The End?

As I write this, the song by The Doors come to my mind. Is this the end for Wilmington? Recently, a seismic wave was sent through the community, and the SW Ohio region in general, with the announcement that DHL would move from the Wilmington Air Park and let UPS do the work that ABX Air and A-Star have done for the past few years, namely, their United States operations.

Now, since I have been a child, I’ve learned a fundamental truth about Wilmington: Airborne. Without Airborne, there would be no town. Roughly 7,500 people are employed at the airpark by ABX Air, serving as a basis for the local economy and for the economies of several counties in the area. It also serves as the reason for my being in Wilmington, and for thousands of other families who have mothers or fathers or other loved ones who sort freight, drive support vehicles, fix airplanes, fix equipment, type on computers, answer phone calls or who patrol the parking lot or do anything else.

My father is an aircraft inspector, with over two decades experience as an aircraft mechanic. When we moved from Belleville, Michigan when I was four years old, I couldn’t fathom the idea that one day my father’s job would be threatened, and our livelihood in jeopardy. I do not intend to sound melodramatic or selfish, for many other people will be affected. But, does this not place a human face on the events that are transpiring? There is so much more that I could espouse upon, but if I were to cover all of the angles, time would sell me short.

But, suffice it to say, I fear for the future of the town that has been my home for the past seventeen years. I fear for Wilmington.

Of Wilmington

To the unacquainted, Wilmington, Ohio, is an oddity. Situated geographically between Columbus, the state capital, and Cincinnati, home of Over-The-Rhine (ever hear of something called murder?), and close to Dayton, the city is under the sphere of influence of much, but not much influence comes out of here. Wilmington is the reported home of the Banana Split, and holds a festival each summer in honor of that, but of course, it’s disputed with some other town in Pennsylvania. We can have the banana split if they can just keep their…whatever it is they have over there. Maybe we can trade them the official rights to the banana split if they want our enormous international cargo airport, currently being run into the ground courtesy of our friends at DHL. Oh, well. The point is, Wilmington is here, located in Southwest Ohio, and welcomes all.

I’ve lived in Wilmington since the age of four, and over the last decade-and-a-half, I’ve witnessed much change in my small town. Perhaps over the course of this blog, I’ll discuss aspects of my town, provide information, opinion, review, or whatever else crosses my mind.

By the way, ILN is the airport code for Wilmington. But you already knew that.

done and done.