ORCHID: To the Rotary Club of Warren for recently donating $4,000 to the Trumbull County Historical Society to support the Museum of Science Fiction and Fantasy Arts under development on Main Avenue SW in Warren. The donation is but the start of a total gift of at least $75,000 Rotary members plan to contribute to the budding museum’s success. The generous donation builds on the community pride behind this ambitious and very promising project. Its foundation, after all, lies in the generous donation of about 500 props from blockbuster movies and TV shows from Warren native John Zabrucky’s Modern Props company. We hope others follow the Rotary’s commendable lead so that the vast entertainment and economic boosts the museum bodes for Trumbull County can be realized as quickly and as fully as possible.

ORCHID: To Samuel Griffin Boyd, a 2018 Maplewood High School graduate, for receiving the prestigious Vanguard Award of the U.S. Navy for saving a life last Halloween. According to a commendation medal he also received, “Boyd witnessed a vehicle in distress and pulled over to render assistance. He quickly pulled the driver out of the vehicle and began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation.” The victim regained consciousness and later recovered in a hospital. The Vanguard Award is presented every year to one enlisted member from each of the Armed Services who has “distinguished themselves through an act of exceptional bravery and selflessness that resulted in the saving of life or the prevention of serious injury.” Clearly Boyd’s nationally recognized honor was well earned.

ONION: To public servants who fail to adhere to the high standards of conduct expected of them from those they serve. One day last week, for example, this newspaper reported on the same page a local judge charged with OVI and a felony firearms offense, a local court bailiff charged with drug possession and a former deputy sheriff accused of obstruction of justice. Though all of those individuals must be provided the assumption of innocence unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law, they should also recognize that even the appearance of impropriety will reflect negatively on them and contribute to staining the image of not only themselves but of all public servants.

ORCHID: To the Hubbard High School girls soccer team and their coach Josh MacMillan for enlivening the Fairhaven School walls with brightly colored designs last week. The teens painted murals in hallways, the cafeteria and conference room as a bonding activity before the start of the new school year and as a service project to the staff and students at Fairhaven, a school for students with developmental disabilities. We’re confident the bucket (of paint) brigade succeeded in its mission to spread delight throughout the school. As Fairhaven Principal Michelle Ocilka-Yeckle put it, “It’s a visual reminder to students and staff to promote positivity and feel joy.”

ONION: To those errant taxpayers who failed to meet the Aug. 1 deadline in Mahoning and Trumbull counties for making their second-half 2024 property tax payments. Not only will their delinquency cost them up to a 10% additional penalty, it can also contribute to public funding shortfalls for the local governments and schools those taxes are designed to support. Though there has been much talk lately about property tax reforms and a ballot measure to abolish them altogether, nothing is yet set in stone, and full payment of your bill is still expected and mandated under the force of law.

ORCHID: To Buckeye PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) for opening senior day centers this week in heavily remodeled former Rite Aid drugstores in Youngstown and Warren. The centers will provide daytime activities for seniors as well as medical care, transportation and social engagement with the primary and laudable goal of keeping mature adults in their residences and out of nursing homes. In addition to the vital health needs the centers will fill, they also should be welcomed with open arms for turning a potentially blighted white elephant into an active and vibrant community asset.

ORCHID: To Gateways to Better Living and the Beyond Expectations Barber College on Youngstown’s South Side for partnering in an innovative and invaluable program called “Cutting Barriers.” Gateways, which provides programs and services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities from throughout the Mahoning Valley, brought 35 of its clients to the college recently, where the barber trainees learned valuable skills in interacting effectively with people with disabilities and the clients walked out looking great and feeling better as well. Other personal service providers in the region interested in enhancing their inclusivity skills should consider welcoming Gateways clients as well.