This afternoon, I received a very cordial phone call from a fellow Republican who works in Western Brown Schools and who has also been involved with the WBEA, the teachers union that covers the district. They painted a different picture than the one in the original article. They also had facts and figures and newspaper article references regarding Mr. Daly and other issues. In the interest of fairness, especially since I have known casually Mr. Wallace for a decade or so, I present the email this person sent me. Names have been redacted and some things edited to protect the identity of the source.
Thank you for the opportunity to respond.
The Charges Made by Michael Daly regarding the port authority issue
This link is to a story in the January 5, 2003 Cincinnati Enquirer. It talks of the $250,000 loan and a $300,000 grant. I had a conversation with Ben Houser, one of the reps on the Mt. Orab Port Authority Board. He told me of the 10 year tax abatement with the commitment of 100 jobs from Hawkline and Mr. Daly. He stated they created about 30 jobs and the town could have revoked the abatement, causing them to pay back all taxes plus taxes on the remaining years. The village chose not to do this. It appears Mr. Daly did not live up to his word of creating 100 jobs and the village and the Port Authority were more than accomodating to him. Could it be that Mr. Daly credits Bruce Lunsford for negotiating a settlement because Lunsford's grandson plays on the Flash baseball team? How much corporate welfare does Daly expect? Why is only one member of the Port Authority getting blamed when there are four members? (David Bohl is the other.) A better question would be, why have none of the other Port Authority members defended Bruce? Are they afraid Mr. Daly will seek them out next?
This is an interesting angle and the questions asked are good ones. Why did Daly go out of his way to mention the mayor? Why did he single out Mr. Wallace? What is this about corporate welfare?
Regarding the Daly Charges about the Championship Ballgame
As far as the ballgame, I remember Bruce telling me on Wed. or Thurs. of that week that it all would be over by Sunday. Bruce's team was to play on Saturday and if they lost they would play Sunday. How did Bruce know this earlier in the week and tell me if none of this had been discussed. I called Bruce about 11:00 p.m. on Saturday to ask about the game. He told me they lost and were going to play again on Sunday evening. He did say that parents on both teams had gotten out of control after the game.
The baseball game WAS really a trivial issue.
Regarding the Charges by People at Western that Bruce Wallace Intimidated and Had People Fired
As far as the school situation, like I stated, I am very close to the situation when it comes to hiring and firing. Bruce, to the best of my knowledge, has never insisted that someone be fired. He did file a complaint against one of his children's teachers. The complaint was very legit and dealt with an issue that should have been handled by a parent and never a teacher. The teacher's contract was non-renewed that year. I assume this was one of the reasons, although I was not privy to this info at the time of this event. This should have been the case regardless of whether Bruce was on the school board. I am very confident the situation would have been handled the same way had it been any other parent in W.B. Schools, as the teacher had displayed a serious lack of proper judgment.
Regarding the Jeff Herrmann Situation
As far as Mr. Herrmann gettting hired, this was during the time period I was active in the WBEA. The proper process was followed. That was part of my responsibilty with the WBEA to see that it was. The previous teacher was fired for valid reasons in the spring of the year. The job was posted for the required 10 days and no teacher in the district applied. Outside applications were then considered and Mr. Herrmann was hired. By all accounts, Mr Herrmann has been an excellent addition to the staff and is an excellent and well respected teacher. No one was run off and every teacher in the district was given the opportunity to apply for the position before he was hired.
I had tried to contact some people I know who were/are active with the union and did not get a response. I am glad this person was/is active in the union and was able to give me more of the "inside baseball," so to speak.
Regarding Lisa Black and Running with Bruce Wallace
The outright lie was that Mrs. Black runs in the same social circle as Bruce. This is simply not true. At one time, Bruce and his family got to know Lisa, who is a nurse. His nephew was at Ohio Valley Manor for over 3 years in a coma before passing away from his massive head injuries suffered in a car accident. He got to know and became very close with many of the nurses, aides and other employees. It was a very emotional time for his family. It was comforting to know that Barry, Jr. was in caring hands when family members were not present at the nursing home. It's hard enough putting a parent in a nursing home. I know because I have had to do this with my father. Imagine having to do this with a 19 year old. It is something I would not wish on anyone. For someone to try to attack Lisa because of this is pretty appalling and in my opinion disgusting. Since Barry's passing, about five years ago, the family has gradually lost touch with many of the employees. I can assure you that Lisa does not run in the same social circle as Bruce
The emailer does point out this, though, and I agree:
I do not think the results of the election would have changed had this been sent before the vote.
I don't think so, either. Mr. Wallace has been a fixture in Mt. Orab for over two decades. There is a lot of history there, which can be perceived as good and bad depending on the situation. I think for some, it was a plus. For others, it may have been a minus. Also, the previous judge had been a democrat and was not well liked. I think this played against Bruce as well.
I do want to take the time to apologize to Bruce Wallace and say that if I had known of the Hawkline situation further, and had been able to find the article about the abatements, I would not have published the article.
So I want to thank the emailer/caller who alerted me to this alternative information. I understand the need to defend people you know and work with. I wish Mr. Wallace all the best in the future and best wishes to his family. You, the readers of WMD, can look at both sides and make decisions for yourselves.
For me, after looking at the evidence, I find no fault with Mr. Gusweiler, who did not engage with Mr. Daly and never asked for his help. Both Mr. Gusweiler and Mr. Wallace ran campaigns about the issues, not personality. The issues regarding the abatements and the Port Authority have been resolved to me, and I think it is a case of mutual sour grapes. I think in the end I was drawn into a feud involving Wallace and people inside the WB district and in the community who have a beef with Wallace. So, therefore, I give thanks to the emailer/caller who gave me the other side.
We at WMD will continue to report local, state and national issues, and if you the readers find some things that can help us, such as checking into things like this, we appreciate the assistance.
