April Events for Butler County

Spring has sprung in Butler County! It's time to get out of the house and get out on the town. Looking for something to do in April? Below are a few events you might want to consider.

April 2nd - Gather the whole family up for a performance of "The Garden of Rikki Tikki Tavi" at the Oxford Community Arts Center on Friday, April 2nd. The play begins at 7:30 PM and is great for kids ages four and up. It's performed by the Cincinnati Playhouse and is free to attend.

April 2nd & 3rd - If you don't have children, Little Sonoma in West Chester has a great event for adults. The "Best of 2010 Fest" takes place on the 2nd from 4:30 PM to 7:30 PM, as well as April 3rd from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Sample six award-winning wines from the 2010 Cincinnati Wine Festival. If you have a group of six or more, you'll want to call ahead (513-942-9463). Cheese and crackers will also be available. Cost to attend is $10.00.

April 10th - Is your child ready to show off their baseball skills? Then join the MLB/Pepsi Pitch, Hit, and Run in Hamilton. The event, which takes place at Foundation Field, is free, but make sure you bring a copy of your child's birth certificate. Festivities take place from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM.

April 14th - The Oxford Community Center's "Green Screen" program features films about science, art, and spirituality of the natural environment. This month's film is "They Killed Sister Dorthy." It will begin at 7:00 PM.

April 16th - Helen Welch will be performing at the Fitton Center for Creative Arts in Hamilton from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Her act includes songs from jazz to Broadway, and after the show you can meet the artist, as well as enjoying hor d'oeurvres, wine, and beer. Tickets for members are $15.00 and $17.00 for non-members.

April 23rd & 24thAnother fun event for the whole family, the Miami University Men's Ice Hockey Team, along with the Miami University Synchronized Skating Teams will take part in a theatrical production: the Annual Spring Ice Show. The event, which takes place at the Goggin Ice Center at Miami University in Oxford, starts at 7:30 PM on Saturday and 4:00 PM on Sunday.

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Monroe HS Senior Prom Set for April 30

Monroe High School's Senior Prom has been set for April 30th. The theme is "If Only for a Night." The event will take place from 8:00 PM - midnight at the Lake Lyndsay Lodge and tickets are on sale as of today. Tickets can be purchase from Ms. Black in Room E105 at the school or Ms. Gray in Room E201, or in the school's rotunda before and after school hours. Prices are as follows: $35.00 if tickets are purchased between March 25 and April 1, $40.00 if tickets are purchased between April 12 and April 23, and $45.00 if tickets are purchased between April 26 and April 29.

Students who purchase tickets must be juniors or seniors at Monroe High School. The dress code will be formal, meaning girls should wear dresses and boys coats and ties. Guests cannot be over the age of 20 and must be in at least ninth grade and guests from other schools must return a signed permission form. Students must arrive to the prom by 9:00 PM or their parents will be notified and will not be allowed to leave until the crowning ceremony, which begins at 11:00 PM, is over.

Your ticket includes hot and cold hors d'oeuvres, as well as soft drinks. Tickets and directions will be handed out in the Auditorium on the day of the prom at 11:01 AM. Students must be in school that day by 7:30 AM and stay until after the prom meeting that day. If students plan to leave early, they must return a form, granting them permission to leave early by April 28. No tickets will be sold after the 29th.

For more information, visit the Monroe High School Prom website.

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Dayton Shrinks While Cincinnati Grows

The U.S. Census Bureau released some preliminary estimated data on Tuesday and according to the Dayton Business Journal, Dayton's metro area is shrinking, losing 1.5 % of its population in 2009. Dayton's population dropped from 848,000 to 835,000, making it the 61st largest city in the United States (it was the 54th). The official information won't be released until December.

On the other hand, the Cincinnati-Middletown metro area, the largest metro area in Ohio, gained about 162,000 people since the last census was taken. Currently, it is the 24th largest metro area in the United States with a population of 2.1 million people. It was also the 24th in 2000, when the last Census was taken. Many experts believe that after the 2010 data is retrieved, the Cincinnati and Dayton areas will be joined together to form one large metro area.

In the rest of the state, Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor also lost rank. In 2000, it was the 23rd largest city and became the 26th in 2009. It's population dropped from 2.15 million to 2.1 million. Columbus, on the other hand, gained population over the last ten years, going from 1.6 million to 1.8 million people. However, it lost rank, moving from 31st to 32nd place.

In other nearby cities, things didn't change too much. Indianapolis, Indiana stayed at 34th place, but saw a rise in population: 1.5 to 1.7 million people. Louisville, Kentucky moved up from 43rd to 42nd largest metro area and saw an increase in population as well (1.16 to 1.26 million people).

