<Clarington Accepts Grant for Broken Timber Park Project

 Lisa Tomshack, left, clerk for the Village of Clarington, accepts grant monies in the amount of $6,660 for land acquisition along Sunfish Creek. The presentation was made by Jennifer Garrison and Sean Logan. The funding will provide 50 percent of the costs anticipated for acquisition of 1.3 acres of land along Sunfish Creek for Broken Timber Park, a walking trail, canoe livery and other park needs.

The Village of Clarington is one of three communities sharing a total of $50,194 for park improvements and construction projects. State Representative Jennifer Garrison joined Sean D. Logan, director of the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources, and other state and local officials on July 25 in presenting the funding. The check presentation ceremony took place at the skate park in Cambridge City Park. Funded through the 13th round of state NatureWorks grants, the projects will benefit the Village of Clarington in Monroe County as well as the City of Cambridge and the Village of Cumberland in Guernsey County. Cambridge received $25,751 to develop a skate park in City Park, while Cumberland received $17,783.83 to construct a playground in Cumberland Park. Clarington Village Clerk Lisa Tomshack was on hand to accept a check in the amount o $6,660. The funding will help the village acquire 1.3 acres along Sunfish Creek to develop Broken Timber Park. According to Tomshack, the grant calls for a 50 percent match from the village. Officials plan to use the grant funding to help develop a walking trail, purchase picnic tables and trash barrels, and construct a canoe livery and a fishing pier at the park. Tomshack indicated her excitement to receive the grant. �It�s terrific!� she said. �It�s been a long time in the making.� Tomshack noted that Mayor Jeff Morris and council president pro-tem Dan Koher were very instrumental in the grant application process. She said they worked closely with the former clerk, the late Sara Jacobs, to obtain the funding. Tomshack noted, too, that the park was a �long-time dream� of Jacobs, who, prior to her death, expressed her desire to name the park �Broken Timber Park� . �I�m glad to see it finally taking shape,� she said. Council was also notified recently that they were approved for a Goar Grant through ODNR Natureworks and the ARC program. The 50 percent match, reimbursement-type grant totals $6,490.

<Dominion Gas Facility Going Up

The new building being erected behind WesBanco and the Duke and Duchess in Woodsfield will house Dominion Gas. Project manager Jeff Woodell brought in a crane from Barnesville to lift the roof trusses. All local contractors were hired for the project. Note: The picture above was taken Aug. 5. By August 2, the roof was complete and the walls were up!
Photos by Martha Ackerman


by Martha Ackerman
Staff Writer
What's going on in Woodsfield?  People pass by WesBanco and the Duke and Duchess Shop, see the mountains of dirt and wonder what's going up.
Walter and Troy Kemp of Kemp Leasing has hired local project manager Jeff Woodell to oversee the construction of a 40x50 wood frame building which will house Dominion Gas. The facility will serve as office space and a storage warehouse.
According to Woodell, Dominion Gas was in need of a bigger, fenced-in, facility. When the project is
completed, there will also be an 80�x90� fenced parking lot.
All local contractors were hired for the project. According to Woodell, Perry Schumacher Construction has combined with Paris Yoho Construction to erect the building which is under time constraints. Other local contractors include: Jerry Gust Masonry, Doug Yontz Excavating, Dean Potts Electrical Service and Brian's Refrigeration.
The target date for completion is the end of September, but according to the project manager, it is way ahead of schedule.

<Local 5760 Donates Building to Riverside Library

  John Figel, chairman of the Local Union 5760 Building
Corporation, presented the deed and keys to LU-5760�s
Union Hall to Lila Jones, president, Riverfront
Library Association, in a ceremony held at the Sardis
location on Saturday, August 4. From left are Figel,
Jones, Janet Conn, librarian at Dally Memorial
Library, and Donna Dally Day, founder of The Dally
Memorial.
 

