For a person who was orphaned at age 5 and made his way through the world to become a distinguished state and federal judge, to be "hung" in the courtroom is a high point.

Herman J. Weber, a U.S. District Court judge in the Southern District of Ohio in Cincinnati, reached that pinnacle last month.

This portrait of Herman J. Weber, a U.S. District Court judge in the Southern District of Ohio in Cincinnati, was presented to Weber last month. Photo provided

In a presentation sometimes affectionately called "Hanging the Judge," Weber was presented with a portrait of himself. The portrait will hang in perpetuity in the courtroom along with portraits of other judges who have served in the district.

It was painted by James M. Ostlund.

Weber was joined by his wife, Barbara, and children, Deborah Weber Rieder, Clayton Weber and Jennie Weber.

Weber's grandfather was a lawyer and his father was a law professor and dean of Ohio Northern University Law School, Ada, Ohio.

His mother was a schoolteacher and a lawyer.

Both parents died in an auto accident in 1932. Weber was reared by an uncle.

He attended school in one-room schoolhouses, and worked loading grain and delivering coal and newspapers.

He graduated summa cum laude from the Ohio State University College of Law in 1952. He went on to serve 40 years as a state and federal judge. He has achieved senior status and still serves on the bench in federal court.

"He is a true role model," said Mark G. Kobasuk, an attorney with Taft, Stettinius & Hollister and a member of the executive committee of the John W. Peck Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.

Holocaust scholar

Next year, Victoria Roth, a sophomore at the University of Michican, will be tracing the history of the Nazi Party and the Holocaust.

She is the 2004 winner of the Esther and Paul Lucky Fellowship.

The fellowship, created in 2000 at the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, is awarded to a student who is dedicated and interested in Holocaust education.

Roth, 19, of Evendale, is majoring in political science and Judaic studies.

"I had the opportunity to spend an entire day with Esther," Roth said. "She is an amazing person. She has the spirit and drive of a hero and the humbleness and generosity of an angel."

Esther Lucky survived 13 labor camps, including Auschwitz and Stutthof. She was a nurse in the camps and helped open a hospital at the end of the war.

"Anyone who meets Esther will feel more than honored to be in her presence, and I am especially grateful to be the recipient of her fellowship," Roth said.

Esther Lucky, 92, lives in Cedar Village in Mason.

Fairfield fire academy

FAIRFIELD - The Fairfield Fire Department will hold its fire academy class beginning Aug. 3.

The class will meet Tuesday evenings 6:30-9:30 p.m. and last 10 weeks.

The training covers such topics as first aid/CPR, proper fire extinguisher use, hazardous-materials awareness, basic and advanced life support/response, explosives, public safety vehicles and emergency response.

"It gives them an opportunity to do some of things that we do," Assistant Fire Chief Dennis Glenn said. "We try to give them a good overview of the fire department."

Class members build a working relationship with the Fire Department, and some people who take the class also take classes to become members of Fairfield's Citizen Emergency Response Team, Glenn said.

The class can hold about 20 people.

Anyone who wants to sign up or would like more information can call Glenn at 867-5378.