Laurelville News

Dancers from five local dance studios took to the stage Thursday, rounding out an afternoon of family fun during Rising Park Day.

Donald 'Donnie' Speakman, 53, of Dayton, unexpectedly passed from this life on Tuesday, July 8, 2008, in Dayton.

PLEASANT TOWNSHIP - Two people remain hospitalized Friday following a two-vehicle crash Thursday evening at the intersection of state Route 37 and Pleasantville Road.

For once, oversleeping might have paid off in Heath Martin's hunt for a new job.

LANCASTER -Joseph P. Schmelzer, 75, of Lancaster, passed away Monday, July 7, 2008, at the Pickering House.

Happy 4th of July!

SOUTH BLOOMINGVILLE - The South Bloomingville Fourth of July parade will be held at 9:21 a.m. Friday and starts at the intersection of state Routes 56 and 664.

It will end at the intersection of... well... Routes 56 and 664... I mean come on! It's South Bloomingville. How big can it really be?

Operating a vehicle impaired, suspended driver's license, no driver's license, wrong way on a one-way street - John D. Milar, 25, of Edison, Charges 1 and 2 dismissed with prejudice in consideration of plea to ...

Ted Strickland's first showdown with the Legislature on abortion politics was an easy victory: A stroke of his veto pen allowed state spending on human cloning that the Legislature had voted to ban.

LAURELVILLE - A Boy Scout has died while hiking in a state park with his troop. Payden Sommers, 11, collapsed on a trail in Tar Hollow State Park on Saturday evening, 10TV's Brittany Westbrook reported.

"They heard my music on Myspace and put it in the magazine so others could hear it," - Micah Kesselring

LAURELVILLE - Just hearing the Delta blues-style tunes emanating from the Dobro Resonator guitar, paints a mental picture of the musician, that proves, for most, to be a far cry from the Logan High School sophomore soulfully cranking out the notes.

"You incorporate this stuff from the '60s and '70s with stuff from the '20s and '30s and you get this kid with a new blend for the millennium," Mark Kesselring, said of his son, teenage prodigy, Micah Kesselring.

"With medication and treatments [at the facility] they might be able to get him back on track" - Larry Beal

LOGAN - Accused murderer Carl "Doc" Beebe has been declared incompetent to stand trial.

Beebe is accused of shooting Karl Roeder, 43, in February 2006, and burying him in a creek bed near Laurelville.

"I don't care if you hire me or some other attorney, but I do feel the village needs some sort of solicitor. It's in the best interest of the village..." Mike Hess

The council voted unanimously to hire Circleville attorney and city council member Mike Hess, who provides legal counsel to the village on an as-needed basis, as the village solicitor for the remainder of 2008.

Richard 'Dick' and Velma Viola Thompson Behmer, 75 and 70, respectively, passed from this life, Saturday, June 7, 2008, at their residence in Amanda.

LAURELVILLE - A woman who was expected to be called as a witness for the prosecution in an upcoming Hocking County murder trial died of natural causes this week, but it is unknown what affect her passing will have on the case.

Genevieve Kelsey, 74, died Tuesday. She is the owner of the property where the body of Karl Roeder was found in 2006 and is the mother of the man who stands accused of Roeder's murder - Carl "Doc" Beebe.

...

During the course of the murder investigation in 2006, Beebe's mother was arrested for possession of a dangerous ordnance (explosive device) and receiving stolen property

For The Logan Daily News

HOCKING COUNTY - Gov. Ted Strickland signed an executive order Wednesday establishing the Ohio Anti-Poverty Task Force, but Southeastern Ohio poverty experts are not convinced it will make a difference in the lives of poor people.

The task force will develop strategic recommendations for the governor's administration to consider, aimed at reducing the percentage of Ohioans living at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. The poverty threshold for a family of four is $21,200 a year.

While local advocates for the poor praise the measure as a good step, they also express doubt that the task force will produce real change for the area's poor, especially those living in extreme poverty.

LAURELVILLE - Laurelville Elementary School will have a new principal next school year after the Logan Elm Board of Education met in regular session this week and approved hiring Vicki Scott for the position.

Scott, currently principal of The Plains Elementary in the Athens City School district, will replace former Laurelville principal Jill Riddle. Riddle recently was promoted to the long-vacant district curriculum coordinator position.

HOCKING COUNTY - A Dublin man faces several charges after leading law enforcement on a chase through the county Monday afternoon.

Brian Jacob Clark, 26, was charged after the Hocking County Sherriff's office was dispatched to a report of a suspicious person carrying a gun on state Route 56 near Ash Cave Monday.

An early morning single-car crash killed one and injured two others Thursday in Pickaway County's Saltcreek Township.

Betty J. Ebert, 72, of S. Bloomingville, left this earthly life to be with our Lord, March 13, 2008 at Berger Hospital. Funeral service will be held 6:00 p.m. Sunday March 16, 2008 at the Wellman Funeral Home, Laurelville. Friends may call from 1-6 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home. She was born February 7, 1936 to the late Mack and Ethel (Bone) Shaw in S. Bloomingville. She was preceded in death by her husband, Roger Ebert and son, Mark, brothers, Pearl, Guy, Mack, Boyd and Bobby; sisters, Juanita, Martha and Beverly; grandparents, John and Susan Shaw and Francis and Emma Bone; sister-in-laws, Betty and Lucille Shaw; mother and father-in-law, Lester and Margie Ebert; brother-in-law, Thomas Elbert. Betty is survived by sons, Mitchell Brent (Diane) Ebert, Matthew (Kim) Ebert; grandchildren, Travis (Jill) Ebert, Tiffany (Eric) Platt and Chris and Seth Ebert; great grandchildren, Cord and Calla Ebert and Braxton and Addison Platt; sisters, Jean (Shorty) Thress and Connie (Gary) Hart with whom she lived; brother, John (Freda) Shaw; special friend, Richard Rhymer; sister-in-laws, Leila & JoAnn Shaw, Sue (Larry) McNichols, Nancy (Monte) Bainter, Alice (Dave) Smith and Bonny Ebert; brother-in-laws, Tim (Bonnie) Ebert and Charlie (Sondra) Ebert; numerous nieces and nephews, cousins and many friends. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial contributions to Salt Creek Valley Church, P.O. Box 413, Adelphi, OH 43101. Obituary as posted in The Chillicothe Gazette

“Piano extraordinaire. Her performances are breathtaking, exquisite, passionate, and all from memory!”

A Laurelville teen pianist with significant experience performing for an audience will perform as part of the Adena Area Concert Series Monday at the Adena High School auditeria in Frankfort. via Chillicothe Gazette