Light Up Middletown Set to Begin November 27th

On Friday, November 27th, the drive-through light display in Smith Park in downtown Middletown will light up at 6:00 PM. This is the eleventh year for the event that will run every night through New Year's Eve until 10:00 PM, regardless of weather.

If you're looking for an inexpensive holiday activity for the family, Light Up Middletown is a great opportunity. Admission is a donation of any amount. Bring the whole family out to tour the 100 acre park, see the tunnel of lights, the floating sea serpent, a huge Santa's workshop, the penguin village, an airplane, hot air balloon, this year's new candy-cane entrance, and so much more. In addition to the animated lights displays, Santa and Mrs. Claus will greet children every Friday and Saturday evening through December 19th, from 7:00-9:00 PM. For a suggested $10 donation, you can have photos made with Santa.

On December 8th, the annual hot air balloon glow will be added to the display. Ten balloons will inflate and glow like giant ornaments. There will also be entertainment and food on those nights, from 7:00 - 8:30 PM.

Light Up Middletown is constructed and maintained by a group of seventeen volunteers known as the Grandpa Gang. With local businesses providing assistance, such as heavy lifting equipment, the men work from mid-October until opening day to make each year's event is unique and better than ever. For the second year in a row, the group is working to exchange incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs that use less electricity.

If you're interested in bringing a large group, motor coaches, buses, and motor homes are welcome. All arches will accommodate large vehicles. Smith Park is located at 500 Tytus Avenue and every entrance into the city has "Light Up Middletown" signs pointing the way. For more information, call Flo Randall at 513-423-1877 or 513-267-2789.

Middletown to Receive Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund Grant

Last week, Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Ohio Department of Development Director Lisa Patt-McDaniel announced $28 million in Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund grants to be awarded throughout the state. The funding will allow for the usage of of idle industrial and commercial properties and is expected to create over 1,400 jobs for the state.

Middletown will receive a $1.6 million grant to conduct remediation and demolition at the STM Redevelopment Project property. The property, which started out as the Sutphin Wrenn Union Paper Mill in the 1850s, was purchased by STM Partnership in 1979 and several industrial operations have occurred there since. Today, four small storage and light manufacturing operations make up part of the property, but part of it is vacant and owned by the City of Middletown. Once remediation is complete, the city and another owner hope to attract a commercial project that will help the city with economic growth.

"Too many of our workers and businesses are reeling from this global economic recession, which makes our partnerships with local communities and our efforts to improve Ohio's business climate even more important. Clean Ohio investments encourage business development and job creation by revitalizing our communities and previously-used industrial properties," Governor Strickland said in a statement.

The Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund is a statewide competitive program that provides grants to acquire property, demolish structures, conduct environmental cleanup, and improve infrastructure on or serving a brownfield property. It has served 80 projects since it began. Read more about the various Ohio city projects here: Dayton Minority Biz.com

Holiday Affair on the Square

On November 22, Middletown will kick of the holiday season with the fifth annual A Holiday Affair on the Square. The event will take place from 3:00 - 6:00 PM, with a traditional holiday brunch at the Manchester Inn from 11:00 - 2:00 PM. What began as the opening of the Got Art! exhibit has grown into a daylong celebration of the Art Central District and Middletown's arts community.

The Middletown Art Center will be open from 12:00 - 4:00 PM and it will feature the work of graphic artist and Middletown resident, Sam Ashworth. Central Avenue (between Verity and Main) will be closed to traffic so that guests may experience free horse drawn carriage rides. From 3:00 - 5:00, attendees may visit "Homelessness: Telling Our Own Stories," which is a traveling art exhibit that shows guests what real homeless people experience in their own words.

The Miami Middletown Downtown facility at 4 North Main Street will host a reception for work by the Gerilla Arts Collaborative. They will also be serving free warm beverages and entertainment will be provided by local musician, Chuck Evans. If you'd like to do a little holiday shopping, Fair Trade Goods from over ten different countries will be for sale at the We Can Business Incubator at 1011 Central Avenue from 3:00 - 5:00. A large percentage of the profits go directly to rescuing artists from poverty and homelessness.

At 5:00 PM, the show will shift gears and live entertainment will take the stage at Governor's Square Park on the corner of Central and Broad. Kip Moore and friends from the Middletown Lyric Theatre, the Angel/Wesley Choir from the First United Methodist Church, the GATE music class from Middletown Public Schools and others will perform. The evening will finish with the lighting of the city's Holiday tree.

Butler County National Philanthropy Day

The Community Foundations of Butler County and Butler County Development Roundtable will host its third biennial National Philanthropy Day later this month, on Friday, November 13. The luncheon will take place from noon until 1:30 PM at the Marriott in Hamilton. It is being sponsored by gold level sponsors: Duke Energy, First Financial Bank, Miami University Hamilton, and Cox Ohio Publishing and silver level sponsors: Atrium Medical Center/Premier Health Partners and US Bank.

National Philanthropy Day (NPD) is recognized all over the country and is a day to pay tribute to people who are active in the community and have impacted our lives, work, and community through their philanthropic work. Butler County nonprofit agencies have been invited to the luncheon to honor volunteers and donors who contribute to their organizations and the Butler County community. The agencies will have the opportunity to publicly recognize those individuals.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. O'Dell Owens, a native of Cincinnati. Dr. Owens is a graduate of Woodward High School and Antioch College and is no stranger to making a difference. He spent his years as an intern, resident, and chief resident at Yale and later went on to accept a position with Harvard Medical School as a clinical instructor in the OB/GYN department, as well as a Fellow in reproductive Endocrinology and infertility. In 1982, he returned to Cincinnati and established an in-vitro fertilization program, achieving the first successful conception, pregnancy and delivery from a frozen embryo. In 2004, he was elected as Hamilton County's coroner. He has won numerous awards and actively serves on a number of boards. He also spends time working to motivate disadvantaged young people to reach full potential.

The emcee for the event is John Lomax, co-anchor of Good Morning Cincinnati on WKRC-TV. The Knoxville, Tennessee native began working at the channel in 1983 as the Northern Kentucky Bureau Reporter. He serves on a number of boards and volunteers with many organizations. This is his third year as emcee for the NPD event. He has also hosted the Middletown Community Foundation's Crystal Apple Awards, Butler County MRDD and the Atrium Medical center's Hospital Gala in 2007.

For more information about the luncheon, contact Kelli Kurtz at 513-863-1717.

Middies to Make Fourth Playoff Appearance

The Ohio School Athletic Association announced, on Sunday, the 32 teams who will be part of the state football championships. The Middletown High School Middies, who are currently 9-1, made the cut. It's their fourth playoff appearance and the first time they've made the playoffs since 1990. On Saturday, November 8th, they'll play Moeller. Tickets will be $9.00 at the gate and $7.00 at participating schools.

The Monroe Hornets also made the cut. They are currently 8-2. This is their eight playoff appearance and in both 2005 and 2007, the team made it to the state semifinals. They will play at Chaminade Julienne on Friday night, November 6th.

Other nearby teams who made the playoffs include Valley View and Carlisle.