St. Marks United Methodist Church in Findlay will be hosting ‘Night to Shine’ on February 10^th.

Night to Shine is an unforgettable prom night experience, centered on God’s love, for people with special needs – ages 14 and older.

Night to Shine is sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation and this year is celebrating its ninth anniversary as thousands of people will come together to honor those with disabilities.

St. Marks Senior Pastor Dan Metzger and Associate Pastor Dave Charles were recently on with WFIN’s Chris Oaks to discuss the event and that interview can be heard below.

Click here for more information on Night to Shine.

Ohio now has its largest “rainy day” fund ever.

The Ohio Office of Budget and Management transferred $727 million into the Ohio Budget Stabilization Fund, otherwise known as the “rainy day” fund, bringing the cash balance to nearly $3.5 billion.

This funding reserve represents the largest balance for the fund in state history.

The Ohio Budget Stabilization Fund is a reserve balance that is set aside during good economic times to protect the state budget from cyclical changes in revenues and expenses that may occur during poor economic times.

Some Special Olympics cheerleaders cheered alongside Findlay High School cheerleaders during the boys basketball game at Findlay High School Tuesday night.

Nadine Weininger, with Blanchard Valley Center, says competitive cheer was introduced to the Hancock County Special Olympics program in 2022.

She says the squad plans to compete at area fairs and festivals this year.

On Tuesday night, the cheerleaders partnered with Findlay High School cheerleaders to increase their confidence when performing before large crowds, and learned some new cheers and made some new friends.

(pictures courtesy of Blanchard Valley Center)

The Ohio High School Athletic Association has announced a partnership with the nonprofit organization Esports Ohio and will support and promote its annual state tournament in May.

There are currently 250 schools that have teams affiliated with Esports Ohio.

Esports Ohio was created by teachers to enhance the fast-growing participation in electronic game competitions so it serves as a positive developmental option for students and to be a part of a school team.

“Participation in Esports is growing very rapidly and Esports Ohio has been a big part of making it an educational and competitive opportunity for students,” said Doug Ute, OHSAA Executive Director.

“The opportunity for these students to be a part of a team and represent their school is very exciting. We are excited to work with an Ohio-based organization that is made up of teachers and school people.”

The Esports Ohio state tournament is scheduled for May 20 and 21 at the University of Akron. The trophies will be the same style as what the OHSAA uses for its 28 sanctioned sports

“We are excited to partner with OHSAA, which will allow us to continue to provide more opportunities to students,” said Jacob Gebers, Technology Director for Napoleon Area Schools and president of the Esports Ohio Board of Directors.

“Esports Ohio and the OHSAA both share a common goal to enrich interscholastic opportunities for students. At our core, similar to OHSAA, Esports Ohio believes that participation in extracurriculars helps enhance a student’s school experience and teaches lifelong lessons of accountability, hard work and teamwork.  With this partnership we will be able to open more doors for more students to compete free of charge in our growing league.”

The Esports Ohio season begins in the fall and continues with a seven-week regular-season from the end of January to the middle of March. The regional tournament is May 6-7.

The Findlay Income Tax Department is in the process of distributing the annual income tax filing reminders for the 2022 tax year.

The 2022 income tax return filing deadline is Tuesday, April 19, 2023.

All individuals and businesses that are subject to the City of Findlay income tax, as well as the Village of Arlington, Mount Cory, Vanlue, Carey, Mount Blanchard or Jenera income tax will receive a postcard in the mail as a reminder to file their 2022 municipal income tax return.

Payments and completed municipal income tax returns can be placed in the secure, drive-up drop box in the east curbed island of the Findlay Municipal Building’s West Crawford Street parking lot F, accessible about one-half block west of South Main Street.

An additional secure drop box is located in the vestibule of the Municipal Building’s Dorney Plaza entrance.

Payments and returns may also be mailed to the Findlay Income Tax Department at P.O. Box 862, Findlay, OH 45840.

If you file your Federal income tax return electronically using an income tax preparation software program, such as TurboTax, Free Tax USA, etc., be aware that these applications do not provide any information electronically to the Findlay Income Tax Department for municipal income taxes.

