1 of 3
Photo by Anna Wright
2 of 3
Photo by Anna Wright
3 of 3
Photo by Anna Wright
Red, white and blue streamers wave from strollers, bicycles and wagons in a homespun Fourth of July neighborhood parade. The procession of parents and children follows a Copley Fire Department fire truck as it scoots through the streets of the township’s West Ridge Estates neighborhood. It’s a Norman Rockwell image come to life for Jeff and Sarah Bloomhuff and their sons, Holden, 4 and Chase, 1.
The Bloomhuffs moved to their West Ridge Estates home seven years ago to be surrounded by other young families and immersed in everyday life in Copley. For Sarah, who grew up in Fairlawn, and Jeff, raised in nearby Richfield, their decision to settle in Copley came easy.
“It’s kind of the perfect blend of modern amenities, close to freeways, shopping and parks, and nature,” says Jeff, describing the former farmland community that reveals its rural roots with natural outdoor delights. Deer emerge from the woods behind the Bloomhuffs’ backyard to make frequent guest appearances. Street-side, friends gather for trick-or-treat expeditions, pig roasts and other neighborhood socials.
“It’s a close community. A lot of people here share common family values, want good schools and a nice place to raise their children,” says Sarah, vice president of Jones and Wenner Insurance Agency in Fairlawn, adding that her short commute to work makes the locale all the better.
While the family enjoys regular outings to Fairlawn’s Ft. Island/Griffith’s Park to feed fish and watch turtles mosey by at its Learning Resource Center, they also take excursions to the Akron Zoo, the new Akron Children’s Museum and Shaw JCC of Akron. There, Holden takes swimming lessons from “the legendary Miss Janice,” says Sarah. “She has a gift [as a children’s swim instructor] and Holden just loves her.”
At Herberich Primary School, an engaging environment and familiar faces make for a preschool experience Holden loves, the Bloomhuffs say. “We like the fact that Holden will know kids from preschool who will most likely end up going through the Copley-Fairlawn Schools. He adores Miss Lauren and Mrs. Dyer, who he had last year,” Sarah says.
Likewise, daycare for Chase at Almost Mom Child Development Care Center in Fairlawn is an extension of home. “It’s like a big, tight-knit family, a second family,” describes Sarah, a Bowling Green State University alumna. “Dominic, the owner, keeps it very upbeat. It’s awesome.”
When daycare, preschool and work days end, the Bloomhuffs enjoy simple family times at favorite local stomping grounds: pizza at Rizzi’s, holiday shopping at River City Gift Shoppes, a deli lunch at Shisler’s Cheese House.
“We’re at the center of a lot of things,” says Jeff, a University of Akron alumnus and technical sales representative for Snap-on Industrial Tools, describing niceties both doorsteps and short drives away. For the Bloomhuffs, though, living in Copley isn’t so much about being at the heart of it all. “It’s about investing in our roots,” Jeff says.
