Latest News

Brutus the wandering beagle is happy to be back home with his family and the neighbors who found him, pictured clockwise from bottom, Annabelle Pullman, Jacob Pullman, Peter Kraft and Sean Kraft. Photo by Darcy Pullman

View Image Gallery

When many Bay Village residents were preparing for and finalizing Fourth of July festivities, family, friends and many with compassionate hearts were pounding the pavement in search of a Bay Village beagle named Brutus. 

Brutus has storm and firework phobia like many other animals and his family, the Pullmans, and rescue volunteers knew that time was of the essence since firework displays were set to go off all around the area. Some said prayers to patron saints like St. Francis, St. Christopher and St. Anthony to please keep this little dog safe and bring him home.

The city was plastered with flyers, email blasts, social media and no sightings. The dog's bed and food were left out on the porch with the light on, and still nothing.  

Westlake Porter Public Library will hold a used furniture sale on Monday, July 28, starting at 9 a.m. and lasting until everything has been sold. Items to be sold include file cabinets, chairs, tables, a computer workstation and typewriter tables. Payment may be made by cash, check or credit card, and all sales will be final. Please call 440-871-2600 for further information.

Mark your calendar for the upcoming summer used book sale at the Bay Village branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library. The sale will run during regular library hours from Saturday morning, July 26, through 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 29.

The event is sponsored by the Friends of Bay Village Library with proceeds from the sale supporting various library activities. There is a wide range of children, teen and adult books as well as DVDs, CDs, audio books and magazines. All have been categorized for easy shopping. Tuesday is bag day when a bag full of books can be purchased for $1.

Westlake youth can play flag football through the Rec Department or join a new tackle league.

The football field in Westlake is changing. Do you have a child who is interested in playing football, either tackle or flag? Then this news article is for you.

First and foremost, things have changed over the past year concerning the youth football programs in Westlake. The old Junior All-Star Football League has wrapped up after more than 40 years of service to the city of Westlake. In its place, the new Westlake Youth Football Association has been created.

So the King is back, huh? Unless we’re talking burgers, or you spotted Elvis on Lolly the Trolley, I’m not all that interested. Really.

The news that LeBron James is returning to play basketball for the Cleveland Cavs doesn’t have me terribly excited. No question it’s a strange dynamic, because if we had lured LeBron here from Miami – and he had no prior connection or history in Cleveland – I’d probably be leading the “Welcome LeBron” parade down East 9th, and be the first to plant a big sloppy kiss on his cheek. As we all know, though, that’s not the case. And, for your own edification, I don’t generally kiss basketball players.

Every morning since LeBron James became a free agent on July 1, our son asked my wife where "King James" will go next. With a sigh of relief on her face that Friday afternoon of July 11 when James revealed the answer to "Decision 2" online, my non-geek wife commented on how powerful technology is and especially how efficient social media is in dispersing information. I wholeheartedly agree with her and I see signs of my geekiness rubbing off on her!

On the way home from school one day, my daughter said, “Why do people like to watch sports? I think sports are boring.” 

An alarm rang in my head. She just asked me to explain something. This was an opportunity to have a real conversation. I had to be careful. It was like having a butterfly land on the palm of my hand. If I tried to grasp tightly, I would crush this moment. If you have had teenagers, you know you cannot schedule opportunities for real conversations. They just land, last a few moments, then fly away.

Even when a crosswalk isn't pretty, it's there for our protection, provided motorists and pedestrians alike know and respect the rules of the road! Photo by Kathy Luengo

Although yellow, triangular signs depicting leaping deer may have been less prevalent in Westlake or Bay Village 30 or 40 years ago than today, longtime and newer residents alike definitely know what they mean! 

Do the deer care? Not really. They’re too busy looking for dinner! Courtesy of lush local landscape, deer find Friday night feasts faster than do hungry Westshore diners foraging for a dinner destination with less than a 40-minute wait!

How effective are these signs? By the time a buck or two have been bopped and signs erected, survival-minded deer could be crossing elsewhere. Are enough safety-minded motorists spotted pumping brakes and glancing side-to-side to warrant “jumping deer” signs? If so, good for those who do! For them, the signs are working!

Jennifer Cirincione, President of Friends of Westlake Porter Public Library, and kids invite you to participate in the cake walk while enjoying the July 28 ice cream social at Porter Library.

Friends of Westlake Porter Public Library invites you to their annual Ice Cream Social, to be held on Monday, July 28, from 6-8 p.m. at the library, 27333 Center Ridge Road. Mitchell’s ice cream sundaes will be sold for $1 and plenty of entertainment will be on hand!