Individuals and businesses will still need to file directly with the office.

For assistance, taxpayers can call 419-424-7133 or visit the Tax Department in room 115 on the first floor of the Municipal Building at 318 Dorney Plaza.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

UPDATE – The Highway Patrol says the semi and its driver were located Tuesday night at a truck stop in the area of the crash.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol is seeking the public’s help in locating a semi-tractor trailer combination that lost a set of dual tires off of one of its axles, causing a fatal crash.

The crash occurred on Tuesday at 1:50 p.m. on I-280 near SR 795 in Lake Township in Wood County.

The tires went through the median and struck a semi-tractor trailer combination going the opposite direction, causing a fatal crash.

The Highway Patrol said the semi did not stop after losing its dual tires.

Anyone with info on the location of the semi-tractor trailer combination or its driver is asked to call the Bowling Green Post at 419-352-2481.

The Humane Society and SPCA of Hancock County has plenty of pets up for adoption.

The Humane Society previously suggested people not give pets as gifts during the holidays because it’s a hectic time and the pet might not be the best fit.

Now that the holidays have passed, the Humane Society is urging people to take the time to make sure they adopt the best pet for their family from their shelter at 4550 Fostoria Avenue.

The Humane Society’s Natalie Reffitt, on with WFIN’s Chris Oaks, is urging people that are seeking to adopt a pet to fill out an application so they can have some recommendations for you when you stop by the shelter.

The Humane Society and SPCA of Hancock County is located at 4550 Fostoria Avenue in Findlay.

Click here to see what pets they have up for adoption.

(ONN) – A Republican State Senator from the Cleveland suburb of Chagrin Falls is again running for a higher office.

Matt Dolan, whose family owns the Cleveland Guardians, plans to launch another U.S. Senate campaign.

Dolan lost his race in the Republican Senate primary in the state last year.

Now he’s looking to unseat long-time Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown.

Brown has said he intends to seek a fourth term next year.

Dolan is the first Republican to officially jump into what’s expected to be a competitive race.

In December volunteers placed wreaths at the graves of 1,500 Veterans at Findlay’s Maple Grove Cemetery for Wreaths Across America Day, and now volunteers are needed once again to pick up the wreaths.

Wreaths Across America clean up day is on Saturday, January 21st.

The organizer of the local event, Sherri Garner Brumbaugh, is inviting volunteers to meet at the cemetery at 9 a.m. to pick up the wreaths.

Volunteers are reminded to pick up only wreaths that were placed in December for Wreaths Across America Day and to leave other wreaths and decorations in place.

Volunteers are urged to bring a stick, pole or rake to support carrying multiple wreaths per trip.

National Wreaths Across America Day was held on Saturday, December 17th.

Volunteers headed out to Findlay’s Maple Grove Cemetery and other area cemeteries to place wreaths at Veterans’ graves.

Wreaths were placed at the graves of 1,500 Veterans, and organizer Sherri Garner Brumbaugh says they’re working toward one day being able to recognize each and every one of the 5,000 Veterans who are buried at Maple Grove Cemetery.

300 wreaths were also placed at the graves of Veterans at nearby St. Michael Cemetery.

The mission statement of Wreaths Across America is Remember, Honor, Teach.

REMEMBER our fallen Veterans, HONOR those who serve, and TEACH your children the value of freedom.

Volunteers were shown how to correctly place the wreaths and asked to speak the Veteran’s name aloud.

American Red Cross chapters across Ohio and the nation are working to increase blood donations.

The Red Cross says there are fewer blood drives held between Thanksgiving and the New Year, and that’s why January is National Blood Donor Month.

“What we do from a blood collection standpoint is so critically important,” said Rachel Hepner-Zawodney, Executive Director of the Northwest Ohio chapter of the American Red Cross.

“We collect more than 40 percent of the national blood supply.”

Among the local blood drives coming up, there will be one at the University of Findlay on Tuesday, January 17^th and one at Parkview Christian Church in Findlay on Wednesday, January 18^th.

Click here for other blood drives and for more details on giving opportunities.