On the day he died, 11-year-old Andrew VanHorn enjoyed his first day of vacation bible school, where he’d won an award and insisted on cleaning up a mess left by other kids.
He spent the early afternoon playing with his baby brother in the backyard, cheerfully saying goodbye to his mom, Amy Peterson, as she left for work at 3:30 p.m.
Before Amy headed out, she reminded her son that he’d need to water his beloved tomato plants and she told him she loved him.
Andrew put on the new watch he’d bought himself with his birthday money because he liked to be on time and went outside to play with a playmate who he’d had skirmishes with in the past.
They went down the street together to play in the South Toledo field near Ventura Drive and Chorus Lane, a vast open area with a cluster of trees where kids would sometimes play. They stopped at Andrew’s friends’ house to ask if they could join them, but they were grounded and couldn’t come out to play.
At 4:30p.m., when Andrew didn’t return home when he was supposed to, his stepfather, John Peterson, went looking for him. From his van, he could see Andrew in the trees and called out to him several times. When his stepson did not respond, John got out of the car, picking up speed with each step as he realized Andrew was in trouble.
He found Andrew, all alone, dead in a grove of trees. The boy was on his knees with the lower loop of a rope swing around his neck.
Unanswered questions
The question of how Andrew died on July 13 continues to haunt his family, his friends and his community. The last person who saw him alive is a child under 10 years of age with a documented history of bullying Andrew and other children. The child (name withheld by Toledo Free Press) is on record with the police saying, “Andrew said he wanted to kill himself,” but has changed subsequent testimony numerous times. The inconsistencies in the child’s accounting of what happened is wreaking havoc in a community traumatized by the loss of an 11-year-old honors student, who wanted to grow up to be a video game designer.
Andrew was on medication to help him focus better in school, but his mother Amy, a mental health nurse, refuses to believe the witness’ claim that her son wanted to take his own life.

Andrew's stepfather and mother, John and Amy Peterson.

“There were no signs. None. We even searched Andrew’s room afterwards and didn’t find anything — not even a drawing or a doodle,” indicating that he might want to harm himself, she said.
Her husband John agreed, saying Andrew was looking forward to starting middle school and had a crush on a girl in the neighborhood to whom he’d given his first valentine.
Another witness also dispels the idea that Andrew would want to end his life. Mike Keller lives directly across the street from the field where Andrew was found. The crisis unfolded as he was at a nearby neighbor’s house cutting down a tree while his wife Jeanette was gardening in the front of her home. They were the first on the scene after John discovered Andrew’s lifeless body. John screamed to Jeanette to call 911, while she yelled for Mike, who immediately began performing CPR when he saw Andrew. Toledo fire and rescue were on the scene within minutes.
Jeanette recalls greeting Andrew and his playmate when they arrived at the field when the two children came over to ask if her children could play.
“He seemed OK then,” she said.
In responding to the question of what she thinks happened to Andrew, she said “as far as I’m concerned, that [playmate who witnessed Andrew’s death] was the last person that was with him. Either they knew something, they saw something or they did something. It doesn’t look good.”
In referring to Andrew’s playmate at the scene, Mike said, “the child told the detective our children were with them and they were not. They were stuck in the house and could not go out. I don’t want to ostracize a child but, in my heart I feel this was a very grave accident or something was done to him.”
‘I wish I could have been there’
Johnnie Mae Cullars is the grandmother of the child who witnessed Andrew’s death, as well as the mother of 13 children and a foster parent who has lived in the neighborhood for years. Among the many photos of family scattered throughout the shuttered and dark living room, she said she feels sadness for Andrew’s family and has cried over the way he died. Her family also donated to the impromptu donation collection for Andrew’s family. She said her grandchild doesn’t want to talk about the incident.
“We can’t bring it up because [the child] walks out of the room,” said Johnnie Mae, expressing concern because the child is still grieving the loss of a father three years ago.
The child’s mother, Demetra Cullars, is certain that her child didn’t have anything to do with Andrew’s death and is upset by the accusation that her child was in some way responsible for what happened on that day at the field.
“I know my child didn’t have anything to do with it,” Demetra said. “My child wouldn’t be capable of that. I wish we could go back in time and change that day. I wish I could have been there to save him.”
Demetra’s belief is supported by the autopsy report issued by Lucas County Deputy Coroner Dr. Diane Scala-Barnett.
“The manner of death has been ruled ‘undetermined.’ If any other information is developed or additional information comes forward, that manner can be changed,” Scala-Barnett said. She said there was no physical evidence that another person was involved at the scene.
Child with problems
Adults and children in the neighborhood knew that Andrew and the child who would witness his death had had problems in the past. One incident at the bus stop resulted in the police being called in February. Amy also went to Andrew’s school to discuss the problem with the principal and his teacher.
The child’s grandmother, Johnnie Mae, said, “[Amy] could have come talked to me,” while Demetra said, “[Amy is] in denial. He had a problem. He wasn’t a happy little boy. Every child ain’t perfect.”
When asked, given the troublesome history Andrew shared with his playmate, why would Andrew’s parents have allowed him to play with the child on that fateful day, Amy said, “we felt sorry for the child. We’re Christian and we wanted to give the child another chance.”
Other children in the neighborhood also report that this child frequently picked on Andrew. One 8-year-old (name withheld by Toledo Free Press), witnessed the problem “almost every day. They fought a lot,” he said, as he demonstrated the physical position Andrew would have to take to “protect himself.”
Another child, 11 years old (name withheld by Toledo Free Press) began sobbing uncontrollably as she described how her life has changed since the day Andrew died.
When asked if her child receives counseling, Demetra said, the family is counseling.
Rose, a teacher who lives nearby, said she is deeply concerned about the perceived bullying problem existing in her neighborhood. She fears reprisal and asked that her full name not appear in print.
“I’ve taught hundreds of children and a bully is a bully and that’s what I think this child is,” she said, in describing the playmate who was with Andrew when he died. Rose said she has heard the child threaten to kill other children during playground arguments.
As she shared the news with her children, she instructed her kids to let her know if they heard anything from other children that might help determine how Andrew died. On July 14, one of her children did hear something she thought was relevant to the case and wrote a note about it.
Rose said her child claimed the child who witnessed Andrew’s death told a mutual friend, “There was an accident … I didn’t think I would hurt Andrew with the rope.”

