Students at Findlay’s Chamberlin Hill Elementary will honor local Veterans during their 26th Annual Veterans Day Program on Friday.

The Veterans will be treated to performances from the students and lunch from Harlan’s BBQ.

The program begins at 10:30 and lunch is at 11:30.

There will also be artwork in the hallways the students made honoring Veterans.

And at 1:45, there will be a parade outside the school in which Veterans can drive through.

When Deb Wickerham started the program 26 years ago she said 25 Veterans were in attendance, and she’s happy to see how much it has grown over the years.

See video from last year’s program below.

Findlay’s Veterans Day Parade is on Sunday.

(From Findlay City Schools)

The Findlay High School Orchestra program is paying tribute to several early American trailblazers with a concert entitled “Celebrate America” on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. in the R.L. Heminger Auditorium at Findlay High School. General admission tickets are $10 and will be available at the door the night of the concert. Seniors with a Golden Buckeye card and children 5 years and under receive free admission.

“The concert will feature Americana-style music,” said Ken Pressel, orchestra director, “and each piece is connected to an early American who shaped the character of our country, from Harriet Tubman to Clara Barton, Mark Twain to Wild Bill Hickok.”

The Concert Strings ensemble will kick-off the concert with three pieces followed by the Symphony Strings ensemble with four selections. The two groups will then combine for the final four selections of the show. Selections include an African American spiritual, a fiddle hoedown, an early American hymn, and a medley of cowboy folk tunes, to name a few.

A commentary and slide show will introduce each piece. Sharinda Welton, the director of student activities at the University of Findlay and UFTV’s art and culture show host, will serve as the commentator; Mikaela Umbs and junior Amber Bihn will provide interlude harp music. “The students have been working hard preparing this music since the start of the school year and they are eager to showcase their musicianship and talent,” said Pressel.

The orchestras will be directed by Mr. Ken Pressel and Mr. Jeremy Sheets. This is Mr. Pressel’s 31 st year teaching orchestra at Findlay City Schools and Mr. Jeremy Sheets’ third year of teaching orchestra at Findlay.

(ONN) – A coroner in northwest Ohio says an object found by a family pet was not human remains.

Authorities say that a cat in Seneca County did not bring its owner a human finger.

Somebody from the Tiffin area called the sheriff’s office after their cat brought them that object in question and they thought it was a finger.

They contacted the Seneca County coroner and then had the object transported to Lucas County.

The Lucas County Coroner’s Office determined that the item was not human remains.

No word on what it actually was.

(From Habitat for Humanity)

Habitat for Humanity of Findlay/Hancock County held its Annual Celebration Dinner on Monday, November 6, to celebrate and thank the volunteers, donors, and partner organizations who have assisted Habitat to stabilize and shelter families throughout 2023.

During the celebration, three annual awards were presented to volunteers in recognition of their contribution to Habitat:

Paul Geyer Leadership Volunteer of the Year was presented to Bob Edds. Named for the founder of the Findlay/Hancock County Habitat affiliate, this honor is reserved for someone who achieves sustained outstanding volunteer leadership. Bob has given so much in many ways to Habitat, which he believes in and supports wholeheartedly. He was instrumental in resuming the immensely successful Habitat Apostle Build in 2023. He served as a member of the Habitat Board and previously provided a matching campaign to build an entire home for a Habitat Build in 2022. He shows his dedication to making a difference with his gifts, talents, and treasure. Bob is an inspiration through his service, strength, and perseverance.

The Golden Hammer Award was presented to Aaron Cheney, who has coordinated the annual Humanity for Humanity Golf Outing, a partnership between Whirlpool and Habitat, for the past five years raising in total more than $150,000. Aaron’s leadership shows others within the community, and more specifically within Whirlpool, the importance of organizations like Habitat to the community.

The Youth Leadership Volunteer of the Year, given each year to an outstanding young leader or group of leaders between 15 and 25 years old, was awarded to Boy Scout Troop 302, which assisted in both home dedication ceremonies in 2023. These Scouts are an inspiration to others through their actions as they live up to their Oath which calls on them “to help other people at all times.”

This year’s festivities were held at Winebrenner Seminary Auditorium and catered by Olive Garden who donated the entire dinner for all guests.

There were a few contested races for Findlay City Council in the Tuesday election.

In the race for Findlay City Council’s Third Ward, Beth Warnecke defeated challenger Shaun Mason.

Unofficial results from the Hancock County Board of Elections show the incumbent defeating her challenger by a tally of 1,205 to 643.

The race for Findlay City Council’s Fourth Ward saw three people vying for the position.

Dan DeArment came out on top, defeating Robert W. Love and Randy Otermat.

Fourth Ward Councilman Jim Slough was unable to seek re-election as his candidate petition was rejected by the board of elections because he didn’t get enough signatures.

Get more unofficial results from the Hancock County Board of Elections here.

There were several contested races for mayor in Putnam County in the Tuesday election.

In the Columbus Grove mayoral race, Edward Birnesser defeated Kenneth Wright by a vote of 423 to 347, according to unofficial results from the board of elections.

In the race for mayor of Leipsic, Rick Recker defeated Tony Wobler by a vote of 391 to 210.

In the Gilboa mayoral race, Peter Craig Diller defeated Michell J. Clymer by a vote of 28 to 21.

All results are unofficial until certified by the Putnam County Board of Elections.

Click here for full Putnam County results.

Ohioans on Tuesday approved a measure to legalize the use of recreational marijuana in Ohio.

The Act to Control and Regulate Adult Use Cannabis would permit controlled and regulated sales and use of cannabis for adult consumers 21 years of age and older.

Those in favor of legalization point out that it would remedy failed marijuana policy that can ruin lives based on one mistake, expand access to medical use and generate new tax revenue.

Opponents say Issue 2 would legalize an addiction-for-profit industry at the expense of families and poses a substantial health risk to all Ohioans.

Click here for more results on Issue 1 and Issue 2.

Click here for Hancock County results, and here for Putnam County results.

Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn was re-elected on Tuesday, earning her second full term as mayor.

Unofficial results from the Hancock County Board of Elections show Muryn handily defeating write-in challenger Jeffery Simon.

Mayor Muryn tells WFIN News that she’s incredibly grateful for the support of the citizens of Findlay and she doesn’t take the responsibility of leading the city lightly.

“I know that we’ve accomplished a lot over the last four years but we have a lot more work to do and I’m very excited to continue to lead the city of Findlay.”

Muryn was appointed mayor in February of 2019 to replace Lydia Mihalik who joined the cabinet of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

In May of 2019 Muryn won the Republican mayoral primary.

In November of 2019, Muryn won the general election earning her first full four-year term as mayor.

Ohioans on Tuesday approved adding an amendment to the Ohio Constitution to protect reproductive and abortion rights.

The amendment, on the ballot as Issue 1, states that “every individual has a right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on contraception, fertility treatment, continuing one’s own pregnancy, miscarriage care, and abortion.”

The Associated Press had seen enough and called the results at around 9 p.m. with 57 percent of voters in support and 42 percent against.

Click here for more results on Issue 1 and Issue 2.

Click here for Hancock County results, and here for Putnam County results.

Some work by Columbia Gas will affect traffic at a Findlay intersection.

The City of Findlay says Columbia Gas has informed the city that it will be doing work in the area of North Main Street and Bigelow Avenue on Wednesday, November 8^th.

Columbia Gas says that intersection will be flagged from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday and drivers could experience short delays.