Elizabeth Madison on the stand after capturing the State Title (Photo @CoachSwitzer)
Loveland, Ohio – Head Coach Chris Switzer said on FaceBook after Elizabeth Madison completed her perfect season, “So proud of this kid…. what a year – undefeated State Champ as a freshman.” He was exclaiming his esteem for Madison after she defeated every opponent in Columbus at the Schottenstein Center at Ohio State University during the DI OHSAA State Wrestling Championships.
Madison won every match she entered as a 170 lb. ninth grader and finished the season 42-0 with 40 pins. This was the inaugural season for the Ohio High School Athletic Association to host a Women’s wrestling tournament. Madison will forever be remembered as Ohio’s first 170-pound champion.
In January 2022, the OHSAA announced that Women’s wrestling and Men’s volleyball would be added as sanctioned sports beginning with the 2022-23 school year. The Ohio High School Athletic Association averages more than 50,000 fans for the weekend of wrestling.
Watch Elizabeth Madison pin 4-time State qualifier DeSales High School senior Rebekah Oladakun, to become Ohio’s first 170-pound champion
Loveland High School’s first Women’s Wrestling Team at the Winter Sports Awards. (Photo by Loveland Tiger Wrestling)Elizabeth Madison on the stand after capturing the Regional Title (Photo @CoachSwitzer)
Loveland, Ohio – Did you know more than 6 million Americans have one or more developmental disabilities (DD)? That means about 15 percent of the United States population is living with DD. Over the few past decades, individuals with DD and DD advocates have been fighting for inclusion and equal opportunities within their communities and the workforce. Without help from leaders and social reformers like Dorothy Dix, Helen Keller, Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., Ronald Reagan, and George Bush, to name a few, both National Developmental Disabilities Month and the Americans with Disabilities Act wouldn’t exist.
“It’s just basic human needs not special needs.” – Courtney Hineman
In 1987, President Ronald Reagan made a public announcement asking Americans to provide individuals with DD “the encouragement and opportunities they need to lead productive lives and to achieve their full potential.” Reagan’s powerful message not only established the month of March as National DD Awareness Month, but his advocacy also led to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) being passed in 1990 by George Bush. The ADA officially made it illegal to discriminate against individuals with disabilities.
Once the ADA passed, DD advocates across the world began to take a stand, using their own experiences and success stories to promote equal rights. Although progress has been made in the DD community there are still many obstacles’ individuals with DD face every day. This is why National DD Awareness Month is a time to celebrate the achievements of those with DD and take the time to educate yourself and those surrounding you on the importance of including individuals with DD in all aspects of community life!
In light of this very special March celebration, I decided to invite two of the most respected DD advocates in Ohio, Community Connection Coordinator Connie Mehlman and Community Outreach Advocate Courtney Hineman, both with the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities to my Loveland Magazine TV Table of Discussions! Connie and Courtney have paved the way for inclusion and equality within the DD community giving them both a plethora of knowledge when it comes to educating others about how they too can advocate for individuals with DD.
I am pleased to present my latest Table of Discussions episode featuring Connie Mehlman and Courtney Hineman! Happy DD Awareness Month!
Check out Episode 1 of Courtney’s BCBDD VLOG, “Courtney Explains It All!”
The video below features Courtney as she discusses Neurodiversity with the BCBDD staff!
Below Courtney was invited to be the keynote speaker at the Best Buddies Ohio Annual Gala!
In celebration of National Developmental Disabilities Month, Courtney wrote an Opinion Editorial about what it’s like to live with developmental disabilities and how the community created equal opportunities for her.
Loveland, Ohio – What better way to know spring has sprung than to see yard sales springing up around town? And, this is the topper with jewelry, collectibles, furniture, tools, electronics, household stuff, and much more.
March 25 is the Loveland Presbyterian Church’s Giant Yard Sale
March is National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month
by David Miller
Dear City Hall,
I ask you to install directional signs in our Historic District that point to accessible parking spaces.
