Bexley residents show support for neighbor Dr. Amy Acton [View all]

Adam Smith was in the front yard with his kids on May 2 when several men with guns at their side got out of cars and walked through his yard toward Pleasant Ridge Avenue in Bexley to protest Ohio’s stay-at-home order outside the home of Dr. Amy Acton, director of the Ohio Department of Health.

Smith took his kids inside. The situation remained peaceful, but having armed protesters in their tranquil neighborhood close to Capital University was a shock to Acton’s neighbors.

“It’s been threatening,” Smith said. “It’s been intimidating.”

Smith and other neighbors, such as former Bexley City Councilman Tim Madison, gathered for a social-distancing meeting about what to do when more protesters inevitably arrived. What might have been an internal conflict about wanting to help the Actons or prioritize their own safety was more of an instinct.

When a few dozen protesters returned Monday, neighbors instantly sat in solidarity on Acton’s lawn wearing face masks and exercising social distancing, unlike the protesters.

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