Cassie Mattia is the Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine, lives in Historic Downtown, and is Italian-American!
By: Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – As Historic Downtown Loveland expands so is the cuisine! I’m not just talking restaurant chains or commercialized venues, I’m taking REAL straight from Northern Italy homemade Italian food!
Coming to Loveland in Mid-September is “RODI,” owned by new local Roberto aka Rob Peloni and his wife, Cincinnati native, Jo Beyersdorfer. RODI is set to offer one of the most authentic Italian menus you can find in the Tri-State area along with wines, beers, and coffee shipped in from all over the world. Oh, and did I mention Rob literally imported his Gelato machine in his very own vehicle all the way from L.A. just so he could add his homemade Italian Gelato to RODI’s menu?!
Peloni’s father, Angelo Peloni, is a legendary chef in L.A who has his own successful Italian restaurant called La Bruschetta. For 38 years La Bruschetta has offered all of Angelo’s very own recipes that found their origins in Northern Italy. Peloni spent multiple years in L.A with his father running his own restaurant and learning as much as he possibly could from his father and the culinary masters that reside in L.A. With just that information alone, and of course, the fact that I am VERY Italian myself, hence my last name is Mattia, I knew I had to learn more about the Peloni’s!
An early rendering of what RODI Italian will look like.
When I expressed interest in RODI, Peloni himself invited me over to see the restaurant’s layout. While I was there Peloni participated in an on-camera interview so that he could answer the questions that I thought the community of Loveland would be “craving” to hear answers to.
Intrigued yet?! If your answer is yes today is your lucky day because we have included below the full on-camera interview with Rob Peloni and believe me you don’t want to miss his inspirational cooking journey! So sit back, grab a couple of breadsticks to go with your pasta, and enjoy my exclusive one-on-one interview with “RODI” owner Roberto Peloni!
Be sure to stay up to date on when RODI will be opening up its doors to the public by visiting the restaurant’s Facebook page @rodiloveland or RODI’s official website HERE!
Loveland, Ohio – There is no better time than now to give back to your local community and that’s just what The Loveland Police Department and the Loveland Citizens Police Academy Alumni did! On Saturday, July 18th at the Loveland Madeira Kroger the two local organizations sponsored the Annual “Stuff-a-Cruiser” Food Drive, in order to benefit Loveland’s very own LIFE Food Pantry.
LIFE or Loveland Interfaith Effort is a faith and community-supported organization that provides food, financial assistance, and programs to those experiencing hardship in the greater Loveland area. LIFE is located at 101 S Lebanon Road and is open for donations Thursdays from 3 PM-6:30 PM and Saturdays from 9 AM-12:30 PM. LIFE also supplies Holiday Baskets during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Hanukkah, and runs both a Giving Shop, which provides eligible families the chance to shop for new gifts for their families and a Student LIFE Shop, that provides much-needed items to students in the Loveland School District. LIFE also has a food pantry called Tiger Pantry, which provides Loveland students in need with necessary food items.
During the Summer months, the LIFE Food Pantry tends to get very low in food supplies because there are so many families that are at home (school is out which means no school lunch programs to fall back on) and in need of nutrition. This is why both the LPD and Loveland Citizens Police Academy sponsor the Annual “Stuff-a-Cruiser” specifically over the Summer.
This year volunteers held the “Stuff-a-Cruiser” Food Drive beginning at 9 AM on July 18th at the Loveland Kroger and collected food items and cash donations the majority of the day! Those within the Loveland community and those just casually grocery shopping were able to bring food items from their home to “stuff the cruiser” or could simply use Kroger’s “Click List” and select specific items to go towards “LIFE Food Pantry Stuff-a-Cruiser.” Shoppers were also able to leave a cash donation in LIFE’s designated donation jar located on their Food Drive display!
Peggy Goodwin, a member of the Loveland Citizens Police Academy, spent most of her day at the Food Drive event helping organize donations and couldn’t express enough how kind the community of Loveland is for the number of donations brought in!
