Swearing-in set for Jan. 13

Gov.-elect Ted Strickland and Lt. Gov.-elect Lee Fisher will take their oaths on the West Lawn of the Ohio Statehouse.
The public swearing-in ceremony of Gov.-elect Ted Strickland and Lt. Gov.-elect Lee Fisher is planned for 11:30 a.m. Jan. 13 on the West Lawn of the Ohio Statehouse.
No ticket is required, and the event is open to the public.
Chief Justice Thomas Moyer will administer the oath of office for Strickland, a Lisbon Democrat. Stanley Fisher will lead the oath for his son, Lee, a Cleveland Democrat. Strickland will deliver his inaugural address after the oaths.
After the ceremony, Strickland and his wife, Frances, and Fisher and his wife, Peggy, will great the public in the Statehouse Atrium.
Additional inaugural events, including the Ohio inaugural ball, will be announced shortly.
Strickland and Fisher will take the oath of office Jan. 8 in a brief, private ceremony.
Strickland is encouraging those attending the festivities to donate a bag of nonperishable food that will be given to the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Food Banks or to make a financial donation to the food banks.
Second Harvest is the state's largest charitable organization for the hungry with 12 regional locations, including one in Youngstown, serving more than 3,000 member charities.
"As we celebrate the joy of the season, we can give hope and sustenance to our less-fortunate neighbors by making a contribution to Second Harvest's network of food banks," Strickland said. "I can think of no better way to mark the beginning of our new administration."