March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness month in Ohio. Throughout the state, communities are encouraging people to take at least one action to demonstrate their commitment to a world free of MS. The Northwest Ohio Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society has several events scheduled to raise funds and awareness for MS.

The “Women on the Move” luncheon, held by the local chapter of the MS Society, featured guest speaker Austin Carty from the hit CBS TV show “Survivor: Panama Exile Island.” The reality TV show competitor began learning about survival when his mother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1999. Since then, Austin has constantly marveled at his mother’s determination to “outwit, outplay and outlast” her MS. Austin shared his story with the 300 women in attendance.

Tricia Courtney, director of media for the local chapter, reported that the event generated approximately $20,000 in income through ticket sales, sponsorships and the silent auction items at the luncheon.

Another organization working for the cause of MS this month is the MS Jam foundation. For the past 6 years, the MS Jam Foundation has held a day-long benefit concert to raise awareness about multiple sclerosis and money for the local chapter of the MS Society.

The MS Jam was started by Bill and Kathy Gross. When Bill was diagnosed with MS, he and his wife Kathy motivated their family and friends to “do what they can, while they can.” Now six years later, they have created a non-profit foundation and an annual family-friendly music festival that has given over $85,000 to the MS society.

The Gross’ attribute their success to over 75 family members and friends and are pleased that 100 percent of the proceeds of their fundraiser stay in northwest Ohio to help people living with MS. They are exceptionally proud that their children and grandchildren work with them and are gaining a passion for volunteerism.

“We are raising the next generation of volunteers, and they don’t even know it. They just think this is fun and what we do,” said Kathy Gross.

The Gross’ expect to raise $15,000 this year to hit the mark of giving $100,000 to the MS Society’s programs in our area.

Other MS awareness events include the MS Walk on Sunday, March 29 and the “Bike to the Bay” on Saturday and Sunday June 27 and 28. Visit nationalmssociety.org and click on the Toledo chapter for more information.

Christine Senack is a Toledo-based consultant helping non-profit organizations and businesses work smarter together for the greater good of our community. On occasion she also presents the TMZ Report on FOX Toledo News First at 4. Connect with her on www.facebook.com or follow at www.twitter.com/csenack

Upcoming Events

April 24: So You Know You Can Dance. This dance contest will benefit the BGSU Generation Next Leadership Award, which is a scholarship fo incoming BGSU freshman who exhibit tremendous leadership potential. The event includes a dance contest with cash prizes, open dancing, food and raffles. Tickets are $35. Visit bggenext.org for tickets or to enter the dance competition.

April 25: Luminations. Enjoy an exciting sampling of Toledo’s performing arts and a variety of gourmet cuisine while bidding on practical, creative and entertaining silent auction items. Proceeds benefit scholarship programs of Lourdes College. Black Tie Optional. Tickets are $125. Visit lourdes.edu or call (419)824-3751 for additional details.

