Notes from the edge... The Oakwood Register is pleased to introduce our newest columnist, Niel Lorenz. Niel has lived in and around Oakwood for a gazillion years… the actual number is too scary to mention. She and her husband, Mr. Serious, raised three boys here and they in turn brought three wonderful girls and two grandsons into the family. Niel wrote a column for an Oakwood magazine for 10 years and also writes articles for a national professional publication. She writes lyrics and no longer works for musicians nationally and internationally. She doesn’t balance her checkbook and hates to empty the dishwasher. On knowing too much
I know too much about what you’re not supposed to eat. The holidays and the Super Bowl are behind us now and we are all struggling with the fact that over the course of just a few short weeks we managed to eat a whole bowl of stuffing, a box of Esther Price, and a bucket of artichoke cheese dip. So, ok, ok, we knew we were being bad and happily decided to deal with it all tomorrow. The only bad news is that tomorrow is today. Rats. But never mind….we are strong and we shall now set out on the path of healthy goodness. We are going to arm ourselves in our quest with a couple of weapons: education and common sense. No problem. I start my education by watching cooking shows because they know how to do good stuff. After watching Paula Deen for a while, I realize that she uses a whole stick of butter to make a cup of tea. Next I try that “Bam” guy and notice that he starts every dish by pouring a bottle of olive oil into a frying pan. I just know that can’t be good, so I try one of the morning shows and they are featuring a guy who makes bacon wrapped sausage logs. For real. In desperation I turn to some magazines and they are all featuring “comfort food” because it’s cold outside and we crave carbs. Now, I’m no expert but I just bet Jarlsberg Mac and Cheese is not good for us. Scratch education and move on to common sense. Mr. Serious and I decide to go to a movie and then stop in for some Chinese. Movie popcorn is just air and wholesome goodness, right? Wrong. It turns out that theaters pop it in coconut oil and then add buttery flavored topping so you’ll be both overweight and dead by the end of the movie. On to Chang Chung for a nice healthy dinner of rice and veggies. Well darn if the same killjoys who outted popcorn didn’t also report that nearly every dish on the menu is either fried or nutritionally empty. Haven’t they ever heard of the don’t ask don’t tell policy? And so it goes. Nuts are good for you but loaded with fat. Your power bar that tastes great has 300 calories. Energy drinks are sugary and even, good grief, carrots are out because they are high carb. So now what? Well, I am determined to keep looking. It turns out that I have yet to hear anything bad about a few things so I bought them. I am cooking tonight and you are all invited over for dinner. We are having a cabbage, bean curd, and Brussels sprouts casserole. Come at 7. Bring wine. Please. |
Mayor Cook elected to First Suburbs chair
The First Suburbs Consortium of Dayton has announced its leadership team for 2009. The Consortium recently elected Oakwood Mayor Judy Cook as Chair, Trotwood Councilmember Rap Hankins as Vice-Chair, Miamisburg Councilmember Ryan Colvin as Secretary, Moraine City Manager David Hicks as Treasurer and Kettering Vice-Mayor Bruce Duke as the At Large Member of the Executive Committee.
“We have a great leadership team and I look forward to working together to build upon the progress of the past year.” said Cook. “In 2009 one of our major initiatives will be to continue our focus on finding creative solutions to issues associated with the mature and maturing housing stock so prevalent within our member communities. The Consortium is pro ducing a series of remodeling videos highlighting how residents that love living in our First Suburb communities have been able to update their homes for today’s lifestyle.”
The First Suburbs Consortium of Dayton is a Council of Governments formed in 2005 to focus on the challenges and opportunities common to older inner ring suburbs surrounding Dayton. The Consortium presently has thirteen member communities. They are: Centerville, Clayton, Harrison Township, Huber Heights, Jefferson Township, Kettering, Miamisburg, Moraine, Oakwood, Riverside, Trotwood, Vandalia and West Carrollton.
Donovan elected 2nd District appellate judge
Judge Mary E. Donovan has been elected to a one-year term as the Presiding and Administrative Judge of the Ohio Second District Court of Appeals by a unanimous vote of the court. As Presiding and Administrative Judge of the court, Judge Donovan presides over all court sessions and meetings of the court, and is responsible for supervising the administration, docket, and calendar of the court. The court hears appeals from all trial courts in a six-county district including Montgomery, Greene, Clark, Miami, Champaign, and Darke counties. The court’s headquarters are located in the Montgomery County Courts Building in Dayton.
Judge Donovan was elected to the Second District Court of Appeals in November, 2004, after serving ten years with the Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, General Division.
Judge Donovan was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1950, raised in Cincinnati, Ohio where she attended Seton High School. Judge Donovan received her B.A. from the University of Cincinnati in 1973 and her J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1977.
