Erin Dickerson’s Prayer
God of the Heavens and the Earth,
We like to be comfortable; continuing with our routines and doing the things that come easy. Henry Ford said, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” Help us to not get stuck in our ways, to look for new opportunities, seek out differing opinions, and to remain open to change.
Amen.
Annual Picnic at the A-Frame at the RecPlex
The club spent Club Day at its annual picnic in the A-frame at the RecPlex.
Thank you to Debe Dockins for arranging everything, to Mike Bevis for picking up the tables, to Mike Cordonnier for the chairs, to Greg Hoffbauer for covering the tables, to Connie Risch for the ice and drinks, to Bill Stone for bringing the sound system, and to everyone else who pitched in. The catered boxed lunches featured Lee’s Famous Recipe chicken. Thank you also to Jeff Neace, the owner of Whit’s Frozen Custard, for delivering custard treats. Whit’s just opened another location in Kettering at Town & Country.
Get to Know Mark Metzger
President Sarah Umbreit interviewed Mark Metzger for this week’s “Get to Know a Member.”
- Asked his favorite thing to do in our community parks, Mark said trail running is his new thing. He loves running the trails.
- Asked what he would say if he were an ad for the RecPlex, Mark said it is a valuable community resource where everyone has a seat at the table: a non-judgmental place to face fears about swimming, working out, meeting new people, or learning mahjong, and “a great place to just try something you’ve never tried before.”
- Asked for a fond memory of summers growing up, Mark said he and his three brothers had property to roam and no structure at all: no summer camp, no lessons, just Capture the Flag and made-up adventures. They often did not see school friends again until after Labor Day.
Mark Metzger joined CNO on May 2, 2023, sponsored by Debe Dockins.
A Shirt for the Haunted Trail’s Barker
With the club sitting in the park that hosts the Haunted Trail every October, President Sarah Umbreit had a special presentation. For years Tim Clemmer has been the Barker of the Haunted Trail, greeting the little ghouls and goblins with a whole spiel before each group heads down the trail. One line always stands out: “Lollygaggers! No lollygaggers! The world hates lollygaggers!” The line keeps everyone moving, so when Sarah found a shirt printed with exactly that, she knew whose it had to be. Tim demonstrated it at full trail volume. Thanks also to Debe Dockins, the Head Witch who runs the Haunted Trail; her announcements are coming soon.
Announcements
Hope Squad Yard Signs
Jeff Busch made an announcement on behalf of his son Hunter Busch, who could not attend because of a student council commitment. Hunter’s Hope Squad is working to get the word out about the organization throughout the community and is selling yard signs for $15, which simply covers the cost of the sign. If you would like one, please contact Jeff; he will bring the signs to next week’s meeting.
Visual Arts Committee Co-Chair Needed
Jane Fiehrer announced that after many years of dedicated service on the Visual Arts Committee, Rachel Goetz is stepping down so she and her husband can do more traveling. Jane is looking for a new co-chair. The job is easy: accept the artwork, get information to the art teachers so entries come in, and help judge, which means seeing all the entries, not just the winners. If you are interested, please contact Jane.
TOP Soccer Is Underway
Greg Wasmund thanked the club for its ongoing support of TOP Soccer, which kicked off its new year on Sunday (8/16/26) with over 150 kids, approaching 160 and close to a record, on eight teams. Thank you to Tony and Arline Danial and to Sarah and Jeff Umbreit for helping with registration day. The kids play at Oak Grove Park on Wednesdays from 6:30 to 7:30 PM and Sundays from 4:00 to 5:00 PM through the middle of October. Volunteers are always welcome, and even coming out just to watch is a ton of fun.
Mark Metzger on the RecPlex and Countryside Park
President Sarah Umbreit introduced Mark Metzger, Washington Township’s Director of Recreation, who spoke about everything happening at the RecPlex and in Countryside Park. Mark thanked the club for the dose of optimism after a rough morning and took credit for dialing up the perfect weather for the picnic.
Thank You for the Fishing Dock
Mark thanked CNO for the fishing dock at the front pond, which has been a huge hit. He was at the park with his boys about a week ago and was struck by how many people use the front pond in the evenings; the dock is one of the prime spots to fish. CNO’s $20,000 donation made the dock happen: the grants the township received covered the natural features of the pond project but none of the man-made ones.
A Park Transformed by 2030
The township received $1 million from the state’s one-time community investment fund a couple of years ago, and Mark recognized State Representative Tom Young, who was at the picnic, as instrumental in securing it. The improvements now coursing through the park will connect Paragon Road and McEwen Road, letting the offices and residents on that side walk into the green space, and will add the parking, restrooms, and other infrastructure that events like Woodland Lights, the Ice Cream Social, and the Haunted Trail depend on.
A Four-Season Shelter House
This year the township also received $400,000 toward a four-season shelter house that will replace the former nursery building. It will have garage doors, so on a beautiful day the whole space can open up, and on a scorcher the doors can close and the air conditioning can crank.
A Pavilion, a Splash Pad, and Restrooms at Last
Next year brings the design phase for a pavilion in the middle of the park, serving summer camps, special events, fitness programs, and rentals like family reunions. The biggest piece, Mark said, is restrooms: the park has never had public ones, a common theme on the community survey. A plaza going up between the buildings now includes an outdoor stage for concerts and Town Hall Theatre shows and a covered walkway. A splash pad, an interactive fountain that sits flush with the ground when off, will open on Memorial Day 2028, along with a ticket booth and still more restrooms.