“Inside the gym at Prince of Peace – as soon as a cart came through the door, volunteers immediately started sorting the grocery items onto tables by commodity. The Pantry estimates the value of the groceries, gift cards, and monetary donations at $4,000,” Goodwin said, “This provided a much-needed boost to help fill their ‘cupboard.’ This event speaks volumes to the kindness and generosity of the Loveland community – whenever there is a need, you can count on our residents to step up and do what they can to take care of their neighbors. What a great place to call home! And thank you, Cassie and Dave, for giving up your Saturday morning to come out to talk with us, see what was going on, and now spreading the word about some of the great things Lovelanders do to help each other,” Goodwin added.
Loveland Magazine Editor, David Miller, and I wanted to show our support for such a fantastic event so we spent time with Goodwin, LT. Amy Campbell, and many other volunteers at the “Stuff-a-Cruiser” Food Drive while taking in all the acts of kindness the Loveland community put forth through both food and cash donations. Both Miller and I brought over food donations ourselves as we encouraged those walking in and out of Kroger to do the same. Miller expressed that this particular Food Drive is one of the most important events held in Loveland every summer.
“This time of year is so vastly different from the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season when thinking about others comes so easy. Each penny families and seniors don’t have to spend on food can go instead to paying bills like rent and utilities,” Miller said, “These needs are something the greater community can help with and they really came through as usual with this reminder from the folks that worked so hard to pull it off.”
Being in the presence of such generosity at the “Stuff-a-Cruiser” Food Drive made me feel as though I was helping so many families in need and I encourage those within the Loveland community to always make time to give back. Being kind can allow us all to receive the ultimate reward in life…HAPPINESS! Now please enjoy the interview with Peggy Goodwin and LT. Amy Campbell as well as the photo album below from the Food Drive!
If you would like to donate food items or learn how you can get access to food benefits for you and your family go to http://www.lifefoodpantry.org/. Thank you once again Loveland for being a community filled with LOVE!
Loveland, Ohio – With Ohio High School 2020-2021 sports seasons set to start on August 1st, coaches, parents, fans, and student-athletes are wondering when school vs. school competition will be allowed to resume. That particular question was answered on Tuesday when the OHSAA sent out a newsletter confirming that for the time being all contact-sport school vs. school scrimmages will be suspended.
The OHSAA’s Interim Executive Director, Bob Goldring, stated in the newsletter that the goal is to work with the Governor’s Office to make sure everything that they are implementing for the 2020-2021 sports seasons will be “in concert.”
OHSAA’s Interim Executive Director, Bob Goldring
“We are on track for the low/non-contact sports of golf, girls tennis and volleyball to begin practices on August 1, with school vs. school scrimmages and contests to follow per their normal OHSAA permissible dates and regulations,” Goldring said, “We are on track for the contact sports of football, soccer, field hockey and cross country to begin practices on August 1. We are waiting for more guidance from the Governor’s Office and Department of Health on when school vs. school competition can begin and are hopeful of that permission being granted for our normal contest dates later in August. To that end, school vs. school scrimmages are SUSPENDED. We do not anticipate that suspension changing soon and there remains the possibility that no scrimmages will be permitted in the contact sports of football, soccer, and field hockey. We will certainly keep you updated if that changes.”
Goldring said that the OHSAA plans on continuing to have conversations about both field hockey and cross country being put into the low/non-contact category.
After speaking with the Governor’s Office, Goldring explained that one thing was very clear, the end goal is to make sure Ohio’s student-athletes get the opportunity to “learn the lifelong lessons and receive the social, emotional, and physical benefits that the privilege of participating in education-based interscholastic athletics programs provide.”
“We all have to be accountable for following all mandates and requirements. By not following the mandates and requirements, we are putting our student-athletes at risk of not only contracting and/or spreading COVID-19 but also at risk of losing the season for themselves, their families, their teammates, their schools and their communities. Mandates and requirements put into place must be followed in order for the Governor’s Office to continue to allow us to participate,” Goldring said.
According to Goldring, the OHSAA has been working hard to finalize contest day mandates and requirements that he says will be strictly enforced.
“Our administrators, coaches, and student-athletes will be held accountable for non-compliance. So as to not cause alarm, these mandates and requirements will be to elevate many of the recommendations that were provided in the OHSAA Return to Play Recommendations document to the level of mandates and requirements and should not require wholesale modifications to your game-day protocol,” Goldring added.
