Loveland, Ohio – Congratulations to Loveland High School’s Bea Aldrich on earning the status of National Merit Semi-finalist!
These academically talented high school seniors now have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,600 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. Over 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and more than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.
Over 1.5 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and rewards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay.
Loveland, Ohio – The Center for Disease Control says, “Getting a flu vaccine is more important than ever during 2020-2021 to protect yourself, your family and your community from flu.”
A flu vaccine this season can also help reduce the burden on our healthcare systems responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and save medical resources for care of COVID-19 patients.
Area residents who do not have a primary care physician can find a place to get a seasonal flu vaccine (and other vaccines) at VaccineFinder.org.
What vaccines do I need?
We all need vaccines throughout our lives to help protect against serious diseases. CDC and other medical experts update vaccine recommendations every year based on the latest research and science. Vaccination is a critical step in protecting those that are most vulnerable to illness – infants and young children, the elderly, and those with chronic conditions and weakened systems.
Visit the CDC website to take the child or adult vaccine recommendation quiz. Visit the CDC travel website for vaccine recommendations based on the country you intend to visit.
What is the difference between Influenza (Flu) and COVID-19?
Influenza (Flu) and COVID-19 are both contagious respiratory illnesses, but they are caused by different viruses. COVID-19 is caused by infection with a new coronavirus (called SARS-CoV-2) and flu is caused by infection with influenza viruses. Because some of the symptoms of flu and COVID-19 are similar, it may be hard to tell the difference between them based on symptoms alone, and testing may be needed to help confirm a diagnosis. Flu and COVID-19 share many characteristics, but there are some key differences between the two.Read on at CDC…
Matthew Onadeko, Adam Jutt, Megan Stotz, Scott Burk, Christopher Swedes(Provided Photo)
Symmes Township, Ohio – Dr. Dean Nicholas, Assistant Head of School of Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy, announced that Scott Burk (of Loveland), Adam Jutt (of Mason), Matthew Onadeko (of Mason), Christopher Swedes (of Loveland), and Megan Stotz (of Mason) have been named National Merit Semifinalists. A certificate from the National Merit Scholarship Cooperation will be presented to these students at CHCA’s Academic Awards Night in May 2020.
These academically talented high school seniors now have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,600 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. Over 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and more than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.
Over 1.5 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and rewards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay.
“We are so excited to announce these students as National Merit Semifinalists,” shared Nicholas. “They are not only excellent students and scholars, but well-rounded examples of everything we aspire to be at CHCA. As students, musicians, athletes, servant leaders, and peoples of faith, they move us forward as a community!”
Loveland, Ohio – City Manager Dave Kennedy announced last Friday that the city received notification that it’s Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) pre-application for $250,000 of grant funding for the downtown parking garage, was ranked as the #1 priority project within the Ohio Valley Regional Development Commission. With this ranking, the city has been invited to submit a full application.
Previously, the city’s grant application for the downtown parking facility was submitted to the Economic Development Administration (EDA). The total amount requested was $2,831,835.
On August 25, Kennedy recommended that Council authorize staff to move forward with a downtown parking fee study at a cost of $16,000. The study would inventory existing parking and the proposed parking facility. He noted that Desman Design Management would use the occupancy counts to identify peak parking needs for weekdays and then evaluate the differences in seasonal variations, summer, and weekend demands. They will identify and recommend street and lots for paid parking and recommend parking rates. The payment was approved by Council.
Read more about the planned parking garage in Historic Downtown Loveland:
Loveland, Ohio – The murderous 9/11 attack by terrorists against the United States will be remembered this Friday at 8 PM at the Police and Fire Memorial in Historic Downtown.
Two searchlights will be lit at dusk and a fireworks display will follow the ceremony.
The Police and Fire Memorial is located at 200 Harrison Avenue, in the same block as Nisbet Park along the Loveland Bike Trail.
