Bring the family to see some furry friends, September 25th-26th at Alpaca Farm Days in Pickaway County.
(Photo Courtesy of Alpaca Farm Days)
You can also see a live fleece demonstration, enjoy food from a local food truck, and more. The 10am-5pm will be held at the farm of Aaron and Robin Ridenour, located at 10981 US Highway 22 in Williamsport.
The Ridenour’s website says they have over 100 alpacas that live on the farm.
For more information, go to the A&R Alpaca Farm website. CLICK HERE:
(Columbus) — On September 15, 2021, the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) approved a grant in the amount of $200,000 to Austin Powder Company (APC) to undertake repairs and rehabilitation to its on-site rail infrastructure. The infrastructure is in a condition where a large capital project is necessary to ensure railcars are received safely. APC is planning on investing approximately $10 million in the facility over the next three years and will hire 15 employees, bringing their total employment to 265. The project was originally brought to our attention via OhioSE.
APC is one of the oldest manufacturing enterprises in the State of Ohio and one of the oldest manufacturers of explosives in the world. Located in Vinton County since the 1930s, the project will assist the company to continue to modernize its operations to meet current market demands.
Matthew Dietrich, Executive Director of the ORDC, said, “given the nature of this business, rail is a critical aspect of its supply chain. As a result of ORDC involvement, Austin Powder will be able to mitigate safety concerns associated with current conditions at the facility and ensure the receipt of its deliveries in a safe and more efficient manner.”
“Austin Powder Company is grateful for ORDC assistance in the rehabilitation of our railroad tracks at our Red Diamond Plant located in Ohio. Without the assistance from ORDC, it would not be possible to repair our rails to like new condition in such a short timeframe. The ORDC grant is a great opportunity for us to keep our facility operating in a safe and efficient manner while growing our business,” said Don Hays, Head Electrician, Austin Powder Company.
A September 15th rainout of SVC Golf Match #5 at Big Beaver Golf Course has forced the conference to reschedule it where the final 36 holes will be played over four matches in three consecutive days.
SVC Match #5 at Big Beaver is rescheduled for Tuesday, September 21 at 4:30pm.
SVC #6 & #7 is at Pickaway Country Club on Wednesday, September 22 at 1:30pm start with the front 9 holes being played as Match #6, then after a break, start on the back 9 holes as Match #7.
SVC Match #8 will be at The Chillicothe Jaycees on Thursday, September 23 at 4:30pm.
Heading into Match #5, Unioto and Piketon share the SVC lead with 30 points, Zane Trace 24, Westfall 18, Adena 16, Southeastern 14, Paint Valley 7 and Huntington with 2 points.
(Columbus)— On National Small Business Day, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine spoke to members of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Ohio Wednesday celebrating the accomplishments of Ohio’s small businesses and reminding business owners of the many programs and initiatives offered by the state to support them.
“Ohio’s economy is tied to the success of our small businesses, so it’s in our best interests to go forward together. What is good for Ohio’s 982,000 small businesses is good for Ohio,” said Governor DeWine.
Ohio’s most recent operating budget includes $2 billion in business and personal income tax cuts and supports Governor DeWine’s Investing in Ohio’s Future Initiative to help small businesses and accelerate economic growth. The operating budget doubled the amount of grant funding available to help small businesses recover from the COVID-19 pandemic to $310 million. Funding is still available from the following four grant programs:
Food and Beverage Establishment Grant: This program provides grants of $10,000, $20,000, or $30,000 to restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and other food and beverage businesses.
Entertainment Venue Grant: This program provides grants of $10,000, $20,000, or $30,000 to theaters, music venues, spectator sports venues, museums, and other entertainment venues.
Lodging Grant: This program provides grants of $10,000, $20,000, or $30,000 to hotels, motels, and bed and breakfast operations.
New Small Business Grant: This program provides grants of $10,000 to small businesses that were established between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2020.
To help ensure all communities can be part of Ohio’s economic recovery and expansion, the budget also invests $250 million to develop and expand broadband throughout Ohio. The Ohio Residential Broadband Expansion Grant Program application is open, and the grants will be provided to internet service providers for the construction of broadband projects that improve high-speed internet access in unserved and underserved areas of Ohio.
To further support Ohio’s small businesses, which account for 99.6% of the businesses in the state and employ 2.2 million people, the Ohio Department of Development and TourismOhio this week launched its new Made in Ohio website, which features nearly 800 companies that sell Ohio-made apparel, snack foods, coffee, décor, furniture, and more.
The listings and include businesses that make or manufacture products in the state of Ohio and have a storefront and/or website where their products are sold. Listings link directly to the company website so customers can purchase the products directly from the company. For more information on how to have a company listed on the site, visit Ohio.org/MadeinOhio.
The Ohio Department of Development also offers services to support small businesses and entrepreneurs including:
Ohio Small Business Development Centers provide individualized one-on-one-advising Ohio small businesses at no cost. More than 16,000 businesses have received assistance since March 2020.
The Ohio Export Assistance Network assists small businesses into international markets. During the pandemic, Ohio moved from the ninth-largest exporting state to the seventh-largest exporting state.
Ohio Minority Business Assistance Centersprovide one-on-one advising at no cost to minority-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, and socially and economically disadvantaged businesses. It also offers financial assistance.
By instituting spending freezes and budget cuts during the pandemic, the DeWine administration eliminated $776 million in state spending to balance the budget, putting Ohio in a strong position as we work to emerge from the pandemic. Although Ohio, like many other states, depleted its unemployment compensation fund and needed a $1.5 billion loan from the federal government to pay claims during the pandemic, Ohio strategically repaid the $1.5 billion loan to prevent businesses from incurring large increases in federal unemployment taxes. Without this added tax burden, Ohio business owners can spend those dollars on more critical priorities such as investing in their workforce.
