On Friday afternoon at the Swanton Sports Center, the Evergreen Vikings lost to the Bryan Golden Bears 2283-2116. Viking senior Michael Laver led all bowlers with a two-game series of 434 including games of 230 and 204. Aaryan Singh bowled a 381 series for Bryan including a 202 game.
Bryan Golden Bears: Aaryan Singh (202 + 179 = 381), Noah Mills (183 + 171 = 354), Oliver Proxmire (194 + 142 = 333), Noah Green (199), Mycah Smith (169), Skylar Crooks (159), Brayden Bown (143), Baker Games (207 + 175 + 163 = 545) Total = 2283
Evergreen Vikings: Michael Laver (230 + 204 = 434), Layne Vance (148 + 164 = 317), Caden Beier (181), Isaac Hansel (165), Thomas Bake (142), Austin Garcia (142), Cohen Myers (139), Trevor Johnson (132), Baker Games (180 + 157 + 127 = 464) Total = 2116
Click on the link above to access photo 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: Michael Laver of Evergreen bowled games of 230 and 204
The Wauseon Indians bowling teams visited the Swanton Sports Center to take on the Swanton Bulldogs and came away with wins in both the Boys (2170-1776) and Girls (1837 – 1307) matches.
In the boys’ match, Landon Gleckler rolled a two-game series score of 439 including a match high-game 245 to lead Wauseon. Conner Williams bowled a 407 including a 210 game to pace the Bulldogs. Kymberlee Yocom had a two-game series score of 397 including a match game-high 202 to carry the lady Indians. Emma Leonard’s series score of 265 topped the Lady Bulldogs.
Swanton Lady Bulldogs: Emma Leonard (179 + 136 = 265), Bailey Juhasz (95 + 127 + 222), Ezra Goodman (87 + 84 = 171), Alex Hollis (97 + 58 = 155), Lily Gasche (67 + 82 = 149), Baker Games (107 + 110 + 128 = 345) Total = 1307
Click on the link above to access photos from the matches. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Last Sunday, at the EJ Ritter Event Hall on Main Street in Swanton, a group of approximately 40 people from various communities in Northwest Ohio got together in an open forum to engage in civil discourse on what to expect from the next Donald J. Trump administration and give opinions about how to deal with it. The Keynote Speaker was David Pepper, an attorney, writer, democracy activist, former elected official, and adjunct professor who served as the Chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party between 2015 and 2021. His recent non-fiction Laboratories of Autocracy and Saving Democracy: A User’s Manual dissect the attack on democracy taking place in states like Ohio, and guide everyday citizens on steps they can take to lift democracy. Pepper is a regular guest on national television, podcasts, and radio shows—as well as a speaker around the country—advocating for steps to strengthen democracy at the state and national level.
The organizer of the event, titled “Let’s talk About It”, was Janet Ritter, owner of the Studio 101 Salon & Spa, located next to the event hall. Ms. Ritter explained her motivation behind the event. “The premise of the event was to bring people together that were concerned about the results and what steps needed to be taken. The attendance included activists, lawyers, doctors, and local business owners who wanted to share their thoughts about Trump’s policies and how it will affect their businesses or their lives. The event was promoted to process the loss of the election. I invited David Pepper for his expertise and knowledge to help navigate through the next steps so we can prepare for 2026.”
Prior to Mr. Pepper’s time behind the podium, Ms. Ritter gave a short speech and it is copied below:
“Thank you for taking time out of your day to be here. For those who do not know me, my name is Janet Ritter, and I am the co-founder of the Indivisible group Northwest Ohio Indivisible Coalition. I’ve been quiet over the past four years, but, unfortunately, with Trump’s reelection, I’ve decided to speak up again. It has been five weeks since the election, and I don’t know about you, but like Regan from The Exorcist, my head was spinning while I listened to and read the analysis of why we lost the election. This event aims to help us all process the loss as we face another Trump administration. No one should be afraid after an election, no matter who wins. However, this time, Trump 2.0 is more prepared than ever to carry out his fascist agenda with the implementation of Project 2025.
Like a reality show, Trump is choosing a Cabinet made up of loyalists with little government experience who will support his agenda of retribution. Rather than working to unify the country, Trump is expected to use the presidency to enrich himself further, destroy norms, and demolish the institutions of our government to give him more power than any other president in history. Most importantly, his election victory means he will likely avoid accountability for any of his criminal actions.
The rights of marginalized groups and those who oppose him are in jeopardy. Supreme Court Justices Thomas and Alito will likely retire, allowing Trump to appoint two more extreme conservatives to the bench, which could help the Heritage Foundation advance Project 2025.
