Darnell D. Parker, Jr. Beloved husband of Samantha Parker. Devoted father of Alexis, Madison, and soon to be born, Jalen Parker. Loving son of Nina and the late Darnell Parker, Sr. He is also survived by numerous extended family members and friends. Darnell passed away peacefully surrounded by the people he loved the most Sunday, July 24, 2022, at the age of 44.
Darnell was born and raised in Findlay, OH where he attended Findlay High School and played basketball. His education and basketball career continued at Bluffton University. His passion for basketball lead him to coaching high school basketball at Finneytown, Glen Este, Clark Montessori, CNE schools and finally spent five seasons at Loveland.
Darnell graduated from Bluffton University with a bachelor’s degree in Business and spent most of his professional career as Vice President at Beal Bank and Chase Bank. His last job was with Peoples Bank where he served as the Dealer’s Service Manager.
Above everything, Darnell loved his wife, daughters, family, and loved making memories with them. He will be greatly missed because he was deeply loved.
Visitation will be held on Saturday, July 30, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. until time of service 11:00 a.m. at The Vineyard Church-Chapel, 11340 Century Cir East, Springdale, OH 45246. Interment to follow at Oak Hill Cemetery. A celebration of life reception will be held at the Loveland High School Gymnasium, 1 Tiger Trail, Loveland, OH 45140, from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Loveland, Ohio – The Bengals today signed college free agent QB Drew Plitt and waived CB John Brannon. In addition, G Alex Cappa and HB Samaje Perine have been cleared to practice and removed from the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list.
Drew Plitt at a Loveland High School basketball game in 2018.
Plitt (6-2, 206), a rookie out of Ball State University, played in 46 career games for the Cardinals with 36 starts and completed 777 of 1246 passes (62.4 percent) for 9062 yards and 68 TDs. He also rushed for 423 yards and 14 TDs.
Plitt, who participated at the Bengals’ rookie minicamp in May as a tryout player, is from the Greater Cincinnati area and played at Loveland High School in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference, where he set a school record for career TD passes (42) and in 2013 led the Tigers to a 14-0 record and the Ohio Division II state championship.
Drew Plitt quarterbacked the Ohio Division II state championship team in 2013 for Loveland High School. An undefeated 14-0 Tiger season.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been updated to reflect that there is visitation at Vineyard Church from 10 AM until the service at 11 AM.
Loveland, Ohio – The beloved head coach of the Loveland High School Women’s Basketball team Darnell Parker succumbed to cancer on Sunday, July 24, 2022.
Here are the funeral, visitation, and celebration events for Coach Parker:
Family & Friends:
The funeral will be held Saturday, July 30th at 11 AM at Vineyard Church located at 11340 Century Circle East in Springdale. (MAP)
Visitation will be at Vineyard Church from 10 AM until the service at 11 AM.
Family & Friends:
A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, July 30th from 2 until 4 PM at Loveland High School located at 1 Tiger Trail.
Here are stories and videos produced by Loveland Magazine and Loveland Magazine TV
Loveland, Ohio – The beloved head coach of the Loveland High School Women’s Basketball team, Darnell Parker succumbed to cancer Sunday. As hundreds of condolences pour in from schools and individuals from around Ohio and the Tri-State, many remember and mention his endearing smile.
Loveland, Ohio – Who doesn’t remember being a kid and you get the fresh new box of crayons, Terri Carter answered when I asked her why the LIFE Food Pantry does their Back to School Backpack Drive each year. She continued, “It’s a new start. It’s a new year. It’s a new backpack filled with supplies.”
It’s early, but it’s never too early to help Loveland Area children be ready to head to their first day of Fall classes. You can help them go back with the same things and confident attitude that their more affluent classmates will have. Terri explains why in the interview.
Carolina Maurer added, “With dignity. With new school things.”
Terri is the President of the food pantry and Carolina coordinates their back-to-school program. I spoke to both today at the food pantry in Shoppers Haven to find out what they are doing and how you can help. I’m pretty sure after watching them answer questions, you will be willing to pitch in.
Visit the Pantry’s website to find out more about receiving assistance for yourself or your children, volunteering, or the instructions to hold a food drive in your place of worship, workplace, or friendly neighborhood.
OCJ Reporter Susan Tebben, left, interviews an activist during a protest at the Statehouse. Photo by David DeWitt, OCJ.
LOVELAND MAGAZINE NOTE: If I could, and I cannot think of a quick way tonight, I would tell readers how long we waited to have good journalists tell our readers what was going on at the Ohio State House. I do know that before I discovered the Ohio Capital Journal we had published Loveland Magazine for many, many years and search and searched all those many years for a way to connect Loveland to their state government and its impact on our lives. With much gratitude and appreciation, I congratulate the Journal staff who have been honored with these prestigious awards.
In the “Ohio’s Best Journalism Contest” from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Ohio Capital Journal won five awards, including three first place finishes and two in second place. The contest covered stories and editorial from 2021.
In digital media categories, OCJ Reporter Susan Tebben took home two first-place awards, one for best education issues reporting and one for best government/political reporting. Tebben also nabbed a second-place finish for best news story.
OCJ Reporter Jake Zuckerman won first place for best investigative reporting, and OCJ Editor David DeWitt won second place for best editorial/criticism writing.