We’re on a train, traveling between London and Edinburgh.
It’s the 11 a.m. out of King’s Cross Station.
Our carriage is First Class —in every sense. Liveried in blue and grey, comfy, uncluttered and quiet. We have reserved window seats with a good-size table between us for reading, writing (forget the ‘rithmetic!) and for holding the coffee cups, cookies and bottled water which come courtesy of National Express, which operates this north/south section of the British railway system.
The journey to Edinburgh, scheduled for 4 hours and 20 minutes, departed right on time and runs up the eastern side of this currently sunny “sceptered isle.” Outside temperature is 10 degrees — several centigrades lower than last week, when Britain was basking under positively balmy Springtime skies.
We’re in a particularly happy mood. Not just because we love riding the trains — even the much-maligned British ones — but also because we have a full Scottish week of touring ahead of us with stops at picturesque outposts such as Inverness and Oban. Our train rides are all paid for and unlimited, thanks to an eight-day Britrail Pass; $455 for seniors. Our lodgings in each of the cities are all booked and confirmed.
OK, so they’re only ‘bed-in-a-box’ budget digs like IBIS and Premier Inns and Easy Hotels (offshoot of the EasyJet operation) but at least they won’t break our bank at an average of $75 per night — not bad for expensive Britain. And anyway, we’re only staying a night or two in each as this trip is strictly business, researching hotels and attractions, reacquainting ourselves with a part of Britain we haven’t set foot in for a decade, and getting ready for a more extended stay in September.
Time passes so sedately on a train — we’ve just gone through Peterborough — several daily newspapers to soak up, favorite columnists to laugh with and an ever-changing panorama of fields, farmland, forests and seascapes, plus the chance to re-live — with the help of a digital camera “diary” — some of the things we did in our London week.
Like, for example, staying in the North London hill village of Hampstead. Taking a two-hour stroll of this ancient enclave with a guide from London Walks — the pioneering guided walks company — and hearing about the amazing cast of characters who have clogged these streets since its first mention in the Domesday Book 1,000 years ago. Names like Keats and Constable. Dickens and Dick Turpin. The Du Mauriers. John Harrison of Longtitude clock fame. And more recent sojourners like Peter O’Toole, Judy Dench and Boy George!
Then there was a special tour of the Houses of Parliament arranged for us by a former schoolmate who is now a member of parliament, a lawyer and a novelist (no, it’s not Jeffrey Archer). That was followed by a pint of Best Bitter on a boat overlooking the River Thames, Big Ben and the lit-up London Eye.
Sundays are always special times to be Londoners, even temporary ones. And this one was certainly no exception, with thousands celebrating St Paddy’s Day via parades, music and clogging in Trafalgar Square and thousands more watching a big rugby match against the French.
We opted instead for a brunchy stroll through the East End markets of Spitalfields and Petticoat Lane, filled with all manner of bric-a-brac, collectibles, clothes and food, then sat outside, people watching, munching on Ozzie burgers and french fries. And, then, to top it, England unexpectedly wallopped the French in the rugby match. Brilliant.
The next day was all about nostalgia. With a tour of a typical British public boarding school — Tom Brown meets Harry Potter — where this particular scribbler spent some formative years.
Another day, we took a quick trip up to Cambridge and joined a delightful tour of this ancient university town, where learning was launched in the 14th century. As the students were on Easter break, the colleges and quads were uncharacteristically subdued. But punts were out on the river, and King’s College chapel as spectacular as ever.
We capped off the week with a visit to the city of Bath, a spa and health resort since Roman times. where water still springs from the earth’s core at 49 degrees. People from around the world still come to take the cure and enjoy the sights of this limestone colored gem.
The free 2-hour city tour, conducted by one of 60 volunteer guides, took us round the many highlights and concluded with the buying of Bath Buns and Bath Soaps for hostess gifts for visits still to come.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the train will shortly be arriving in Edinburgh …”

Just back from perusing the appealing environs of Fort Meyers, Fla., in an attempt to stave off the influence of SAD (Season Affective Disorder), also known as winter depression or, more simply, “It‘s time to get out of dodge for a while.” Think of spring training with very little emphasis on the “training” aspect.
When I informed past Toledo Storm coach, present Toledo scout and future Toledo Walleye coach Nick Vitucci that I was going to be in the Fort Meyers area on a sun-gathering assignment, he said he was going to be there also scouting two games between the Mississippi Sea Wolves and the Florida Everblades of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) where the Walleye will compete starting next fall.
My wife, Sue, and I met Nick at Germain Arena in south Fort Meyers. I asked Nick if he needed some help scouting the Sea Wolves, all of whom would become free agents with the team reportedly ready to suspend operations at season’s end. He agreed. Between the second and third periods, I told him I felt that No. 14 was a real good skater and I thought his name is Hall. Nick said, “Yeah, Jeremy Hall. He played for me in Toledo.”
Talk about a possible career as an assistant ECHL scout being cut short. That was really SAD.
Germain Arena has a little sentimental value for Vitucci. He played his 500th professional game in goal there during the 2000-2001 season against the Everblades while with the Greenville Growl.
When the Growl returned home for its next game, Vitucci was honored with a special night. Among the tributes, his teammates presented him with a regulation-size net, the front of which was all Plexiglas and covered with a collage of pictures and mementoes from his playing days.
Inverness Club members should remember Christian Sheehan, who served at director of instruction in 2003-04. He has since become the head professional at the Gateway Golf and Country Club in south Fort Myers. Golf Digest considered the 72-hole, 7037-yard course, a Tom Fazio design, one of the top 100 golf courses nationally when it opened in 1989.
A number of Brandywine country club golfers congregate at the facility every winter. They include Ted Meyers, Joe Gerace and Rick Kuncl. Toledoan Denny Spencer, who played five years on the Senior PGA Tour, and his wife Peggy were on hand to present Sheehan with a copy of Spencer’s very readable new book, “Listening for the Bugles.”
ODDS AND LOOSE ENDS

