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Top 10 Newsworthy People of 2008
The Kaluza Verdict
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Davis Sentencing
Gallery
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Phantoms owner Bruce Zoldan at Phantoms vs Bandits Chevrolet Centre Nov. 14, 2008.
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Walter Pishkur
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Don Hanni Jr. Bull Moose
1 Marc Dann: The Valley sent him to Columbus with pride, and he returned in shame after the attorney general’s office was caught up in sexual harassment charges and he admitted an affair.
2 Kelly Pavlik: The middleweight champion of the world was flying high in February and June and was shot down by Bernard Hopkins in October. Still, he’s the most recognizable face in the Valley.
3 Joe Kaluza: The KFC manager was shot and paralyzed in a March robbery but showed up in court in September to testify against his assailant and inspired the Valley in the process.
4 Mary Rush: The 87-year-old died after being exposed overnight to the elements after apparently getting locked out of her home in April. Neighbors hearing her cries begged for the police to intervene, and the poor response led to a shake-up of the Liberty police department.
5 Michael Davis: Upset that his cell phone was stolen, the 18-year-old set a porch on fire at a neighbor’s home that quickly engulfed the house, killing six members of the Crawford family and starting 2008 off in deadly fashion.
6 Herb Washington, Bruce Zoldan (tie): The local McDonald’s franchise owner saw his IHL hockey team get kicked out of its league and, then, the Chevrolet Centre. In stepped the president and CEO of B.J. Alan/Phantom Fireworks, who brought his junior hockey team in to keep hockey alive and downtown.
7 Buzz Pishkur: Who better to lead Forum Health back to winning ways than Walter J. “Buzz” Pishkur, longtime basketball official and ex-head of Aqua Ohio, who was named the new president and chief executive officer.
8 Michael Broderick: The chief executive of Turning Technologies saw his company continue to shine as the fastest-growing privately held software company in the nation and the chief tenant of the resurgent downtown “Tech Block” featuring the Taft Technology Center.
9 Chip Gilea: Federal agents locked up this Boardman man and planned to deport him after an attorney botched his naturalization case. After he was incarcerated for more than 10 months, his family turned to a new lawyer and The Vindicator to get their son/brother released. He came home Nov. 21.
10 Don Hanni: Who else but the "Bull Moose," long-time Mahoning County Democratic Party chairman, could command a funeral that included the first visitation in the rotunda of the Mahoning County Courthouse witnessed by thousands of mourners?