From the Mayor:

First, I would like to congratulate Mr. and Mrs. Lang again for winning the Queen of Hearts. What a life changing event for them. The village council and I, as Mayor of Ripley, wish them the best in their future endeavors. 

I personally want to thank Darrin Brookbank, and the staff at Brookie’s for an amazing 50 weeks of hard work and dedication. 

It truly takes a village to come together like everyone has the last few weeks to accommodate the explosion of visitors we’ve had in our little village. Thank you to 

residents for opening their yards for people to park and making sure everyone got out safely once the drawings were over. Thank you also to those walking by the people standing in ticket lines offering them water and lemonade among others essentials! It makes me proud to live in a community that is always willing to lend a helping hand. 

To the Ripley Fire Department, the Ripley Life Squad, the Ripley Police Chief David Benjamin, the Vice Mayor Charles Poole and his wife Michelle, the Village employees, the Brown County Sheriff deputies, the Aberdeen Life Squad, neighboring businesses to Brookie’s, local restaurants making sure everyone got fed, I applaud you! Each and every one of you have a “Heartfelt” thank you from me. They worked tirelessly to keep everyone safe!  

We all learned from the Queen of Hearts and the next game will be even better. 

The council and I welcome any input and thoughts about how the village can keep up the momentum of attracting people to our village. 

Currently, we are working on starting our dock/landing project called “Freedom Landing.” It is being made possible through a 3 million dollar grant from the State of Ohio. This will include a concrete landing and a 300 foot long floating boat dock with the main attraction being the Freedom Beacon. While that project is underway, we then start our riverfront revitalization project. This is a 16 million dollar project made possible from the state of Ohio’s Appalachian Grant. We’ll be adding green spaces, parking, a splash pad for children, an amphitheater, snack shack and a pavilion for the Lions Club, plus swings overlooking the mighty Ohio River, benches, tables, and a couple of Chess/checker board tables for adults and children. 

Ripley is a town rich with history. John Rankin and John Parker were two gentlemen pivotal to the Underground Railroad. Their homes located in Ripley are now museums and are a must see for all visitors. Rosa Washington Riles from Ripley who was better known as Aunt Jemima is buried in Red Oak Cemetery just up the road from Ripley. 

Now, with these new projects, I hope to make our own history for future generations to come by generating business opportunities and focal points people want to visit.