After almost 50 years of dishing out Italian eats, the Parasson’s Italian Restaurant in North Hill will close its doors the final day of the year.

There’s a sign posted at the restaurant at 501 N. Main St., saying their final day of business is Saturday.

“All of our employees have been offered positions at our other three restaurants which will remain open and unaffected,” the sign says.

Restaurant owner Anthony Parasson could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Parasson’s has three other locations in Akron at 959 E. Waterloo Road, Stow at 3983 Darrow Road and Barberton at 234 Wooster Road N., which according to the sign will remain open.

The first Parasson’s opened in 1961 after Anthony Parasson, the current owner’s father, found success in selling pizzas at his mother’s tavern in Barberton. The Main Street location, which opened in 1967, was the second of four restaurants.

Their menu features a range of subs, pastas, pizzas and salads.

Theresa Cottom can be reached at 330-996-3216 or tcottom@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @Theresa_Cottom .

Authorities are refusing to identify the person who accidentally fired a gun that killed the Stark County sheriff’s chief deputy in his home earlier this month.

The Summit County Sheriff’s Office, which is handling the investigation for Stark County, released a report of the shooting on Wednesday. However, the office withheld the name of the person who fired the gun and their relationship with Chief Deputy John Campbell, who died.

When asked why the name was withheld, a public records custodian said the matter was still under investigation and the person who fired the weapon was not charged with a crime, though they could be charged in the future.

“I’ve been doing this for nine years, I think I know what I’m doing,” said Kelly Pongracz, clerical supervisor of the sheriff’s office.

The decision to withhold the shooter’s name appears to violate Ohio’s public records laws.

According to the Ohio attorney general’s Sunshine Manual, which details the state’s public records laws and is available on the attorney general’s website, police can withhold the names of “uncharged suspects” — but only from reports deemed “confidential law enforcement investigatory records (CLEIRs).” The report received by the Beacon Journal on Wednesday is known as an “initial incident report,” which the attorney general has specified is not considered an investigatory record.

“Police offense or incident reports initiate investigations, but are not considered part of the investigation,” the manual reads, “and are therefore not a ‘law enforcement matter’ covered by the CLEIRs exemption.”

What is known about the shooting is that someone accidentally triggered a gun in Campbell’s Lake Township home at about 9:45 p.m. on Dec. 11. A bullet pierced a wall and struck Campbell, who was off duty, in the neck.

Reports from the sheriff’s office did not specify who fired the gun or how it was discharged.

Campbell was survived by his wife, Tammy, and two sons. The incident was reported by one of his sons.

The Beacon Journal engaged in a similar debate over redactions from initial incident reports in 1999. In that case, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office withheld the name of a deputy who shot and killed an armed man because the deputy was an “uncharged suspect.”

The newspaper challenged the sheriff’s office in court and the case eventually reached the Ohio Supreme Court. The state’s highest court ruled that police may not withhold suspect names in initial incident reports, establishing the law cited by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office in its Sunshine Manual.

“We rule this way,” the Ohio Supreme Court justices wrote in 2001, “despite the risk that the report may disclose the identity of an uncharged suspect.”

Nick Glunt can be reached at 330-996-3565 or nglunt@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickGluntABJ  and on Facebook @JournoNickGlunt .

A state investigatory office recommended on Thursday that Ohio revise its rules on jailing certain inmates after an Akron man and three others were kept in jails too long across the state.

Howard Brockman Jr. remained at the Summit County Jail for almost two months after posting bond in November 2014, according to a report by the Ohio Inspector General’s Office. He was not released due to an error in the way arrests and bonds are processed at the jail.

Unlike most people who are jailed, Brockman was on parole when he was arrested for having weapons illegally. The Adult Parole Authority had issued an order to hold him there, but the Ohio Inspector General’s Office found that he should have been released under supervision of the state after he posted bond.

As a result of Brockman’s long stay, a hearing to revoke his parole was deemed void. Ohio law dictates that a parolee must have a violation hearing within 20 business days — but Brockman’s took longer.

“Accordingly, the Office of the Ohio Inspector General finds reasonable cause to believe a wrongful act or omission occurred in this instance,” the report reads.

Similar cases occurred at the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail, the Franklin County Jail and Columbiana County Jail.

To remedy the problem, the Inspector General’s Office suggested revising policies to notify the Adult Parole Authority when someone posts bond, and changing the policy to alter the 20-day limit for parole violation hearings.

Summit County sheriff’s Inspector Bill Holland said the office supports the recommendations.

“We are aware of the situation,” he said, “and we have been and we’ll continue to work with the Adult Parole Authority to remedy the situation.”

Nick Glunt can be reached at 330-996-3565 or nglunt@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickGluntABJ  and on Facebook @JournoNickGlunt .

By Paula Schleis

A teenager growing up in the 1940s, Don Olivo remembers hopping a bus after classes at Akron Hower Vocational School to help out at a cousin’s shoe repair store in Goodyear Heights.

“I wasn’t sure if I liked it that much,” he said.

But a post-graduate stint in the Army wasn’t enough to dull the smell of leather or the satisfaction that comes from making worn things look new again.

“When I left service, I thought, ‘Gee, repairing shoes isn’t such a bad way to make a living,’ ” he said.

Friday, Olivo will retire after 73 years as a cobbler, most of those years spent at his store in the Wallhaven neighborhood.

As he marches toward his 90th birthday, Olivo said he’s finally ready to move on to the next phase in his life, which will include more time for golf.

“I gotta wait till the weather gets nice, of course,” Olivo said as he took a break from working on his last few orders.

In an era when synthetic materials make most shoes cheap, disposable and impossible to repair, cobblers are a dying breed. An internet search suggests there may only be about half a dozen practitioners left in all of Summit County.

But Olivo said he hasn’t wanted for work. As other area shoe repairmen have died or retired, their customers found their way to his store at the intersection of Market, Exchange and Hawkins. Most of his customers are women — a gender that seems particularly fond of expensive shoes, Olivo chuckled.

Near his counter, a couple of wall shelves held a dozen recently repaired pumps and high heels waiting to be picked up.

“Women buy good shoes,” he said.

Of course, there are still plenty of men who appreciate a well-crafted shoe.

On one of Olivo’s final work days, the bell above his door rang as Fred Neugebauer entered, carrying a pair of 6-year-old Allen Edmonds dress shoes with holes worn into the soles.

“These are good shoes. It’s worthwhile spending $40-$50 to resole a pair of $200 shoes,” Neugebauer said.

Alas, Olivo had to turn him away. He had stopped buying supplies in anticipation of his retirement.

Olivo acknowledged that time is also catching up to him. His once-nimble fingers don’t move as easily as they used to.

“I have to bandage my hands all the time,” he said. “They get a little tired, too.”

Olivo said he developed a passion for the craft. There is an artistry to breathing new life into well-loved shoes that come to him with broken heals and worn soles.

“I liked it because I could do something creative,” he said. “I liked a challenge. I would fix things that some people say couldn’t be repaired.”

He turned over a pair of black dress shoes in his hand to show the new layer of leather he had applied.

“When I was first learning, it was drilled into my head that you have to make a shoe look as good as if it just came out of the store. No waves. No curls,” he said, running his hand over the flawless surface.

Olivo has been at the same corner for more than 50 years. At one point, work was so robust he hired three cobblers to work with him, but he outlived or outlasted all of them.

Some of his customers have become familiar faces over the decades, even if he only sees them every few years.

“I always got compliments from people, so I knew I was helping them. I liked that I was helping people,” he said.

But more and more folks are giving into the kinds of shoes that can’t be repaired, made of plastics and polymers that are meant to be tossed after a couple of years.