• Florida’s biggest ongoing sports news story appears to be Florida State appealing to the NCAA Infractions Committee to reinstate wins the NCAA mandated FSU vacate from games in which 62 ineligible students participated, beginning at the point they cheated on an online music course. That would include giving back 14 football triumphs, which appears to be the crux of the entire situation. It would mean that popular head football coach Bobby Bowden probably won‘t be able to become the winningest major college football coach ever. How emotional. He currently trails Penn State‘s Joe Paterno by one victory. FSU says its coaches are innocent. What’s interesting is that honesty and integrity have followed Bowden every step of the way at FSU, catching up with him frequently …
• ESPN, in an attempt to “grow” the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, has helped concoct a tournament schedule that totally takes no notice of common sense. Michigan State, a No. 9 seed in the Women’s Tournament getting a home game against top-ranked Duke? Meanwhile, among the other three No. 1 seeds, Oklahoma played on a neutral court while UConn and Maryland played initial tournament games on their respective home courts. Predetermined sites are a flawed system. It crushes the integrity of the individual brackets. The problem? Can you say tee-vee? The NCAA and ESPN held their respective breath hoping Duke would beat Michigan State so the home court issue would be diffused. That, of course, didn‘t happen. Now, can you imagine their anxiety over the UConn men’s basketball team, playing for a national championship when it was determined that there’s a major cheating scandal involving the recruitment of Toledoan Nate Miles?

