Akron History: Lawson's Chip Dip

The following essay first appeared in the May 27th/issue #6 of The Devil Strip--our new, twice monthly, arts & culture newspaper in Akron. Issue #6 is still available--go out and pick up a copy or read it on-line.  As many of you know, I love researching and writing about Akron history. I'll be writing a regular column about Akron history for The Devil Strip in upcoming issues.  If you have any suggestions or requests for particular topics, let me know.

 
Akron History: Why are Akronites so loyal to a chip dip they can only get at Circle K?
by Joanna Wilson

I hosted a party a few weeks back and made sure to include a tub of Lawson’s chip dip on the snack table. What Akron party is complete without Lawson’s chip dip, right? But why did I need to go to Circle K to buy another convenience store’s product? This is the question that lead me to seek out a logical answer. 

While I’m old enough to remember Lawson’s convenience stores on what seemed like every corner in the greater Akron area, what I didn’t know was that Lawson’s began right here. During the Depression, dairy businessman James “J.J.” Lawson was looking for a way to cut costs, making the bold decision to eliminate milkman delivery service and the necessary bill collection it came with in order to pass on the savings on to his customers. Starting in 1939, customers could visit The Lawson Milk Company store at the corner of the dairy plant in Cuyahoga Falls and fill a gallon jug of milk, saving themselves 16 cents. Lawson’s business plan was a success and he could barely keep up with the demand. Soon branch stores were opened. The industry took notice when milk was cheaper in Akron than any other major market throughout the country. In 1958, after 20 years, Lawson sold his company which included almost 200 stores to a national firm, Consolidated Foods. 

Many former Lawson's/Dairy Marts in the area can still be identified by their distinctive decorative storefronts.  This building has since been adapted into an auto repair/sale company near the corner of Oakwood Drive and Graham Road in Cuyahoga Falls.

Consolidated Foods expanded the Lawson’s stores to more than 700 and eventually sold them in the mid-80s, at which point they became Dairy Marts. The convenience stores were sold again in 2002 and became Circle K stores. Despite the change in company ownership, there continues to be a huge demand for Lawson’s chip dip. Dairymens Dairy in Cleveland now makes it and it continues to be carried in local Circle K stores. And, that ladies and gentlemen, is why every Akron party needs Lawson’s chip dip.

This is where the history of Lawson’s gets weird. 

In the mid-1970s, Consolidated Foods signed a deal with a Japanese company to expand the Lawson’s convenience stores overseas. That is why you can visit Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, and China today and shop at what they call Lawson (and Lawson Station) in more than 12,000 locations. More recently, they have expanded into Hawaii. If you’re wondering if you can buy Lawson’s chip dip in Japan, the answer is ‘no.’ Only Circle K carries it.

City Hope's Annual Crestland Park Clean-Up Project

You may have noticed that there's a tremendous amount of energy these days in Akron.  Many are working within the neighborhoods to revitalize and breathe new life in under-valued spaces.   Akron Better Block in North Hill received a lot of attention a few weeks back--and the event seemed to be a spectacular success.  But there's more going on than just Better Block.  I'd like to share with you the work of City Hope--a group working in a west side Akron neighborhood in Highland Square.  I recently met Jeremy D. Lile on the Akron2Pittsburgh trip.  The more we talked, the more I grew impressed with his hard work and dedication to serve.  

The annual Crestland Park Clean-Up takes place in April each year.  Below is Jeremy's well-spoken summary of the event and his experiences.  At the bottom, you'll find contact information to find out more or to join the movement.  --Joanna Wilson

City Hope's Annual Crestland Park Clean-Up Project
Essay by Jeremy D. Lile

"Neighbors make neighborhoods." That was my takeaway from our 4th annual Crestland Park neighborhood clean up and cookout. Three years ago, we started with a mix of folks from the neighborhood and folks from without...we were essentially pulling in anyone who was willing to help clean things up. 

This year, with the exception of one family, every volunteer came from within the neighborhood and surrounding streets. That is something to celebrate! We are seeing the need in our own community and taking care of that need as a community. We also celebrated that, after four years of hard work in the neighborhood, there was less trash to clean up. Our first year, we covered an entire devil strip with bags, tires, computers, wood, etc. We even boarded up a couple of homes! This year, the 40+ volunteers canvassed the neighborhood in a short amount of time and came back with less garbage. That tells us something is working! 