In September of 2004, Vernon Michael, and son Don, place the 9/11 Memorial into the concrete foundation at the Loveland Police and Fire Memorial. Michael’s Pre-Cast Concrete manufactured the pedestal to the design specifications of David Camele (with tape measure). Sitting atop of the concrete base is a distorted and rusty piece of structural steel brought to Loveland from the scrap pile of the World Trade Center. Camele designed the memorial so the steel would “bleed rust” onto the fabricated concrete base. Camele, a Loveland resident also designed the Loveland Veterans’ Memorial in the West Loveland Historic District and the Joy of Youth Statute at the entrance to Loveland High School.
The September 11 attacks were a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda against the United States on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001.
The guest speaker is Ret. Lt Bruce Hoffbauer who is the 2020 Republican candidate for Hamilton County Sheriff.
The evening is hosted by the Loveland Symmes Fire Department.
Columnist Cassia Mattia is a resident of Historic Downtown Loveland. She is the Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine.
Loveland, Ohio – The time has finally come for Loveland’s finest food pantry to open their new location!
The LIFE (Loveland InterFaith Effort) Food Pantry announced Tuesday that they will be holding a ribbon-cutting ceremony at their new location, 541 Loveland-Madeira Road, on Thursday, September 10th at 4 PM.
LIFE moved locations from Prince of Peace to Shopper’s Haven in Loveland because of the growing demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the press release sent out by LIFE it stated:
“LIFE is increasing capacity in a new space that will allow us to serve even more residents in need. This move is critical for the ever-growing demand during COVID-19. The new location will provide: • capacity to store and serve an increased amount of food and supplies • a more dignified experience for our clients • the capability to extend hours of operation • space for our volunteers to stay safe by following social distancing regulations • closer proximity to many of our clients • an adjacent outdoor area to host food drives”
Although LIFE’s amazing staff would love everyone in the community to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony, invites are limited due to the COVID-19 restrictions. If you would like to attend the ceremony contact Linda Bergholz, Executive Director, at lifefoodpantry@yahoo.com. If you would like more information on the ceremony or would like to view the invite click the following link here.
LIFE is a Freestore Foodbank partner and the primary food assistance provider in the Greater Loveland area. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance visit LIFE Food Pantry on Thursdays from 4:00–6:30 PM and Saturdays from 10: AM until 12:30 PM. If you need to contact LIFE Food Pantry email them at lifefoodpantry@yahoo.com or call at (513) 583-8222.
Hours after October 1st will be the following: Tuesdays from 10 AM until noon, and 4 until 6:30 PM, Wednesdays from 10 AM until noon., Thursdays from 10 AM until noon, and 4 PM until 6:30 PM, Fridays from 10 AM until noon., and Saturdays from 10 AM until noon.
Watch the exclusive Loveland Magazine TV full-length interview with LIFE’s Executive Director Linda Bergholz at LIFE food pantry’s new location!
Columbus, Ohio – On Tuesday, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) introduced their new Executive Director, Doug Ute, making him the 11th person to fulfill the prestigious position!
Ute, a Bellville, Ohio native, began his journey in 1988 when he became a part-time business teacher and a basketball coach at Noble Local Schools. Eventually, he went on to teach, coach, and fulfill the athletic administrator position at Buckeye Central High School.
Over the last 20 years, Ute acted as school Superintendent, 9 of those years being at Marion Elgin Local Schools and 11 of those years being at Newark City Schools. During Ute’s time at Newark, he created the Social, Emotional, and Academic Success (SEAS) program. The SEAS program allows counselors, teachers, and staff to get together and discuss ways to help their students succeed in life. Ute also expanded the free lunch program and made free breakfast available to all students. With all of Ute’s hard work and efforts at Newark, the school district had its highest graduation rate of all time.
Ute went on to accept the position as Deputy Director of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators, but shortly after was asked to fill the Executive Director position with the OHSAA.
Ute said in a press release sent out by the OHSAA that he has always had the mindset of a coach and athletic director so OHSAA would be the perfect place for him to be.
“I am humbled to be selected by the Board of Directors for this position and join a great team at the OHSAA office. We are all aware of the uncertainties that are before us due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but I know that together we can and will be stronger together,” Ute explained, “My focus has always been on helping students become better people, and athletics are such an important part in that. That is true now more than ever. I can’t wait to get started and help lead our member schools.”
