Category: OH

Darla James at DarlaFoxx Bridal and Formal in Clevelands Tower City said its doing more harm than good for some girls when buying their prom dresses online.

Now, she has an urgent message to help you avoid the trouble after I asked her if she experienced this problem when she first started her business 15 years ago.

Its been getting worse every year. I would say it started like three years ago, and its been getting worse every year, said James.

On Thursday, James told News 5 shes been hearing horror stories where some girls are being ripped off big time.

She even said there have been some cases where some wont ever get their prom dress.

Two weeks ago, I had a girl in here like an hour before her prom. Her hair and makeup were already done. Tracking was showing that the gown was arriving that day and when she got it and opened it, it wasnt the dress that she ordered, said James.

Cybersecurity expert Alex Hamerstone, an Advisory Solutions Director at TrustedSec, told News 5 hes not surprised, given the increase of online marketplaces and how comfortable he said young people feel while exploring the internet.

They tend to believe a lot of things, and really just have grown up a little bit in a bit of a different way than some of us have just with this always being the place that you sell stuff, said Hamerstone.

Hamerstone said you should do your research to know who and where youre buying from, and to avoid putting down a deposit, especially if youre not buying an item thats in high demand.

Meanwhile, consumer expert Teresa Murray, a Consumer Watchdog Director at US Public Interest Research Group, said its best practice to pay with a credit card for added protection.

She also recommended buying from a specific brand name to know if what youre buying from an authorized seller is real or fake, since she said theres not a lot of online transparency.

They’re trying to get a better selection, and [a] ‘Oh this is really cute and nobody at school is going to have this’ kind of dress, but then if you don’t have any dress at all, then that’s, that’s a problem, said Murray.

Experts encourage you to file a complaint with the Ohio Attorney Generals Office if you arent able to get your problem solved.

I dont understand why not just prom girls but brides too, why they dont want to come into the store and just even have that experience of trying stuff on, said James.

Suddenly, the bicycle racks are full outside Natividad Pagan International Newcomers Academy on Clevelands West Side, each one paired with a proud owner.

Joseph House, a local non-profit dedicated to supporting refugee resettlement in Cleveland, teamed up with the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and the American Academy of Pediatrics to provide 85 bicycles to students. The Village Bike Co-Op helped the cause, as did St. Josephs parish in Avon Lake.

Its very special for students like Alenge Welongo.

This is my first one, he said.

Alenge is from Congo in central Africa, and is now going to school here. It can take him almost 45 minutes to walk to class. His new bicycle will help him integrate into his new surroundings and also provide independence on two wheels.

This is the fourth year for the bike giveaway.

And it gets bigger and better each year. This year its an amazing event, said CMSDs Khwater Nayef.

Karyna Faryna from Ukraine was able to take one of the bicycles home.

This is my first one in the United States, so Im so happy!

Faryna said.

Clevelanders made this happen welcoming our citys newer residents with a gift that means so much.

Grocery prices continue to strain household budgets, and that’s exactly why weve launched a weekly price tracker to help you save before you shop.

Each week, well visit Meijer, Giant Eagle, Aldi, Walmart, Heinen’s and Dave’s Market checking prices on everyday essentials.

Those include: 2% milk, a loaf of wheat bread, chicken price per pound, ground beef tray or patty per pound (80% lean 20% fat), 12 dozen white eggs, and toasted oats cereal.

This week, Meijer came out on top with the lowest total for the second week at $14.48 for our six staple items.

If you’re willing to shop around, you can snag even deeper discounts on meat, dairy, and pantry goodsespecially when you factor in this weeks bonus deals.

<img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/22936070/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” />

Were also giving you a chance to see how your favorite stores stack up week to week. Well compare how grocery prices change at each store each week.

Here’s how prices compare across stores this week:

Meijer 

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Giant Eagle 

&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/23057788/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt;

Aldi

&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/23057838/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt;

Walmart

&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/23057908/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt;

Heinens

&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/23057953/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt;

Dave’s Market

&amp;lt;img src=”https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/23058033/thumbnail” width=”100%” alt=”chart visualization” /&amp;gt;

From buy-one-get-one-free meat deals to cereal under $2, our Dont Waste Your Money team will be keeping an eye on store shelves and sharing what we find.

Find a better deal? We want to hear from you! Submit your finds through the form below. If you beat our prices, well feature them.

And if youre a savvy shopper, always chasing the best deals, we may even join you on your next grocery run.

Every runner has a reason. And at the Cleveland Marathon, the finish line marks far more than the end of a race for many; its the triumph over something much bigger.

Its amazing seeing people who are just giving their all, said Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne, who was among the crowds cheering on the 11,000 participants who took to the streets this weekend.

Some ran for records. Others ran for personal goals.

It is absolutely incredible. Its everything I dream about. Its what Im motivated to train for, said Ashton Swinford, who won the female marathon for the fourth year in a row.