Several years ago, a group of us wanted to do something to show love to our neighborhood so we started asking, "What would look like love?" That's when we decided the answer was "A good cleaning and a shared meal." We love the vision of Keep Akron Beautiful and their Clean Up Akron Month initiative. However, we felt like it wasn't quite enough to just clean up together. We wanted to grow a sense of community that goes beyond a service project. The first year, despite miserable weather conditions, we had over 15 new families participate in the event. And then we noticed something: people were starting to come out of their homes more. And people were starting to get together outside of programmed events. And new friendships were blossoming. 

We knew we were on to something good, and so we decided to keep this going as an annual event. It's a great way to kick start the warmer weather and encourage people to get out and get to know each other. The basics are pretty simple: we reserve the Community Pride Trailer from KAB; we hand out flyers throughout the neighborhood the week before; we start about 9:00 a.m. and walk through every street in Crestland Park picking up trash; and then we finish with a cookout at someone's home where we provide the grilled items and everyone brings a side dish and/or dessert. It's really that simple. Anyone can do it. 

The goals for the clean up are quite simple: (1) Clean up and beautify the neighborhood and (2) Celebrate our community through a shared meal. 

Why Crestland Park? We chose Crestland Park because it is where we live. Sometimes those are the people and places that are hardest to love. So, we decided to start close to home and expand out from there. Also, Crestland Park is, in many ways, a microcosm of our city. We are demographically diverse - ethnically, racially, socioeconomically, age, etc. So, we believe that if it can happen here, then it can happen anywhere in our city and beyond. 

The group of people [that comes together] is really the best part. We started our day at the Community Pride Trailer (thank you KAB!) which was parked in front of our community garden (thank you Let's Grow Akron!). As we started to gather, an elderly neighbor came out of her home with a basket full of suckers for the kids. She knew that she wasn't physically capable of helping, but this was her way of participating. Everybody participates! 

As I wrote earlier, the group was pretty much all from the neighborhood and a walkable distance. We had over 50 volunteers ranging in age from 60s to 3. That's what I love so much. The kids get a chance to serve in their own community and play a vital role. They represented at least half the group. Over the years, we have moved from being neighbors by proximity of homes to becoming friends by proximity of heart. 

That's why after reflecting upon the number of lives and the diversity of lives that had been touched after this year's event, I thought to myself "Neighbors make neighborhoods." We could have an outside group come in and clean up, but there wouldn't be any sense of ownership, of pride, of dignity. It's the people that matter. Everyone does their part and that's what makes this a great place to live.

Thanks Jeremy!  
For more information about City Hope, check out their website: http://www.cityhopeakron.com/

or follow along with them on Facebook: City Hope  Community Development

Akron Better Block: North Hill Photo Essay

Akron Better Block: North Hill (May 15-17th) Aftermath Photo Essay
by guest blogger Svetla from Svetla Morrison Photography

The three day event Akron Better Block took place on the block of N. Main Street and E. Cuyahoga Falls Avenue from May 15-17 this year.  Not only was it a huge success, but it proved to really serve its purpose as a teaser for what our neighborhoods could look and feel like. The incredible amount of interest from the visitors and their expressed hope will turn this project into either a seasonal or reoccurring event.  It caught not only the attention of the organizers Tina and John Ughrin but also of a number of councilmen who came to North Hill that weekend and sparked a desire for a discussion about how could this idea be implemented in a more long-lasting way in our town. Team Better Block is collecting information through a short questionnaire about the changes we saw at the North Hill Better Block event and which are most desired to become permanent.  You can find the link to the questionnaire HERE.

***click on the photos to enlarge***

 

Akron History: Lewis Miller

The following essay first appeared in the May 12th/issue #5 of The Devil Strip--our new, twice monthly, arts & culture newspaper in Akron.  The theme of that issue was Big Ideas in Akron--and Lewis Miller was certainly a man with big ideas.  Issue #5 is still available--go out and pick up a copy or read it on-line.  As many of you know, I love researching and writing about Akron history.  I'll be writing a regular column about Akron history for The Devil Strip in upcoming issues.  If you have any suggestions or requests for particular topics, let me know. 

from Lewis Miller: A Biographical Essay.

