Responsible Gaming week kicked off today at Austintown racino

AUSTINTOWN — State, local and racino officials gathered at Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course to kick off "Responsible Gaming" week late this morning.

The H Lounge was decorated with balloons for the news conference at the Austintown gaming facility with the words "Responsible Gaming" in balloon letters lining the lounge stage.

A mascot for the week, Officer Obvious, was featured in a video played during the news conference. It featured a person who used their paycheck on drinks, horse racing bets and at the video lottery terminal machines and didn't realize he had spent his paycheck.

"Now make the obvious decision and go get some help," Officer Obvious said at the end of the video.

Ohio Senate Minority Leader Joe Schiavoni of Boardman, D-33rd, said that people often forget about issues with new facilities such as Hollywood Gaming and "when gambling stops becoming fun ... oftentimes problems start to come for you and your family."

Ohio Lottery Commission officials said there are about 250,000 at risk gamblers in the state of Ohio.

For the complete story, read Tuesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com