To honor National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month I decided to revisit the draft of a proposal I worked on from 2014 until 2016. Most of the proposal was eventually approved by Loveland City Council and the Loveland Planning and Zoning Commission and is now adopted law in the City. I started the project in 2014 when resident, Amy Clawson raised concerns to me. Amy said that unfortunately, a very common problem for people who have different needs is in finding good, appropriate parking that can accommodate their physical or health issues. She pointed me to several instances of inadequate and poorly marked parking spaces in the Historic District. After taking an inventory around town, I published this story: Accessible parking; out of sight, out of mind, neglected and abused.
This nearly invisible accessible parking space was at McCoy Park in 2014. There should have been a pole-mounted sign and the paint on the pavement had all but disappeared.
Because most spaces in Loveland in 2016, whether on public or private parking lots were not in compliance with either Ohio or Federal law, the proposal was to mark all accessible parking spaces in the City in a consistent manner and for City Hall to choose a deliberate pathway to bring them all into lawful compliance.
This was the neglected condition of the accessible parking sign near the restroom at Nisbet Park in 2014.
It’s intuition that leads you to rather easily locate the accessible parking spaces at Kroger or shopping centers, however, since most businesses in Historic Downtown do not provide their own parking, directional signs as well as signage at the parking spots themselves are needed.
At the time I started my research, accessible parking was out of sight, out of mind, neglected, and abused. During special events, they are still mostly out of sight and mind.
I received the full support and helpful suggestions from both City Manager Dave Kennedy and City Engineer Cindy Cindy Klopfenstein as I crafted and illustrated the plan. Kennedy from his end ensured that the planning commission and city council gave careful thought to the plan and secured their approvals.
When built, the Trails at East Loveland was the first new development to fully comply with the new requirements for accessible parking spaces.
The plan as adopted requires that all new parking spaces from new development must tell the Planning and Zoning Commission how they intend to comply with the new requirements. Any repaving, recoating, or new stripping of existing parking lots must now also use the guidelines.
Also adopted at the time was a policy requirement that all applications, whether from private groups or City Hall who filled out an application for special events describe on the application how they will provide the number of accessible parking spaces based on their anticipated attendance.
The Accessible Parking Sign used by the State of New York
The original plan I proposed was to use a new universal design that at the time was being adopted around the country, but through research of Ohio Department of Transportation law, I discovered that although they were considering the new design they had not yet made it their design of choice. The newer “fluid movement” design is meant to accentuate a more positive image of accessible needs rather than an expression of one using the parking spot as being “handicapped”.
Also, one idea I had in 2016 was to have directional signs placed throughout our Downtown Historic District pointing to where a person could find accessible parking, without driving around looking for them.
Thus, in light of it being National Disabilities Awareness Month I have revisited my earlier proposal and now suggest “wayfinding” directional signs in the Historic District so people can find the hidden gems closest to where they want to go.
I propose permanently mounted signs as well as portable ones that would be brought out for special events such as Christmas in Loveland, parades, and the Independence Day event.
The Direction Sign I propose for Historic Downtown Loveland would tell visitors and shoppers where to find an accessible parking space and that the Sweetheart City of Loveland, Ohio is a welcoming community.
Thank you for considering my suggestion.
Best regards,
David Miller
The Accessible Parking Space Guide Approved in 2016
Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month is the right time to talk about it
by Lisa Guliano
Before the 1950s, Ohio residents with developmental disabilities were often sent to institutions or kept at home, isolated and hidden from the public. Thanks to the advocacy efforts of parents who wanted better for their children, change was brought about. In 1952, parents in Butler County formed what would later become the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities (BCBDD).
With such a start, BCBDD has always had a hand in advocating for people with developmental disabilities and despite progress, there are many ways that advocacy is still needed to this day.
In 1986, the Ohio Legislature signed into law a Bill of Rights for people with developmental disabilities. The statute includes 24 rights to legally reinforce the freedom to choose and experience life. These are basic rights such as: the right to participate in decisions that affect their lives; the right to social interaction with members of either sex; the right to food adequate to meet accepted standards of nutrition; and the right to privacy, including periods of privacy and places of privacy to name some examples.