Olivo and his late wife, Carmela, raised three children: Anthony, Donna Lynn and Debbie.

While Anthony occasionally repaired shoes and Donna Lynn handled the office work, they didn’t follow in their father’s shoe-steps.

“None of them wanted it, and I don’t blame them,” Olivo said with a hearty laugh. But he has no regrets making shoe repair a cornerstone of his life.

“I would tell you a lie if I said I wouldn’t miss it,” he said. “But I think I can probably get used to not coming into work.”

Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com.

BEACON JOURNAL

Call center holiday hours

AKRON: The Beacon Journal Customer Service Call Center will take calls from 7 to 10 a.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The phone number is 330-996-3600 or 800-777-2442.

Regular business hours of 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

The Public Service Counter inside the Beacon Journal, at 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, will be closed Monday. Regular business hours of 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

GUILFORD TOWNSHIP

Man killed in one-car crash

GUILFORD TWP.: A Creston man was killed in a one-vehicle accident on Bell Road at 3:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Michael J. Kelly, 21, died in the accident near Lee Road.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol said a 2006 BMW 330i was traveling westbound on Bell when it went left of center, traveled off the right side of the road, struck an embankment and rolled over several times.

Kelly was found at the scene. Occupant Dylon J. Woody, 20, of Burbank, was later located at Wooster Community Hospital.

The crash remains under investigation but the patrol said alcohol was a contributing factor and seat belts were not being worn.

MEDINA COUNTY

Transit services to merge

MEDINA: Medina County Public Transit and Brunswick Transit Alternative are merging effective Sunday, the Medina Gazette reported.

County commissioners signed off on the merger Wednesday. Brunswick officials have said that the agreement won’t affect service in the community, the newspaper said.

OHIO NEWS

Insanity defense for Grate

ASHLAND: Attorneys for a man suspected of killing several women in Ohio are pursuing an insanity defense and asking a judge to have someone determine whether the man is competent to stand trial.

Lawyers for Shawn Grate, 40, said in a court filing this week that he is not guilty by reason of insanity. A competency hearing is set for Jan. 6 in Ashland County court.

Grate’s case began in September when a woman called 911 and said she’d been held captive at an Ashland home. Responding authorities found the bodies of two other women at the abandoned property. Police arrested Grate, who also is accused of raping the woman who called police.

He is charged with 23 counts, including murder, in the potential death penalty case.

STARK COUNTY

Long-time educator dies

Former Stark County Educational Service Center Superintendent Larry L. Morgan was killed Wednesday evening when an all-terrain vehicle he was riding rolled over at the family’s property in Huntingdon County, Pa.

The Jackson Township resident was 75 years old.

Stark County Superintendent Joe Chaddock, who succeeded Morgan in 2015, released a statement from Morgan’s family Thursday afternoon that said Morgan had been riding the ATV alone.

“The family would appreciate their privacy during this difficult time,” Chaddock said. He said services would be announced at a later time.

Morgan began his 52-year career in education as a teacher in the Plain Local School District and went on to work as a principal, business manager, treasurer and district superintendent before he was named the county superintendent in 1995.

People Helping People is a list of charitable causes in our area that need donations or volunteers. The list ends New Year’s Day, but the charities’ needs do not. Please consider supporting the causes of your choice throughout the year.

Information about People Helping People and a list of causes already published can be found at ohio.com/charity.

Greater Ohio Area SuperKids Classic Inc. conducts a Soap Box Derby-style race in June for children with disabilities.

GOASKCI is seeking volunteers to do the following:

• Help with race practice for its 2017 season.

• Help with race operations on June 3, 2017, at Derby Downs. Race volunteer opportunities include loading and unloading derby cars from trailers, serving food, managing games and activities and other duties.

• Help throughout the year with website management, social media and event planning committees.

Visit www.superkidsohio.org for more information, or contact Linda Wilt or Laura Snyder at 330-577-3596 or info@superkidsohio.org.

People Care Pet Pantry, 2994 Sandy Lake Road. Ravenna, OH 44266, helps people with financial hardships feed their pets so they don’t have to give them up. It accepts donations of pet food and new or gently used pet items.

It is also collecting clean blankets and coats for homeless people and personal hygiene items for blessing bags to be handed out. Items may be dropped off all winter at any of the locations listed at www.peoplecarepetpantry.com/how-you-can-help.html.

Monetary donations are also appreciated, and volunteers are needed. To volunteer, send a text message to 330-389-5116.

For more information, contact René Lamp at 330-389-5116 or peoplecarepetpantry@yahoo.com, or visit www.peoplecarepetpantry.com.

If you blow off a finger with a firecracker celebrating the new year, it’s unclear which doctors might help you in any of Summa Health System’s five emergency rooms.

Summa this week said negotiations with a group of emergency medicine physicians who staff emergency rooms at Akron City Hospital and Summa facilities in Barberton, Green, Medina and Wadsworth failed days before their contract expires Dec. 31.

With less than 48 hours until the New Year’s Eve ball drops, Summa on Thursday had yet to secure a contract with a new group of emergency specialists to staff its ERs.

Summa officials said Thursday that negotiations have been going on several weeks and declined to comment further.

But employees and others close to Summa’s emergency rooms were buzzing with rumors and worry over what this could mean for patients and for some doctors who have worked at the health system’s emergency departments for decades.

Summa’s ERs treated more than 166,000 patients last year, according to the health system’s website.

Summa employees learned of the situation Wednesday when Dr. Thomas A. Malone, president and CEO of Summa, sent out a memo informing them of an “upcoming change to staffing in our emergency department.”

Summa has for decades contracted with the same independent physician corporation — Summa Emergency Associates (SEA) — to provide doctors to staff its emergency department at Akron City Hospital. In recent years, it expanded the contract with SEA to cover all of its emergency departments. SEA, despite its name, has no affiliation with Summa beyond the contract.

Malone said in his memo that Summa initially hoped to negotiate a new contract with SEA, but that the physician group’s leadership responded “with unreasonable and uncompromising demands.”

Summa and its patients, Malone concluded, would be better off with a new provider of emergency services.

“We currently are finalizing details regarding the transition of care to a new partner on Jan. 1,” Malone wrote.

“Our goal is to ensure the transition will be seamless to our patients and there will be no impact to service at our emergency departments.”

Dr. Jeff Wright, who leads SEA, said Thursday evening that he still hoped to work out a deal with Summa.

“We would gladly sit down with Summa and try to get a long-term contract,” he said.

He worried, however, that a separate five-page memo laying out SEA’s side of the negotiation could make a deal impossible.

Wright neither wrote nor approved the memo, he said. It was penned by someone trying to help SEA’s cause, Wright said. He did not identify the author.

Among other things, the memo said SEA repeatedly requested to meet with Malone to work out a contract, but had only one face-to-face meeting this Monday. The following day, the memo said, Malone terminated the relationship with SEA.

It also said one of the Summa physicians assigned to renegotiate the contract with SEA is married to the CEO of a physician contract group that competes with SEA.

“I think most of us would say this is at a minimum poor judgment and an obvious conflict of interest,” the memo said.

The memo concluded by telling readers to notify Malone that “you have no confidence in his plans to terminate the relationship with SEA.”

Both memos — Malone’s and that supporting SEA — could be posturing during the run-up to the end of SEA’s contract.

Doctors who work for Summa must be approved by a credentialing committee, a process of background checks that often takes four to six weeks. As of Thursday afternoon, the chair of Summa’s credentialing committee, Dr. Bob Schaal, said he knew of no files waiting to be processed.

If Summa brings in new doctors, people familiar with Summa’s ER operations say that getting quality medical care shouldn’t be a problem.

