NORTH RIDGEVILLE — Fifteen-year-old Allie Messer shrugged off 90-degree heat and pounded nails into a platform for a new roof on a house on Hedgerow Park Drive.

Aaron Doyle, 16, of Salem, Va.; Alan Gossett, 17, of Polkville, N.C.; and Allie Messer, 15, of Canton, N.C., work on installing drip rail Tuesday at a North Ridgeville home. (CT photo by Chuck Humel.)

She said she is looking forward to completing the job with other youth volunteers and seeing the reaction from the homeowners.

“It’s fun to meet new people, and I like doing stuff for God,” said Allie, of Canton, N.C. “It’s all God, all week.”

Hammers are pounding on 17 job sites around Lorain County as a contingent of about 200 young people from around the United States are helping people do badly needed home repairs.

The program involves a number of churches and is being coordinated by staff at Chestnut Ridge Baptist Church including the Rev. Darrell Myers.

Myers said the weeklong work fest is especially meaningful because participants are praying for church members Tom Tomasheski and his 13-year-old daughter Danielle, who are recovering from injuries suffered in a June 11 crash that killed Tomasheski’s wife, Tammy, and Danielle’s 11-year-old brother, Tommy.

“When you lose somebody that special and unique, your life is never the same,” Myers said.

Tom Tomasheski, a corporal at the Lorain County Jail, was upgraded Tuesday to fair condition at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, while Danielle is now undergoing rehabilitation after being released July 6 from Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland.

Myers said the mission work has been planned for a long time, and the church worked with the city of Elyria to get funding for the home repairs there.

Other people who needed assistance in other communities also are getting wheelchair ramps, painting or home repairs they otherwise could not afford, said Don Hyer, a Chestnut Ridge church member.

“They’re going into communities and helping less-fortunate people who can’t afford to keep their properties up,” said Hyer, who is working as a supervisor. “We had a handful of people who could afford the materials but not the labor.”

If the tragedy involving the Tomasheski family had not occurred, Tom “would have gotten out there and help these kids and been a crew chief … he and Tammy both were great.”

Hyer’s 22-year-old son, Greg, said he put 100 miles on his vehicle Monday as a “runner” getting necessary materials.

“By the end of the week, you’re sleeping pretty good,” he said of the mission work.

At night, the young people sleep at Midview North Elementary School, and they take turns showering in the locker rooms at the high school.

Allie, who was working on a roof in North Ridgeville, said the evenings are set aside for youth devotion and teaming up with a prayer partner. She said it was very touching when the Rev. Myers shed tears while talking about the Tomasheskis at a service.

Contact Cindy Leise at 329-7245 or cleise@chroniclet.com.

ELYRIA — Ryan Davis said he’d do anything to protect his 6-year-old son Cameron and he’ll have the scars to prove it.

Ryan Davis describes being attacked by his roommate’s dog. (CT photo by Evan Goodenow.)

Davis was mauled by a mixed pit bull around 7:40 p.m. Tuesday in the 300 block of Eighth Street, defending Cameron after Tippy, an 11-month-old dog, jumped on and scratched Cameron as he ran from it.

“I saw him jump up on my son. That’s when the daddy instincts jumped in,” Davis said Wednesday from a hospital bed at EMH Medical Center in Elyria. “I just went out there and started going crazy because I didn’t want anything to happen to my son.”

Tippy is one of six dogs owned by Wanda Alexander, Davis’ roommate, in the 300 block of Eighth Street. The attack was precipitated by Tippy and his sister, Sugar, chasing a cat out of Alexander and Davis’ home.

Tippy then jumped on Cameron, prompting Davis to grab a metal rod and come to his son’s defense. Davis said he swung the rod at Tippy like a baseball bat.

“I hit him every single time square on his head and he would not back away,” Davis said. “He just kept coming and coming and coming.”

Davis said the attack lasted two or three minutes before Josie Alexander, Alexander’s 16-year-old daughter, was able to subdue Tippy. After the attack, a screaming Davis lay in the street naked and bleeding, his clothes shredded by Tippy.

“Luckily he listened to Josie and let go,” said Davis. “I got lucky.”

Davis, 40, received five puncture wounds on his right arm, an approximately 4-inch long, 2-inch deep bite on his upper left thigh as well as bites on his back.

Between 1982 and 2006, pit bull terriers were the deadliest of all dog breeds in Canada and the U.S., killing 104 people, according to an analysis of news reports by Merritt Clifton, a Clinton, Wash., based animal rights journalist. Rottweilers were second, killing 58 and maiming 203.

