A new homeless shelter opened in Youngstown earlier this March and it holds a certain distinction: Full Spectrum's Rainbow House of the Mahoning Valley is the only one in the state to provide emergency housing specifically for adults in the LGBTQ+ community.
Every day at the Garden of Joy Culinary Academy starts with a mindfulness circle. Before teens put on aprons and start chopping veggies, they grab fruit patterned pillows and sit down in the dining room of an old Frisch's in the Clifton neighborhood of Cincinnati.
When Marsha Bullock was diagnosed with an aggressive form of lymphoma last year, the 62-year-old grandmother's life took up a pattern of doctors appointments and chemo treatments and prayer.
But as warm summer mornings gave way to chilly autumn nights, she grew increasingly worried about a concern even more immediate than her health: staying warm in the winter.
Tourism in Hocking Hills has soared in recent years, but funding for the region's emergency services has not.
Instead, local fire departments have been left to respond to rising numbers of emergency calls with stagnant levels of funding and staffing.
A recent change in state law could help.
As federal immigration efforts have intensified across the country, Ohio city councils are preparing for increased ICE presence.
Many cities have passed legislation to limit local law enforcement's cooperation with the federal immigration agency.
A jump rope slammed against the gym floor at the Circleville Juvenile Correctional Facility (JCF) in central Ohio, as about a dozen older teens and young men warmed up and stretched their arms.
Then, the real workout began.
"Pushups, everybody!" a coach shouted.
In a conference room at The Ohio History Connection in Columbus, OHC interpretation and content specialist Wendy Korwin pulls up a clip from a 1969 Halloween drag ball and carnival. A jaunty voice sings over the crackling audio, welcoming guests to the ball.
For 18 years, Ohioans of different faiths have been invited to break fast and learn more about Ramadan at a community iftar meal.
This year's Interfaith Iftar took place on Feb. 25, hosted by Dayton Mercy Society in Miamisburg.
For Drew Bowles, tattoos are a form of self-expression, so the 23-year-old has a lot of them.
There's a tiny cross just beneath the corner of his eye, an ornate key on the skin in front of his ear. The koi fish on his chest are in memory of his foster father who passed away a couple years ago.
It's been nearly three months since Ohio law has prohibited K-12 students from using their cell phones during the school day.
School administrators and students have mixed feelings on how it's going so far.