Passing them nearly everyday whether coming home from church or school, the signs greet drivers and passengers with the proclamation: WELCOME TO TOLEDO, A CITY WITH PRIDE.
The giant red letters rest above I-75. TOLEDO PRIDE
But I’m not too sure that “pride” is the right word to describe the atmosphere of failure radiating from One Government Center in Downtown Toledo, and the presence of signs does not change reality.
Pride is what I have in seeing the fruits of my labor. Pride was when I and my brothers were paid for mowing lawns every summer. Pride was clear when I drove my first car home. Pride was bringing my California bride back home to Toledo. Pride was when I and my wife finished closing on our new home. Pride is the wonderful emotion that comes after hard work and success. And I am still proud that as a full-time student at UT and as a full-time employee bringing in very little, I own my first home. My pride will be extremely apparent when I graduate with a law degree. The pride I have in what I have been able to accomplish has not faded and will never fade.
During the Great Depression, pride was exhibited by a few who refused federal government handouts to propel them through the bleak economic time. For many more, pride had to be swallowed to accept the help they needed. National unemployment for most of the Great Depression was more than double February 2009’s national unemployment rate of 8.1%. The attitude regarding one’s ability to provide resulted in pride.
The emotion that surfaces when I finish a task is pride. Signs at the city limits and letters above I-75 mean nothing and have nothing to do with the existence of pride in a community.
The subject of questioning “Toledo Pride” is almost taboo to Toledo’s “Cheerleader,” Mayor Finkbeiner. Mayor Finkbeiner takes questioning the reality of Toledo pride personally as if one is questioning the Mayor’s own love of country, but pride is not November leaves left on the streets until March. Pride is not pot-hole infested roads. Pride is not a sad 27.7 million dollar deficit. Pride is not a city’s sub – par sewer system backing up and flooding basements. Pride is not threatening cuts in essential services when the Mayor doesn’t get his way. Pride is not 12.9% unemployment. Real Toledo Pride coming from One Government Center in Downtown Toledo would be a balanced budget, a city government living within its means, the basic needs of the city being met, and Mayor Finkbeiner’s 2005 promise of 700 police on the street coming to fruition 4 years later.
Somehow, Toledo pride is being buried even deeper by our elected officials. Practically admitting failure, Toledo is begging for handouts from the Federal Government to fulfill the needs our political “leaders” should have already met. We are applying for money to hire new police officers, and this act of simply applying is a shameful admission of failure. An embarrassing mayor and our city council have not been able to fund the primary task of the City of Toledo – protecting its citizens. Instead, Toledo is chucking the last remnants of pride away and requesting funds from the stimulus plan.
If Toledo politicians cannot protect its citizens by funding an adequate police force, public embarrassment and resignations should abound. Toledo’s inability to accomplish the simple yet important things this city needs is such a disgrace. The disgrace is magnified when our tough economic times are nowhere near the struggles presented by the Great Depression, yet the way Toledo politicians beg is as if the economy is worse than it was in the 1930s. If Toledo pride still exists, it has nothing to do with the actions of those operating out of One Government Center. If Toledo pride exists, it is in spite of the shameful and despicable beggars posing as city officials.
I and an overwhelming majority of Toledoans are people that love their city and want to put Toledo back on the map. We have Toledo pride. We just need our city officials to start funding the necessities, forgetting about the frills. We need our city officials to take pride in performing their actual duties. We need them to catch the pride that we as hard-working Toledoans are passing on.

Tom Morrissey is a Lucas County resident and lifelong Toledoan.

The Start girls’ basketball team fell just short of happily ever after, although it’s still a season worth remembering.
“I knew with time we could be good,” said all-state senior Yolanda Richardson. “I never doubted our talent level. I always knew we could make it this far.”
The Spartans lost in the Division I state title game March 21 to the now four-time defending state champion Mount Notre Dame, 52-38.
“I knew since day one,” said sophomore Maleeka Kynard. “When we added Tiffani [Blackman], I felt we were complete to make a run.”
Kynard’s statement offers a glimpse into the makeup of the team.
Blackman, a junior transfer student from Bowsher, was not allowed to play until the last three games of the season due to transfer rules.
“She was always encouraging us in games and practices to get better,” Kynard said. “She would help out the coaches and help the younger girls with moves and drills.”
Coach Bob Brown talked about the team’s two seniors. Richardson won All-Ohio honors and will play at UT next season, and has been the leader from day one, Brown said. And Staci Bostic was “a scrapper and a glue-player.”
Kynard and Richardson cannot talk too long about the playoff experience without beaming.
Kynard referenced a moment in the hotel room when all the girls started screaming, realizing the magnitude of their success.
Richardson talked about the fun the girls had together the night after the title game, a time when most teams would sulk and pout after losing a game of such magnitude.
“We could’ve pointed fingers, but we’re a team. We love each other and made it this far together.”
The Spartans lose only two players to graduation. They return a host of young players, including sophomore Kynard.
“I like our team [going into next year],” Brown said. “They’re extreme hard workers who mutually learned a great deal and gained a great amount of experience of what it takes to play at the highest level.
“After the game, I told them they had an amazing run,” Brown said. “But I told them to remember the feeling … I’m not ready for it to end, but I guess it had to sometime.”
Before this season, the Spartans had never won a league title. This year, they won the league title, district and regional titles and finished second in the state.
“I think nobody gave us credit. I think you have to earn it, but everyone looked at us as good, but not great,” Brown said. “But our work ethic and blue-collar approach helped prove to people that we are better than they think we are.”