Lewis Miller: Akron’s connection to Elvis and Edison
by Joanna Wilson

In Akron’s rich history, inventor and industrialist Lewis Miller (1829-1899) was certainly a man with big ideas.  Miller made his fortune from designing more efficient, safer mowing and harvesting machinery which he then maximized by supervising the manufacture of his farm equipment.  Moving from Stark County to Akron during the Civil War, Miller expanded his manufacturing empire here and continued to grow richer from his Buckeye Harvesting Machines.

Once he became wealthy, the farm equipment magnate didn’t get lazy. Instead, Miller took the opportunity to nurture something very dear to his heart: education.  He is still highly regarded for his contributions to spiritual edification; he designed the “Akron Plan”--a church building layout that incorporates Sunday School classrooms to facilitate learning and studying--optimizing the acoustics, air flow, and light.

In the 1870s, Miller co-founded The Chautauqua movement--a sort of adult education, summer schooling which included music, exercise, spiritual discussions and scientific lectures. The Chautauqua Institute (located near idyllic Chautauqua Lake in western New York) became a popular concept, and the movement eventually expanded throughout the country.

If it weren’t for Miller, we’d have one less Elvis movie in American film history.  Almost 100 years after Miller founded the Chautauqua movement, in 1969, the King of Rock 'n' Roll would star in “The Trouble With Girls,” a movie about a traveling Chautauqua tent show.

Education was so important to the indefatigable Miller that he also served as Akron's school board president, as well as the president of the board for what is now known as the University of Mount Union, in nearby Alliance. 

Lewis Miller's home, Oak Place, still stands in West Akron at 142 King Drive.  The mansion has since been converted into apartments.

 
Miller also had a connection to Thomas Edison, arguably the man with the biggest ideas of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  Lewis’ daughter Mina studied music in New Jersey where she met the brilliant Thomas Edison, and the lovers wed in the Miller family home in Akron in 1886.  If you'd like to see where the magic happened, the Miller family home is still standing in an isolated West Akron neighborhood across from Glendale Cemetery. Miller’s red brick mansion, called Oak Place, still retains its dignity and stands high above the Innerbelt. 

If you’d like to learn more about Lewis Miller and the Chautauqua Movement, archivist Jonathan Schmitz is giving a special presentation, June 28th at 3p.m., at First United Methodist Church in Akron, 262 E. Mill Street.

And, June 23-28th at Hardesty Park and Akron Main Library, there will be a week's worth of Ohio Chautauqua events.  For more info, click HERE.

For more information about Lewis Miller, see the book Lewis Miller: A Biographical Essay by Ellwood Hendrick (published 1925) which is available at our own Akron-Summit County Public Library.

 

Neighbors Apparel

Have you seen people wearing the Ohio Tee around Akron yet?

Neighbors Apparel: Fashion Forward in North Hill
by Joanna Wilson

I'm super excited about the upcoming Akron Better Block in North Hill--aren't you?  When I found out my new friend Tessa Reeves with Neighbors Apparel was setting up her clothing company in a pop-up market within Better Block, I asked her if she'd be willing to talk with me about her less-than-a-year-old venture.  I first became aware of Neighbors Apparel through their vendor spotlight on the website for Crafty Mart.  I ended up meeting Tessa in person for the first time during our Akron2Pittsburgh trip.  And, now it turns out, we're both playing on the same team in a summer softball league!  I love how Akron often turns out to be a smaller town than it often feels.  In our conversations prior to this, I've been extremely impressed with Tessa's vision of Neighbors Apparel.  If possible, I think I'm even more impressed by her strong character.  See if you aren't too after reading our conversation:

Joanna:  Please tell me about yourself. How did you come to start Neighbors Apparel?

Tessa:  Fashion was always something that made my heart beat fast. The passion really developed in high school, and I found myself diving into copies of ELLE or Vogue in between classes, dreaming of landing a job at such a publication after college. Naturally, I went to Kent State for their renown fashion merchandising program. There I had the opportunity to study and intern in New York City — the heart of the fashion industry. I thought I had officially “made it” when I finished up a junior year internship at ELLE magazine, my senior editor there (also from Kent State!) telling me to contact her personally when I needed a job post graduation.

