The Chief of Swanton’s Fire and Rescue Department, Ed Dziengelewski, has submitted a letter of resignation to Mayor Neril Toeppe and the Village Council. Below is an announcement from the desk of Mayor Toeppe:
“The Village of Swanton has had the benefit of Chief Dziengelewski’s decades of experience in the Fire Service. He has served as a Firefighter, EMT, Captain, and most recently as Fire Chief. We wish him well as he pursues additional opportunities and challenges in the Fire Service. I quote from the Chief’s letter of resignation. ‘I wish you all the best moving forward as I have felt this was a great place to work.’ The Chief’s last day with the department will be Friday, July 28th.
Village Administrator Shannon Shulters will begin an immediate search for Chief Dziengelewski’s replacement.
Photo: Chief Dziengelewski’s with another well known firefighter.
Just weeks after a tremendously successful turnout at Swanton’s first Block Party in the recently established DORA, it was deja vu all over again as the Swanton Chamber of Commerce held Block Party II last evening. Some of the proceeds will be donated to Fulton County’s Habitat for Humanity. Entertainment was provided by JP and the Big Deal with a great mix of Rock and Country. The next Block Party is scheduled for Saturday, August 26th.
Click on the link above to access photos from the event. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Swanton resident Shannon Heilman began liquidating products through a Facebook group heavily during COVID. When the world was at a standstill and shops were closed, she wanted to be able to have necessities and “wants” at fingertips length. She noted it was so fulfilling to be able to make connections with people during such a trying time. About a year ago she suffered a medical crisis, and it brought her life to a standstill. She wasn’t sure what her future was going to look like, so she took a break and began helping out a close friend at her liquidation warehouse located in Swanton (Buy to Win).
Through this friendship and opportunity, she was able to rejuvenate her passion and wants to share it with Swanton. The Main Street Trading Post, located at 113 S. Main Street, is a small, quaint shop that will offer all brand-new brands that you will recognize, quality items, and at a bonus at a discounted price. Shannon wants to bring another small shop to Main Street that will allow a bit more variety while exploring the Village.
A ribbon cutting with family, friends, local business owners, Village Officials and the Swanton Chamber of Commerce was held today to announce their arrival onto the Downtown Swanton Business District scene. They will be opening for Christmas in Swanton on Saturday, July 29th, from 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM and will continue with the following regular hours: Tuesday thru Saturday, 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM.
Click on the link above to access photos from the ceremony and new business merchandise.
Photo: Shannon Heilman cuts the ribbon to open a another new business in Downtown Swanton
Apparently, Mother Nature did not receive the memo from the Delta Chicken Festival Parade Committee that stated, “Don’t Rain on My Parade” because, from start to end, that’s all it did. No let up. However, it did not stop the parade from taking place as the floats, the twirlers, the Delta High School Marching Panthers and dozens of other participants traversed the entire route to the delight of the brave spectators that shook off the weather and lined Fernwood and Taylor Streets.
Click on the link above to access the 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.
Photos from Friday evening at the Delta Chicken Festival, before the rains came. 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.
At their meeting on July 11th, the Swanton Lions Club officially chose October 28, 2023 as the date for their enormously popular Halloween Hoopla held in Downtown Swanton. The Club has begun to organize the wonderfully exciting activities including games and bouncy houses that will fill a large portion of Main Street as local businesses pass out all kinds of delicious candy. The precise time will be published at a later date. Click on the link above to see some of the photos from last year’s celebration.
There are several reasons to hold a special election, one not conducted in the month of November, in the State of Ohio such as the need to fill a sudden or unexpected vacancy of an important position or to vote to recall an elected official. Elections that do not meet that criteria often fall under the suspicion of being held at a period of historically low voter turnout to improve the passing of a controversial measure. The motivation behind placing Ohio 2023 Issue 1 on the ballot on August 8, 2023, could not be more obvious. “Just move along. Nothing to see here, folks.”
Pulled from the internet is a brief explanation of what the measure entails:
What is Ohio’s Issue 1?
If voters approve Issue 1, future amendments to the Ohio Constitution will need a 60% affirmative vote to pass, rather than the simple majority vote of 50% plus one vote that’s been in place since 1912, according to The Associated Press.
Also, petitioners seeking to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot in Ohio would need to gather signatures from at least 5% of electors in the most recent gubernatorial election in each of Ohio’s 88 counties, rather than just 44 counties.
Issue 1 also eliminates the state’s “curing period” for constitutional amendment petitions, which gives petitioners an extra 10 days to gather additional signatures, if needed.
Supporters of Issue 1 say the measure would protect the Ohio Constitution from special interest groups.