As rules and regulations change within the sports world due to COVID-19, here at Loveland Magazine we will continue to bring you the latest updates so that you and your family know what to expect if your child or someone you know is participating in Ohio High School athletics this year! Stay tuned to the Sports 411 With Me, Cassie Mattia!
Loveland, Ohio – The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) made another sports announcement on July 22nd giving more specific “Return to Play” guidelines for the sports of cross country, field hockey, football, golf, soccer, and tennis.
The updated guidelines also included a Student Pledge that all student-athletes are now required to sign before participating in a sport this Fall.
Below is the OHSAA’s 2020 COVID-19 Individual Sports Recommendations:
The OHSAA’s Interim Executive Director, Bob Goldring spoke about the updated sport-specific guidelines in the newsletter the OHSAA released on July 22nd.
“The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has presented the OHSAA with a myriad of challenges. The Executive Director’s Office, with support from its Board of Directors and feedback from the Ohio Joint Advisory Committee on Sports Medicine, the National Federation of State High School Associations and the Ohio Department of Health along with support from the Ohio Lt. Governor’s Office, offer a Return to Play document as recommendations on how our member schools can consider approaching the many components of ‘opening up’ sports with the objective of commencing the fall sports seasons on August 1, 2020. The OHSAA fully intends to support its member schools and the student-athletes who desire to compete in interscholastic athletics and will continue to assess all areas as more information becomes available. We encourage you to especially pay attention to the early pages of the document closely since they indicate that many of the recommendations can ONLY be utilized if mandates from the Ohio Department of Health Director’s Order are modified.“
Included below are the updated “Return To Play” recommendations brought to you by the OHSAA.
The OHSAA understands that the physical and mental benefits of participation in education-based interscholastic athletics are numerous and are heightened even more during this pandemic. Students who participate learn life lessons in an environment that cannot be duplicated. Academic achievement, the development of leadership, and social skills as well as the mental health benefits are known to be greatly enhanced in students who participate in our programs compared to those who do not. There is no doubt that the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has already resulted in thousands of our students missing out on these life-shaping educational experiences over the past several months, and we certainly hope we can return to some type of normalcy as it relates to interscholastic athletics soon. With that being said, in order for interscholastic athletics to occur, we all need to follow the protocols that have been put in place.
The recommendations within the Return to Play document for the resumption of the varsity, non-varsity, and 7th-8th grade interscholastic athletic seasons and participation opportunities have been made with the health, safety, and well-being of all student-athletes in mind.
The risk of coronavirus transmission will still be present to some degree as interscholastic athletics activities begin in August and will continue until there is a widely available vaccine or therapeutic care, possibly through the 2020-21 school year. While the science about COVID-19 is evolving, it will be important to remain vigilant and nimble to respond to new developments. Students and their families, along with school personnel, must recognize these risks and implement best practices to reasonably mitigate these risks. Participation in school activities is voluntary and every individual will need to evaluate the risk versus the benefits of athletics participation. Those immunocompromised students and staff, or those who live with family members with elevated health concerns, should evaluate associated risks of participation and may choose not to participate. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the virus that causes COVID-19 is thought to spread mainly from person to person, mainly through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks, and also may be produced when yelling, cheering, singing and spitting. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. Spread is more likely when people are in close contact with one another (within about six feet). Risk mitigation strategies should be aimed at reducing the likelihood of a person being exposed to respiratory droplets coming from another person. Every school is different, and every athletics activity is different. Certain mitigation strategies may be feasible in one school or for one activity, but not another.
Schools should attempt to significantly mitigate exposures by:
Maintaining physical distancing while not on the field or court of play;
Requiring face coverings while not on the field or court of play;
Reducing or greatly eliminating unnecessary travel;
Reducing or eliminating sharing of common equipment, and
Reducing or eliminating contact frequency with student-athletes from schools and non-interscholastic programs outside of each school’s league/conference or normal competition sphere.