But within a couple of weeks, I experienced a pull that led me to make a complete 180 from the industry. Maybe it was hindsight, maybe it was my continued exposure to the heart of the industry, but I soon realized how ugly my own selfish ambition to simply climb the masthead was. It benefited nothing other than my own name and my bank account; it gave no real value to anyone or anything else. This was also during a season where I was growing in my faith and really learning about the example Christ set for his followers. Not to sound religious-y, but this was an integral part to my suddenly huge desire to give my life (and entire career) to something other than myself. The call to love our neighbors, and the reason behind that call, became the thing I wanted to pursue through my career. I didn’t know how quite yet, but I didn’t feel that I could best do that in the magazine world.

Neighbors makes more than t-shirts.  Here's Tessa herself modeling a headband and infinity scarf made right here in Akron from Karen fabrics.

Fast forward a couple of months and I find myself as a volunteer at Urban Vision, a community-development ministry in North Hill. I had never really volunteered anywhere; this was just one step towards figuring out what it was that I wanted to with my life. I immediately fell in love with their mission of holistically developing the North Hill neighborhood, and had to join in. Plus, I was extremely inspired by the people already doing work there; the UV staff moved into the neighborhood to do life there in order to better hear ways to solve problems, and simply be able to love people already living there. Within a few months of volunteering there, the Executive Director caught wind that I both had a fashion degree and wanted to be a part of the mission at UV. He came up with the idea that UV would fund a small business that employed refugee women to use their seamstress abilities…if I wanted to head up the business. I of course said yes!

Bringing joy to their work.

Joanna:  What motivated you to start a business working with refugee women? What have you learned from them along the way?  Do they do more in the business than sew?

Tessa:  This opportunity really fell into my lap. I never thought I’d become an entrepreneur. But my passion for the North Hill community was a gateway to being handed the opportunity to start this business, and I can’t think of a better outcome for all of my passions to come through in my career!

I have had a huge change of perspective ever since working with the refugee community. I’ve become much more aware of the refugee crisis that we have going on in so many parts of the world. When I started learning about the refugees we have here in Akron, I was appalled that this was something that I hadn’t heard talked about before. I grew up 20 minutes from Akron and never once heard someone talk about the refugee neighbors we have living here among us, nonetheless WHY they’re here. It’s such an important story people need to be hearing, and I’m very thankful to have the platform of a business to help garner social conversation around the topic.

It’s been humbling to work alongside such hardworking women who have experienced things in life I will never come close to facing. As I continue hearing bits & pieces of their stories, I admire them more and more for their strength. I have so much respect for many in the refugee community, because I haven’t once seen anyone operating off of self-pity. The refugees I know are not only hardworking, but HAPPY. They put so much value on family and community relationships, and I have a hunch this is why they’re so content despite being torn from their homes across the world. They are a tight-knit community that looks out for each other day in and day out, especially here in their new Akron home. Observing this has taught me to live a more thankful life — how could I not, seeing their contentment with the cards life has handed them? I also feel very lucky to be able to experience new cultures so up close in so many different ways; it literally enriches my life week to week in countless ways. And, my employees are hilarious; I have so much fun with them in the shop. We all have a great relationship with each other despite coming from three different cultures!

The main job of our refugee women is sewing. Some of them have helped with the design of products, which is always cool to watch. But mainly, they execute the making of the product — and they do it darn well!

Neighbors Apparel also makes bags and purses in all sizes, from wristlets to crossbody bags, and totes.

Joanna:  How and where do you sell your items? What has the response been from the community?

Tessa: We’re in about 10 local shops between Cleveland and Columbus, our main retailer here in Akron being The Market Path in Highland Square. Neighbors Apparel also travels to as many Ohio craft shows/maker’s marts we can fit into our weekend schedules! And of course, www.neighborsapparel.com is always open for business. Our website also allows for custom EVERYTHING, which makes it a fun way to shop our stuff.

Last week, on behalf of Neighbors Apparel, Tessa Reeves accepted the Innovation Award at the Zenith Awards ceremony from the Akron/Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau. Congrats to you!

The response has been…overwhelming. Every time I think about how Akron has responded to our mission here at Neighbors, I don’t know how to be thankful enough worthy of the response. People get really excited when they find out that our product is made right here in Akron. It’s also been amazing to see how customers actually listen to our story, ask questions about our mission, and decide they want to become a Neighbor through our product. We are so thankful for each and every interaction we have. Another cool thing is that our audience has become very diverse; we have men, women, young and old from a diverse array of backgrounds, whether business men or fashionable twenty-somethings.

