This past Tuesday afternoon, the Swanton Chamber of Commerce hosted the Andrew (Drew) McNeill Memorial Golf Tournament at Valleywood Golf Club in Swanton. The tournament format was an 18-hole best-ball scramble with no shot total exceeding par on any hole.
Winning the Men’s Division was Team Taylor McNeill with Taylor McNeill, John Schmalzreid, Alex Ostafi and Rob Ostafi. Winning the Mixed Division was Swanton Valley Care Center with Rebecca Padilla, Art Padilla, Tisha Daleska and Jeremy Daleska.
Click on the link above to access photos from the tournament. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
After years of dreaming, years of planning and a year of construction, Pam and David Mills were finally able to cut the ribbon on the beautiful and luxurious Birchwood Meadow, a Premier Wedding and Event Barn Venue. The ribbon cutting ceremony and open house took place this past Monday in front of dozens of friends, family members, staff members, Swanton Village Officials and Swanton Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Also on hand was local entrepreneur and business woman Linda Cannaley, who put the Mills’ dream on the path to reality by connecting them with them with the right financial experts and then selling them the 27-acre property on which the venue sits.
“A dream come true,” said an elated Pam Mills shortly after she cut the ribbon. “This isn’t just a business to us. This is our passion. We are very passionate about helping couples and seeing them take their sacred vows here. There is no better feeling. All the hard work, all the delays, this makes it worth it.”
The demand for events at Birchwood Meadows was very strong even before the first shovel entered the ground. The new venue has already hosted five weddings, currently has another 110 events booked and is now booking for 2025. It is in a prime location in Swanton’s Turtle Creek area, just off Airport Highway, with easy access to restaurants, gas stations, local shops and a short distance to two Ohio Turnpike exchanges, one east and one west.
Visit their website at birchwoodmeadow.com to get a good idea of what they offer. I guarantee you will be impressed.
Click on the link above to access photos from the ceremony.
Photo: Pam and David Mills cut the ribbon to begin their new journey.
Another great Swanton Corn Festival came to an end Saturday as as a party-loving crowd rocked the night away to the music of Toledo’s Noisy Neighbors under the Beard Pavilion. During the day there were many new vendors, food trucks, special events and entertaining games, literally something for everyone. Congratulations to Committee chairs Alyssa Walberg, Allan Robasser, Stephanie Fessenden and all of the hard-working volunteers for putting together the fabulous event.
Click on the link to access photos from the Festival. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
The 2023 Swanton Corn Festival Parade this past Saturday morning was a spectacular event that seemed would go on forever. Which, would have been just fine with the hordes of people that filled both sides of Main Street between Brookside to Garfield. Parade Co-Chairs Hannah Nelson and Taylor Truckor and the Parade Committee put together an amazing line-up of participants who did not disappoint with their displays.
This year’s Cornopoly theme brought out an abundance of creative floats with Swanton’s Trinity Methodist Church capturing First Place, Fortemeyer & Sons coming in Second Place and the Swanton Sports Center taking Third Place. The high school marching bands of Anthony Wayne, Delta, Liberty Center, Springfield, St, John’s and Swanton provided the musical entertainment and reminded everyone that the high school football season kicks off next weekend.
Click on the link above to access over 600 photos from the parade. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Parade Grand Marshal Harold Yunker with his wife, Kathy.
Three teams worth of Swanton Alumni got together at Memorial Park to showcase their still impressive athletic prowess. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Glory Days.
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow fort editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Swanton Alum and current Bulldog baseball coach readies to show everyone how it’s done.
The Swanton Bulldogs Boys golf team finished in fourth place yesterday in their own tournament, the Bulldog Invitational, held at Valleywood Golf Club in Swanton. The Evergreen Vikings placed fifth and the Delta Panthers were seventh in the nine-team event. Leading the Bulldogs was junior Adam Lemon who fired a 77 to capture second place overall behind medalist Caiden Fay of Toledo St. John’s who shot a 75. Lemon’s score also qualified him for the All-Invitational Team. The Anthony Wayne Generals won the team event with a score of 327.
Team Scores: Anthony Wayne (327), Springfield (332), St. John’s (334), Swanton (353), Evergreen (367), Otsego (369), Delta (394), Northwood (510), Maumee Valley Country Day School (DNQ).
Swanton (353): Adam Lemon (77), Mazin Rukieh (82), Dylan Smigelski (93), Brady O’Shea (101), Carson Lemons (113), Drayton Rieger (119)
Evergreen (367): Brady Kanneman (87), Cory Kanneman (87), Adam Schmidt (94), Michael Lauer (99), Nick Kruzel (99), Logan Peebles (109)
Delta (394): Lane Lopez (83), Slade Young (87), Eathan Huffman (106), Logan Reagle (123), Ashton Aleg (124), Drew Smith (125)
Click on the link above to access photos from the Invitational Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo (L to R): Swanton Bulldogs Golf Team – Drayton Rieger, Carson Lemons, Adam Lemon, Mazin Rukieh, Dylam Smigelski, Brady O’Shea
On Tuesday, August 15, 2023, from 6:00 to 6:30 PM, the Swanton Middle School (SMS) will be holding a Mural Reveal event in a large classroom that once served as the school’s library. The mural is functionally interactive and is the brainchild of SMS Career Coach Mike Remer who began thinking of how to put to use a blank 20’ x 36’ wall to best benefit his students.
“The classroom where I teach used to be a library and one day I came in here and all the books and cabinets were gone off this wall and I just saw this huge white board. And over time it just occurred to me that maybe we could have a mural painted with all the businesses on it throughout the region and show the students how awesome it is to stay right here and have a great life and a great career and achieve your dream right here. That’s sort of how we came up with the idea,” explained Mr. Remer.
