It was a busy year for news in Butler County in 2019, and we want to know which stories you, as a reader of the Butler Eagle, consider the top ones. It could be the best-written story, one with the biggest community impact, the most heartwarming or the most interesting. Whatever the reason, it's your chance to tell us.

Click here to cast your vote: https://forms.gle/9Wekqwey5AbDdCpg7

We've also put together synopses of the 17 stories included as options in the poll for those who need a quick refresher.

Was there a story that stood out to you this year that isn't on the list? Use the OTHER option within the poll.

We will announce your top five story picks in our New Year's Eve edition of the newspaper, along with the newsroom's top 10 picks, the photographers' top 10 photos and the top 10 Facebook posts by reach. So don't forget to pick up your copy of the paper.

The landscape of health care in the County is changing.Regulatory entities approved the merger between Butler Health System and Clarion Healthcare System in November and the merger began Dec. 1. The merger is one of two hospital mergers regionally this year. Grove City Medical Center and Allegheny Health Network are also in the process of merging.

The federal government filed a 42-count grand jury indictment in April charging Butler Health Systems' COO, Stephanie Roskovski, and her husband, Scott Roskovski, a former police detective in the Butler County District Attorney's Office, alleging the couple embezzled $1.3 million from the health system.

Two years after Melissa Barto was found dead, and her body burned in Lawrence County, Common Pleas Judge William Shaffer sentenced Ishemer Ramsey, 23, Barto's boyfriend at the time of the incident, to life in prison for murder. Ramsey was found guilty of first-degree homicide and other charges in late October during a four-day non-jury trial.

A sharp-eyed Butler Eagle reader alerted the newspaper of what appeared to be a vulgar shot at President Donald Trump in the Sun., Feb. 10, cartoon section of the paper. The seemingly vulgar sentiment, which appeared to begin with “We fondly say go ...”, was seen scribbled in the bottom right corner of the middle panel in “Non Sequitur” by cartoonist Wiley Miller.The three-panel, black-and-white cartoon encouraged readers to color in the panels. As a family newspaper, the Eagle's publisher chose to pull the comic strip from the publication and the story gained national coverage.

James Caldwell, a 26-year-old Special Olympics athlete from Butler, rolled a 300-game in bowling during a Special Olympics competition in October.Caldwell is the first Special Olympian in Butler County to bowl a 300-game.

An 11-year-old boy was killed and his two siblings were injured in January when a vehicle struck them near their bus stop in front of their home. The community joined together to help the family of the young boy, later identified as Mark Fike, a Summit Elementary School student with a love for bugs. The community raised more than $36,000 for the family and an insect identification kiosk was installed along the Butler-Freeport Community Trail in September in his memory.

In January 2018, locally-owned grocery chain Friedman's Freshmarket closed all of its locations. The company's distributor, MDI, then sued Friedman's owner, Carole Bitter for failing to make payments on a loan and mortgage she took out in October 2016.Bitter immediately counter-sued MDI, claiming its practices destroyed the 125-year-old business. As a result, multiple Friedman's locations were caught up in a lawsuit for more than a year. The closure of these locations led to food deserts in Chicora, Saxonburg and Butler.The lawsuit dragged on and was finally decided in March in federal court and the old Friedman's spaces are slowly being filled with other businesses.

A lawsuit against the Seneca Valley School District and four local families was dismissed from federal court in August.The suit, brought by the Flood family of Zelienople, dealt with the fallout of alleged false sexual assault allegations against their son by four Seneca Valley students. The case was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania in October 2018.

Slippery Rock University celebrated an undefeated season – one of its best in years – and went undefeated through the Division II Semifinals before being defeated by Minnesota State 58-15 on Dec. 14.

Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Justin Hendrickson received a hero's welcome when he returned home from Iraq in 2005.While on a resupply mission in Al Anbar Province, Hendrickson's vehicle ran over an IED and he lost his right leg and has used a prosthetic or wheelchair ever since. In August, Justin and his wife, a recent brain cancer survivor, were given a brand-new, fully-adapted house. The house was built and given to him through a nonprofit association that provides custom homes to severely injured post-9/11 veterans.

The Dauphin County District Attorney's Office opened an investigation into allegations that state Rep. Brian Ellis had sex with a woman while she was incapacitated and without her consent. Ellis resigned during the investigation opening up the 11th District seat for the special election, however Ellis was not charged in the incident. The grand jury report recommended several changes to oversight in the state legislature.

Approval was received this year for building the MSA Thruway project, which will connect Cranberry Springs and developments north of Route 228 with MSA and provide access from Interstate 79 to the Cranberry Springs development.The thruway is part of the Route 228 corridor and aims to decongest traffic along the busy road.

Mars girls soccer team won the PIAA Class 3A championship in November at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey. The Planets completed a 22-0-1 season, defeating Holland's Villa Joseph Marie High School 1-0 to win the state title.

After 55 years on the corner of Main and North Jackson streets in Evans City, Viola's Market closed its doors at the end of July.Frank Viola, whose uncle, the late Rocco Viola Sr., opened the store in 1964. The closure of the store added to the growing number of food deserts in the county.

This year's election season had a lot of big races. Included was a judges race that led to a write-in campaign, the new paper ballot voting machines adopted by the county this summer, the battle for prothonotary and a hotly contested race for Mars School Board.

This past year was filled with what felt like countless flooding events and weather damage, including massive flooding in May that hit Butler, Zelienople, Evans City and Harmony, and many other communities along or near Connoquenessing Creek and Sullivan Run. Along with a possible tornado in northern Butler County near Parker.

Cleveland-Cliffs, producer of iron ore pellets, is the new owner of AK Steel. The merger, which is expected to close in the first half of 2020, was announced Dec. 3.The Cleveland-area company will acquire $1.1 billion in issued and outstanding shares of AK Steel stock.AK Steel's Butler plant employs about 1,400 hourly and salaried workers and has 1,469 retirees and 562 surviving spouses.