Monthly Archives: December 2019

Family’s House Damaged, Pets Lost In Findlay Fire

A family is okay but they did lose some pets in a Christmas Eve fire in Findlay.

The fire department responded to 2115 Park Street at around 4:50 p.m. on Tuesday on the report of smoke coming from the roof.

Firefighters could see flames coming from a window when they arrived on the scene.

Firefighters went to work on the fire and soon had it under control and put out.

It appeared the fire started in the kitchen.

The cause is under investigation.

The family wasn’t home at the time.

The fire department says two dogs and one cat died in the fire, but firefighters were able to save one other cat.

The Red Cross is assisting the family.

Hancock County Sheriff’s Office Surprises Drivers With Gift Cards

The Hancock County Sheriff’s Office spread some holiday cheer on Christmas Eve by surprising drivers they pulled over.

Just when the driver thought they were about to get a ticket, the deputy handed over a $50 gift card.

The sheriff’s office teamed up with loanDepot for the surprise.

K9 Charlie even got in on the action.

See video from the surprise here. 

Church Takes Over Findlay Gas Station, Pays For Everyone

Members of Stonebridge Church brightened the holidays for people at the Speedway on Trenton Avenue in Findlay Monday night by holding a pop-up event in which they paid for people’s gas and even pumped it.

“Just kind of a ninja move to surprise some folks for Christmas, and then we’ll be gone, like we were never here,” said the church’s Stephanie Shack.

Marcena was very thankful for the free fill-up.

“This is amazing, that they would do something this nice around Christmas,” Marcena said as her tank was being filled.

The church says it’s part of the Give Christmas Away initiative.

Marcena said she’ll use this as an opportunity to pay it forward and help out somebody herself in some way soon.

NFL Player Pays Off Fostoria Students’ Lunch Debts

Fostoria native and current Buffalo Bills player Micah Hyde is giving back to the community.

Fostoria City Schools says Hyde’s IMagINe for Youth Foundation donated nearly $1,500 to the food service department to cover student lunch accounts in all grades.

The school district says the donation will help 67 families and 146 students pay off their balances.

The donation will help families that don’t qualify for free lunch and have a tough time paying the full price.

The district says about 68 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-cost lunches, but there’s currently no assistance for those who don’t qualify and are close to the cut-off limit of the income guidelines.

Arcadia Man Who Stole Vehicle With Baby Inside Sentenced

An Arcadia man who stole a vehicle with a baby inside it in Findlay in October has learned his sentence.

The Toledo Blade is reporting that Joshua Gilliland was given a 21-month sentence after pleading no contest to charges of assault, abduction, and failure to comply with a police officer.

According to the paper, the 29-year-old Gilliland will avoid prison, and serve six months in a corrections center followed by six months at a treatment facility.

He’ll then serve six months on work release and be placed on electronic home monitoring for 90 days.

Gilliland’s attorney said drug use and depression led to his client stealing the vehicle.

On October 5th, Findlay officers went to 425 Monroe Avenue to investigate the report of a stolen vehicle and relayed the information to other law enforcement agencies.

The highway patrol says it located the stolen vehicle on Interstate 75 near Bowling Green and tried to stop it, but it kept going and a pursuit ensued onto Interstate 475 in Lucas County.

Troopers used stop sticks to deflate two of the tires on the stolen vehicle but the suspect continued into Toledo

The highway patrol says Gilliland rammed two cruisers before finally coming to a stop and attempting to flee on foot.

Troopers quickly caught up with Gilliland and took him into custody with the help of a K-9.

The infant child was not injured and was returned to her parents at the scene of the vehicle theft in Findlay

President To Make Campaign Stop In Toledo

(ONN) – President Trump is coming to Ohio.

He has a campaign stop in Toledo on January 9th.

The Keep America Great Rally will take place at the Huntington Center at 7 p.m.

Doors will open at 3 p.m. to accommodate all the people attending.

The event is free but you must have a ticket, which can be found at donaldjtrump.com.

Trump’s campaign says Ohio is booming and jobs are returning to the state, but critics point out that hundreds of people lost their jobs when the GM plant in Lordstown closed in 2018 and thousands were employed there when he took office.

Findlay Hancock County Public Library Leadership Change Coming Soon

The Findlay-Hancock County Public Library is welcoming new leadership in the new year.

Executive Director Jeff Winkle’s last day is January 10 and he says he is leaving the library in good hands.

Sarah Clevidence will fill the role and is excited to continue working with the staff in her new position.

Clevidence pictured above

She added that the end of January will mark 130 years that the library has served the people in Hancock County.

FOCUS Open During The Holidays

FOCUS will be open for the holidays to support people in recovery.

Director Ellyn Schmiesing explained that the holidays can be full of triggers for people and they want to help.

She said that they will have coffee and snacks available Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as well as New Year’s Eve and New Years Day.

Schmiesing added that the most important thing is to take care of yourself.

FOCUS will be open from 10 am to 7 pm at their offices on West Trenton Avenue and you can call them at

 

Singing Carols Around The Findlay Christmas Tree

The Hancock County Children’s Choir sang their hearts out Friday night as people gathered around the City of Findlay Christmas Tree to sing carols.

The Donnell Middle School Band welcomed the crowd and the Movement Church band and Findlay First Edition also performed.

See video of the children’s choir and Findlay First Edition below.