Wickliffe caterer lauded on anniversary

BOUQUETS >> To Normandy Catering of Wickliffe, on marking its 40th anniversary.

“In 1978, my business partner Jim Carmigiano parents’ purchased Normandy Party Center,” said Chief Operating Officer Ryan Baker.

They later expanded their services beyond the banquet facility at 30310 Palisades Parkway to include off-site catering for rehabilitation centers, summer camps, day care centers, and public and private schools, according to the website.

“It’s all history from there,” Baker said.

“We’ve slowly grown and added more things. We added an express delivery business. We do scholastic food service, so we do K-12. We do colleges and corporations. We have 51 different venues that we work out of.”

Normandy exclusively caters for The Tanglewood Club in Chagrin Falls, Notre Dame College in South Euclid and The Goodtime III excursion ship in Cleveland.

Although food service is a major component of the business, Baker said they still use the party center for events.

“We’re always putting money back into it, because it still has potential,” he said. “It’s still a great wedding venue. We still have tremendous business.”

Congratulations to Normandy Catering’s ownership, management and staff on their contributions to the company’s four decades of success.

BOUQUETS » To the two Painesville Police Department officers who recently were honored for exemplary service.

Officer Ryan Cueni received the Departmental Combat Cross Medal for his heroic individual efforts in a 2017 incident.

Cueni risked his life to save a woman and her two children.

Unable to make entry through the front door of the home, officials say Cueni climbed through a broken window to face a suspect who was holding a woman and her children hostage with a large kitchen knife.

Although the armed suspect was noncompliant, Cueni was able to resolve the hostage standoff with minimal force, using a Taser to safely free the victims.

Community Service Officer Elvert Jordan also was commended for his exemplary service.

Police Chief Dan Waterman said Jordan demonstrated tremendous work ethic in many areas of duty throughout the year.

“In 2017, he was responsible for 333 charges on 236 individuals,” he said.

Jordan received the Painesville Police Departmental Excellence Award for his commendable production and efforts to support his shift in every way.

We believe that Cueni and Jordan are worthy recipients of their respective awards.

BRICKBATS » To Angel Kolasinski and her boyfriend Garrett Brewster, both of Lyndhurst, after they recently were sentenced for charges relating to the theft of around $75,000 from Kolasinski’s elderly grandfather.

Kolasinski, 22, and Brewster, 23, were indicted in September by a Cuyahoga County grand jury on charges of identity fraud, telecommunications fraud, and theft for stealing about $75,000 of the victim’s savings, Lyndhurst police stated in a news release.

Police confirmed that the victim was Kolasinski’s 89-year-old grandfather, with whom Kolasinski and Brewster had been living in his home.

As part of a plea agreement, Kolasinski pleaded guilty to theft, aggravated theft and telecommunications fraud. She was sentenced to nine months in prison for each of the three convictions, to run concurrently.

She also was ordered to pay restitution to the victim.

Brewster pleaded guilty to identity fraud, attempted theft and aggravated theft. He was sentenced to two years behind bars and ordered to pay restitution to the victim.

In our opinion, Kolasinski and Brewster should be ashamed of themselves for financially exploiting an elderly person.

We’re glad that the judge not only ordered them to repay the victim, but also to pay their debt to society with prison sentences.

BRICKBATS » To Fahad Saeed of Lakewood, after he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for strangling his ex-wife.

After committing the crime against 25-year-old Roaa AlDhannoon, he buried her remains as their 3-year-old son watched.

Cleveland.com reported that Saeed, 28, pleaded guilty Jan. 18 to charges including involuntary manslaughter as part of a deal with prosecutors.

Al-Dhannoon disappeared in October 2016. Her body was found in May 2017 in a wooded area across from a Clevelandarea amusement park. Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Blaise Thomas said the couple’s child told investigators that his mother was “near the horses,” an apparent reference to the park’s carousel.

Saeed deserves a lengthy prison term for the heinous crime that he committed.