The Swanton Lady Bulldogs swept past the Delta Lady Panthers three games to none in a home NWOAL volleyball match in the Kevin J. McQuade Gymnasium on Thursday evening. Delta fought hard in the first game before losing 28-26. Swanton then took control of the next two games winning 25-26 and 25-13.
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 NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com.
Photo: Lady Bulldog Maddie Smith gets ready to defend the net as Lillyanna Valderas prepares to serve.
The Swanton Lady Bulldogs survived a tight battle in the first game of the match against the Delta Lady Panther, winning 25-23 and then won the next game 25-15 to complete the 2-0 sweep on their home court.
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 NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Swanton’s Zara Wylie rejects a spike attempt by Delta’s Maya Grant.
It has been almost two weeks since the 2023 Swanton Corn Festival (SCF) filled a beautiful August Saturday with a great parade followed by all kinds of family fun activities, sports competitions, delicious food choices, arts and crafts vendors and hours of wonderful entertainment from bands and solo artists. Hopefully, there has been enough time for the SCF Committee chairs and their dozens of hard-working volunteers to decompress and return to a “normal” life. However, given the tremendous number of hours they all put in, the stress and anxiety levels they experienced that come with putting together the Village’s biggest celebration of the year, and all the time knowing they would be at the mercy of Mother Nature, it may take a little bit longer.
The enormous scope of the Corn Festival requires the planning and organizing to begin months before the actual event. Meetings are scheduled, roles and responsibilities are established and a time table is put together. The closer to the date, the more hours are required as the coordination with the Village, local businesses, Swanton schools, vendors and parade participants becomes finely tuned. For the volunteer committee members, the entire process culminates with a 16-hour day of organized chaos. Last minute changes are implemented and decisions are made on the fly to deal with inevitable unexpected. Oh, yes. Then on Sunday there is dealing with the aftermath, the cleanup.
It makes you wonder what kind of individual would put forth this type of effort and, step up year after year with a repeat performance. It is somebody with a fulltime job, family commitments and other things they could be doing. Yet, it is also someone that cares about their community, cares about their family, friends and neighbors and wants their town to shine in a positive light.
Shortly before the big day they receive a payout for their efforts. A t-shirt. Typically, a nice looking brightly-colored t-shirt with Swanton Corn Festival theme-inspired artwork along with the date for a precise reference. And they are proud to wear them. The Village of Swanton is very fortunate to have a lot of long-time residents that could fill a closet with their well-earned t-shirts. If there is one thing every volunteer would covet more than that t-shirt, it would be a “Thank you.” from anyone who enjoyed themselves during the Swanton Corn Festival. Do not be shy. Appreciation is the best gift one can give.
Photo: Swanton Corn Festival Chair People in the T-Shirts of course, Alyssa Walberg, Alan Robasser and Stephanie Fessenden
The Pettisville Blackbirds scored two early unanswered goals and went on to defeat the Swanton Bulldogs 5-1 in a non-league match at Swanton. The Bulldogs pulled within one in the second half with a goal from Isaiah Bolyard, but the Blackbirds responded with two more quick scores to seal the victory.
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 NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Pettisville’s Mason Wyse (8) and Swanton’s Owen Hansen (14) battle for control of the ball.
The 2023-2024 academic school year has begun at Swanton Middle School (SMS) and it comes, as always, with a lot of noticeable changes. A quarter of the student body has turned over as last year’s eight-grade class has begun their new journey at Swanton High School and this year’s fifth-grade class is fresh out of Swanton Elementary School, ready to start a new and exciting chapter in their academic careers.
There are also some new faces in the ranks of the faculty and administration, but the most significant change has a very familiar face in a new position. Mrs. Leigh Pancoast, the SMS Assistant Principal for the past six years, has stepped up into the role of SMS Principal, replacing Mr. Matt Smith, who accepted the position of principal at Fallen Timbers Middle School in the Anthony Wayne Local School District. Replacing Mr. Smith, who affected so much positive academic and cultural change with his Swanton 7 Initiative program, will be no easy task, but when considering Ms. Pancoast’s impressive credentials, it would be almost impossible to find a more suitable or qualified candidate.
Leigh (Remer) Pancoast grew up in Swanton Ohio, graduated as a Swanton Bulldog and headed off to the University of Toledo where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Education and a Master’s Degree in Administration. Eventually, she added her principals license from the University of Findlay. Ms. Pancoast has been an educator at Swanton schools for 18 years, teaching math and social studies in the middle school before becoming the dean of students and eventually the SMS assistant principal.
Mr. Chris Lake, Swanton School Superintendent, who brought Ms. Pancoast’s promotion to the Swanton Board of Education, had this to say. “I am very confident that Mrs. Pancoast will continue the tradition of success that SMS has enjoyed over the last six years. She has been one of the creative minds behind the incredible transformation of Swanton Middle School since the Swanton 7 initiative was dreamt up back in 2017. You would be hard pressed to find someone who is better prepared to step into a head principal role than Mrs. Pancoast.”
What is also important to understand with respect to this transition and the future of the Swanton 7 Initiative is that Ms. Pancoast worked side by side with Mr. Smith and the SMS staff from day one in creating, developing and shaping the program to where it is today.
As she explains, “About six years ago we started a distinguished house system. We have four houses with all grade levels dispersed equally among the houses therefore creating a culture where all students feel welcome and like a family. With that we set forth seven essential principles that drive our Swanton 7 Initiative. The seven principles all relate back to what the business leaders in our area told us they need from our students, better communication and motivation to be the best, essentially. This lead us to adopt many intriguing activities such as the Amazing Shake, which includes improving students communication/business skills at a young age being judged by over 60 of our local businesses, the Swanton 7 Manners Luncheon, which allows our students to experience a fine dining meal during school and network with local businesses, we started a career academy within the school day for all 7th and 8th graders, this is where our students learn all about the 4 E’s and develop a start to their resumes and learn from people in all fields and walks of life, and we have fun, our kids work hard and with that they have a lot of fun to look forward too, these are middle schoolers after all. We have won many awards including Ohio Middle Level Team of the Year 2020 and Excellence in Industry from the Fulton County Economic Development Cooperation in 2022. We were the first school to ever be awarded this honor.”
Ms. Pancoast lives in Swanton with her husband and three boys. She is anxious and ready for this and it seems she has been working for this her entire adult life. “As a new principal, I can’t wait to lead the students and staff as I already know how amazing they are and how much farther we can grow together. This is an awesome opportunity that I am thankful to have received, she exclaimed. “GO BULLDOGS!”
Photo: Leigh Pancoast explaining the Amazing Shake competition to Toledo 13abc.
The Delta Panthers got off to a rough start in their game against the Ayersville Pilots, spotting the visitors a 15-0 lead in the early going. The Panther offense found the end zone in the second quarter and trailed 15-7 at the half but were not able to sustain any drives in the second half while the Pilots tacked on two more touchdowns for the final 27-7 score.
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 NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Delta senior Maverick Mercer celebrates a touchdown.
Click on the link to access photos from Game Night vs Ayersville. Photos are in the jpeg format and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Prior to the game against the Ayersville Pilots, Delta High School honored its Class of 2024 seniors from the marching band and the football team.
Click on the link above to access photos from the celebration. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
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.
Fulton County Ohio Media 