As things develop and are consistently adapting to make Ohio High School sports the safest possible during the COVID-19 pandemic Loveland Magazine will continue to bring you the latest local sports updates! We wish all those planning on participating in high school sports this year the best of luck and to please adhere to the safety guidelines so that fans, family, and other students may enjoy watching you compete this year!
You might want to wait to do your back to school shopping!
by Cassie Mattia
Ohio’s favorite Back to School Holiday is only a couple of weeks away! Ohio will open up its Sales Tax Holiday on Friday, August 7 beginning at 12 AM and will end on Sunday, August 9 at 11:59 PM.
Loveland Magazine compiled a list of items below that will be exempt from sales and use tax during the Sales Tax Holiday:
An item of clothing priced at $75 or less
An item of school supplies priced at $20 or less
An item of school instructional material priced at $20 or less
Items used in a trade or business are not exempt under the sales tax holiday
Although COVID-19 is more present than ever businesses will be allowed to promote “Back to School” sales as there has been no restriction placed on advertising for Ohio’s Sales Tax Holiday.
Have questions about Ohio’s Sales Tax Holiday? Below we included the most frequently asked questions so that you will be prepared on August 7th! Click on the question in blue to view the answer!
If you have any additional questions regarding this information, contact the Ohio Department of Taxes at 1-800-304-3211, or you may contact them through e-mail.
Loveland, Ohio – Over the last several months’ life as we know it has been changing and evolving, including the lives of the Loveland High School Student-Athletes. Coaches, Parents, and Spectators have been waiting patiently to see if and when the Fall 2020-2021 sports seasons will begin and what the stipulations will be due to the rampant COVID-19 Pandemic.
On Wednesday, July 22nd, Bob Goldring, the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s (OHSAA) Interim Executive Director, issued updated guidelines and “COVID-19 Return to Play Recommendations.”
In the new guidelines, Goldring and the OHSAA team emphasized that participation in school activities is voluntary. Goldring and the OHSAA team stated that every individual will need to evaluate the risk versus the benefits of athletics participation.
“Those immunocompromised students and staff, or those who live with family members with elevated health concerns, should evaluate associated risks of participation and may choose not to participate,” OHSAA said.
The OHSAA Executive Director’s Office, the Office’s Official Board of Directors, the Ohio Joint Advisory Committee on Sports Medicine, and the National Federation of State High School Associations, joined forces to help write an updated “COVID-19 Return to Play” document. The document includes recommendations on how member schools can consider approaching the many components of “opening up” sports with the objective of commencing the fall sports seasons on August 1.
“The recommendations within this document for the resumption of the varsity, non-varsity and 7th-8th grade interscholastic athletic seasons and participation opportunities have been made with the health, safety, and well-being of all student-athletes in mind,” the OHSAA document said.
Below are some of the topics the OHSAA document covers:
Game Day Face Masks/Coverings
Sidelines and Benches
Game Day Venue Restrictions and Spectators
COVID-19 Pre-Participation Screening
Failed Screening or Positive COVID-19 Test Action Plan
Positive Test – Action Plan
If You Had Close Contact With an Infected Person
Contest-Day Screening Procedures
Game Day Event Staff
Concessions
Athletic Training Room and Locker Rooms
Travel Considerations The following items are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED
The following is the complete document from OHSAA stating the “COVID-19 Return to Play Recommendations” that was issued on Wednesday, July 22nd.
For more of the latest updates on the OHSAA and Loveland High School Sports stay tuned to the Sports 411 With Me, Cassie Mattia!
Loveland, Ohio – As student-athletes across Ohio are gearing up to start practicing and competing, the Loveland Tigers Football Coach, Andy Cruse, is more than excited to get his team ready for the 2020-2021 season!
Over the past several months, all contact sports in the state of Ohio were put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing student-athletes to take it upon themselves to prepare for their up and coming sports seasons. Ohio coaches of course tried to impact their student-athletes as much as possible virtually, but for many high school athletes having coaches physically there motivating them through tough practices is what the athletes are saying they both want and need!
Recently OHSAA released guidelines for all Ohio High School sports programs in regards to what the protocol will be once practices and competitions begin. With that being said I decided to check in with LHS’s Head Football Coach Andy Cruse to see just how these guidelines will affect the football program, the student-athletes, the coaches, and the loyal Tiger spectators. Here is the Loveland Tiger Football 411 featuring Coach Andy Cruse!
