3rd Annual Bookin’ 5K Race and Fun Walk
Wadsworth Public Library Foundation presents the 3rd Annual Bookin’ 5K Race and Fun Walk on May 18, 2013 at 9am.  Pull on those sweats, tie those sneakers and start training for the Library Foundation’s annual event.  We’ve had a great event the past two years, and it just continues to grow.  Be a part of it, whether you’re running, walking or cheering at the finish line.  All runners get a technical shirt while supplies last and we’re awarding medals to the top three men and women finalists in a range of age categories.

Registration begins at 8am and the 5K and one mile walk begin at 9am.  The 5K Run/Walk is $25 through May 1st and $30 on race day.  The one-mile walk is $15 for adults and $10 for those 18 years old and younger.  The event begins at the Wadsworth Public Library located at 132 Broad Street in Wadsworth.  Register online at http://bit.ly/Ynxe86.

Get Fit for Summer!
Get ready for summer! University Hospitals Medina Health Center will be hosting a childhood wellness event for kids of all ages to promote healthy lifestyles and summer safety.  Pediatric specialists will be on-site to provide children educational opportunities on the following topics:  Concussion and injury prevention; Health screens; Healthy sleep habits; Healthy weight; Nutrition and Stuffed animal clinic.

This complimentary event will give parents and children the opportunity to increase both knowledge and skills to prevent childhood obesity and chronic disease related to poor diet and lack of exercise.

Join the festivities on Saturday, May 18, 2013 from 1pm until 3pm at the UH Medina Health Center located at 4001 Carrick Drive in Medina.  If you have any questions regarding this event, please call 216.692.9333.

Trolley Museum Tours
May 18th and 25th

Enjoy a docent-guided tour of preserved electric railway equipment including city streetcars, interurbans and rapid transit vehicles and observe restoration work in progress on these historic vehicles.

From 10am until 4pm, the Northern Ohio Railway Museum is the place to be!  Located at 5515 Buffham Road in Seville, go back in time for these trolley museum tours.  There, on two miles of the historic Cleveland Southwestern Railway, the museum is working to attain its goal to collect, preserve, restore, display and operate streetcars and other railway equipment for the education of the public. Visit www.northernohiorailwaymuseum.org or call 330.769.5501 for more information.

Rock the Runway Fashion Show
On May 17th I.D.E.A. Jewelry, with additional support from Mimi Vanderhaven, VCS Salon and Sportsworld, will be presenting the first ever Rock the Runway Medina Fashion Show to take place at the Medina Community Theater.  The event is a fundraiser to benefit Main Street Medina that will give the people of Medina the opportunity to see just how fashion-forward the shops of Medina Square really are.  Doors open at 6:30pm to a “red carpet event” complete with wine, live music, shopping at our “Pop-up Boutique”, silent auction and surprise performances.  At 7:45 the Runway Show begins boasting hot new styles from local businesses.  A live DJ, multimedia production, and a crew of over 20 models will ensure the event is one people will be talking about for a long time!

Tickets are $15 in advance or $17 at the door (if the event doesn’t sell out in advance).  Your ticket will include a “Swag Bag” filled with coupons and freebies from participating stores, a free glass of wine, and a seat at what is sure to be “Medina’s Fashion Event of the Year!”

Participating shops include:  I.D.E.A. Jewelry, VCS Salon, Sportsworld, Posh Peacock, Second Sole, Whitey’s Army Navy Store, 4 Ladies and More, Miss Molly’s, The Dress Bridal Boutique, JK Gift Shop, Lemonberry, Earth Mothers, A Cupcake a Day, Jewelry by JanLee, Half Moon Yoga, and Main Street Cupcakes.

Tickets for the event are available through PayPal at www.mainstreetmedina.com, and also at I.D.E.A. Jewelry, Sportsworld, Whitey’s Army Navy Store, 4 Ladies & More, Miss Molly’s Gift Shop, JK Gift Shop, VCS Salon and Spa, A Cupcake a Day and Lemonberry.

For more information, call Main Street Medina at 330.952.0910.

Point, Click, Capture
Discover the natural world with digital photography.  Children in grades 4 and up are invited to discover the natural world with a digital camera.  Students will learn to take better and more interesting photos with instruction on basic camera techniques, composition and individual guidance.  Students must bring their own digital camera to class and know the basics of how to take a photo.

The instructor is Bill Buether, Saturday, May 18th from 10am to 12noon at the Wolf Creek Environmental Center, 6100 Ridge Road (State Route 94 just north of Sharon Center).  The cost is $20 per person.  To register, download a registration form from www.medinaartbuzz.blogspot.com or call 330.725.6443 and a form will be mailed to you.

This event is sponsored by the Medina County Arts Council.

ORMACO Party Bus to Pittsburgh!
Save the date of Saturday, May 4th and join ORMACO for another memorable Party Bus as we head to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to tour The Carnegie Museum of Natural History and spend the afternoon visiting Pittsburgh’s Strip District.  The party bus departs from Buehler’s River Styx at 8am and returns approximately 6pm.  You’ll enjoy muffins and mimosas as we head to one of the best natural history museums in our nation.  A one-hour guided tour will include the special exhibit, Empowering Women: Artisan Cooperatives that Transform Communities, then spend an additional hour at your leisure in this fantastic museum.  Then head to the Strip District, a mile-long stretch of land located directly northeast of Downtown Pittsburgh.  Dripping with character, the Strip District is a place like no other.  One visit and you can sense the energy and vitality.

