“It doesn’t affect me,” said a proud member of the United Steelworkers as he participated in a rally in Columbus against SB5, a state bill that would end collective bargaining for public employees. He could not be more wrong. It most definitely does affect him, as it does all of us, because everything from entitlements to government spending to freedom is involved.

Let’s start with entitlements. There is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting more in life. Neither, for that matter, is there anything wrong with unions per se. Each is as beneficial and honorable, or as dangerous and corrupt, as the principles by which it and its members operate, under official sanction or not, just as with any other institution. The problem arises when force is used to extort that “more” from others rather than earning it yourself.

That is the great flaw of unionizing public workers. By allowing them to organize, government is put in into a relationship with them that invites corruption. With the very rare exception, politicians win elections by promising benefits to voters and then delivering on those promises. That’s why public employee wages and benefits typically outstrip those for comparable private sector positions, sometimes by quite significant proportions. It’s not to attract the best employees, it’s to buy their votes. The more lavish the handouts to these workers, the more votes the politicians get from them, and the more the rest of us, including our steelworker friend, are taxed to pay for them.

Which leads to government spending in general. At all levels, government has spent itself to, sometimes over, the brink of bankruptcy. Even as tax revenues plummeted due to the recession and the collapse of the housing market, spending increased radically. Now that Republicans are trying to impose some hints of restraint, those who benefit from uninhibited government spending are screaming bloody murder. Rather tolerating any reduction in what is redistributed to them by government force, they demand that even more wealth be seized from those who actually earn it. “More taxes on the rich” is a theme of the protests by government employees and paid activists against sane government finances in Wisconsin.

But even those who think they benefit from government spending ultimately do not. Irresponsible spending by the government harms you, just as if you were bankrupting yourself. The less responsible government is with taxpayer money, the greater a burden it becomes on the economy and, by extension, on liberty. Mr. Steelworker is affected by lavish public sector wages and benefits, because the more of his money that has to go to the government to pay for them, the less choice he has to do with it as he pleases. And there is the impact on freedom.

President Obama tells us that we must sacrifice, that we must “look after not only ourselves but each other,” to quote his November 2008 victory speech. So let’s talk sacrifice. To Obama and the other progressives, sacrifice means everyone else doing without to pay for their agenda. Since that speech, Obama’s “sacrifices” have included $100 a pound steaks, setting the White House thermostat to “tropics,” Broadway shows, 71-car motorcades, and myriad vacations at venues such as $3,500 per day island resorts. Okay, I get it that the presidency and big-time book sales come with perks; but telling us to sacrifice while flaunting them betrays a remarkable detachment from reality.

That reality is that Americans always have sacrificed, from lives and limbs given up for the nation’s defense to luxuries, even essentials, done without to benefit loved ones and charity. Liberty lets these sacrifices be voluntary whenever possible, and we don’t need to be lectured about it by someone who is better off than most of us but sacrificed only 5.9% of his 2009 income for charity.

But rather than our having the freedom to sacrifice as we choose, it’s clear from Obama’s spending record that the sacrifice he intends for us is mandatory through escalating taxes, a sacrifice that Vice-President Biden calls our “patriotic duty.” Given his solidarity with and support from the public sector unions, much of that sacrifice is to be for their benefit, so that they don’t have to sacrifice anything; in gratitude, they’ll vote for progressives who will keep their private gravy train and its cargo of unsustainable deficits rolling. And the rest of us, including you, me and our proud steelworker, are chained to the tracks in front of it by the government’s power to confiscate.

Thomas Berry, for the Children of Liberty, www.meetup.com/The-children-of-liberty/ .