How many people do you know who have been raped? Or beaten and robbed? How about murdered?
Odds are you don’t know anyone who’s been victimized in any of those ways. Terry Wertz does. His neighbor two doors down was held at gunpoint, while the man’s roommate was raped during a home invasion last year. Another friend was beaten and robbed by a gang of punks a couple blocks over. And his own brother was shot and killed in the mid-1980s. All in the Old South End neighborhood he’s lived in for most of his 48 years. The prospect of Toledo laying off 75 police officers doesn’t sit well with Wertz.
“Cutting back on officers is going to make it more convenient for people to commit crimes without being caught,” he said.
The fewer police on the streets, the more the bad guys get away with their bad acts, free to commit more bad acts another day. The beat cops know who the ill-intentioned characters are, and they lay in wait for them to do the wrong thing at the wrong time. The crooks might not get busted for the worst caper they’ve committed or plan to commit, but they’ll get arrested for something. These are people in our neighborhoods who are pulling off some sort of misdeed on a weekly or even daily basis — assault, theft, drug dealing.
But these are times like most of us haven’t seen before. The City of Toledo is looking down the barrel of a growing gap in the 2009 budget. Nearly $28 million by the latest ballooning estimate. Mayor Carty Finkbeiner has his ideas on balancing the budget (laying off police officers and firefighters) and the Toledo Police Patrolman’s Association has its own.
“Every union leader has stepped up to assist in balancing the budget” said TPPA President Dan Wagner. “… but Carty won’t even entertain the ideas we’ve put forward.”
Finkbeiner not welcoming suggestions from other people? That’s an entirely different discussion.
The patrolman’s association and the city are negotiating possible concessions aimed at reducing, and perhaps eliminating the need to lay off police officers.
The dollar figures are inescapable. Employment and tax revenue  in Toledo are tumbling. Toledo City Councilman D. Michael Collins, a former president of the TPPA, publicly urged his former union to consider concessions or face layoffs: “I’ve been in your shoes and I’ve sat in your chairs, and these numbers are real.”
The correlation between more cops and less crime is a little muddled. I called the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Statistics, and even it couldn’t tell me what, if any, connection was documented. But common sense tells me that too few cops equals too much crime. I remember the field day criminals had when Toledo police went on strike in 1979, and the city had to be patrolled by the scant crews of the Lucas County Sheriff’s office. Arsonists set fires in broad daylight that burned down entire blocks of houses (the firefighters were on strike, too). And after Sept. 11, 2001, the federal government created departments and added tens of thousands of sworn officers. We haven’t suffered a terrorist attack on U.S. soil since, and it’s not like the terrorists have lost interest in us.
The TPPA’s Wagner has his own terrorist analogy: “I equate him [Mayor Finkbeiner] to a terrorist because it’s like he’s holding the police officers hostage and pitting us against the residents.”
The negative effects of cutting police officers is usually measured in “response time” — the time it takes from the 911 call to the first squad car screeching up on the scene. But the block watchers and other neighborhood activists say it’s really about the police just being seen. It works like the plastic owls Point Place residents put on their docks to scare the seagulls away. “The officers are doing a darned good job for what they have now” said Old South Ender Terry Wertz. “[the layoffs are] only going to make their job tougher, and they might not be able to maintain the visual deterrent that’s been helping our area.”
Helping an area that’s still seeing rapes, beatings, robberies and the occasional murder. Even before another cop is walking the beat on the unemployment line.

E-mail columnist Jim Harpen at letters@toledofreepress.com.