President of the OHSAA Board of Directors and Athletic Director at Mentor High School, Jeff Cassella, expressed his excitement for bringing Ute onto the OHSAA team in OHSAA’s press release.
“We are excited to have someone lead our organization with Doug’s experience, both in working with student-athletes and with his experience in the workings of the OHSAA,” Cassella said, “The Board of Directors is confident that Doug’s leadership style and experience is a great fit to lead the OHSAA through this unique year.”
Ute played basketball at Ashland University and graduated with a bachelor’s in Business Administration and Marketing. He later earned his Master’s Degree in School Administration, a Graduate Teaching Degree in Business, A Principal’s License, and a Superintendent’s License from Ashland University. Ute and his wife Kory, now have 4 children and 8 grandchildren.
To stay up to date on Ohio and Loveland’s latest sports news tune into the Sports 411 With Me, Cassie Mattia!
Ezz’s previously unreported friendship with Muhammad Ali
What’s it like having Muhammad Ali hang out at your apartment? Ezzard Charles II talks about it on Episode 5 of Total Fighter.
Ricky Mulvey is a former sportswriter and talking head at Loveland Magazine
Do you like history/boxing/Cincinnati/really good stories? If so—or even if not! — listen to Ricky Mulvey’s newly completed five-part podcast Total Fighter about the greatest light heavyweight fighter of all time – the Cincinnati Cobra, Ezzard Charles!
You are sure to enjoy the exclusive interviews, the excerpts of the blow-by-blow from actual fights, and the blow-by-blow of the span of the career – the highs, lows, and extremely admirable post-boxing life of Cincinnati’s heavyweight champion.
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You will enjoy the fast pace and excitement of Mulvey’s storytelling in this remarkable series about an important era in Cincinnati sports history.
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A limited Podcast series about Ezzard Charles, Cincinnati’s heavyweight champion.
Total Fighter, is a narrative, nonfiction podcast about Ezzard Charles, Cincinnati’s heavyweight champion, and hosted by Loveland native Ricky Mulvey.
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The premier episode, “More Than a Gym Fighter” was a deep-dive into a very different Cincinnati. Go to a bustling Findlay Market in the 1940s, in between the pool tables and cigar smoke at the American Legion Hall in Newport, Kentucky for Charles’ first boxing match, and a Battle Royale in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=42512075
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Episode 5 and the season finale of Total Fighter is a deep dive into Ezz’s life after the heavyweight championship: from his series against Rocky Marciano to working at the DMV. Mulvey also explores his previously unreported friendship with Muhammad Ali.
This podcast shines a new light on the underrated Cincinnati Cobra; the greatest light-heavyweight of all time. The series will ultimately follow Charles to his match against Joe Louis, and the characters who followed him– his family and the mafia.
“The fifth episode of a five part series. Ezzard Charles learns that life as the heavyweight champ isn’t the dream he thought that it would be. This show covers Charles’ series against Rocky Marciano, and his friendship with Muhammad Ali. We also discuss the reasons why Cincinnati rejected its greatest fighter and how you make a living as an ex-heavyweight champion.”
Total Fighter features interviews and stories from Buddy LaRosa, founder of LaRosa’s Pizza, William Dettloff, author of “Ezzard Charles: a Boxing Life,” Frank Wettencamp, one of Ezz’s high school classmates, and more.
This show explores his complex character; why the name “Ezzard Charles” became an insult by Frank Sinatra and an inspiration to the composer George Russell.
You can first hear new episodes and updates right here on Loveland Magazine or by following Ricky Mulvey on Facebook, @rickymulvey on Instagram, and @rickssoslick on Twitter.
Along with diseases known to increase risk, the CDC lists 12 other conditions that “might” increase the risk of people who have them. These include other massively common conditions like hypertension, liver disease, pregnancy, smoking and others.
The underlying health conditions that lay a path for severe COVID-19 complications are widespread in Ohio, potentially affecting as much as half the population, according to experts, state data and government research.