The biggest issue, they said, is potential patient wait times because new doctors would not only need to learn how Summa’s ERs function, but they’d also have to conquer the computer systems.

Beacon Journal staff writer Jim Mackinnon contributed to this report.

Amanda Garrett can be reached at 330-996-3725 or agarrett@thebeaconjournal.com.

If cooking well is a fine art, then cooking badly is something else: a TV show.

When the new season of Worst Cooks in America premieres Sunday night at 9 p.m. on Food Network, Northeast Ohio will be (proudly?) represented by Kayla Kurtz of Kent.

Kurtz, a mother of four whose culinary calamities include burned eggs, raw poultry and chicken-casserole-ala-Cheerios, will be one of 16 contestants vying for new kitchen skills and a $25,000 grand prize.

“I’ve never been a very good cook and my kids hate what I make,” said Kurtz. “But I order pizza really well.”

Food Network mentors Anne Burrell and Rachael Ray will lead two teams of eight through kitchen boot camp and multiple cooking challenges.

The series, launching its 10th season, culminates on March 5, when the two most-improved contestants compete in a three-course cook-off for a panel of experts. Sunday night’s main dish challenge is cooking shrimp and live lobster.

For an audition video, Kurtz created her signature chicken casserole. “It’s chicken with noodles, cream of chicken soup, stuffing and green beans,” she said. “Then I sprinkled Cheerios on top. The only way I can get my boys to eat anything is if I put cereal on it.”

Despite her oats-inspired variation, sons Ethan, 8, Kingston 5, and 2-year-old twins Jackson and Deacon, “just kind of picked at it.”

But what failed at her dinner table won over the Worst Cooks producers and Kurtz headed for Brooklyn, N.Y., in July to tape the show.

Kurtz, 29, who grew up in Solon, Aurora and Chagrin Falls, was talking during a break from her job at the Basement Sports Bar & Grill in Sagamore Hills, where she is a bartender and server.

She originally applied to be a Worst Cooks contestant in 2015 but didn’t make the cut, then re-applied this year. She ended up on Team Burrell.

“I had a lot of fun doing it,” she said. “It was such a cool experience. You get chosen out of thousands of people who applied, so it’s kind of a humbling thing.”

Kurtz could not share any show secrets, but she did recall some past meals gone wrong.

Breakfast: “I burn my eggs, but I think they taste good. That’s how I’ve always made them. Let’s just say they’re ‘gently browned.’ ”

Lunch: “I made burnt peanut butter and jelly once, which sounds really ridiculous. I had the peanut butter in the fridge, so to warm it up I put it in the microwave. The little metal lining was still on it so it started sparking. But I still served it.”

Dinner: “I once served raw chicken. I didn’t know. I thought it was done, but it was a little pink inside.”

When dining out, Kurtz said her own tastes run to the Mexican T’s: “Tortillas, tamales, tacos. And tequila.”

Kurtz will be working behind the bar at the Basement when Worst Cooks airs Sunday night. Her competitive cooking will also be splashed across the sports bar’s 25 TV screens.

Is she ready for the spotlight?

“I’m nervous. I wonder how people will react. Especially on the internet and social media. I refuse to read anything because then I’ll get defensive. It’s better to just avoid it.”

One supporter is her boss, Basement owner Matthew Coleman.

“People love Kayla,” said Coleman. “She’s upbeat. She makes people laugh.”

Would he ever let her cook for his customers?

“Oh no. No. We actually don’t let her back in there,” he said, pointing to the kitchen. “We bring the food out to her.”

Clint O’Connor can be reached at 330-996-3582 or coconnor@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @ClintOMovies .

NORTH CANTON: City police are asking for help in catching the suspects who held up two separate pizza delivery drivers by gunpoint Thursday night.

In the first case, a Donato’s driver was robbed at 8:06 p.m. in the 1400 block of School Avenue Northeast. The suspect was a 5-foot-9 black man with a slim build in his 20s. He was wearing a gray hoodie and dark sweat pants.

The suspect showed a silver handgun and ordered the driver to turn over his cell phone, wallet and delivery bag containing an undisclosed amount of cash and receipts. The driver was then ordered to get back into his vehicle and leave, police said.

The second robbery occurred at 10:22 p.m. in the 700 block of Church Street Southwest. A Papa John’s driver was approached by two suspects who were both armed with dark handguns. One of the suspects was described as a black man wearing a tan hoodie, while the other was an unknown race wearing a dark colored hoodie, police said.

The suspects demanded cash and then fled on foot.

No injuries were reported in either incident.

Anyone with information that could assist police are asked to call 330-499-5911.

NORTH CANTON: Walsh University plans to preserve the former International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1985 headquarters on Main Street as part of its effort to maintain the history of the Hoover Co. in the community, the Canton Repository reports.

The disbanded union donated its building to the university, which also runs the Hoover Historical Center.

“If it has to end, this is the fairytale ending,” former union leader Nick Tomey told the newspaper. “It will go on in some way. It will continue on.”

Read the Repository report here.

CANTON: Larry L. Morgan, the retired superintendent of the Stark County Educational Service Center, was killed Wednesday in an all-terrain vehicle accident in Huntingdon County, Pa., the Canton Repository reports.

He was 75.

Morgan, who lived in Jackson Township, started his career as a teacher in the Plain Local school district and worked his way up to superintendent before being named county superintendent in 1995, the newspaper said. He retired in 2015.

Read the Repository report here.

Rittman police have nabbed a man they believe is responsible for a recent string of vehicle thefts in the community.

Freddie Kinder, 42, of Rittman, has been charged with at least five counts of grand theft auto, possession of criminal tools, receiving stolen property and possession of drug abuse instruments. The charges will be presented to the Wayne County grand jury.

Police Chief Ray Arcuri said Kinder’s name surfaced early in the investigation and authorities used video from a gas station to help identify the suspect.

“Even his own mother told us he was probably the one doing it,” he said.

Police have been looking for the suspect since the first vehicle was stolen Dec. 20. The latest theft was Thursday.

All the vehicles have been recovered, the chief said.

Kinder, who had an outstanding warrant for failing to pay child support in Medina County and previous convictions for trafficking in heroin and grand theft, is accused of taking the vehicles and driving them to Akron to buy drugs.

The keys had been left inside all of the vehicles and three were left with the engine running.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau has reported that too many Ohio residents are leaving their keys in their vehicles, making them easy targets for auto thieves.

Ohio ranked fourth nationwide for such auto thefts, with a total of 8,623 reported over a three-year period from 2013 to 2015.

One in eight vehicle thefts now involve the keys being in the vehicle, the Des Plaines, Ill.-based bureau said.

Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @armonrickABJ .

Akron got a new mayor and the University of Akron got a new president.

Opiate overdoses spiked.

Those are just three top local news stories of 2016. As the year comes to an end, here’s a look back at those and others that made headlines in the region:

January

• On New Year’s Day, Dan Horrigan was sworn in as Akron’s first newly elected mayor in 28 years.

• A family of four died in a Northfield Center Township home explosion that investigators later determined was a murder-suicide.

(Karen Schiely/Akron Beacon Journal)

Over 100 law enforcement officers and their K-9 partners follow the police cruiser carrying the cremains of K-9 Jethro of the Canton Police Department out of the Canton Memorial Civic Center Jan. 14, 2016 in Canton.

• Canton K-9 police dog Jethro died Jan. 10 after a daylong struggle to recover after he was shot by a burglary suspect. Hundreds attend his funeral. A 23-year-old Canton man pleaded guilty to the shooting and was sentenced to 45 years in prison for that crime and others. 

• Former Brimfield Police Chief David Oliver, who amassed a huge national following on social media, entered no-contest pleas to four misdemeanor charges, two related to his treatment of a female police officer. He was sentenced to probation.

