Leaf Thursday, February 9, 2023 Vol. 29 No. 6 • Chardon, Ohio www.geaugamapleleaf.com $1.00
McArthur Appointed to County Election Board GOP Chair Takes New Role Amid Controversy By Amy Patterson amy@karlovecmedia.com
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Auburn Township Fire Department and many others responded to a call at about 4:50 p.m. Feb. 1 for a fire at a home on Lucky Bell Lane.
Residents Escape, Pets Perish in Auburn Fire
By Ann Wishart
ann@karlovecmedia.com
Cold temperatures did not hamper firefighters’ efforts to save an Auburn Township home Jan. 31. Auburn Assistant Fire Chief Mike Cardaman said the thermometer was near 15 degrees Fahrenheit around 4:50 p.m., when his department was dispatched to a fire at the home of Christopher Gregory on Lucky Bell Lane. Gregory, a woman and two juveniles escaped the blaze that apparently started in the kitchen, according to the Geauga County Sheriff’s Office report. Cardaman said the official cause of the fire would be determined by the Geauga County Fire Investigation Unit. The single-family, 2,710 squarefoot residence on 3.58 acres was about 25% involved when the Auburn fire department arrived, but about 90% of the home was damaged by the time the flames were extinguished, he said. Both family dogs were recovered from the home, but did not survive, Cardaman said. Fire departments from Geauga, See Fire • Page 3
Nancy McArthur, chair of the Geauga County Republican Party, was sworn in as the newest member of the Geauga County Board of Elections at a ceremony Jan. 25. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose made the appointment, which was needed to fill the expired term of longtime board of elections member Ed Ryder, who stepped down in December. It followed a recommendation from the GOP Executive Committee, which met Jan. 7 at the Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Center on Cedar Road in Chester Township. “I want to thank Frank (LaRose) as well for having the faith and belief See McArthur • Page 4
Sports starts on page 11
AMY PATTERSON/KMG
Geauga County Republican Party Chair Nancy McArthur, center, was sworn in to a seat on the county’s Board of Elections Jan. 25. McArthur was joined by about a dozen supporters including her husband, Michael, right, and by 11th District Court of Appeals Judge John Eklund, who administered the oath of office in the historic Chardon courthouse.
Fate of ‘Spelling Bee’ Uncertain Cardinal Leaders Discuss Whether to Flip the Script or Stick to It By Ann Wishart ann@karlovecmedia.com Drama surrounding Cardinal Schools’ proposed production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” took center stage Feb. 1 during an informal but tense discussion among the controversy’s central cast. Production Director Vanessa Allen, Superintendent Jack Cunningham, board members Wendy Anderson and Katie Thomas, Cardinal Middle School Principal Mike Hall and a teachers’ union representative met to discuss how best to move forward following the board’s Jan. 25 decision to cancel “Spelling Bee” over its PG-13 content. Among the options discussed was making changes to the production. There are legal limits to doing so — characters and storylines can’t be changed, and any changes must go through the company that holds production rights, Allen said — but it might not be an insurmountable challenge.
Cardinal Schools’ decision to cancel the high school spring play — The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee — has received national attention, including from Jesse Tyler Ferguson, an original cast member from the play’s Broadway debut in 2005. The actor took to social media, as pictured right, to share his thoughts, adding the reasons for the cancellation given by the board are, in his mind, “thinly-veiled covers” of their actual motivations. “Definitely more than one person at this school is gay, or lesbian, or bisexual,” Ferguson said in response to the idea the play may have been cancelled for some slight references to homosexuality. “The message that this sends to them, that that is not family appropriate, or family friendly, rather, is toxic, and harmful, and kind of abusive.” Local volunteer assistant director Mandi Matchinga verified by phone Feb. 3 the “Spelling Bee” writers are willing to collaborate on a rewrite. “We did receive an email from Rachel Sheinkin, one of the original writers,” Matchinga said. Scheinkin offered, if given a specific list of issues, to sit down with
the other writer and make adaptations and modifications to the script to address the board’s concerns and make it appropriate for the Cardinal community, she added. Concerns about the musical were brought to the board’s attention when a resident sent an email See Musical • Page 5
Chardon Bakery Brings Creative Twist to Desserts page 10
Liang Shares Plans for International School page 9
Opinion page 8
Obituaries pages 15
Sheriff’s Sales & Legal Notices start on page 18
Classifieds page 20
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