Thursday, August 13th, 2026

Welcome to Thursday’s edition of The Pennant. To listen to this newsletter, click the “Listen Online” link in the top right corner of this email.

On this day in 1961, East German troops sealed the Berlin border overnight with barbed wire. Families woke up on the wrong side. The concrete came later.

A derecho killed one Ohioan and left 210,000 without power, and AEP probably won't pay for your spoiled food. Both stories are at the top of the fold.

And in today's editorial: three things worth thinking about before the first bell rings.

COLUMBUS — Tuesday's storms were a derecho, a wall of straight-line wind that acts like an inland hurricane. 

It has to run at least 400 miles and carry gusts of 58 mph or more along most of its path. Ohio got the worst of it. 

A gust hit 82 mph at John Glenn Airport, and a camera caught a car flipping on Interstate 71. 

Crooksville and Roseville flooded, one person died, and more than 210,000 customers were still without power Wednesday.

COLUMBUS — AEP Ohio says storm-related outages usually don't qualify for reimbursement under the terms customers agree to at sign-up, and it suggests checking your homeowner's or renter's insurance first. 

You can still file at aepclaims.com, with receipts or photos for spoiled food, hotel stays, or lost wages. 

South Central Power reviews claims case by case. AEP's customer service line is 800-672-2231.

COLUMBUS — Attorney General Andy Wilson has asked to lead a securities class-action lawsuit against Roblox, saying the gaming company misled investors about how well it protects children from online predators. 

Two state pension funds for public employees and teachers lost a combined $21.5 million as the stock fell from $142 a share to $37.05.

School starts across Ohio over the next two weeks. Here's what's worth your attention.

Is the lettuce safe?

A Cyclospora outbreak tied to lettuce has parents reading produce labels again. Fair enough. But before you swear off salad through October, remember who grows a lot of this state's food.

Buurma Farms has been working the muck ground outside Willard since 1896, and the fifth generation runs it now. That's a family that has spent 130 years not wanting its name on a bad head of lettuce.

They're not alone. Plenty of what belongs in a lunchbox comes from here — apples out of the Lake Erie orchards, tomatoes and sweet corn all over the state, cucumbers, sweet peppers, and enough Swiss cheese from Holmes County to feed the whole district. Ohio is second in the nation in eggs and produces maple syrup that stands up to anything out of Vermont.

If you buy Ohio, you'll worry less.

The levy pitch at orientation

You're walking your kindergartner into a building for the first time. Your kid is nervous, you're a little nervous, and somewhere near the coffee there's a table with a clipboard.

Last November, 108 Ohio districts had levies on the ballot. In May, voters approved only one in four new funding requests. Districts have every right to ask. Some of them genuinely need it. But orientation night is not the moment, and the pitch that ends with football and band getting cut is not an argument. It's emotional leverage.

Let parents get their kid settled. All of the levy drama can wait until October. Late October.

The schedule is going to hurt

Two working parents, one bus route, practice at 5:30. Gas costs what it costs and groceries cost what they cost. It's been that way since God invented gas stations and grocery stores. We know. We don't need a political movement reminding us weekly.

Ohio also happens to be one of the top ten wine producers in the country. A glass of Put-in-Bay Catawba next to the Johnny Marzetti on a Thursday night, when the weekend is almost in view, isn't a bad idea.

Build the calendar. Go easy on yourselves and enjoy the journey.

The Pennant welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns from readers. Submissions may be edited for length, clarity, and AP style. The Pennant reserves the right to verify all information contained in submissions before publication.

Please send all submissions to [email protected]