It has always been difficult for me to accept that people with disabilities needed additional protection under the law to simply be treated equally as all citizens.
Given that reality, our Board’s mission focuses on supporting people to live, work and learn in their community. What that looks like is different for every person depending on their goals and dreams for their future – just like you and me. Our role as advocates is an honorable one — it is vitally important given the history of people with disabilities living in institutions and being hidden from the community for being different.
Supporting people with disabilities to access opportunities to develop their full human potential – language also included in the Bill of Rights – incredibly increases our value as a society. Each person realizing their goals and dreams has an exponential effect on all of us.
If you’re trying to think of examples of what our mission looks like in the community, I’d encourage you to look at yourself, possibly your family members and even your friends. Haven’t we all worked on a plan for our lives and accessed support from others along the way? Are there times when you or someone you know faced challenges, or even barriers because of being different or not fitting a “typical profile?” As you’ve walked your path in life, recall the times where your opportunities led you to reaching goals, getting closer to your full potential, contributing to your sense of worth, your family and your community.
Diversity doesn’t look all that different for people with disabilities as they focus on living their best lives – not defined by us – but supported by us. We celebrate Developmental Disabilities awareness month in March and I’m challenging you to focus on the abilities, not the disabilities of people in our community, recognizing the unique ways all of us contribute to society.
I’d like to take a few minutes of your time to share my perspective on the school levy that will be on the May ballot.
I’m a 60-year-old, 30-year Loveland area resident with a home in the Loveland school district. I’m semi-retired and our children, who attended Loveland schools from K-12, are grown. Being semi-retired means, like many of you, I watch my spending closely. As someone who has always been proud of the Loveland Schools’ reputation and performance, the divide in our community from the past few levies has been disheartening. I have friends and neighbors on both sides of this issue. I have voted no in the past and I understand why people feel as they do about the situation.
The perspective I want to share is fairly simple, and one that as fellow property owners I hope you will consider. I firmly believe it’s in all of our best interests to be more aligned this May.
The premise is this: I understand that property values are subject to a variety of factors. I believe that school district performance is among the leading considerations of families looking to move to a new community. The way l see it a school district that does not support reasonable funding requests is destined for declining property values over time, as school performance and reputation declines. The reality is that things do cost more over time and it does cost to attract and retain top talent.
Let’s say for the sake of argument that property values drop 10 percent over the next ten years. If your Loveland home was valued at the current Zillow average of $355,000, you will take a $35,500 hit when you sell it. That is a very significant loss. I would prefer to pay a few hundred dollars more each year to help maintain the good reputation of our schools, protect our property values and provide our students with a well-rounded educational experience.
While each of us has reasons that affect our decisions about these levies, I believe what we have in common is that we all prosper when we have a high performing school district. I would like our state to provide a better funding mechanism for our public schools, but unfortunately, it doesn’t. I trust that our current school leaders are good stewards of our hard earned tax dollars and I believe that they reacted appropriately to our feedback when the District overreached.
After voting against the oversized levy a few years ago, I will be voting yes on the May levy that will be on the ballot, mostly to help protect our property values. I’m willing to find the additional hundreds of dollars per year as an investment in education, our community and in all of our property values.
I appreciate you giving this issue further consideration and I respect that each of you has the right to vote for what you believe is best for your situation.
Sam Smith graduated from Loveland High School in 2018
Loveland, Ohio – Loveland High School graduate Samuel Wright Smith has been chosen to be the Director of Photography on the high-profile short film, Heartbreak on Murray Hill and fundraising has begun in earnest to support the costly production. Loveland area residents might be particularly interested in donating or becoming a “credited” producer.
The film promises a slash of Edward Hopper-esque cinematography from Smith who will act as the eyes of the film, sculpting light, movement, and framing.