• Stark multimillionaire Ben Suarez is released from prison to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest. He was accused of being part of a plot to secretly provide campaign contributions to two politicians in exchange for political clout.

February

(Canton Fire Department)

Canton firefighter/paramedic Tonya Johnson was killed as result of a car vs pedestrian accident on Route 8 in Akron.

• Jackson Township-based Stark State College announced plans to open satellite campus in Akron. The college later broke ground on the project and opened a temporary site on White Pond Drive. 

• A 43-year-old Canton firefighter and paramedic died Feb. 22 after she attempted to cross state Route 8 and was struck by a pickup truck following an argument with her husband of two weeks. Many witnessed the rush hour accident. It was ruled a suicide.

March

• Akron Zoo announced plans to renovate its Tiger Valley exhibit, add monkeys and build a 64-foot Ferris wheel that will offer a view of downtown. The changes are expected to begin in 2017 or 2018.

April

(Karen Schiely/Akron Beacon Journal)

Eric Hendon stare blankly ahead upon hearing the verdict by the jury of life in prison without parole for his triple murder conviction.

• Summit County jurors spared Eric Hendon from the death penalty, opting instead for life in prison without parole for the triple murder of a Barberton man and his two teenage children.

• The Summit County health department announced that a Summit County resident who traveled to a  Zika-infected country contracted the county’s first case of the virus.

• Two brothers reopened 68-year-old Barberton Speedway, which was closed after a two-year hiatus.

• After decades of planning, preliminary work on Akron’s giant $184.1 million underground sewage tunnel was visible at three spots at the edge of downtown. The tunnel is the key element in a plan to curtail sewer overflows into the Cuyahoga and Little Cuyahoga rivers and the Ohio & Erie Canal.

• The selection of Samaria Rice — mother of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old who was shot and killed by Cleveland police — to speak at a commemoration of May 4, 1970, shooting deaths of four at Kent State University drew critics, supporters.

May

(Ed Suba Jr./Akron Beacon Journal)

University of Akron President Scott Scarborough resigned on May 31.

• Scott Scarborough stepped down as UA president on May 31, after a tumultuous two years where many of his initiatives failed, including the rebranding attempt of UA to rename it the Ohio Polytechnic Institute. 

• A 9-year-old girl dialed 911 to report fatal shooting of mother, brother in Akron home after three men opened fire inside home.

• Credit rating agencies, including Moody’s Investors Service, downgraded UA’s financial outlook. 

• A big black bear was spotted in southern Summit and northern Stark counties.

June

(Mike Cardew/Akron Beacon Journal)

A tire rest near the escalators on the lower level of the abandoned Rolling Acres Mall in Akron.

• The city of Akron became the owner of the interior of Rolling Acres Mall and some land around it after Summit County foreclosed on the mall owner after eight years of legal maneuvering. Demolition of the mall, which closed in 2010, began in October and continues. 

• 30,000 people attended a rally in downtown Akron to celebrate Cavaliers star and Akron native LeBron James. Mayor Horrigan announced that part of Main Street will be renamed King James Way.

• Former Republican U.S. Sen. George Voinovich, a two-term Ohio governor who preached frugality in his personal and public life and occasionally bucked the GOP establishment, died June 12 at 79.

July

• Woman found near death by hikers along a trail in Cuyahoga Valley National Park over the July 4 weekend. She had been shot several times. Two men were later charged with her attempted murder.

• On July 5, Akron paramedics responded to 10 calls involving 17 opiate overdoses. One fatality results. It was the start of a three-day spike in overdoses, eventually putting at least 21 in the hospital and killing four. 

• Josh Brown, 40, of Canton, became the first fatality in a wreck involving a self-driving car, a Tesla.

• The RNC was held in Cleveland without any serious safety issues, with many officers from the Akron area helping with a mass security effort. Delegates visited many destinations in Summit County.

• Summit County Executive Russ Pry, 58, died. Summit County Council President Ilene Shapiro automatically replaced him, becoming the first female county executive in the state. Shapiro went on to win a full term in November.

(Phil Masturzo/Akron Beacon Journal)

A person stops to take of photo of a memorial to Summit County Executive Russ Pry on the lower level of the John S. Knight Center.

• A Cuyahoga Falls police officer was injured after a suspect crashed into three parked patrol cars, fled the scene and then crashed into his cruiser. The officer spent a week in the hospital and completed months of rehabilitation before returning to work in December.

• The University of Akron Board of Trustees tapped Matthew Wilson, 45, dean of UA’s School of Law for the past two years, to serve as interim president of UA.

August

• There were major traffic disruptions with lane and ramp closures and more as construction began on Akron’s Central Interchange forced the 35,000 motorists who use the expressways daily to find alternative routes. Ramps reopen in November.

(Karen Schiely/Akron Beacon Journal)

Dr. Marguerite A. Erme, medical director for Summit County Public Health holds a dose of Narcan during a training session with supervisors at the Akron Police Department on how to use Narcan on people who overdose on drugs.

• Former U.S. Rep. Steve LaTourette, 62, died Aug. 3 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. The Cleveland Heights native, who left Congress in 2013, was known for his politics.

• Cuyahoga Valley National Park celebrated the National Park Service centennial birthday on Aug. 25 all year and a special weeklong celebration.

• Akron police officers are trained to administer the heroin-overdose reversal drug naloxone, marketed as Narcan. Goal was set to have naloxone in every cruiser by end of the month.

• 5,000 turned out for Trump rally at James A. Rhodes Arena at the University of Akron.

(Phil Masturzo/Akron Beacon Journal)

President-elect Donald Trump acknowledges cheers from supporters during a campaign stop at the University of Akron's James A. Rhodes Arena.

• Akron teacher and dance instructor Tara Clossman, 25, was shot and killed in Massillon along with her boyfriend, Michael Lovette, by her ex-boyfriend, Shane Varner.

•After 30 rocking years, Cuyahoga Falls announces that the Friday night summertime Rockin’ on the River concert shows are canceled for the year. 

September

• Beacon Journal held a community forum to discuss the heroin crisis. The event followed a multi-day series by the newspaper.

• Sept. 5 was the last day of operation for Wildwater Kingdom in Aurora. Owner Cedar Fair said it would not be reopening the water park in 2017.

• Ohio’s medical marijuana law went into effect Sept. 8. Many townships and cities pass laws to block marijuana businesses from starting in their communities.

(Jeff Lange/Special to the Akron Beacon Journal)

Aaron King, coordinator of the Queen of Hearts raffle, smiles as he holds up card number five to reveal the elusive Queen of Hearts during a raffle at Skylane Bowling in Garrettsville.

• Fortune seekers travel to Garrettsville to buy tickets in Queen of Hearts raffles at Skylane Bowling. After a year’s worth of drawings, Mantua woman wins $3.4 million. 

• The Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy takes a ride on the Goodyear Blimp as part of the trophy’s tour since the Cavs’ win. It’s the first time the airship has carried a sports championship trophy. 

• Akron Marathon sponsor Akron Children’s Hospital recruits 24 patients who have overcome major obstacles to cheer racers.

• Social media “killer clown” scare hit the area with clown-violence threats at University of Akron and Firestone high school.

October

• Saying it’s for his kids, LeBron endorsed Hillary Clinton in a Beacon Journal op-ed piece.

• A mother and grandmother were sentenced to prison for the April 6 heroin-overdose death of a 16-year-old boy.

(Leah Klafczynski/Akron Beacon Journal)

The University of Akron's board of trustees announce the removal of the term "interim" for President Matthew J. Wilson.

• A former Richfield officer pleaded guilty to stealing from the Shop With A Cop charity program he helped create.