Mike Keller stands besides the tree where he helped try to save Andrew VanHorn.

Rose waited to share the note with the police, assuming that they would come to interview her as Amy had requested of the Toledo Police detective assigned to the case.
But, a week later, after the police never came, she decided to share the note with Amy.
At press time, the police have not followed up on the note or interviewed Rose, even though Amy requested that Detective Dan Navarre interview her and several others immediately after Andrew died.
“I don’t understand why the police haven’t interviewed me,” she said. “Amy needs closure [on what happened to Andrew]; the kids need closure. Who’s to say this isn’t going to happen again?”
Navarre did not return calls seeking comment.
In response to this concern, Sergeant Tim Campbell of the Toledo Police Department, after an Aug. 26 meeting with Andrew’s parents and Deputy Coroner Scala-Barnett, said, “there was no bullying involved on that day.”
At the same gathering, TPD Capt. Ray Caroll said there is no criminal code in Toledo related to bullying. “Bullying [in its different forms] has to be reported and then it is investigated like any other crime,” he said.
Amy came away from the meeting more frustrated than before, saying, “I don’t understand why they conclude that the psychological status of my child matters, but doesn’t seem to matter in the case of the other child,” the last person seen with her son Andrew on the day he was found dead. “I want to believe this was an accident.”
Despite the police opinion, Amy said she is taking steps to launch a bullying initiative at the middle school her son would have attended, in his memory.
She said she is also determined to turn the field where her son died into a park.
“After the dust settles, we’re going to try and make that happen because it can’t just be the field where my little boy died,” she said.

A nine-person citizen’s task force is being proposed by Lucas County Commissioner and mayoral candidate Ben Konop to recommend how to improve the YMCA, but many suggestions could fall on deaf ears.
“We’re not a public entity, so the Y respectfully declines to be involved,” said Todd Tibbits, YMCA chief operating officer and senior vice president of operations, after Konop proposed the idea Aug. 27.
Konop said he expects fellow commissioners Pete Gerken and Tina Skeldon Wozniak to approve the task force. Each commissioner would choose three members for the task force, which Konop said would be modeled after a body that made suggestions to the Toledo Zoo.
Tibbits said his organization has met all legal disclosure rules required for a nonprofit group. Konop said he is checking whether the YMCA has met all legal requirements.
Tibbits said he feels no obligation to release additional information saying the Y is subjected to stringent internal and federal audits. “The YMCA operates in a very moral way,” he said.