New York - Northern New Jersey - Long Island is the largest metro area in the United States, with a population of 18.3 million, with Los Angeles - Long Beach - Santa Ana's 12.4 million coming in second and Chicago - Naperville - Joliet's 9.1 million coming in third place. For the complete list with more information, visit Buffalo Business First.

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Monroe's Lady Swarm Has a Great Season!

Monroe's third grade Lady Swarm won their post-season tournament, making them the 2010 Dayton Metro 3rd grade Tournament champions! They beat Middletown 22-2, Waynesville, 26-9, Madison 29-27, and Franklin 28-16.

In addition to winning the Tournament, the team went undefeated all year at 17-0, making them the League champions. They also won the pre-season Thanksgiving Day tournament at Kingdom, with a 3-1 record, making their total record for the entire year 22-1. The girls are coached by Suzanne and Gary Sloneker.

The team is pictured above. In the front row, you have Lauryn Dessauer, Shelby York, Ashlynn Yarletts, and Makenzi Moore. The back row features Head Coach Suzanne Sloneker, Averi Glick, Haley Brabant, Sophie Sloneker, Katie Sloneker, and Assistant Coach Gary Sloneker

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Monroe Students Get Excited About Reading

The students of Monroe Local Schools have all sorts of reasons to get excited about reading this spring. From author visits to book fairs, there is a lot going on in March and April!

On March 11-12, author Shelley Pearsall will meet with fifth and eighth grade students. The students are reading her book Trouble Don't Last before her visit. The book, which tells about an eleven-year-old's Underground Railroad journey, won the 2003 Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction and is a 2009 Choose to Read Ohio Community Read selection. The author will talk about historical fiction writing and how she used primary source documents to write the book. Students will be allowed to create a character sketch of their own.

Later this month, on March 22-23, author Candace Fleming will visit the School System. She is the author of a number of chapter books, pictures, books, biographies, and historical fiction. Her latest book is The Great and Only Barnum: the Tremendous, Stupendous, Life of Showman P.T. Barnum.

March 9-11, the Scholastic Book Fair will be visiting Monroe Junior High. It will be open from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM each day, and parents, families, and members of the community are invited to attend. The theme is "Catch the Madness-Read a Book!" and on March 11, from 2:30 -6:30, Family Night will be held. Several local businesses have donated prizes, including Cincinnati Bell, MacDonald Insurance, Skilled Care Pharmacy, Kings Island, Danbarry Cinemas, Gold Star Chili, IGA Express, Wendy's, Eastern Bowling Lanes, AXA Equitable, and Kohl's.

Two Monroe Businessmen Open GreenSource Cincinnati

The Midwest building community is going green - that is if William "Ez" and Will Housh of Monroe Mechanical have anything to do with it. The father and son duo are hoping their new project, GreenSource Cincinnati, will do just that!
Over the last year, the Housh's have worked to restore and renovate a historic building in downtown Cincinnati. Located at 19 East 8th Street, the $1.5 million resource center will showcase green building products, services, and education. It is scheduled for a grand opening in about two weeks.
The building, which was built in 1875, was given a "green" makeover. They recycled the existing materials when possible, re-finishing wood floors, adding insulation, and installing new heating, plumbing and lighting.
"The center is registered for LEED Gold certification. LEED is the standard in the green building industry. Our goal is to be a resource center and to inspire the Midwest building community with energy efficient, sustainable technologies," Will House told Cincinnati.com.
In addition to consulting individual clients, the group will offer educational training at "green" events and seminars. They also plan to schedule regular events that will showcase energy efficient HVAC systems, electrical technologies, water reclamation systems, green roof systems, a green data center, and more. They hope to appeal to building professionals such as commercial builders, architects, designers, engineers, building owners, property managers, and other event attendees.
Right now, over 50 technology partners plan to display their products and services at GreenSource. They include: Schneider Electric, Lennox, Kohler, APC and Sun Windows. All technologies are installed, serviced, or distributed by Monroe Mechanical, which serves commercial clients or by their sister company HOUSH - The Home Energy Experts, which serves residential clients.
The grand opening for GreenSource Cincinnati will take place on March 18t from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Cincinnati Mayor, Mark Mallory and Cincinnati U.S. Green Building Council Vice Chairperson Susan Brownknight will both be in attendance. For more information or to register for the event, call 866-846-4733 or visit GreenSourceCincinnati.com.

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Looking for a Surveillance System? Then call 513-422-1907 for a Security Camera System in Middletown, Cincinnati, or the Dayton, Ohio areas.