by Arlean Selvy
Publisher
The structure which until recently housed the Union
Hall for United Steelworkers of America Local Union
5760 was officially transferred by the Employee
Building Corporation on August 4 to the Riverfront
Library Association.
John Figel, co-chairman of the Employee Building
Corp., spoke to a group of about 40 individuals
attending a signing of the deed and passing of the
keys ceremony held at the building. On hand to
witness the transaction and affix her signature was
Notary Public Ann Block, regional field representative
for Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.
Lila Jones, president of the Riverfront Library Association, served as Master of Ceremonies. She expressed her gratefulness on behalf of the association.
"The building will further the cause of The Dally Memorial Library," said Jones. She noted the library was founded by Donna Dally Day in 2002. Jones reported the building was first a Methodist Church, started by volunteers. "And now it's back in the hands of the community," she said, noting the library exists because of volunteers.
Rev. Drew McPeek of the Mt. Olive Methodist Church offered the invocation.
Jones pointed out the presence of Woodsfield resident James Neuhart, who served as the first president of
LU5760.
Speaking also was Janet Conn, library director. Speaking of new beginnings, Conn said, "The members of the board of Riverfront Library Association will now begin a journey into spirited discussions about how best to serve the riverfront communities through library service."
According to Conn, many discussions will center around securing permanent tax funding for the library.
The Employee Building Corporation, said Figel, was started in 1974 with donations from many LU5760
Rolling Mill employees. The corporation�s goal was to provide a building where the local could conduct
business.
"One of the main concerns was to have some tangible property that would not be under the jurisdiction of
any other organization," said Figel. "Today that foresight brings us, as members of the EBC, a real privilege to be able to help our community."
"Many members of Local 5760 have borne grievous and serious consequences from job loss at the Rolling Mill," said Figel. "The members have chosen to give even in the face of adversity."
Figel said trustees spent many hours considering a number of organizations interested in the building. He credited Attorney Richard Yoss, who helped set up the corporation, in making sure that all the T's were crossed and I's were dotted in the most recent transaction.

At a special meeting held May 31, 2007 to discuss options, a motion was made with a unanimous affirmative vote to donate �what was once a building of bustling union activity� to the Riverfront Library Association, reported Figel.
�Today, in some small way, perhaps we can help an organization whose purpose is to provide tools in our
search for knowledge of the past, the present and the future,� he said.
Quoting Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Figel concluded, �Look not mournfully into the past. It comes not back again. Wisely improve the present. It is thine.�
�Today we hope to have done just that, improved the present.� concluded Figel.
Officers of the EBC board include: John Figel, co-chairman; Cindy Quiroz, co-chairman; Margaret
Highley, secretary; Bill Shockley, treasurer and Jack Highley, trustee. Officers of the library association include: Lila
Jones, president; Donna Dally Day vice-president; Kathy McGlone, secretary


 

Groundbreaking Held for Fishpot, Sykes Ridge Waterline Project

Attending the August 1 groundbreaking ceremony for Clarington's Sykes Ridge - Fishpot Water Project were,
front from left, Councilwoman Lida Conn, Wanda Bowen of Cyrus Bowen Construction, Mayor Jeff Morris and
Councilman Cliff Liniger. In back are William Brake, project engineer, Brake Engineering, Sardis; Brian and Laura Randolph, Sykes Ridge residents; Lisa Tomshack, village clerk, and Sykes Ridge resident Mark Lucas.
Photo Submitted

by Arlean Selvy
Publisher
Groundbreaking ceremonies for Clarington's Sykes Ridge - Fishpot Water Project were held August 1. The project, which has been five years in the works, will run 4.5 miles. According to Mayor Jeff Morris, the project will carry water to homes in the Fishpot addition, located along the southern bank of Sunfish Creek adjacent to Clarington, and from there the line will follow Sykes Ridge Road, ending at the connection to the project's water tower, and then on to Monroe
Water District's tower on the western end of Sykes Ridge.
The project will serve 50 to 60 homes whose water supplies are testing unsafe, or who lose their well
water during the drier periods of summer. The waterline project looks to the future in that it will allow for additional connections should home building expand in the area.
Cyrus Bowen Construction is to begin laying lines within the next two weeks. The project study was done by William Brake of Brake Engineering and Construction Management. The project will be overseen by Swiss Valley Associates.
Mayor Morris expressed his appreciation to the residents of Fishpot Addition and Sykes Ridge Road who
actively participated in seeing the project come to fruition. He also commended Mary Jo Westfall, Ohio
State University Extension office, grant administrator, for her help with the funding process. Funding was obtained through several grants and matched by local monies.
Construction, according to Morris, will continue through 2007 and is expected to be completed by mid-spring, 2008.
 

< Obituaries
(read the full obituary in the paper) 

< Howard O. Christman, 100, 35168 CR 61, Lewisville, died Aug. 1, 2007, at Barnesville Hospital. He was
born Aug. 23, 1906 at Calais, a son of the late John and Clara Ackerman Christman.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.wattersfuneralhome.com

< Charlotte Louise Stewart, 67, Sardis, died July 31, 2007, at Wheeling Hospital Medical Park, Wheeling. She
was born Aug. 8, 1939 in Gallipolis, the daughter of the late Dalmon and Arlena St. Clair Luellen.
Sympathy expressions at www.grisellfuneralhomes.com.

