Lakewood residents will be treated like royalty when the likes of Jake “the snake” Roberts and other professional wrestlers compete in the Firestorm Pro event which debuts September 12 at the Phantasy Theatre campus on the city’s east side. With the prospects of monthly shows in mind, Firestorm Pro seeks to be a springboard for wrestling in Lakewood and the greater Cleveland area from their recently unveiled Phantasy Theatre Campus.

Lakewood resident J.C. Koszewski, founder of the emerging Firestorm wrestling academy, is seeking to broaden the scope of professional wrestling in Lakewood. Koszweski first developed a love for local wrestling in his early teenage years. It was during this time that he first intuited the untapped potential which might give birth to a local scene of blood, sweat and theatrical displays of aggression...

The 21st annual Lakewood Community Festival is scheduled for Saturday, September 6, 2008 at Madison Park, 13029 Madison Avenue.  The festival celebrates community, cultural heritage and families.  It is a day of fun and activities for everyone...

The City of Lakewood and the Lakewood Veterans Committee are planning a major renovation project for the Veterans Memorial at Lakewood Park...

Lakewood is taking a tougher, more active role in scrutinizing the renewal of liquor permits.  The City is objecting to a liquor permit renewal for Bottom’s Up, located at 1572 West 117th Street.  On October 1st of each year, liquor permits issued in Cuyahoga County expire on an annual basis...

When a team of people is charged with advancing the interests of a greater organization, colliding viewpoints and ideas are typically the norm rather than the exception, particularly as each individual member of that team brings his or her own respective areas of expertise and a lifetime of experience to the table. When those differing viewpoints and ideas meet head-on, the ensuing debate often brings stronger and better solutions...

First Federal of Lakewood and Main Street Lakewood are hosting a two-day seminar entitled, ‘Start Smart: Women and Business Connections.’ The seminar will take place on consecutive Wednesdays, Sept. 17 and Sept. 24, 4:30-7:30 p.m., at First Federal Lakewood, 14806 Detroit Ave. The program is designed to provide the knowledge, tools, and connections necessary to help women entrepreneurs succeed in their businesses...

After an immense amount of hard work, thanks to many area contractors, the Lakewood Chamber of Commerce's new home is located at 16017 Detroit Avenue. The building was once home to Today's Headlines Salon. After an extended vacancy, it is wonderful to see such a unique building put to good use once again...

Lakewood Walks Main Street participants recently walked nearly 200 miles on a beautiful summer day in downtown Lakewood with the help of LakewoodAlive, Beck Center, Main Street, Lakewood Hospital and Lakewood Historical Society volunteers. Over 100 participants walked one or two mile routes along Detroit Avenue, stopping in at merchants along the way. All participating businesses (and several more) donated items and/or gift certificates for a raffle drawing for the walkers...

The Barton Community Center will hold a Flea Market on Saturday, September 13 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Over 25 vendors will participate. In addition, Barton Center’s resale shops will be open and the Snack Bar will be serving lunch. Barton Center is located on the Ground Floor of the Westerly Apartments at 14300 Detroit Ave. with parking available in the adjacent Kucinich Office parking lot...

BookFlix is a children’s reading resource available in-library or at home via the Internet. Intended for children ranging from Pre-K to third grade, the site provides access to audiovisual adaptations of classic storybooks from Weston Woods and new nonfiction eBooks from Scholastic. Classic stories available include: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, Curious George Rides a Bike by H.A. Rey, Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham, and The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds...

Cleveland native Oliver Buck will bring his sound, a mixture of Country, Blues, and Folk, to the Lakewood Public Library Auditorium at 2:00 p.m., Sunday, September 7th. Buck, a talented singer, songwriter, guitarist mixes in covers and standards with his own original songs to reflect life in the “heart of the great American Rust Belt...”

It’s funny. It will break your heart--and it’s free. Charlie Chaplin’s The Kid (1921) will return to the big screen on Saturday, September 13 in the Lakewood Public Library Main Auditorium. Not only is admission free, but film lovers are encouraged to bring their own light snacks from home. (Try that in your favorite art house or multiplex!) The feature presentation will begin at 6:00 p.m. after a short subject chosen by the staff...

Calling all elementary students! On Monday, September 8th, the Lakewood Public Library is kicking off its newest program, the Zone. “It’s going to be an awesome time,” says children’s librarian, Tracie Forfia. “If you’re in kindergarten through fifth grade, you won’t want to miss this...”

Lakewood has been known by many epithets, but probably its most recognizable is “The City of Beautiful Homes”, and it is that name that the Lakewood Historical Society showcases each year at the biennial House Tour...

The Sharp Student Academy returns to the Lakewood Public Library this fall with updated and expanded course offerings. Classes will be held in the new Learning Lab located in the Technology Center at Main Library...