Mercy Health Partners is reducing its name, but not its community commitment, the hospital chain’s president said Aug. 27.
The seven area hospitals now have shorter names, such as Mercy St. Anne Hospital and Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo. Steven L. Mickus, Mercy CEO and president, said the change symbolizes the hospitals efforts to better serve the community with a unified approach.
In his remarks, Mickus alluded to criticism of the nation’s for-profit health care system of which hospital care accounted for 31 percent of the approximately $2.2 trillion annual costs in 2007, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Mickus said half of U.S. hospitals are losing money, but Mercy, a nonprofit organization, remains in the black, while still maintaining a commitment to treat uninsured or under insured people.
Mickus said the hospitals provided approximately $78.7 million in community benefits last year, including $17.7 million to treat poor and underserved people.
“It doesn’t matter whether you have money or not, we accept everyone,” Mickus told the approximately 100 employees who gathered for the name changing ceremony outside Mercy St. Anne Hospital on West Sylvania Avenue. “The national debate can rage and rage and rage, but no one goes without health care in Northwest Ohio because we treat everyone who comes to our facilities.”

Kingston Residence  of Perrysburg will be kicking off their “Tuesdays with Kingston” education speaker series with a “Celebrate Life” fair on Wed. Sept. 1 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nancy Jomantas,  sales manager  for Kingston Residences  of Sylvania and Perrysburg, said.
The fair will be “more than just a health fair,” Jomantas said. The event, which is free and open to the public, will also offer opportunities for activities to do around town.  Representatives from the Metroparks, Toledo Zoo and other community organizations will be among the 15 unique vendors and offer volunteer suggestions and opportunities.
The “Tuesdays with Kingston” speaker series features different speaker s the first and third Tuesdays of each month Sept. through April in an informal, coffee house-like setting,  Jomantas said.  People can stop by and join guest speakers including former Lucas County Commissioner Harry Barlos on Election Day. Other speakers will address a variety of issues from arthritis to osteoporosis and everything in between.
Kingston Residence has a similar “Community Chat” series every first and third Friday of each month.
For more information and a schedule visit kingstonhc.com.

Riverside, Calif., resident Eriberto Zamora is facing felony drug charges after Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers say they found nearly six kilos of cocaine in his pickup truck around 9:30 a.m.Aug. 25.

Zamora, 19, was stopped for improperly changing lanes on the Ohio Turnpike in Lucas County just east of Ohio 2, according to Sgt. Richard Reeder, a patrol spokesman. Reeder, who said 5.7 kilos of cocaine were found, said the stop was random and Zamora was not being targeted.

Zamora was charged with possession of drugs, drug trafficking and possession of felony tools. Zamora, who was being held on a $500,000 bond and was scheduled to appear Thursday in Maumee Superior Court, faces up to 21 years if convicted.

A kilo of cocaine has an approximate street value of between $22,000 and $30,000 and is sold by the gram on the street for between $100 and $150.

The official start of the membership drive to save the South Toledo YMCA is on hold.

Shortly before an Aug. 26 rally to save the Y on Woodsdale Park Drive, board members announced the delay and plans to meet with several vocal critics soon.

“Are we going to get together on this?” critic Cooper Suter asked Mark Brunsman, YMCA vice president of association after the rally. “We didn’t throw any bombs today.”

The answer was yes, although Brunsman said the meeting date hasn’t been decided yet.

“We disagreed on some things, but at the same time, I know we’re willing to listen and work them out,” Brunsman said.

Citing approximately $1.5 million reduction in the state’s Early Childhood Learning Initiative payment to the YMCA — $167,842 of which went to the South Toledo Y — at least $680,000 in repairs needed to the 55-year-old building and the relatively low amount of members, YMCA officials announced the planned closure in July. The plan called for giving the building to the CedarCreek Church.

Suter was among the members who felt blindsided.

From left, Cooper Suter, Gary Batts and Mark Hertzfeld at the South Toledo YMCA on AUg. 20.

“It just felt like one of those classic Toledo deals,” Suter said. “Closed rooms. They form the scrum. They run it down the center with no chance to say anything.”

“Maybe we reacted too quickly, but at the same time we had to do something,” said Brunsman adding that the YMCA had already cut $800,000 from its overall budget before announcing the closure.” “We couldn’t continue on as business as usual.”

Responding to the outcry from members, the YMCA on Aug. 19 called for a 90-day membership drive with a goal of obtaining 500 members by Nov. 26 to save the Y. While about 15 new memberships have been obtained, the drive was officially set to begin Aug. 28.

The plan was met with skepticism by some members including George Grifo who held a sign at the rally critical of Robert Alexander, YMCA President and CEO.

