Today is Aug. 14, 2025.

• Good morning! The sweltering Dog Days of Summer officially ended Aug. 11, and right on cue we’re in for a nice one today: partly sunny and less humid, with a high of 83 and a low of 58. The weekend is looking good, too, although we could get a thunderstorm Sunday when the humidity cranks up again. The dogs may be gone, but they’re not forgotten.
  

• BACK TO SCHOOL: Enjoy these last days of summer vacation, kids, because it’s just about over — already. Stow-Munroe Falls students in grades 1-12 start the 2025-26 school year Wednesday, Aug. 20. Kindergarten begins Tuesday, Aug. 26, and preschool starts Wednesday, Aug. 27. For students in Silver Lake, the Cuyahoga Falls City School District starts the new school year Monday, Aug. 18 for grades 1-12, and Wednesday, Aug. 20 for kindergarten. Students at Holy Family School in Stow start classes Tuesday, Aug. 19.
  

• MUNROE FALLS JOB OPENINGS: The City of Munroe Falls still has openings for full- and part-time police officers as well as full-time permanent Laborer I ($19-$26/hr.) and full-time permanent Laborer II ($22-$28/hr.) positions for the service department/public works. Go here for more information and to apply.
  

• SILVER LAKE JOB OPENING: The Village of Silver Lake is accepting applications for a full-time Service Worker. Applications may be dropped off at Village Hall at 2961 Kent Rd. or emailed, attention Ben Gregory, at [email protected]. For more information and an application, go to this page.
  

• AKRON ZOO OFFERING FREE COMMUNITY DAYS: The Akron Zoo is offering Summit County residents free admission to the zoo for the entire month of September through its Summit County Community Appreciation Days. Tickets are available online at https://www.akronzoo.org/community-days and are date-specific. Tickets will be limited to four per household while supplies last. A limited number of tickets will also be available at Stow City Hall for residents of Stow.
  

• “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!

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Election

A look at the local candidates who will be on the ballot in the Nov. 4 General Election

The filing deadline for candidates to enter local races in the Nov. 4 General Election has come and gone. Below is a look at who’s running in The Spotlight’s coverage area:

STOW CITY COUNCIL:

• Ward 1: incumbent - Matt Riehl (unopposed). Ward 2: incumbent - Kelly Coffey; challenger - Sindi Harrison. Ward 3: incumbent - John M. Baranek (unopposed). Ward 4: incumbent - Mario Fiocca (unopposed). At-Large (3 seats): incumbents - Cyle Feldman, Kyle Herman, Jeremy McIntire; challengers - Josh Wall, Kim Young.

MUNROE FALLS CITY COUNCIL:

• Ward 1: incumbent - Ross Widenor (unopposed). Ward 3: John Impellizeeri (currently an At-Large member); challenger - Connie Collinson. At-Large (2 seats): incumbent - Jim Iona; challengers - Chris Ritzinger, Timothy M. Vesey.

SILVER LAKE VILLAGE COUNCIL:

• District A: incumbent - Thomas DiCaudo; challenger - James Kurtz. District B: incumbent - Kevin Rozsa (unopposed). District C: incumbent - Philip Kaplan (unopposed). District D: incumbent - Matthew J. Plesich (unopposed).

OTHER RACES:

• Stow Law Director: incumbent - Drew C. Reilly (unopposed).

STOW-MUNROE FALLS BOARD OF EDUCATION:

• Three seats: incumbents - Tina Merlitti, Pamela Wind; challengers - Kathrine Dannemiller, JoAnne Loparo, John Moyer, Jason Whitacre.

There’s still time for write-in candidates to enter races; their paperwork must be filed with the Summit County Board of Elections by 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 25.

Stow-Munroe Falls

SMF Lions Club putting the finishing touches on Paw Fest 2025 plans

Attention dog lovers: It’s time to start picking out those costumes and figuring out what hairdo Fluffy will have this year, because the Stow-Munroe Falls Lions Club is finalizing Paw Fest 2025!

The 18th annual event featuring dog vendors, rescue groups, the Humane Society, contests and more will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21 at Bow Wow Beach Dog Park in Stow’s Silver Springs Park.

This year’s dog contests include:

• Best Dog Costume in a Parade

• Best Dog in his/her Favorite Movie Costume

• Best Dog Trick

• Shortest and Longest Dog Tails

• With guest judges and prizes!

The event will also feature speakers, police officers and their dogs, and representatives from the All Breed Training Club of Akron. Guest presentations, the winner of the kids’ contest, and a gift raffle round out the day of tail-wagging fun.

Entry fee for the event is either $1 for parking or a donation of used eyeglasses. For more information, contact Chair Marty Dennis at [email protected].

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