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Wedding_____________________________________

Mitchner - Asinjo

Tess Mitchner wed Emmanuel Asinjo at the Dayton Art Institute on July 25. The bride is the daughter of Marilyn and Gary Mitchner of Oakwood. The groom is the son of Zilpah and the late Nick Asinjo of Nairobi, Kenya.

The matron-of-honor was the bride’s sister Dr. Natasha Mitchner of Oakwood and attended by Dee-Ann Durbin Hurley, formerly of Oakwood, now Ann Arbor. The flower girls were the bride’s nieces, Amea and Melisse Bretz of Oakwood. Dorey Butter, formerly of Oakwood, now Washington, DC, officiated.

The couple will re-locate from Chicago to Portland, Oregon. The bride, a recent elementary school principal, will become Executive Director of Recruitment for Lighthouse Academies of Boston. The groom, a recent architect with the University of Chicago, will be Project Manager for Oregon Health and Science University.

They will honeymoon on Zanzibar and the coast of Kenya.

Oakwood band Good English to play Ladyfest By Lisa Alexander Oakwood can be proud that his has one of the few all-girl bands in the Dayton area. It can also boast that the average age of these band members is one of the youngest. Three sisters and a friend, three in high school and one in junior high, perform together as Good English. Photo by Lisa Alexander Clockwise from upper left: Celia Rasmussen, Leslie Rasmussen, Elizabeth Rasmussen and Annie Bartlett. It’s easy to make a ‘Partridge Family’ or ‘School of Rock’-cliched analogy, but when these ladies take the stage for the first time at the second annual Ladyfest Dayton this Friday, no cheesy, Hollywood comparisons will come to mind. Why? Because a band with an indie-folk rock sound that covers artists like Natalie Merchant, Joan Osbourne, and Patti Griffin shows a much deeper level of artistic expression than most adult bands show. But don’t assume that this band isn’t made up of normal teenagers. Their combined extra-curriculars include soccer, student council, cheerleading, and volunteering. They like to hang out with friends and watch movies. And when it comes to what they want to get out of LadyFest this year, according to Elizabeth Rasmussen, lead singer and acoustic guitarist, “We just want to have fun and meet all the wonderful girl bands out there.” However, Good English will be doing more than just that. They will be involved in a unique community experience. Ladyfest showcases the talents of local women visual artists, musicians, and performers. It focuses on womenís issues through art displays, performances and workshops. It raises money for local non-profits, like The Artemis Center, that aid women. It provides an outlet for artists to network, build resumes and inspire. It ís an event that draws people to a downtown rebuilding and reinventing itself. The band got involved this year because the sistersí mom, Anne Rasmussen, is heavily involved in C{space, a community art center dedicated to helping budding artists create and display their art. From this, the band was asked to perform there at this spring’s Urban Nights celebration. This in turn, combined with the band’s several performances at Canal Street Tavern (including a recent battle-of-the-bands) earned an invite from the Ladyfest committee. Good English will take the stage Friday, shortly after 6:30 p.m. Elizabeth Rasmussen, senior, will be singing lead and playing acoustic guitar. Celia Rasmussen, sophomore, will play bass guitar. Annie Bartlett, sophomore, will play lead guitar and sing backup. Leslie Rasmussen, eighth grader and youngest member, will be on drums. Ladyfest will take place Friday, Aug. 21 through Sunday, Aug. 23 and will be held at C{space at 20 N. Jefferson Street, across from the Kettering Tower. Friday and Saturday will be dedicated to musical and dance performances. Sunday will be dedicated to workshops. All ages and genders are welcome to come. Tickets are $10. For more information, go to www.LadyFestDayton.com. Ladyfest Dayton II to cover two nights On Aug. 21, Ladyfest Dayton will for the second time showcase the artistic talents of Dayton-area women. Painters, sculptors, crafters, photographers and other visual artists will share a venue with musicians and dancers in a three-day festival celebrating the talents of local ladies while raising money for local non-profits. Aug. 21 and 22 will be fun-filled evenings of musicians and dancers entertaining crowds with various styles of music, visual art and performance art. Visitors will be asked to pay a $10 cover charge each night which will go to The Artemis Center and Planned Parenthood, which provide much needed services to women in the community. There will be a total of approximately 36 music and performance acts, including local musical acts Jasper The Colossal, Good English, Vanity Theft, State School, The Goody Two Shoes, and out of town acts like The Last Internationale and The Seedy Seeds and along with many more fantastic acts. Doors open at 4:30 on Friday and 2 p.m. on Saturday. Sunday, Aug. 23rd starting at 1 p.m. will be a day dedicated to workshops and movies. Workshops range from yoga and belly dancing to how to backpack across country. The variety of workshops provides something for everyone. These workshops will be open to the public, free-of-charge. Men, women and children alike are invited to attend all of these weekend events. Ladyfest Dayton II will be held at c{space located at 20 N. Jefferson St. in Dayton www.LadyFestDayton.com For more information contact festival organizers Jennifer Money or Mary Kathryn Burnside at ladyfestdayton@gmail.com or visit www.myspace.com/ladyfestdayton or www.LadyFestDayton.com.

James signs on as web marketing manager

Reticle Web Marketing has hired Jacque James as Sales Manager, she is responsible for hiring a sales team both in the local market and nationally. Jacque is Founder of Simply W.O.M.E.N. Women Organized Motivated Empowered Networking, a locally based networking organization for professional women. Jacque’s expertise in marketing coupled with Reticle Web’s expertise in site optimization, hosting, web site design, SEO, keyword management, web marketing strategies and consulting will make an outstanding team. Reticle Web Marketing is an interactive design and web hosting company specializing in web marketing. Reticle Web Marketing’s home office is located in Kettering.

