It’s been a labor of love and it’s finally completed. Bay Village city officials and dog kennel fund organizers will participate in a ribbon cutting ceremony for the newly refurbished Bay Village Dog Kennel located at the Service Department, 31300 Naigle Road. Hot Diggity Dog owner Nancy Brown is the founder and president of the New Bay Village Dog Kennel Fund which was created in 2023 with a mission to assist in the structural improvement and renovation of the Bay Village Kennel. The goal of the Fund was to raise $50,000. Carol Hall is the Fund’s vice president and Betsy Leyen is treasurer. The kennel, which is operated by the City of Bay Village, is situated in a former cable storage unit on the grounds of the Service Department, and houses lost or abandoned dogs. The space was worn and weathered and was in need of major structural improvements. The Fund sought to insure the safety and comfort of the dogs housed at the kennel by assisting the City of Bay Village to improve and renovate the building. According to Brown, a coalition of concerned residents had been working to renovate or replace the current kennel for over a decade. Back in early 2023, presentations were shared in meetings with the mayor and his staff. Consideration was given to total new build, prefabricated kennels and repurposed/refurbished. The mayor made the executive decision to move forward with a refurbished project. Thanks to the generous support of the community, Brown was able to present a check for $50,000 and one brand new Pella Window to Mayor Paul Koomar and City Council in December 2023 to help execute the refurbishment of the kennel. The city then solicited and received proposals for construction services for the renovation of the dog kennel and Tusing Builders & Roofing Services, based in Monroeville, Ohio, was selected to complete the renovations. Now that the goal for the structure refurbishment has been met, the New Bay Village Dog Kenn Fund changed to now doing business as For The Love of Bay Village Dogs to continue supporting the kennel. “We will support the kennel and Bay Village Police with future dog requests,” said Brown. BAY VILLAGE Hat display: The Rose Hill Museum’s opening display, coordinated by the Bay Village Historical Society, is the “Hat Extravaganza,” featuring hats from the museum’s collection, dating back to 1840. Also on display are hats from the collection of longtime Bay Village resident Ann DiBenedetto, owner of Heady Lady Millinery. She began her fashion hat shows in Cleveland, as well as Palm Beach and Boca Raton, Fla. Presidents and first ladies wore her hats. The museum, 27715 Lake Road, is open from 2 to 4:30 p.m. every Sunday (beginning April 6). Admission is free. Membership in the Bay Village Historical Society is open to anyone in the community interested in keeping history alive. Families are welcome. For more information, go to bayhistorical.com. Earth Day celebration: Come learn about Lake Erie, its history and how we all can take care of it during a program April 12 at the Lake Erie Nature & Science Center, 28728 Wolf Road. Hike through Huntington Reservation to test water quality and discover the complex food web that connects animals and humans to Lake Erie. Two sessions are available, choose from 10 a.m. to noon; or 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Cost is $15 per person, children six months and under are free. As part of free general admission, there will be opportunities to participate in activities and meet with local organizations that support keeping our Great Lake great between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. To register, go to lensc.org/learn/family-programs. Community yard sale: Save the date for the city’s annual Community Yard Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 31. The event is sponsored by the Bay Middle School PTA. Sales from the event support the PTSA, which funds supplies, recess equipment, assemblies, and more to Bay Middle School. Seller registration is now open and costs $22. For more information, go to sites.google.com/view/bayvillage/home. HomeFit event: An AARP presentation entitled, “HomeFit” will take place at 2 p.m. April 10 at the Bay Village Branch Library, 27400 Wolf Road. AARP surveys consistently find that older adults want to remain in their current homes and communities for as long as possible. The event is an opportunity to explore how to make your current or future residence your “lifelong home.” Kindergarten Countdown: The Class of 2038 and their caregivers can build kindergarten readiness skills in a program aligned to Ohio’s Early Childhood Standards at 10 a.m. April 12 at the Bay Village Branch Library, 27400 Wolf Road. Recruiting members: The Friends of the Bay Village Library are recruiting. The Friends provide support services to the library, volunteering their time and energy to raise funds in support of library programming, special events, and activities. To volunteer or learn more, contact Maryann Blaylock, branch Manager, at 440-871-6392 Walk for water: The Bay High Key Club’s Walk for Water fundraiser is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 3 at Bay High School, 29230 Wolf Road. The annual event raises funds for clean water wells in Africa. This is a major initiative project for Bay High Key Club. ROCKY RIVER News from the schools: The Rocky River City