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South Side News & Notes

4/26/2012 - South Side Leader
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By Stephanie Kist

Ohio hospitals host sites for Drug Take Back Day 

OHIO — Ohio hospitals are participating in the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) April 28 by hosting a drop-off site for the public to safely dispose of accumulated, unwanted and unused prescription drugs.

Local participating Ohio hospitals that have signed up so far include:

• Mercy Medical Center, 1320 Mercy Drive, Canton, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

• Cleveland Clinic Medina Hospital, 1000 E. Washington St., Medina, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and

In addition, the Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) is a sponsor of a statewide initiative launched by Attorney General Mike DeWine to build community awareness to report suspected prescription drug abuse. During a press conference April 16, the campaign’s poster was unveiled. It will be distributed to OHA member hospitals and systems to display in their facilities.

Lakemore Cleanup Day rescheduled

LAKEMORE — Lakemore Village officials have rescheduled a planned Community Cleanup Day, which was originally set for April 21, for May 5 beginning at 9 a.m. at Upper Water Works Park. The event was rescheduled due to inclement weather.

Organizers will supply gloves and bags, and participants will break into groups to clean up all areas of the village, according to village officials.

Village officials are asking volunteers to help out with the event. Adults, families, youth groups and civic organizations are invited to participate.

After the cleanup, volunteers will be offered hot dogs, chips and beverages.

For more information, call 330-733-6125.

— By Maria Lindsay

$1.35 million remains unclaimed

SUMMIT COUNTY —Fiscal Officer Kristen Scalise has announced a new program designed to assist residents and business owners to reclaim money paid in excess to local county offices and agencies.

The Fiscal Office serves as trustee of the county’s unclaimed funds and processes valid claims. At the end of last year, Scalise began mailing notifications to residents who might have unclaimed funds in Summit County.

Since the program began, Scalise has returned $213,388 in county unclaimed funds to 239 claimants. Amounts of unclaimed funds range from a few dollars to thousands.

Currently, $1.35 million remains unclaimed in Summit County. Scalise has compiled a list of owner’s names and amounts of existing funds available from the past five years. To find out if you are owed any unclaimed funds in Summit County, visit fiscaloffice.summitoh.net (under “Additional Services").

To recapture unclaimed funds, you must complete an online claim form. The Summit County Fiscal Office does not charge a fee to file a claim and does not require the assistance of an attorney or paid professional finder.

For those without Internet access who wish to inquire about the unclaimed funds list, call 330-643-8056 or 330-643-2616.

Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank named 2012 Foodbank of the Year

DOWNTOWN AKRON — The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank was named the 2012 Member of the Year at the annual Feeding America Network Summit in Detroit.

According to Foodbank officials, the award is the highest recognition achievable by food banks and is given to the year’s most outstanding food bank of the 202 food banks across the nation in the Feeding America network.

The food bank’s accomplishments over the past year include:

• increasing distribution to 19.4 million pounds of food and targeting its outreach in priority counties;

• cultivating new donors and balancing fundraising strategies, resulting in 100 percent increase in funds raised in the past two years;

• creating a new Feeding Kids Initiative to help the one in four kids suffering from food insecurity; and

• developing creative tools to engage and educate the public, like the Hungry Kate video.

“The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank continues to create innovative ways to meet its community’s emergency food needs. They are truly a leader in our Network,” said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America. “[President and CEO] Dan Flowers and his remarkable team are well deserving of this great honor. Their effort to help feed the hungry in the Akron-Canton area and their contribution to our mission is truly inspiring.”

The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank was formed in 1982 by a group of community leaders who made a commitment to provide emergency food to the community. Today, the Foodbank provides food and other essential items to member agencies in eight Northeast Ohio counties: Summit, Medina, Carroll, Holmes, Portage, Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne.

These member agencies operate more than 460 programs like food pantries, hot meal sites, shelters and other hunger-relief programs in the neighborhoods and communities where people need food.

“The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank is fixed on its mission to feed people and fight hunger. We are committed to seeking the most efficient and effective means to those ends,” Flowers said. “This honor belongs to this entire community, our member agencies, board of directors, staff members and our struggling neighbors. We will continue striving to serve more people and to serve them better. People in need deserve our very best. Our work has just begun.”

Local emergency agencies participating in disaster drill

SUMMIT COUNTY — On April 19, 30 hospitals from 13 Northeastern Ohio counties participated in a disaster exercise conducted by the Northeast Central Ohio Regional Disaster Planning Consortium (NECO).