Come see The Big Daddies Band, Balloon Dave, and take your turn on a hole of our mini golf. Check out the silent auction, with items including dance lessons, baking supplies, and Disney World passes. Bidding is now available in the library lobby and closes at 7:45 p.m. on July 28.

View Image Gallery

Thousands of visitors from across the region enjoyed beautiful weather and a serene setting as they browsed more than 200 artist and craft booths nestled among the trees on the St. John Medical Center campus July 11-13. Now in its 21st year, the festival is a popular mid-summer highlight.

We hope you've been enjoying the lovely weather of summer so far and have had the opportunity to get some summer reading done. The Cuyahoga County Public Library summer reading program – "Ready. Set. Read!" – is still going strong, and it's not too late to log those reading minutes before the Aug. 16 deadline. As usual, we have some great programs coming up at the Bay branch. Check out our Moon Party on Aug. 4 or stop by one of our weekly storytimes, before they go on hiatus for the month of August.

ALL AGES:

Monday, July 28 (9:30 a.m.) Book Chat at the Fuller House – Grab a coffee and join us on the porch of the BAYarts Fuller House where a librarian will discuss and recommend books.

Monday, Aug. 4 (7:30 p.m.) Moon Party – Members of the Cuyahoga Astronomical Association, an amateur astronomy club, use their telescopes to show us the moon and any other objects that may be visible in the night sky. If you have your own telescope, bring it along.

Wednesday, July 23 (10:15 and 11 a.m.) Let’s Sing and Dance! – Sing and move to the music with Miss Nancy! For children ages 2-6 with a caregiver. Please arrive early to receive a ticket at the Preschool Desk.

Wednesday, July 23 (2 p.m.) Wednesday Afternoon Book Discussion – The July selection is "And the Mountains Echoed" by Khaled Hosseini.

Wednesday, July 23 (3-4:30 p.m.) Giant Games – Looking for something to do? Stop by with your friends for an afternoon of GIANT GAMES! We've super-sized Jenga, Dominos, Chinese Checkers, and more of your favorite games for even more fun! We'll also have video games and snacks.

Wednesday, July 23 (4-5:30 p.m.) Bow Wow! Read to Uncle Chow Chow! – Stop by the Youth Services Department each Wednesday and sign your child up for a 10-minute reading time with Uncle Chow Chow, our reading dog! Bring your own book or choose one of ours. Registration begins each Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Friday, July 25 (10 a.m.-noon) Porter's Fiber Fanatics – A time for needlecrafters to share, solve problems, and show off.

Friday, July 25 (10:30-11:30 a.m.) iPad Users Group – Learn and share basic tips with other iPad users. Please bring your iPad with you. Registration required.

Friday, July 25 (2-4 p.m.) Movies @ Your Library! – Join us for fabulous Friday afternoon flicks! Based on availability; movie titles may change without notice. In accordance with library policy, children who are under age 9 must be accompanied by an adult. Registration begins one week before each session.

Westlake Porter Public Library will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the birth of Batman with a day of programming for all ages on Wednesday, July 23. The library has timed the event to coincide with DC Comic’s Batman Day. DC Comics is the publisher of the Batman comic books.

Hospice of the Western Reserve, a nonprofit agency caring for more than 7,000 patients annually in the Northern Ohio region, became the first hospice in the United States to earn two national health care environmental awards from Practice Greenhealth, a nonprofit organization devoted to promoting environmental stewardship in the health care sector. The agency's Ames Family Hospice House in Westlake earned an "Emerald Award" while its David Simpson Hospice House on Cleveland's east side lakefront, built in 1995, received a "Partner for Change Award."  

I have a quote by Dr. Clarissa Pinkole Estes tacked to the bulletin board in my office. It says, “Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach.”

In the 10 years that I served as the Community Services Director for the City of Bay Village, it was an honor and privilege to serve residents, collaborate with community groups and work with a great team of employees within the city. Bay Village is an extraordinary community with residents who are generous with their donation of time and money to help their neighbors.

On Sept. 11, Fill This House will host a golf outing at Elyria Country Club, with all proceeds going to help kids in need. The outing kicks off with a box lunch and shotgun start at noon. Drinks will be available on the course and a barbeque dinner will be served. The cost is $600 per foursome. It promises to be a fun-filled day and we hope to see you there!

Annual Golf Outing

The West Shore Chamber's annual golf outing will be held on Thursday, Aug. 7, at Avon Oaks Country Club. Shotgun start is at 1 p.m. This is a joint event with the Fairview Park Chamber of Commerce. There are still openings and sponsorships available. Cost of $150 per person includes golf, cart, lunch and dinner. This event is open to the public. Advance registration is required. 