Diana and David DeBacker of Toledo are marketing their award-winning homemade Bullfrog BBQ Sauce at the Toledo Farmers Market and area retailers.
The husband and wife team have been making and marketing Bullfrog BBQ sauce with the help of family and friends. They have been making the sauce for 15 years but only began selling it in August at the Farmers Market.
The couple decided to produce and sell their barbeque sauce after receiving national recognition for it. They entered their sauce in the national “Be the Boss” barbecue contest sponsored by Open Pit in 2007 and won the competition.
Both lost their jobs last year and decided to devote their time to marketing their sauce. Diana previously worked in accounting and Dave was a contractor. He continues to do home-remodeling projects on his own.
“We haven’t been disappointed yet. It’s been a lot of fun and hard work,” Dave said.
The DeBackers make Bullfrog BBQ sauce with an original recipe using rum and a spicy apple version made with apple cider. Both sauces retail for $5 a bottle.

David and Diana DeBackers sell their Bullfrog BBQ Sauce at the Toledo Farmers Market.

“We hope people enjoy it as much as we do,” Diana said.
The sauces have been tested and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which provides nutritional facts for the product. The labels were approved by the State of Ohio, according to the DeBackers.
The Center for Innovative Food Technology (CIFT) in Toledo helped them throughout the process by providing procedures, sources and requirements for making and selling their product. They make the sauces at CIFT’s Northwest Ohio Cooperative Kitchen in Bowling Green.
The couple came up with the name Bullfrog BBQ because they wanted something that was indigenous to the Toledo area — once known as Frogtown. They are not affiliated with the Bullfrog BBQ restaurants and sauces marketed in the Chicago area and Texas.
“We didn’t know anything about the other Bullfrog BBQ restaurants or sauces until we researched the name for our product,” Diana said.
The DeBackers have produced about 100 cases of 12 bottles each for sale thus far. The couple began as customers of the farmers market and later became vendors.
In addition to the farmers market, Bullfrog BBQ Sauce is available from local retailers including Kazmaier’s, Sautter’s Market, Walt Churchill’s Markets and at Heaven’s Gate Soy Candles in Haymarket Square in Sylvania. Heaven’s Gate owners Jacquie and Tom Olender also market their soy candles at the Farmer’s Market.
“All the vendors at the Farmers Market help each other out,” Diana said. “It’s a real community and a great place to sell our sauce. You get to talk to customers about the product and what it can be used with such as chicken, pork, beef and vegetables.”
The Toledo Farmers Market is open during the off-season on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. with about 18 to 20 vendors participating. The market is open during the growing season from May 1 through the end of November with as many as 60 vendors.
“It’s not just farmers at the Farmers Market anymore,” said Becky Kornmeier, office administrator for the Farmers Market Association of Toledo since 2003.
Kornmeier said vendors sell produce, plants, homemade baked goods, candles, chocolate candy, soaps and other products. She has been involved in the market as a vendor working for her father, Andy Keil, a local farmer who has sold produce there for many years.
“Everybody is so friendly. It’s as much social for the vendors as business. They are great for helping each other out. We don’t compete with each other but with the big box stores,”
Kornmeier said.
Dennis Dickey of Toledo, also known as Willy, sells Willy’s Salsa in seven varieties from mild to spicy hot for $4 per pound at the farmers market. He also sells his salsa wholesale to grocery retailers such as Kroger, Churchill’s, Kazmaier’s and Sautter’s markets for sale in their deli departments for the same price.
“It has a fresh taste, like it was just made. Try it once and you’ll be hooked,” said Dickey, who got the original recipe from a friend in Mexico. “I’ve been making it for 40 years and selling it for four years.”
Dickey reported that Willy’s Fresh Salsa is now sold in 300 to 400 stores in six states.
He also makes his salsa in the CIFT cooperative kitchen as a full-time vendor.

The Toledo Museum of Art (TMA) and Toledo Free Press are offering you the chance to win one of 12 prize packages.

• One Grand Prize Winner: Two round-trip airline tickets from Toledo to Las Vegas; a two-night stay for two people at the Luxor Hotel; two tickets to the CRISS ANGEL “BeLIEve” show at the Luxor Hotel. Prizes courtesy Luxor Hotel, Cirque du Soleil, Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, American Airlines. Media partner: 13abc. Winner is responsible for transportation and meals in Las Vegas.
  

