Last February we moved our offices to our current location in East Newark , and during the move I found a baseball that was nestled in the back of a large drawer. I glanced down, and there was that famous signature, I remember when I asked him to sign it, he graciously did, and it brought back so many memories.

The year was 1981, a hot sultry August Saturday night under a full moon with over 12,000 cheering fans crowded in to Don Edwards Babe Ruth Baseball facility. Baseball  players 19 years old  from all over the

United Sates that were selected by a sophisticated tryout program orchestrated by the (United States Baseball Federated) and  (IMBIA) a division of the Olympic Committee were standing at attention as the National Anthem played.

As the National Anthem faded into the night the fans went wild as they cheered for boys that they had grown to know during the last seven days. They came from all over the world to play in the world’s first World Friendship Baseball Series.

Across the field stood the opposing team standing in a regimented format looking almost military like. The Korean music began to play and the entire ball park stood at attention as we listened to the words and music to their National Anthem. The Anthem came to an end and again the standing room only baseball facility went berserk as the United Stated cheered and welcomed the team from Korea .

The evening was the highlight of one of the largest "all volunteer" events ever organized in Newark , Ohio .

Let’s go back in time…..

It’s the summer of 1979 several months after our Second Babe Ruth World Series, we were campaigning and using every contact from the Governor to local business leaders for their support in hosting the first ever World Friendship Baseball Series to be comprised of 11 teams from almost every continent in the world and a team from the United States.

Our community organized many people and businesses during the two Babe Ruth World Series,so we were the first choice by the United States Baseball Federation” and “IMABA,” a branch of the world Olympic Committee, to host the first ever World Series for 19 year olds. .

  

During lunch at Annarino’s Center Cafe, Don Edwards, Roger Balding and Tom Newman approached me to be the “Host Chairman” of the first ever International World Baseball Series ever held for 19 year olds. This series was to be the format for selecting teams and players to play baseball in future Olympics.  

Now, I’d been part of a few who worked to bring all the Babe Ruth Series together, but working on a world stage was a different challenge. The first thing in my mind was how I can get out of this predicament. My first thought was my Dad. I had already taken too much time away from our company during the two Babe Ruth World Series, so this will be an easy out for me.

  

My response to this group was “thanks for asking, but no thanks” my father would have no hide nor hair of me taking off any more time. Well, about this time these guys laid it on my Dad, and he said I could have the time off if I chose to accept this position. After nearly passing out, my response was, “I’ll think about this challenge as it was going to be the biggest thing I had ever encountered. I’d give them my answer after  some thought.”

After a lot of soul searching and discussion among people who’d be part of this “epic event” I accepted this community wide, and I mean “community wide” project.

The United States Baseball Federation and “IUMBIA” sent me to Tokyo , Japan to present this first ever 19 year old baseball series event to a world congress of baseball officials. It was just like the United Nations all the countries had little head phones listening to him being interpreted to their language while sitting behind a  sign hosting the name of their country.

My interpreter and I spent the next several days meeting other baseball officials from about 40 countries who committed to the possibility of coming to Newark , Ohio in a little more than a year to play in our world series.

Soon after the Japan trip, it was decided the countries who were going to be invited to our ‘World Friendship Series.’ This was the beginning of probably the biggest committee of volunteers ever assembled in our community.

Our biggest problem was how to or orchestrate such an event and host 11 different countries. I specifically chose 40 community people to be committee chairpersons, most of whom I had never meet. They recruited approximately another 1,200 1,400 volunteers.

I can remember in rather large meetings with well over 50 people in attendance, Jerry Nethers said, “What the heck are you doing running an international  baseball tournament. You don’t the difference between an ERA and an IRA.” I told Jerry, one of my closet friends, “I don’t need to know. I’m a team builder and have assembled people a lot smarter than me.”

Fast forward to a Saturday night in August, 1981, and the second game of the 3 game wining series. Korea is up one game. I was standing on the first base line with a nationally known baseball player who was a team mate of Babe Ruth. I  spent the better half of the afternoon with other baseball officials listening to stories about the “Babe” by none other than left hander New York Yankee, Lefty Gomez. How could it be any better, A full moon, standing room only, and our USA home team playing for the championship? We were being televised to South America and being radio broadcast all over the world from Newark , Ohio and here I was, standing beside Lefty Gomez. It couldn’t be any better.

Then it happened Korea won game two and took home the first ever “World Friendship Baseball Series” Championship.

I looked down at the baseball in my hand, autographed by Lefty Gomez, to Dave and Tim. I remembered their father handing me the ball and asking me to get it autographed, which I did. In all the excitement of the moment I forgot about the ball. I wonder if anyone knows of their whereabouts. Dave and Tim, where are you? If anyone knows, please contact me on Facebook or at 1^st Response.