Once again, Globally, he will try to pull us out of NATO and the Paris Agreement. Trump will cozy up to dictators around the world because of his desire to be just like them—a tough, strong man with little to no regard for human rights. We’ll have to listen to him do the weave for the next four years as he tries to explain policy with 20 superlatives. He will tell us that he has a policy concept, and we will learn about it in two weeks. We will watch him build a virtual wall isolating us from the rest of the world so we can feel safe and secure because he alone can fix all our problems.
What frustrated me the most was how political pundits immediately blamed the Democrats for failing to connect with middle-class working voters. They argued that the Democrats should focus more on people instead of special interest groups. In the days that followed, all I heard were discussions about the Democrats’ mistakes and the changes needed to bring back their base. They say we lost the support of the working class by concentrating too much on “woke” issues, and there were calls to abandon our Progressive agenda. I don’t know about you, but when did diversity, equality, and inclusion become a far-left agenda that did not resonate with the voters? In the end, it was all about the price of eggs.
For more than eight years, political pundits have used their platforms to express how the GOP has become the Cult of Trump and how Republicans have strayed from their conservative principles, resulting in losses since 2016. In my opinion, the GOP has some reckoning to do themselves. They are no longer the party of the Cheney’s, Romney, Kinzinger, and McCain. Today, they are the party of Trump. They are MAGA.
It’s crucial to note that Trump did not win by a landslide or have a mandate. He won by 2.5 million votes out of more than 150 million cast. When the dust had settled, Latino and Black men who crossed over to Trump and the voters who stayed home cost us the election. Kamala lost the Blue Wall states within the margin of error. However, that doesn’t make Kamala Harris’s loss any less painful.
In my opinion, our flaws were not criminal, our faults were not unethical, and our motives were not immoral. Trump embodied each of these traits. He conveyed the message that voters wanted to hear, and they didn’t care who the messenger was. With the narrowest of margins, he is heading to Washington, where he will continue to undermine our norms, weaken our institutions, and damage our democracy.
Today, we will express our concerns, share how our lives have changed over the past eight years, and consider our next steps. Sitting on the sidelines is not an option, although I’m getting really tired of protesting this crap. The question to ask ourselves at the end of the day is, will democracy prevail?”
Mr. Pepper spoke next and his comments were more of a cautionary tale. He talked about past eras in America’s history where the rights of certain demographic groups were slowly eroded by legislators until no one could remember that those rights ever existed. For new generations born into those eras, it was all they knew. It became the norm and it took several generations, rebellious generations, to realize what had taken place and to reclaim those rights. In the past 8-12 years, however, laws have been passed that have set civil rights and women’s rights back several generations. “Don’t let this become the norm,” warned Mr. Pepper.
The floor was then opened to all who wanted to express their opinion on the current state of our nation and what their biggest concerns are when Donald Trump is inaugurated on January 20th of 2025. Many spoke up and voice not only their concerns, but their fears as well.
The Swanton Bulldogs ran into an Otsego Knight team on fire and blistered the nets for 46 first-half points on their way to a 63-46 victory on Tuesday night at the Kevin J. McQuade Gymnasium in a non-league boys basketball game. The Bulldogs hung tight in the first quarter with the visiting Knights, who entered the contest with a 4-0 record, and were down by just five, 19-14 after one. However, Otsego really lit it up in the second quarter, outscoring Swanton 27-7 for a 46-21 halftime advantage.
In the second half, the Knights’ offense cooled off considerably, scoring only 17 more points but, the Bulldogs could on add 25 more to their total and suffered the 17-point loss. Swanton’s Evan Reinhard led all players with 20 points including five triples. Charlie Wood added 17 points. Kaidyn Hutton topped Otsego with 17 points and Dane Fatzinger had 14, all in the high-scoring second quarter.
With the loss, the Bulldogs drop to 4-2 on the season. They will play next at home on Saturday against the North Central Eagles.
Swanton Bulldogs: 14-7-15-10 = 46 Evan Reinhard (20), Charlie Wood (17), Adam Lemon (6), Giovanni Ruiz (3)
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: Bulldog sophomore Evan Reinhard drives to the basket for two of his game-high 20 points
In the middle two quarters, the Swanton Lady Bulldogs could not find the mark, scoring only two points, and went on to lose 38-21 to the visiting Stryker Lady Panthers. Entering the second quarter, the Bulldogs trailed by just two points, 12-10. From there, however, their shooting went ice cold, scoring only two more points before halftime and zero in the third quarter, allowing the Panthers to stretch their advantage to 12 points entering the final frame. Lauren Bettinger led the Lady Bulldogs with six points. Grace Froelich scored 15 for the Lady Panthers.
The loss drops Swanton’s record on the season to 0-5. They next play on Tuesday, December 17th, at home against the Northwood Lady Rangers.
