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📢 Local Events from Mentor & the Area: MentorLocalBuzz.com/Events!

📰 Local News: 🏘️ YMCA Volunteer Wins Dream House — and Chooses the $275,000 Cash Option

📰 Buddy Check Walk Will Connect Veterans With Local Support in Mentor

👶🏻 Lake County Festival Turns Shopping Into Neighborly Support

🏠 THE HOME FRONT: The Rooms People Naturally Gather In—and What They Have in Common

⚾ Sports: ⚾ Guardians Lose Ground in AL Central After 6th-Inning Collapse

🏐 Lake Catholic Ranked, Mentor Receives Votes in First State Volleyball Poll

🤔 Trivia Question

🤣 Something Funny

Contact Mentor Local Buzz - [email protected] - 440-256-6115

A longtime Lake County YMCA supporter received quite a surprise: Gary Brochetti of Euclid is the winner of the 2026 Lake County YMCA Dream House.

The win has an especially meaningful connection for the organization. Brochetti is a member of the West End YMCA and, according to the YMCA, has also given countless hours as a volunteer.

And he has already made his big decision.

Rather than take the Dream House, Brochetti said he plans to choose the $275,000 cash option. His reasoning was refreshingly simple: he already has a house, so he is going to take the money and “have a good time.”

The YMCA shared Brochetti’s reaction in a follow-up video after announcing the winner. He also talked about a special good-luck charm that was waiting near the door when he arrived.

Another winner was announced as well. Bryan Bowman of Canal Fulton won a brand-new Chevrolet Trailblazer.

The annual Dream House fundraiser supports the Lake County YMCA and its work with individuals and families throughout the county. The organization thanked everyone who purchased tickets, toured the home, volunteered, sponsored the fundraiser or helped spread the word.

For Brochetti, the ending feels especially fitting: after years of supporting the YMCA as a member and volunteer, he walked away with its biggest prize of the year.

👉🏻 Read the full story for more on Brochetti’s connection to the YMCA, his reaction to winning and why this year’s Dream House finale carries an extra community connection. See the video and other images on the YMCA’s Facebook page.

Mentor’s third annual Buddy Check Walk will bring veterans, families and community members together Saturday, Sept. 19, with a focus on preventing veteran suicide and connecting people with help before a crisis.

The event begins at 10 a.m. at Veterans Park, 5730 Hopkins Road in Mentor. Several Lake County organizations that provide resources to veterans are expected to take part, according to News 5 Cleveland.

The walk was created by Wayne Moynihan and Samantha Sonnie, who have both lost loved ones to suicide. Organizers say the goal is to strengthen connections among veterans and make sure people who may be struggling know there are others in the community ready to help.

Jerry Juncker, commander of AMVETS Post 1971 in Perry, plans to reinforce that message in a visible way by walking roughly 14 miles from Perry to Veterans Park for Saturday’s gathering.

News 5 reports that veteran-support resources will be available at the park beginning at 10 a.m. A complete list of participating agencies, registration requirements, event parking arrangements and an ending time have not been confirmed.

Veterans in crisis, or anyone concerned about a veteran, can call 988 and press 1 or text 838255 to reach the Veterans Crisis Line 24 hours a day.

👉🏻 The walk also has a deeply personal story behind it, and Lake County veterans have several year-round resources available beyond Saturday’s event. We’ve put those details together on the Local Buzz website.

The first Lake County Vendor Festival did more than put local businesses in the spotlight Sunday. More than 100 vendors gathered at the Lake County Fairgrounds, while visitors could also donate to The Community Baby Shower, the festival’s nonprofit partner.

The volunteer-run organization provides diapers, wipes, clothing, car seats and other essentials to families at no cost. The combination gave residents two ways to help close to home: support local entrepreneurs and help area parents give their babies a stronger start.

Sources: News 5 Cleveland and The Community Baby Shower

The most-used room in a home is not always the one designed for gathering. Paying attention to where people naturally settle can reveal what makes a space truly comfortable.