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French teachers meet at WSU

Teachers gather from around the state to participate in the French Immersion Workshop held at Wright State University.

On Friday, Aug. 14, thirty-three high school and junior high school French teachers from all around the state attended an annual French Immersion Workshop sponsored by Wright State University and the American Association of Teachers (AATF) of French.

Wright State professors, Pascale Abadie and Oakwood resident Dr. Kirsten Halling organized a day of conferences and interactive exercises to prepare teachers for their return to school. Participants also acted out five plays written by Wright State French Honors students.

Teachers left the workshop with fresh materials for teaching and new friends and allies in the teaching profession.

City notes___________________________________

City creates ‘opt-out’ natural gas program

On Monday, July 20, Oakwood City Council passed Resolution #1696 authorizing the creation of an “opt-out” natural gas aggregation program for residential and small business properties within the city of Oakwood. This action allows Oakwood to start a city-wide natural gas purchasing program. The program will begin in September or October, depending upon customer billing cycles.

In November, 2003 Oakwood voters approved by an 81 percent YES vote an issue authorizing City Council to establish a natural gas aggregation program. Since then, Oakwood City Council and staff have monitored the natural gas market. Until recently, there have not been aggregation opportunities that provided guaranteed cost savings. However, the natural gas market has now changed and we can say with certainty that establishing this aggregation program, or purchasing group, will save Oakwood citizens and small business owners money on their monthly natural gas bills.

Last week, all eligible Oakwood property owners were mailed a notification letter from IGS (Interstate Gas Supply.) The notification explained the aggregation program and included a form that property owners could use to “opt-out” of the program. The letter also explained that no action is necessary if you wish to be part of the purchasing group. The city of Oakwood fully endorses this program and has verified the claim of guaranteed savings.

Sometime in early to mid September, Vectren will mail a letter to all eligible Oakwood property owners that have not “opted-out” informing them that they are scheduled to be transferred to the aggregation program. That mailing will include another opportunity for customers to “opt-out”. All eligible customers who do not “opt-out” will be enrolled in the program. Switching will essentially be transparent, except for the cost savings.

The original concept of energy aggregation was introduced when the State of Ohio deregulated the natural gas and electricity utilities. Under energy deregulation, state law allows local governments to establish “opt-in” or “opt-out” programs. The city of Oakwood has selected the “opt-out” version. Under “opt-out”, all residential and small commercial properties will be included in the city-wide buying group unless property owners request to be omitted.

Oakwood’s natural gas aggregation program will be coordinated through the Miami Valley Communications Council (MVCC) and managed by AMPO, Inc., a subsidiary of AMP-Ohio, a Columbus based non-profit municipal power corporation. MVCC is a council of governments of which Oakwood is a member. Other members include Kettering, Centerville, Miamisburg, West Carrollton, Moraine, Springboro and Germantown. Oakwood will join six other MVCC members (all but Springboro – outside Vectren’s area) in establishing a large, multi-city purchasing group under the “opt-out” natural gas aggregation program.

MVCC will enter into a Master Services Agreement with IGS to provide the natural gas. Under the Master Services Agreement, residential and small commercial customers in Oakwood and the other six suburban communities will receive a 4.6 cent per ccf (100 cubic feet) of natural gas savings off of the normal Vectren regulated rate. Regardless whether the Vectren regulated rate goes up or down each month, the savings will follow.

For the average residential customer, this equates to a savings of between $45 and $55 annually.

The 4.6 cent per ccf savings is guaranteed through March, 2010. At that time, a new price will be negotiated. If the new price does not provide continued guaranteed savings, the program will be cancelled. If the program is cancelled, all Oakwood residential and small business customers in the aggregation program will return to Vectren and will again be billed at the normal regulated Vectren rate.

IGS will be responsible for administrating the aggregation program, but Vectren will continue to handle monthly customer billing. IGS has a customer service center in Dublin, Ohio where property owners can call with questions. That phone number is 1-800-280-4474 and is open weekdays from 8 am to 7 pm.

All Oakwood residential and small business customers will be eligible to participate in the aggregation program except for the following:

• Those who have already contracted with an alternate gas supplier
  
• Those who are not current on their Vectren bills
  
• Those who are enrolled in the Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP)
  
• Those who use more than 5,000 ccf of natural gas per year

Customers already under contract with an alternate supplier may still be able to join the aggregation program but must first cancel the alternate supplier contract. This cancellation may include a fee/penalty. These customers should discuss this with their current supplier or the IGS customer service center before taking action.

Once the program begins, all members will begin receiving natural gas from IGS. However, the gas will still be delivered through the normal Vectren distribution pipelines and Vectren will continue to serve as the billing agent. Any billing arrangements such as “automatic bill payment” and “budget billing” will remain unchanged.

All customers enrolled in the program have the option to return to Vectren at any time during the aggregation contract without any cancellation fee. Those returning to Vectren will then begin receiving their natural gas at the normal Vectren regulated rate.

Questions about the natural gas aggregation program should be directed to the Oakwood city office at 298-0600 or to IGS at 1-800-280-4474.

Norbert S. Klopsch
Oakwood City Manager

Utility billing format to change

Effective with August billing, the city of Oakwood will be using Smart Bill, Ltd. to prepare and mail the quarterly water/sewer/refuse invoices. For many years the city prepared and mailed invoices using Oakwood city staff. After reviewing other options, the Oakwood Finance Department determined that it is more cost efficient for the city to contract for this service.

Oakwood property owners will see a different invoice format, but all other billing and payment procedures remain unchanged. If you have any questions about the new invoices, please contact the Finance Department at 298-0402.