The Plan Behind It All
The park investment began with the township’s 2019–2020 strategic plan, when residents asked for green space, trails, and water access, and the township realized it had three ponds it hardly used. By 2030 most of the planned improvements will be complete. The parking lots will be repaved near the end, after the dump trucks stop driving over them, so that pothole your car found is on the list.
The Front Pond Answer, Nine Years Later
When Mark became the Director of Recreation in 2016 after about 20 years at the Town Hall Theatre, he came to CNO ready for every question except one, probably from Bob Lawson: what are you going to do about the front pond? It took years and a lot of people working together to answer it. The rebuilt ponds, edged with natural wetlands, are finally showing themselves this year. The Fishing Derby was held on the front pond, the township’s summer camps kayaked on it, and swimming, Mark reminded everyone, is still not allowed, no matter what the little ones on inflatable rafts thought last weekend.
Woodland Lights and the Haunted Trail
Construction will have minimal impact on this fall’s Haunted Trail: the entrance will move, but the path and the event stay very much the same, perhaps with a haunted excavator or two added. Woodland Lights is also happening, in a smaller footprint matching the Ice Cream Social: the A-frame, the ball field, and the surrounding area, free to the public. Santa will visit in the cabin by appointment, with 10 to 15 minute slots so families do not wait in long lines. Most of the current construction should be done by the end of the year, and Woodland Lights in 2028 will be the big reveal.
Fish Stories
The township has been working with a lake management company to build up the fish population, with stockings coming this fall and next spring. That is harder than it sounds in the front ponds, where the water level fluctuates constantly; the carp needed no help repopulating, while the stocked largemouth and hybrid bass have been slower to take off. This spring the township worked with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to release about 500 trout, at $6 a fish paid by the state, to encourage fishing. Trout cannot survive warm water, so anglers were asked to harvest their catch, and by June nearly all the trout had been caught. Mark is sure they will do it again.
What Is a Barrow Pit?
Mark closed with a quiz: what is a barrow pit? One member knew: it is where you get soil and gravel. The mysterious excavation neighbors have guessed was a new building, a parking lot, or a dinosaur dig is a barrow pit. The site holds fatty clay that traps water, a poor base for roads and buildings, so crews pull better clay from about 20 feet down, use it where they are building, and return the fatty clay to the pit. The area will become a playing field.
Park Passes and Lantern Fest
Everything out in the park is free except Woodland Lights and Lantern Fest, and the RecPlex offers complete, fitness, aquatics, and senior passes, plus Silver Sneakers. Lantern Fest, coming up soon, is the quiet one: families decorate lanterns in memory of a loved one or something meaningful to them, then launch them onto the pond at dusk. This year it moves to the front pond, and Mark called it the first nice event of the fall.
Thank You
Thank you, Mark Metzger, for hosting the club at the A-frame and updating us on everything coming to the RecPlex and Countryside Park.
New Member Readings and Inductions
- Lee Anne Speelman, First Reading, sponsored by Phil Speelman
- Julia Johnson, Second Reading, sponsored by Kelly Stone
- Nadine Rieser, Induction, sponsored by Cris Peterson
Happy Bucks
- Bill Williams gave a happy buck because he and his wife, Cadance Lowell, celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary last Thursday (8/13/26).
- Charlie Goodwin gave a happy buck because he had his four kids and all the grandchildren over. There were so many cars that Gail Aiken, who lives across the street, wondered whether something not so great was happening, so she went over to check on her neighbor and good friend. Charlie is happy to report all was well.
- Karen Charnesky gave a happy buck because she and her husband Tom are going to be grandparents for the first time.
- Joan Cordonnier gave a happy buck for a great picnic, thanking Debe Dockins and all the helpers recognized at the top of this article.
- Joan Cordonnier gave a happy buck because a Will Cale Scholarship winner, who Debe Dockins mentors along with Megan Dalton, joined the club at the picnic. Joan wished her a great first semester in college.
Sergeants-at-Arms Fines: Bob Myers and Mike Creech
- Scott Langer was fined because, in one of the rare exceptions to tradition, he did not steal the bell and gavel.
- Paul Boeckman was fined because he started his own year as President with a stack of about 100 one-dollar bills so he could pay a fine every week. With only about 50 meetings in a year, the Sergeants calculated there was money left over.
- Greg Wasmund was fined so he gets used to paying fines during his upcoming year as President.
- Sarah Umbreit was fined for being President.
- Gary Smiga was fined because Bob Myers read in the paper that Gary has taken over a spot as a Washington Township Trustee. Bob planned to fine him for the increased income, but on deciding the move was not exactly a financial windfall, he congratulated Gary and paid the fine for him.
- Mark Metzger was fined for not understanding why Bob Myers claimed to have two dragons in his family. Bob’s two grandchildren will both play dragons in How to Train Your Dragon at the Town Hall Theatre, where Mark himself spent 20 years.
- Debe Dockins was fined for pointing out that if she wins a raffle basket, she is keeping it.
- Everyone who stopped at Yankee Trace before coming to the picnic was fined. At least one member owned up.
- Mike Brubaker and Sue Brubaker were fined for arriving first and setting out their own placemats. Apparently the beautiful red checkered tablecloths were not good enough.