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.

Voice of America Museum Board gets key go ahead – The “last piece” to make West Chester Township’s Voice of America Bethany Relay Station a museum may finally be in place. During its Tuesday night meeting, township trustees unanimously agreed to enter a five-year lease with the Board of the National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting, which will put the museum’s board in charge of maintaining the landmark and will allow them to raise funds as a non-profit corporation.

Contest: Design the official 2013 Shamrock Shuffle t-shirt – For the first time in the history of the Shamrock Shuffle, the Community Foundation of West Chester/Liberty is hosting a t-shirt design contest for annual event that attracts approximately 4,000 runners every March. The Shamrock Shuffle, which is now in its seventh year, raised around $10,000 for approximately 50 local charities or causes this spring.

Township approves ‘No Parking Zones’ near local schools – The West Chester Board of Trustees approved last week the establishment of “No Parking Zones” near several of the community’s schools on Tuesday. The schools affected by the new “No Parking Zones” are Hopewell Junior and Hopewell Elementary, as well as Endeavor Elementary and Adena Elementary.

Lakota East’s Spark magazine wins Pacemaker award – Spark Magazine announced last week that it won its 10th national Pacemaker award at the National Scholastic Press Association/Journalism Education Association Fall National Convention in San Antonio, Texas, Nov. 15-18. The magazine has been run by students at Lakota East High School for the past 21 years.

Representing Endeavor at the Nov. 12 awards presentation for its SOAR Award in Columbus were Endeavor Principal Joanna Sears and Assistant Principal Gail Allshouse; Lakota Assistant Superintendent Robb Vogelmann; and Lakota School Board member Julie Shaffer. Photo provided.

Endeavor recognized with SOAR Award – WestChestBuzz.com shared last week that Endeavor Elementary was honored recently by receiving the 2012 SOAR Award for High Progress in the school category. The annual award acknowledges Ohio schools and districts participating in SOAR, Battelle for Kids’ school improvement collaborative, for their academic progress in multiple grade levels and subjects in the 2011-2012 school year.

Wish List: West Chester mom wants to hear books – Dorothy Jones of West Chester is a mother of three who lost her vision in 2001 following an operation to reduce pressure on her brain. This was life-altering for Dorothy, her husband and children, who were infants and toddlers at the time, Leigh Taylor reported last week.

Tri-County Heating and Cooling sponsoring local coat drive – West Chester’s Tri-County Heating and Cooling is sponsoring the Spread the Warmth campaign to benefit Reach Out Lakota. The company is collecting new and gently-used coats and winter accessories for Reach Out Lakota from through Dec. 15. The company will donate $20 for each coat collected and $10 for each hat, scarf and pair of gloves collected, up to a maximum of $2,000.

Tara Schafer-Kalkhoff, Lakota West’s first and only head coach for girls soccer, recently announced her retirement.

Lakota West announces coaching changes- The Lakota West athletic department recently announced a few coaching changes. Tara Schafer-Kalkhoff, Lakota West’s first and only head coach for girls soccer, announced her retirement, while current fall coaches added spring coaching gigs.

MetroParks announces new motor vehicle permit plan – MetroParks motor vehicle permit hang tags will again be available free to all Butler County residents beginning Dec. 15. MetroParks began giving free permits to county residents after narrowly passing a levy in November of 2010.

Ex-Butler auditor Kay Rogers wants out of prison – Sheila McLaughlin of The Cincinnati Enquirer reported last Tuesday that a federal judge refused to let former Butler County Auditor Mary “Kay” Rogers out of prison early. Rogers, who is serving a two-year sentence for wire and mail fraud, asked Monday to serve the remaining five months of her sentence on home incarceration.

For collector of razors, thrill is the hunt – Reporter Rachel Richardson wrote a feature story on West Chester resident Jerry Rosenthal’s unique collection of 600 safety razors (photos below). Rosenthal told Richardson that he likes to think of himself of a treasure-hunter.

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Tags: Tags: Endeavor Elementary, Endeavor Elementary School, Jerry Rosenthal, Lakota East, Lakota East High School, Lakota East Spark Magazine, Lakota Local Schools, National VOA Museum of Broadcasting, National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting, razor collecting, razor collections, Shamrock Shuffle, Shamrock Shuffle t-shirt, Shamrock Shuffle t-shirt design, Shamrock Shuffle West Chester, SOAR, SOAR Awards, Tara Schafer-Kalkhoff, VOA Museum, VOA Museum of Broadcasting, Voice of America Museum

Rachel Richardson reports:

Jerry Rosenthal likes to think of himself as a treasure-hunter.

But the riches he seeks aren’t buried in dirt or sand. They’re found at flea markets and antique shops, on online auction sites and through word-of-mouth with others who share his passion.

Rosenthal, 69, is a collector of barberiana. It has nothing to do with Conan the Barbarian memorabilia. Instead, it refers to collecting razors and shaving equipment.

His loot includes more than 600 gleaming safety razors in brass, silver and nickel – many in their original packaging – and highly decorative razor blade tins and soft brushes.

Jerry Rosenthal of West Chester has approximately 600 vintage razors that he collects. Rosenthal started the collection 18 years ago. Photo by Amanda Davidson.

One of the crown jewels in Rosenthal’s collection is a recent acquire, an 1896 Kampfe safety razor set in a mother of pearl handle with a sterling silver razor head in “fantastic” condition. A friend spotted the find, produced by German brothers Otto and Frederick Kampfe who patented the first safety razor in the United States, at a mall in Nebraska. The kit, which Rosenthal values between $5,000 and $6,000, includes the original leather case, stropper and 12 blades.

The collection spans seven display cases and the walls of a loft in his West Chester home.

Rosenthal declined to give a value for his collection. To him, the items are priceless.

“The thing that fascinated me with the safety razors is there are so many variations,” he explains. “There are razors you wind up and some with a safety light at the top. There’s a number of safety razors that look like fountain pens and there are ones you plug in. A lot of them are quite stunning, the old ones especially.”

Restoring birdcages was Rosenthal’s passion in 1994 when he stumbled across a 1929 boxed Schick razor at a flea market.

Intrigued, he bought it and showed it to his wife, Katie, who suggested he collect them.

“She will never forget those words,” said Rosenthal with a laugh. (more…)

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Tags: Tags: Jerry Rosenthal, razor collecting, razor collections