ORCHID: To Warren Police Capt. Jeff Cole for his 32 years of dedicated, hard-working and productive service to Trumbull County’s largest police department. Cole, who retired earlier this month, rightly received the key to the city from Mayor Doug Franklin. He also rightly earned the praise of many at a recent city council meeting who recognized his ability to build community trust in the police force during some turbulent times. For example, he played a vital role in helping to restore trust in the department during the several years it worked successfully to lift a federal consent decree from the U.S. Department of Justice over allegations of use of excessive force. As City Councilman Ron White, D-7th Ward, said, “He showed being a police officer was all about integrity.”

ORCHID: To the Warren G. Harding High School FIRST Robotics Team ELITE for its stellar competitive performances this school year that have propelled it to the world championships in Houston next month. The team qualified by snagging 37 championship points at the recent FIRST Finger Lakes Regional competition in Rochester, New York, and 59 points at the Midwest Regional near Chicago. Several months ago, the team was given the task to design, prototype, build, program and test a 115-pound robot that it has named “Extreme Machine 29.” We congratulate the aptly named ELITE team and wish it the best toward bringing the world championship title back home to Warren.

ONION: To the seemingly growing ranks of public utility users who routinely fail to pay bills for such essential services as water supply. In Hubbard, for example, the problem has grown into a near crisis. City Treasurer Marsha Ruha reported recently that as of February, delinquencies in that city of 7,500 people, total a whopping $416,000. Because such revenue is critical to maintaining viable utility services, these deadbeats need to pay up. Hubbard officials are to be commended for moving in the right “get-tougher” direction by considering hiring a collection agency to recoup losses and increasing penalties for late payments from the incredibly low rate in place now.

ORCHID: To members of the Warren John F. Kennedy High School baseball team who donated their Good Friday holiday this month to become Good Samaritans to the White Oak Health Care nursing home next door to the diocesan high school. Twelve varsity players and three coaches for the Eagles team spent the day repairing many potholes in the nursing home’s parking lot and picking up branches on the property that were knocked down in recent windstorms. Their generous volunteerism not only improves conditions at the nursing home but also brings lasting rewards for the ball players themselves. Among them are enhancing the team’s connection with the local community, encouraging a sense of responsibility and civic engagement and promoting a positive image of the high school and its athletes.

ORCHID: To administrators and faculty members in Youngstown State University’s respiratory care program for gaining international recognition and prestige by recently being awarded the 2025 Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapy Credentialing Success Award from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care. “This recognition is a testament to the dedication, credibility and integrity of our faculty,” said Kelly L. Colwell, associate professor of health professions and program director of respiratory care at YSU. Programs selected for the honor must meet rigorous criteria, including sustained outcomes data, high credentialing success rates of 90% or above, strong student retention and full accreditation. YSU boasts a 98% pass rate on the national registry. At a time when chronic lung conditions are on the upswing in our nation, the need for a highly regarded training ground for competent therapists close to home cannot be greater.

ORCHID: To McDonald High School senior Ava Kuntz for her recent honorable recognition from the Ohio Commission on Service and Volunteerism as a 2026 ServeOhio Award recipient. ServeOhio honors outstanding people, groups, and initiatives who make great contributions to their local communities and the state through service and volunteerism. Ava, daughter of Curt and Jackie Kuntz, fits that mold superlatively. Her list of volunteer activities for school and community betterment is dizzyingly long and includes such good works as strengthening Woodland Park’s Non‒Food Pantry, organizing major toy and school- supply drives and raising nearly $12,000 for the American Heart Association in nine weeks — to name but a few. As Julie Weagraff, commissioner with Serve Ohio, put it, “Ava’s contributions year-round are meaningful, far reaching and deeply impactful. Your dedication shows us what service looks like at its best.” The award brings honor to herself, her family, her school and her community.

ORCHID: To the Kimberly-Clark Corp. for recently receiving the 2026 World’s Most Ethical Companies designation from Ethisphere, a global leader in defining and advancing the gold standard in ethical business practices. “Being named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for the eighth consecutive year is a testament to the unwavering commitment of our teams around the world to lead with integrity,” said Jeff Melucci, chief of strategy, business development and administrative officer at Kimberly-Clark. The award also reinforces our positive view of the Fortune 500 company and its $800 million investment in a massive plant under construction in Trumbull County.

ORCHID: To Mary Anne Russo, recently retired Hubbard Public Library children’s librarian, for being one of 10 recipients nationwide this year of the “I Love My Librarian Award” from the American Library Association. In her 42 years of library service, Russo has left a positive and indelible mark on the Hubbard facility. She instituted many positive changes and enhancements to the children’s area, including brighter lighting, an indoor gazebo, a dedicated room for children’s programs and an outdoor sensory garden. As such, we’re pleased and proud that ALA singled her out from more than 1,300 nominees for this year’s award.