April Fool’s Day is only a few days away, so be on the guard. Over the years, we have had our share of gags and pranks.
Usually, it’s Brent in our office. One year, he loosened the bolts on the office chairs, so they collapsed when we sat down. The only thing that was initially hurt was our self-esteem, already suffering from winter weight. But beware of traps when it comes to finances.
In the past few weeks, we have seen an incredible rally on Wall Street and many investors are wondering if they should hold off and wait until their investments come back before making any changes?
Waiting may not be the best thing. According to BTN Research, the 2000-2002 bear market lasted 30 and half months, and so far it’s only 17 months into this bear market.
The Moody’s Recessionary Index still indicates a significant risk the economy will be in a recession six months from now.
Long-term, the markets will recover. Short-term, we still see significant risk, and instead of waiting to see, informed investors should take this short-term market rally as an opportunity to get their accounts properly positioned for the long-term recovery.
Review the disclosed and undisclosed fees and expenses in accounts and review the performance of accounts versus the unmanaged index.
Listening to the wrong people can be foolish. We watch financial news on a more regular basis in light of where the economy has headed. But short-term, almost no one can predict the direction of the stock market. In fact, nine Wall Street equity strategists at the beginning of 2008 predicted the market would gain 10 percent in 2008, when in fact it was down 39 percent.
Others listen to people who aren’t even in the business of finance. Sure, friends, family and co-workers care about your financial well-being, but implementing the wrong financial advice can be a disaster. Instead, focus on a long-term plan and make adjustments along the way.
Watch out for fool’s gold. Chasing hot investments or buying investment ideas that seem too good to be true can be dangerous. Played out on the nightly news is the ponzi scheme of Bernie Madoff that caught big-named celebrities off-guard. Many local investors were caught by what happened here with Tom Noe and the Ohio Coingate scandal. Then, there was the recent sentencing of John Ulmer and others who committed fraud at the Westhaven Group. Although all the homework in the world can’t protect against every fraud, doing some research upfront and trusting your gut can help. Check out www.sipc.org to find out more about how to be protected from fraud with information provided by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.
So watch out, not just for fun pranks on April’s Fools Day, but be careful you don’t get fooled with your finances. These financial traps can catch you off-guard and cost a small fortune.

For more information about the column and The Retirement Guys, tune in every Saturday at noon on 1230 WCWA and every Sunday at 11 a.m. on 1370 WSPD or visit www.retirementguysradio.com. Securities are offered through NEXT Financial Group Inc., Member FINRA / SIPC. The Retirement Guys are not an affiliate of NEXT Financial Group. The office is located at 1700 Woodlands Drive, Suite D, Maumee, OH 43537.

When Craig Hollopeter visits a family that is to receive a wish through Make-A-Wish, he empathizes with their uncertainty, their gratitude and their pride, which often needs to be worked through to accept such gifts.
Craig and his former wife were in their early 20s when their daughter, Kristin, was born. At 8 months, she was diagnosed with Hurlers Syndrome, a genetic disorder. They were told their child would suffer from a variety of physical deformities and not live past 6 or 7.
Kristin was a blessing in their lives, always had a smile on her face and beat the odds by living to the age of 11½.
The Make-A-Wish granter arrived on Craig’s doorstep when Kristin was 6 ½.  As the team attempted to figure out what might be best, the television played in the background. As the voice of “The Price is Right” announced, “Come on down,” Kristin smiled.
The Craigs were flown to California to meet Bob Barker. Kristin received a big hug from the game show host legend.
Soon after, Craig signed up to be a wish granter.  He’s remained one since and has even served on the board.
According to Kimberly Ray, wish program manager, the local chapter has 95 wish granters, who go through a classroom training session and work with a seasoned granter to learn the process.
Although he’s not sure how many wishes he’s fulfilled, there is one child who Craig recalls above all others.
Matthew’s family lived in Sandusky, and all he wanted was to go deep sea fishing. Soon after, Matthew, his brother and mom were fishing. As sometimes fishing expeditions go, his brother was bored, and Matthew wasn’t feeling well. Mom insisted they stay out a little longer, and then, magically, the crew caught a whopping 7-foot sailfish that Matthew helped reel in.
Unbeknownst to Matthew and his mom, Craig’s wish partner, Joe Schaller, made arrangements for the fish to be mounted. Matthew, frail with his disease, was on the couch when the box was delivered.
Craig will never forget the look on Matthew’s face or the tears his mom shed at her son’s funeral when they recalled the granted wish.
The sailfish remains mounted in the spot Matthew chose in their home, and as a tribute to her son, his mom became a wish granter.
Craig said granting wishes is easier since the expansion of the Make-A-Wish mission. No longer are wishes just for children with life-ending illnesses.
No longer is it a death sentence when the “Wish Man” arrives at the door. Now, he represents the opportunity to bring light into a family that has experienced much darkness.
Somewhere, Kristin is still smiling.