The movie is the true story of the director’s (Malcolm Quinn Silver-Van Meter) grandmother’s childhood breakup in 1956 immigrant NYC.
In preparing to begin shooting, Smith described his vision of how two scenes will be composed:
“A smoggy evening light outlines a working-class mother, hunched over a sewing machine. A split composition: out of focus in the background of her 1956 New York tenement apartment, her children hug their father.”
“Bobby, 11, donning a school uniform, stands over the camera with a note in her hand. A low-angle, wide-lens shot might indicate confidence, but not here. The note fills the frame and holds the power. Her body looks awkward and distorted—her hands are too big, torso too long, head too small.”
Since leaving Loveland in 2018 for the prestigious New York University Tisch School of the Arts, Smith has been the cinematographer on numerous projects including Crimson Ties, directed by Francesca Scorcese, which premiered at Tribeca. In 2020, at only age of 19, he published a photo book titled Abandoned Cincinnati through Fonthill Publishing.
Samuel Wright Smith is the author of Abandoned Cincinnati, a 2019 photo/commentary book available in Cincinnati bookstores and online through Amazon. The book explores the history, beauty, and implications of Cincinnati’s vacant structures.
Recently, Smith shot a feature film with the Secoya indigenous community in the Ecuadorian rainforest. His work has garnered attention at other major festivals including Nashville Film Festival and Beverly Hills Film Festival.
For Heartbreak on Murray Hill, the crew will build a replica 1956 tenement apartment. Smith describes the style as “warm realism”. Pulling inspiration from American Realist painters, he intends to create a style that is bold, believable, and magical.
When shooting begins, Smith will be using a sound stage at the NYC landmark, Kaufman Astoria Studios* which has been making entertainment history for more than 90 years. Heartbreak on Murray Hill will be filmed on stage F which belongs to Sesame Street when they are in production.**
Heartbreak on Murray Hill is the story of 11-year-old Bobby and her first breakup in 1950s NYC. It is based on a true story.
Heartbreak is set to be one of NYU’s most ambitious thesis films ever. Seeking an indie budget of $150K, the film is fiscally sponsored and donations are tax-deductible.
“Writing and photographing for Loveland Magazine in high school opened my eyes to the possibility of meaningful work through the lens of a camera. I owe so much of where I am to David Miller, the LM publisher. So many peers, teachers, and community organizers in the Loveland community gave me the push to pursue my dreams. I can’t believe that this is my life now. Living off of art seemed impossible once. But thanks to community: here I am,” said Smith.
Contact Sam Smith via EMAIL if you need more information about your fully tax-deductible support of Heartbreak on Murray Hill.
Thank you so much for your generosity! For this donation you will receive our Donor Package including behind the scenes content and a shout out on our social media!
For this donation you will receive our Patron Package including behind the scenes content, and early access to stills and trailers of the film, as well as a shout out on our social media!
For this donation, you will receive a Benefactor Package including behind the scenes content and early access to stills and trailers of the film, as well as an invitation to HBOMH red carpets and premieres!
For this donation, you will receive the Co-producer Package, including your name in the credits, your own IMDB page, behind the scenes content, and early access to stills & trailers of the film, as well as an invite to HBOMH red carpets and premieres!
Associate Producer Package: an invitation to set, your name in the credits, your own IMDB page, behind the scenes content, as well as early access to the final cut of the film, and an invite to HBOMH red carpets and premieres!
VIP Executive Producer Package: exclusive behind the scenes access and an invitation to the set, as well as your name in the credits, your own IMDB page, early access to the final cut of the film, and invitations to attend HBOMH red carpets and premieres!
