This past Saturday, the downtown area of Swanton hosted its first Artwalk on Main, featuring a diverse display of art from more than a dozen vendors offering paintings, sketches, wood pottery, photography, glass figurines, jewelry, macrame and more. This new event, which ran from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, is another example of the Swanton business community and the Chamber of Commerce building on the many recent successes of returning Downton Swanton to an economically vibrant environment.
Several months ago, Deb Helwig, owner of Deb’s Art Studio on main Street, approached the Chamber’s Board of Directors with her idea of starting the event, inspired by the Black Swamp Arts Festival in Bowling Green which began almost 30 years ago. “I talked to a couple of people on their committee and they told me it took 15 years tom get to where it is today,” said Deb. “But you’ve got to start somewhere.”
The turnout for the Artwork on Main was very good and met with Deb’s expectations. It also showed how the Swanton community has become very appreciative of its growth as an art community. Ms. Helwig opened her art studio six years ago and said the business has been successful and now, post-pandemic, actually thriving. Another positive indicator is the Annual Swanton Fine Art Exhibit and Sale being held for the seventh time from October 7th to the 9th at Valleywood Golf Club. This exhibit is regarded as one of the finest in Northwest Ohio.
Initially, the Delta Panthers were supposed to open their home football season last Friday night with the Cardinal Stritch Cardinals. However, when the Oregon, Ohio school suddenly decided to drop their football program, Delta was left scrambling to find a replacement opponent. Fortunately , John F. Kennedy Catholic out of Warren, Ohio was able to fill the void, traveling approximately three hours to take on the Panthers.
Generally regarded as a Division VII football power, the JFK Eagles found a tough Panther defense in the first quarter before putting 16 points on the board in the second quarter on their way to a 37-12 victory, Delta travels to Evergreen in two weeks to open the NWOAL season against the Vikings.
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Click on the link above to access photos from the night. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultincountymedia.com website.
Click on the link above to access photos from the ceremony. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Click on the link above to access photos from the match. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Click on the link above to access photos from the match. Photos are in the jpeg format and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
In an important NWOAL match, the Archbold Lady Blue Streaks and the Swanton Lady Bulldogs battled to a 2-2 tie at Krupitzer Field in Swanton. The Streaks and the Bulldogs traded goals midway through the first half and were deadlocked 1-1 until just before halftime, Leah McQuade put the Streaks back on top with a blast from about 15 yards out. In the second half, Megan Haselman, who had scored Swanton’s first goal, tied the contest again at 2-2 with her second goal.
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for FREE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Madison Roytek is a freshman at Swanton High School and, like the rest of her fellow freshman in the Class of 2026, she is about to embark on an educational journey over the next four years that will go a long way in guiding and shaping her life as she enters adulthood. Prior to beginning this next exciting chapter, Madison, a member of SEED (Students Encouraging Educated Decisions) since the fifth grade through SACC (Swanton Area Community Coalition), was given the opportunity to be educated in ways that will not only positively affect her own life going forward but the lives of many in the Swanton community.
This past July, Madison traveled to Orlando, Florida and took part in the CADCA (Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America) Annual Mid-Year Training Institute conference with fellow students from around the nation including Kansas, Utah and as far away as Hawaii. Her funding for the conference was provided primarily through the generosity of local businesses, community service organizations and individuals.
For five consecutive days, Madison received a world-class education from leaders and advocates through sophisticated training sessions and workshops related to substance misuse prevention, dynamic keynote speakers, and networking opportunities. She gained a wealth of knowledge and has many ideas to prevent substance abuse that she will now bring back to the student body of Swanton High School.
“You make a stepped-out plan from where you start to where you need to end. The ending is the action you need to take for it to actually work,” explained Madison. “We were taught how an idea goes from ‘brain’ to ‘paper’ to ‘funding’ to ‘implementation’ in the schools.
Accompanying Madison to Florida was her mother MacKenzi. However, in the workshops, training groups, lectures and a host of other CADCA activities, this very young teenager was tasked with navigating the conference on her own. She gave a great deal of credit for her success in this new and sometimes chaotic environment to the confidence she acquired and the soft skills she learned during her four years in the Swanton Seven Initiative while in Middle School.
According to Andrea Smith, Executive Director of SACC, she chose Madison to attend the conference based on her experiences and contributions to the SEED program the past four years. “We have been involved with CADCA for the past decade and I knew she would be able to grasp all they had to offer,” said Ms. Smith. “They teach the youth how to make a greater impact on the community based on what the needs are, being able to tailor to and get creative to build a process of facilitating changes.”
The challenges for Madison will be many in her first year of high school with her studies, her participation with the volleyball team and her work with SEED. In conversations with several of her former teachers and mentors, they all expressed confidence in her leadership abilities and said she will meet the challenges head on and do very well for her peers and her community.
Pictured: Madison Roytek at the SACC booth during the Swanton Corn Festival
At the Swanton Lions Club meeting tonight, the club decided to hold their very popular Halloween Hoopla event on October 29, 2022 on Main Street in Downton Swanton. As in the past, attendees will be entertained with numerous bouncy houses, music, dancers, pedal cars, free food (hot dogs, popcorn, donuts) and a lot more. There will even be a costume judging contest this year.
The specific times and more details will be announced very soon. If you would like to help out with this tremendously family-oriented project, please contact any Swanton Lion Club member.
Fulton County Ohio Media 