The mural, painted by local artist Dave Rickerd, is themed “There’s No Place Like Home”, borrowing the famous quote spoken by Dorothy in the 1939 classic film, “The Wizard of Oz”. You will see the Yellow Brick Road at its base as it splits off in several directions that lead to the more than 200 businesses and other organizations that offer numerous career opportunities. Of course, Dorothy and her friends, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion are all present as well.
“Once we got the idea to put the businesses on the wall it occurred to me to make it more diverse if we used a QR (Quick Response) Code so that people can capture that QR Code and then have the mural come up on their phone or device,” said Mr. Remer. “They could now tap on each one of the 200 plus businesses and go right to whatever content these businesses want them to see. Some companies are sending customized videos to help students see how awesome it is to work there. Others are using their normal website.”
Currently, in this America, there is a labor shortage and Fulton County is no exception. According to Cara Leininger, Workforce Development Supervisor of Ohio Means Jobs of Fulton County, there are more job openings in Fulton County than there are high school students in all seven Fulton County school districts combined. That is a fact that helps put things in perspective and why programs like the SMS Swanton Seven Initiative are partnering with local businesses to help produce a qualified and robust workforce for the area in the near future.
The Swanton Parents Club has stepped forward and is funding the mural program. “We didn’t ask any businesses for any funding. And they’re very generous anyway and they would have funded it,” said Mr. Remer. “It’s meant a lot to me and our superintendent and our leaders to be able to go to these business people and say ‘Thank you for being great partners’. It’s a way to give back. The Swanton Parents Club funded the whole thing.”
The Parents Club had one stipulation that was immediately agreed to. They wanted the program to be curriculum wide to help Swanton students realize that the stuff their learning in class was important and would have practical applications in many of the available careers. “When they ask the question, ‘When will I ever use this when I get out of school?’, well, I’m going to work with the teachers here to come up with a curriculum around this board and around this campus to answer that question,” stated Mr. Remer.
The mural ties in very well with the SMS Swanton Seven Initiative, a culture-changing and award-winning program that is now entering its fifth year. “This (the mural) is just one piece of that whole culture they built here before I got here,” said Mr. Remer. “I’m just doing my part to raise the bar with everybody else here in this building.”
Photo: (L to R) Chris Lake (Swanton Schools Superintendent), Cara Leininger (Ohio Means Jobs Supervisor), Leigh Pancoast (Swanton Middle School Principal), Mike Remer (SMS Career Coach), Ashley Stambaugh (EMIS Coordinator), Ben Remer (Swanton Board of Education President), Matt Horen (SMS Assistant Principal), Dave Rickerd (Mural Artist)
There are only two basic ways to play a round of golf at the historic and tradition-rich Inverness Golf Club in Toledo. You either pay a lot of money or you earn your way on to the nationally recognized course, site of several major PGA and LPGA Championships, with your golfing skills that have been developed and honed while competing against the toughest competition you can find.
For Mazin Rukieh, an incoming junior at Swanton High School, it was his talent and his impressive performances while competing in the Toledo Junior Golf Association (TJGA) this summer against many of the top high school golfers in the area that paved his way. Mazin played in 11 tournaments on some of the best golf courses in Northwest Ohio this season and “made the cut” to qualify to play in the final tournament of the summer, the TJGA Founders Invitational held at Inverness this past Monday.
Inverness is a “walk only” course so Mazin was allowed to bring along a caddie, choosing friend, classmate and fellow Swanton Bulldog golfer, Adam Lemon. It was a perfect weather day, sunny and 78 degrees at tee-time. However, playing for the first time on a course that saw the likes of so many greats of the game, names such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, it had to be intimidating.
Mazin teed off on the first hole of the front nine, paired with a player from Toledo Central Catholic and Anthony Wayne. “I started out a little rough, but as I went on to the back nine, I finished strong with two birdies. I had five birdies in total which is a pretty good amount for my usual rounds,” he explained. “I did have a fair amount of bogeys so it was pretty aggressive.”
Inverness has a well-deserved reputation of being very challenging, rarely yielding scores below its par of 71. “Some of the fairways are really hilly, up and down. And the greens, from a distance, don’t look terrifying but once you get up there, you’re shaking,” said Mazin. “I enjoyed the course overall. It’s beautiful. Probably the best I’ll ever play on.”
Competing in the TJGA this summer and finishing on the prestigious Inverness Golf Club will produce some major benefits for his golf game, admits Mazin. “All these summer tournaments have really changed my game a lot and how I look at a golf course. I have two strategies now. It’s been really good for me,” he said.
On the day, which he will never forget, Mazin shot a 79 for +8 over par, good for 7th place among the 26 golfers in the boys 16-18 age group. The winner of the tournament finished at +1 and second place came in at +5, in a testament to the difficulty of the course. If these scores do not seem too impressive, keep in mind that in the 1957 US Open, a young Jack Nicklaus shot back-to-back rounds of 80 and missed the cut.
There will be little time to rest for Mazin as he and the Swanton Bulldogs begin the high school season this Friday at an 18-team tournament at Stone Ridge Golf Club in Bowling Green. The Bulldogs will start their home season at Valleywood Golf Club on Monday with a 3:00 PM match against the Otsego Knights followed by a Tuesday 1:00 PM match against the North Central Eagles. On Wednesday, they host the Bulldog Invitational with an 8:00 AM tee-off. They finish off the week by traveling to the Auglaize Golf Club for another 18-team tournament.
Click on the link above to access photos from the tournament.
Click on the link above to access the more than 450 photos from the parade. Photos are in the jpg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
These are some photos taken on Thursday from the 2023 Wauseon Homecoming. Click on the link above to access the photos. They are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
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