We are incredibly honored and grateful for this recognition from our fellow journalists. We are also incredibly grateful for the support we receive from our readers and Ohioans across the state.
Best Investigative Reporting – First Place – Jake Zuckerman
Stories produced within eight days of the Jan. 6 raid on the U.S. Capitol: They include interviews with an Ohio woman who led her paramilitary unit into the building and an Ohio man who kicked in a Capitol window. A third uncovers how a state school board member organized a bus trip to ferry Ohioans to the rally.
Best Government/Political Reporting – First Place – Susan Tebben
Ohio government has been in turmoil amid the pandemic, attacks on democracy, and redistricting. One Ohio lawmaker called to charge Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine with terrorism over pandemic public health measures. An Ohio Board of Education member speaks on participating in the Jan. 6 “Stop the Steal” rally that led to the raid on the U.S. Capitol. And redistricting turned into a mess in 2021 despite Ohio Constitutional reforms passed by voters.
Best Education Issues Reporting – First Place – Susan Tebben
Public education under attack: This series of stories highlights various attacks on public education, from a state school board member accusing the Ohio superintendent of education of being paid by Bill Gates, to the movement to ban race-based focuses in Ohio schools, to investigative reporting showing very few actual complaints about divisive race-based focuses in education.
Best News Story Series – Second Place – Susan Tebben
Three separate stories covering the developments in Ohio gerrymandering: Ohio Republicans on the redistricting commission passing gerrymandered maps; the Senate President defending that gerrymandering, and testimony about redistricting gathered in committee.
Best Editorial/Criticism Writing – Second Place – David DeWitt
Gerrymandering pushes politicians to extremes, denies voters their voice, opens the door to corruption, radicalizes political discourse, kills compromise, and disintegrates democracy. Gerrymandering poisons everything. Nevertheless, Ohio’s Republican leaders have been playing political games with redistricting and cheating voters by gerrymandering their way to undue power. OCJ Editor David DeWitt takes them to task for this anti-democratic, unpatriotic attack.
Loveland, Ohio – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has classified Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren Counties as having “High” COVID-19 community spread. The CDC looks at the combination of three metrics — new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 population in the past 7 days, the percent of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients, and total new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population in the past 7 days — to determine the COVID-19 community level.
(K)N95 masks that are good quality and fit are important to protect yourself and others. (CDC Image)
Immediate recommendations from Hamilton County Public Health:
• Wear a well-fitting mask indoors in public, on public transportation, and in crowded outdoor areas regardless of your vaccination status.
TestAndProtectCincy.Com has a list of vaccination locations, PCR testing sites, Test-To-Treat testing sites, and where you can find at-home testing kits.vFind out more by visiting: HCPH.org/COVID19
At-home COVID-19 test kits can be requested from the federal government and shipped (USPS) to residential addresses. For information on how to store and use at-home tests, and other helpful tips, visit CDC.gov.
BinaxNOW Test Kits: BinaxNOW test kits have an expiration date that differs from the product label. Please read this update to see the extended expiry of your testing kit.
For guidance on the proper way to use your BinaxNOW testing kit, watch the below step-by-step video. For other brands, please refer to the instructions included in the test kit.
Watch this demonstration on how to use at-home test kits:
Loveland, Ohio – Scone Cash Players are celebrating the reissue of their debut album, Blast Furnace!, with an in-store performance at Plaid Room Records in Historic Downtown Loveland, Ohio on Friday, August 12th.
Pick up the LP and have it signed!
Shop closes at 7 PM. Doors re-open at 7:30 PM. Show at 8-9 PM
Family owned and completely independent, we are proud to offer personal, high quality service along with a vast selection of over 45,000 new and used LPs!
Cincinnati, Ohio – The horticulture team at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden has been waiting and watching the rare corpse flower that arrived three years ago from the Chicago Botanic Garden for signs that it’s ready to bloom. What they’ve seen in the past few days gives them hope that the horrible smell, described as being similar to a decaying corpse, and fantastic flower that they’ve been waiting for could be coming soon!
“We’ve all heard how bad the smell is, but it’s just one of those things that you want to experience in order to describe it in your own words,” said Cincinnati Zoo horticulturist Jerome Stenger. “And the fact that the occurrence is so rare, sometimes just blooming once in a decade, makes everyone want to see it.”
The smell only lasts 24 – 36 hours, which should be bearable even to the people who work in the Zoo’s education building where Morticia, the name that Cincinnati Zoo social followers picked for the plant, is located.
“The odor, color, and temperature, which can rise to 98 degrees, of the flower are meant to attract pollinators that are attracted to dead animals,” said Stenger. “Since the Discovery Forest greenhouse isn’t crawling with dung beetles and flesh flies, we are trying to get our hands on some pollen so we can help Morticia pollinate!”
Once the flower has bloomed and pollination is complete, the flower collapses. In addition to its unique, sporadic, and stinky blooms, the plant itself can grow to a massive 15 feet tall with leaves as big as 13 feet wide.
Visitors are welcome to come see Morticia in the Zoo’s Discovery Forest. The Zoo, and Discovery Forest, are open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM during the Summer Adventure presented by Cincinnati/NKY Honda Dealers. Members may enter at 9 AM. There is no additional charge to see this amazing plant.
![[Video] The ABC’s of LIFE Food Pantry’s Back to School Backpack Drive](https://lovelandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/life-back-pack-1.jpg)