• University of Akron Board of Trustees named interim president Matthew Wilson as the new UA president.

• After learning the state will only pay for one more new high school, Akron Public Schools board held community meetings and decided to merge Garfield and Kenmore high schools at the Garfield site.

• Monthly speaker series the Akron Roundtable celebrated its 40th anniversary with dinner featuring Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney and author and former Beacon Journal reporter David Giffels.

• After months of sending surrogates and coming near, but not quite to Akron, Hillary Clinton stumped in Akron at Goodyear Hall.

(Mike Cardew/Akron Beacon Journal)

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks at a rally at Goodyear Hall and Theater in Akron.

• Steve Kelleher, founder and president of Barberton Historical Society, died at 63. 

November

• A record high of 77 degrees was set on Nov. 2.

• $1 million worth of cocaine was seized in an Akron drug bust.

• Financial adviser Eric Bartoli was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and ordered to pay $42 million in restitution.

• David Hillis was sentenced to one year in jail for shooting and killing an Akron man who police say had broken into his home and tried to rob him. The victim’s family members held protests for months, pushing for Hillis to get serious prison time. They were disappointed with his sentence.

(Leah Klafczynski/Akron Beacon Journal)

• Contractors begin underground blasts to dig sewer tunnel through downtown Akron.

• LeBron James gives $2.5 million for a special Muhammad Ali exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.

• Man, 69, sets self afire in Highland Square after ranting about need to protest Donald Trump.

• Somali-born Ohio State University student wounds 11 people on campus when he plows car into a group of pedestrians and jumps out and began stabbing people with a butcher knife. He’s killed by an officer.

December

• Akron Councilman Bob Hoch was charged with state ethics law violations.

• The University of Akron’s student run newspaper, the Buchtelite, announced it would suspend publication for the spring semester due to lack of staff and declining ad revenue. 

• Mother, father and two daughters die in a Tallmadge Avenue house fire. One daughter escapes.

(Leah Klafczynski/Akron Beacon Journal)

Loved ones gather to view the memorial and ashes of the family of four who died in a house fire in North Hill on Dec. 3, 2016.

• Hudson officer killed an unarmed Case Western Reserve University law student after the student left the scene of turnpike accident. The student was shot five times.

• Former astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn died at 95.

• Kasich signed a bill outlawing abortions after 20 weeks and vetoed a bill that would have banned abortion at the detection of a fetal heartbeat.

• Akron couple wins $1.3 million on a LeBron James-produced NBC game show. LeBron makes a surprise visit to couple’s home to deliver the payment in cash.

• Bryon Marcon, a trustee of Lafayette Township in Medina, disappeared under mysterious circumstances. 

The following is a listing of Akron-area religious events. They include:

Events

Basilica of Saint John the Baptist — 627 McKinley Ave. NW, Canton. Service With Christ: A Door to Mercy Through Service Learning course will be held 7-9 p.m. the third Tuesday of the month through May. Course sessions will be an opportunity to pray in community, reflect on the experience of service and learn more about and apply the themes of Catholic Social Teaching. For more information, call 330-744-8451, ext. 289, email pschafer@youngstowndiocese.org or go to www.doy.org/index.php/diocesan-offices/lay-ministry.

The Chapel in Marlboro — 8700 State Route 619. Saturday. New Year’s Eve featuring the Blackwood Brothers Quartet at 8 p.m. There is no charge for the concert. A big screen in the Source Cafe will broadcast the Ohio State vs. Clemson football playoff game. A nursery and toddlers play area is available. At 10 p.m. there will be a prayer offered for the new year. For more information, call 330-935-0132.

Christ Is the Answer Ministries — 379 E. South St., Akron. 10 p.m. Saturday. Praise service with Overseer J. Michael Martin as featured speaker. Doors open at 9 p.m.

Christ Is the Answer Ministries Westside Outreach Center — 421 W. Thornton St., Akron. 8 p.m. Saturday. Praise service with Bishop Neal Smith as guest speaker. Doors open at 7 p.m.

First United Methodist Church of Akron — Services broadcast via live streaming at 11 a.m. Sundays on the church’s website at www.firstumcofakron.org.

Holy Ghost Ukrainian Catholic Church — 1868 Brown St., Akron. Bible study held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays in the parish hall.

Loyola Retreat House — 700 Killinger Road, Clinton. Feb 3-5. The Wild Goose Retreat. Directed by Abbot Clement Zeleznik, OSB invites you into a more profound life-giving relationship with the Holy Spirit. The cost is $165 per person. For more information, call 330-896-2315. For registration, go to www.loyolaretreathouse.com.

New Dimensions Educational Ministries — 3700 38th St. NW, Canton. 3:30-5:30 p.m. Sundays through January. Spiritual Approach to Wellness Conference. New topics offered weekly combined with inner healing and deliverance. For more information and costs, call 330-764-4000.

Queen of Heaven Church — 1800 Steese Road, Green. New Year’s Masses: 4:30 p.m. Dec. 31 and 8:15 and 11 a.m. Sunday. 330-896-2345.

Resurrection Lutheran Church — 1981 Graham Road, Stow. 6 p.m. Wednesday. Summit Ablaze, an hour-long service of prayer for our community and our world. 330-689-1045.

St. Sebastian Parish — Byrider Hall, 420 S. Hawkins Ave., Akron. The Rite of Christian Initiations for Adults will be offered 7:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays. For more information, call 330-836-2233.

Performances

Harvest Christian Fellowship — 6060 Glenn Highway, Cambridge. 6 p.m. Saturday. The Guernsey Gospel Jubilee Association presents 25th Annual New Years Eve Southern Gospel Sing. Featuring Ohio groups Dayspring of the Plains, Grace 4 Faith of Lancaster and Friendship Four of New Concord. 740-704-1487 or www.gospeljubilee.org.

The deadline for Religion Notes is noon Tuesday. Items must be in writing. Please fax information to 330-996-3033, email information and related photos to religion@thebeaconjournal.com or send it to Religion, Akron Beacon Journal, 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, OH 44309.

BEACON JOURNAL

Call center holiday hours

AKRON: The Beacon Journal Customer Service Call Center will take calls from 7 to 10 a.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday. The phone number is 330-996-3600 or 800-777-2442 or 800-777-2442.

Regular business hours of 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

The Public Service Counter inside the Beacon Journal, at 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, will be closed Monday. Regular business hours of 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

AKRON

Applications sought

AKRON: Applications are being accepted for the annual Judge Harold K. Stubbs Memorial Scholarship. Applications are available through counselors at Akron high schools after the winter break or can be requested by sending an email to reenie477@yahoo.com. The deadline is Jan. 13.

Recipients will be notified by mail 30 days after the deadline. For more information, call 330-867-4329.

NORTHEAST OHIO

Receive energy assistance

Local Ohio Salvation Army offices are accepting applications for Dominion East Ohio’s EnergyShare program, which helps families who have exhausted all other forms of winter energy assistance. EnergyShare is entering its 16th year in Ohio.

To qualify for a one-time EnergyShare assistance payment, a person must be a Dominion customer and must have:

• Demonstrated a need for assistance.

• Exhausted all other state and federal energy assistance; and

• Received a shutoff notice or had their service disconnected.

Dominion works with local Salvation Army offices to help eligible participants. Every dollar contributed to this fund goes to pay recipients’ Dominion East Ohio heating bills. The program runs through May 31, 2017.

STARK COUNTY

Temporary budget approved

LAKE TWP.: Trustees approved temporary appropriations of $12,625,373 for 2017 at their meeting Tuesday evening.

The board also passed a resolution clarifying the six major holidays that part-time Uniontown police officers will work as being Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. The part time officers will be paid $30 per hour for work on these holidays.