  Criss Angel

• Prize packages also will be awarded to entrants randomly selected for second place and others:
• One First-Place Prize: Family four pack of tickets (two adult/two children) to “The Egypt Experience” and “The Baroque World of Fernando Botero” exhibitions plus a $50 Toledo Museum of Art gift card ($106 value).
• Ten Second-Place Prizes: Two adult combination tickets to “The Egypt Experience” and “The Baroque World of Fernando Botero” exhibitions ($40 value).

How to enter: Sweepstakes ends at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, March 16, 2011. Persons are eligible to win one of the above-mentioned prize packages by filling out the entry form at contest.toledomuseum.org or in person at the Museum’s Information Desk. A maximum of one online entry per week and one in-person entry per day will be accepted. The Toledo Museum of Art is not responsible for lost, late or misdirected entries. Entrants must live within 100 miles of the Toledo Museum of Art and be 18 years of age or older in order to be awarded a prize. Winner of Las Vegas trip must be 21 years of age per hotel/casino policy. Winners will be selected on or about March 17, in a random drawing of all eligible entries received.

Boston rock ‘n’ rollers Crash Midnight have been packing clubs on the East Coast and are now kicking off a nationwide tour with Toledo as their first stop.

Described as “the upstart bastard sons of Iggy Pop and Aerosmith,” the group will bring its high-energy show to Frankie’s on March 3.

The band, whose debut full-length album, “Lost in the City,” is set for release by Bronx Bridge/Fontana/Universal Records this spring, is antsy to get out of the studio and on the road – starting with Ohio, where a few former members of its original lineup were from, said lead guitarist Shaun Soho.

“Ohio’s just a great rock area, between Cleveland and Columbus the college town and Cincy, and I can’t wait to see what you are like in Toledo,” Soho said. “Some of the best shows we’ve had have been in Ohio. I’m excited to get up there and see you all.”

Crash Midnight

Hard rock and roll with a punk delivery is the band’s signature style, Soho said. The group’s first single, “Made for the Money,” which hit radio airwaves and iTunes earlier this month, pays homage to Finnish band Hanoi Rocks, one of Crash Midnight’s biggest influences.

“These guys are kind of the secret sauce behind our influences,” Soho said. “They kind of sound like Aerosmith mixed with The Clash.”

Other influences include the New York Dolls, Guns N’ Roses, the Ramones and former Cleveland group The Dead Boys.

“Our band a lot of times on stage is basically like a car wreck: Sometimes interesting and cool, but you definitely can’t look away from it,” said Soho, who is an original member along with mono-monikered bassist Bo. Drummer Tommy Maz and guitarists Tony Pizzo and Todd Friedman complete the lineup.

It’s true the band’s name was inspired by a real-life car wreck, Soho said.

“After a late night partying, Bo was speeding home when he lost consciousness, awoke to a face full of airbag, and his car wrapped around a telephone pole,” according to the band’s website. “He called Shaun Soho not to help him out of the heap but to tell him he’d found the perfect name for the band they would form.”

Crash Midnight formed in 2005, but was stymied early on by legal complications stemming from a bad contract, which prevented the group from pursuing a full recording deal, Soho said.

“We went through all kinds of stuff. We had to stop doing everything. We had labels interested, but couldn’t sign,” Soho said.

Although frustrating, the experience was a blessing in disguise, Soho said.

“It ended up being a great thing for us. We took a lot more time with these songs, let them mature. I think if we would have come out with them then, we wouldn’t have been near as happy with it,” Soho said. The band signed with its current label in 2009.

Living together in a cramped Boston apartment provided the inspiration for many songs.

“We had a two-bedroom apartment with five guys jammed in,” Soho said. “All the shit that went on in there is pretty much ridiculous, and is the root cause of pretty much all the material for this album.”