Stryker Lady Panthers: 12-9-3-14 = 38 Grace Froelich (15), Anna Donovan (7), Aubrey Clemens (5), Addalee Fulk (5), Abby Oberlin (3), Reiss Creighton (3)
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos mare in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Heading into the Baker Games portion of the match on Friday at the Swanton Sports Center, the Evergreen Vikings held an 80-pin lead over the Patrick Henry Patriots in their NWOAL contest and survived a furious rally to edge the Pats 2068-2059. Michael Laver paced the Vikings with a two-game series score of 358 including a 205 game. Teammate Trevor Johnson was right behind with a 355 series and a match-high game of 217. Kolton Barnhisel led the Patriots and all bowlers with a 363 series including a game of 201.
Evergreen Vikings: Michael Laver (153 + 205 = 358), Trevor Johnson (138 + 217 = 355), Isaac Hansel (160 + 142 = 302), Layne Vance (138 + 156 = 294), Caden Beier (172), Cohen Myers (126), Baker Games (165 + 182 + 1414 = 461) Total = 2068
Click on the link above to access photos from the match. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and cann be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
The Bryan Golden Bears bowlers visited the Swanton Sports Center and defeated both the Swanton Bulldogs Boys and Girls teams. The Bulldogs fell to the Golden Bears 2131-1631. Swanton’s Conner Williams led all bowlers with a two-game 394 series and Mycah Smith had a 351 for Bryan. The Lady Bulldogs lost 1905-1166. Bryan’s Polly Sleesman topped the ladies with a two-game series of 357. Emma Leonard had a 253 for Swanton.
Bryan Golden Bears: Mycah Smith (173 + 179 = 351), Noha Geren (154 + 183 = 337), Aaryan Singh (159 + 169 = 328), Noah Mills (164 + 157 = 321), Brayden Brown (128 + 132 = 260), Baker Games (167 + 155 + 211 = 533) Total = 2131
Swanton Bulldogs: Conner Williams (200 + 194 = 394), Conor Yates (145 + 178 = 323), Devon Bumbera (81 + 125 = 206), Jeremia Jordan (105 + 71 = 176), Stephan Hartbarger (66 + 63) = 129), Baker Games (131 + 120 + 152 = 403) Total = 1631
Swanton Lady Bulldogs: Emma Leonard (119 + 134 = 253), Bailey Juhasz (103 + 82 = 185), Lily Gasche (93 + 90 = 183), Ann Urbina (102 + 65 = 167), Alex Hollis (63), Ezra Goodman (56), Baker Games (99 + 80 + 79 = 258) Total = 1166
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.
At the Monday, 12/9/24, Village Council meeting, Council voted unanimously to pass the following resolution:
Resolution 2024-41 Page 1 of 1 Resolution 2024-41: A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH SWANTON LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT AND THE VILLAGE OF SWANTON POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR THE PURPOSE OF A SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER (SRO)
WHEREAS, Swanton Local School District wishes to have a dedicated School Resource Officer (hereafter “the SRO”) and the Village of Swanton Police Department wishes to provide an SRO to Swanton Local School District; and WHEREAS, Swanton Local School District and the Village of Swanton Police Department desire to set forth in an agreement with specific terms and conditions of the services to be performed and provided by the SRO to Swanton Local School District; NOW, THEREFORE, THE PARTIES MUTUALLY AGREE AS FOLLOWS, Swanton Local School District shall pay the Village of Swanton Police Department the amount of forty thousand dollars ($40,000) annually [$3,333 per month-$111 per day] for the services of the SRO for the first school year in which the SRO is in place (school year 2024/2025). However, this amount shall be paid during both school months, and non-school months. For each school year thereafter, beginning school year2025/2026, the amount paid by the School District shall increase by three percent (3%) annually.
The officer chosen to be Swanton Schools’ SRO is Troy Stewart. Officer Stewart is a veteran of the law enforcement career field, having served the Village of Swanton for the past 12 years and the Village of Fayette for four years prior to that. He actually has been in his new position for the past five weeks. Troy currently lives in Wauseon with his wife and three children.
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.
At their Tuesday night meeting earlier this week, the Swanton Lions Club welcomed its newest member, Brenda Shoemaker of Delta. Brenda was sworn in by Lion Dawn Patch. Unfortunately, the Delta Lions Club was disbanded several years ago, but Brenda has found a home with us.
The Swanton Lions Club is one of the most active community service organizations in Northwest Ohio. They are currently working on their Giving Tree Program to help the children of less fortunate families enjoy the Christmas season. The Lions put on the widely popular Halloween Hoopla every year. They are involved with many other charitable organizations related to helping the visually impaired, diabetes, Fulton County Habitat for Humanity, Adopt-a-Highway and more.
The Swanton Lions meet every second and fourth Tuesday of the month from 6:15 pm to 7:15 pm at the Swanton Community Center located on Chestnut Street. They can be contacted through their Facebook page.
Photo: Dawn Patch (Left) presents Brenda Shoemaker with her Certificate of Membership
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