This Party Scene is Gonna’ be Green (by Ben Petracco)

There is a great opportunity coming up to support the local education foundation. On March 3rd The Fort Thomas Education Foundation is hosting their annual dance at the syndicate to support the Teacher Grant Program. To date, the education foundation has been able to award over $300,000 in books, technology, equipment, and programs through the money raised in the events like this.

The theme of the night is not only dancing and fundraising, it is also “Be Seen Green”. You are encouraged to dress in a creative “green” outfit. Let your imagination run wild; dress as a leprechaun, Kermit the Frog, a large ficus tree, or Prince Fielder’s exorbitant baseball contract! Anything green and you’ll fit right in.

The tickets are $30 presale and after February 24th they are $40. You can buy tickets by contacting the office at 859-815-2004, by contacting a ticket captain throughout the community, or go to the FTEF website (listed below). The list of ticket captains are the following:

Ticket Captains:

Sally Muehlenkamp

Beth Otto

Kierston Gray

Angie Simons

Mick Lewis

Becky Manyet

Holly Collinsworth

Jeanie Herndon

Lisa Orem

Karen Gates

Theresa Spiess

Allyson Jones

Dave Osburg

Vickie Pelgen

Kristina Muholland

Tonya Tulley

Pam Brenner

Debbie Messmer

DeDe McNeal

Carla Grimm

Bobbi Jo Kraus

Christie Hosea

Julie Steppe

Tonya Weyer

Nikki Fennell

Jaime Hochleutner

Jean Farley

Jason Burgess

Kara Schneider

Ann Snider

Jessica Duke

Danielle Donelan

Adam Donelan

Bob and Becky Donelan

Diane Beach

Katie West

Michael Ann Jurgens

Gina Traylor

Karen McIntosh

Jen Kohl

Elizabeth McDougal

Joy Layman

Megan Abner

Maggie Mason

Shannon Thomas

Amy Hills

Michelle Tinkler

Dawn Laber

More information can be found at the Fort Thomas Education Foundation website: http://www.ftef.org/

If you’re looking for a fun night out and a way to support a fantastic cause mark your calendar for March 3rd at 8:00 p.m. Start brainstorming a green outfit and dust off your dancing shoes. It is sure to be a great night.

Police Presence at Kroger Marketplace/Target

It has happened to me a handful of times. I'm walking out of Kroger, maple turkey and Cheerios in tow, and I see someone waiting near the entrance, head down, hands in cuffs.

I guess its not necessarily surprising. Shrinkage in any retail situation is bound to happen. What struck me was, unless it was an uncanny coincidence, I have happened upon this scene about 5 different times.

I talked to a manager at Kroger's to cure my curiosity about how often this happens, what type of crime is occurring and if the police presence was having an impact.

According to the manager, there was an explosion of shoplifting when the store first opened. In her words, "they were catching people 4 to 5 times a week." Since then, Kroger has worked with Newport Police, who know have a car parked on the lot much of the time.

Kroger has also hired private security for every weekend and at night. Even with the security the company has hired, according to the manager "there still seems to be about one arrest a week."

The most interesting nugget from our conversation came when the manager told me the biggest issue, other than the shoplifting, was that the back parking lot was being used as a rendezvous point during drug deals. "Because of the proximity to the highway and the state line, the police told us our store was a convenient location. The police know the situation and seem to have it under control at this point."

Let's hope so. Has anyone else seen or heard anything like this?

The Downside of an Active Community

I have mentioned many times about how I think it is great that we have such an active community. I love that there are always people out and about and I love that it reinforces a healthy and active culture.

However, I think it may be time for a refresher on etiquette of a healthy lifestyle and its collision (pun intended) with the rules of the road. Perhaps these will resonate with you or you have a personal experience with some of these:

1. Streets are for traffic or parking – I understand that asphalt is better on the knees than concrete sidewalks but please use the sidewalks or go grab a treadmill.
2. Be aware of your surroundings – running with traffic while wearing your headphones is a recipe for disaster. You may want to hear horns or sirens so you can get out of the way of them.
3. Visibility is key – Please wear reflective or light colored clothing. I admit that I like to get my workout in dur\\ing odd times which means early morning basketball / racquetball and even running if that is what I am into at the time. But if you are going to run at 5am or 11pm please wear clothes that allow others to see you.
4. Be aware of intersections – since we are talking about visibility, try running behind cars that are ready to pull  of intersections instead of running in front of them and assuming that everyone can see you

I understand that it is the driver’s responsibility to watch out for pedestrians but when you are running in the street at 11pm in dark clothing with headphones blaring and expecting someone to see you who is pulling off a side street is akin to letting your drunk Uncle Bob from Eastern Kentucky try out his new bow and error by shooting an apple off your head.

