‘Hancock Youth Leadership’ An Investment In The Future

(From the Findlay-Hancock County Chamber of Commerce)

Since 1999, the Hancock Youth Leadership (HYL) Program has served as an investment in the future of Findlay and Hancock County.

By giving a select group of high school students the hands-on experience they need to develop their leadership and communications skills, HYL is the motivating force creating positive role models and future leaders committed to their civic responsibilities.

With student representatives from Arcadia, Arlington, Cory-Rawson, Findlay, Liberty-Benton, McComb, and Van Buren, we are looking forward to another great year of HYL!

Interested in supporting the Class of 2026? Check out sponsorship opportunities here!

Friends Of The Library Holding Sale On Audiovisual Materials

(From the Findlay-Hancock County Public Library)

The Friends of the Findlay-Hancock County Public Library invite the public to a special two-day sale at The Book Cellar, the Friends’ used book shop in the lower level of the library, featuring deep discounts on audiovisual materials.

The sale will take place on Monday, September 8 and Wednesday, September 10 in the Younger Room from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on both days. Fill a bag of DVDs, music CDs or audiobook CDs for only $4.00.

Whether you’re expanding your music collection, searching for a new favorite film, or looking for your next audiobook adventure, this is a great opportunity to stock up while supporting your local library, as proceeds from the sale support library programs and services throughout the year.

For questions about the sale, please contact the Book Cellar at 419-434-1044.

Hancock County Democratic Party Holding Fall Gala

The Hancock County Democratic Party will be holding an event with candidates including Dr. Amy Acton, who is running for governor.

“We’re thrilled to host a suite of determined candidates here in Hancock County who are thoroughly committed to making our city, counties, and Ohio a better place for all of us,” said Eve Gray, Chairwoman of the Hancock County Democratic Party.

The Hancock County Democratic Party’s Fall Gala will be held on September 7th beginning at 5 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn at 1050 Interstate Drive in Findlay. 

Get more details by clicking here.

Public Meeting On Proposed Railroad Overpass

(From the Ohio Department of Transportation)

The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) District 2 invites the public to attend an open house for the South Town Street Railroad Grade Separation project in Fostoria, Ohio.

Meeting details:

  • Date: Tuesday, August 26, 2025
  • Time: 4:00-7:00 p.m.
  • Location: Collaboration Studio at the Fostoria Learning Center

342 Perry Street, Fostoria, Ohio

ODOT is proposing this project to improve safety and mobility of the at-grade crossings of South Town Street and Columbus Avenue at the CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads in Fostoria, Ohio.  The proposed project would provide a grade-separated crossing on South Town Street over the railroad tracks.  For maps and additional project details, visit the website: http://www.transportation.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odot/projects/projects/119654.

The public is invited to attend the open house meeting and provide feedback regarding the recommended preferred alternative.  Comments regarding the project may be submitted at the meeting, on the project website through the comment submittal form, or by direct contact at the methods listed below. Comments received by Friday, September 26, 2025, will be included in the official project documentation, but all comments will be accepted at any time.

Individuals who require meeting materials in an alternate format or to provide comments are asked to contact ODOT at the number below. Public participation in this project is solicited without regard to race, color, sex, age, national origin or disability.

Questions or comments regarding the project may be directed to David Geckle, project manager, at 419-373-4377 or by email at David.Geckle@dot.ohio.gov.

Special Day For Veterans At Hancock County Fair

(From the Hancock County Veterans Service Office)

Join the Hancock County Veterans Service Office at the Hancock County Fair. Wednesday, August 27th is Veterans Day at the Fair and your Veterans Service Office has a packed day to celebrate our local Veterans and Veteran Influencers.

The first 150 veterans to register with our booth in the Old Millstream building from 11am – noon receive a lunch food voucher good for select vendors that day. Dinner from Texas Roadhouse will be served at 5pm following a brief Veterans Recognition Ceremony. All of these will be in the Old Millstream Building on the Hancock County Fairgrounds.