Poster art from 427 Design.

Joanna:  Tell me about your participation in Akron Better Block. What is your connection to North Hill?

Tessa:  We’re stoked for Akron Better Block because part of the purpose of the weekend is celebrating the potential of little guys like us. We’re based in North Hill, where there is a large refugee community, so we’re a perfect fit to have a pop-up storefront over this weekend. We’d love to one day have an actual storefront and be a catalyst for the development of North Main St. in our neighborhood, having other small businesses join alongside us there.

And, for a plug: Neighbors Apparel at Better Block is going to be a BLAST! I won't give away all of our surprises, but the store will have many interactive activities going on besides just shopping. One of them will be getting the chance to design your own t-shirt and take it home, hot off the sewing machine and after a handshake with one of our refugee seamstresses.

I see I'm not the only one looking forward to Akron Better Block!

Joanna:  Tell me about your plans to grow the business?

Tessa:  There are quite a number of growth strategies we could (and I’d like to) try. Coming from a background in fashion, I realize that the industry is huge. So, my plan is to take as large a chunk out of it as possible. One strategy we’re obviously currently implementing is going the wholesale route, and trying to create an organic following through local customers in Ohio. We’d also like to expand our product line in the near future to things like toddler, baby, home accessories & more. There are other things like potential collaborations, and a huge step would be securing spots in industry trade shows, where buyers would come to us. However if we do get there, I’m sure it’s going to take a few years. But, like I said, our industry has so much potential!

Neighbors specializes in making Ohio Tees but they can make other states as well.

Joanna:  What should people know about Neighbors Apparel?

Tessa:  What should people know? Don’t put us in a box, as I feel many people tend to do. Just because we have a social mission doesn’t mean we’re non-profit, and doesn’t mean we’re a “training program” that’s set to be that and only that. We strive to be innovative with our product, fashion-forward, and we want to be one of your favorite brands that you use in daily life. We’re in this to create as many jobs — and Neighbors through our product — as possible. And, while we are extremely Akron-proud, we want to grow past our borders. It will help that much more if people catch that wind and get excited with us, and tell our story in THAT way — make sense? We can grow as big as our following lets us, so jump on board and let’s do it!

Joanna:  Thank you Tessa Reeves.  I'm proud to know you and I'm inspired to be a Neighbor too.

Show your support this weekend: #supportlocal  #iamaneighbor

You can find more information about Akron's own Neighbors Apparel on their website:
www.NeighborsApparel.com
and on Facebook: Neighbors Apparel

And, don't forget: you can find Neighbors Apparel this weekend: May 15th-17th at
Akron Better Block
their website: www.teambetterblock.com/akron/
and the event on Facebook: Akron Better Block

See you in North Hill this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday!

Akron Better Block: May 15th,16th, and 17th

427 Design.

Akron Better Block:  Imagining a Better Akron, One Block at a Time
by Joanna Wilson

Can you imagine Akron's North Hill with new small-business markets and the streets made safer and more accessible for bicycles and pedestrians?  I spoke with John Ughrin and Tina Ughrin, from the organization Team Better Block, who are working to create a temporary example of that vision.  They're calling it Akron Better Block--a weekend long event--and an opportunity for neighborhood residents and visitors to see what improvements could actually look like and how they could work in an actual North Hill location.

I first met John and Tina on the Akron2Pittsburgh trip.  Tina lead a group of us on a walking tour through several notable Pittsburgh neighborhoods, as we observed the negotiation of retail and residential spaces.  I chatted with John on the two hour bus ride home at the end of our day in Pittsburgh.  Both John and Tina impressed me immensely with their hard work and commitment to North Hill.  Their enthusiasm and vision for their neighborhood was exciting and inspiring.  I think you'll think so too.  The conversation below took place after we returned to Akron.

Joanna: What is Akron Better Block all about?

John: A Better Block is a kind of "flash mob" urban planning project. For one weekend, we narrow the street, fill empty shops with pop-up businesses, bring in art, bike lanes, and other amenities. Almost everything is temporary, but that means its relatively cheap and easy to generate consensus. It gives people a physical vision of what their best hopes for an area can be. The power of that inspiration does the rest.