And for some, simply making it to the start line was its own kind of victory.

Ten months ago I was on my couch, said Cole Yoder. Its been a long road back and Im feeling pretty accomplished after finishing today.

Im excited to be alive and do something like this, Yoder said.

Last summer, Yoder fell off a 20-foot bridge, shattering vertebrae in his back. His family wasnt sure he would survive, let alone walk again.

We didnt think he was going to make it out or walk again and all that. Im just proud of him, said his brother, Tyler Yoder.

Cole says it was his familys support that helped him fight through recovery.

Its just overwhelming. Its all I can say, said his mom, Rita Yoder. Its amazing. Im so proud of him that he never gave up.

Now, Cole hopes his comeback serves as a message for others facing their own challenges.

Dont give up anyone can do it if I can, he said.

The Cleveland Marathon, held each May, draws thousands of runners from across the country.

If you’re a patient of the Cleveland Clinic, you likely received an email Tuesday alerting you to a change in hospital policy regarding copays, and the amount of money requested up front for the patient’s share of a covered service.

Beginning June 1, the Cleveland Clinic announced that those payments will be required up front for non-emergency outpatient services.

If you don’t have it? Your visit will be rescheduled or canceled.

Watch more about the announcement below:

Cleveland Clinic to require payment of copays before outpatient visits or appointments will be rescheduled

RELATED: Cleveland Clinic to require payment of copays before outpatient visits or appointments will be rescheduled

In response to our story, we heard many of you voicing your concerns through email and on Facebook.

Folks like patient Linda Sylor.

“It was a shock because it’s like one of those things, we’ve always done it this way and suddenly with about 2.5 weeks notice patients from, who knows, everywhere come to the Cleveland Clinic,” said Sylor. “There’s gonna be a challenge whether they can prepare for it or not.”

Sylor has a Medicare supplement. We heard from a number of you on Medicare who asked if the Clinic is making a policy exception for those on Medicaid, which they told us Tuesday they are, what about Medicare?

We reached out for the answer to that and other questions. The Clinic told News 5 that “patients with traditional Medicare are not impacted by this change, but those with Medicare Advantage may have a copay (depending on their specific Advantage plan).”

Sylor also expressed concerns about how she’s found that her copay can vary based on how the appointment is classified as short, medium or long.

“For those, charges are different,” she said.

The Clinic responded, “The level of care for an office visit will not impact the copay due. If a patient has a $35 specialist copay, the copay cost is $35 regardless of the level of care provided at that visit.”

The Clinic also shared this information that they felt might clarify things for some patients.

This change only applies to copays, not deductibles, coinsurance, estimates or billing after the visit. The copay is a fixed fee determined by the insurance plan, not the Cleveland Clinic. It is paid upfront as part of the patient’s health insurance cost for covered services. Once a patient is scheduled, our technology interacts with the patients insurance information to determine if a copay is required by their selected plan based on the type of visit scheduled. This information is then shared with the patient through MyChart and at check-in.

Activist Cassandra McDonald reached out to the hospital system’s CEO, asking him to reconsider the charges.

“He’s actually going backwards in delivering healthcare,” McDonald said, who argues that what is made up in paid copays will be lost elsewhere.

“Because they’re going to be going to an emergency room instead of going to a primary care physician or specialist or someone who can meet their needs on a continuous basis,” she said.

To be clear, not all of the comments we received were critical of the Clinic’s move.

Alisha wrote on Facebook, “If you take your car to a mechanic, you have to pay when services are rendered. So why is this any different?”

Another person, Jesse, asked, “So all this time paying was an option? They ask for the copay, and I pay it. Been that way forever.”

Expecting to see more patients as a result are the folks at the Charitable Healthcare Network, which provides several free clinics across Northeast Ohio.

“I can understand in abstract what the Cleveland Clinic is attempting to do with this policy,” said CEO Jason Koma. “However, when you look at it, it’s got the opportunity to add some barriers to care, and you know when there’s a barrier to care that means reduced access, and then that also means more patients may come and see the free clinics and the charitable clinics of the world.

“At the end of the day, you want to make sure that there’s not unintended consequences that come forward from what would be a well-meaning policy on paper,” Koma said.

If a new pope brought a layer of excitement to those in Northeast Ohio, then finding out that Pope Leo XIV, originally from Chicago, took it to a new level.

Yellow banners signifying the celebration quickly went up outside St. Johns Cathedral in Downtown Cleveland.

For Bishop Edward Malesic, its even a bit personal.

He met then-Bishop Prevost back in 2015 when he was attending a program for new bishops outside of Rome.

Then-Bishop Prevost was part of that class,” Bishop Malesic explained. “The last day I was sitting with him at a table and I said, ‘I need to get from here to Downtown Rome’ and he said, ‘I have a car, and Ill drive you.’ Does that give me any insight into the man? No, but I can tell you hes a humble man, a joyful man and a man who is willing to help.”