< Rodney W. Swallie, 78, 44479 SR 78, Woodsfield, died Aug. 2, 2007, at Ohio State University Hospital,
Columbus. He was born Sept. 3, 1928, at Boston, a son of the late Perley and Mary Stephen Swallie.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.wattersfuneralhome.com

< Bernice R. McGarry, 81, of Woodsfield Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Woodsfield, formerly of
Lewisville, died Aug. 4, 2007, at the center. She was born April 9, 1926, at Woodsfield, a daughter of the
late Clarence and Hattie Craig Crawford. Online condolences may be expressed at www.wattersfuneralhome.com

< Eugene D.Mellott, 83, York, died July 13, 2007, at Manor Care Health Services in York, Pa. He was born in
Cameron, Ohio, a son of the late Charles and Mayme Ault Mellott.

<Around the Burnside

By Denny Easterling

What dainty morsels rumors are - but they sink deep into one�s heart. A lazy person is as bad as someone who destroys things. Some of you might have thought I was kidding about horseshoes last week. However, I read a bumper sticker - �For Health Pitch Horseshoes.� I think exercise is the thing. On the other hand, if you are interested in an inexpensive exercise machine, take up archery. Each time you draw a bow you are using almost all of the muscles in your upper body, then you walk to pull the arrows from the target. Both of these suggestions are fun. I think perhaps I have broken a record, maybe even in the world. I have grown what I think is the smallest ripe tomato ever. I thought about displaying it in the window of the Beacon office but I couldn�t figure out how to display it so everyone could see it and I doubt if it would keep til the fair. Size? I would estimate it is the size of a pea. This isn�t the half of it. This is the second ripe tomato of this size I�ve grown this year. It can�t be the dry weather because Esther made me water the plants on a regular basis and they look like a brush pile, because I let them grow freely. Boo Hoo, my world record smallest tomato is gone. Esther ate it the other day. Every so often I get a catalog that has a lot of merchandise that I do not need, like a two hot dog cooker and bun warmer. We look through them and throw them away and think, how do the Chinese make all that stuff. I even get a catalog that says �Last Chance� then a couple or three months after that I get the same catalog. I wonder. The catalog I got the other day had a real deal. For $20 you could purchase an infinity razor. Due to some metal process you would never need to purchase another razor. To make it even a better deal they will throw in a nose and ear hair clipper and a kitchen knife for good measure. Now comes the kicker. If you ordered this good deal they would include, free of charge, a second infinity razor. My question is, if the infinity razor is so good you�ll never need another, why would they give you another free? Sounds fishy doesn�t it? Needless to say, I didn�t order one. Kind of looks as though the gasoline price yo yo is on the downward drop at the present time, let�s hope it keeps dropping before it starts spinning and climbs back up. I sometimes wonder what effect the higher gas prices have had. You see about as many cars buzzing around, very few speed limit or under. The experts tell us if you drive a slower speed you get better mileage but very few drivers believe this, or so it seems. A few weeks ago I was traveling west on SR78 and going the speed limit. I looked in the rearview mirror and there were four cars following me. As you know there is a limited number of places along SR78 that it is safe to pass. We came to a straight stretch and zoom the first car was around and out of sight. This car had state plates so you know this driver didn�t buy his gas. The other cars passed as soon as they possibly could and away they went. I still prefer to stay on or near the speed limit and get 30-32 miles per gallon of gas. A hundred years ago? The Mayor of Akron advises mothers of girls who flirt, to spank them. Unfortunately, however, the mothers of such girls are generally too busy washing the dishes or doing other kinds of house work to notice what their daughters are doing. Also: A bill in the General Assembly has fixed the minimum salary for school teachers at $40 per month. Where the districts are too poor to pay so much, the balance should be paid out of the state treasury in the form of aid to indigent districts. A couple of big events are coming this month, the Pennyroyal Reunion, Monroe County Fair and football season gets underway. All three bring a lot of memories of time gone by. The Pennyroyal Reunion has been going on for some 128 years or so but is down to one day, a parade and chicken dinner. There are a few loyal people that just won�t let it die. I was talking with a fellow Pennyroyalist the other day and he asked, �Do you ever wonder how we got by back then?� One teacher for four grades, no city water, no gas for heating, outside johns, no computers, no calculators, no married women teachers and the list goes on and on. Oh, I almost forgot, no cell phones. In fact, I can�t remember talking on a telephone until I was in the service. We didn�t have a phone, which didn�t matter, kids were not allowed to use the phones. I guess we learned to do with what we had. If you�ve never had something, you used what you had. I wanted a pony of my own for years and years. I never got one so I rode old Tom the mule. Not he who has little, but he who wishes for more is poor. When there is room in the heart, there is room in the home. P.S. I was up north today and found gasoline was costing in the neighborhood of $2.46 per gal. I wonder? Like to feel wanted? Try church. Bible readings: (Mon.) Isaiah 30:15-19; (Tues.) II Kings 25: 1, 2, 5-7; (Wed.) Psalm 33:12-22; (Thurs.) Psalm 130; (Fri.) Lametations 3:19-24; (Sat.) Lametations 3:24-33; (Sun.) Lametations 3:55-59.