While Clifton concluded pit bulls are dangerous and need to be strictly regulated, Davis said he doesn’t believe the dogs are inherently dangerous. Davis, who said he will have to undergo therapy on his arm, said Tippy’s behavior may have been due to him being kept in the basement because Alexander didn’t have enough room in the home for all her dogs.

“Pit bulls are not vicious,” he said. “It’s only how you bring them up.”

Tippy, who was not vaccinated for rabies, has been placed on a 10-day quarantine and will be killed. Wanda Alexander, 38, was charged with keeping a vicious dog at large and warned to get insurance for her other two pit bulls.

Alexander visited Davis, who she said she considers like a second brother, on Wednesday. She said she was devastated by what happened to him and about Tippy’s impending death. Alexander, who said she’s a single mother working full-time, said she isn’t a pit bull breeder and the birth of her three younger pit bulls was unplanned. She said she has been trying to sell or give away the three dogs.

A tearful Alexander said she understood why Davis believed Cameron was in danger, but believes Tippy isn’t vicious.

“I just want everybody to know that I didn’t mean for this to happen,” she said. “He’s never hurt anybody before.”

Contact Evan Goodenow at 329-7129 or egoodenow@chroniclet.com.

Roosevelt Elementary School in Elyria would be among five schools replaced by the plan. (CT photo.)

ELYRIA — The Ohio School Facilities Commission wants to give Elyria more money to build five new schools and district officials said it will be up to citizens to decide if they want the money.

The state agency, which helps school districts fund, plan, design and build or renovate schools, announced last week it had approved almost $38 million in state funding for Elyria Schools if the district could get residents to pass a bond issue worth upward of $50 million.

The total projected construction cost would be more than $88 million and would cover a massive project that includes the building of five new elementary school buildings for grades pre-kindergarten through fifth grade.

The project also calls for the demolition of Crestwood, Ely, Franklin, Hamilton, McKinley, Oakwood, Prospect and Roosevelt schools.

Under the proposed plan, Windsor Elementary, which opened in 1963, will remain and will continue to operate as a school.

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“We have not kept it a secret that we have kept the district’s name on the list for additional funds,” said Amy Higgins, district spokeswoman. “It’s our fiduciary responsibility to offer this to the residents to see if they feel there is a need to replace elementary buildings in the districts. When the OSFC approved state funding for Elyria High, it was for roughly 37 percent of the total project budget. They are offering more money this time — about 42 percent.”

The districts must acquire its local share of the project budget within one year in order for the state funding to be released, according to a press release from the OSFC.

Higgins said the next step is to do a community survey to gauge the pulse of the community. Both an online and phone poll will be used to determine if the district should try for another bond issue. Burges and Burges, a political consulting firm from Cleveland, will handle the survey.

Superintendent Paul Rigda said the district has a little over a year to pass a bond issue. The earliest the issue could appear on the ballot is November.

“If the community is interested in it, we will spend August gearing up and September and October getting as much information out there that we can,” Rigda said. “If the survey says no overwhelmingly, then the district will put it off to next year. But I think we have to eventually try. When this much money comes along, you can’t just treat it like you don’t want it.”

Rigda said there are voters that would say the recession is a reason to reject the money, but because of the recession the district could get lower interest bonds and actually save money.

“It’s a good time even though it would seem like an odd time because a recession is going on,” he said.

OSFC Executive Director Richard M. Hickman said the state funding is critical to addressing the facility needs within the district and will help provide buildings that are student-centered learning environments.

If the district can secure the local funds, it will be the second time in less than five years voters have said yes to new money for schools.

In May 2007, voters approved a bond issue to build the new high school at a price tag of $70 million. The high school’s budget included $45 million in local funds and $25 million in state funding through the OSFC. Philanthropic and private donations garnered the district another $1.2 million it used to build upgrades like the WiFi Cafe and Senior Rathskellar Lounge and purchase digital musical instruments.

The buildings that are targeted for demolition are rich in Elyria history. The oldest building is Hamilton, which was built in 1900. The district hasn’t used it since 1979 when it was closed, but currently it is the home of a Head Start program on the city’s south side.

McKinley, located at 620 East River St., was built in 1907 and is the oldest elementary school still in use in the city.

Roosevelt, which was closed in 2009 at the same time the district closed Erie Elementary due to enrollment decline, was built in 1922. It originally housed grades three through eight.

Ely was built in 1923. It sits on land donated by William Arthur Ely, the grandson of Heman Ely.

