From 2020 through the greater part of 2023, things ground to a halt due to the COVID plague. Different plagues and famines likewise hit Shakespearean England 800 years ago and they seemed to last for years and years. People died, people migrated to the new world. Here in our world in 2019, gatherings, town meetings and such were curtailed and frowned upon to minimize spreading the plague. We all had to wear surgical masks and minimize gatherings. Try and sing through a surgical mask! We were trying to do so at the musical jam sessions at the Mantua Center Christian Church. We gave up. Two and a half years later things are now beginning to pick up, people are beginning to gather once again, exchange ideas in the “new normal”. My new normal was to form a musical trio with two close acquaintances. This venture has flourished and I have learned so much about working in harmony, to create new harmony, with new people. (Hint, hint to all the school parties involved). Some of the groups, like MaRSI, that have basically been forced to be on hold these couple years are now beginning to redefine themselves and re-ignite what their objectives were in the first place. It’s been a struggle. Most people are now in their late 70s and 80s. They are worn down. I spoke to them in early spring about refocusing on perhaps creating, building a sense of Community in what exists. They weren’t ready to hear this then—too focused on fighting the old fight. There is no new blood coming in to carry on. Another closely-allied township service organization suffering similarly is Mantua Historical Society. First let me relate to you my experiences.
I was a Township Trustee, 1990-94. Here is what I experienced during that 4 year term, and why I bailed out. At 44 years old, I was talked into running by a current trustee, John Vechery who explained that he and the township needed my experience as a psychologist and straight forward, no BS person. Our children were the same ages in high school and college. Yada, Yada, Yada it went. We were friends but we frequently disagreed. John would be classified as old school, a local product. I, on the other hand, was clearly an outsider, big city boy, college educated. John used to say to me, “we’ll have to agree to disagree.” I heard that so much that I don’t believe that we ever agreed on anything at all. The other trustees (two at different times due to staggered elections), like John, were local products. It seemed that for four years what I did was bang my head against the wall being consistently outvoted on mostly everything. John and I did remain friends during my term and even after I left office. We had things in common—old cars for instance, and a sense of respect for each other. (Hint, hint to all parties involved) But from my other two trustees there seemed to be a strong need to preserve status quo on everything in the township. Don’t make waves, do nothing new or innovative. The vote would be two to one, you lose. Actually, I learned first hand that the only reason that one became a trustee was for the then 5K pay and the good medical insurance. Altruism……I don’t believe that they even knew what the word meant.
I also experienced the bullying by local thugs who were, I am sure, egged on by the then local power broker. I was invited over to his house. It did not go well. Suffice to say, there was no love lost between us. The straw that broke the camel’s back was toward the end of my first term. I had taken out the paperwork to run again—Vechery had encouraged me. When my family and I were at one of my business displays at the Mantua Potato Festival a disgruntled man in a clown costume came up to us and threw a bucket of water on my wife Barb and me and my Taxidermy display. That is assault, unequivocally assault on my family and my livelihood! The local cop whom I knew witnessed it all and quickly intervened and prevented me from doing physical harm to the clown. I felt so badly for my wife who was just there to help me. She was one of Crestwood’s most favored, most beloved by the children teachers and very much loved by me. That was enough politics for me. We packed up and left, and I immediately ceased and desisted any further attempts at re-election, I never put up a sign.
The Historical Society is headed by Dottie Summerlin. It desperately needs to be able to either move into a couple rooms of the vacant school or perhaps somewhere in the village. This opportunity to move into the school was offered to them early after the school building acquisition but, according to Summerlin, she turned it down because the rooms were so dirty and in need of great repair. They had no money or resources, to do this, and their members are senior citizens. This is an interesting observation that needs considerable consideration when judging the school situation. You can’t just blame the trustees. There is a budget to be adhered to! The school needed massive work to become useful—this adjudged by a local township service organization within the governing ranks.
The school building is already judged to be nearly fireproof (built after the infamous Collinwood fire in Cleveland). The elevator would be a sorely needed blessing for the mostly elderly volunteers, many of whom are over 75 years of age and have walking problems, hip problems, balance problems. Today the Historical Society collection and working quarters are housed in the second floor of an old, high ceilinged wooden Township building—the Town Hall (unaffectionately known by workers and volunteers as “The Tinderbox”.) Access is gained by climbing the steep, narrow, uneven stairs leading up to it. Likewise, a steep stairway leads straight down into Hades (I’m being nice here), as it is also unaffectionately known) the basement where the bathroom is located. Try to negotiate that if you are the least bit handicapped! What most often happens is that people use the historical “12 Holer outhouse”, an artifact for display only located behind the building. It is not meant to be actually used, but……….when you are crippled up, any port in a storm!! The whole Town Hall, a beautiful building outwardly, and inside by the way, is not handicapped accessible yet most of the workers and volunteers are….. handicapped!!! Summerlin asked that an elevator be installed (which she felt could be done for the upstairs but not the basement bathrooms) The answer from the trustees was NO because of money restraints and a change of this nature would vastly change the character of the building. These are legitimate concerns. It is a fact that the Township Historical Society is actively looking for, seeking a much more acceptable location possibly in Mantua Village. The township could lose the Historical Society. The Historical Society is also sorely in need of new blood, new volunteers (Hint, Hint). Summerlin is admittedly worn out.
Skip Schweitzer is a past Township Trustee,1990-94. He also served on the Zoning Appeals in the 1980s. He has first-hand knowledge of the local politics. He is a psychologist, current newspaper columnist, and retired businessman. He has lived in Mantua Township since 1975 (48 years). His children went to Mantua Center School and his wife Barbara retired from the School after 28 years. He has been associated with the MaRSI Save the School effort since the school was purchased. He is part of the Moonshadow Trio that sings and plays at the MaRSI Soup and Salad dinners. Many other people including Lynn Harvey, Carole Pollard, Kathy Hughes, Dottie Sumerlin, Trustee Matt Benner, have contributed to this series.