There is limited seating on the bus and tickets are $65 per person.  Call 330.722.2541 for more information.  Additional pick-up and drop-off at Hoban High School in Akron.

National Travel and Tourism Week
May 4 to May 12, 2013 Nationwide

The first full week of May is annually recognized as National Travel and Tourism Week, a tradition first celebrated in 1984.  Localized events are presented in cities, state and travel businesses nationwide to champion the power of travel.  It was established as National Tourism Week when the U.S. Congress passed a joint resolution in 1983 designating the week to be celebrated in May.  In a White House ceremony, President Ronald Reagan signed a Presidential Proclamation urging citizens to observe the week with “the appropriate ceremonies and activities”.

Motorcycle Poker Run and Swap Meeting
On May 18, 2013 the Medina VFW Post 5137, 3916 Pearl Road, Medina will be host to a Motorcycle Poker Run and Swap Meeting.  Last year there were around 2,000 people and 700 motorcycles including a Chinese Raffle, Food and 50 vendors selling items from leather goods to a variety of crafted items and much more.  Our objective is to raise funds for local Wounded Warriors and second, to raise awareness of the unmet needs of Veterans.  For more information please contact Jack Forster, Commander of the VFW Post 5137 at 440.759.3732 (cell) or 330.725.0884 (post).

Memorial Day History
Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service.  Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic and was first observed on 30 May 1868 when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery.  By 1890 it was recognized by all the northern states.  The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war.  It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971) to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays.  

Traditional observance of Memorial Day has diminished over the years.  Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day.  To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed in December of 2000 which asks that at 3pm local time, for all Americans “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps’.

Check with your local city of township for the schedule of an event or parade on Memorial Day, May 27, 2013.

Medina County Park District

Saturday, May 11, 2013
Susan Hambley Nature Center, Brunswick from 10am to 2pm

Come join us as we host the 8th Annual Eco-Arts Chalk Festival.  Bring along your imagination to create chalk drawing masterpieces for prizes that will be awarded in each of the following categories:  best elementary, best middle school, best high school, best adult and best group entries.  Pat Catan’s Craft Center sponsors this free community event with chalk and prizes.  Online registration is encouraged so we can obtain the appropriate amount of supplies, but registrations will be taken on event day as well.  When registering, please indicate your entry preference by choosing from one of the five category options.  If you are participating as a group, please be sure to register each person in your group.  All ages welcome.  Register by May 10th.

Saturday, May 18, 2013
Wolf Creek Environmental Center, Sharon Center from 9am to 4pm

Do you know which plants will stop a cut from bleeding? Or which one takes the hurt out of a bee sting or itch away from a mosquito bite? Or how to make “coffee” out of a dandelion? There are hundreds of plants to eat in the woods, and there are some that you shouldn’t eat.  This class will show you which are which and how to enjoy them!  One of the most comprehensive edible/medicinal plant workshops you can attend, the class begins with a detailed slide presentation about the plants available in Northeast     Ohio.

You will learn what the plants look like throughout the different seasons and, most importantly, how to prepare them to make teas, medicinal tinctures and decoctions, and simple meals.  This will be followed by a field walk to see the plants in their natural environments.  The class will end with a hands-on project using wild plants.  Depending on plant availability, each person will help prepare the topic of the month such as a jam or jelly, dandelion wine or a medicinal salve.  The class is presented by Tom Laskowski, director of Midwest Native Skills Institute, Inc. (MNSI), a survival, wilderness and self-reliance school located in Northeast Ohio.  For more information about MNSI, check out its website at www.SurvivalSchool.com.  Ages 16 to adult.  Friends of the Parks members pay a $50 fee to participate.  Non-members pay a $60 fee.

Get Free Digital Magazines at www.mcdl.info
Medina County District Library is now offering a free online magazine service, brought to you by the Library, Recorded Books and Zinio.com!

Read full digital copies of your favorite magazines on your computer, tablet or mobile device.

Over 140 popular magazines
No subscription limits, no expirations (magazine availability subject to change)
All with your MCDL Library Card

Our subscription to Zinio gives you access to popular magazines using a computer, as well as a wide variety of phones, tablets and mobile devices, including the Kindle Fire (not HD) using a free Zinio Reader app.  “One nice feature of this new service is that the latest issues of your favorite magazines are automatically added to your account” said Sylvia Williams, Collection Resources Manager, Medina County District Library.

“People love going to their public library to read a large selection of magazines, but printed copies can easily get damaged, lost or destroyed,” said Rich Freese, president and CEO, Recorded Books.  “Books, music and audiobooks are transitioning to digital formats and now with Zinio for Libraries, we can offer digital magazines from most every major global publisher.”

Zinio provides a quick and easy way for library patrons to read digital copies of their favorite magazines.  Using their Mac or PC, reading fans will be able to access the library’s catalog of selected digital magazines.  Zinio’s unique digital platform recreates a magazine page-for-page, including highly visual full-color pictures, while taking the reading experience even further through intuitive navigation, key word article search and interactive rich media elements such as audio and video.

“We’re really excited about our new partnership with Recorded Books, which will allow us to offer our library of thousands of magazines to readers through their local libraries,” said Jeanniey Mullen, CMO, Zinio.  “This really expands the audience of readers who can experience their favorite magazines with the interactive, engaging rich media elements that Zinio offers.”  To sign up, visit www.mcdl.info.