In Summit County, participating agencies included: Summit County Emergency Management Agency, Akron Children’s Hospital, Akron General Medical Center and Summa’s Akron City Hospital, Barberton Hospital, St. Thomas Hospital and Western Reserve Hospital.

Disaster exercises, or mock drills, are held annually to test the plans and response times of participating hospitals and EMAs, according to NECO officials. This year’s exercise involved a tornado sweeping through 13 surrounding counties with 53 agencies participating, according to NECO officials.

The Northeast Central Ohio regional hospitals annually assess the most likely cause for disaster in the region, and the 2010 study named tornadoes as the No. 1 concern, according to NECO officials.

“Tornadoes often rise to the top of the list because of their probability in this region, their ability for destruction and their unpredictability,” said Sarah Metzger, NECO Region 5 hospitals coordinator and administrative director of the Akron Regional Hospital Association.

During the exercise, each agency was expected to establish the Incident Command System as they normally would in a large-scale disaster, according to NECO officials.

Additional goals and objectives that were tested in this exercise include:

• sharing initial and ongoing incident information such as communication from the hospitals to appropriate agencies and resource allocation;

• updating county EMAs on availability of beds and the status of the hospitals in their county; and

• testing some hospital’s medical evacuation plans, including sheltering and securing appropriate transportation for patients.

State launches website to answer questions about tax amnesty program

COLUMBUS — Starting May 1, Ohioans who are behind on their taxes will have a limited-time opportunity to make good on their obligations with no penalties and only half interest on the amount due.

To help taxpayers and tax professionals take advantage of the program, the Ohio Department of Taxation has established a website that provides information on the amnesty, how it works and how to apply. The website is located at www.ohiotaxamnesty.gov.

The Ohio General Tax Amnesty Program runs for six weeks, from May 1 through June 15, and allows taxpayers who have underpaid, or failed to pay, certain taxes to correct their tax issues at the lowest possible cost.

Ohio Tax Commissioner Joe Testa said amnesty programs have a successful track record in many states, including Ohio.

“The last General Tax Amnesty Program, in 2006, resulted in thousands of participants and the collection of $66 million,” he said.

The new website provides applications, interest calculators, answers to frequently asked questions and other details about the program.

A similar, but separate, program offering amnesty for the Consumer’s Use Tax also is under way.

To be eligible for general tax amnesty, taxpayers must have owed taxes on May 1, 2011. They cannot have been issued a billing or assessment notice or have been notified of an audit for the tax period(s) for which they are applying for amnesty.

The amnesty program applies to the following taxes: individual income, individual school district income, commercial activity tax, sales and seller’s use (excludes consumer’s use tax), employer withholding, school district employer withholding, corporation franchise, pass-through entity, estate, gross receipts of a natural gas company or a combined electric and gas company, motor fuel, cigarette or other tobacco products and dealers in intangibles.

National Day of Prayer events observed in Summit County

GREATER AKRON — On May 3 at noon, the Summit County National Day of Prayer observance will take place on the steps of the Summit County Courthouse, 209 S. High St. in Downtown Akron.

Branches of government will be represented, as well as military and area Christian leaders, according to organizers.

Everyone is invited to attend the National Day of Prayer observance as it concentrates on the need to pray for the well-being of America and for those in leadership positions on all levels of national, church and educational areas of influence. There will be an interpreter for deaf guests who plan to attend.

Other events scheduled during the week for National Day of Prayer observance and ways to be involved include:

• April 29 through May 3, a prayer and Bible reading marathon will take place continually in tents erected in front of Cascade Plaza in Downtown Akron. Contact Hank Richard at 330-620-2304 for additional information.

• May 1 from 7:30 to 9 a.m., the Community and Organizations Prayer Breakfast will take place at The University of Akron’s Martin University Center, 105 Fir Hill in Downtown Akron, for business, professional and community leaders. Reservations are due by April 29 to 330-996-0602 or cpapro99@aol.com. An offering will be accepted for the breakfast.

• May 2 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Youth Concert of Prayer and Praise will take place at Akron Bible Church, 783 Brown St. in South Akron. All teens from Summit County are invited to attend. Make a reservation with the Rev. Brett White for details at 330-715-6813 or brett@akronbiblechurch.org.

• May 3, primary, junior and senior high schools are invited to “Pray With You at the Flag Pole” at various times and locations. Contact White at 330-715-6813 or brett@akronbiblechurch.org for details.

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