Speaking of Trenton, thumbs up to all the people who have offered donations to make up for the recently stolen flag pole from the fields of the Edgewood Youth Baseball Association, including Polly Schuder of Madison Twp., who offered a flag pole from her farm for the association's use. It's hard to believe someone would go to the trouble of digging up about two feet of concrete that was attached to the pole — a deed that left a big hole in the ground — but they did, for whatever reason. We're grateful there are more good Samaritans than flag-pole thieves.
While we're on the subject of people who will steal anything not nailed down, thumbs down to the thieves responsible for at least 40 missing manhole covers in Middletown recently. The covers have been taken from the neighborhoods surrounding Mayfield Elementary School and from part of the city's east end over the past few weeks, police say. The thieves must be stealing the 250-pound covers in order to get cash in exchange for scrap metal, but they're creating road hazards and adding an expense that City Hall doesn't need right now. Anyone with information on the thefts is asked to call police Detective Rich Bush at (513) 425-7720.
Congratulations are in order for Jeff Galloway, the new director of the Butler County Emergency Management Agency. Galloway, currently the emergency management director in Fentress County, Tenn., was hired recently by the local EMA's governing board to replace William Turner who resigned earlier this year amid some controversy over the response — or lack of — after last September's Hurricane Ike-driven wind storm. Fairfield Twp. Trustee Mark Sutton, EMA board president, pointed to Galloway's diplomatic and political skills, as well as his 31 years of experience in fire service and emergency management, as reasons for his selection. He'll need all those skills to get this agency back on its feet and in good standing with all the police and fire departments in the county.