Wedding__________________________________

Fairbank - Griffin

Amber Marie Fairbank and Bryan Thomas Griffin, both of Dayton, were married Saturday, June 16 at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jenera, Ohio.  Co-officiants were Pastors Thomas M. Frey, the groom’s uncle, of Defiance, Ohio and Steven Edmiston of St. Paul Evangelical  Lutheran Church in Jenera.

The couple was honored at a dinner/dance reception held at the home of the groom’s aunt and uncle, Ruth and Gary Lamberjack, in Jenera.

Jeff Breitigam was the organist and vocalist.

Brooke Griffin, of Oakwood, sister of the groom, was the maid of honor.  Bridesmaids were Megan Cole and Abby Schoonover, both of Dayton; and Ashley Daprano of Syracuse, NY, cousin of the bride.  The flower girl was Sara Napelitano of Syracuse, NY, cousin of the Bride.

Best man was Brett Griffin of Oakwood, brother of the groom.  Ushers were Adam Dodge of Jenera and Matthew Frey of Perrysburg, both cousins of the groom, and Zach Meadows of Dayton.  The ring bearer was Dustin Minich of Xenia, brother of the bride.

The bride wore a strapless princess-style gown of candlelight satin with blue and clear crystal beading, a crystal beaded tiara and a custom beaded veil.  She carried cream-colored Vendella roses and gerbera daisies.

The attendants wore ice-blue strapless, tea-length dresses with rhinestone accents. They carried white gerbera daisies.

The bride is the daughter of Dennis Fairbank of Dayton and Dawn Minich of Xenia.  She is a 2005 graduate of Fairmont High School in Kettering.  She attended Sinclair Community College and will enter Bowling Green State University in the fall.

The groom is the son and step-son of Russ Griffin of Port Clinton and Lois and Ron Smith of Oakwood.  He is a 2004 graduate of Oakwood High School and will enter active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps in July.  He is a martial arts teacher at Stephen K. Hayes Quest Center in Dayton.

Wedding__________________________________

Thickel - Randall

Lauren Kathleen Thickel and Dr. William John Randall were married November 4, 2006 during a wedding mass held at the Church of Holy Angels, Dayton, Ohio. Lauren is the daughter of Nancy and Thomas Thickel of Oakwood.

William is the son of Mary Randall also of Oakwood and the late Dr. Jack Randall. William is an alumnus of Oakwood High School. He graduated from the University of Dayton with a Bachelor of Science degree and received his medical degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He is a primary care physician and a partner of The Primed Medical Group.

Also a graduate of Oakwood High School, Lauren attended the University of Kentucky and graduated in December from Miami University with a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is a member of Alpha Xi Delta sorority.

The afternoon ceremony was celebrated by Father Daniel Meyer and co-presider Father Thomas Beischel C.P.P.S.

Caroline Thickel, the bride’s sister served as maid of honor. Alexandra Thickel, also sister of the bride, served as bride’s maid along with Elizabeth Randall, daughter of the groom, and  Katey Clark, friend of the bride. Abigail Randall also daughter of the groom, was flower girl. Jack Randall served his dad as best man. Groomsmen were John Davis, Dr. Tom Greer and Brian Weltge, all friends of the groom. Following the ceremony a wedding dinner and dance reception was held at Dayton Country Club.

The couple honeymooned in the southeast at Biltmore Estate and The Greenbrier before returning to their Oakwood home.

Engagement_______________________________

Takahashi – Brothers

Eric Brothers and Samantha Takahashi announce their engagement.

Brothers graduated from the University of Central Florida with a major in Forensic Science and a minor in Criminal Justice. He is employed as a Forensic Scientist/CSI by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.

Ms. Takahashi is currently a student at the University of Central Florida with a minor in Legal Studies and a minor in Criminal Justice. She is employed by the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office in Communications.

Brothers is the son of Don and Laurie Brothers, formerly of East Schantz Avenue in Oakwood. He is a 1993 graduate of Oakwood High School. A March 21, 2008 wedding is planned in Orlando.

Engagement_______________________________

Creek - Miller

Colonel and Mrs. Howard Creek of Oakwood are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Heather Creek, to Gregrey Miller.

The bride-elect is a 2002 graduate of Oakwood High School.  In 2006 she graduated magna cum laude from Texas Christian University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ballet and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.  Heather has been under contract as a full company member with a professional ballet company in Dallas while also working as a legislative aide for the Texas House of Representatives. She will begin work on her Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of Maryland this fall.