How Do I Winterize a Vacant House?

First of all, it is advisable to leave the heat on very low. Though it might seem like a waste of money or energy at first glance, a minimal heating bill will be less expensive than the cost of potential repairs if everything were to freeze up. There are many systems and components in a house that are meant to be kept at or near room temperature. By using your furnace or boiler at a low level, you are keeping these things secure.

Most people know that a big part of winterizing is dealing with pipes and plumbing. If you have turned off the water, hopefully that means the house was plumbed on a downgrade so you were able to drain all the pipes completely and eliminate the chance of water expanding inside them and breaking the pipes. If not, it usually is advisable to leave some water running through the pipes by turning on the fixture closest to where water enters the house and at the farthest point indoors, say in an upstairs bathroom. It needs to trickle constantly to keep water flowing.

It is also advisable to wrap insulation around the water heater, the pipes leading to and from it and insulate any pipes exposed outdoors, in a crawl space under the house, etc. If the pilot light is left on, it is not necessary to drain the water heater, but if not, then it probably should be drained and turned off. You might call a local plumbing company in your area to discuss whether you should turn the water back on or not.

It is not a bad idea to put some anti-freeze in both the tank and the bowl of each toilet. If the heat goes out and water inside the toilets freezes, it could crack the china fixtures.

Winterizing your plumbing and water systems might be the most important aspect of winterizing in general, but coming in pretty close is inspecting your roof and cleaning out your gutters. The roof and attic of a vacant house might be left alone for very long periods of time, so getting a roof inspection before cold weather hits is a fantastic idea, and could end up saving you some serious money in the long run. Gutters, like plumbing, can develop real problems if ice is allowed to build up in them. Having your gutters cleaned before winter begins will reduce the risk of too much ice forming inside them.

Finally, make sure someone checks on the house every week or two, if at all possible. Though you can certainly take precautions such as winterizing whatever you can in and around the house, unexpected situations can still occur. A quick look around done periodically for as long as the house is empty (even during warmer weather) can mean the difference between a problem being caught early enough to be fixed before any damage is done, and a problem that's left unchecked long enough to cause hundreds or even thousands of dollars in damage.

FIRE

Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidation processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition. In ancient Greece, fire was considered one of four elements.

The flame is the visible portion of the fire. If hot enough, the gases may become ionized to produce plasma. Depending on the substances alight, and any impurities outside, the color of the flame and the fire's intensity will be different.

Fire in its most common form can result in conflagration, which has the potential to cause physical damage through burning. Fire is an important process that affects ecological systems across the globe. The positive effects of fire include stimulating growth and maintaining various ecological systems. Fire has been used by humans for cooking, generating heat, signaling, and propulsion purposes. The negative effects of fire include water contamination, soil erosion, atmospheric pollution and hazard to human and animal life.

Remembering

NEWARK — Craig Young remembers the morning in 1992 when he walked into the burned building that used to house his contracting business.

There was soot on the walls and a thick smell of smoke; he could hear the water-logged carpet squish as he walked across it.

At first, as a contractor, Young assumed he’d be able to fix the damage. But he soon realized the specialized process of repairing fire damage required equipment and skills he did not possess. As he watched people come in to clean up, he remembered looking at the commercial-grade dehumidifier and thinking, “I ought to get one of those.”

Twenty years later, as the owner of 1st Response Restoration and Reconstruction Specialists, Young is the owner of a dehumidifier and countless other special tools his company uses to combat damage caused by fire, smoke, mold and water.

“In this business, there are so many tricks of the trade,” said Young, who has been in the contracting business since his youth.

After his Manning Street business caught fire in 1992, Young began exploring what it would take to operate a business that specialized in the removal of fire, water and mold damage.

He eventually opened a local franchise of Purofirst, a national company, and 10 years later left the franchise to start 1st Response, a full-service construction company certified with the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification.

He meets with people who have walked into their homes for the first time after a fire to realize the roof is gone, the living room is scorched or the floor is covered in water.

Young tells them it will be OK — he’s been there.

The 1st Response crew sizes up the damage and springs into action, first looking to save as much of the structure as possible.

“Our goal is to repair and restore, rather than rip and replace,” Young said.

Items are taken from the customer’s home or business to the 1st Response facility on O’Bannon Avenue, where they individually are cleaned or replaced if necessary.

It’s a great feeling, showing a customer a room, business or home that has been brought back to life, Young said.

“When people come in and they see that finished product, that’s your business card,” he said.

The 24 hours per day, seven-days-per-week service primarily operates in Licking and surrounding counties. It keeps Young and his employees busy, but he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

“It’s a very rewarding business,” Young said.