Many community-minded people live in Charlestown. I’d like to introduce you to one. Gary Hunsicker is currently vice-president of the Friends of West Branch State Park. This nonprofit, volunteer-powered group works to help preserve West Branch State Park and enhance the camper experience.
In November 2022, Gary and his wife Cheryl traveled to Columbus to meet with other members of Friends groups and staff members of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources at the state level. While there they learned of the Bags to Benches program, a recycling project sponsored by Trex, manufacturer of composite boards. The project consists of collecting soft plastics (PE2 or PE4) to earn Trex benches for the park. They decided to give it a try.
At first, the amount needed to earn a bench was 500 pounds of soft plastics within six months, but that has now changed to 1,000 pounds within one year. In 14 months they have collected enough plastic to earn seven benches and are less than 100 pounds away from earning their eighth.
While the first six are located in West Branch at the shower houses and the camp store, the seventh was given to Charlestown Township at a recent trustees meeting in honor of the Charlestown Volunteer Fire Department. Gary explained the CVFD has a good relationship with the state park, is the first responder at any camp emergency and attends a Halloween party every year.
Gary, with his wife’s help, is responsible for placing collection containers, storing, collecting and sorting the plastic, delivering the weighed plastic to a collection spot and keeping the records.
If you wish to help there are collection containers at: West Branch State Park campgrounds; James A. Garfield Elementary School; Portage County Job and Family Services; Buckeye Residential Solutions (Ravenna); Visual Marking Systems (Twinsburg); Suffield United Church of Christ; Girl Scouts of Northeast Ohio Service Unit 915, Ravenna; Leeda Day Program (Ravenna); and It’s All Fine Consignment and Home Goods (Ravenna).
You can help with this community service project by collecting soft plastic materials or sponsoring a collection container by calling Gary at 330-608-3461.
Please see Attached photo: Gary and Cheryl Hunsicker present a bench in honor of Charlestown Volunteer Fire Department
The Charlestown Activity Committee has set the dates of the 2024 community events. So mark your calendars and plan to attend these fun events. Watch this column for details on these events.
- Easter Egg Hunt: 1 p.m. Saturday, March 23 (rain date is 1 p.m. March 30)
- Memorial Day Parade and Service: 11 a.m. Sunday, May 26 (service at cemetery to follow)
- Summer Festival and Cruise-In: 3-7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3
- Trunk or Treat at the Park: 2-4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 27
- Santa’s Special Delivery: Saturday, Dec. 14
- Holiday Lights Contest: Dec. 16 judging
Communicating with Charlestown residents has been a problem. I feel we are all fortunate to have The Portager as a resource to help us inform our community of coming events and news of our neighbors and organizations.
I have also been collecting residents’ email addresses and sending out an email called Charlestown Happenings. If you would like to receive this email please contact me at my email address below.
Another resource for township information is charlestowntownship.com.
There are also several Charlestown Facebook accounts that may be of interest. They are as follows: Charlestown Volunteer Fire Department Ohio; Charlestown Activity Committee; Charlestown Historical Society; and Charlestown United Methodist Church. Also check out the digital sign located at the town center, the corner of Rock Spring and Newton Falls roads. I hope you find this information helpful.
Please contact me with your news of events, accomplishments, etc. Text or leave a message at 330-281-3723 or email me at [email protected].
