News roundup for March 20, 2021

Friends of the Parks provides rangers with ice rescue equipment Medina County Park District park rangers will be equipped with state-of-the-art ice rescue gear, thanks to a $2,500 grant from Friends of Medina County Parks. The dramatic rescue of a fisherman who fell through the ice at River Styx Park in February brought home the need for park rangers to have access to specialized ice-rescue training and tools. "Medina County Park District has bodies of water at almost every park open to the public," Chief Ranger David Swinehart, who submitted the funding request, said in a statement. "As cold weather arrives each year, park visitors venture onto the ice for various winter recreational activities. When minutes count during a rescue operation, we want to make sure a victim has the best chance of survival." The new equipment includes insulated ice rescue suits, floating rescue rope, rope throw bags, and other items. Park rangers are fully commissioned law officers who often assist other local law enforcement agencies. The ice rescue equipment will be carried in park ranger cruisers, where it's available when rangers are called out to emergencies. In addition to the gear, park rangers completed an intensive two-day training in ice rescue for local first responders conducted last month by the Medina County All-Hazards Team and the Medina County Emergency Management Agency. The training included several hours of in-water experience at a pond with holes cut into the ice, where participants practiced self-rescue and victim-rescue techniques. Friends of Medina County Parks is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to supporting the mission of the park district. The group receives its funding through annual memberships, financial donations and fundraisers. The group assists the park district in everything from land acquisition and construction projects to events such as the Medina County Earth Day Festival. "We're proud to support the park district in a variety of ways, but nothing is more important than the safety of park visitors — and the safety of our first responders," said Friends President James Moore. "We hope this ice rescue equipment never needs to be used, but if it does, it's good to know park district rangers have the tools they need in a critical situation." District library to survey community on library usage plans As COVID-19 restrictions may soon ease in the state and Medina County, the Medina County District Library wants to know how patrons plan to use the library system in the future. A four-minute survey has been created by the managers of MCDL's seven library locations. It is available until April 5 on the library's website. For more information, visit mcdl.info/Survey. Online bereavement workshop offered Ohio's Hospice LifeCare is hosting an online bereavement workshop, "Death's Impact on the Family System," from 5-6:15 p.m. Monday, April 5. David Hargrave, a bereavement counseling professional, will lead the workshop. While the event is free and open to the public, registration is required. To register, call (330) 264-4899 or email PathwaysOfHope@lifecarehospice.org and include your name, the name of the event, the date of the event, and your phone number. Those who register will receive an email with a link to the online video conference. Ohio's Hospice LifeCare serves Wayne, Holmes, Ashland and Medina counties. Severe Weather Awareness Week starts Monday The week of March 21-27 is Ohio Severe Weather Awareness Week. In conjunction with this week is the statewide tornado drill that will occur at 9:50 a.m. Wednesday with a testing of local sirens. This week is a good time for homeowners and business owners to review severe weather safety plans. ODOT asking the public to help with litter problem On average, Ohio Department of Transportation crews collect more than 400,000 bags of other people's trash from along our roadsides each year. This effort costs Ohio around $4 million each year. ODOT is urging the public to help in the effort to stop litter at its source. Motorists are urged to use a trash can or keep trash in their vehicles until they can get to a trash can. Brunswick musician to perform spring jazz concert Matthew Buchfellner, of Brunswick, will perform in the University of Findlay's Jazz Ensemble spring concert at 3 p.m. Sunday. Titled "An Afternoon of Fun," the concert will feature a variety of traditional blues, swing and Latin charts along with popular music by artists such as Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake and CeeLo Green. The performance will be livestreamed at https://www.findlay.edu/arts-events. The concert will be conducted by Wes King, band director. Lafayette Township fire financial report available The annual financial report is complete for Lafayette Township Fire and Rescue and is available at the office of the township fiscal officer. To view the report, contact the office at (330) 725-6515, ext. 1, to schedule an appointment. — from staff reports