Delta High School 2021 Musical Photos – Schoolhouse Rock Live
Bill O'Connell
Pettisville at Swanton Baseball Photos – 4/5/21
Pettisville at Swanton Softball Photos – 4/6/21
Application for Swanton High School Baseball Field Improvement Grant Being Made
In 2021, the Scotts Field Refurbishment Program will provide grants of products and services, with a value up to $50,000 to four youth-serving organizations that are in need of renovations to existing ballfields. Applications will be accepted from February 24, 2021 to April 9, 2021. A panel of judges, including Ryan Howard, Jennie Finch, and representatives from Scotts and Major League Baseball (MLB).
Each refurbishment will include one infield makeover that incorporates a new infield with sod and infield dirt. Other enhancements may include a new pitcher’s mound, new home plate and batter’s boxes, new bases and anchors. It is not clear if the community would have to perform the work or if it would be 100% by the program itself. The grant application, which was submitted before the deadline, is part of an effort by Swanton Local Schools with assistance from the Village Administration.
At the most recent Village Council meeting, discussion on the grant centered around maintenance of the high school baseball field going forward. Councilman Dave Pilliod, suggesting it would be “nice” to have a grass infield posed a question to Public Service Operations Superintendent Neil Tedrow. “Is there a reason why we don’t have a grass infield up there? Is that something sustainable?” he asked. “I would think it would be,” responded Mr. Tedrow.
There was still more discussion regarding the potential for increased maintenance which would be the responsibility of the Village as is the outfield grass now. “It’s not for lack of desire. It is the lack of individuals and the lack of equipment to maintain a varsity baseball field in a public park,” remarked Village Administrator Rosanna Hoelzle. “It’s not that we don’t want to. They want it manicured and I get it. I absolutely understand that. But your question about maintaining it, how many more seasonal people do we have to hire?”
Ms. Hoelzle also expressed concerns about maintaining the field during the off season. “The concern is, when it’s not in season, how frequently are we dragging it? How frequently are we doing ‘XYZ’ to it?” she asked. “Unfortunately, the same crews, as I’ve mentioned many times, that maintain the park are the same ones reading meters door to door, that are cleaning sewers, that are fixing water main breaks, etcetera, etcetera.”
Decisions on the grant applications will be made between April 10, 2021 and June 1, 2021. The grant awards will be announced on June 3, 2021 and project implementations will take place between June and September of 2021. If the grant application is successful, the Village Council said it could decide to reject the awarded grant if they determine the cost of maintaining a grass infield is too high. Separate grants from MLB for other Swanton ballfields have also been made.
Pictured: Swanton High School baseball field at Memorial Park
Evergreen at Delta Baseball Photos – 3/30/21
Evergreen at Swanton Baseball Photos – 3/29/21
Lulu Fare, Swanton’s Newest and Coolest Dining Experience
Have you been to the new eatery on Main Street in Swanton yet? What about the restaurant that just opened on Airport Highway? Or maybe the place that serves family style dinners on Zeiter Way? If not, you and your taste buds are missing out on some incredibly delicious mealtime selections.
To be clear, however, there is only one new Swanton-based business enterprise dishing our great meals. And it is not a brick-and-mortar establishment confined to a particular address. It is actually a wheels-and-motor food truck that can set up shop on any street, parking lot, driveway or back yard in the area. This most recent addition to the Swanton community’s dining choices is called Lulu Fare and is owned and operated by long-time Swanton resident Heather Williams.
“I’ve always loved cooking and feeding people makes me extremely happy and everyone is always receptive to my cooking and says it’s delicious. It’s always been something in the back of my mind so, with COVID, I didn’t return to the casino where I was working and I ended up buying a food truck to get my feet wet in the whole restaurant, catering business to see what happens,” said Heather, explaining her initial motivation to jump into the food service industry. “I just decided if I’m not going back to work, I need to start a business.”
And jump into it she did, opening the business in late October, just about one week after she purchased the truck from a colleague at the casino. “I bought it and I just started booking dates. Because I knew if I booked dates then it would make me work faster. It’s always good to work with a deadline,” explained Heather, a self-labeled procrastinator. “We’ve built a good relationship with Benfield Wines and Majestic Oaks and we’ve got our schedules for the whole year.”
One thing is for sure. Lulu Fare is not your every-day food truck and Heather is not a short order cook flipping burgers and dropping every kind of breaded vegetable you can think of into a deep fryer. Her offerings are truly “cuisine” that just happen to be served on paper products. “The interesting about this food truck, which is different than most food trucks, is my food truck changes its menu all the time. We have things that are specialties that people really like, like our Blazing Balls and our Pulled-Pork Nachos, different things like that but we change our menu depending on what is going on or what the event is.”
On St. Patrick’s Day, for example, Lulu Fare served the traditional Jiggs Dinner which sold out very quickly. If breakfast is more to your liking, Heather does that, too. “I’ll have Shenanigans which is a cheesy potato casserole with sausage gravy and scrambled eggs, bacon, chives and cheddar cheese,” she described. Or I’ll have a Chorizo Burrito, French Toast or Bread Pudding, things like that.”
Looking for something quick and simple for the family dinner? Try one of Heather’s family-sized casseroles in a 9×9 or 9×13 pan with a vegetable and bread which are available on Thursday nights when the truck is conveniently parked next to Benfield Wines where the staff will gladly help you pick the proper wine for your casserole.
Lulu Fare’s menu can be customized from a list of over 100 items that have each been approved by the Fulton County Health Department. And, Ohio state law allows her Fulton County license to be recognized by all other Ohio counties.
Even though it has been only several months, the Lulu Fare Food Truck has really caught on and Ms. Williams is looking down the road for more culinary-related opportunities. “I want to start doing cooking classes,” she said. “I’ve talked to Benfield about doing cooking classes there for adults. And I’m going to look into having cooking classes over the summer for kids.”
This Monday, April 5th, Lulu Fare will be parked at the Hallet Law Offices at 113 West Airport Highway for lunch beginning at 10:30 AM. It will be the perfect opportunity to sample the tasty wares of a Swanton original. The marketing slogan for Lulu Fare is “Making Mealtime Magnificent” and it is undeniably truth in advertising.
For more information on this wonderful addition to the list of Swanton community dinning choices, visit Lulu Fare on Facebook or contact them by calling 419-356-3885 or email them at lulufare8@gmail.com.
Pictured: Heather Williams hand Jodi Gilsdorf a box of “deliciousness” from the Lulu Fare Food Truck
Swanton vs Montpelier Varsity Softball Photos – 3/29/21
D3 vs D4 Girls All-Star Basketball Game Photos – 3/28/21
Evergreen Picks Up Baseball Road Win at Delta
Evergreen freshman pitcher Hunter Vaculik, making his first high school career start, threw five innings of no-hit, no run ball with seven strikeouts to lead the Vikings to an 11-5 victory over the Delta Panthers. After Vaculik left the game with a 10-0 lead, the Panthers scored three runs in the sixth inning and two more in the seventh but their rally fell short. Brock Hudik had five hits for the Vikes and scored four runs. Zach Laver stroked a bases-loaded double to drive in three runs and RJ Shunck reached base five times with three hits and two walks.
Vaculik was credited with the win and Hunter Hamilton took the loss for the Panthers. Chase Stickley had a one-out RBI single in the sixth inning to break up the no-hitter.
Fulton County Ohio Media 