CHEERS ... to the long and beautiful life of Lessie Brown, the country's oldest known person when she died last week at age 114 in Cleveland Heights. Born in Georgia in 1904, Brown was the granddaughter of slaves, according to a Cleveland Magazine article last year that also included her celebrated recipe for sweet potato cobbler.
JEERS ... to whoever left a handgun lying around where a 6-year-old boy could find it and take it to school. The Columbus kindergartner won't be charged but an investigation into how he got the gun continues, and the Columbus police tweeted, "If you've taken the time to read this please take the time to make sure guns in your home are secure." Good advice.
CHEERS ... to the Parma city schools for starting the year right with meetings to help students and parents cope with mental health threats today's young people face -- including risks of suicide, self-harm and substance abuse arising from anxiety and depression. The Jan. 18 mental health summit for 100 high school student leaders and the Jan. 23 parent night discussion are aimed at spurring greater bystander empowerment and mental resilience.
JEERS ... to the city of Akron for recycling confusion when it said it was ending glass recycling because of lack of a market for recycled glass. Wrong: It's just that glass is more expensive to recycle, as the city later explained. Cheers to Plain Dealer reporter James F. McCarty for getting to the bottom of the story.
CHEERS ... to Willoughby police officer Mike Sevel, who responded to a call about a man acting strangely and ended up buying the distraught man a sandwich, a Coke and some gas for his car. Witness Paula Sloan posted on Facebook she was "in tears" about the police officer's kindness.