“Workforce development is, without question, the key to our long-term economic expansion,” said Governor DeWine. “We are focused on creating the most skilled workforce in the Midwest, fit to meet the demands of the 21st-century economy.”
A goal of the DeWine Administration is to champion career, technical, and vocational education training to help tens of thousands more Ohioans a year prepare for quality, higher-paying jobs without creating college debt.
Investments to achieve this goal include:
TechCred, a program that gives employees the ability to earn industry-recognized, technology-focused credentials to prepare them to work in high-tech jobs.
The Industry Sector Partnership grant program, which supports collaborations among businesses, education and training providers, and other community leaders who are invested in improving their region’s workforce.
The Export Internship and Diversity & Inclusion Tech Internship programs provide college students real-world experience at a small to medium-sized business looking to export their products or at a technology-focused company or a company with a technology need.
(Above Photo: Chillicothe Girls Golf Team courtesy of Jill Rockhold Haller)
The 4th FAC girls golf match was held on Tuesday evening at The Greens in Washington Courthouse.
Chillicothe came in with the low score of 196. They were followed by Miami Trace with a 206, McClain with a 238, Jackson 250, Hillsboro 251, and Washington with a 266.
Match Co-Medalist honors went to Miami Trace’ Libby Aleshire and Chillicothe’s Isabella Fisher who both fired a 40.
With one more league match and the league tournament left to play the standings are as follows: Miami Trace (18-2), Chillicothe (18-2), McClain (11-9), Jackson (8-12), Hillsboro (3-17), Washington (2-18).
In Monday Boys FAC Golf at Greenfield: Washington CH 166, McClain 175, Chillicothe 186, Hillsboro 191, Jackson 195, Miami Trace 206
(Chillicothe) – Effective Wednesday, September 15, Adena Health System is rescheduling its elective surgical procedures for a later date that require an overnight stay in the hospital through next week. This temporary change is being made out of an abundance of caution due to a significant increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations and record-high patient volumes.
Adena leadership is making this decision in order to continue providing safe, high-quality care to the influx of patients requiring hospitalization due to both COVID-19 and unrelated serious medical issues.
“We have carefully evaluated different avenues where we can make operational adjustments that will be best for the short term to relieve some of the pressure off of our hospital inpatient census, provide needed beds and give support to providers and caregivers,” said Adena President and CEO Jeff Graham. “Taking these steps will allow us to care for our patients and staff in the optimal way. This is a thoughtful approach to make sure those patients who don’t need to be in the hospital right away are not.”
The number of community members hospitalized at Adena’s four hospitals as a result of COVID-19 has continued to rise. COVID hospitalizations for Adena stood at a high mark of 74 this morning, with 55 of those patients being unvaccinated. In addition, inpatient census for Adena Regional Medical Center today was over 200 hospitalizations across all medical conditions, which strains hospital capacity.
“These adjustments and what is going on with high patient volumes is not just with Adena,” Graham added. “Similar operational adjustments in order to provide the best care possible are happening all over. What has been great about our organization is being able to handle situations as we’ve done so well over the past 19 months and this is just another situation that we need to address.”
Adena will continually monitor this fluid surge and will resume elective surgeries requiring a hospital stay as the situation improves. Adena is working closely with its medical group to ensure that patient care is prioritized as best as possible. Affected patients will be contacted by Adena to work through rescheduling and help answer any questions.
Adena, and other health care organizations across the region and beyond, continue to strongly urge everyone to get vaccinated. The COVID-19 vaccine is free and readily available. The vaccines are our best defense against further spread of the virus and effective in preventing serious illness and death. The Delta variant spreads faster than earlier forms of the virus that causes COVID-19, so getting vaccinated is the most important thing you can do to protect yourself and others.
(Hillsboro) — The annual Highland County-wide curfew will commence Friday, October 1st, 2021 for all persons under the age of 18 years. The curfew will run through October 31st, 2021 and require all persons under the age of 18 years to be off the streets and in their homes by 10pm, Monday through Thursday and by midnight Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Judge Kevin Greer of the Highland County Common Pleas/Juvenile Division says- “The curfew does not apply where children are accompanied by parents, legal guardians or custodians. Exception is also made for children attending church, school or employment activities. Enforcement will be handled by all law enforcement agencies, including the sheriff’s department, city or village police and juvenile probations officers.”
Judge Greer added- “Noting the court has no authority to set Beggar’s Night and strictly as a convenience to law enforcement, it is suggested each city, village and organization, should they elect to have Beggar’s Night, set the same on the last Thursday in October between 6pm-8pm.”
The legacy that became a nationally known restaurant chain, returns to its roots, “down on the farm” for it’s 50th anniversary Bob Evans Farm Festival, October 8th-10th.
The October festival, located at 10854 State Route 588 Rio Grande, will be have hours of Friday 9am-5pm, Saturday 9am-6:30pm and Sunday 9am–5pm.
Tickets are $5 per person at the gate for entry, and kids five and under are free. Amusement ride tickets will be $5 for ages 12 and under, $10 for
$5 for ages 12 & under and $10 for those age 13 & older.
Miami Trace won the FAC Girls Golf Match at Hillsboro Elks on Monday evening as they carded a 198.
Chillicothe finished 2nd with a 218, McClain recorded a 233, Hillsboro came in with a 240, and Jackson rounded out the evening with a 264. Washington was unable to field a complete team.
Sharing match medalist honors were Miami Trace senior duo of Libby Aleshire and Alyssa Butler as they each fired a 47.