The single “Made for the Money” is a crowd favorite, Soho said.

“Everybody gets up and dances and ends up singing the chorus even if they haven’t heard it before,” he said.

One of Soho’s favorites is “Whisky Rose,” which is “kind of our homage to nostalgia and relationships and things not necessarily always working out the way you hope they would, but sometimes they work out just the same,” Soho said.

“City Girl” is for “when you want to get aggressions out,” Soho said.

“It’s kind of like Iggy Pop’s ‘Search and Destroy,’” Soho said. “Just an off-the-wall hard punky song. You can get a lot of emotion out during that song.”

The first song the group wrote together, “151,” wasn’t even intended to be a real song, Soho said. It was written as a joke while listening to Guns N’ Roses’ “Night Train” at a party and laughing about “drinking harder stuff than our heroes.” After the group kept getting requests for it at shows, they decided to add it to the record.

Soho said the album has been a long time coming, but the group is proud of the result.

“We didn’t toss anything on there to get to 12 songs; every single song is something we’re really behind,” Soho said. “I like the approach of this band. All the songs are very plug and play. We leave everything on stage every time we play. I think the audience deserves everything we’ve got every night.”

Frankie’s is located at 308 Main St. Local acts Bullets Before Beauty, GREYLINE and GrindLine along with tour partner All Thee Above will open. Cost is $10 presale or $12 at the door.

For more information, visit www.crashmidnight.com.

“The King’s Speech” is a thoroughly engaging and wonderful piece of entertainment. What I am about to write should in no way be seen as an attack against that film. I write instead to calm the fire in my soul that comes after the Academy announced it was the Best Picture of 2010, something I believe it clearly was not.

Yes, quality of film is a matter of opinion, and mine means no more or less than anyone else’s. But in a year where one film was so powerful, so great, so transformative, so amazing that it towers over all others so vividly in my memory , I feel I must speak up in its defense now, before these Oscars fade like so many others into the ranks of distant memory and useless trivia.

The best film of 2010 was “The Social Network.” I believed that as soon as I left the theater, I wrote that in my first review, I reiterated it in my year-end column, and I state it again here. If my fandom for the film seems overbearing, that is because it is in proportion to the passion the movie has generated in me.

There were many, many quality films in 2010, several of which were spoken for among the Academy’s ten nominees. But none of them were as vital, as current and as alive as “Network.” It is a film with genuine daring at its soul.

The movie told a tale of an angry man who looked at the world with both contempt and longing. He was alienated from practically everyone by his demeanor and condescension, and before the film’s end he would drive away the remaining few he was close to. He had achieved all the success one man could ever imagine, but was still miserable and alone because of who he was.

“Network” gave us a thoroughly contemptible lead character and did not ask us to find a heart of gold, but instead to understand him for who he was, and why he was. At the end, as the billionaire Mark Zuckerberg sits at his computer, waiting for a friend approval that will probably never arrive, he is everything and nothing all at once.

“The King’s Speech,” on the other hand, is practically the opposite of daring. It tells of two men, their friendship, and how one helps the other to rise to challenges that seem greater than him. As basic stories go, this is not exactly the most blindingly original in movie history. The movie overcomes that by crafting genuinely interesting and likeable characters, which helps to invest the audience in their struggles and problems.

But on the whole, the film does feel very…standard. It is ready-made Oscar bait, the kind that the Weinsteins specialize in. It’s a well-made, well-acted, well-produced period film with pretty sets and costumes, and to Oscar voters it gets bonus points because it’s about historical figures.

But it lacks the spark of originality and vitality that would make it one of the lasting pieces of great entertainment. As I said in my original review, strip away its setting and historical figures, and you essentially have an underdog sports movie, with the misfit eventually rising to win the championship, or the crown. On the subject of the monarchy, more daring ground was trod just a few years ago with Stephen Frears’ funny and involving portrait “The Queen.” (That didn’t win Best Picture, either.)

