Here’s a look at five big Butler County stories today to catch up on the news:
Middletown teachers get Ohio’s first COVID-19 vaccine shots for school staffers
Credit: Nick Graham
Credit: Nick Graham
Middletown teachers this morning rolled up their sleeves to be the first among Ohio’s more than 91,000 K-12 instructors to receive a coronavirus vaccine.
The injections began at 10 a.m. at Middletown High School, and about 500 teachers from the city school system are expected to be inoculated by later this afternoon.
Other area school systems plan to begin their vaccine distribution later this week into next.
‘Good example of police officer,’ member of Middletown legacy dies at 69
A Middletown police officer who was part of a three-generation family in Butler County law enforcement died unexpectedly Sunday morning, his family said.
Chuck Walton, who spent 30 years with the Middletown Division of Police and later as a bailiff with the Middletown Municipal Court, died of an apparent heart attack, said his brother Bob, also a former Middletown police officer. Chuck Walton was 69.
The Middletown police department posted on social media it was “devastated and deeply saddened” by Walton’s death.
Liberty Twp. to sell old meeting space for $500K-plus
The Liberty Twp. trustees agreed on Monday to sell the old administration and meeting center on Princeton Road for $515,000 to a West Chester Twp. company.
The township was asking $495,000 and received four offers ranging from $350,000 to $515,000. The top offer was submitted by CLGS Investments LLC, which is a holding company for Conexus Technologies in West Chester Twp., according to Trustee Tom Farrell.
“It was really a no brainer and it’s a very good use. It will bring a new business to Liberty instead of it sitting there empty,” Farrell told the Journal-News.
Young Hamilton mother who saw community support in cancer fight dies at 32
A Hamilton mother whose fight against cancer rallied the community after she gave birth and shortly after was told by doctors about her diagnosis has died.
Jourdan Carson died last week but not before leaving a social media post thanking the hundreds of supporters who raised money on her behalf as she battled her cancer. She was 32.
“I want to thank you for all the love, prayers, good vibes and support. I would like to let you all know I am not longer suffering and am pain free,” wrote Carson prior to her passing on Jan. 20 at the West Chester Hospital.
Sorg Opera House prepares for year’s first shows in February
The Sorg Opera House in Middletown will begin its performance year with several shows that were rescheduled due to COVID-19.
Thunderstruck: America’s AC/DC will be in concert at the Sorg on Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25 in advance (plus online ticketing fees). This is the band’s first time performing at the Sorg.
“People are very eager to tell us what they want to see, and we had a cluster of people tell us they wanted to see Thunderstruck play locally,” said Nancy Griffith, board president, at the Sorg Opera House Revitalization Group.
AND, for an extra sixth story of the day ...
Hamilton graduate, mother killed in crash on I-75 in Dayton
A 2011 Hamilton High School graduate and her mother were killed in an auto crash over the weekend in Dayton.
Cesere “Cici” Traylor, 28, died of her injuries Monday afternoon, the Dayton Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol announced. She was a passenger in a car driven by her mother 53-year-old Sarenthia Traylor of Hamilton, who died Sunday as she was being transported to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton.
Christopher Maraschiello, who taught Traylor at Garfield Middle School when she was a seventh-grader, said she had “a larger than life personality.”