CassieHave you started in-person practices yet with the team and coaches and if so are there any restrictions?
Coach CruseWe began workouts with restrictions on June 1st. We have done football-related activities for a while now, but just recently started having limited contact during on-field training. We officially begin our season on August 1st.
CassieHave you had fewer players come out for the team because of COVID-19 and the Pay-to-Play implementation?
Coach CruseSurprisingly, no. We have had the best attendance since I’ve been the Head Coach at Loveland. I truly believe that quarantine made our athletes appreciate football and being together more. Many of them had to be very creative in their workouts without a weight room, so being able to train in our beautiful weight room has been great for all of them.
CassieHave you named team captains and if so who are they?
Coach CruseWe have not. This is something we will do early on in August. We have many players that have really emerged as leaders since last December.
CassieHow are you and your staff handling the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions? Has it been tough or have you successfully managed the situation?
Coach CruseOur staff has handled it very well. Head Coaches did a walk thru on everything with Brian Conatser, our AD before we started workouts and then my staff and I did a walk-thru of how the workouts would go before we started back up on June 1st.My staff and I, like the rest of the athletic department, are taking every precaution necessary and are following the guidelines that the state has put out. Initially, it was very different than what we were used to. We have told our players from the beginning of quarantine that we must adjust and adapt moving forward and that is exactly what we have done.
CassieDo you have any returning Seniors or stand-out players from last year? What are your expectations for this year in regards to wins and losses?
Coach CruseWe return 9 out of 11 starters on offense and many defensive players return with varsity experience. This team is quietly gaining more and more confidence. It has been a joy to be around them since June 1st as it is very clear they enjoy working hard and being around each other. My expectations are to be competitive in every game we play and to respond to adversity that is thrown our way this season. Senior standouts include QB Calvin Cloud, OL Zach DeWitt, WR Tyler Lake, WR Aaron Morton, DE Gabe Ogdan, and TE/LB Austin Lodor. There are a number of other players we expect big things from this season too. As a whole, we are seeing a lot of competition for playing time, which is what we want.
CassieThe ECC recently added 3 more schools to the conference making the conference that much more competitive! This year who are you excited to compete against and who do you think will be challenging to compete against?
Coach CruseThe ECC is a terrific conference and will continue to be even more challenging. In our conference for football, every week is an absolute battle. There are no easy games on our schedule but we embrace that challenge and are excited about it!
CassieAre you able to hold any fundraisers for the athletes or events to help with the pay-to-play fees?
Coach CruseUnfortunately we missed out on a couple of things we had planned due to COVID-19. We will be selling discount cards until July 30th around the community. Be on the lookout for our players and please help support Loveland Athletics!
CassieIn your own words, talk about your experience with the quarantine, COVID-19, and trying to be the best coach you can be during this time.
Coach CruseQuarantine was a unique time for all people for a lot of reasons. For me personally, I really enjoyed the time with my family, especially being with my daughter every single day! She is 8 months old now, so seeing how much she has changed in a few months and being with her every step of the way has been a blast. It was time I would’ve never gotten had COVID-19 not happened.
Overall, I looked at quarantine as an opportunity to get better every day. Just like we stressed with our players, I tried to have a routine every day to make sure I was productive. I am not a huge reader, but during quarantine, I quickly became one. I read about a book every 1-2 weeks and really enjoyed it. There were also a number of virtual football clinics that my staff and I attended as well.
Aside from that, we had a team meeting every week, at least one position meeting a week with players and a number of staff meetings. I grew to really look forward to these interactions with our players and coaches. When it all started, we decided as a staff that we wanted to make sure we were in constant communication with our players. We felt that checking in with them to see how things were going at home, how school was going, and then how workouts were going was going to be very important. We also took it as an opportunity to get closer as a team by getting to know each other better.
Check out the Loveland Tigers football schedule for this up and coming season!
