Hickman, Frasure & Rinaldi Spirit Award Winners

People Who Make A Positive Difference In The Microregion
The annual tradition of recognizing persons who have made a positive difference in the communities of the Little Cities microregion continued this fall at the 14th Annual Little Cities of Black Diamonds Day. This year’s recipients of the Little Cities Spirit Award were all women whose tireless efforts over time have changed their communities for the better in small and big ways
  The first award was given posthumously to Margaret Hickman, who lost her battle to cancer in September. of 2008. Margaret was a founding member of the New Straitsville History Group who played a quiet, supporting role to the group’s many projects that have improved the village in recent years. Margaret did not lead meetings or projects, rather she made sure that they were successful. She was a worker bee, never wishing for, or accepting credit. She is best remembered for assuring that food was present at events and work days, large or small.  Her canned pickles, no bake-cookies, homemade fudge and sugar-free pies are legendary.  She was always the person to count on for clean up afterward, as well.
No nonsense and hard working, Margaret and her close friend Connie Dunkle mixed a load of cement nearly every day during the summer of 2005, as their fellow volunteer Don McGathey built dozens of steps up to the Robinson’s Cave Historic Site.
One project that Margaret led was the reinstitution of the annual making of the Welsh delicacy faggot sandwiches in the community, sold by the dozen in advance and also at events. Her cooking abilities benefited other groups and individuals in town as well. Few knew about her daily visits to shut-ins for whom she quietly prepared meals over the years. She didn’t want credit. It needed done, and Margaret made sure it “got done.”
“Getting things done” was also the motto of the second recipient of this years award. Upon retirement from Columbus Public Schools and after the loss of her husband Tom, Arletha Jo Frasure moved to her husband’s childhood home in Corning and got involved in improving the town. Frasure was one of the founding members of the Corning-Monroe Local History Group, joined the village council, and was eventually elected as the mayor. She was active in the formation and voluntary operation of the Sunday Creek Watershed Group. Throughout her time in Corning she played an active role in the restoration and operation of the former Corning School as the Corning-Monroe Civic Center. Frasure represented the village and the Little Cities region at various regional and state meetings, faithfully serving as an ambassador for the area.
As member of the local history group and Little Cities of Black Diamonds Council, Frasure donated countless hours to heritage events in Corning and around the region. She was a key player in creating the Corning-Monroe History Room at the Civic Center, gathered articles and pictures for the Corning-Monroe Reader and served as local chair of Corning Chautauqua for six years.
As mayor, Frasure organized village government operations to meet modern expectations for service and accountability. She led rescue and shelter services during the village’s devastating flood in 1998, and followed up with Federal Emergency Management Act (FEMA) mitigation after the flood which led to return of many properties to the flood plain via demolition while also raising other structures above potential flood levels. She not only weathered this controversial project, but persevered to assure that the village would have its first ever public sewage system, another project that met with considerable controversy. Though not re-elected to a second term, Frasure bravely moved Corning’s government forward with unpopular, but arguably necessary projects.
The final recipient of this year’s Spirit Award also fits well into the “strong, feisty, hard working woman” role. Cecilia Rinaldi is best known to Council members as the driving force behind the annual Little Cities Appalachian Spring Festival at Eclipse Company Town. One of the partner owners of Eclipse Company Town, Rinaldi also operates On The Path Holistic Health Center located at Eclipse. She is active in a variety of community activities around the Athens area including acting with the Athenian Players, teaching holistic health classes at Hocking College, and serving on committees supporting women in business in Athens County. Rinaldi’s day-to-day leadership in the effort to restore the 12 company houses and company store at Eclipse Company Town exceeds any profit motive in this economically risky venture. Rather her tireless effort exhibits her passion to serve others by saving and sharing this significant heritage resource. This spirit is evident in her freely giving of her time and personal resources to assure a successful Appalachian Spring Festival each year with all proceeds benefiting the LCBD Council. On any warm day in Eclipse, you can find Cecilia outdoors planting bulbs, weeding gardens and mowing grass. All the time she is cooking up new ideas for the future of this town, which is the best standing example of a coal company town remaining in Ohio and beyond.
A good sense of humor, compassion for others and creativity to burn, Cecilia Rinaldi truly embraces the spirit of the Little Cities along with her fellow recipients Margaret Hickman and Jo Frasure.