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More resources available for survivors of the opioid crisis

Among the cultural changes that came with the substance abuse epidemic in our region was the dramatic increase in the number of grandparents who found themselves raising their grandchildren. That meant financial strain for those who might suddenly have had to miss work for anything ranging from court dates to school functions, maybe burning through savings that were meant to cushion an upcoming retirement, having (again) to pay for clothes, supplies, food and everything else that comes with having children in the home and a host of other expenses. Of the approximately $631 billion ...

Numbers reflect giving ways of Ohio residents

Ohio residents are giving, helpful people. We already know that. But it is encouraging to get confirmation in the form of WalletHub’s “Most Charitable States for 2024,” in which Ohio ranked 10th in the nation. According to the study, Ohio is 28th for number of charities per capita, 26th for the percentage of the population who donated time, 3rd for the percentage of the population collecting/distributing food, 27th for volunteer rate and 24th for volunteer hours per capita. Nearly 61 million people volunteer in the U.S., serving a combined total of 4.1 billion hours per year, ...

Parents must be vigilant against threat of predators

Law enforcement agencies across Ohio continue to work diligently against sexual predators of all kinds — from human trafficking to online crimes against children. It is a fight that never ends. But late last week, the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, on behalf of several authorities in the region, announced the arrest of 14 people for online sex crimes in Northeast Ohio, according to a report by WOIO. The accused men were allegedly interacting with children through popular social media in a sexual manner, WOIO reports. Well, they thought they were, anyway. The victims were ...

State Senate Bill 168: Removing regulations

When lawmakers can move government out of the way for employers, most of them jump to do so. The same should hold true for educators, as the folks in Columbus consider a bill that would change the way teacher evaluations are handled, as well as some contracts and school screening requirements. “Just like businesses, schools also benefit by removing unnecessary and burdensome regulations while maintaining strong accountability measures,” Tom Perkins, of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators told the Ohio Capital Journal. State Senate Education Committee members learned ...

Extremist religious violence is wrong

No matter your thoughts on one social issue or another, most decent human beings can agree those differences do not warrant resorting to violence. But time and again over the past few years we see instances in which those who have bought in to the fear-and-hatred method of buying votes believe they are justified in translating their extreme views into action. Sadly, that has been — repeatedly — deadly. In the case of a community church in Chesterland, Ohio, the damage was only to a building, but the situation could have been much worse. Aimenn Penny, of Alliance, has pleaded guilty ...

Key development, jobs come to Appalachian Ohio

Though Appalachian Ohio got some good news recently with the announcement of hydrogen hub locations in our region, it is encouraging to know our representatives in Washington, D.C., continue to push for more. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown’s office has announced $1.25 million to the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network, the Ohio Manufacturing Extension Partnership, for small and medium manufacturers in Appalachia. Brown, D-Ohio, says the funding is meant to grow production in energy and technology sectors. “Rural communities and workers have been overlooked for too long. If we want ...