You Are Here # 6

Elizabeth Zander
78 years old
Retired Office Worker, Real Estate Broker
Lakewood resident since 1959

Favorite Place(s): The Oasis and Courtyard at the Barton Center.

“Number one on the list is Lake Erie. The smell of it, the feel of it, the wind of it, everything. I just love Lake Erie and I’m almost on the lake over there. Oh, the art studios and the antique shops that there are. Just so many things, just browse around. A lot of good eating areas. A lot of good friends here. Really, it’s so convenient. Everything is right here, grocery stores and pharmacies, malls, they’re all pretty close to Lakewood so that’s an ideal situation. The parks, of course Metro parks along the Rocky River. My church is here. Just an awful lot to do here if you want to do and if you have the inclination to do it there’s, not only here, I mean you can work at the Beck Center. You can volunteer out of anywhere. The hospital is so close, the Beck Center I go to. There’s just everything here. It’s just a big little town. It’s like going downtown, but a little town. I think they made it very comfortable, especially if you like to inhale the lake, the fishy smell, which I love.

Lakewood is on the up, it’s growing, not going down. To me that’s good. To put their money in a city, they must know something we don’t know, or we do know but now they know.”

You Are Here* is a project that highlights what Lakewood residents think and feel about their city. We feel that a project like this shares a great affinity with many of the community efforts beginning and ongoing in our city. We are witnessing the emergence of an engaged, pro-active and committed community dedicated to creating the kind of place that we want to live in. But the question remains: who are you? To that end, we would like to use this project as a forum to meet as many Lakewood residents as possible. We would like to photograph you in your favorite place in Lakewood and discuss with you what you feel makes Lakewood a special place. These biographical vignettes will regularly be published in the Lakewood Observer. Publishing them in the Observer means that you get to share, and other people get to learn about, who you are and what you feel makes Lakewood a special place. Ultimately, a quilt of individuals and experiences will be available to all who live here, and those who do not live here yet, strengthening the sense of community that is Lakewood, Ohio.

Are you interested in participating? Contact Jason Weiner and Kristine Williams at lakewoodandyou@yahoo.com .

*A photo-documentary project highlighting the individuals who live in the city of Lakewood, Ohio.

Jason Weiner lives in Lakewood with his wife, Kristine. He teaches Sociology, does research and plays drums. His favorite place in Lakewood is the Purple Martin house in Lakewood Park.
Kristine Williams lives in Lakewood with her husband, Jason. In addition to teaching 3rd grade, she paints and knits for local galleries. Her favorite spot in Lakewood is under the oak trees in her own backyard.
They enjoy gardening and watching the birds in their backyard with their two dogs (Max and Gracie), cat (Emily) and several fresh water fish.