University looks to preserve

NORTH CANTON: Walsh University plans to preserve the former International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1985 headquarters on Main Street as part of its effort to maintain the history of the Hoover Co. , the Canton Repository reports.

The disbanded union donated its building to the university, which also runs the Hoover Historical Center.

“If it has to end, this is the fairytale ending,” former union leader Nick Tomey told the newspaper. “It will go on in some way. It will continue on.”

Two suspects on run

NORTH CANTON: City police are asking for help in catching the suspects who held up two separate pizza delivery drivers by gunpoint Thursday night.

In the first case, a Donato’s driver was robbed at 8:06 p.m. in the 1400 block of School Avenue Northeast. The suspect was described as a 5-foot-9 black man with a slim build in his 20s. He was wearing a gray hoodie and dark sweat pants.

The man reportedly showed a silver handgun and ordered the driver to turn over his cellphone, wallet and delivery bag containing an undisclosed amount of cash and receipts. The driver was then ordered to get back into his vehicle and leave, police said.

The second robbery occurred at 10:22 p.m. in the 700 block of Church Street Southwest. A Papa John’s driver was approached by two suspects who were both armed with dark handguns.

The suspects demanded cash and then fled on foot. No injuries were reported in either incident.

Anyone with information that could assist police are asked to call 330-499-5911.

The Your Vote Ohio poll gleaned information about news consumption from more than 1,800 respondents in 2016. Here are some of the findings. A more detailed analysis is available with this story.

Chicken or egg?

Depending on their favored news source, Ohioans had different attitudes on whether the country is on the wrong track or the right track.

The question was this: We’re going to name a source of news. Please rank it by whether it is “very important,” “somewhat important” or “not important at all” to you.

Here’s how they broke down by attitude on direction of the country, and how they ranked various news sources as “very important.”

Wrong track news source:

Myself very important, 72%

Internet 63%

Television 62%

Radio 60%

Social media 58%

Newspaper 49%

Right track news source:

Newspaper very important, 47%

Social media 37%

Radio 34%

Television 32%

Internet 32%

Myself 23%

The demographics

Asked to rank sources of news by “very important,” “somewhat important” or “not important at all,” these are the percentages of “very important” for each source.

Education

High school or less

Television very important 37%

Social media 34%

Myself 32%

Internet 19%

Newspapers 13%

Radio 12%

College degree

Radio very important 60%

Newspapers 58%

Myself 45%

Internet 44%

Social media 34%

Television 31%

Generations

The source receiving the highest score for “very important.”

Millennials: Social media very important, 39%

Generation X: Internet, 45%

Baby Boomers: Newspapers, 45%

Silent Generation: Myself, 42%

Income

The source receiving the highest score for “very important.”

Less than $50,000: Social media very important, 51%, television 46%

$50,000-$75,000: No response, 30%; newspapers, 29%

Over $75,000: Myself, 53%; radio, 47%

Depending on source of news, people also had different opinions about which issues were most important. These issues were named most often by people who use:

Television

Economy (jobs, wages, trade, poverty, etc.) 26%

Foreign policy (immigration, etc.) 20%

Internet

Economy 27%

Public policy (health care, education, etc.) 25%

Social media

Public policy 29%

Economy 19%

Newspapers

Economy 33%

Politics 21%

Radio

Economy 25%

Politics 23%

Based on reader views, here are the top local stories published on Ohio.com in 2016:

1. LeBron backs Clinton

LeBron James endorsed Democrat Hillary Clinton for president in an Oct. 3 op-ed piece.

2. Wade to join Cavs?

The Cavaliers planned to talk to free agent Dwyane Wade but were limited in what they could offer to pay him. Published July 5, story by Jason Lloyd.

3. Orange barrel blues

Car-mageddon came to Akron with a slew of major highway ramp and lane closures that inconvenienced tens of thousands of motorists on 1-77, I-76 and state Route 8. Published July 29, story by Rick Armon.

4. Fiery protest

A man, 69, set himself on fire at Akron’s Highland Square after ranting about Donald Trump. Published Nov. 19, story by Amanda Garrett.

5. Championships cost

Dan Gilbert and partners spent about $160 million in Cavs’ payroll and taxes to deliver Cleveland its first championship in 52 years. Published July 3, story by Jason Lloyd.

6. RNC digs

Jeffrey Dahmer’s Bath Township childhood home was available for rent during the Republican convention in Cleveland. Published March 30, story by Mary Beth Breckenridge.

7. Oops, my bad!

A former University of Akron football player shot an ex-teammate after mistaking him for a burglar. No charges were filed. Published March 19, story by Amanda Garrett.

8. More Cavs news

Fired Cavs coach David Blatt was announced as a recipient of a title ring. Published Sept. 15, story by Jason Lloyd.

9. A highway death

A woman was struck and killed on state Route 8 near East Tallmadge Avenue; about 10 cars were involved in crashes. Published Feb. 22, story by Nick Glunt and Theresa Cottom.

10. Reality TV

Hudson native Caila Quinn, daughter of a Step2 executive, debuted on ABC’s The Bachelor. Published Jan. 4, story by Betty Lin-Fisher.

BEACON JOURNAL

Call center holiday hours

AKRON: The Beacon Journal Customer Service Call Center will take calls from 7 to 10 a.m. Sunday and Monday. The phone number is 330-996-3600 or 800-777-2442.

Regular business hours of 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

The Public Service Counter inside the Beacon Journal, at 44 E. Exchange St., Akron, will be closed Monday. Regular business hours of 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. will resume Tuesday.

STARK COUNTY

Sheriff to offer classes

CANTON: The Stark County Sheriff’s Office will conduct a Citizen’s Academy from Feb. 28 to May 9.

The goal is to improve communication between residents and the sheriff’s office.

Graduates will possess greater insight into law enforcement practices and the services provided, Sheriff George Maier said.

The classes will be held from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesdays at the sheriff’s office, 4500 Atlantic Blvd. NE. The Citizen’s Academy is not a training course, but an educational class.

Anyone interested must complete an application which may be downloaded at www.starkcountyohio.gov/sheriff or picked up at the Sheriff’s Office. The deadline to submit an application is Jan. 27.

SUMMIT COUNTY

Ron Cable appointed

Ron Cable, a Summit County Domestic Relations Court magistrate who ran unsuccessfully for domestic judge, has a new position.

Cable will be a magistrate in Summit County Juvenile Court starting Tuesday. He had been a magistrate in domestic relations court since 2005. Before, he was a part-time magistrate and judicial attorney with the court.

“We are thrilled to be able to bring Ron Cable to juvenile court,” juvenile court Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio said in a press release. “He brings a broad scope of experience ... and will be a valuable addition.”

Cable ran in the Nov. 8 election for an open domestic court judge seat, but lost to Akron Municipal Court Judge Katarina Cook.

Electronic filing required

Criminal filings in Summit County will be required to be submitted electronically starting Tuesday.

The Summit County Clerk of Courts will no longer accept paper filings in criminal cases from attorneys as of this date. Instead, attorneys and pro-se litigants must file pleadings, motions and other documents via the clerk’s website, www.cpclerk.co.summit.oh.us/.

The clerk’s office rolled out electronic filing for criminal cases in September, initially making it optional to give attorneys time to get used to the new method.

Summit County has been implementing electronic filing since 2008, with the civil side started in 2011 and domestic relations enabled last year.

For more information, contact the clerk’s office at 330-643-2210 or via email at sandrakurt@summitoh.net.

State news

Five people shot at resort

MANSFIELD: No arrests have been made in connection with the shootings of five people at a cottage resort area in rural central Ohio.

The Mansfield New Journal reports the five were shot just after midnight Friday at Spruce Hill Inn & Cottages near Mansfield. None of the injuries was life-threatening. Four of the five victims were treated at a local hospital.