The members of the Academy are a traditional lot. They tend to honor films which aspire to inspire and move an audience emotionally. There is nothing wrong with those goals. But sometimes, one must acknowledge that the most powerful of films can inspire through caution, rather than idolatry. Audiences would much rather see themselves as King Bertie than Mark Zuckerberg, no doubt. But I thought more about myself, and who I was, after watching the Zuckerberg film.

The Academy has shown a welcome trend toward the adventurous in the past few years. That movies like “No Country for Old Men” and “The Hurt Locker” were rightly honored gave me hope that perhaps the voters were growing the confidence to honor braver films that were not standard Oscar fare. I guess what saddens me most is that the results of Sunday’s awards feel like a step back from that trend. Will more great films of the future will be sacrificed so we can continue to toss laurels at the safe and familiar? Only time will tell.

Email Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com

I could “pack up and leave,” as many have told me, “because I’m not wanted in Toledo.” But I’ve chosen to fight and get my name back. I’ve had several morning radio job offers outside of Toledo and Ohio and my family and I have thought about leaving and just “starting over.” But I have been welcomed and embraced by this community like nowhere I’ve lived before. We have a house here, my two daughters were born here, my mom moved here from California to be with her two granddaughters and my wife’s sister has moved here from Wisconsin to be closer to her sister. Needless to say, we aren’t leaving.

I have honestly tried to make a positive difference in this community. When Keith Dressel was tragically shot I was out in the community collecting money for his wife Danielle. When Lake Local High School needed a grant I broadcasted my entire show live from the school to make sure they got it! When Children’s Wonderland was in danger of not being seen by kids at Christmastime I took on the project and made sure the kids could enjoy this Toledo tradition. When a woman tragically had her son and brother killed in a car accident and then had her house burn down I led the effort to build her a brand new house at no cost to her! I received a badge that says “brother” from the TPD which I will treasure forever. I didn’t do these things because I had to … I did them because I truly do care.

Many say that my plea was to avoid jail time and I should be “thrown in the slammer.” All I ask is that you speak to someone that’s involved in the legal system and I’m pretty sure that they will tell you that the offenses that I’m guilty of aren’t even offenses you would serve jail time for.

Now I’m not a saint and I’m not perfect. I make mistakes everyday. I’m just trying to lead a better life everyday. But I’ve never been in trouble my entire adult life. This incident doesn’t define who I am and I won’t let it.

It’s a mistake that I made and I’ve had to pay the consequences:

I’m currently doing everything the courts have ordered, I have used all of my 401(K) to pay the back taxes, I have paid back my employees, I’ve lost three businesses, I have lost my job, I’m on unemployment and food stamps for the first time in my life, I have suffered public humiliation and I’m in the process of filing for bankruptcy. And I’m currently completely broke. Please believe me when I tell you I have not “gotten off easy.”

The only thing that has helped me “keep it together” is the time I have been able to spend as a stay at home dad with my almost 3-month-old daughter Kenzley. She has been the one bright spot of the last 5 months.

I realize it’s much easier, and more fun, to persecute rather than to forgive … but I’m not asking for forgiveness … I’m just asking for a second chance. The lease holder of the “Metropolis” building at the Docks was going to give me that second chance. Then pressure from vocal Toledo residents caused the city to step in and put a hold on the deal.

I have two passions in life … radio and restaurants. I was going to be given the opportunity to take the hard lessons I’ve learned over the last year and apply them at a spot on the Docks that’s only open one day a week. We were going to use the kitchen and add another restaurant option at the Docks to a building that’s closed over 95 percent of the week.

I love the Docks! When I first came to town almost 6 years ago I had my first meal there and was impressed from then on. Some say the Docks best days are behind it but I truly believe that its best days are ahead for this crown jewel of Toledo! I also believe that I still have so much to give to the city that has given me and my family so much joy and happiness!

