(From the United Way of Hancock County)

Are you interested in becoming a foster family?

Or maybe you’re looking for an impactful way to support the foster care system in Hancock County.

Open Hearts, Open Home, scheduled from 6-7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 12, at the Marathon Center for the Performing Arts, will bridge prospective foster families with essential resources and advocates to help them get started on their journey to foster care.

The event is being organized by Fostering Hancock County, comprised of representatives from Hancock County Job & Family Services, Findlay Family YMCA and United Way of Hancock County.

“The state of Ohio, and Hancock County in particular, is experiencing a shortfall in the number of foster homes available to care for children in the custody of public children’s services agencies,” said Randall Galbraith, director of Hancock County Job & Family Services. “This shortfall has led to a crisis in placing children into loving homes. All too often, children must wait in the lobbies of agencies or in temporary shelters until a foster home can be located. In addition, available foster homes are frequently located outside of Hancock County which disrupts kinship, school and friendship ties.

“This is added stress to a child who is already experiencing extreme levels of trauma,” Galbraith added.

Attendance for those who are interested in becoming a foster family is complimentary, provided through community sponsorships.

Sponsorships are available for an individual seat ($35) or a table of 6 ($210). When making a sponsorship, individuals will have the option of choosing to attend as well, or of simply sponsoring a seat or table for others.

To register as a potential foster family, click here.

To make a sponsorship, click here.

The Findlay-Hancock County Public Library is encouraging people who don’t have one yet to get a library card during National Library Card Sign-Up Month in September.

Library Director Sarah Clevidence says at the library they believe there’s nothing more empowering than getting your own library card.

“It gives you access to technology, resources and services to help you pursue your passions and your dreams.”

“This year, we’re thrilled to have Optimus Prime from the TRANSFORMERS as our special ambassador, highlighting that there’s more than meets the eye at the Findlay-Hancock County Public Library.”

The library says 30,083 members of the community are currently library card holders and they’d like to sign up a lot more during National Library Card Sign-Up Month.

(From Findlay City Schools)

Findlay City Schools is pleased to share its overall rating of 4 stars on the 2024 Ohio School Report Card, reflecting continued progress and a strong commitment to academic excellence, while acknowledging areas where improvement is needed. A 4-star rating means that a district exceeded state standards, and Findlay CIty Schools continues to demonstrate significant strengths across many categories.

The district exceeded state standards in the category of Progress for the second consecutive year, and also maintained its 5-star rating in the category of Gap Closing. These ratings reflect the ongoing improvements in student growth and efforts to reduce educational disparities. Achieving and sustaining this top rating in Gap Closing reflects the district’s commitment to equity and inclusion for all students.

The district maintained its rating and met state standards in the category of Achievement, with notable improvement in Performance Index, which reflects the continued effort of students and staff in raising overall academic performance.

The district sustained its strong performance with a 4-star rating in the category of Graduation, affirming that Findlay’s students are successfully completing their high school education and preparing for their next steps in life.

While receiving an overall 4-star rating and exceeding state standards is a remarkable achievement, the district acknowledges the slight drop from 4.5 stars in 2023. This drop can be attributed to a decline in the category of Early Literacy performance, which fell from 4 stars in 2023 to 3 stars this year. While 3 stars still meets state standards, it is necessary for the district to take proactive steps to address early reading proficiency and ensure that young learners receive the support they need to succeed.

“Our educators at Findlay City Schools collaborate intentionally and use engaging instructional practices to drive our continued progress toward academic excellence for all students,” Katie Abbott, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching & Learning.

Superintendent, Dr. Andy Hatton, expressed optimism about the report card results, stating, “While we celebrate the many areas of strength in this year’s report card, we also recognize the importance of addressing the challenges we face, especially in Early Literacy. We remain committed to working with our dedicated staff, students, and community to ensure that Findlay City Schools continues to provide high-quality education for every student.”

Findlay City Schools is committed to ongoing improvement and will continue to focus on strategies to enhance student achievement and growth. The district extends its gratitude to all teachers, staff, students, parents, and community partners for their contributions to this year’s success.

(ONN) – In northeast Ohio in Portage County, east of Akron, a local sheriff is having to answer questions about a social media post.

In the Facebook post, Portage County Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski calls on people to write down the addresses of residents who publicly support presidential candidate Kamala Harris.

The reason, the sheriff says if Harris wins the election and more migrants arrive they will already have the addresses of their new families who supported their arrival.

WKYC-TV in Cleveland reached out to the sheriff’s office for comment but did not receive a response back.