Crestwood, Franklin, Oakwood and Prospect all were built in the 1950s after voters in 1948 passed a bond issue for $3.7 million and a 5-mill renewal levy to build schools. Seven new schools and six additions were built in the 1950s.

Contact Lisa Roberson at 329-7121 or lroberson@chroniclet.com.

CLEVELAND — Designated hitter Travis Hafner has ripped 183 home runs for the Indians, but his latest might be the biggest of them all.

Travis Hafner celebrates hitting the winning grand slam Thursday in the ninth inning in a 5-4 win over Toronto. (AP photo.)

Hafner blasted a walk-off grand slam in the ninth inning Thursday night, giving the Indians an incredible 5-4 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Tribe trailed 4-0 with one out in the ninth, but stormed back for the win on an RBI single by Asdrubal Cabrera and Hafner’s 12th career slam. Both hits came off Toronto reliever Luis Perez.

“There is nothing like it, it’s awesome,” a beaming Hafner said. “It’s the most fun you can have in baseball. I love walk-offs and I love grannys.

“I got a scouting report on (Perez) from Michael Brantley, so I was just looking for something I could drive. I guess I got it.”

Hafner drilled the first pitch he saw from Perez (1-2, 3.94 ERA) into the right-field stands, where it landed 395 feet from home plate — and set off a wild celebration by the 18,816 fans at Progressive Field.

It marked the first time Cleveland has won a game on a walk-off grand slam when trailing by three runs since Ron Lolich turned the trick April 22, 1973.

“That was just an amazing comeback at the end,” manager Manny Acta said. “We had all the right guys up that inning and we got the big one when we needed it.

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“Travis is a force in our lineup. That’s the reason why we were whining when we didn’t have him in the National League games (where there is no DH). This was really something tonight.”

The Tribe started its winning rally with Frank Francisco on the mound, but forced him out after loading the bases on a single by Travis Buck, a double by Matt LaPorta and a walk by Jack Hannahan.

Perez entered and struck out leadoff hitter Brantley, but he had no answer for Cabrera and Hafner. Cleveland matched its largest comeback of the season at four runs and rallied for its 20th come-from-behind victory in 2011.

And most importantly, the Indians maintained their 1 1⁄2-game lead over the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central Division.

“Everyone believes we have a chance when the ninth inning comes around,” Hafner said. “We’ve got great clubhouse chemistry, so to celebrate with all these guys on the field after a walk-off, it’s amazing.”

Tribe reliever Tony Sipp (4-1, 2.80 ERA) was one of the beneficiaries of Hafner’s heroics, recording the win despite allowing a run in his lone inning of work.

That run came on the MLB-leading 29th home run of the season by Toronto third baseman Jose Bautista, whose 430-foot blast landed three-quarters of the way up the bleachers in left field.

Cleveland starter Zach McAllister also caught a break and avoided taking the loss in his big league debut. The right-hander needed a whopping 94 pitches to get through four shaky innings, allowing three runs (two earned), five hits and three walks.

“I just didn’t have the command that I wanted out there, and that hurt us,” said McAllister, who was returned to Triple-A Columbus following the game when the Indians called up infielder Luis Valbuena. “To be in the dugout at the end for what happened, though, was fun to watch.”

There was one scary moment for the Tribe, coming in the second inning.

Rookie third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall was hit in the head by a pitch from Toronto starter Carlos Villanueva. The baseball struck his right ear flap before glancing off his nose and cheek bone, leaving him with a facial contusion that forced him out of the game.

Acta said Chisenhall’s left eye was swollen, but there was no immediate concern that he had suffered a concussion. Chisenhall missed time at Triple-A Columbus earlier this season with a concussion.

“Lonnie is going to see a specialist at noon (today), but we think he’s going to be OK,” Acta said.

Rafael Perez, Chad Durbin, Frank Herrmann, Joe Smith and Sipp combined for five innings of one-run relief for Cleveland, which committed two errors (by Asdrubal Cabrera and McAllister) and made three other fielding mistakes.

Villanueva, who began the year in the bullpen, deserved a better fate. The righty tossed six scoreless innings, scattering six hits and striking out seven.

Marc Rzepczynski and Jason Frasor followed and kept the Indians off the scoreboard heading into their final at-bat.

After stranding nine men in the first eight innings, Hafner made sure they didn’t add to the total.

“Before that, it was eight innings of the most boring baseball we’ve had all year,” Acta said. “I thought it would be a wasted night. But these guys, they’ve done it so many times, the game is never out of reach.”

Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com.