Prior to judicial service, Judge Donovan was in the private practice of law from 1993-1995 with the firm of Allbery, Cross, Fogarty and Tuss. She was with the Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office from 1990-1993; the City Law Department, City of Cincinnati Prosecutor’s Office from 1989-1990; Montgomery County Public Defender’s Office 1979-1988; and the Lake County Public Defender’s Office from 1978-1979.
In 1988-1989, Judge Donovan took a sabbatical from private practice and taught Navajo and Apache children at St. Bonaventure Indian Mission in Thoreau, New Mexico, and assisted in legal action regarding water rights on the reservation.
Judge Donovan serves on the Ohio Jury Instructions Editorial Board. Judge Donovan is a member of the Board of the Dayton Volunteer Lawyer’s Project, having served as Board president in 2007. She was sworn in in June, 2008 as Second Vice-President of the Dayton Bar Association. As a member of the Dayton Bar Association, she serves on the Congeniality, Eikenbary Trust, and Criminal Law Committees.
Judge Donovan also serves on the University of Dayton School of Law Alumni Board, and the Prison Advisory Board. Her past activities include: Secretary of the Government Access Advisory Board; Volunteer with the St. Joseph’s Treatment Center for Children; Secretary for the COPE Halfway House, Secretary of the Dayton Bar Association, and Second Vice President of the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association.
Judge Donovan is active in community theater in Montgomery and Greene Counties, and has sung the National Anthem at the Dayton Dragon’s games. She enjoys music, swimming, reading, and is an avid fan of Notre Dame Football as well as Xavier University and University of Dayton basketball.
Meetings for youth tour of France announced
Twenty-two people from the region will be guests in Pau, France, for a week in early June. Tentatively the plan is for 15 youth aged 15-17 and seven adults but applications from extra 14 year olds or adults will be considered. Applications are due in February.
For information or questions about this fun adventure to meet new friends and explore the French lifestyle and countryside should attend either of the two informational meetings:
Beavercreek Community Library, 3618 Dayton-Xenia Rd. on Monday, Feb. 16 at 7 p.m.
Washington-Centerville Library, 111 West Spring Valley Rd. on Feb. 24 at 7 p.m.
In 2009, the city of Pau, France will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the world’s first flying school created by Daytonians Wilbur and Orville Wright, in partnership with French businessmen. Pau Mayor Maritine Lignieres-Cassour has encouraged Dayton to send a delegation to Pau’s Centennial Air Show and Exposition, June 6-7, 2009. A Pau school has welcomed American students to tour for a day. Pau families are signing up to host American guests. The idea for the trip began in 2003 when a group of French business leaders came to enjoy the Centennial of Flight Celebration of the Wright Brothers success. Betty Darst and Beavercreek Mayor Julie Vann were hosts then and are now using those connections to provide an interesting trip to France for adults and youth. Dayton and Pau have had a long history of friendship that has included many exchanges and joint projects. The 2009 exchange “Dayton Young Ambassadors to Pau” will be this first exchange planned for youth.
Vann and Darst are working with Friendship Force of Dayton to provide the trip. For five nights the group will stay in homes with Pau families. As the group tours Pau, they will retrace the steps of the Wright Brothers, and their sister Katharine, in this community situated in the valley by the Pyrenees Mountains. According to Wilbur and Orville, Pau was a “perfect” location for winds needed for students learning to fly. By attending the Air Show, the ambassadors will celebrate the 100th anniversary of a significant partnership between the Wright Brothers and the French: the first School of Flight in the world.
After the Pau visit, the second week will be packed with a tour of a walled medieval city, two castles,several French villages, and then two days in Paris. A tour guide has been arranged, and she will also be a translator for those who do not speak French.
Interested youth are invited to complete the Youth Ambassador Application which can be downloaded from the website: www.friendshipforcedayton.com. Adults can phone for an application or attend one of the two informational meetings. Questions may be directed to Exchange Directors: Julie Vann at 429-5773 or Betty Darst at
426-8114.
Tiger Scouts pay a visit
Tiger Scouts from Den 2, Troop 101 based at Harman Elementary School paid a visit to the Oakwood Register office last Saturday as part of earning their communications badge. The Oakwood Register welcomes visits from scouting groups and a visit can be reserved by calling 294-2662.
St. Vincent infant/toddler drive
The St. Vincent DePaul hotel has experienced a 63 percent increase in child and infant residents over the past year. In light of this, the Oakwood Register is accepting donations of items related to infants and very young children: diapers, baby bottles and formula, baby food, layettes, receiving blankets, toddler and infant clothing, etc... Cash donations for the $600-a-week milk bill will also be accepted.
Items can be dropped off Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Oakwood Register office, 435 Patterson Rd., Dayton
February 10, 2009
Volume 18, No. 6
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