‘Great Ohioan’ awards honor three state legends
A Major League Baseball player, Nobel Prize-winning author and former Cleveland mayor have been selected as the recipients of this year’s “Great Ohioan” award.
The honorees – Larry Doby, Toni Morrison and Carl Stokes, respectively – were selected Thursday by the Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board and Capitol Square Foundation from nominations submitted by citizens and organizations from across Ohio.
“It is fitting to recognize these three amazing people as Great Ohioans. They changed society and the way we all look at society. Their impact went well beyond Ohio’s borders,” said Capitol Square Foundation Chairman Charles Moses in a statement.
The Great Ohioan award commemorates Ohioans who have played a significant role in an event or events of lasting significance in world, American or Ohio history. Nominees must have resided in Ohio for a minimum of five years, and at least 25 years must have passed since the event in which the nominee participated is being commemorated.
Since 2003, 54 Great Ohioans have been recognized with the award for the special roles they played in history. Past winners include astronaut Neil Armstrong and former President Rutherford B. Hayes.
Doby, of Patterson, New Jersey, was the first Black baseball player in the American League. An All-star center fielder in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball, he signed in 1947 with the Cleveland Indians three months after Jackie Robinson was the first Black player in the National League. He died in 2003.
Morrison, born in Lorain, Ohio, wrote novels, nonfiction and children’s books, and was the recipient of many awards, including the Pulitzer Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature. She died in 2019.
Carl Stokes, of Cleveland, was one of the first Black elected mayors of a major U.S. city. He was elected in 1967 as the 51st mayor of Cleveland. He also served as a U.S. ambassador and in the Ohio House of Representatives. He died in 1996. Laura P. Battocletti, the advisory board’s executive director, lauded this year’s winners, who will be honored in the Ohio Statehouse Museum.
“The people of Ohio are our state’s most important asset,” she said. “These Great Ohioans made their mark not only in history, but in the hearts of all those who are fortunate to know their stories.
“We are proud that the Ohio Statehouse Museum can share their accomplishments with the people of Ohio and inspire future generations to become a Great Ohioan.”
The exhibit, in the lower-level Statehouse museum, is closed to the public due to the coronavirus. When open, it aims to provide visitors a greater understanding of the recipients of the Great Ohioan award and discover how they affected local, national and world history. dnarciso@dispatch.com @Deannarciso
BIRTHS
This list is compiled from voluntary submissions by parents to hospitals. WEXNER MEDICAL CENTER
Burdulis, Chelsea and Jeffrey: girl, Jan. 20
Eftekhari, Maryam/gholami, Abbas: girl, Jan. 26
Fiorini, Kasey and Matthew: girl, Jan. 21
Goodlow, Dezerea/crews, Nathaniel: girl, Jan. 16
Huntzinger, Ashley/spradling, Josh: boy, Feb. 20
Johnston, Kellie/thompson, Miguel: girl, Jan. 8
Kanavod, Aryna/strickland, Travis: boy, Jan. 20
Kyle, Michelle/shawger, Seth: girl, Feb. 12
Maze, Johnna/johnson, Daniel: girl, Jan. 12
Melesky, Christian/meadows, James: girl, Feb. 3
Mulligan, Christy/baker, Emily: boy, Feb. 8
Myers, Miesha/jones, Omar: boy, Feb. 16
Nair, Sheetal and Krishna: girl, Jan. 10
Nigam, Akansha/priya, Shivam: girl, Feb. 18
Peng, Xenwen/wang, Jiyang: boy, Feb. 4
Perry, Jelisa: girl, Feb. 16
Swanson, Michelle/sherwin, Aaron: boy, Jan. 30
BLOOD DRIVES
The American Red Cross has an ongoing need for donors of all blood types. Donors can call 1-800-RED-CROSS (1800-733-2767) or go to redcrossblood.org to schedule an appointment. Blood drives are open today at:
Bethel Lutheran, 4501 Hoover Rd., Grove City, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
Bexley Public Library, 2411 E Main St., 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
Carriage Place Blood Donation Center, 4820 Sawmill Rd., 7:15 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Polaris Blood Donation Center, 1327 Cameron Ave., Oak Creek Building, Lewis Center, 7:15 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Stone Ridge Blood Donation Center, 337 Stoneridge Lane, Gahanna, 7:15 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Westbelt Blood Donation Center, 4327 Equity Dr., 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
Actors’ Theatre of Columbus will return from hiatus with a full summer season of live plays in Schiller Park, including its first collaboration with Columbus Children’s Theatre.
After canceling its 2020 summer season because of the pandemic, Actors’ Theatre will present a 2021 season exploring the theme of “Changes.”
“Life is full of the unexpected ... with the plans we make often disrupted by tragedy, chance meetings and even by
love,” Artistic Director Philip J. Hickman said.
“Our 2021 productions highlight the importance of unexpected moments that lead to grief, romance or new freedoms in the face of oppression.”
All four shows by the classical theater company will be presented outdoors in the Schiller Park amphitheater, with health precautions such as masks, social distancing, reduced seating, smaller casts, spaced-out rehearsals and other changes to be announced:
• “Much Ado About Nothing,” May 27 to June 20: Shakespeare’s romantic comedy, directed and adapted by Hickman and Cat Mcalpine, will be updated to an 1800s lake house where friends are passing the time with an ad hoc performance of the play about love and desire.
• “The African Company Presents Richard III,” June 24 to July 18: Carlyle Brown’s 1994 play-within-a-play focuses on the United States’ first Black theater company troupe in 1822 as talented actors perform Shakespeare’s Britishhistory drama despite criticism, intense competition and threats of a police shutdown.
• “Eurydice,” July 22 to Aug. 8: The drama by Sarah Ruhl (“The Clean House”) explores romantic and forbidden love in her modern feminist retelling of the Greek myth about Orpheus and his attempts to liberate his bride Eurydice from Hades after tragedy befalls their wedding day.
• “The Secret Garden,” Aug. 12 to Sept. 5: The company will end its 40th season with a Columbus Children’s Theatre co-production of Neil Duffield’s stage adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s story about an orphan girl who discovers a long-neglected sanctuary and a hidden-away boy at her new home.
Admission is “pay what you will,” or $25 for reserved seating with advance online purchase. Call 614-444-6888 or visit www.theactorstheatre.org.
mgrossberg1@gmail.com @mgrossberg1
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