Fans of the King Kone Facebook page learned Aug. 31 the Chardon ice cream shop will no longer be providing their frozen treats at Chardon High School’s Friday night football games.
Fans of the King Kone Facebook page learned Aug. 31 the Chardon ice cream shop will no longer be providing their frozen treats at Chardon High School’s Friday night football games.
“For the past six years, King George, our original ice cream truck, has been at almost every home game to serve the fans our delicious Kone treats,” owner Gail Hewitt wrote in a post. “It is with great sadness that I have to inform our community that based on the official complaint of one person (anonymous, of course) to our board of education, we are no longer able to sell ice cream at a Chardon football game.”
Gail said a complaint was filed against her husband, Mitch Hewitt, who is also a teacher and the head varsity football coach at CHS.
“The complaint was that my husband … was taking advantage of his position at the school,” Gail wrote. “Unfortunately, we live in a society now where one person can complain and change the circumstances for many. Even with a portion of our profits from these games being donated back, it just doesn’t make sense to jeopardize his teaching license.”
In her post, Gail said the King Kone crew travels to over 300 events each season, so finding more Friday night events will not be difficult.
“But I have wanted (the truck) at the Chardon games because this is our home and our community,” she said. “I told the school board that I hope they bring somebody else in to serve something fun because I know these kids look forward to it and many will wonder why we aren’t there.”
“The board should be ashamed of themselves,” one commenter wrote in response to the post. “The fact that the football coach and his family own an ice cream truck should be celebrated and people should be excited. Not bashful.”
Other commenters said they would show up, or encourage friends to show up, to the next meeting of the Chardon Schools Board of Education to voice their concerns over the issue.
“How about we all go to the next board meeting,” another comment said. “We can all fight back against this stupidity. Sounds like someone is jealous of your success.”
However in a statement sent to families Sept. 1, Chardon Schools Superintendent Michael Hanlon said the district values King Kone and the sense of nostalgia and community it brings to events.
“The issue regarding King Kone serving as a vendor at Chardon Schools athletic games centers around a 2022 complaint to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office of Professional Conduct about the appearance of impropriety based on King Kone owner Gail Hewitt being married to Chardon Schools’ teacher and varsity football coach Mitch Hewitt,” he said.
The licensure, he said, “sets a high bar” and the must take complaints seriously, as there is the potential for consequences against an educator any time the OPC determines there is a violation of the code.
“As a result, we must protect the interests of our staff,” he said.
In a phone call, Hanlon said no complaints were made to the district about the truck’s presence, but even the appearance of a conflict of interest could spark a complaint to the state board from any member of the public in the future.
Consequences of a violation could include anything from an admonishment to the permanent loss of one’s license to teach.
In his letter, Hanlon said the district and King Kone owner Gail Hewitt are in productive discussions regarding options for King Kone sales to continue in the school district for events other than school-sponsored activities.
“We support and are grateful for our local business partnerships,” he said.
In her post, Gail said it’s possible other ice cream trucks could “add to the magic of Friday nights,” including the iScream Truck, East Coast Custard or even a Kona Ice truck.
“Very few things bring a community closer than Friday nights in the fall,” she wrote. “The band, cheerleaders, alumni, the game itself, all makes for a great social gathering. We want to thank the Chardon Schools for allowing us to be a part of this great community, and we look forward to working with them in the future in a capacity that doesn’t cause a conflict/controversy.”