While Brunsman said the YMCA has met all financial disclosure regulations required for a non-profit organization, Grifo asked them to disclose credit card and travel expenses. And Grifo challenged Alexander, who didn’t attend the rally, to take a pay cut and fully open the organization’s books. “If he was honest with us, he’d say, ‘Let me show you why we’re in trouble,” Grifo said.

But speakers at the rally, attended by some 100 people, struck a more concilitary tone after learning of the decision by the YMCA Board of Trustees.

“Your voices have been heard,” said State Sen. Teresa Fedor, D-Toledo. “We really give credit to the Y leadership.”

Noting the high rate of foreclosures, Fedor said the recession has the neighborhood on the ropes despite having many loyal, longtime residents. Fedor believes keeping the Y open will help maintain the fabric of the neighborhood.

While the closure would inconvenience some members, Suter, who has lived in the neighborhood since 1992 and has three children who’ve used the Y, said the protest has a deeper meaning. Suter said the Y acts as a neighborhood anchor. It allows for the kind of social interaction between young people of different races and incomes that woudn’t happen at a gym or health club.

“As bad as this is, this building has energy,” Suter said. “We want people bumping into each other that wouldn’t normally be bumping into each other.”

Ideally, Brunsman and Suter said they’d like to see a new building to replace the current one. Until there is a resolution, protestors vowed to keep the pressure on and the lines of communication open.

“We can’t all agree on everything, but I think we can agree on the value of this place,” Suter told protestors. “We need to talk about it.”
South Toledo YMCA By The Numbers

• 1954: When building opened
• 45,000: Building square footage
• $1.7 million: Annual budget
• $210,000: Projected deficit over the next year
• $250,000: Projected savings through closure
• 130: Number of employees
• 1,023: Number of members
• 35: Percentage of South Y members who use building
• 500: Additional members needed to keep Y open

Source: Greater Toledo YMCA

The new president of a Lucas County alcohol and drug rehabilitation facility is looking to stretch dollars and maximize services through better coordination with other agencies.

Robert Stokes, Compass Corporation Recovery Services CEO and president, said he plans to work with judges, state Department of Rehabilitation and Correction officials and other rehabilitation groups, according to Compass Chairwoman Linda Schlachter. The goal is greater efficiency and to avoid duplication of services, “It’s the (economic) time we’re in that necessitates that,” Schlachter said.

Since 2006, Stokes has been the CEO and vice president of Coleman Professional Services. The treatment organization has several facilities in northeast Ohio, a 450-member staff and a $20 million budget. He has 25 years in the healthcare and treatment field.

Schlachter said that experience, Stokes’ financial acumen and his vision for Compass made him standout from the approximately 100 job applicants. “He brings a real dynamic energy,” she said.

Shlachter said Compass is the only treatment facility in Lucas County providing in-patient care in addition to out patient treatment. Compass, which has 103 employees and a $4.6 million annual budget, served about 4,200 people last year.

Stokes, who was unavailable for comment, begins work Aug. 31 and will earn $100,000 per year. Stokes succeeds William Sanford who left in April.

A case has been filed against the City of Toledo on behalf of eight city workers who were terminated, forced to resign or otherwise constructively discharged from employment with the City, said William Takacs, president & managing partner of Gallon, Takacs, Boissoneault & Schaffer, the law firm representing the employees.
The City of Toledo continued to insist employees live within city limits in spite of a May 2006 statute from the Ohio General Assembly prohibiting municipalities or political subdivisions from requiring employee’s residency, the suit alleges.
The statute was challenged and upheld by the Ohio State Supreme Court in July 2009.
“The law is very clear. It is improper to maintain residency requirements,” Takacs said. The City of Toledo has targeted employees for termination as recently as April of 2009, he said.
The suit seeks the reinstatement of the workers to their previous positions in addition to lost wages and benefits.
“The City of Toledo does not comment on pending litigation,” said City of Toledo Spokesperson Megan Robson.

UPDATE: Click here to see the video, courtesy Glass City Jungle.

Clear Channel Communications ordered the removal of a video from 92.5 KISS FM’s Web site and YouTube on Aug. 25 showing a confrontation between host Andrew Zepeda and WSPD 1370 AM reporter Nik Rajkovic. Zepeda intercepted Rajkovic Aug. 24 as he waited to interview Democratic mayoral candidate Ben Konop.

“I stopped him from chasing after [Konop],” said Zepeda, host of Andrew Z in the Morning. “I stepped right in front of him.

