A Claridon Township family is seeking to rename a section of road in honor of their son, who died suddenly last year at age 2.
A Claridon Township family is seeking to rename a section of road in honor of their son, who died suddenly last year at age 2.
The proposed change would affect the northern stretch of Osmond Road, where the family is the only resident, and rename it Levi Lane.
Geoffrey Beck, Levi’s father, appeared before Geauga County Commissioners June 2 wearing a pink tropical shirt he said Levi often chose for him to wear to work.
Levi was a happy, healthy boy who loved tools, with projects around the family’s property, making crafts and cooking, Beck said.
“Levi was born Dec. 5, 2022,” Beck said, pausing at times to maintain composure. “We lost Levi March 5, 2025, to something called sudden unexplained death in childhood. It’s very rare. Based on the population roughly that we have in Geauga County, one child a year would die from SUDC.”
The cause of SUDC remains unknown, he said.
“When you lose a child, I don’t know if anyone has here, it’s what I think is probably the hardest thing a parent will ever have to face,” he said. “And a big challenge for us is, you stop hearing your child’s name spoken.”
The idea of the road name change came from a desire to keep Levi’s name alive and create opportunities to educate others about SUDC, Beck said.
“It is one of the leading causes of children’s death age 1-4 that almost nobody has ever heard of,” he said. “That gets no federal or government funding for research. And our own Geauga County coroner, (John Urbancic) had never even heard of it.”
The southern portion of the road would remain Osmond, Beck noted, acknowledging the history behind it.
Commissioner Jim Dvorak, who lost his daughter, Jamie, in 2017, commiserated with the family.
“Losing a child is like having a broken arm the rest of your life,” he said. “You don’t know what day it’s going to hurt. Sometimes, it feels like it happened just yesterday.”
However, Dvorak noted there are challenges associated with changing a road name.
Jason Sutter, who owns property in Burton Township diagonal across from the section proposed for renaming, said he did not want to diminish the daily’s loss, but questioned whether a road name change was the appropriate course of action.
“It’s going to take tax dollars to record and survey and do those type of things, and like I said, no offence to the Becks or anybody else in this room who’s had losses, but I don’t think that’s a proper use of tax dollars,” he said.
Because Sutter serves as a Huntsburg Township trustee and Burton Township road foreman, Commissioner Carolyn Brakey asked him to estimate the cost of a name change like this. Sutter estimated it would cost between $200 and $300.
Geauga County Engineer Andy Haupt said he has heard more requests for road name changes than he has seen approved.
“The old name doesn’t go away. It’s another name that comes on top and another number that comes with it,” he explained.
Numerous records and databases would require updates, including those maintained by county commissioners, the engineer’s office, the county geographic information system, 911 dispatch and addressing services, the sheriff’s office, fire departments, EMS providers, the auditor’s office, the recorder’s office, the postal service, utility providers, mapping companies, school transportation departments and delivery services, Haupt said.
Brakey asked how long those updates would take.
Haupt said he could not speak for other offices, but in his department the process would involve updating maps and creating files, but would not be overly burdensome.
Burton Township Trustee Ken Burnett said trustees have discussed the proposal and do not support it.
“From the township standpoint — and that’s how I have to look at it as a trustee and that’s how our other trustees looked at it — we have to be very careful that we don’t set a precedent,” he said.
Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand said renaming part of the road could prove disruptive for emergency responders.
“Not to say it can’t be changed, but all the GIS and all of that information when you’re responding, it’s not only what the county has, it’s what’s in our (computer-aided dispatch) system and in the apps that map things,” he said. “The last thing you would want to do is delay some response because of that.”
Instead, Hildenbrand suggested dedicating the road in Levi’s memory.
“You can put up a sign that people would still ask, you know, why is this road dedicated, or who is this person,” he said.
Brakey summarized the primary concerns raised during the discussion as administrative burden and the possibility of setting a precedent.
“But, I do think this is a very unique situation where there is one house on that street that would have to change their address,” she said.
Dvorak agreed with the idea of a dedication.
“I think then his name would still come up, still be spoken, not forgotten,” he said. “Me personally, I think that’s the route we should take.”
Commissioner Ralph Spidaleri said similar requests have come up multiple times during his 14 years as commissioner, including involving soldiers killed in action.
“There’s always been a road dedication, rather than a change in a road,” he said.
While there are currently no other homes on the northern end of Osmond Road, future development could require additional addresses, he said.
“I can tell you, every time I come up Mayfield Road, my eyes go directly to that soldier that was killed in action,” he said, referencing a dedication. “I just believe that’s a lot more impactful.”
Haupt noted a bridge on Osmond Road could be dedicated with a sign if the family wanted.
No action was taken on the proposal.
On June 4, however, Brakey posted on Facebook expressing support for the name change.
“It’s been said that we die three times: when our body fails, when we’re laid to rest and when our name is spoken for the last time,” she said, before explaining the Beck family’s request.
The proposal would affect only the Beck family’s address and would not inconvenience any other property owner, she wrote.
“Could approving this invite other name change requests, as some have argued? I can’t rule that out. But the situation here is so unique that I don’t believe it sets a precedent we need to be concerned about,” she said.
While she would support a dedication or plaque on a road with multiple residents, she said a one-address road provides a unique opportunity.
“A plaque is something you drive past,” she said. “‘Levi Lane’ is a name spoken aloud: on the Becks’ mail, on maps, in directions, every time someone asks where they live. That is the difference between marking Levi’s memory and keeping his name alive.”
The family has also offered to pay for the sign, she added.
“I’ll be direct: if the vote had been held last week, I believe this request would have failed. Without strong public support before Tuesday, Levi Lane is unlikely to happen,” she said, encouraging residents to share Levi’s story and email commissioners or give public comment to show support of the change.
