Two years of collaborative efforts will come to fruition this fall with the opening of St. Benedict Catholic School. As Little Flower of Jesus and Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic grade schools had seen a decline in enrollment, the parents, staff, and parishioners became proactive and planned a joint venture. According to Principal Carol Huss, the timeline was moved up for this upcoming school year. The individual parishes will remain open, but the decrease in family size over the years has played a major roll in the decline of enrollment in the schools.
Though remaining on the Little Flower campus, located on Olimphia Rd. between Bancroft and Dorr Streets, St. Benedict is an entity all its own. The implementation team worked diligently with both schools considering all input from families and parishioners. The school will also incorporate new uniforms. “This is not Little Flower Act II. This is a brand new school,” said Huss. “We decided this was the right time to collaborate our efforts.”
St. Benedict will be open for grades preschool through eight. In addition to core subjects, the school will offer foreign language courses and music classes. Students can also join band and strings. Advanced extracurricular activities and cultural experiences will also be made possible due to the joint venture. “We want to be the best school we can possibly be,” said Huss. “In the long run, everything is a positive outcome.”
St. Benedict Catholic School opening soon
On the day you were born
On the day
you were born
The happiest and most important days in every parent’s life are those on which their children are born, and to document this little addition to the world, every child receives a birth certificate from their home state. But the Ohio Department of Health is moving away from a standard certificate and is offering three new commemorative heirloom birth certificate styles. Parents can now choose a native Ohioan design, a newborn design that has a place for the baby’s footprints, or a style featuring the statehouse lawn. The traditional design highlighting the achievements of famous Ohioans is still available. Each heirloom birth certificate is printed on quality 8.5 by 11 inch paper with a raised seal and costs $25. Proceeds from the heirloom birth certificates benefit the Ohio Family and Children First (FCF) initiative. To preview the new designs, visit www.odh.ohio.gov. For more information on FCF, visit www.fcf.ohio.gov.
Geocache Adventure for Kids
Take an adventure through Wildwood Preserve searching for hidden geocaches. Metroparks naturalists help you decipher environmental clues, but you need to use a GPS unit for ultimate success. Program is designed for kids, ages 8-13, and includes a course teaching the basics of using a GPS. Participants can use their own GPS or borrow one from Metroparks. 4pm. $3. Wildwood Preserve,
5100 W. Central Ave., Toledo.
419-407-9700. www.metroparkstoledo.com
Monarch Festival
Enjoy crafts, games, butterfly tagging and release. Located in the Nature Center. 12pm. $3 craft fee. 419-836-1466. Maumee Bay State Park, 1400 State Park Rd., Oregon.
419-836-9117. www.dnr.state.oh.us.
Raising the bar just over the line
Oh please, say it isn’t so! In the blink of an eye, another summer is history. School has only just begun, and I have already found myself longing for the days just past that were filled with spontaneous activities. We are again slaves to the school schedule, activities, practices, homework, meetings and strict bedtimes.
However, before hitting the books we squeezed in a last summer hoorah at Quimby’s Food and Spirits in Lambertville, Michigan. We had so much fun; my family hopes to return sooner rather than later. This gem is masked in an unassuming storefront located at the end of the Kroger plaza at Sterns and Secor roads. I was pleasantly surprised to realize it was even closer to our house than the Westfield Mall! Don’t let the Michigan address scare you off from stopping by; it’s closer than you think.
Enjoyable entertainment
We dropped in on a perfect summer evening and had the good fortune of snagging a table on their recently opened patio. If weather permits, General Manager Nick Chuhy hopes to keep the patio open through October. Quimby’s has entertainment every Friday and Saturday night beginning around 7p.m. all year long. The entertainment keeps the patio hopping during the summer months, and moves inside the remainder of the year. We had a toe-tapping good time listening to Norts and Manning. They were enormous fun with their guitars and harmonicas, and they really enjoyed watching everyone have a great time. I also noticed Norts and Manning had quite the following. You can find them there most Friday nights.
Serving up countless optionsOccupying a double storefront, the inside fills up with customers quickly. “We have quite a few regulars. We’re very fortunate”, said Chuhy. Quimby’s is owned locally by cousins John Bates Jr. and Allan Bates Jr. and they advertise that they are NOT your typical bar and grill. We most definitely agree. Families with children were everywhere, and the menu selections are far from your run of the mill pub grub. “We have a great culinary staff. They do an outstanding job,” said Chuhy, adding that they have a philosophy of “find a way to say yes to your clientele.” After enjoying our scrumptious meal, it was no surprise to hear that their kitchen makes almost everything from scratch.
Before moving on to the menu of endless possibilities, I need to mention that they have regular specials every day of the week. Take note. On Monday evenings, children 12 and under eat free from the kids’ menu. Unlike most places, Quimby’s offers TWO kid meals for every adult entrée. Not a bad deal. They even offer the option to substitute homemade applesauce (which is yummy) or the vegetable of the day in place of French fries. And the Mac-n-Cheese? Well, we’ll just say we thought it a good rival of our favorite mac-n-cheese around town. It’s so good, it’s on the main menu as well. They offer the usual kiddie fare and options range from $3.49 to $4.99 plus drink. If you check out their website, you can always find printable monthly coupons. Taking the family out just got more affordable.
The extensive menu includes specialty burgers, seafood specialties, great steaks, pasta specials, sandwiches, salads, and even home-style entrees like Italian meatloaf and Jambalaya. According to Chuhy, some of the customer favorites are the house sirloin steak, their Atlantic salmon, and their prime rib which is available every Thursday through Saturday. But if that doesn’t wet your appetite, maybe they could tempt you with pork chops, Grouper, Chicken Marsala and more.
As for our dinner choices, we started with cheddar cheese and whipped potato pierogies for $6.99. Yum. I had the Lake Superior Whitefish served with fresh green beans and garlic mashed potatoes for $14.99. Perfectly seasoned and baked to perfection; I loved it. My husband was craving a burger and for $7.99 he devoured a 1⁄2 pound Cajun-seasoned burger loaded with jalapeno pepper rings and pepper-jack cheese. He added a side of their sweet potato fries served with homemade sweet butter rum sauce. Wow—they tasted like dessert with that incredible sauce. Needless to say, my husband didn’t enjoy much of them after the rest of us had dibs on his plate. That’s okay, we all shared homemade crème brulée for dessert and made sure he got at least a couple bites before we polished that off too.
Bottom Line: Having the appeal of a neighborhood gathering place, Quimby’s welcomes its regulars, as well as the newbies who will likely become regulars. The extensive menu of culinary delights, live entertainment and family friendly atmosphere will make it a winner on everyone’s list.
Karen Zickes is a mom of three active children and freelance writer who resides in Holland, OH. She can be reached in c/o [email protected].