Local Restaurant Installs New Furniture
Staff Reports

Troy's Penn Station east coast sub restaurant location has been around for almost a decade, including the seating and tables, and with as the old adage goes, out with the old and in with the new.

Crews from a wood decking and restoration company based in suburban Cincinnati were in Miami County's seat on Saturday to replace the original restaurant booth seating and tables with new fixtures that match the newer color and decor scheme introduced in the last year. The Cincinnati-based restaurant chain has recently introduced a darker wood and contemporary fixture design to it's existing restaurants after pioneering the concept, along with a modern computerized ordering system, in it's latest new restaurant locations.

Workers will continue to work through the weekend, without the need to close or hinder the operation of the restaurant during normal business hours. For more information, including hours and menu, visit http://psdayton.com.

By Blake Arbogast

A man from Piketon was more than happy to find out his charitable nature led to him winning a 2007 Harley Davidson motorcycle during the 2011 Miami County Relay for Life.

The annual event sponsored by the American Cancer Society (ACS) has participants walk 24 hours straight in an effort to help raise funds and awareness for cancer research. Those who participate in the annual event include both cancer survivors and supporters alike.

This year, Troy, Ohio-based businesses Dave Arbogast Buick GMC Van RV, The Caroline Restaurant and the Troy Fish and Game teamed up for a "Ride for Life Harley Raffle" for this year's Relay. Raffle tickets for the drawing were $20 each with all proceeds donated to the ACS.

In total, the three businesses behind the raffle were able to raise about $6,000 through ticket sales.

The raffle ticket belonging to Piketon resident John Mossbarger ended up being pulled. Mossbarger is now the proud owner of a 2007 Harley Davidson XL883L Sportster Motorcycle.

Those behind the Harley raffle added they always look forward to helping out when they can.

"This (Ride for Life) was just another opportunity for the local community to come out and help raise money for a great cause," said Dave Arbogast Buick GMC Van RV Internet Manager Blake Arbogast.

By JT Szabo

For the second year in a row, the Strawberry Idol competition was held at the First Lutheran Church on Troy's west side, featuring arguably the best overall talent yet among the 18 competing acts taking the stage last Sunday evening.

In front of a nearly packed house, singers, songwriters, pianists and guitarists played their hearts out for a chance at being named the Strawberry Idol and the coveted opportunity to perform on the main stage at the Strawberry Festival in just a handful of days.

After careful deliberation by the local judges, Nicholas Baldasare was crowed the overall 2011 Strawberry Idol with his amazing rendition of "Maria" from the Broadway hit West Side Story.

The competition was broadcast live on PostTV at MiamiCountyPost.com, and will be rebroadcast daily through the summer.

Staff Reports

Miami County's official kickoff to summertime, Taste of the Arts, will take to the streets of downtown Piqua on Friday, May 20, 2011. This annual family-friendly, fun event has no shortage of new offerings and entertainment for everyone. The event runs from 5 - 9 p.m. in the 300 & 400 blocks of N. Main Street.

Taste of the Arts is a wonderful 'taste' event that gives visitors a sampling of delicious food, live music and art. Taste of the Arts features fourteen different area restaurants and caterers offering their popular menu items ranging from just 50c (1 ticket) to $2.50 (5 tickets.) The restaurant tents are located in the 100 blocks of East and West Ash Street - right in the middle of all the activities and fun. To purchase food or beverages during the evening all transactions are done with tickets and the Taste of the Arts ticket tent is conveniently located between the food tents. Tickets are sold in 50c increments. The beverage booth is also located next to the food tents for easy access.

Taste of the Arts will also feature seven different demonstrating artists in various storefronts along Main Street. The demonstrations include a watercolor demonstration by Marsha Elliot, an oil demonstration by David Hovey, a stained glass demonstration by Lisa Seger, a watercolor demonstration by Roe Kienle and pottery demonstration by Piqua's own Bob Heckman. The Piqua Visual Artist's group will be on hand to do several demonstrations throughout the evening. All the storefronts that will be hosting demonstrating artists will have large signs depicting the artists name and their demonstration times.

The Main Street Kids Zone is located in the 400 block of N. Main Street and features free activities from local non-profit organizations. There will be seven different offerings for kids through teens to enjoy. Our special kids entertainer this year is ventriloquist / juggler extraordinaire Mike Hemmelgarn. He will be doing two stage shows at 5:30 and 7 p.m. and his shows are not to be missed!

Another popular feature of the Taste of the Arts is the wonderful live music that fills the air. The Kim Kelly Orchestra will be the featured entertainer this year and this diverse group of musicians will be joined by several vocalists and they perform a variety of different musical selections. The Kim Kelly Orchestra will be located in the main entertainment stage in the 300 block of N. Main Street and benches are available for those who would like to sit a while and enjoy the music. In addition the barbershop group Lamppost IV will be strolling the downtown and performing in a number of storefronts throughout the evening.

For the second year in a row the Piqua Public Library will be host an Author Fair during the night of Taste of the Arts. For the Author Fair over 30 different authors will be set up in the lobby of the Piqua Public Library and will have their published works available for signing and sale. There will be a wide variety of authors including children's book authors, teen book authors and poets.

A new feature of Taste of the Arts this year will be a Farmers and Artisans Alley off the 400 block of N. Main Street. The area will feature vendors from the Piqua Community Farmers market along with other artists who handcraft items including jewelry, wooden items and lanterns.

Admission to Taste of the Arts is free. A full schedule of events can be found on the Mainstreet Piqua website. For more information call Mainstreet at 937-773-9355.

