Dateline Dayton — What a week! Last Thursday at this hour we were in Niles, MI, for the high school graduation of our granddaughter Emily. Since her grades were strong, she has received enough scholarships and grants to cover her first year of college. Emily wants to a veterinarian technician, possibly a veterinarian later. With her brains and determination, she can do anything she wants.

Last Saturday morning, a cleanup campaign found me back in our old Dayton neighborhood, near the first home Pauline and I purchased. Disappointing to see the condition of the old neighborhood with boarded up homes and overgrown yards.

The Dayton Dragons were one of the sponsors for the cleanup campaign, and I thought it would be fun to participate. I was on a team that picked up trash along Main Street, close to Parkwood, where our first home was. We had a friendly team that cut grass in two vacant lots on Main Street.

It is a shame owners do not take care of their property. The City of Dayton must improve the entire area to make it sufficiently attractive to entice potential homebuyers. If buyers or renters cannot be found, the city should demolish the vacant structures and let the remaining homeowners have the lots.

I was glad I participated in helping what once was a great neighborhood.

In the afternoon, we headed to Cincinnati to watch our granddaughter Madi play baseball. Since we didn’t tell her parents we were coming, we couldn’t find Madi for awhile. But it all worked out. Unfortunately, her team lost.

Since Madi’s parents, Bill and Julie, had to return to the party that had made them late for the game, Pauline and I went on to old River Downs Race Track. By joining the Players Club, we each received $20 in credit. I used my credit to purchase our meal and Pauline used hers in a slot machine. Our out-of-pocket expenses for the evening: $8.

Sunday morning was church and breakfast, followed by granddaughter Julia’s soccer match. Although the final score was a tie, Julia’s team qualified to play in the championship.

As soon as Julia’s match was over, we left for the Dayton Dragons’ baseball game. They won in the bottom of the 10th inning, 6-5.

Immediately afterward, we headed back to soccer field to see the balance of Julia’s championship match. We arrived at halftime, and her team was trailing, 1-0. We must have brought them luck. Her team won the match and the championship trophy.

Mr. Hennessey may be contacted at pmhenn@sbcglobal.net