Yes I’m asking for a second chance … and if I screw up again then run me out of town, with pitchforks if you would like, and I will go!

If you don’t think I’m sincere, have questions or just want to yell at me please call me on my cell phone (419) 345-3375 … I would be happy to speak with you.

Thanks for your time.

Andrew “Z” Zepeda, morning radio host

Chain stores are everywhere. It is difficult to find a town that doesn’t contain at least one WalMart, Costco or other big-box store.
Even though many people try to buy local and shop at locally owned stores for items like groceries, it can be difficult to know where to turn.
There are, however, several choices in the Toledo area for shoppers who want to buy local.
Food Town has two locations, in Toledo and Temperance, Mich., which are owned locally.  Sam Jabro, the owner of those locations, said his stores put a strong emphasis on keeping the operations local.
“We like to communicate with the local community. Customer service is what we try to focus on most,” he said.
The store’s two locations concentrate on fresh meat, produce  and baked goods. A wide selection of organic and specialty foods are also featured.
Jabro said the stores try to bring in the best quality products and do as much in-house as possible.
“Everything is delivered fresh daily. We try to buy so we can pass deals onto customers,” he said.
He also said the stores strive to keep overhead low, which in turn allows for lower prices for customers.
Jabro said he got into the local grocery business because he didn’t like seeing other local stores close.
“We got into it because we don’t want mom and pop stores to go away. Every community should have a local place to shop,” he said.
Scott Reddish, store manager for both Walt Churchill’s Markets locations in the Toledo area, said buying local is important.
“Buying local has a vast effect on our local economy, from the farmer’s field to our local stores.  Our area is also one of the most fertile areas in the country for a lot of varieties of fruits and vegetables and the quality is hard to beat,” he said.
Reddish said Churchill’s focuses on local and specialty foods. He said all of the salads sold are made fresh in-house, which is uncommon in larger chain stores.
The store also employs specialty managers for the cheese, wine and beer departments. All of the meat sold in the stores is USDA Choice or above and homemade cookies, breads and desserts are featured in the bakery.
Reddish said many large chain stores are limited in what they can offer their customers; at Churchill’s that is not the case.
“Most of the larger chains are managed from the corporate headquarters and only carry what the corporate buyers allow them to.  We are allowed to carry what we want, what our customers demand and are able to get their requests in less than a week’s  turnaround,” he said.
Debra Crow, corporate communications manager for The Andersons, echoed the sentiment. Customer service is a key element that separates locally owned businesses from larger chain retailers.
“Our connectivity to our customers and service level is a big differentiator, as well as our support and connection to the many local services in our community. We have a number of products and services connected to other local businesses and suppliers, such as House of Meats and Tony Packo’s,” she said. She also said a number of the food products sold in the store are manufactured locally.
Crow said buying local helps keep funds local, which benefits the entire community.
“We have a very large number of employees that we are blessed to have the opportunity to employ, and in turn, they earn an income that gets cycled into our economy and supports our local community,” she said.
With an emphasis on customer service, freshness and support of the local community, locally owned grocery stores throughout the area are contributing to the effort to keep Toledo’s business in Toledo.

Kim Kanavel Wurzelbacher was not certain she wanted to volunteer to coach Washington Township girls softball this year. After her daughters, parents and girls that would be on the team, told her how much they wanted her to coach, she made the decision to continue to coach.

Feb. 26, she was told by a member of the Washington Township Girl’s Softball League that she was not going to be selected as a coach for girls softball.

Kim Wurzelbacher and two daughters in 2009

Initially it was stated that Wurzelbacher was not being given a return spot at coaching because she was a “bad role model.”   Toledo Free Press spoke to Todd Burgy, commissioner and head of rules and protests on Feb. 27, who said it had nothing to with with that. “It’s issues she’s had with other coaches and board members, this is still being discussed, but at this point she’s not coaching,” Burgy said.

