Event to honor Heroes of the Valley

The American Red Cross breakfast will be Saturday morning at Antone’s Banquet Centre in Boardman.

STAFF REPORT

BOARDMAN — Area residents will be recognized for outstanding contributions to their community at the American Red Cross Mahoning Chapter’s Heroes of the Mahoning Valley breakfast.

The seventh annual event will be from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at Antone’s Banquet Centre, 8578 Market St.

The event will be hosted by Scott Schneider, WFMJ 21 “Today Show” anchor. The public is welcome to attend.

Tickets for the ceremony are $15, which includes a buffet breakfast. Call the ARC Mahoning Chapter at (330) 726-6063 for more information and to reserve a seat.

The heroes will be honored for performing extraordinary acts of courage; donating countless hours to the betterment of the community; and showing kindness and unselfish character in several categories — Good Neighbor, Community Impact, Animal and Law Enforcement.

The heroes are:

Good Neighbor

Joel Imler was spending one October day at a friend’s home on Willis Avenue on Youngstown’s South Side sitting with his friend’s four children while their father was out. The children were on the second floor, and Joel went to the basement for a diaper.

On the way back upstairs, he discovered a fire on the main floor. Joel ran upstairs and grabbed all the children. He was forced to run through flames and suffered severe burns on his arm and back getting the children to safety. He was nominated by Cheryl Levy, Youngstown Fire Chief Alvin Ware and the Rev. Lewis Macklin.

Canfield neighbors Ron Knarr, Gerald DeCamp and Jon and Sandy Ulicney, during a torrential rain last June, were checking a creek running under Herbert Street Bridge when they noticed two young men rafting in the creek and realized that, with the high water, the men would become trapped under the bridge. One of the young men escaped on his own, but the other reached the bridge and, unable to pass under it, grabbed onto the bridge. With the water current threatening to pull the young man downstream, the neighbors grabbed hold of his arms and pulled him to safety. They were nominated by Carol Knarr.

Community Impact

Core Six, a group of local businessmen, Steve Bott, Donny and Andrea Murphy, John Morvay, Sam Pitzulo, Jim Rach, Joe Reinthaler and Tom Parrenzino, have taken it upon themselves to improve the lives of Mahoning Valley families. In 2009, they took up the cause of Joe Kaluza, the KFC manager who was shot during a robbery and left paralyzed. With the help and support of hundreds of volunteers and donations of money and materials, Core Six built Joe and his family a new handicap-accessible home. Joyce Bailing nominated them.

Marjorie Haynie has been a Red Cross volunteer for 67 years. She was nominated by Vince Chianese of Struthers.

ARK (Acts of Random Kindness) of Holy Family School, a group of fourth-graders, has shown that little girls can do big things, said Melanie Jones, who nominated the group. Throughout the 2008-09 school year, the girls collected backpacks for the Easter Seals preschool, brought crafts and sang carols to the residents of the Blackburn Home, made donations to the Children’s Hospital in Boardman and helped a local widow with yardwork and window cleaning among other activities. They also earned CPR certifications and are training a third-grade class to continue the tradition.

Poland North Elementary Parent Teacher Organization is committed to providing the students with positive experiences and activities designed to enrich not only the students, but the community as a whole, said school Principal Michael Masucci, who nominated the PTO. Poland North Elementary received the designation “Excellent with Distinction” from the Ohio Department of Education. Masucci said he would like the school’s dedicated parents to also be honored as “Excellent with Distinction.”

Shepherd of the Valley Management Team, consisting of about 50 managers in SOV’s five facilities, takes great pride in giving back to the community, said T.J. Eisenbraun, who nominated the group.

Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley and Big Reach Center of Hope are two of the several organizations that have benefited by the hard work and dedication of the management team, he said.

Animal

Diane Less has for many years been a champion of homeless animals, caring for a large number at her home until permanent homes are found. According to Matt Ditchey, who nominated her, in the past year she has taken in more than 75 cats and paid for their medical care until a family could be found to adopt them.

In addition, she has fostered more than 60 animals for Angels for Animals and donated all adoption fees back to Angels. She speaks to children about caring for pets, volunteers at the Angels crematory and appears on television each week to promote pet adoptions.

Law Enforcement

Mahoning County Deputy Sheriff Greg Taillon, a school resource officer in the Jackson-Milton district, spends countless hours helping the children with any problems they may have in or out of school and has exhibited a continued dedication to the families.

A troubled young woman reached out to Taillon during a low point in her life. With his help, she returned to her family, received the help that she needed to get back on her feet and was able to graduate with honors, being chosen the “Outstanding Student of the Year.” He was nominated by Cynthia Eddinger.