Ohio is ‘the heart of it all’

Ohio is once again “the heart of it all.”

State leaders unveiled a new (yet familiar) tourism slogan Wednesday, and it’s one that residents who have called the Buckeye State home for a while will recognize.

By returning to the state’s place as “the heart of it all,” state leaders are revisiting a marketing slogan used between the mid-1980s and 2016.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted visited the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery on Wednesday to talk about the new/old slogan.

The pair also made stops in Cleveland and Toledo to talk about the branding campaign.

The new campaign will replace the “Ohio. Find it Here” slogan, which promoted Ohio tourism since 2016.

The “heart of it all” slogan was meant to highlight the fact that roughly half of the U.S. population is located within 500 miles of Ohio’s state capital of Columbus.

But it’s more than a tourism slogan, DeWine said at the Boonshoft.

“When we have companies that we are trying to get to move to Ohio or expand in Ohio, one of the things we really emphasize is the quality of life,” he said. “And quality of life here is just absolutely phenomenal. There’s no better place to live, no better place to raise a family and no better to start a business.”

Wednesday was Ohio Tourism Day. The state has long highlighted the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, the Huffman Prairie Flying Field and the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, among other area sites, as places to visit.

“Ohio truly is the heart of it all,” Ohio Chamber of Commerce President and Chief Executive Steve Stivers said. “Our state has so much to offer— we have a low cost of living and a high quality of life. We are rich in natural resources, cultural amenities and economic development. We have flourishing, close-knit communities full of genuine, hopeful, hardworking people.”