The station caught the altercation on camera after an in-studio interview with mayoral candidates Konop, Mike Bell and Jim Moody. In the video, Zepeda intervened and told the reporter to leave the area. WSPD and 92.5 KISS FM are Clear Channel stations and share the same building.

Zepeda said he uploaded the video on the station Web site to show listeners the altercation, which he mentioned on air. The YouTube version was removed by author “andrewz07” on Aug. 25 in the afternoon.

“We wanted to give listeners a chance to see what happened behind the scenes because we talked about it on the air,” Zepeda said.
WSPD-AM News Director Brian Wilson said he agrees with Clear Channel’s decision to remove the video.
“It wasn’t my order, but I’m totally in support of it,” Wilson said. “It’s a wise move on the part of the company in order to see to it that Andrew Z. doesn’t embarrass himself anymore than he has with his ignorance and immaturity with the way journalism and the news department function.”

Zepeda said he sympathizes with Clear Channel’s decision to remove the video. He said the company allows him to voice his opinion openly on air, which is what matters most to him.

“To management’s credit, they’ve never censored anything I’ve had to say, even if it’s negatively impacting a sister station,” Zepeda said. “To me, that’s the most important thing. It’s their Web site, so if they don’t want the video there, I’m OK with that.”
He said he confronted Rajkovic for approaching a guest upon exiting his studio. Konop has refused to interview with WSPD on several occasions.

“If it’s anywhere else, I have no problem with it,” Zepeda said. “I thought it was unprofessional in the building when we have a guest our show, then they try to shove a microphone in their face.”
Zepeda said the video and its subsequent removal have not affected his personal relationships with WSPD staff.
“We haven’t had any problem with them,” he said. “I don’t not like them. We’re from different ideologies. It doesn’t make us bad people, and it doesn’t make them bad people. We can still be cordial or like each other.

Comments from the Konop campaign were unavailable at press time.

Back in March on our blog (which enjoyed a very relaxing summer vacation), I warned the Lucas County Arena architects to ensure that the Bullfrogs punter, whoever he may be, will have room to actually kick the ball, after having seen punts hit an overhead scoreboard during a game in Muskegon, Mich. The TFP later learned that, yes, the Arena builders were not that dumb. They will not have an overhead scoreboard at all, thereby protecting the sanctity of fourth down.

Unfortunately, creators of the extravagant Cowboys Stadium didn’t think of this. In an NFL preseason game last week, Tennessee Titans punter A.J. Trapasso, an Ohio State grad, hit the underbelly of the absolutely ginormous video screen. In response, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said that they won’t raise the behemoth at all, since the only way a punter could hit the screen is if he was trying to. Or, I guess, if his name’s A.J. Trapasso.

I bet the Cowboys dissenters can’t help but smirk over this potential disaster, considering $1.2 billion was spent on their brand new facility that opened in June. It’s kind of like watching Donald Trump’s car being towed out of an illegal parking space. You know it won’t affect him in the long run, but for the common man, it’s better than pay-per-view.

(Sidebar: While researching how much the Cowboys Stadium cost, I Googled “Cowboys Stadium million” and the result was “did you mean: Cowboys Stadium billion?” Why, I guess I did.)

Hey, not every stadium was built perfectly. AT&T Park, the home of the San Francisco Giants, realized on Opening Day they forgot to build the bullpens. The New Yankee Stadium is currently trying to figure out how to curb the epidemic of home runs to right field. And Ford Field accidentally let the Detroit Lions play there, rather than a good NFL team. Mistakes happen.

But one thing’s for sure. The new Lucas County Arena will not have the same problem Cowboys Stadium may have to address during the season, if future punts clank off that huge video screen dubbed the JerryTron. But there are always unforeseen faults in a new building that can only be discovered with a dress rehearsal. Some of you may remember when Savage Arena was renovated, the 20-ounce soda bottles they sold didn’t fit in their armrests.

Here’s my suggestion. Run a beta test. Invite two teams to play arena football on the field. (Hey, the parent league isn’t exactly playing. It’s not like there aren’t people available for this.) Perhaps bring in some members of the media to cover the game, for the purposes of testing out the press box. Invite a few hundred fans and even a blogger from the Toledo Free Press to live blog it.

That way, when Lucas County Arena debuts, there will be guaranteed no embarrassing headlines such as “Arena forgets to buy kickoff tees,” “Media gets obstructed view from press box” or “Lucas County Arena accidentally new home of Detroit Lions.”