Meet the master craftsman quietly carving world-renowned art from his Garrettsville shop
Joe Leonard has created massive carousel figures featured at Disneyland Paris and Put-In-Bay. Visitors to his gallery are ‘blown away,’ he says.
Carter Eugene Adams
Addressing Racism in Portage and Police Funding: A Conversation with Commissioner Clyde
In our interview with County Commissioner Kathleen Clyde, conducted June 12, we discussed the county’s funding of the sheriff’s office, what she and the other commissioners are doing to address racism in the county and her thoughts on the movement to ‘defund police.’
Kent’s newest firefighter has dedicated his life to serving his country and his hometown
Jordan Bedell, 28, of Kent, is a U.S. Marine, the founder of a community nonprofit and the first full-time Black firefighter in the history of the Kent Fire Department. Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager Marine, volunteer, firefighter — Jordan Bedell is breaking barriers and has just one wish for Kent children: that they have the same opportunities he did. On one of the first cold mornings of fall, Jordan Bedell performed morning chores and started his shift at Station 1 in the Kent Fire […]
Windham police look inward to address officer wellness and racial policing
Patrolman Chuck Kulig (left) and Patrolman J.D. Novak participate in a Racial Intelligent Training and Education (RITE) training, held by and for the Windham Police Department at the Windham Board of Education building Saturday. Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager Racial justice Windham police look inward to address officer wellness and racial policing Chief hopes to bring Racial Intelligence Training and Engagement to more public agencies throughout Portage County. Windham Police Chief Eric Brieding, addressing a classroom full of patrolmen, put it simply: “It’s […]
Portage County commissioners are preparing to declare racism a public health emergency
A Black Lives Matter protester in Garrettsville raises a sign on Thursday. Michael Indriolo/The Portager Interview Portage County commissioners are preparing to declare racism a public health emergency A conversation with County Commission President Kathleen Clyde on what the board is doing to address racial inequality in Portage Throughout the summer, The Portager has been reaching out to local community leaders to hear their thoughts on addressing racism in Portage County, on the Black Lives Matter movement and on police reform. […]
Water shutoffs, road repairs and skateboard shenanigans
Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager Garrettsville Water shutoffs, road repairs and skateboard shenanigans Highlights from the Aug. 12 Garrettsville Village Council meeting Garrettsville Village Council discussed Covid-19 funds for schools, progress on street maintenance, water shutoffs, skateboarding and trees during their meeting Wednesday. Here’s a roundup of what they talked about. Public utilities and public shutoffs Council member Larry Beatty questioned the morality of shutting off people’s water in light of continually high unemployment numbers caused by the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re still in […]
The Portage County Fair is closed to the public, leaving Confederate flag question hanging
Stock image by Annie Spratt Randolph Fair The Portage County Fair is closed to the public, leaving Confederate flag question hanging ‘Nothing is the same and this has been like planning for an event for the first time ever.’ The Portage County Fair Board recently announced the fair will be closed to the public this year, taking a more cautious approach than neighboring Summit County and putting off a decision on whether Confederate flags should be allowed for sale on the grounds. […]
KSU criminal justice prof: Cops use force because that’s what they’re trained to do
Solomon Interview KSU criminal justice prof: Cops use force because that’s what they’re trained to do Starr Solomon: ‘Total, we’re looking at roughly 150 hours of use of force training versus 24 hours of something like crisis intervention’ After the murder of George Floyd and calls for police reform went mainstream, we wanted to learn more about how modern American policing came to be and why it is the way it is. To do that, we reached out to Kent State […]
Twin Lakes Tavern sees new life under new ownership during the pandemic
Feature Twin Lakes Tavern sees new life under new ownership during the pandemic When Shannon Zemba revived the Tavern, she brought inspiration from her mother. ‘This was really a way of us kind of bringing her spirit back to life early with this building.’ This week the Twin Lakes Tavern reopened its doors to patrons under new ownership. Shannon Zemba, owner of Kent’s Over Easy Morning Cafe, purchased the shuttered restaurant in January with hopes of reopening in March. Because of […]
Over 2,000 people got tested for Covid-19 last week at a Portage County popup site