“There’s a process she can go through to appeal the decision,” Burgy said. “It’s not about actions that took place on the field.”

Burgy said that Dan Drummond, assistant commissioner would have more details. Drummond said on Feb. 27, “Bad role model is not the reason. It’s my opinion she’s been a very good coach.” He did not want to share any specific reasons why Wurzelbacher was not being given a coaching spot beyond stating the league was trying to get away from a “win at all costs” mentality.

“The appeal process is up for debate, this is an organizer decision, the organizer decided,” Drummond said. “We appoint coaches yearly, can it be appealed? Don’t know.” He said the appeal process typically revolves around rules or calls that can be protested.

There is a board meeting scheduled for March 2, Drummond said this issue was not on the agenda but he expected it to be discussed as far as could Wurzelbacher protest. The meeting is not open to parents or the public, Drummond said.

“She (Wurzelbacher) needs to call our head organizer, rather than doing that, she’s been organizing parents,” Drummond said.  ”I told our head organizer to call me if she heard from her.”

Wurzelbacher said she did speak with the head organizer, Angel Wuest, the morning of Feb. 27. No official reason has been given to her beyond Rule 1.7 being cited.  According to the Washington Township Girl’s Softball League, Rule 1.7:

The questioning of behavior cited as an initial reason was an issue for her since she is a pre-school teacher but she was also concerned about the lack of process.

“I got a phone call from a girl that just took over the league, ‘sorry to give you bad news but you are banned from coaching this year’,” Wurzelbacher said. “I called Angel and left a message, called the old organizer (Don Smay), who told me ‘yep, she told you what she was supposed to’.”

“There has to be something set up, you are creating these rules, but not enforcing them, if it was that bad that I’m banned from coaching, now you come to this decision three days before sign ups,” said Wurzelbacher.

“I have my own rule book, in addition to the league’s rule book, if they talk smack about other teammates they are benched,” she said. “The thing they are picking is not even true, I have these things in black and white, winning is not what’s most important, it’s how you play the game.”

“There are coaches that smoke on the field, that cuss, being banned for something like this,” said Wurzelbacher. “I have coached these girls since first grade, they are now in sixth grade.”

She said she was also told that if she goes to any of the softball games, even ones her daughters are playing in, if she makes a comment or goes anywhere near the field they could make that team forfeit. “Even if I tell my own kids, ‘good play’ they could do this,” Wurzelbacher said.

She said she was told Wuest was going to be coaching her team, Wuest told Toledo Free Press on Feb. 27 that there had been no decision yet that she was aware of as to who would coach. “I’m not sure if I want to talk to you, I’m borderline considering going after him (Michael Kurdys) for harassment, he’s twisting things,” Wuest said. “I don’t think I want to have this conversation.”

Michael Kurdys is a parent of a child who has been coached by Wurzelbacher the past three years. He has been organizing parents and supporters on Facebook to protest the decision by Washington Township Girl’s Softball League. Kurdys and his wife Cindy, stated neither of them had made comments to Wuest that could be viewed as harassment and both took issue with the lack of parental communication and Wurzelbacher being viewed as having a win at all costs mentality.

“We came in 8th place last year, sometimes after a loss the girls cry, the first thing that Kim says, ‘Did everyone have fun, than it doesn’t matter what the score is’,” Kurdys said. “She compliments and congratulates the other team players consistently when they make a good play.”

“She is an excellent role model for young girls to learn from, we had no say in this decision.  I would not allow my daughter to be around someone that I didn’t feel added something positive to her life,” Todd Moldenke said. His daughter has been coached by Wurzelbacher for three years as well as been her Girl Scout leader.

“She doesn’t have a win at all costs attitude, I’ve seen her pull the best pitcher out of the game because Kim insists on a smile at the huddle,” Moldenke said.

Wurzelbacher said for her it’s now a matter of principle, she is filing an appeal to protest the decision.  Moldenke said ”Parents should have a voice in this, the board should be adults and settle this problem.”