The prospective groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Miller of Lawton, Oklahoma. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology.  He is a structural design engineer with Lockheed Martin.

The couple will marry on August 4, 2007, at the First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, Texas.  They will honeymoon on the island of St. Lucia. The couple plans to reside in Washington, D.C.

Lt. Keith Benson graduates from PELC

Lt. Keith Benson, at right, being awarded a graduation certificate from Chief Gary Vest, Powell Police Department and President of the Association of Chiefs of Police.

Lt. Keith Benson, of the Oakwood Public Safety Department graduated from the Law Enforcement Foundation’s Police Executive Leadership College (PELC) on June 15. He was one of 29 students attending the 49th session of the college.

“First of all, I want to thank the community and our city administration for allowing me to attend this valuable training. One message that was instilled into me that I found important is to lead by example and to rely on your core values when faced with a tough decision,” Lt. Benson said.

Lt. Benson has served with the Oakwood Safety Department for eight years. His accomplishments during that time have included: evidence technician, paramedic, field training officer, and DARE youth services officer.  

PELC is an intensive, three-week leadership-training program for law enforcement executives. It is based on the premise that leadership skills can be learned, and given opportunity for feedback and practice, that executives can substantially improve their leadership abilities. The program involves 105 class hours over three weeks on 20 topics, 24 required readings, six research papers, five community interviews, three speeches, and three team projects. Over 1,400 Ohio law enforcement executives have attended PELC since it’s beginning in 1988.

Ashley’s Pastry Shop celebrates 25th year 

By Dolores Winkler

For 25 years, Oakwood’s “sweet tooth” has been served by Ashley’s Pastry Shop on Park Avenue. It was that long ago that Greg and Theresa Hammons purchased the bakery that had always occupied that building.

Their backgrounds brought many assets that would add to their success as entrepreneurs. Greg comes from a family of bakers. For her part, Theresa had experience in marketing and market research with Proctor and Gamble.

Both are originally from Cincinnati. After their marriage, Greg and Theresa moved to Dayton where he headed Rike’s bakery department in its then-downtownDayton location. Another job offer took the Hammons to Detroit where Greg
became manager for the J. L. Hudson Department Store bakeries.

Meanwhile, Park Avenue’s Oakwood Bakery was sold to Servatti’s, a well-known Cincinnati bakery. Six weeks later, the business was on the market again. A friend called the Hammons in Detroit to tell them about the bakery’s availability.

They had always wanted their own bakery business. The timing was right, and so, with Theresa only two weeks away from delivering their first child, the Hammons moved to Dayton to become owners of their very own bake shop.

They kept the Servatti’s name for about a year, but changed it to Ashley’s, naming it after their first daughter who will be – you guessed it - 25 years old this month. They also have a younger daughter, Lyndsay.

“This (quarter-century) milestone is a tremendous benchmark for us,” said Theresa. “We have been very lucky. We have fantastic employees (one of the bakers has been there for 23 years, another for 20 years), and a phenomenal customer base whose patronage has been responsible for our success.” Having had a marketing background, Theresa knows the importance of good customer relations. “It’s all about the customer,” she said, “…and the community,” she added. You will find them supporters of many community events.

No description of Ashley’s can be complete without mentioning the ever-famous “sand tart,” an enigmatically popular cookie that ranks as Ashley’s No. 1 cookie seller. “Where did this cookie come from?” we asked. Is it a family recipe? She provided an interesting answer.

“The original Oakwood Bakery owners had the sand tart recipe, but we couldn’t obtain the recipe. So we sent the cookie to General Mills in Minneapolis to have it analyzed. They gave us a breakdown of ingredients, and with that in hand, Greg tried various combinations until he came up with the most accurate replica of the original.” Today, it is ordered by alumni for their reunions, sent to Oakwoodites around the country and remains unique to Ashley’s.

Eating habits have changed significantly in the past few years, and the bakery business has had to adapt to these healthier trends. “We use more whole wheat, more transfat-free recipes today to cater to the requirements of this healthier-eating public,” Theresa said.

Ashley’s success reflects their ability to keep current with what today’s customers want. Success is also reflected, you might say, in the amounts of flour and sugar used yearly by this small, but mighty, bakery. Think about 150,000 pounds of flour and 85,000 pounds of sugar. That’s a lot of baking that comes out of Ashley’s, the “sweet” center of Oakwood deserving of a celebration cake of its own.