Members of the Ohio National and Ohio Air Guard perform Covid-19 tests at a popup testing center at NEOMED in Rootstown on Saturday. Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager Covid-19 Over 2,000 people got tested for Covid-19 last week at a Portage County popup site Over three days last week, residents of Portage and surrounding counties drove through an arrangement of orange traffic cones and volunteer stations to receive Covid-19 tests administered by medics and lab technicians from the Air and National Guard. […]
Commissioner Christian-Bennett would ‘absolutely’ consider declaring racism a public health crisis
Interview Commissioner Christian-Bennett would ‘absolutely’ consider declaring racism a public health crisis Portage County Commissioner Sabrina Christian-Bennett also said she would prioritize funding for training in a conversation with The Portager about race and policing Christian-Bennett The murder of George Floyd sent shock waves throughout the country and sparked uprisings in several major cities. In its aftermath, conversations on police violence and our country’s ugly history of racism are now more prominent than ever. Portage County has its own long history of […]
Photos: Kent honors the cultural heritage of the South End
Doria Daniels, a resident of Kent’s South End, christens the district’s new historic marker with a mini bottle of sparkling wine provided by Kent Mayor Jerry Fiala on Friday. “This has been 150 years in the making,” said Daniels, a key organizer of the dedication. “This is heritage that we’ve wanted known for 150 years.” Kent Photos: Kent honors the cultural heritage of the South End A new sign marks the district as the ‘first in diversity’ because it has been historically […]
Fourth of July in Ravenna Township
Ricky Wise, a Ravenna Township resident, had a cookout and pool party at his house for July 4. Wise describes himself as fiercely moderate and independent. “I don’t care [about partisanship] man, Black lives matter, white lives matter — smoke weed and buy a gun.” Photo essay Fourth of July in Ravenna Township Residents mark Independence Day with backyard fireworks, target practice and barbecue. In Ravenna Township, two groups of friends and neighbors celebrated Independence day in two very different ways: One with a […]
Waterloo has little else to cut and no choice but to keep putting levies on the ballot
ATWATER — Meaghan McIntosh is a lifelong resident of the Randolph-Atwater area. She’s a K-12 alumna of Waterloo Local School District, and so are her mom and her aunts, one of whom teaches seventh grade in the district. McIntosh has fond memories from her time at Waterloo and is happy her son, now in second grade, attends the same school she did. “This is home, and when I started my own family, I wanted them to have a similar school […]
Waterloo has little else to cut and no choice but to keep putting levies on the ballot
A sign reading “We miss our students” is seen on the front of Waterloo Local School District’s K-12 campus. Atwater, Ohio Monday, May 11, 2020. Carter Eugene Adams/ The Portager Waterloo has little else to cut and no choice but to keep putting levies on the ballot An ‘fiscal emergency’ looms if voters reject another tax effort in November ATWATER — Meaghan McIntosh is a lifelong resident of the Randolph-Atwater area. She’s a K-12 alumna of Waterloo Local School District, and so are her mom […]
Pandemic drives Portage libraries to the brink
The Reed Memorial Library opened its doors to the public last Monday. Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager Pandemic drives Portage libraries to the brink As local libraries come back to life, they are making changes to the way they serve visitors and adapting to major budget cuts On one of its last open days in March, Carolyn Andrews Schlemmer walked into Kent Free Library. She carried a stack of books to return, had an idea for books to check out and sported her […]
Windham first responders brace for the coronavirus peak
Elmedin Beganovic, a 26-year-old EMT, uses a modified paint sprayer to spray down the interior of an ambulance in the vehicle bay of the Windham Fire Department. Carter Eugene Adams/The Portager News feature Windham first responders brace for the coronavirus peak ‘I haven’t been to my house in three weeks’ WINDHAM — The alarm at Windham Fire Station 28 is low and continuous, a few seconds of electronic bass, before a dispatcher’s voice breaks through and describes the latest emergency. It’s a tone […]
‘You can revive a cafe, but you can’t revive someone back from the dead’
‘You can revive a cafe, but you can’t revive someone back from the dead’ Kent State epidemiologist Dr. Tara Smith breaks down the Covid-19 crisis in Portage County Photo submitted by Tara Smith Last week I talked with Dr. Tara Smith, a professor of epidemiology at Kent State. She specializes in infectious diseases transferred from animals to humans. At Kent State, her lab studies the transmission of staphylococcus aureus, staph, in communities. Smith and I talked — at a socially safe distance of dozens of […]