2020-2021 Loveland Tigers Football Schedule
8/28 Sycamore 9/4 at Princeton 9/11 Turpin 9/18 West Clermont 9/25 at Milford 10/2 Little Miami 10/9 at Walnut Hills 10/16 at Kings 10/23 Anderson 10/30 at Winton Woods
For more of your latest local sports news stay tuned to the Sports 411 With Me, Cassie Mattia! Oh and by the way…GO TIGERS!
Cassie Mattia is a resident of Historic Downtown and is the Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine
by Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – Exciting changes are on the horizon for the Eastern Cincinnati Conference as they continue to rebrand and come up with fresh new ideas!
Just a few weeks ago, the ECC announced that they wanted to go through a league transformation which not only included adding three new schools to the conference (Little Miami, Winton Woods, and Lebanon) but also included coming up with a new conference slogan for the 2020-2021 sports season.
In order to properly decide on the new conference slogan, the ECC held a public vote, in which anyone could go onto the ECC website and select one of the top four pre-selected slogan ideas.
On June 15th the ECC announced the new slogan along with how many votes each slogan idea received. Below are the results from the vote!
#4 (18 Votes)
Excite. Challenge. Compete
#3 (30 Votes)
Easter Cincinnati Conference…top-level competition with community-based values
#2 (58 Votes)
Engage. Compete. Conquer
#1 (YOUR WINNER with 114 VOTES)
According to a news release by Forest Hills School District, Anderson High School will no longer be the Redskins! During a meeting on July 2nd, the Forest Hills Board of Education held a vote to retire the mascot, that was approved 4-1. The community has discussed this change for quite some time in order to support inclusivity and diversity within the district.
Bill Lyon, Forest Hills Board of Education President, spoke about the decision shortly after the meeting.
“We serve a passionate community and the Board of Education respects the many different voices invested in the future of the mascot,” Lyons said, “Now is the time to unite with the common goal of selecting a mascot that celebrates Anderson’s proud traditions of academic and athletic excellence.”
The selection of the new mascot and brand for Anderson will begin during the 2020-2021 academic year. The Forest Hills District says that the selection will include students, alumni, staff, and community participants.
Forest Hills Superintendant, Scot Prebles, explained in the Forest Hills District news release that the mascot selection and rebranding process would begin sometime in July.
“Next steps in the process will begin in July and will include the creation of a timeline and the organization of a committee charged to lead the transition,” said Scot Prebles, Superintendent, “As the careful allocation of fiscal resources is always top of mind, the school will also launch a fundraising committee to ensure this transition takes place in the most cost-effective manner and using private donations to the greatest extent possible.”
The Forest Hills School District said that additional information regarding the district’s plans will be made available online at www.ForestHills.edu and on social media.
For more of your latest local sports news stay tuned to the Sports 411 with me, Cassie Mattia!
Cassie Mattia lives in Historic Downtown and is Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine
by Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – Loveland it’s that time of the week again for your Loveland Magazine “Summer Salad!” This week we captured several great moments that were happening around Loveland. We also checked in with some of our favorite local businesses to see just what they have been up to this summer so far! Continue reading below to see who and what the Summer Salad featured this week!
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Congratulations to Jake Salamon with the Loveland Police Department!
“We are so proud of Loveland Police Officer Jake Salamon! Today, Ashley from MADD stopped by to present Officer Salamon with the “2020 Top Cop Award.” Officer Salamon received this award for his continued dedication to the safety of our community through concentrated traffic enforcement centered around removing impaired drivers from the roadway.” – Loveland Ohio Police Department Facebook Page
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Ricky Mulvey shares his third episode from his documentary podcast, “Total Fighter!”
In the third episode of Ricky Mulvey’s documentary podcast “Total Fighter”, Ezzard Charles tries to move on from his tragic meeting with Sam Baroudi and the mafia tightens its grip over his boxing career. A match against Joe Louis becomes more possible after the biggest fight in Cincinnati’s history.
Featuring interviews with P Man Jones, Ezzard Charles II, William Dettloff, author of “Ezzard Charles: A Boxing Life,” and Buddy LaRosa, founder of LaRosa’s Pizza.
Ricky Mulvey is a former sportswriter and talking head at Loveland Magazine.