Every home has a room people seem to choose without discussing it.

It may be the kitchen, even when there is a larger living room nearby. It may be one end of a family room, a sunroom with a comfortable chair or a breakfast table that was never intended to become the center of the house.

The common thread is usually not formality. It is ease.

Kitchens often become gathering places because activity is already happening there. Someone is making coffee, putting away groceries, preparing dinner or cleaning up. Other people can join the conversation without needing a reason to sit down and “visit.” The room gives everyone something to do while still making connection possible.

Comfort matters too. A room with supportive seating, pleasant light and an easy temperature naturally invites people to stay. So does proximity. Spaces near the kitchen, television, backyard door or main path through the house tend to keep people connected to what is happening.

The most welcoming rooms also allow different levels of participation. One person can cook, another can read, someone else can answer email and a child can work on homework without everyone doing the same thing.

That is worth noticing before rearranging a home around how a room was originally labeled.

Pay attention to where people carry their coffee, where guests drift after dinner and where family members settle when they have a choice. Then support that space.

Add a better lamp. Pull in another chair. Clear a crowded surface. Create a place to set down a drink. Improve the sightline to the people nearby.

A comfortable home does not always need a new gathering room.

Sometimes it simply needs to recognize the one people have already chosen.

👉🏻 Your home is already giving you clues about what makes people want to stay—here’s how to read them and make your natural gathering place even better.

The Guardians had a chance to tighten the AL Central race Monday night. Instead, one long inning pushed them farther back.

Cleveland fell 7-3 to the White Sox after Chicago exploded for six runs in the sixth, turning a close game into a frustrating series-opening loss.

Gavin Williams kept the Guardians in it through five innings, but the game changed when Tristan Peters battled through an 18-pitch plate appearance and eventually drew a walk. Chicago kept the pressure on from there.

An error by Nathaniel Lowe helped bring home the first run, Chase Meidroth added an RBI single, Kyle Teel doubled in two more and Miguel Vargas capped the inning with a two-run homer.

David Fry gave Cleveland some life with a home run, but the Guardians never recovered.

The bigger issue is the standings. Cleveland is now 1½ games behind first-place Chicago, and the White Sox also clinched the season series — giving them the head-to-head tiebreaker.

That makes the rest of this series even more important.

Cleveland gets another shot Tuesday, with Foster Griffin scheduled to start against Chicago’s Davis Martin.

See the highlights at espn.com

Two Mentor-area volleyball programs earned statewide recognition in the season’s first Ohio High School Volleyball Coaches Association poll released Sept. 14.

Lake Catholic opened at No. 5 in Division IV with 193 points and three first-place votes. The four-time defending state champion Cougars have lost twice this season, falling to Elyria Catholic and Gilmour Academy.

The schedule will not get easier. Six of Lake Catholic’s final 11 regular-season matches are against teams included in the state polls. That stretch includes a Sept. 17 matchup with Division III No. 7 Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin and an Oct. 1 rematch with Division IV No. 2 Elyria Catholic.

Mentor also drew statewide attention in Division I. The defending state runner-up received votes but did not reach the numbered rankings.

The Cardinals’ two losses have both come in five-set matches, while one of their notable wins came in five sets against Magnificat, the No. 1-ranked team in Division II.

The first poll gives both local programs an early statewide benchmark, but the bigger test comes next as Lake Catholic faces a ranked-heavy closing schedule and Mentor tries to turn close results into a spot in the Division I rankings.

👉🏻 See how the new state poll works, which ranked opponents are still ahead and what could move Mentor and Lake Catholic up as the postseason approaches.

🐝 Buzz Fact: Roof overhangs do more than give squirrels a place to hold neighborhood meetings—they also help protect exterior walls and windows from rain and sun.
Answer: Google

I’m so excited and I just can’t hide it… 😂