Have you ever laughed until you've cried? Have you heard the old saying, laughter is the best medicine? Has your doctor ever made you laugh or cry with their medical diagnosis? Do you cry over something one day, and the next day laugh about it? Has a doctor ever told you jokes? Can laughter heal us? What is it about laughter? Have you ever thought it possible to come to church and laugh the whole time you were there? Ever hear of a spiritual comedian? Do you think God has a sense of humor, or is He too busy chalking up our wrong doings? Have you read this line: "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plan?" Aren't your best buddies in life those who can help you to laugh at yourself?

George Ryan of Bay Village is the editor of a recently published book, "Braving the Wartime Seas." The book is a tribute to the cadets and graduates of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and Cadet Corps who died during World War II.

The U. S. Merchant Marine during World War II was the fourth arm of national defense that bridged the oceans to provide armament, fuel and logistic supplies to the allied navies and armies. The U.S. Merchant Marine suffered tremendous losses; by percentages more merchant mariners died than those who served in the U.S. Navy or Army. Many of those who died were still students, Cadet-Midshipmen from the Merchant Marine Academy, as well as recent graduates.

Rockette Hayley Langer enjoys teaching the mini-Rockettes, including her sister, Olivia.

Time is running out to enroll in this year's Mini-Rockette Camp, conducted by the Bay High School Rockette team. The camp will be held Saturday, Aug. 16, in the Bay Middle School cafeteria, 27725 Wolf Road, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The camp is open to all children entering first through eighth grade and the cost of the camp is $60 per child. The registration deadline is July 25.

The camp will include: dance and flag skills, a special Rockette T-shirt, crafts and games, two snacks and lunch, face painting and poms for the performances. During the last hour of camp, the Mini-Rockettes will perform the dances they learned at the camp. In addition, the Mini-Rockettes will perform during the pre-game festivities for a Bay High School football game at Bay High Stadium.

The Compeer Program at Far West Center, located in Westlake, is a nonprofit program that strives to end the loneliness and isolation too often experienced by adults managing a chronic mental illness. The symptoms of mental illness are treatable with medication and most symptoms subside with health management services.

Some adults in recovery from mental illness become isolated because they have lost connections with the peers in their age groups and also may have developed anxiety or depression. The volunteers in the Compeer Program work along with staff to encourage these isolated adults to come out and go to community places and engage in community activities. Compeer is helping adults connect with inviting places and engaging activities throughout Westlake. 

Campers practice sliding skills at the annual Phil Bova baseball camp in Westlake. Photo by Dave Mills.

Phil Bova's love of baseball and passion for training youngsters on the fundamentals of the sport was evident once again at his 41st summer baseball camp, which was held at the Westlake Recreation Center and attended by a record-breaking 205 participants. 

During the weeklong camp, campers received invaluable training and insight from high school, college and professional level coaches and staff, while learning how to improve their individual playing skills and become team players in a highly organized, positive and fun-filled environment. 

There was no red carpet, so Safety Pup revealed his post-makeover look on the painted asphalt behind the Westlake police station. The Westlake Police Department's community outreach mascot strolled the streets of Safety Town on July 11 in his first public appearance since undergoing a complete transformation.

Gone is the beat-up, decades-old costume, replaced by a state-of-the-art model. Thanks to a grant from the Lakewood Elks Lodge 1350 in Westlake, auxiliary officer Rick Grane was able to update the popular pooch.

Westlake Porter Public Library has passed its recent audit, which means auditors found no weaknesses or deficiencies in the library’s financial management and record-keeping. In addition, the library was found to be in compliance with the laws, regulations, contracts and other agreements it is required to meet. This continues the library’s longstanding record of successful audits.

“Our Finance Department works very hard to make sure the library is a good steward of the funds entrusted to us by the community,” said Library Director Andrew Mangels. “So I am not at all surprised by this result.”

Knickerbocker residents form a "parade" of stationary bikes. Photo by Maureen Reynolds

Riding bikes is all the rage now, but not everyone has the mobility and dexterity to balance a moving bike. Bad weather, puddles, pot holes, and dogs that chase anything moving are all in the minds of the good folks of the Knickerbocker Apartments in Bay Village.

So what to do? In our rec room there are several pedal-powered bikes. With the summer here, a parade would be great. The upside is no sunburn, no bumpy sidewalks or distracting ice cream stores. Only shouts from the sidelines cheering the bikers on, resulting in hand waving, just like a real parade. Older folks are fun folks ... and stationary bikes are great!