“By raising the threshold for constitutional amendments to 60%, the people will ensure amendments have widespread support and tell special interests that our constitution is not up for grabs,” reads an argument for the proposal signed by state GOP lawmakers. “By requiring signatures from voters in every county, special interest groups will no longer be able to cherry pick where they gather signatures.”
Meanwhile, opponents of Issue 1 say it would end majority rule in the state.
“It means just 40% of voters can block any issue, putting 40% of voters in charge of decision-making for the majority,” reads an argument against the proposal signed by state Democrats. “It would destroy citizen-driven ballot initiatives as we know them, guaranteeing that only wealthy special interests could advance changes to our constitution.”
Though the changes to the signature threshold and curing period would only apply to constitutional amendments proposed after Jan. 1, 2024, the new vote threshold requirement would take effect immediately upon passage — possibly impacting the next general election.
Issue 1 would raise the threshold needed for voters to approve an abortion rights amendment that could appear on the Nov. 7 ballot, which would enshrine access to abortion in Ohio in the state constitution following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade last summer. Petitioners for that amendment last week submitted more than 700,000 signatures to the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office, which now must be verified by county election boards.
My question is, why not wait until the general election on November 7, 2023? That is just three months away when voter turnout tends to be the highest. The State of Missouri has a very similar measure to be decided this year, in November, where it should be. Having the vote at the peak of vacation season only confirms the mistrust many of us have in politicians and our political system overall.
Currently, two states, Florida and Illinois, require a 60% super majority to amend their constitution. Ohio and 37 other states require a 50% plus one vote simple majority with the rest lying somewhere in between. The impact of Issue 1’s approval will have a major impact on the lives of all Ohioans for a long time and we do not deserve to have it “slipped” past us while our attention may be diverted. Let us all decide. Or at least most of us.
Last Saturday evening, on Swanton’s youth soccer fields, a crowd began to form around 6:00 PM and grew in numbers for the next four hours with people of all ages, dressed mainly in some combination of patriotic red, white and blue. They had gathered to witness one of the best pyrotechnic displays in Northwest Ohio, the Village of Swanton’s Independence Day Fireworks. There was some apprehension in the air as people kept checking the weather forecast on their cell phones, not knowing if the anticipated “bombs bursting in air” would be delivered by the American Fireworks Company as scheduled or by Mother Nature, at an earlier and inconvenient time. As we all know now, Mother Nature was gracious enough to hold off the storm long enough for everyone to enjoy another spectacular show.
As breathtaking the fireworks were, what I enjoyed even more as I walked around the grounds before the big boomers began, was watching all the people that had come together to celebrate America’s 247th birthday. So many families, so many young people, so many adults, playing games, eating food, talking and laughing and just having a great time as they waited hours for that first rocket to take flight. I could not distinguish anyone by political party affiliation and I am confident that many of the larger groups that night were a mix of political parties that had checked their beliefs at the gate.
It was only for a few hours but it was great to witness. With the exception of 1861-1865, I do not believe we, as a nation, have ever been more divided. I can only hope and pray our democracy will survive this tumultuous period of our history and we come together as a country for our own benefit. And not just once a year to watch fireworks.
Click on the link above to access photos from the event. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
The Swanton Lions Club held their annual Installation and Awards Dinner last Friday evening at the Swanton Community Center. The event is held to install Club Officers who were elected for the 2023/2024 fiscal year and thank those who served in those positions the year prior.
The Club’s new officers, who assumed their duties on July 1st are as follows: President – Dr. Mark Jones, First Vice-President – Scot Lawson, Second Vice-President – Jeff Patch, Secretary – Holly Lawson, Treasurer – Dr. Penny Jones, Membership Director – Jennifer Salyers, Lion Tamer – Lloyd Cass, Tail Twister – Dr. Mark Jones.
The Swanton Lions Club meets every second and fourth Tuesday at 6:15 PM each month in the Swanton Community Center on Chestnut Street. Meetings are generally one hour or less. Major projects for the Club include the Easter Egg Hunt, the American Flag Program, Swanton High School Scholarship Golf Outing, Swanton Corn Festival involvement, Halloween Hoopla Sponsorship and Coordination, Christmas Giving Tree Program and many other smaller benevolent projects.
Click on the link above to access photos from the dinner. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Lions Club District Governor Dave Stockum, Secretary Holly Lawson, President Dr. Mark Jones
The Swanton Athletic Boosters welcomed 35 teams of golfers to Valleywood Golf Club for their annual fund-raising outing last Friday. Word on the course was that several of the participants were using this outing as a tune-up for British Open later this month. Good luck to them in the UK. Here are a few photos from the day.
Click on the link above to access photos from the event. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Fulton County Ohio Media 