In some ways, it's about reconnecting neighborhoods with themselves.  We've spent the last 60 or so years designing our spaces around cars, and a Better Block is a way to start and take them back for people. This is especially true in a place like North Hill, where the bones of that people-centered past still linger in our buildings and streets.

Joanna: Where did you get the idea to launch this project?

John: Last spring (2014) AMATS [Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study], through its Switching Gears group, put on a conference on Active Transportation (bicycling and walking). We (Tina and I) went, and Jason Roberts (inventor of the Better Block concept) gave a talk about the process. We left very enthused about the possibilities for applying it to North Hill.

Joanna: Why North Hill?

John: North Hill has a lot of untapped energy and diversity! Its reputation is outdated. As we've welcomed new populations to our community, we've outgrown our old image. We live in North Hill and love it. Hopefully, the Better Block will be a kind of catalyst to share that energy with more people.

Concept drawing from Team Better Block.  Click on it to enlarge.

Joanna: Tell me a little about yourselves--and what inspired you to do this?

John:  Tina and I have been living in North Hill for about 8 years. We've become rather fierce patriots for the neighborhood. Living in a place where you can be friends with your neighbors and share city life is a great experience. Our kids say that its like living in an old TV show. People in the 'burbs are missing out!

We are also big on walking and bicycling. If neighborhoods had commercial centers reminiscent of the past, we could reduce our collective use of cars.

Joanna: Please list 5 things visitors and North Hill residents should NOT miss at Akron Better Block?

John: Just 5? I don't want to leave anyone out, though! We've got Food, Clothing, Art and Art Galleries, Performances, and Games. Not to mention the changes to the street! I'm not even familiar with all of them! So I'm going to cheat a bit. Of the ones I know, I'd recommend visitors try:

1) Three Sisters' Momos (a type of Nepali Dumpling)
2) Chatpattey (sp?) - a puffed rice snack/lunch from Family Groceries
3) Neighbors' Apparel - a designer clothier staffed and supplied by Karen women from the US and Asia.

Thanks Google!

John continues: Of the ones I don't know, I'm most curious to see:
4) the Sepak Takraw tournament, if that happens.
5) The Dawn Group - Indian Fashions and accessories.
6) the various ethnic dance groups that will be performing on our small stages.
7) Carrom (sp?) a tabletop game similar to pool, but with disks instead of balls.

Tina:  I would simply add that I am also excited for folks to experience Stray Dog restaurants, Wandering Aesthetics theater, a bike in movie, soccer tournaments, bocce tournaments, yoga, tai chi, and so much more. We can't possibly be sure we have mentioned them all as there will be so much to experience. It is an exciting time to be part of North Hill and Akron.

427 Design.

What are your goals for that weekend? How will you know if it is a success? Do you have plans for a 2nd Akron Better Block?

John: The primary objective of a Better Block project is to re-activate a block (or other space) for the neighborhood. In our case, we're hoping to reactivate the block on North Main Street by Cuyahoga Falls Ave. "Reactivate" means a lot of things including filling vacant commercial space by generating new businesses as well as inspiring physical changes in the space to make it more inviting as a place for people to linger and enjoy, rather than drive past or through. If those things start to happen, then it's a success. For the weekend itself, we're just hoping that a lot of people have a good time, and maybe re-examine how they see that block and North Hill in general.

Tina and I aren't planning a second Better Block right now, but others are looking into it in other Akron neighborhoods. I know Nolan James is working one up in Kenmore, and there's rumors of one being planned in West Hill or Highland Square.

I'd love to see other neighborhoods do one as well, and they don't have to be nearly as involved or large as this one is. All it takes is for neighborhood leaders to step forward and make it happen. If you're thinking about it, look around for help. Tina and I found great allies in Lisa Weiser at the North Hill Branch of the Library and Maria Mancinelli at the International Institute. They had a group of North Hill Community Leaders waiting for us already. People's Bank and North Realty have been wonderful as participating property owners. We've also gotten a ton of support from the city's Department of Neighborhood Assistance, Keep Akron Beautiful, AMATS, and the Knight Foundation. It's the kind of project that's easy to get behind.

Joanna: Thank you Tina and John!

Join us at Akron Better Block on N. Main Street at E. Cuyahoga Falls Ave.  
Fri May 15th: 6-10pm, Sat & Sun May 16th & 17th: 10am-3pm.
For more information: check the website:  www.AkronBetterBlock.com
click HERE for the schedule of activities