The Week in The Westerville News: September 21–26, 2026

Monday, September 21

Westar and Africa Road Striped
Road striping crews finished applying yellow lane markings Saturday on Africa Road and the new streets through Westar Park, wrapping up another phase of road work delayed by weather. Next comes white markings — crosswalks, stop bars, turn-lane arrows and parking spaces — with no completion date announced; more rain could push that work back too.

Symphony Avoids Rain
A heavy Saturday rainstorm sent the Westerville Symphony’s Westerville Sings Broadway indoors to Westerville North High School, and the crowd’s enthusiasm didn’t suffer for it. The concert with the Parks and Recreation Civic Theatre celebrated America’s 250th anniversary with selections from Oklahoma!, Carousel, West Side Story, Hamilton and Anastasia, led by conductor Peter Stafford Wilson. Vocalists Katey Munger and Michael Ruehrmund performed “If I Loved You: The Bench Scene” from Carousel — a correction to the edition’s original wording — plus music from their new original musical Hoboken, with audience sing-alongs from The Sound of Music and Wicked.

Recycled Halloween Spirit
The Westerville Public Library’s Halloween Costume Swap drew a large crowd Saturday before the 1 p.m. opening, and most of the donated secondhand costumes were claimed within the first hour. Families found Halloween outfits without buying new ones, giving previously worn costumes another trick-or-treat night.

Tuesday, September 22

From Pearl Harbor to Korea, 105-Year-Old Westerville Veteran Recalls a Lifetime of Military Service
Retired Lt. Colonel Ed Dennis, 105, a Westerville High School graduate, sat down to talk about more than 20 years in uniform — from enlisting in the Army Air Corps eight months before Pearl Harbor to retiring in 1962. Dennis fought in the Battle of the Bulge with the 17th Airborne Division, parachuted into Germany during Operation Varsity on March 24, 1945, earned the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, and later served in Korea, Japan and Eritrea. “I didn’t do anything special,” he insisted of his decorations. “I just lived day to day, had a fight.”

Wednesday, September 23

Westerville Council Weighs a More Personal Approach to Social Media
At a Tuesday work session, social media consultant Sam Toles told council members they could help residents understand city government by showing more of its work and speaking in their own voices online. “I want you guys to think of yourself as a character in an ensemble, not the headliner act,” said Toles, founder of Civi Social and a former California council member. Communications staff would keep running the official accounts while members could appear in videos with city employees explaining projects; council adopted no new rules.

Thursday, September 24

Seven Community Organizations Invited to Help Shape Future of 64 East Walnut
A new three-member council committee, chaired by Vice Chair Aaron Glasgow with Jeff Washburn and Kenneth Wright, invited seven community organizations to share their views on the future of 64 E. Walnut St. — Otterbein University, the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce, Westerville City Schools, Westerville Public Library, Uptown United, Uptown Westerville, Inc., and Visit Westerville. Each group gets about an hour: 20 minutes to present, 20 minutes on a standard set of committee questions, and 20 minutes of follow-up. The committee can’t negotiate or recommend an outcome; its report will summarize what it heard to inform future council discussions, and the committee expires with the report or nine months after its September 23 formation. The library and schools have named their representatives; no meeting dates have been announced.

Friday, September 25

Church of the Master Celebrates 175 Years
Church of the Master, standing at Grove and Main since 1916, is marking 175 years since five founding members established Otterbein Station in 1851. The congregation’s history runs through abolitionism and the Underground Railroad, the temperance movement and the Whiskey Wars, a 1921 visit from Vice President Calvin Coolidge, and its long intertwined life with Otterbein University. The celebration culminates today, Sunday, Sept. 27, with a Celebration Day Festival and a visit from Bishop Hee Soo Jung — and the anniversary book Stories of Belonging, with contributions from members ages 4 to 99, publishes today as well.

Westar Park Opens Friday Morning
The East of Africa development project, now known as Westar Park, opened Friday morning after crews finished road striping along Africa Road and the new streets through the 88-acre development. Groundbreaking took place March 10, 2025. Permanent traffic signs aren’t in yet — temporary stop and yield signs direct motorists — and crews are still installing decorative and erosion-prevention walls at the entrances.

Saturday, September 26

Eating My Way Through the Saturday Farmers Market — Another Chapter Ends
In a season’s-end column, Gary walks the next-to-last Saturday Farmers Market and finds himself nearly moved to tears — not for the ending, he writes, but for the recognition of how much those mornings have given him. From the strawberry market to the blueberry, corn and tomato markets, what began as a search for photographs became an archive of experiences: conversations with farmers, familiar greetings, cooking advice, and the small moments that made one Saturday different from another. “The food is the reason we gather. What happens while we’re gathered is what makes us want to return.”