This is Verena writing. Mom is in the middle of frying chicken for supper. I peeled potatoes that are now cooking for mashed potatoes. I decided it would be a nice surprise for her if I wrote the column and she didn’t have to write it tonight.
Daniel Ray and I slept the last few nights in ...
In general, a slam should be bid whenever there appears to be a better-than-even chance of fulfillment. It is in this area that a partnership’s bidding skill is most severely tested.
The main question to be resolved in bidding a slam is whether the combined hands will offer a good chance to ...
DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 74-year-old woman who is in better-than-average shape for my age. I only take blood pressure meds, walk for exercise, and am only slightly overweight.
I have had seven COVID vaccinations from February 2021 to September of this year. I asked my primary doctor if I should ...
A full slate of activities will lead up to downtown Youngstown’s tree lighting ceremony on Friday.
OH WOW! The Roger & Gloria Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology will have extended hours with free admission from 3 to 8 p.m. Santa’s Workshop will be set up on OH ...
Starrlet O’Hara has called several theaters home since “How the Drag Queen Stole Queen Stole Christmas” made its debut 19 years ago at the former Oakland Center for the Arts in downtown Youngstown.
Rust Belt Theater Company founder Robert Dennick Joki brings the show to a new space in ...
Back in 2019, Radio Lark released a great holiday track called “It’s Christmastime.”
For those who’ve never heard it, check out the video on YouTube, which features a who’s who of Mahoning Valley musical talent.
While Radio Lark’s Chris Rutushin has sung “It’s ...
A tradition that started in 1956 continues on Sunday with the Warren Civic Chorus performing George Frideric Handel’s “Messiah.”
More than 100 performers will take part in the performance at 6 p.m. Sunday at St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish. A free will offering will be collected.
Jeff ...
Daniel and Kathy Glozer, lifelong residents of the Youngstown area, celebrated their 50th anniversary on Sept. 13, 2025.
Mass was held at St. Luke Catholic Church and dinner at Alberini’s Restaurant, both attended by immediate family members.
Daniel Glozer and the former Kathy Gromada ...
Charles and Gail Ann Holquist, of New Middletown, held a 70th anniversary celebration on Aug. 30, 2025, at Welker Park in New Middletown, hosted by the couple’s three children.
Charles Holquist and the former Gail Ann Osborne were united in matrimony on Sept. 10, 1955, at Chapel of Friendly ...
The golden anniversary of Dennis and Sherry Matey was celebrated June 7, 2025, at the Bessemer Croatian Club, the location of their wedding reception 50 years ago.
Mr. And Mrs. Matey were married June 7, 1975, at St. Joseph the Worker Church, previously of New Castle, Pa.
The reception was a ...
The families of Nicholas Beck and Kaitlyn Adams are announcing the couple’s engagement and upcoming marriage.
Kaitlyn Adams of South Portland, Maine, is the granddaughter of Ann Trueworthy of South Portland, Maine, and the late Wayne Donald Trueworthy.
Parents of the groom-elect are Don ...
I don’t mean to brag, but I drove somewhere without my GPS. And arrived where I meant to be. Without getting lost once. Seriously.
This would be ho-hum news a few decades ago. Then technology began erasing our memories.
Not erasing, exactly. More like replacing.
When I was a teen, I ...
For many of us, tears accompany this joyful season of giving thanks and giving gifts. We’re missing hearts that used to beat alongside ours.
I used to think that it would be a blessing that if once, just once, I wouldn’t be told that I had arranged the Thanksgiving table the wrong way ...
Whenever life has me stumped and I don’t know what to do next, I sit back and ponder, “What would HE do?”
He, of course, refers to that bear whose head is stuffed with fluff, Winnie-the-Pooh.
Pooh Bear himself once said, “When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of ...
I heard the phrase “hidden wisdom” the other day and thought, “Hey, that’s me!”
I am chock full of wisdom. I have so much wisdom that it’s rolling out of my ears. But my wisdom is hidden. It must be. Nobody can see it.
“Cole, if you had a brain, you’d be dangerous,” is one ...
There’s something magical about the month of December that I’ve always held close. I know, I know — plenty of people groan the moment the sun dips below the horizon a little earlier each day.
The darkness settles over our Valley like a heavy blanket, stretching itself across the late ...
To say sleep has been my friend this week would be an utterly false statement.
In fact, sleep and I have been giving each other the cold shoulder. Now, some would say it’s most likely due to the whole “falling back” in time.
But I love to fall back. Love, love, love it. I’m the ...
There’s something truly powerful about a room full of women who don’t just shine — they glow from the inside out. That was the energy at the Gems of the Valley event. Every year, this celebration reminds us of what makes our Valley such a special place: it’s not the buildings or the ...
This week may get a little deep, but ’tis the season of reflection.
A few weeks ago, I decided to take a quick 24-hour trip to Annapolis, Maryland, to visit friends — and boldly insert myself into their annual neighborhood oyster fest. I think I consumed enough oysters to last the next 12 ...
In my earlier years of gardening, I was attracted to and purchased unusual plants. Many of those didn’t survive beyond their first year. As I have “matured,” I have redirected my purchases toward the easy-to-grow natives that feed our local pollinators. The hotter, drier summers have ...
Here are upcoming gardening events through the Ohio State University Mahoning County Extension Office. Contact the Extension Office, 490 S. Broad St., Canfield, at 330-533-5538. For a complete list of events, visit https://mahoning.osu.edu/events.
Plant and Pest Clinic
What: Stop by to ask ...
As I watched a woodpecker banging away at a tree, it made me think, why don’t woodpeckers get headaches or suffer brain trauma from all that drumming? So, I looked it up.
Once again, nature has created a miracle that does not allow the woodpecker to get headaches or become dizzy. ...
Our temperatures have continued to fluctuate, but our winter weather will eventually remain colder and the darkness will cause us to bundle up, keeping ourselves warm.
The days are gaining minutes of light in the morning and evening, but it will be a couple of months before we notice ...