Today is June 2, 2021.

• "Considerable cloudiness" today, according to the weather people. That's more than appreciable and less than abundant. But only a little rain and a high of 71. The cloudiness will remain considerable overnight and into tomorrow, bringing more rain and a possible thunderstorm. It'll be in the low 70s tomorrow, too.
   
• Starting tonight, Tavern 1888 in Ravenna will host Bike Night every Wednesday, with food and drink specials from 6-9 p.m.

County government

The sheriff asked for millions, and now everyone wants a piece

• County Prosecutor Vic Vigluicci has requested a 14% average salary increase for his 41 staff members in 2022, totaling $268,000 more than what he spent last year.
   
• Treasurer Brad Cromes also requested a 6.5% average raise for his six staff members next year, which will amount to an additional $35,000 per year in total.
   
• You may recall Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski's spending request would add up to $2.9 million over three years (though some of this could be paid for through savings and fees).
   
• There were also across-the-board raises, a new $100,000 hire, raises for key senior managers and millions in overdue renovations.

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Letters to the editor

Letter: Lest we forget

It has long been the custom in Hiram each year to provide a program for the Memorial Day ceremony held at Fairview Cemetery. The program brochure includes a “Roll Call of Veterans.” The roll call includes names of veterans in Hiram Rapids Cemetery, Anchor-Moore Cemetery and Hiram Fairview Cemetery. Each of the names is read during the Memorial Day ceremony.

The names of eight veterans have inadvertently been omitted from the roll call lists for 2020 and 2021. Their names and military service notes are:
 

• Dallas D. Chinn, World War II
• Marland Chalker, World War II
• Ernest Moorhouse, World War II
• Stanley Hurd, Korean Conflict
• James Mark Moser, Korean Conflict
• Jerry Reynard, Vietnam War
• Scott Case, Air Force ROTC
• Joseph Stobierski, U.S. Army

Hopefully these names can be included in future honor roll listings for Hiram Village and Hiram Township.

Ann G. Patella, Hiram Village

Letter: In response to a Marjorie Taylor Greene event in Portage County

I would like to thank and commend the Editorial Board of the Record-Courier for their statement that the invitation to Marjorie Taylor Greene is disgraceful and divisive. But there is one very significant issue that has been overlooked.

Greene has claimed “there was MASS voter fraud on a scale that should terrify every American…” Amanda Suffecool, who chairs the Portage County Republican Party hosting this event, serves on the Portage County Board of Elections. Our Board of Elections, as affirmed by the Ohio Secretary of State, a Republican, is one of the most well run boards in the state. How do I reconcile the support of Greene, and her unsubstantiated claim of voter fraud, by an individual who is charged with the oversight of this county’s election reliability and trustworthiness?

What “every American regardless of political party” should be terrified of is voter suppression and the encouragement of Marjorie Taylor Greene and her false allegations of fraud. Ohio is already under the cloud of gerrymandering and newly proposed voter suppression legislation. It must be stopped.

Having open debate with those who disagree with me is welcomed. Supporting a speaker who makes false claims — formerly known as lies — is not only unwelcome, but such a speaker should be disinvited or the event must be boycotted.

Denise L. Smith

Editor's note: Smith, who said she authored this letter in her personal capacity, is the chair of the Portage County Board of Elections.

The Portager publishes letters to the editor from the community. You can submit to editors@theportager.com. 

News briefs

We're looking for a few more volunteer camera operators

• The owner of Kent's 157 Lounge was charged with first-degree misdemeanor assault for allegedly hitting a man in the head with a flashlight. A pre-trial hearing is set for today, reports KentWired.
   
• Hiram College was awarded the Tree Campus Higher Education designation by the Arbor Day Foundation for its commitment to conserving the campus' canopy. 
   
• Connie Schultz's The Daughters of Erietown and Derf Backderf's Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio are both finalists in this year's Ohioana Book Awards. Read about the finalists. And read columnist Mary Louise Ruehr's reviews by clicking on the titles above.