School District Treasurer’s Department has once again been recognized for its excellence in financial reporting as it recently received the Ohio Auditor of State Award with Distinction. The award is in recognition of the district’s financials and data reporting for the 2024 fiscal year which concluded on June 30. Presented to districts with a clean audit of financial records, the award is given to local governments and school districts upon the completion of a financial audit that shows good record keeping, according to the press release. The clean audit report means that the school district’s financial audit was submitted on-time, included an Annual Comprehensive Financial Report and did not contain any findings for recovery, material citations, material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, Single Audit findings, or questioned costs. To view the district’s financial reports, go to rrcs.org/OfficeoftheTreasurerCFO.aspx. The Ohio Middle Level Association (OMLA) Northeast Region held its annual Breakfast of Champions on March 6 to honor student leaders from the area who display the characteristics of leadership, scholarship, service and character. Rocky River Middle School had two eighth-grade students recognized during the program. Congratulations to Olivia Schutte and Brendan Smith. Schutte received the Scholarship Award, while Smith received the Character Award. The duo was nominated by middle school teacher Cara Ungar. The Rocky River City School District is now using BoardDocs, a cloud-based school board meeting management software, as a method to publish, review, search, store and archive all public meeting notices and materials (agenda items, minutes, policies and procedures, and support documents such as contracts, bills, etc.). The system is efficient, user-friendly and paperless. In an effort to go green, the district will no longer print hard copies of the Board agenda. School officials encourage community members to use the published QR code for every monthly Board meeting to view the agenda on your device or by following along on the television monitors. To view the BoardDocs site, go to go.boarddocs.com/oh/rrcsd/Board.nsf/Public Rocky River Middle School students Emily Aber, Anna Dzodo, Jules O’Keefe and Quinn Patton competed at the Power of the Pen regional tournament on March 8. The group was among more than 200 writers who qualified for the regional competition. Patton placed second in the seventh-grade division and received a Superior rating on his submission to earn an automatic spot at the State tournament in May, while Aber, O’Keefe and Dzodo all received an Honors rating on their submissions at Regionals. Safety Town registration: Set your alarms as Safety Town registration opens at 10 a.m. April 28. Safety Town will be held July 28 to Aug. 1; and Aug. 4 to 8 with morning and afternoon sessions available at 21018 Hilliard Blvd. The program is open for children entering kindergarten in the fall. It is not a requirement for school, but it does offer important safety information. To register, go to rockyriverohio.gov/rec. Shout-out: A graduation ceremony took place last week for the 14th class of the Rocky River Citizen Police Academy to celebrate the accomplishments of the nine community members who spent 12 Tuesday nights learning about the city’s police department. They also came in on a Saturday morning for CPR certification and rode for at least two hours with an on-duty patrol officer. Congratulations! Garden club: The Westlake Garden Club will be hosting a Cuyahoga County Master Gardener to speak on Pruning your plants the right way. Pruning is an essential part of plant maintenance. It involves removing plant parts—branches, flowers, fruit, seed pods, etc. Learn proper techniques and times to prune! The club meets on the third Wednesday of the month. This meeting will be Wednesday, April 16, 2025, from 10:30 until noon. We meet at the Westlake Recreation Center at 28955 Hilliard Blvd, in the main floor meeting room. All are welcome to attend. Fishing derby: Presented by the Westlake Recreation Department and Westlake Kiwanis, the Fishy Derby will take place from 9 a.m. to noon May 10 at the Recreation Center pond, 28955 Hilliard Blvd. Prizes will be awarded for the Largest Fish Overall and by certain species, Smallest Fish Overall, and the First Fish Caught. Participants must have their own equipment. Bait will be provided, while supplies last. Registration is now open, go to cityofwestlake.org/o/rcwl/page/fishing-derby, or stop by the recreation center. Summer camp: Looking for something to keep your kids busy this summer? Effective Leadership Academy will be hosting a summer camp at Hyland Software, 28105 Clemens Road, to help rising grade 5-8 students develop their interpersonal skills. For more information, go to effectivela.org. Shout-out: Mayor Dennis Clough was recently honored during the 3rd Annual Kindland Leadership Awards ceremony held at Cleveland City Hall. Kindland’s mission is to create meaningful culture change by empowering students and adults to lead with values. For more information, go to viafdn.org/kindland. If you have news/information or a story idea you’d like to share or a ‘shout-out’, please send an email to jshortavon@aol.com. Read Short Takes online at https://www.cleveland.com/topic/westlake. Follow me on X (Twitter) @jshortavon.