METRO DIGEST || Children’s book drive at Barnes & Noble

Holiday book drive

BOARDMAN

Barnes & Noble, 381 Boardman-Poland Road, invites customers to give the gift of reading to children in need during the company’s annual Holiday Book Drive on Thursday. The United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley will host a book fair.

At the customers’ request, a portion of any purchase made that day will go toward the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, who will distribute the books to students in its Success By 6 and Success After 6 programs.

Dental students win

YOUNGSTOWN

A team of senior dental hygiene students at Youngstown State University placed first in the Informative Poster Presentation competition at the Ohio Dental Hygienists Association 2018 Annual Session in Columbus.

The winning team included Nina Petro of Poland; Marissa Phipps of Boardman; Renee Louk of Leetonia; and Brittany Tice of East Liverpool. Their presentation was aimed at educating dental hygienists about tonsil stone formation and prevention.

The prevalence of tonsil stones is increasing because more people are retaining their tonsils than in past years. Tonsil stones are calcifications that occur within tonsillar folds and can cause problems such as dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), oral malodor, coughing and ear aches.

Nearly 80 student groups from all 12 of Ohio’s dental hygiene schools competed. In all, six groups of YSU students participated.

Compost program

CANFIELD

Did you know a certification is required to legally compost livestock in Ohio? If you would like to learn more about composting and become certified, plan to attend a lunch and discussion from noon to 2 p.m. Friday at the Ohio State University Mahoning County Extension Office, 490 S. Broad St.

The cost is $25 and includes lunch and mortality composting manual. Speaker is Rory Lewandowski of OSU Extension.

For information, visit https://go.osu.edu/mortcompost. To register, call 330-533-5538.

Numerous charges

BOARDMAN

A township man faces numerous charges after police said he assaulted and stole money from his ex-girlfriend Saturday.

According to police reports, David Griffin, 32, entered the victim’s room at the Boardman Inn on Market Street and stole $272 to purchase heroin, the victim told police.

When Griffin returned, he demanded more money and pushed her into a wall when she said she didn’t have any.

Griffin initially refused to leave the room when police arrived. He was arrested on two charges of domestic violence, robbery and obstructing official business.

He was arraigned Tuesday on the charges in Mahoning County Area Court, and he has a preliminary hearing set next Tuesday at 11 a.m.