Bishop Malesic adds that the first American pope offers a chance for the United States to truly communicate with the pope and the Vatican in a way like never before.

“A down to earth guy,” he added. “We have every right to be thankful to God for picking someone well be able to relate to easily because he understands our culture.”

Pope Leo XIV emerges at St. Peter’s Basilica

RELATED: Robert Francis Prevost elected first American pope, takes name Pope Leo XIV

As immigration continues to evolve across the country, a new storytelling campaign is launching Thursday in Northeast Ohio to spotlight the immigrant community that calls Cleveland home.

A photograph has the power to convey stories that words often cannot. Among the photos on display at LAND Studio are those capturing the journey of Max Rodas.

Rodas, now the executive director of Nueva Luz Urban Resource Center, came to the U.S. 45 years ago when he was just 12.

My family was brought here during the revolution of the ’50s, to Cleveland, said Rodas.

Next to his photo is Esther Ngemba, a Congolese chef, entrepreneur and creative director. She arrived in Cleveland in 2011 from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

My family fled a civil war in 2005, Ngemba said.

Both Rodas and Ngemba have built their lives in Cleveland, but they acknowledge that the environment for immigrants today isnt as welcoming as it once was.

It’s tough. I mean, we cannot dance around that. I think that the motivation of this campaign is to change the narrative, said Rodas.

I have seen some of like the negative, where people sometimes will ask me, ‘Do you have papers? Are you documented?’ Ngemba said.

These experiences inspired Patrick Kearns and others to create the You Mean the World storytelling campaign.

“We got together with the idea to share these stories in a way that was highlighting the positive impact of immigration in our area, not just today, but for decades in the past, said Kearns.

The project was a collaborative effort involving numerous individuals and organizations. Through 22 powerful photographs, the campaign tells the stories of immigrants from four continents, representing 18 nationalities who now call Cleveland home. It also sheds light on immigrants’ significant economic contributions in Ohio.

Over the years, while the faces have changed and while the stories have changed, the overarching truth is the same. Newcomers come here. They add to the fabric of our community, said Kearns.

Photographer Sharon Hughes of Sharon Hughes Photo says her goal wasnt just to take portraits, but to capture identity.

A lot of these portraits were the in-between moments that I felt spoke to the individualism of each person, and that’s sort of what I wanted to communicate, that this is a collection of photos, but each person is unique, Hughes said.

The reality is this: while each individual may come from a different country, Cleveland is home to all.

Who’s an immigrant, a mother, an entrepreneur, a teacher, someone who wants to build a regular life, someone like you, Ngemba said.

Ive lived here all those years, and I go to Guatemala, I go to other places. I travel a lot, but Im going to come back here, said Rotas.

The exhibit’s grand opening will take place on Thursday at 5 p.m. at LAND Studio.

For more information, CLICK HERE.

When Cleveland City Council was tasked with changing ward boundaries this year, dropping the total from 17 to 15 because of a drop in population, they weren’t the only ones who had to do the redrawing.

“When that happens, the Board of Elections is responsible for drawing precinct lines; we needed to adjust those precinct lines to fit within these new ward boundaries,” said Tony Perlatti, Director of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.

Creating a situation where, while polling locations may not have changed, the voters who go there may have. Such was the case in the old Ward 17, now Ward 15. Though their councilman won’t change for a number of voters, their polling place will have some who voted at Our Lady of Angels now voting at St. Mel’s and vice versa. Locations that are about a mile and a half apart.

Noah Perry is one of those voters who was impacted, but he’ll tell you the impact was minor.

“Not really a big deal for me. I looked up the polling location online, called and verified, so I didn’t really think too much of it. But it did get changed, but not a big deal to me personally,” he said.

Noah said he first found out through a mailing from the Board of Elections, in fact, every Cleveland voter was sent two mailings this spring with their polling location on them. But if you’re still not sure, you can do what Noah did: call (216) 443-VOTE (8683) and follow the prompts, or check online, which is really simple to do.

Just go to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections website, and right on the home page, you’ll see the Cleveland polling location lookup; it works for the whole county. Click find poll and district information by address. Enter the address you’re inquiring about, and it will give you not only the polling location for that property but your precinct, ward, legislative, and congressional districts as well. And you don’t have to be a registered voter to use the tool.

“So, if you’re just curious because you’re trying to help out a family member or a friend again you can do that because it’s not pulling up your individual record it’s pulling up the geographic locations of your house and your poll place,” said Perlatti.

There were also 31,127 suburban voters impacted by voting location changes. They were in Brooklyn, Euclid, Lakewood, South Euclid, Maple Heights, North Royalton and Warrensville Heights.

Those voters were also notified by mail.