My advise isn’t just for runners – I have a few pointers for those on bikes as well. Keep in mind that I have many
of these same conversations with many of my friends who are avid cyclists and many times we have to agree to disagree:

1. All rules apply equally - A common complaint of cyclists is that drivers do not respect them as equals on the road. However, if you are on a bike and you want to be treated equally then obey the same traffic signs and signals that drivers obey.
2.  I know it is a lost art but there are actually hand signals that can used in luau of actual electronic turn signals and lights. This isn’t just directed at bikers but also younger drivers who are unaware that such signals exist. I have included a short video below as a refresher….

Van Damme It's Friday Links

-Brian Robinson, the principal at HHS, provided Ben these videos to supplement his story about the time capsule unearthed in the renovation at the High School.

- Had an interesting photo posted on our Facebook page regarding the hypocrisy of our city officials who implore Ft. Thomas residents to shop Ft. Thomas businesses, then use companies outside of the city. I'll follow up with a post on this next week.

- A few new restaurants are/have opened. Mio's should be opening soon and The New Garden opened (I think) on Monday for the Chinese new year.

- The Griswold Decoration Challenge Winner is in (and yes, I know it's late January and we should have already posted it). Chris Lecky, c'mon down! You've won a 5-day supply of burgermania burgers from the 915! That's a long way to say you won a $25 gift card.

We hope as the holiday challenge gains popularity that more people will submit pictures and celebrate all the beauty that a decorated Ft. Thomas has to offer. Email me your address and let me know how I can get your prize to you.

Which Store Would you 'Cash Mob'?

Here is a great story out of Cleveland of how a community came together to support a small local retail store that had been open for 72 years but had struggled recently with a tough economy and large big box competition.  Sound familiar?  Watch the video (and / or read the article link above) and comment below with your pick of a Fort Thomas store to get ‘Cash-mobbed’

Back to Fort Thomas News - Midweek Update

Mark vs Food wasn't the only thing that happened in the past week. Here is a quick rundown of all the other news around the area:

1. A Fort Thomas woman was caught in a wire fraud scheme from her business in Bellevue.  According to the article, Jennifer Groneck, 47, of Fort Thomas, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. Groneck acknowledged that she stole a combined $645,904.27 from various banks and a mortgage lender.

2. There is a flurry of activity in Frankfort right now with the General Assembly in session - to keep up with the latest check out these resources:
     - Bluegrass Politics (Lexington Herald Leader)
     - Kentucky Politics (former Fort Thomas beat writer Scott Wartman)
     - Kentucky Progress (conservative view)
     - Barefoot & Progressive (progressive view)

3. It was rumored that the New Garden is opening this week. Anyone been by or actually try it out yet? Keep your eyes open and be sure to grab some takeout on your way home.

4. Also, speaking of new eating establishments in Fort Thomas it appears that Mios is only a few short weeks from an open.  They have been cleared to open by the Board of Health and the Fire Department and are accepting applications on their Facebook page.

5. I am surprised at the poster child that Omega Processing Solutions has become in regards to Northern Kentucky's attempt at a technology hub. Don't get me wrong - I am excited to have an Inc 500 employer in our little community that was started by a Fort Thomas resident.  I am just surprised that a credit card processor is held up as our shining example of what the College of Informatics can do.

My last mention of Mark vs Food from this weekend - here is a video of the entire event...

Mark vs. Food video from Fox 19

If anyone can find any others, please let us know!

The Highlands & UK Quarterbacks

Video of Will Chambers' interview with Patrick Towles and Jared Lorenzen.  It is very cool to see the mutual respect between the two and Jared's willingness to impart his experiences and lessons as an NFL quarterback.