Julie Rubini lists her achievements in the order of their importance: wife and mom, the founder of Claire’s Day Inc., writer, with a background in sales/marketing and management.

Five years after their merger, YMCA & Jewish Community Center (JCC) of Greater Toledo received The Collaboration Prize, an award created by the Lodestar Foundation to inspire nonprofit organizations to work together.

Clockwise from upper left: Robert Alexander, Joel Beren, Abby Suckow

The YMCA & JCC competed against 643 nonprofit collaborations nationwide and tied for first with the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science. After splitting the reward, it received $125,000.
“The degree of integration that the two organizations were able to achieve, and the cost savings, and all the benefits of living together, and what they’re doing, is a wonderful model of the sector,” said Lois Savage, president of the Lodestar Foundation.
Savage said the merger remained flexible and accomplished a lot through joint programs and administrative consolidations.
“The other really huge thing about this as a model is that they were each dealing with an affiliate,” Savage said. “They were able to get this accomplished even with some objections from their affiliates.”
YMCA & JCC President Robert Alexander said he was surprised to win The Collaboration Prize and hopes it will bring joy to the community.
“It adds more mortar for the foundation of what we have built in Toledo,” said Paul Schlatter, YMCA & JCC chairman.
Savage said the prize was created as a way to research nonprofit collaborations — an area she said has been researched little.
“We thought if we offered a substantial prize that we would hear from people so we designed a nomination form so people would tell us about their collaborations,” Savage said. “The prize was really a means to an end.”
The collaboration between the YMCA and JCC in Toledo began in 1999 when they signed an affiliation agreement, allowing their members to use both facilities and programs, said Joel Beren, past president of United Jewish Council, the parent organization of JCC.
In 2003, Beren said, the YMCA began looking for a physical presence in Sylvania, where the JCC had a 44-acre campus. The project for a new YMCA building in Northwest Toledo would have required an estimated $5 million to $8 million capital campaign.
Beren said he and Schlatter began discussing options.
“We asked, ‘Is there anyway to put the Y and the J together and discourage the use of public funds to build another center?’ ”
Beren said he and past YMCA president Larry Lev worked together and on Feb. 1, 2004, signed a merger between JCC and YMCA — the first merger of the two nonprofits.
Alexander said everything was combined: staff, marketing and buildings.
“One of the first steps was to allow our members reciprocity so they could use each others branches,” Alexander said. “One of the second things we did was put up a couple hundred thousand dollars to improve facilities and show the benefits of the merge.”
Alexander said they faced the challenge of winning over donors, faith leaders, insurance companies, head organizations, trustees and professional staff.
“A merger is not unique,” Alexander said. “But merging two faith-based nonprofits with different religious backgrounds is unique.”
In the end, Alexander said, the merger proved a success.
“We were very fortunate that we had faith leaders on both sides that trust each other,” said Abby Suckow, United Jewish Council of Greater Toledo chief executive officer.
Schlatter said the JCC and YMCA are nonprofit “silos” — large and national.
“This is nothing but the tip of the iceberg for our organizations nationally,” Schlatter said. “These silos need to be brought down, especially in this economy.”
Alexander said nonprofits need to learn to work together. Instead of having double the staff and facilities, it is better to merge and work together while serving the community.
The JCC moved to the Sylvania campus in 1970 with the vision that all Jewish congregations would be represented there, Beren said. Two years ago, a second congregation moved to the campus, which now represents two of three Toledo-area congregations.
Alexander said while merging, the YMCA and JCC worked to preserve sacred Jewish symbols, create a kosher campus and celebrate major Jewish holidays.
“It’s the diversity of it that is so special,” Alexander said.
Schlatter said Christian employees are learning about Jewish holidays and understanding more of their historical background in light of Judaism.
Visit www.ymcatoledo.org for more information.