The Richland County Sheriff’s office said the victims were male teens from Mansfield 17 to 19 years old.

Glenn observatory planned

LOGAN: Backers are fundraising to build an observatory and astronomy park named for the late space hero John Glenn at a state park in Ohio. He died Dec. 8 at age 95.

Members of the nonprofit Friends of Hocking Hills State Park say they’ve secured half of the $1.6 million budget for the proposed project at the park about 45 miles southeast of Columbus. They say the lack of light pollution allows clear views of the night sky.

Some local officials were gobsmacked last week when they learned from the Akron Beacon Journal that Summa Health System abruptly planned to replace its emergency room physicians New Year’s Day.

More than a dozen fire departments and their emergency medical technicians (EMTs) partner with Summa and depend on their ER doctors for licensing, training and other things that keep operations going.

At least two people connected to those operations — Munroe Falls Fire Chief Lee Chafin and recently retired Chippewa Township Fire Chief Ron Browning — fired off emails to Summa on Friday laying out their concerns.

Would EMTs still have access to medications to help patients during ambulance runs? Could they still depend on Summa for monthly training? Would they even be able to provide EMS service in 2017?

Chafin said Saturday that Summa officials were able to answer some of his questions, saying neither drugs nor service would be impacted.

But New Year’s Eve, as the clock ticked toward 2017, Chafin and others remained concerned about potential emergency room delays caused by the sudden upheaval of staffing over a holiday weekend.

Wrapping up work

At midnight on Saturday, Summa’s contract with Summa Emergency Associates (SEA) — an independent physician corporation that’s separate from Summa — ends and the emergency medicine doctors that staff all five of Summa’s ERs will wrap up work.

And a group of new emergency doctors paid by US Acute Care Solutions (USACS) of Canton will take over as part of a new contract Summa said it began working on last week.

USACS works with hospitals across the country to provide similar groups of physician services. The company’s CEO, Dr. Dominic Bagnoli, is the husband of Dr. Vivian von Gruenigen, Summa’s chief medical officer and one of the most powerful administrative positions at the health system.

Summa officials said on Friday that von Gruenigen was not involved in the selection process and that she would not impact the relationship between Summa and USACS.

It was unclear Saturday whether USACS had enough emergency medicine physicians lined up to operate the emergency rooms. On Friday, the group had reached out to each of the more than 60 ER doctors with SEA and offered them each $100,000 and a $75 per hour pay raise to join their company and return to the same emergency rooms they were departing.

None reportedly accepted Friday. And USACS put out an urgent plea online, saying it was looking for doctors and physician assistants to fulfill its new contract at five Summa facilities.

USACS promised to pay “premium rates” and listed Summa’s ER facilities, along with the number of visits each sees per year: Akron City (100,000), Barberton (41,000), Medina (9,000), Wadsworth (10,000) and Green (21,000).

Abrupt change

Summa’s abrupt change in contractors — which unfolded last week — appears to be unusual.

Browning, who retired in July as chief of Chippewa Township’s fire department in Wayne County, said he’s been through this before with Summa and had two months notice to make the change.

It happened about four years ago, he said, when Summa dumped Emergency Medicine Physicians — the predecessor of USACS, which took over all of Summa’s ERs Sunday — from Summa Barberton Hospital, which is Chippewa Township’s partner organization.

Summa at the time expanded its contract with SEA, the group of doctors which had run Akron City’s ER for more than 30 years, to cover Barberton.

Browning said Summa allowed two months for that transition because officials recognized how complicated it would be, Browning said.

Among other things, an emergency room physician from Summa is assigned to each fire and rescue department to serve as its medical director. EMTs obtain and distribute drugs under the medical license of their medical director.

When there’s a change in doctor staffing, fire departments must have a new medical director because, without that partnership, rescue workers would have no access to naloxone — a drug used to reverse the effect of heroin and other opiate overdoses — and other drugs used to help patients until they get to an emergency room.

There is no time to do that now. Instead of two months, Summa provided about 36 hours for the transition.

Larger issue

The SEA doctors losing their jobs have solved the immediate problem, fire chiefs said. They agreed to temporarily extend their work as medical directors for the fire departments who partner with Summa until something can be worked out with the incoming ER doctors of USACS.

But Browning said there’s a larger issue.

In his email to Summa, Browning asked officials to reconsider bringing USACS, which was created in 2015 when Emergency Medicine Physicians joined the New York investment firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe.

Browning, as fire chief, worked with Emergency Medicine Physicians in Barberton and said the doctors gave his department “very poor continuing education” and offered no help when they had a problem with a patient.

“I cannot speak for the current [Chippewa Township fire] chief but I can tell you I, as a chief, would NOT allow EMP group to be our medical director again,” Browning wrote to Summa.

He said it would be better to reach out to Akron General Cleveland Clinic or University Hospitals.

It was unclear what Browning’s replacement, Chief Joyce Forrer, will do. She could not be reached Saturday.

In Munroe Falls, Chief Chafin said Summa can make whatever staffing decisions it wants in its emergency rooms.

But, he said, when those decisions impact primary partners like fire departments, Summa should keep them informed “and not treat us like an afterthought.”

Chafin, like many others, said he only learned of the switch in Summa’s emergency room doctors Friday in the Beacon Journal and spent much of the day trying to answer questions about the transition.

Delays in the ER remained his biggest concert Saturday night as he waited for New Year’s 911 calls to roll in.

Summa, he said, assured fire departments they were bringing in extra staffing to help the new doctors learn Summa’s emergency room procedures Sunday.

Chafin hoped it was enough.

Fire departments have limited overtime budgets and limited staff to answer calls for help. His department “cannot afford to have squads hugging the wall waiting for beds while an organization transitions,” he told Summa in an email.

“We will watch closely over the next few days,” Chafin wrote, “and we will strongly recommend to our patients they consider transport to other facilities to expedite their care if there are delays.”

Amanda Garrett can be reached at 330-996-3725 or agarrett@thebeaconjournal.com.

To those of you who attended Akron’s nearly booze-free First Night celebration, good morning!

To those of you who celebrated in the more traditional New Year’s Eve fashion ... I’ll try to keep my voice down.

But that will be difficult, because 2016 was an amazing year, crammed with really good stuff and really bad stuff.

Yep, time again for the Bobby Awards, which honor the best and worst, the goofiest and the dumbest, the oddest and most embarrassing moments our area had to offer during the 12 months gone by.

Today marks my 20th awards ceremony. Time flies when you’re being a smart-ass.

Unlike those overhyped national awards — the Oscars, the Emmys, the Grammys, the Tonys — the Bobbys are locally produced and commercial-free.

They also are biased, insensitive, slanted, sarcastic, one-sided and unfair.
And therein lies their beauty.

PARTY ANIMAL OF THE YEAR: An Akron man was arrested after being tossed from six of the nine bars in downtown Youngstown. The arrest came only after repeated warnings. The final straw was his decision to swing from a light pole, knocking over construction barrels, shouting at women and threatening to kill the bars’ bouncers. When he was cuffed, he told the cop, “If partying is wrong, I don’t want to be right.”

(Rick Steinhauser/Akron Beacon Journal Illustration)

No shirt? No problem when you are an NBA champion like J.R. Smith.

EXHIBITIONIST AWARD: When the Cavs arrived in Cleveland after winning the title, J.R. Smith got off the plane shirtless. He also rode in the victory parade shirtless. In the afterglow of victory, he just didn’t give a shirt. J.R. may not have re-shirted until he attended a June 30 charity event at Firestone Country Club, where the dress code is just a wee bit more restrictive.

