Today is Sept. 19, 2024.

• Good morning! We’re heading into the last weekend of summer, and it’s not going to disappoint. Today it’s going to be partly sunny and warm with a high of 82 degrees and a low tonight of 56. We’ll follow that with highs of 85 on Friday, 83 on Saturday and 83 again Sunday for the first day of fall — with sunny skies each day. And now …
  

• SAY HELLO TO AUTUMN! Fall officially arrives at 8:44 a.m. EDT on Sunday, Sept. 22 with the autumnal equinox, an astronomical event that marks the start of fall each year. The autumnal equinox is one of only two days a year — the other being the vernal equinox, the first day of spring — when the sun is directly above the equator, resulting in roughly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness everywhere on Earth.
  

• VOTING SCHEDULE FOR THE 2024 NOVEMBER GENERAL ELECTION: Military & Overseas Absentee Voting: Begins Sept. 20; Deadline to Register to Vote: Oct. 7 (boards open until 9 p.m.); Early In-Person Voting: Begins Oct. 8 (includes the two Saturdays and the two Sundays before Election Day); Absentee Voting By Mail: Begins Oct. 8; Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 5 (polls open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.). If not returned by mail, absentee ballots must be received by your board of elections by 7:30 p.m. Nov. 5. For more information, go to this page.
  

• FREE ADOPTION WEEKEND AT THE HUMANE SOCIETY: The Humane Society of Summit County is waiving all adoption fees on all animals this weekend at its shelter at 7996 Darrow Rd. in Twinsburg. To adopt a furry family member, go to the shelter between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21 and Sunday, Sept. 22. No appointment is needed. All adopters must complete an adoption approval form prior to bringing a pet home. All cats must go home in a pet carrier; if you do not have one, you will need to purchase one for $5. Contact 330-487-0333 or [email protected] for more information.
  

• VILLAGE OF SILVER LAKE OPENINGS: The Village of Silver Lake has two openings for residents interested in serving the community. The first is an opening on the park board for a resident from any portion of the village; this person will serve the remainder of a term that expires Dec. 31, 2025. Also, the citizens housing committee has an opening for a resident in Ward C; this person will serve the remainder of a term that expires Dec. 31, 2026. Those interested in being considered for these vacancies should submit a letter of interest and qualifications to Mayor Therese Dunphy at [email protected]. Applications are due by Friday, Oct. 11. Go here for more information.
  

• MORE FROM SILVER LAKE: The Village of Silver Lake is now hiring for the service department’s season leaf crew, which will work from Oct. 28 through Dec. 6. Hours will be determined by the village’s director of public service. Pay is $17 an hour with a $200 attendance bonus. Go here to access the application online. Applications can be mailed to or dropped off at Village Hall at 2961 Kent Rd.
  

• WHERE DO YOU STAND ON THE SMF SCHOOLS BOND ISSUE? The Spotlight is taking the pulse of the Stow-Munroe Falls community on the upcoming $238 million, 35-year bond issue the school district is putting on the November ballot to build five new schools. If passed, the 8.89-mill bond issue would increase property taxes for owners of homes valued at $200,000 by nearly $622 annually. Send us your comments on the issue, and we will publish them as we get them in our “Reader Spotlight” feature (detailed below).
  

• “Reader Spotlight” is a forum where you can send us your comments, concerns and suggestions on anything going on in our communities of Stow, Munroe Falls and Silver Lake. Send your email to [email protected], put “Reader Spotlight” in the subject line, and please include your name and town (recommended but not required for publication). We will publish comments as we receive them.
  

• If you just subscribed or missed something in an earlier newsletter, don’t fret: Subscribers have access to every edition of The Spotlight at www.stowmunroefalls.com. Check out back issues to catch up on everything that’s going on in our communities — you never know what you might have missed!

⭐ Several stories in this issue are only available to premium subscribers: Fall family outing, SMF school ranking, Craft Beer Fest, Sunoco pipeline and more local news. Full access is just $2.99/month.

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Community

Paw Fest 2024: Lions and canines and vendors, oh my!

Paw Fest Chair Marty Dennis says the Lions surely “roared” this past Sunday as the Stow-Munroe Falls Lions Club celebrated yet another hugely successful Paw Fest fundraiser. The event was held at Bow Wow Beach Dog Park in Stow.

“The weather was perfect, the vendors were ready for business, and the dog contests and speakers rounded out a great day to honor our canines!” she said. “Even the Browns won! ... Oops, not related.” Actually, it kind of is: Fittingly, the Browns — aka the “Dawgs” — picked up their first win of the season by beating the Jaguars 18-13 in Jacksonville, Florida on the same day as Paw Fest.

Proceeds from Paw Fest and other fundraisers help the Lions provide eye checks for students at local schools — just one example of the organization’s many community involvements. “The Stow-Munroe Falls Lions Club members thank everyone who attended Paw Fest to help their yearly fundraiser event,” Dennis said.

And now, on to Paw Fest 2025. Woof!

Reader Spotlight

— From Kerensa Parke, Munroe Falls: “I’m voting ‘yes’ in support of the school bond issue. We’ve put off addressing our deteriorating schools for decades. We can no longer kick the can down the road. Most buildings are falling apart; over time, repairing and updating actually costs much more than rebuilding. Investing in our schools is so important to our community in countless ways. This is the year we need to vote to make this finally happen for our wonderful school district.”

— From Daniel Mainzer, Stow: “The proposed rebuilding of the entire school inventory is unacceptable as presented in one giant project. Clearly, the costs are understated as buildings cannot be built at one time. Each year costs increase and this was not figured into the estimates. How can any citizen of Stow vote for such a poorly designed plan? Also, the school levy is unaffordable given the average 50% increases in property taxes in the last 3 years.”

— From anonymous: “My property tax, after the levy and then the nearly immediate reappraisals after the passing of said levy, has gone up 41% since 2022. Also, when you look at the breakdown of the taxes on the bill, 64% is going to SMF Schools. They received a large bump in funding and should not receive a penny more. Sorry... not sorry. Another obvious question... Since all of the buildings are as old as I am or older (54), how can anyone justify taking no action for decades then asking to replace all buildings at once? Or building a field house before building a single school? Also, we are expected to live with zero transparency regarding budgets/spending and picking a new superintendent that literally no one wanted, except the the school board? NO WAY! This is not getting my vote.”

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