When it comes to elections and candidates, my preference is to analyze the position sought, look at the requirements of the office, determine the skills I believe are necessary to do a good job in that office and then see which of the declared candidates possess those skills.
I must admit, it’s easier to do for non-legislative positions, because offices like city council, house representative or senator rely more upon political philosophy and approach to issue than on specific tasks like preparing a budget or hiring and firing staff.
The office of mayor, as an administrative office, is relatively easy to define. And most people in Toledo will probably have a list of characteristics or traits they don’t want to see, in light of the dominance in that position by only two individuals. But it is Section V of the Toledo City Charter that details the office of mayor, including the executive and administrative powers, the general powers and duties, and such details as salary, oaths and interests in contracts.
The mayor is the Chief Executive and Administrative Officer of the city, has the ability to make appointments (some requiring the confirmation of council), serves as the official head of the city for the purpose of serving civil process (meaning he gets named in lawsuits against the city), supervises the affairs of the city, ensures the enforcement of city council ordinances (laws), and prepares the budget.
In order to effectively perform these functions, someone seeking this position should have experience with, at least, the following:

• Hiring, firing, discipline, personnel issues and employment law
• Labor relations, contract negotiation, grievances
• Running an organization – overseeing daily operations, dealing with challenges, long-term and strategic planning
• Budgeting – demonstrated ability to plan and implement a large budget as well as oversee changes and modifications to increases/decreases in it
• Technology and how it can be used (or not) to enhance the organization
• Public relations – dealing with constituents, public speaking, media
• Leadership, including being the ultimate decision-maker
• Making a payroll or a profit – understanding the need to meet obligations
• Good communications – demonstrated ability to work well with diverse groups and interests

There are numerous individuals who’ve pulled petitions for mayor, but the three major declared candidates (in order of their announcements) are Democrat Keith Wilkowski, Republican Jim Moody and Democrat-running-as-Independent Michael Bell. Incumbent Democrat Mayor Carty Finkbeiner has not yet announced his intentions. Lucas County Commissioner Ben Konop (Democrat) is “exploring” a run and Republican Councilman George Sarantou is often suggested as a possible contender.
Focusing only on the declared candidates, all three seem to possess some of the skills for the position, but all have some issues that need to be addressed.
All have budgeting experience, though Wilkowski was one of three responsible for the county’s budget when he was commissioner. All have personnel experience, though I do not believe Moody has any experience with labor negotiations, contracts or grievances. All have experience running an organization, but Bell’s experience with the Fire Department and State Fire Marshal are the closest comparison to the city’s structure.
Good communication and public relations skills are where there are significant differences.
Wilkowski, a prior elected official, sounds like a politician. He’s good at saying a lot of words but sometimes, there’s not much substance.  He’s good with catch phrases, but short on content. This doesn’t mean he won’t add substance as the campaign goes on, but politicians tend to fall into a routine that is hard to break. Additionally, despite President Barack Obama’s votes from Toledo, Wilkowski’s prominent and on-going role supporting Obama’s campaign-now presidential- policies may prove problematic for a number of Toledo voters.
Moody’s residency and his statements attempting to explain why he is living in Toledo but his family is not remain an issue for his opponents to exploit – and they will. His disastrous handling of that criticism calls into question his ability to handle other difficult topics as the campaign goes on. And his statement on Bell’s entry to the race offered a criticism that he, himself, was already guilty of.
Bell has, perhaps, the best reputation when it comes to communication and p.r. skills, but he’s never been in the position of speaking publicly for himself rather than on behalf of his boss. He has the gravitas to run without a party endorsement, which may be a direct advantage this year.
A campaign reveals much about a person and will give voters an opportunity to compare each of these candidates to the other. We’re fortunate to have such options for 2009

Maggie Thurber blogs at http://thurbersthoughts.blogspot.com/.