WestChesterBuzz.com

To let West Chester and Liberty Township residents catch up with the news that they need to know, WestChesterBuzz.com will list and link to all of last week’s top local stories every Monday.

Community leader passes away – The West Chester and Liberty township communities grieved the loss A. Christian Worrell III, who was responsible for the Graydon Head Legal Counsel Butler/Warren Office and was a member of countless local committees. Worrell’s funeral took place last Tuesday afternoon.

T.C. Rogers. File photo.

My Furry Valentine to come back – The organizer for My Furry Valentine, a large pet adoption event that took place throughout Cincinnati, said that she expects to host another event next February. This past February, the main event was in West Chester. There have also been discussions to add another large pet adoption event in the summer or in the early fall.

Rogers keeps lead in commission vote – Political newcomer T.C. Rogers kept his edge over Courtney Combs as the Republican nominee for Butler County Commissioner last Tuesday when absentee and provisional ballots were counted. But the race is destined for an automatic recount by law because the margin is less than half of 1 percent. The recount is expected to take place this Monday.

West Chester playing role in Ohio’s economic development – The Atlanta-based magazine Site Selection awarded Ohio and Governor John Kasich first place in its annual Governor’s Cup rankings. The Governor’s Cup, which was announced in its March issue, ranks the 50 states according to their success in attracting capital investment projects. West Chester Township played a role in the state’s accomplishment.

Ezekiel "Zeke" Stepaniak. Photo provided.

The Cone opens for the season – A West Chester landmark and popular location in the summer, The Cone, officially opened for the season last Thursday with a surprise opening night. The seasonal destination is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday through Saturday and from noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.

Lakota community comes together after fatal wreck – Lakota West High School and others in the school community mourned the loss of one its students – junior Ezekiel “Zeke” Stepaniak – and prayed for the recovery of another student – sophomore Ashley Stacy. Throughout the week, students showed their support in many ways.

Office Depot donates $97,000 in supplies to Lakota – The Lakota school district announced that it received $97,000 worth of office supplies from Office Depot. According to school officials, Office Depot donated 79,000 items that included highlighters, pens, trash bags, paper towels, batteries, glue sticks and binders.

Posted in: Events, News, Schools |

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According to his friends in the community and in the legal field, A. Christian Worrell III never liked getting special attention.

Chris Worrell. Photo provided.

However, when someone affects everyone around him – special attention can be hard to avoid.

Worrell will again be in the minds of many of those closest to him, as a large gathering is expected to pay their respects during a public funeral at the Isaac M. Wise Center, 8329 Ridge Road, Amberley Village, at 2 p.m. Tuesday.

“He was very humble. He was someone who was always about other people and never about himself,” said Joe Hinson, CEO and president of the West Chester ▪ Liberty Chamber Alliance. “He cared a lot about his family and also a lot about the organizations he was involved with. He was very passionate about those things.”

When Hinson urged Worrell to be featured or honored by the Chamber, the Graydon Head law firm partner would sigh. Instead of the deserved recognition, Worrell would much rather brag about his children – daughter Devon and son Benjamin.

“They (Worrell and Benjamin) were the best of buds,” Graydon Head attorney Robin Miller said. “When he would come home from college, everything else went by the wayside. That was his and Ben’s time.”

During Ben’s time, the two would go out shooting firearms, watch UFC fights and microbrew their own beer. Those were just a few of Worrell’s hobbies that also included the outdoors, motorcycles, skiing, teaching tae kwon do and collecting guitars.

On the other hand, when it wasn’t “Ben’s time,” Worrell and his wife, Stephanie, visited their daughter in Seattle. The couple recently bought second home in Washington State in order to be closer.

With co-workers and friends back in West Chester, he would share photos of their new Seattle home and boast about his daughter on being able to climb to the base camp at Mount Everest and after she was hired by Microsoft.

“Those who know Chris, you saw how much he loved his family,” Graydon Head attorney Scott Jones said. “He would always come into the office talking about his kids.

“With Stephanie, they had the type of relationship where if you were in the room with them for more than three minutes you could just how much they loved each other. For me, that was very inspiring to see how he was as a father and a husband.” (more…)

Posted in: News |

Tags: Tags: Butler County United Way Board of Trustees, Chris Worrell, Chris Worrell III, Chris Worrell III obit, Chris Worrell obit, Christian Worrell III, Christian Worrell III obit, Graydon Head, Graydon Head Legal Counsel, Liberty Township Board of Zoning Appeals, Liberty Township Joint Economic Development District, Partners In Prime, Richard La Jeunesse, Tom Prewitt, West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance Board, West Chester Township Park Committee

A. Christian Worrell III of Liberty Township was responsible for the Graydon Head Legal Counsel Butler/Warren Office and was a member of countless local committees, but was best known among his co-workers for always having a hobby.

Chris Worrell. Photo provided.

“Outside of the office, he always had a hobby whether that was riding motorcycles, skiing, teaching taekwondo or collecting guitars,” said Tom Prewitt, executive committee chair of Graydon Head.

Worrell also loved the outdoors, once spending a week on a glacier in Alaska and hiking the Himalayas in Nepal.

Just prior to passing away, Worrell was traveling to Seattle Wednesday to visit his daughter when he suffered a medical emergency inflight. Upon landing, he was unconscious and taken to the hospital where he died Thursday after recently turning 60 years old.

“This was a really tragic, sadden, unexpected loss,” Prewitt said.

“He has been a great part of our firm, our community and he will be missed dearly.”

In the community, Worrell was a leader and at one time was the chair of all of the following groups – Butler County United Way Board of Trustees, West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance Board, Liberty Township Joint Economic Development District, Liberty Township Board of Zoning Appeals, Partners in Prime and the West Chester Township Park Committee.

“He leaves a very long and wide shadow in the Butler and Warren area. We have seen that through everyone contacting us throughout the community,” said Richard La Jeunesse, partner at Graydon Head. “It has been touching.”

Word is quickly spreading about Worrell’s death in the community that he was so heavily involved in and many are expected to attend his funeral, which is open to the public, at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Isaac M. Wise Center, 8329 Ridge Road.

Worrell leaves behind his wife Stephanie, his son Benjamin, his daughter Devon and his son-in-law Noah, as well as a brother, a sister, numerous clients, co-workers and countless friends.

“He had a wonderful life to celebrate, many accomplishments and great relationships,” La Jeunesse said.

“He was a very adventuresome and wonderful individual, colleague and friend.”

Posted in: News |

Tags: Tags: Butler County United Way Board of Trustees, Chris Worrell, Chris Worrell III, Chris Worrell III obit, Chris Worrell obit, Christian Worrell III, Christian Worrell III obit, Graydon Head, Graydon Head Legal Counsel, Liberty Township Board of Zoning Appeals, Liberty Township Joint Economic Development District, Partners In Prime, Richard La Jeunesse, Tom Prewitt, West Chester Liberty Chamber Alliance Board, West Chester Township Park Committee