Though the earth's surface is mostly covered by water, not even 1% of it is fresh and accessible. Hundreds of millions of people already lack sufficient access to fresh water, and, if current consumption rates continue, this could soon increase by 25% according to the UN. The lack of sanitation facilities and fresh water contributes greatly to the incidence and spread of disease, from cholera to hepatitis to dysentery to simple infections...

So, let me get this straight: two multi-millionaires are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising to try to convince us that they’re in touch with the middle class. Wonderful. Talk about a catch-22. If a candidate is wealthy, they are accused of having no sense of what middle class America is dealing with, but if a candidate isn’t wealthy, then the chances of them making it in national politics is virtually non-existent...

When the highlight of the night is the singing of the national anthem, you know its going to be one of those nights.

After being introduced with the starters for last Monday’s Northern Ohio Conference inter-divisional girls soccer game against the Mayfield Wildcats, Lakewood freshman Abby Boland raced up the steps on the home side of Lakewood Stadium, ran into the press box and belted out The Star-Spangled Banner on the stadium public address system. Unfortunately for Lakewood soccer fans the only sounds the rest of the night were Wildcat fans cheering as Mayfield cruised to an easy 6-0 victory...

The Boys Varsity LHS Ranger Cross Country teams began their season Saturday August 23, 2008. The team competed at the Glenoak Golden Eagle XC Invitational. This 5k race, held in Canton Ohio, is a course comprised of open fields and rolling terrain...

Last season the St. Edward Eagles traveled to Euclid and came within an extra-point of coming home victorious. The 2008 Eagles made sure this year’s game would not be that close. St. Edward combined an overpowering offensive attack with a stifling defense and rolled to a 37-7 victory over the Panthers in a non-league game last Saturday night at Lakewood Stadium...

Last Saturday was a great day to be a Lakewood Shamrock! In the Senior Girls fast-pitch softball division of the Four Corners League, the Shamrock team beat the previously undefeated Public House in the championship game...

Did you pick up some free soap at the Arts Festival? If you did then you stopped by the Lakewood United Methodist Church booth. This was the first of many ways in which we are trying to reach out to you who are searching for God. In the days ahead there will be many ways in which you will have an opportunity to get to know us at Lakewood UMC, but more importantly, there will be many ways for you to get to know God. Let me tell you about a few...

Lakewood is a visually interesting and attractive place to live because of the architectural diversity of its residences. A short walk around town will likely take the careful observer past examples of the Arts & Crafts (Craftsman) Bungalow, Queen Anne, Spanish Colonial Revival, French Provincial, Greek Revival, Victorian, Tudor Revival, and Dutch Colonial styles. One might also see the occasional Cape Cod and Ranch home, and will certainly notice the ubiquitous American Foursquare. A less common yet highly recognizable architectural style found in Lakewood is the Italian Renaissance style...

A hundred years represents a substantial chunk of time, at least to me. But my 88-year-old father feels that his own lifetime has flown by in the blink of an eye. However you might look at time, I think most of us would agree the past hundred years have been a time of utterly dynamic change--both for Lakewood and for the world...

In the fall of 2008, Gethsemane Lutheran Church welcomes three distinguished pastors as part of its 60th anniversary celebration. Each has served Gethsemane and the greater Cleveland community in a variety of ways in the past, present, and future...

This coming December, the Beck Center celebrates 60 years of Saturday mornings filled with the sound of children’s laughter. The tradition dates back to 1948, when the Lakewood Little Theatre School began. As the Beck Youth Theater Education Program prepares for its 60th Anniversary Homecoming Celebration, staff and alumni reflect on six decades of challenges and laughter. “It’s an incredible place,” says former student, Maggie Fishell. “The people who have passed through the program created an absolutely magical experience for those of us who followed them...”

Carabel Beauty Salon & Store will join the rest of Madison Ave on Oct 11 2008 for the Lakewood ArtWalk. Saturday between the hours of 4:00 pm and ending at 9:00 pm we are giving to every ponytailed gal a free ponytail holder. Our manikins will be styled in a variety of ponytails ...

“Less talk, more monkey,” because, “life is about having fun,” says Lynne Nagy, entrepreneur and creator of the online company Zendot3D.com. The aforementioned ape-referencing phrase is the registered tagline of the Zendot3d company and accompanies the adorable monkey logo (also registered) which graces the t-shirts that you have probably seen around town...

As a Lakewood citizen who circulates this wonderful city by foot as much as by car, I am hardly impressed by the level (or lack thereof) of courtesy demonstrated by many drivers...

After 49 days of deployment and a month with the Division Headquarters, I find myself in a new job; perhaps the most challenging one I have held to date...