Veterans can spend time in the air conditioned Old Millstream Building where members of our office will be on hand to answer your questions and discuss services our office provides to local veterans and their caregivers and most importantly, listen to their stories.

If you don’t already have a veteran ID, or Veterans We Want You T-Shirt, stop by our office with a recorded DD214 to get your card so you can get into the Fair for free on Veterans Day.

Also, we want to flood the fairgrounds on Veterans Day with a very special Veterans We Want you T-shirt, so veterans, spot by our office to get your free shirt.

We look forward to connecting with all of our veterans and those that influence and support our veterans at the 2025 Hancock County Fair. Stop by and chat with us. We want to hear from you.

For more information, visit www.hancockveterans.com or contact our office at 419-424-7036.

Community Foundation Urging Others To Join Them in Addressing Housing

(From the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation)

Housing is a challenge facing many of our friends and neighbors in Hancock County.

We’ve committed $150,000 to help address this need, and we’re challenging our community to invest with us.

Learn more about our Community Housing and Interim Housing Program Funds at community-foundation.com/rooted.

New Findlay Police Department Recruitment Video

(From the Findlay Police Department)

Are you looking for a career where you can effect change in your community?

Are you looking for a career where you get to help people?

We’re always looking for dedicated men and women to join on our team.

Check out our latest recruitment video to find out what we’re all about.

Interested? Follow our social media pages and website for future testing dates and announcements.

Ohio Fire Marshal Launches New Volunteer Firefighter Recruitment Portal

(From the Office of the State Fire Marshal)

As the state of Ohio continues to experience an alarming decline in the number of its volunteer firefighters, the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of State Fire Marshal’s Ohio Fire Academy has launched an innovative new portal to more easily and directly connect Ohioans with available opportunities at their local fire houses so communities across the state continue to have access to the protection they deserve. 

Approximately 70% of Ohio’s nearly 1,200 fire departments rely on volunteers, but a significant decline in the volunteer fire service is jeopardizing its future viability. While the number of emergency calls is increasing across the state, the number of volunteer firefighters is decreasing. From 2018 to 2021, there was a 6.5% decrease in the number of volunteer firefighters; meanwhile, from 2018 to 2020, there was a 9% increase in calls.

The nation is experiencing a similar trend. According to the National Volunteer Fire Council, approximately 65% of the country’s estimated 1,041,200 firefighters are volunteers, and 64% of 29,452 fire departments in the U.S. are all-volunteer. In 2020, the number of volunteer firefighters in the U.S. reached a low while call volume has more than tripled in the last 35 years.

The Division’s new state-of-the-art Volunteer Firefighter Recruitment Portal aims to address these challenges by streamlining the recruitment process and making it easier than ever for Ohioans who are interested in joining the volunteer fire service to connect with their local department. In a matter of just seconds, Ohioans can enter basic location and contact information into the portal and submit an inquiry that is sent directly to their nearest volunteer fire departments. Once submitted, the fire chiefs of those departments are notified so they can follow up with those interested individuals.

“Volunteer fire departments are the backbone of Ohio’s fire service, and our hope is that this new recruitment portal is a game-changer for them, especially in terms of their ability to engage with and recruit the next generation of brave hometown heroes,” said State Fire Marshal Kevin Reardon. “For anyone looking to serve their community, this is truly a one-stop shop to get connected with their local volunteer departments and make a potentially life-saving difference.”

The development of this portal expands upon recent efforts by the Division of State Fire Marshal to address the decline in volunteer firefighters. Following the 2023 Governor’s Volunteer Fire Service Task Force, over the past year, the Division has launched two media campaigns to highlight this dangerous trend and encourage Ohioans to consider becoming volunteer firefighters. These campaigns directed individuals to the National Volunteer Fire Council’s Make Me a Firefighter website at makemeafirefighter.org and resulted in a significant increase in inquiries about volunteer opportunities in the state. During the campaigns, Ohio-based visits to makemeafirefighter.org increased by over 1,000% from the preceding year, more than 14,000 zip code searches were conducted, and users initiated over 2,500 actions to contact a local fire department, such as completing an interest form or making a call. As a result of the success of this initiative, the Division’s campaign was recently named a finalist for a prestigious Ragan Communications PR Daily Nonprofit Communications Award.