(From the Ohio Division of Wildlife)

Hunters in Ohio have additional dates this season to pursue white-tailed deer in Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance areas, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. For the 2024-25 season, the disease surveillance area includes all of Hardin, Marion, and Wyandot counties as well as Auglaize and Jackson townships in Allen County.

The Division of Wildlife established earlier hunting seasons within the disease surveillance area to slow the spread of CWD by reducing deer numbers before the breeding season. Archery hunting season begins Saturday, Sept. 14. An early gun hunting season is open from Saturday, Oct. 12 to Monday, Oct. 14.

Since the fall of 2020, 50 wild deer in Ohio have tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), all in Allen, Hardin, Marion, and Wyandot counties (one in Allen, one in Hardin, 10 in Marion, 38 in Wyandot). Allen County’s first case of CWD was confirmed in November 2023. Chronic Wasting Disease is a fatal brain disease that impacts members of the deer family including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, moose and caribou. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no strong evidence that CWD is transmissible to humans.

(From Findlay City Schools)

FCS Families:

The SafeDefend system was accidentally activated at Wilson Vance Intermediate at 8:45 a.m this (Monday) morning by a new employee before the school day began.

All students and staff are safe, and there was no emergency situation.

Our first responders acted quickly before confirming it was an accidental activation, and we continue to be grateful that this system effectively connects our entire safety network.

(From the Findlay Police Department)

On 9-13-2024 at 1904 hours FPD officers were dispatched to a report of a male with a gun outside of Old Stoney Ledge (752 Howard St).

While en-route to the location, officers were advised a male had been shot once and the suspect had fled from the scene.

Officers arrived in the area and the male suspect (identified as Marcuss Martinez) was located near the area of College St and Fox St.

Marcuss then ran east bound through lawns in the 600 blk of College St. Marcuss was eventually stopped by an officer in front of a residence in the 600 blk of College St and taken into custody.

The victim was transported to the Blanchard Valley Hospital by an unknown person.

The victim was found to have sustained a single gunshot wound to the lower left portion of his face.

The victim was later transported by Life Flight to OSU Medical Hospital for further treatment.

Victim’s condition is currently unknown.

After further investigation, Marcuss was incarcerated at the Hancock County Justice Center on charges of Felonious Assault (ORC – 2903.11) and Obstructing Official Business (ORD – 525.07).

(From the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office)

The scams are still going around!

A concerned citizen received a phishing email on a Bit Coin scam that was addressed to her father but was sent to her email.

She stated they attached a picture of google maps street view, of the area of where he lives.

Her father is 78 YOA, so she believes they are targeting the elder generation.

Think before you click.

This slogan reinforces the idea that a single click on a phishing email or malicious attachment may be all cybercriminals need to get what they want.

Please stay vigilant!

(From the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation)

The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation has extended the Building Community Through Neighborhood Revitalization special grant opportunity deadline. This grant opportunity focuses on neighborhood revitalization and beautification projects. Applications are now due September 23, 2024 (previously September 16).

“This special grant opportunity has a dual purpose: community engagement and beautification,” said Kimberly Bash, Chief Community Engagement Officer at The Community Foundation. “We hope these grant dollars will improve the quality of life in Hancock County by bringing people of all ages together to work side by side to beautify their neighborhoods.”

Building Community Through Neighborhood Revitalization
This special grant opportunity focuses on improving neighborhoods and improving quality of life. Projects could include permanent tree or flower planting, neighborhood clean-ups, and other beautification in public spaces. They could include but are not limited to, service-learning projects with local youth and projects focused on engaging residents of all ages in making a difference in their communities. Proposals should come from Hancock County tax-exempt, private agencies classified as 501(c)(3) organizations and public charities as defined by the Internal Revenue Service. Grants may also be made to governmental agencies in Hancock County.

Applicants must discuss grant ideas and allowable expenses with Kimberly before submitting a request. Applications are now due September 23, 2024, on the Foundation’s online grant platform. Grants will be awarded in October 2024.

The arraignment hearing was held for a Findlay teenager accused in a fatal shooting in May.

Peyton S Howard, 18, pleaded not guilty to voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter, both first-degree felonies, as well as having a weapon against a court order and tampering with evidence.

His bond was set at $250,000.

The arraignment was held via Zoom because Howard is being held at a juvenile facility for a previous violation.

On May 26, the Findlay Police Department received a call that a male had been shot in an alley off of the 100 block of Howard Street.

The male, 18-year-old J’vion Zimmerman of Port Clinton, was transported to Blanchard Valley Hospital by Hanco EMS where he died from the gunshot wound.

Howard was 17 at the time of the alleged shooting and his case was bound over from juvenile court to Hancock County Common Pleas Court earlier in the month and he was indicted.

Court records show a pretrial hearing is set for October 18.