Parents have been told that they will not be allowed to speak at the March 3 team sign up. The Kurdys want a response from the board on this issue.

“We plan on going on Thursday, but we don’t want to donate our registration fee because at this point, our daughter doesn’t want to play, if Kim is not her coach,” Kurdys said.

“Nothing’s broken so why fix it,” Kurdys said. “Kim never asked us to do this, we started this on our own,” Cindy said.

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HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Tonight are the 83rd Academy Awards and the red carpet is buzzing with excitement and anticipation. Nominees and stars will walk down the famous runway donning haute couture gowns accessorized with opulent bijoux and designer shoes.

Before the crowds of invited guests file past media into the Kodak Theatre here, press from around the world are preparing for the big night.

Included in the international media is reporter Annemarie Warnkross, from Germany’s ProSieben (Pro7). She told The Gold Knight and Toledo Free Press that her team has been preparing for two weeks in Los Angeles for “the most important red carpet in the world.”

Warnkross is looking forward to seeing and possibly interviewing Natalie Portman, Best Actress nominee for “Black Swan.”

“She will look so gorgeous with her baby bump,” she said. “That will be very cute.”  (See the full interview in the embedded YouTube video.)

Another reporter vying for big interviews is Megan Telles, a student journalist from University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Telles was a finalist two years ago for the mtvU and the motion picture academy’s Oscars Red Carpet Correspondent Contest, a national competition among college journalists.

Telles says she’ll hold her own against the seasoned Oscar reporters. “Let me go in the middle of everyone, where Ryan Seacrest and Mario Lopez are hosting next to me, let me jump in, too. Why not?” she said.

Editor’s note: Toledo Free Press will follow the Blank family of Millbury for the next year as they rebuild their lives after a June 5 tornado destroyed their home.

Julie Blank’s big sister will be glad to see her only sibling turn 49 on Feb. 26. And not because she always jokes that she is the younger sister.
“Everything that has happened since the tornado is more special,” said Kathy Williamson of Perrysburg. “I cannot imagine being without her. Ed, too and Casey, too. Besides my immediate family they are all I have because we are not a big family.”
When Kathy gave her nephew Casey his birthday gift shortly after the June 5 tornado, she thanked God for that birthday and hoped for many more.
“It is the same thing for Thanksgiving. Same at Christmas. I don’t think you really know until you have been through it and could have potentially lost them how glad you are to be spending holidays with them,” she said.
Kathy was on the phone with Julie when the tornado destroyed her sister’s home. Deathly afraid of storms, they talked as they sat in their basements.
“We are just talking about the weather and I could see from looking out the window it was bad,” Kathy said.
Then, they lost connection.
“I thought that was odd. I thought maybe with the storm, something fluky happened. I tried to call her back,” Kathy said.
But no one answered. Kathy tried everyone’s cell phone. Nothing.
Then, all of a sudden, she got a call from Casey’s cell. She vividly remembers the conversation with her sister.
“Hello?”
“It is gone.”
“What is gone?”
“My house is gone.”
“I felt sad from the standpoint that I wasn’t helping her get out. I am the big sister, so I felt like I should have been there,” Kathy said.
When they finally reunited, Kathy and Julie hugged and sobbed. For months, Kathy would rehash the night of the tornado. She was tormented knowing her sister lost her neighbors.
Now that Julie and her family are back in their rebuilt home, Kathy is comforted by the normalcy.
Part of returning to normal is celebrating birthdays. Julie likes to make a big deal out of her birthday and, this year, Ed has decided to embrace her excitement. For his wife’s birthday, Ed has bought her a gift every day of the month. The gifts have included her favorite wine, lottery tickets, candy and a bead for her Pandora bracelet.
But the best gift is life. The tragedy of the tornado cemented that for Kathy.
“I remember it like it happened yesterday. That is how vivid it is in my mind. I think it is going to take a long time to get rid of those memories,” she said.