ASHLAND — With an eclipse nearly upon Ohio and a weekend of activities to boot, it could’ve been easy to miss Peggy King, a 92-year-old woman, as she and her family walked up to the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile parked in downtown Ashland on Saturday. The Wienermobile is part of Oscar Mayer’s fleet, and the hot […]
Mariah Thomas
Ashland Source's Report for America corps member. She covers education and workforce development, among other things, for Ashland Source. Thomas comes to Ashland Source from Montana, where she graduated with degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Montana.
Posted inLife and Culture
In pursuit of darkness: Ashland man crosses continents seeking eclipses
ASHLAND — Mike Spreng’s grandfather gave him and his brother a telescope in 1963. From then on, Spreng loved looking up to space. As an adult, that love has taken Spreng globetrotting. Over the last 20 or so years, Spreng, a retired dentist from Ashland, has seen five different solar eclipses, traveling the world to […]
Posted inElections
Loudonville-Perrysville levy renewal approved by voters
LOUDONVILLE — A 1.5 mill permanent improvement levy for Loudonville-Perrysville Exempted Village Schools received just under 64% of the vote in Loudonville Tuesday night. Election results from March 19 show 1,275 total votes cast, with 813 for the levy. “We are grateful for our community and their support of the Redbirds,” said Jennifer Allerding, the […]
Posted inEducation
Attendance tracking program helps combat chronic absenteeism
ONTARIO — For Chris Miller, the principal of Ontario Middle School, attendance has been one of his job’s biggest duties — and challenges — for the better part of 11 years. One of the biggest challenges Miller faced were attendance tracking programs that didn’t offer an easy way to see when students were reaching concerning […]
Posted inEducation
Ashland University hosts first homeschool conference
ASHLAND — Theresa Watson launched Ashland University’s Homeschool and Classical Learning Center at the beginning of the year, with programming officially beginning in February. A short six weeks later, Watson helmed the school’s first homeschool conference Friday night, drawing 150 people. The night offered networking opportunities with homeschool groups in Ashland and Richland counties, a […]
Posted inSports
Redbirds get royal sendoff for state tournament
LOUDONVILLE — When Sharon Guilliams’ and Cathy Vermilya’s oldest daughters started playing basketball for Loudonville, their goal was always to make it to the state tournament. The last time the Loudonville girls team made it there was in 1992. No Ashland-area teams had accomplished it since 2005 when the Redbirds’ boys squad reached the Final […]
Posted inAshland University, Sports
Ashland dismisses Thomas More in GMAC semifinal to reach title tilt
ASHLAND — An ugly first quarter may have been the spark for a brilliant second quarter. Whatever the primer, the defending national champion Ashland University women’s basketball team utilized a 19-4 spurt in the second period to tame Thomas More 67-56 on Friday night at Kates Gymnasium. “It was a hard-fought win,” said AU coach […]
Posted inBusiness
Owner hopes Olivesburg General Store remodels provide community space
OLIVESBURG — Gary McQuate used to bring his daughter, Tia Sponsler, to his daily coffee meeting with friends at the Olivesburg General Store when she was young. She said she wanted to own the store someday, McQuate said. Now that she does, Sponsler continues to pour into it. Most recently, she did that with a […]
Posted inLife and Culture
Madison grad places 2nd on ‘Wheel of Fortune’
ASHLAND — Beth Ann Sinnett keeps a running bucket list, and enjoys filling it out. The pharmaceutical representative and mom of three lives on a farm between Ashland and West Salem, and said she enjoys traveling with her family. They’ve had plenty of cool adventures, but the 1992 Madison graduate recently checked off one more […]
Posted inEducation
Hillsdale VP of school board announces departure
JEROMESVILLE — The vice president of Hillsdale Local Schools’ board of education announced his departure from the board at its meeting Tuesday night. Nicholas Atterholt, a lawyer in Ashland and the board’s vice president, told his fellow board members he would be moving to the Crestview school district. That means he’s leaving Hillsdale and no […]