Take obesity: Ohio Department of Health 2017 survey data estimates that 34% of Ohioans are obese. Similarly, more than 74,000 Ohioans were diagnosed with cancer that same year.
Dr. Peter Pronovost (Photo by University Hospitals)
“The statistics are about 60% of the public has one or more chronic diseases,” said Dr. Peter Pronovost, a University Hospitals physician. “Four in 10 have two or more diseases.”
The ubiquity of chronic disease in Ohio complicates any policy response when there’s no easy-to-draw line between people at low-risk for COVID-19 and those at higher risk levels.
It also illuminates the reality of a “herd immunity” strategy, as reportedlyoffered by an influential adviser to President Donald Trump.This would entail allowing the virus to run its course through the population unimpeded, purportedly allowing healthier people to develop antibodies at a large enough volume to break down chains of transmission.
The CDC listseight diseases known to increase risk of severe illness from COVID-19. The list, coupled with data from theOhio Annual Cancer Report, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Systemannual report from 2018, and other state and federal sources, shows how deep chronic disease runs in the Buckeye state.
Cancer: 74,000 cases diagnosed in 2017
Chronic kidney disease: About 15% of U.S. adults have chronic kidney disease, per the CDC
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease): 8.3% of Ohio adults have COPD
Immunocompromised state from solid organ transplant:1,916 Ohioans received organ transplants in 2019
Obesity: 34% of Ohio adults are obese. An additional 34% are overweight
Dr. Nirav Vakharia (Photo by the Cleveland Clinic)
“When we go beyond age as a risk factor … if we’re just thinking about these chronic diseases, they’re so prevalent, it’s hard to isolate a young, healthy cohort,” said Dr. Nirav Vakharia, a physician from the Cleveland Clinic.
Health care groups in Ohio are undertaking different efforts to help residents with some of these conditions to stay at home.
LifeCare Alliance, an in-home health care agency, has seen a spike in the number of meals it has delivered to the homes of its diabetic patients since the pandemic began.
“If you have diabetes, the chances of you having a mild case of the coronavirus is much less — you’re gonna have a harder case, because your immune system just can’t fight it off,” said CEO Charles Gehring. “Patients have been scared to death by coronavirus.”
Similarly, Pronovost, the chief clinical transformation officer with University Hospitals, said the health care network recently accelerated its efforts to provide proactive care for people with chronic diseases.
He said staff is reaching out to patients to ensure they’re properly managing and controlling their diseases, like keeping insulin or blood pressure at healthy levels.
“The idea is we want to make sure chronic disease people are doing all they can to avoid being hospitalized and avoid needing to go to the [emergency room],” he said.
Early data shows the network reduced hospital admissions of certain chronic disease patients by 28%, and emergency visits by 79%, he said.
“The idea is we want to make sure chronic disease people are doing all they can to avoid being hospitalized and avoid needing to go to the [emergency room],” he said.
Along with diseases known to increase risk, the CDC lists 12 conditions that “might” increase the risk of people who have them. These include other massively common conditions like hypertension, liver disease, pregnancy, smoking and others.
As of Wednesday, COVID-19 has killed 4,176 Ohioans. The virus has infected nearly 120,000 state residents and put more than 13,500 in the hospital.
Jake Zuckerman is a statehouse reporter. He spent three years chronicling the West Virginia Legislature for The Charleston Gazette-Mail after covering cops and courts for The Northern Virginia Daily.
Symmes Township, Ohio – Since spectators are limited to parents/guardians of senior runners, here is how you can keep up with the race and even watch a live-stream.
This is not a decision that we have taken lightly. The purpose of limiting spectators is to ensure that we meet all guidelines in place.
In evaluating our options for the event the choices were to cancel the event or to limit spectators.
We chose to limit spectators to give the runners an opportunity to compete!
We want to give our runners every opportunity to have a complete season. We also want our senior parents/guardians to have the opportunity to see their athlete on the course at least one last time!
We are doing several things to help alleviate the disappointment for parents and families.
by Cassie Mattia