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Congratulations Move2Loveland! We are proud to say that we have some EXTREMELY hard-working real estate agents right here in Loveland, Ohio!
We’re very proud Move2Loveland has made RealTrends’ list of America’s Best Real Estate Agents for the third year in a row… This time as the #10 team in all of Ohio!
Join BRS Insurance and the Thomas More Saints for a day of golf! Click the image below to see how you can show your support for BRS and Thomas More University Athletics!
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Right now there are huge savings for Christmas in July at RP Diamond
Storewide! Discounts will last for the entire month!
Are you running a small business and are in need of sanitizer?! PF5 can help! Click the link below to see how you can get hand sanitizer for your business!
“Product here now in Cincinnati area. Helping out Hair Salons, Restaurants, Gyms and other businesses as they open up. Also selling direct to homes. Free delivery in the Tri-State area. Saw pricing at the C-Store charging $124/gallon. We are selling at $37/gallon! Buy direct from the manufacturer!” – PF5.org
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Summer storms are here so that means you have to be sure to keep your gutters clear! All American Gutter Protection can help you today! Read below for more details!
Looking for gutter guards but not sure where to find something GREAT and RELIABLE for your home? We have two locations in Ohio: covering more than half of the state. We offer free estimates all year long (888) 323-8090.
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Don’t forget to come out and support your “LOVE-LY” community by participating in the annual Loveland Police STUFF A Cruiser Food Drive! Click the image below for event details!
Click the title link above to read about how the LHS Athletics community is coming together in light of the “Pay-To-Play” announcement to support the Tiger student-athletes!
Click the title link about to read about how Loveland is giving back in order to take care of the community’s youth!
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Looking to get “shredded” for the Summer?! Vibe Nutrition is having a SUMMER SHRED CHALLENGE and there are only 10 spots left! Sign up before it’s too late!
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And that concludes this week’s Summer Salad! Stay tuned for more sizzling hot summer details about your favorite Loveland citizens and businesses!
Cassie Mattia is the Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine and lives in Historic Downtown.
by Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – Loveland videographer Bob Kessler wanted to get a unique perspective of this year’s 4th of July fireworks by getting up close and personal with the launch zone! Kessler was able to not only show the launch of the fireworks but the explosions as well in one wide-angle shot. Loveland Magazine and Kessler teamed up this year for the 4th so that he could receive credentials to be on the actual launch site. By doing this, Kessler was able to witness the firework preparations and be there when the fuses were lit.
Loveland’s and Symmes Township’s annual Independence Day celebrations were canceled this year, however, the City and Township were able to hold two simultaneous, “park and watch” firework shows on Saturday, July 4th.
Kessler positioned himself at Loveland’s launch site inside Philips Park which was closed to the public for the day. Symmes Park, which was also closed to the public for the day, acted as the launchpad for the Township.
Kessler explained that previously he shot video from various street views in Downtown Loveland and on the bridge of the Little Miami River. Typically, Loveland launches its annual show from inside Kiwanis Park on Wall Street but, this year, because of COVID 19 the City was concerned about having thousands of people crowd into Historic Downtown, which is known as the best viewing spot for the fireworks. City Hall ended up deciding to move the launch to a higher location in order to take advantage of the area’s church and school parking lots. Spectators were either encouraged to watch the shows, drive-in movie style and practice social distancing, or residents who lived near the parks were asked to stay at home to enjoy the show. Those that decided to watch the fireworks from their cars went to Loveland High School, Home of the Brave Park, church parking lots, and surrounding subdivisions while of course remaining socially distant.
Kessler told us that the launch locations were chosen to accommodate the use of larger shells, which go higher into the air and allow spectators to watch from a much wider area.
Here is Kessler’s favorite still shot from his vantage point at the launch pad inside Phillips Park. “This is my favorite picture from the batch I shot last night. I was about 250′ from the launch site, behind the exhibitors running the show. Nikon D850, 14mm, ISO 400, f/10, 8 seconds,” said Bob Kessler.
Kessler said he was excited about the addition of a second launch site at Symmes Park this year.
“The second launch site promised to make for a unique experience. That’s why I settled on Phillips Park as the best location for me to photograph both stills and video images.”