Staff Reports

In just three short weeks the third season of the Piqua Community Farmers Market will get underway in downtown Piqua. The Farmers Market will continue to be held in Canal Place between Ash and High Streets and will run from 2 to 6 p.m. each Thursday. The first day of the Market will be Thursday, May 26, 2011 (the Thursday before Memorial Day weekend) and the market will run for 17 weeks through September 15, 2011. The Piqua Community Farmers Market is sponsored by Pioneer Electric Cooperative.

The Piqua Community Farmers Market is a producer-only market - meaning that all the products brought to the market are required to be home-grown, home-baked or home-made. A number of the popular vendors from the previous two seasons will be returning to the Piqua market and there are a number of new vendors signed up including two new produce vendors and an orchard.

A wide variety of items are available at the Piqua Farmers Market including most in-season produce and fruits and numerous baked goods likes pies, cookies, cinnamon rolls and various breads. There are also a selection of hand-made artisan items including jewelry, quilted and knitted items and purses. Visitors will also find a selection of home-made jams and jellies along with other cottage food items.

There are still a number of vendor openings at the Market and those who are interested are asked to contact Mainstreet Piqua at 937-773-9355. Applications and a complete set of rules and regulations can be found at the Piqua Farmers Market web site. 

Each week at the market there will be a special event or special guest.  Some of the items scheduled include cooking demonstrations, a fruit pie baking contest, salsa contest and a corn celebration!

For more information contact Mainstreet Piqua at 937-773-9355.

Edison Community College’s Travel Abroad program, which recently returned from an extensive, week-long trip through China, is seeking input from the community for its next tour, tentatively scheduled for March 2013.

The potential destinations for the next trip will be Costa Rica, England/Scotland and Greece.

Many adults from the Edison three-county service area have traveled with the program since the first tour in 2004, and tour leader Eileen Thompson and tour marketing director Vivian Blevins are soliciting community input on the next travel destination.

The study abroad program was started by Thompson and Blevins in 2003. The pair was looking to launch a group trip to Spain the following spring. With no budget, they were able to put together a week-long trip that took 25 travelers to Madrid and Barcelona. In the years following the program’s inception, the group has made two trips to Italy, one to Ireland and this year’s trip to China. Approximately 180 people have been involved in the program since its inception.

Those interested in participating in this travel abroad opportunity can contact the program directors with their destination preference, Eileen Thompson by phone at 937-778-7914 and Vivian Blevins at 937-778-3815.

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Neil Miller and Brandon Apple made this beautiful shelf in Wood Technology Class III for their senior project and community service project.  It has been a huge asset to the High School Library.  We had so little display room, this display/book shelf allowed for better display of our diverse fiction collection.

- Mary S. Cochran,  Bethel Local Schools

Edison Community College will be welcoming award-winning independent filmmaker Joanne Caputo on Tuesday, March 29 at 6 p.m. in Room 201. The event will consist of a preview and discussion of the filmmaker's latest film, Cutting Loose.

In her latest film, Caputo documents the rehabilitation process of her nephew, John, who had been incarcerated at a young age. The 11 years John spent in Graterford Correctional Facility had earned him the reputation of being a violent inmate, spending a significant amount of time in solitary confinement. By the time he left the facility, he was an award-winning artist and a skilled barber.

The film follows John over a seven-year period after his release, documenting the personal struggles he faced in everyday life. Fearful of the free world, he must surmount the "crushing odds" of going back to prison and learn to live without that fear.

Winner of the PBS Independent Lens Audience Award for her first film On A Roll: Family, Disability and the American Dream, Caputo has represented the United States at "Reframing Reality," Israel's first international disability film festival.

"In my ethics classes, we deal with grim statistics that seem to imply that there is little hope for convicts once they leave a prison,” said Dr. Vivian Blevins, instructor at Edison and host of the event. “Cutting Loose is vital for such college classes because it demonstrates that recidivism can be reduced with the development of and funding of resources that meet the diverse needs of men and women reentering the free world."

The Upper Valley JVS Early Childhood Center is now accepting registrations for its 2011-2012 preschool programs. The Upper Valley JVS operates a state-licensed preschool for children 18 months through 5 years old. Registration is open to families in Miami, Shelby and surrounding counties.

Preschool classes are offered one morning a week for toddlers, two mornings a week for three- and four-year-olds, and three afternoons a week for the four- and five-year-olds. The program is under the direction of two career-technical teachers and one preschool teacher. The Upper Valley JVS students run the preschool to gain experience working with young children. They learn developmentally-appropriate procedures and put these into action in activities that they plan for the children. The program is state-licensed by the Department of Education and aligns with the state of Ohio’s Early Learning Content Standards.

The preschool is an exploration-center-oriented, free-choice program with small group investigation teams. The education of the preschoolers is in line with their interests and development. Preschool runs from mid-September through mid-May. There is a $15 registration fee and a nominal monthly fee.

Contact Nicki Vogel at the center at 778-1980 ext 223 or e-mail vogeln@uvjvs.org.

The Miami Valley Veterans Museum will be hosting “A Night with Theodore Roosevelt” at 1300 Wayne St, Troy, Ohio on Saturday March 5th, 2011 from 5-7, as they will be welcoming Larry Marple. 

Larry has been a professional educator for over 20 years in the public school system and has been actively involved in living history and reenactments for over 25 years.  Larry will be portraying Theodore Roosevelt when he and the Rough Riders (1st US Volunteer Cavalry) made the famous charges up Kettle Hill and the San Juan Heights on July 1, 1898. 

Listen how he describes how the Rough Riders were formed, what life was like with the Rough Riders, and what the Rough Riders endured and accomplished.  Those in attendance will also be able to look at some Roosevelt memorabilia, and at the end of the program he will discuss what happened to Theodore Roosevelt after being Colonel of the Rough Riders.  Take a journey back in time and hear about one of our Nation’s greatest heroes.  After the Theodore Roosevelt presentation there will be light refreshments and the Museum will remain open until 9pm.