25 donated provides a Hancock County child with an age appropriate book delivered to their home monthly for one year, and $125.00 will support a child for all five years.

Donations may be made at the Circulation Services desk, the Arlington Branch Library or the Bookmobile.

Donations made to the Hancock Literacy Fund at the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation help support the program in perpetuity.

For more information, please call us at 419-422-1712.

The Hancock Historical Museum will host its annual Christmas Open House on Saturday, December 3^rd and Sunday, December 4^th.

The hours on Saturday will be 5 – 8 p.m. and Sunday 1 – 4 p.m.

The museum facilities will be decorated for the holidays, with activities, games, and crafts for all ages to enjoy.

Visit with Father Christmas and Mrs. Claus and sample seasonal goodies cooked over the hearth in the Crawford Log House.

There will be photo opportunities throughout the campus, including a special mid-century 1950s Christmas display.

On Saturday night, listen to live music in the Hull House parlor with the Findlay String Factor Quintet from Findlay High School.

On Sunday, the Findlay-Hancock County Public Library, Hancock Park District, and the Blanchard River Watershed Partnership will be on-hand with additional activities for families.

While at the museum, stop in the Gift Shop to find a special gift for anyone on your holiday list.

Ideas include antique Findlay Glass and local history books.

The open house is $1 per person.

A new children’s book will be given to the first 75 children to complete the Christmas scavenger hunt, courtesy of the Richard Barchent Education Fund.

For more information click here, or call the museum at 419-423-4433.

The Findlay Fire Department is sharing some safety tips to remember when putting up Christmas decorations.

The fire department says a heat source too close to a Christmas tree causes one in every four winter fires.

You should make sure your tree is at least three feet away from heat sources such as fireplaces, radiators and space heaters.

Make sure to always keep lit candles away from decorations and things that can burn.

You should always read the manufacturer’s instructions for the number of light strands to connect.

Make sure to replace any string of lights with worn or broken cords or loose bulb connections.

“As you deck the halls this season, be fire smart.”

Get more safety tips by clicking here.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife has confirmed that three white-tailed deer tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) following the collection of 637 samples in the fall.

During the 2022 deer hunting season, testing has been performed in the disease surveillance area of Wyandot, Hardin and Marion Counties on hunter-harvested and road-killed deer, as well as through targeted sampling.

The three positive CWD cases confirmed this fall were all deer harvested by hunters. Two of the deer were confirmed in Wyandot County and one in Marion County.

Two were harvested Oct. 8, and the third on Oct. 9. An early deer gun hunting season was held Oct. 8-10 in the disease surveillance area to limit the spread of CWD and monitor its prevalence.

The Division of Wildlife is grateful to all hunters who have complied with testing requirements and submitted deer for sampling to help keep Ohio’s deer herd healthy.

Since the fall of 2020, 14 wild deer have tested positive for CWD, all in Marion and Wyandot counties.

CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer and other similar species, including mule deer, elk, and moose. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no strong evidence that CWD is transmissible to humans.

Within Hardin, Marion, and Wyandot counties, hunters are required to submit deer harvested during the seven-day gun season, Nov. 28-Dec. 4, for testing, and hunters can voluntarily submit deer for testing until the close of the deer archery season on Feb. 5, 2023. Sampling locations can be found at ohiodnr.gov/cwd. Outside of the disease surveillance area, hunters can have harvested deer tested by the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (614-728-6220).

The Division of Wildlife has extensively monitored and tested deer in the disease surveillance area since CWD was discovered in the wild in 2020. The Division of Wildlife has conducted routine surveillance for CWD since 2002. CWD has been detected in 30 states and four Canadian provinces. The disease was first discovered in the 1960s in the western U.S. More information about this disease is available at cwd-info.org.

Hancock County health officials say there’s been a recent spike in suspected overdoses in Findlay and Hancock County.

Hancock Public Health on Tuesday said three overdoses occurred within three hours at different locations.

The health department sends out spike alerts when three overdoses occur within 24 hours.

People are being asked to spread the following Harm Reduction messaging in their circles in the hope of avoiding future overdoses.

1) Always have naloxone on hand. Project DAWN

2) Never use alone. Never Use Alone Inc. – 800-484-3731

3) Use fentanyl test strips. BIDPP or SOAR

4) Check in on friends, families, neighbors and coworkers to share this information.

5) Call QRT for outreach to an overdose survivor: QRT

Anyone who suspects an overdose should call 911 immediately.

“Four guys walk into a Bluffton bank,” a collection of stories about the August 14th, 1933 John Dillinger robbery of Citizens National Bank in Bluffton is being released.

Bluffton historian Fred Steiner compiled the 20-page, 5,000-plus word booklet, available during a book signing from 10:30 a.m. to noon, Saturday, December 3, at the Bluffton Senior Citizens Center, 132 North Main Street in Bluffton.

Over the past decades, Steiner interviewed many people with other stories of the robbery.

This is the first time those stories are in one collection.

“This collection contains genuine accounts of what took place during the most infamous Bluffton 20^th century event,” said Steiner.

Bluffton News editor, Ted Biery, witnessed the robbery, watching it unfold as he hid behind an automobile on Main Street.

His lengthy and detailed Bluffton News account is part of this collection.

The booklet also includes a downtown Bluffton map, showing where bullets were lodged and where eyewitnesses watched.

Contact Steiner at fsteiner@roadrunner.com for details about acquiring a copy of the booklet.

In April, Steiner gave a presentation on Dillinger at the Findlay-Hancock County Public Library.

The Seneca Regional Chamber of Commerce and Destination Seneca County in partnership with Andrew Kalnow have announced the 2022 Holiday Lighting Experience that will take place in Downtown Tiffin on Friday, December 2 beginning at 5:15 PM.

This year, South Washington Street will be blocked off to allow for a safer and more enjoyable viewing experience for those in attendance.

The evening will start at the Seneca County Justice Center with holiday music from Beth Mattia, a reading of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”, an appearance from Santa, and the lighting of Tiffin’s Christmas Tree and the Seneca County Justice Center.

Chamber member, Tim Horton’s, will be providing free hot chocolate for attendees during the event. The conclusion of the holiday tree lighting experience will kick off the start of the first-ever Kris Kringle Markt in Downtown Tiffin taking place on December 2 and 3. The festival will be an open-air holiday market highlighting German/Bavarian-inspired Christmas offerings.

Get more on the Holiday Tree Lighting by clicking here.