OLIVER STONE CONSPIRACY AWARD: A caller insisted our coverage of the Hillis/Glover case was slanted in favor of Glover, the black person who broke into Hillis’ house and was shot and killed after he started to run away. The caller said she knew we were playing racial favorites because she “did the research” and discovered that the Beacon Journal is owned by a company named Black Press. I somewhat-less-than-gently pointed out that the company is named after David Black, a 70-year-old white millionaire who lives in western Canada.

DEPARTMENT OF REDUNDANCY DEPARTMENT TROPHY AWARD CUP RIBBON MEDAL: After years of public ridicule, Circle K finally removed the gas-pump stickers that read, “Please prepay in advance.” (As if you could prepay afterward.) In 2016, Circle K saw the light and began to post stickers that read, “Please pre-pay before pumping.” Much better.

GREATER CLEVELAND PARTNERSHIP TROPHY:  I’ve seen people get pretty worked up about their favorite sports teams, sometimes to the point of loud arguments. But I’ve never heard of a dispute quite like this. The setting: 2 a.m. in the parking lot of a strip club on West 117th Street in Cleveland. What could possibly go wrong? Well, a 24-year-old guy visiting from Florida started arguing with a local guy about which state has better strip clubs. The quarrel grew so vehement that the local guy pulled out a gun and shot the tourist in the left thigh. Gotta love that hometown pride.

WORST CHEERLEADERS: This probably should have surprised no one, given how the Browns’ season was going. Still, it was so goofy, and so incredibly fitting, that the photo went viral. A three-panel banner that is unfurled by fans at every home game — normally spelling out DAWGPOUND — began one game as GPODAWUND.

SLOPPIEST POLICE WORK: A report in the Hudson Hub-Times said a resident “called police around 3:20 p.m. to report that a suspicious vehicle was at a church across the street.” Upon arrival, police discovered the car’s occupants were attending a church meeting. There were no arrests.” No arrests?!

BEST HOLIDAY-RELATED QUIP: When media superstar Maggie Fuller asked on her Facebook page, “What does Columbus Day mean to you?” Chris Crowder Haylett responded, “A yearly reminder of what happens when men don’t ask for directions.”

EGOMANIAC OF THE YEAR: A Lima resident on the lam sent police a selfie because he didn’t like the mug shot they were using. Must have been a much better likeness, because he was arrested shortly thereafter in Florida.

BEST MURDER: Cleveland’s half-century sports curse was finally slain, in large part because of a kid from Akron. Three catchwords immediately entered the local sports lexicon, thanks to the final frenzied moments of Game 7: The Block, The Shot and The Stop. Take one more bow, LeBron, Kyrie and Kevin.

(Rick Steinhauser/Akron Beacon Journal Illustration)

A penalty flag should have been thrown against the contractor whose shoddy work forced the cancellation of 2016 Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibition game.

FALSE ADVERTISING TROPHY: A police report informed us that “Wise Intelligent Supreme God Allah, 18, of Faircrest Street SW in Canton, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, weapons under disability and improper handling of firearm.” Perhaps not all that wise, intelligent, supreme or godly after all.

WORST PERFORMANCE ON A FOOTBALL FIELD: No, not the Cleveland Browns. At least they completed all of their games. The correct answer is “Paintgate,” in which a nationally televised Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibition game between Green Bay and Indianapolis had to be called off at the last minute because some clueless contractor sprayed logos in the end zones and at midfield with a paint that became hard and slippery, leaving areas of the artificial surface in a condition more appropriate for hockey.

CRIMINAL OF THE YEAR: A Dayton man was arrested after he tried to have sex with a van. A newspaper account said “an eyewitness told officers she saw the man pull down his pants and try to have intercourse with the grill of the van. This went on for a while before he passed out in a yard.” There was no

(Rick Steinhauser/Akron Beacon Journal Illustration)

Apparently the van had an irresistible smile.

mention of injuries, so apparently he managed to avoid damaging his, um, radiator hose. Although he was jailed on two counts of public indecency, he surely is in line to receive an honor from the National Fetish Association.

GRINCH OF THE DECADE: How about a local cop involved in a countywide  program called Shop With a Cop — underprivileged kids are treated to Christmas shopping sprees — who ends up stealing the money? Come on down, Michael Simmons, fired from the Richfield force for spending more than $26,000 on himself, prosecutors said. This guy almost literally stole Christmas. His conviction so tarnished the program that several departments dropped out, some formed new programs and some — including Richfield — stopped participating altogether. As Cuyahoga Falls officer Don Patterson put it: “Cops stealing from kids — it doesn’t get much worse than that.”

READER OF THE YEAR: “I have a question for you,” he said on my voice mail. “When is the paper actually delivered — when the person gets it or when it’s delivered to the address? That’s all I wanted to know. Thank you.” Yes, our statistical analysis of delivery efficiency is far more complex than most people realize. We don’t classify a delivery as successful until we personally witness the recipient physically touching the paper in his/her driveway or paper box. We don’t care whether he/she does it early in the morning, wearing a bathrobe, or in the afternoon, after walking the dog, or in the evening, after work.  Sometimes, when a customer leaves the house early and has an evening function, we have to hang around until nearly midnight. But we figure this is necessary to hold our own during the Information Age.

CSI: MONTVILLE: A Montville Township police report in the Eastern Medina Post: “A Lake Ridge Drive resident came home to find their closet ransacked. There was evidence of a ‘dog tearing things up,’ but not of criminal activity.”

WORST MEDIA CRITICISM (AMONG PEOPLE NOT NAMED TRUMP): New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, while ripping Ohio Gov. John Kasich right before Christie’s debacle in New Hampshire, tore into the Ohio media. His cheap shot was reported in the biggest newspaper in our swing state’s biggest city, a publication generally known as the Columbus Dispatch. “I’m just better [than Kasich] because I’ve been tested,” he crowed during a campaign stop. “I’m in the toughest media market in America. With all due respect to — what? I think it’s the Columbus Journal — it ain’t the New York Times. [And] the interrogation by the Akron Sun ain’t doing it.”  Well, Chris, I guess it’s that unwavering attention to detail that sets you apart.

AESTHETIC OFFENSE: Beacon Journal Metro Editor Cheryl Powell was burning the midnight oil in the newsroom one night when the police scanner crackled with the description of a suspect: “She’s a white female, skinny, with blonde hair and bad roots.” Quipped Powell, “Is bad hair a crime?”

BEST SPORTS COMMENTARY BY A RESIDENT OF STOW: Two-way tie. Paul Brooker wrote to me shortly after the Browns hired their new coach: “We need the Tribe to hire someone named ‘Dew’ as a manager. Then we would have Huey, Dewey and Luey as coaches for our major-league franchises.” Another Stowite, Bob Oziomek, suggested hiring somebody named Nue to go along with the Browns’ Hue and the Cavs’ Lue. That would work, too. We could walk around saying, “Nue’s on first?”

LEAK OF THE YEAR: The term “distracted driving” covers a lot of sins, the most troublesome being driving while texting. But you generally don’t see this one on the lists of inadvisable driving activities. According to a lawsuit filed in Summit County Common Pleas Court, a man from Hudson rear-ended a couple from Hudson, causing significant injuries to the male victim. The offending driver’s distraction? The lawsuit says he was “attempting to urinate into a cup.” Police cited him for piss-poor driving.

BEST COLUMNIST: Modesty forbids.

Messages for Bobby can be left at 330-996-3580 or bdyer@thebeaconjournal.com. He would like to express his semi-eternal gratitude to colleagues and friends who contributed Bobby nominations during the year: Rick Armon, Kim Drezdzon, Charlene Nevada, Cheryl Powell, Mark J. Price and Stephanie Warsmith.