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ORCHID: To Trumbull County's Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention and Warren's Sahara Club for their events earlier this week to draw needed awareness to the ongoing drug-overdose epidemic in our midst. The alliance marked Overdose Awareness Day on Monday by distributing about 1,500 life-saving kits of Narcan, an antidote for opioid drug overdoses, at eight locations throughout the county. The Sahara Club sponsored a compassionate memorial and vigil to honor the hundreds in the county who have died from overdoses in recent years. Both events served as compelling reminders that even though the number of drug overdoses in our region has declined in recent years, one death is one too many. Given that 304 overdoses and 54 fatalities from them were recorded in Trumbull County last year, it's clear that the mission of the alliance and the Sahara Club must continue unabated.
ORCHID: To officials with the Trumbull County Family Court, Trumbull County Veterans Service Commission and county commissioners for their partnership in creating free reserved parking spaces in front of the court building on Main Avenue in downtown Warren. Officials cut the ribbon and honored county military veterans at a ceremony in the parking lot last week. Though the gesture may seem small, it can have large-scale positive impacts for disabled veterans attempting to visit the family court. These special spaces that include large tribute signs also remind any court visitors of the honor, respect and gratitude Trumbull County's 13,000 military veterans rightly deserve.
ONION: To landlords who engage in despicable sexual harassment of their tenants in violation of federal law. The U.S. Justice Department last month filed a lawsuit against a Girard landlord who owns and manages several rental properties. It alleges he engaged in sexual harassment and intimidation in violation of the Fair Housing Act. In recent years, Justice has filed more than 50 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered over $19 million for victims of such harassment.
"No one should have to live in fear of a landlord making highly inappropriate advances," said U.S. Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio. "Housing owners and managers who engage in loathsome behavior and infringe on a person's right to feel secure in their own home will face justice." We urge Toepfer and other federal authorities to continue to aggressively pursue landlords who attempt to take advantage of and demean their victimized tenants.
ORCHID: To 2022 Hubbard High School graduate Robert Gawdyda for his selection to "Dot the I" during halftime in The Ohio State University's home football season opener Saturday in Columbus. The former president of his high school band and a proud sousaphone player, Gawdyda said his key role in the legendary Ohio Script formation of the band has been his longtime dream. Clearly, he has paid his dues -- and paid them well. Longtime Hubbard Band Director Dan Nestich said, "I'm super proud of Robbie to achieve this." We concur and are confident he'll keep the OSU punctuation tradition alive this weekend in front of tens of thousands of proud Buckeye eyes.
ORCHID: To the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task force for continuing its aggressive push against prostitution and trafficking and for proving one's familial or professional status will not stand in the way of their valiant crusade. The task force recently arrested Jed York, owner of the San Francisco 49ers and member of a prominent and philanthropic Mahoning Valley family, on allegations of engaging in prostitution at an East Palestine mobile home park. Though a plea deal resulted in reduced charges, the task force still got its conviction, one that sends a clear message to would-be johns -- regardless of their status -- that they do indeed risk their reputations and livelihoods when stooping to such degrading, demeaning and damaging behavior.
ONION: To the statewide Ohio Manufacturing Extension Partnership program overseen by the Ohio Department of Development for that partnership's recent condemnation by the U.S. Department of Commerce. In its audit of MEP released last week, Commerce faulted the program for poor oversight of $20.9 million it received over the past decade in federal funding. The damning report casts a poor light on MEP, which focuses on job training and technology support for Ohio manufacturers. It cites a variety of waste, abuse and misspending in its operations. The program now faces potential termination as the audit recommends considering termination of all federal funding for it.