The new Volunteer Recruitment Portal allows the Division to further enhance these efforts by focusing on local recruitment and providing additional support and resources to volunteer fire departments throughout Ohio. Whereas makemeafirefighter.org is a nationwide search database, this new portal is specific to Ohio and allows the Division to more directly engage with volunteers and notify department leadership of potential volunteer interest.

In addition to the awareness campaigns and development of this new portal, the Division of State Fire Marshal continues to support future volunteer firefighter recruitment efforts by providing training and classes for volunteer firefighters and volunteer departments at no cost to them.

“The future of Ohio’s volunteer fire service is critical to the future safety of our communities and those who call them home,” Reardon said. “While we are committed to doing everything possible to support the men and women of the volunteer fire service, we are calling on brave and selfless Ohioans in every corner of the state to consider how they might step up and become the heroes our communities so desperately need.”

Nurse Honored For Making Special Difference In Patient’s Life

(From Blanchard Valley Health System)

Congratulations Davis Ferry, RN, on being the August DAISY award recipient!

Davis is a nurse in the intensive care unit at Blanchard Valley Hospital, a division of Blanchard Valley Health System. He was nominated by a patient’s spouse after they witnessed the exceptional care he provided. The nominator praised his compassion, knowledge, attentiveness, and expertise. They valued Davis’s sincere concern for his patients’ health, his willingness to go above and beyond to answer any questions the family had, and his ability to make them feel heard and cared for.

“We felt like Davis truly cared about Rick and him getting better,” wrote the nominator. “It was real, not over the top, and genuine. He wanted us to have the knowledge and tools to work together to help with Rick’s care. This came across with everyone he worked with, too — they cared about each other, and they truly respected and appreciated Davis.”

Thank you, Davis, for your commitment to patient-centered, compassionate care. We’re proud to have you on #TeamBVHS

Pictured (left to right): Betsy Ditto, RN, BSN, ICU, inpatient dialysis & wound care clinical manager; Jessica Salsbury, RN, ICU educator; BJ Pasztor, RN, chief nursing officer and chief operations officer of acute care services; Davis Ferry, RN; Michael Cifranic, MSN, RN, nursing recruitment and retention specialist.

Sheriff’s Office Investigating Fatal Crash Involving Motorcyclist

(From the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office)

At 4:46 P.M. The Hancock County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of an injury crash involving a motorcycle and a minivan at the intersection of US 224 and TR 259.

Through investigation it was determined Mary Taylor, age 77 of Fostoria, was traveling east on US 224 in a 2016 Chrysler minivan.

Justin Eckhart, age 42 of Sylvania, was traveling in traffic behind the minivan on a 2005 Honda motorcycle.

Eckhart attempted to pass multiple vehicles behind Taylor as she was attempting to turn north on TR 259.

In the process of passing the vehicles, Eckhart’s motorcycle collided with the driver side of Taylor’s minivan, separating him from the motorcycle.

As a result of the crash Justin Eckhart was pronounced deceased at the scene.

Mary Taylor was treated on scene for minor injuries.

A passenger in Taylor’s minivan, 79 year old David Taylor of Fostoria, was also treated on scene for minor injuries.

Assisting at the scene were The Ohio State Highway Patrol, Findlay Police Department, HANCO E.M.S., Washington Township Volunteer Fire Department, Dick’s Towing, and Reinhart’s Auto Body.

The crash remains under investigation at this time.

WFIN – The Findlay Police Department told WFIN that the motorcyclist involved in the crash was involved in a high speed pursuit with them that they terminated six minutes before the crash.

Read more on that by clicking here.