Dave Miller, Loveland Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief, covered the wide shots from the top of the stands at LHS’s stadium where he was able to view both Loveland’s and Symmes’ fireworks. He used two cameras, one acted as a live feed so LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV could have a live broadcast of the shows.
Kessler and Miller were in constant communication in the days leading up to the show as times and locations rapidly changed with not much notice to the public. Luckily Loveland Magazine had a firework “inside man,” which allowed us to communicate quick and accurate firework updates to the public.
A few minutes before launch time Kessler sent a message to Miller saying, “I passed the cop-test. The patrol came through and the Rozzi guy said, ‘He’s with us!”
Some of the camera equipment Bob Kessler used at the launch site of the Loveland Fireworks show.
Loveland was the first to set off their rockets, then Symmes followed shortly after. Each firework show lasted about fifteen minutes. After the two shows finished both launch pads put on a simultaneous Grand Finale.
“I first contacted the Loveland Symmes Fire Department about getting permission to be close, as they previously ran the show and knew me and my work with Loveland Magazine,” Kessler explained, “I then approached Rozzi’s Famous Fireworks and got the permission of the exhibitor running the show to shoot within the normally closed firing zone.”
Kessler positioned himself in a ditch behind the show operator. Using a wide-angle lens and shooting 4K, he was able to capture a high definition video that allowed him to digitally “zoom-in” on the image without compromising quality. “I concurrently shot digital images with my still camera, the equivalent to an 8K image,” Kessler said.
Kessler experimented with various settings on his camera as the show progressed, mostly shooting still frames at various time exposures of 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 seconds. “All this fussing had to be done quickly, as I knew the show would only last 15-20 minutes. I managed to get about 75 images and several videos,” Kessler said, “Out of that, I ended up with 11 shots that I liked enough to post on Facebook.”
Kessler learned from the Rozzi folks that the firework shells are able to go up to 100′ in the air for each inch of shell diameter. For example, a 4′ shell would go 400′ feet into the air while a 6′ shell would go about 600 feet into the air.
“I always look forward to working with Bob Kessler on video projects because I learn so much,” David Miller said, “My only regret is there wasn’t enough of him to go around that night so he couldn’t be in the stadium with me to adjust my camera. If he could have been there then all I would have had to do was hit the record button. My video would have been so much better!”
Some of the video equipment David Miller used to shoot video and live-stream the fireworks show from the high vantage point of the stands at Tiger Stadium
Miller also said that when Kessler offered to shoot the show he knew that he would expend countless hours readying his equipment and making adjustments. “Doing something like shooting fireworks is seat-of-pants. There are so many variables such as the rapidly setting sun. Will it be completely dark, well it will be if it’s a cloudy day. If the sun is out and going over the horizon which way will it be heading in relation to where the camera is? Fifteen minutes can make a huge difference in the ambient light that time of day,” Miller explained, “Bob sees all these variables in the days before and has the brainpower to take most of the guesswork out of the equation.”
Miller said he really enjoyed watching the evening unfold from the highest elevation in town. “When I got to the stadium there were already about 20 teens playing frisbee football and before the show, someone new showed up with a cooler of water balloons to cool them off with.”
At showtime, many of the teens and some adults joined Miller at the top of LHS’s bleachers to enjoy the vantage point of seeing both shows. “The pre-show of all the neighborhood fireworks displays going off from the high vantage point I had was pretty cool as well,” Miller added.
Did you miss the 4th of July firework shows this year? Well, we have you covered! Click below to relive Bob Kessler’s 4th of July Fireworks video production!
Kessler also produced a short clip of Loveland’s Finale which Loveland Magazine ended up using as an experiment of a “Video Cover Photo”.
Loveland Magazine sends out a special thanks to Rozzi’s Famous Fireworks for giving us access to the launch site and showing us such wonderful hospitality!
Check out these previous firework shows that Bob Kessler produced for Loveland Magazine TV. In this first video from 2015, Bob showed close-ups as the fuses were lit by a crew of Loveland Firefighters in full protective gear. Deputy Fire Chief Don Books talks about the show and how safe it was for the crew.
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by Cassie Mattia
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