Rau joins Learning Tree Farm

Oakwood resident Pat Rau has been hired as Executive Director of The Learning Tree Farm, one of the favorite field trip destinations of young students everywhere in the Miami Valley. According to Rau, she spent the past week getting to know the staff, meeting a few of the benefactors of the farm and getting her computer up and running. Here she is pictured, at left, with some young visitors.

Local author re-issuing humor book

Oakwood presidential historian, humorist and author Tom Cecil recently restocked his family humor book entitled I Want My Turn In The Shower receiving 1,000 copies. Cecil is a retired attorney who practiced law for 40 years in a small Dayton firm. Stories in his book have been culled from guest columns published in local newspapers.

In I Want My Turn In The Shower, Tom aims his gun at humor in everyday situations and at numerous government schemes that dot our political landscape such as pork, perks, fraud, waste, greed, logrolling and deficit budgets. Cecil pokes fun at children, food, language, sports, presidents, taxation, animals, Christmas and leftovers.

Everything is fair game - from fruitcakes to ostriches.

Tom says the book, ordinarily selling for $10.95 may be purchased by Oakwood and Kettering residents for $9, autographed and delivered to their homes. The book, he claims, makes an excellent Christmas or birthday gift.

Tom lives in a ll0-year-old farmhouse on Patterson Rd in Oakwood. He spends his leisure time writing, reading, playing tennis and visiting seven children and 16 grandchildren in Ohio and Colorado.

You may contact Tom at 218 Patterson Rd., Dayton, Ohio 45419 or 293 9993.

The Bell heard around the world

By Tom Cecil

Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), if living today would be 160 years old.  The patent for the telephone was issued March 7, 1876 when Bell was only 29 years of age.

The first actual message on the telephone was quite by accident.  Bell and his assistant, Thomas Watson, were in different rooms in the laboratory and were preparing to try a new transmitter.  Suddenly Watson heard Bell’s voice saying, “Mr. Watson come here.  I want you.”  Bell had accidentally spilled acid from a battery on his clothing and the message was heard by Watson on the telephone they were trying to invent. By contrast the first message on the telegraph was quite lofty.  The inventor keyed, “What hath God wrought?”

Bell continued to experiment and register patents throughout his entire life but never surpassed his crowning achievement of inventing the telephone, which changed the whole world.

During his entire life, before and after his telephone invention, Bell worked with the deaf, teaching them to talk.  In fact he once told his family he would rather be remembered as a teacher of the deaf than the inventor of the telephone.

If Bell came back to life today he would be surprised to find all of the related devices added to his original invention.  For example: caller I.D., call waiting, three way conversations, cordless phones, cell phones, speaker phones, fax messages, direct dial all over the world, the new cell phone lodged behind the ear and even picture phones.  At a recent family gathering my two sons-in-law sat across the table from each other with cell phones.  Each had an image of the other on his cell phone.  I am fascinated with the modern technology of the 21st century.

I heard recently that cell phones can now tell parents of teenagers the approximate location of their children. This is known as GPS (Global Positioning System). This must be welcome to parents of teenagers whose kids are always saying, “We’re going to the youth meeting at church,” as they leave home.

One of the stories told bout Bell is that he grew to dislike the telephone because it interrupted his experiments in the laboratory.  This brings up the subject of some of the negative aspects of telephonic communication today.

One is call waiting where the person I’m talking to puts me on hold to identify someone else who is trying to reach him.  Another is dialing a business number and experiencing a cafeteria list of options.  For example, “press one if you want to speak to John Smith, press two if you want to speak to Mary Jones and three if you want to speak to the janitor” — on and on ad nauseun. I would add press four if you are tired of listening to this message.  A company with such a message is saving money by making me do their work instead of hiring another operator.  I yearn for the good old days when a live receptionist connected me immediately to the person I wanted to talk to.

Although the telephone is sometimes the harbinger of bad news it also can bring good news.  For example, you receive a cross continent telephone call from your kids who put your grandson who, has just started to talk, on the telephone to say a few words; your son, just home from Iraque, tells you that he is safe and his enlistment is completed; your stock broker informs you that the stock you bought a month ago has tripled in value; your doctor calls to tell you that the tumor he checked is benign; the Board of elections calls to tell you that you have just been elected dogcatcher.
Thank you, Mr. Bell, for making all of this possible.

top of page

July 3, 2007
Volume 16, No. 27

front page
arts
schools
sports
editorial
'round town
people
events
obituaries