* Today, KAS is the location for major motion pictures, independent film, television shows and commercials. The stages have been graced by actors such as Harrison Ford, Matt Damon, Ben Stiller, Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, Tom Hanks, Bill Cosby, Demi Moore and many other esteemed stars. Kaufman has also been the chosen production location of prominent directors including Martin Scorsese, Sydney Lumet, Norman Jewison, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, and Paul Greengrass. Today, KAS is the location for major motion pictures, independent film, television shows and commercials. The stages have been graced by actors such as Harrison Ford, Matt Damon, Ben Stiller, Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, Tom Hanks, Bill Cosby, Demi Moore and many other esteemed stars. Kaufman has also been the chosen production location of prominent directors including Martin Scorsese, Sydney Lumet, Norman Jewison, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, and Paul Greengrass.
Loveland, Ohio – When local standard time is about to reach Sunday, March 12, 2:00:00 AM clocks are turned forward 1 hour to Sunday, March 12, 3:00:00 AM local daylight time instead.
Sunrise and sunset will be about 1 hour later on Mar 12, than the day before. There will be more light in the evening.
The 2023 Eastside Business Bash, presented by the Milford Miami Township Chamber and Little Miami River Chamber Alliance will be hosted on March 9 between 4 and 7 pm, at the Little Miami Brewing Event Center, 310 Mill St in Milford, OH. This is the second year for this joint event which is the largest business expo in the northeast Cincinnati region, featuring 45 businesses from the area that provide both B2B and B2C services.
Attending the Expo is free, and the first 50 people to arrive will receive a free beer, featuring Little Miami Brewing’s unique hand-crafted beers. Attendees may enjoy light bites and drinks from the cash bar as they browse the booths. Items from local businesses and attendees will be raffled off throughout the afternoon.
This crossover event supports not only the entire Milford-Miami Township-Loveland area, but the entire east side of our region. Last year, over 200 people attended the Bash to explore the various businesses.
“Last year was our first year, so we didn’t know what to expect,” says CeeCee Collins, President of the Little Miami River Chamber Alliance. “The high turnout validated that our local communities are very interested in learning more about and supporting our local businesses.”
Andrea Brady, Executive Director of the Milford Miami Township Chamber, adds, “There are no ‘lines’ between our communities, and we want to reduce the number of times we think about an area as one place or another. We are one large region, and we are thrilled to support the entire area since increasing commerce supports us all.”
The Event Center sits at the start of downtown Milford, a street lined with unique shops and restaurants. The DORA (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area) allows alcoholic drinks to be carried on the street (in DORA cups), so visitors may browse the shops and wend their way to dinner after the event while enjoying their beverage.
March is Developmental Disabilities (DD) Awareness Month which makes it the perfect time to share how my community created opportunities for me and partly because of that, I’ve been able to flourish. As someone who lives with a developmental disability, I want others with disabilities to have similar opportunities for employment, leadership, and friendship.
When I was younger, I got to be a part of a summer work program through the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities (BCBDD). My first job was cleaning toilets and tables at Barn N Bunk, and I cleaned at Camp Campbell Gard as well. Later, I worked at the East Butler YMCA at the customer service desk.
I really enjoyed getting to interact with people and learn new things. For many people with disabilities, building friendships or gaining leadership skills can be difficult. For me, these work experiences helped create opportunities for both leadership and friendship. I feel my past work experiences lead me to the job I have now because I was able to learn how to interact with customers and show others that I’m a hard worker.
Sometimes, it can be hard for people with disabilities to develop friendships. For me, Best Buddies helped bridge that gap. Best Buddies is an international organization that matches people with and without disabilities for friendship. Through Best Buddies I have learned how to grow in a relationship with a friend, I’ve been able to try new things, and I’ve learned leadership skills. One of my favorite experiences through Best Buddies was painting pumpkins with my new friend.
Through Best Buddies, I have attended leadership trainings which helped me in my role as Community Outreach Advocate at BCBDD. At those leadership trainings we learned how to share our story. We learned how to write a speech and how to present in front of others. This has given me confidence not only at work but also in my personal life. I now know that I can speak up for myself and that sharing my experience can help others with disabilities and their families.
These opportunities helped me tremendously. You can create that for someone in your community. I hope that you take the time this month and every month to give someone with a disability an opportunity to grow in their skills and help them live the best life they can live.
