Library of. Agriculture
Y XO7 Pattoe Bldgi ISOO2 v
VoL 19 No. 31
'Three educators about to embark
on a program unique to the state and
possibly the country -discuss,? their
pla^%or^bfem^
Hjpkletpwn Alternative School, seen
in thebackground, will open its doors
Crowds Show Up for
Tax ReMef Meetings
dose to 200 people turned;
out for, a farm tax meeting
'Tuesday night at Owen J.
Roberts High School. This
was the first of three
meetings this week to help
farmers and other Chester
County landowners learn
more about Pennsylvania
Act 515 provisions. Act 515
allows municipalities to
grant preferential tax
treatment to fanners and
other open space land
owners. In order to qualify
for a lower tax rate in 1975,
Chester County landowners
must apply for relief by July
1 of this year.
Associate Chester County
agent Glenn Shirk made the
complex subject of Act 515
more understandable with
charts, graphs, clear ex
planations, and a few words
In This Issue
FARM CALENDAR 10
Markets 2-4
Saleßegister 39
Farmers Almanac 6
Classified Ads 41
Editorials 10
Homestead Notes 26
Home onthe Range 29
Organic living " 16
Thoughts in Passing 21
Farm Youth Calendar 34
Firm Women Calendar 32
Chester C. FFA Officers 22
Chester C. Dairy Princess 20
Co. Dairy Pageant 31
Growin&DegreeDays 39
to the first 75 students. Or. Robert
Herr, school supervisor, is pointing
out the future location of crop test
plots tp the school’s two academic
teachers, Stanley Smith, center, and
Gordon Gingrich, -v j- - ,
x of encouragement.
Landowners in counties
which have' adopted the Act
515 provisions can be .con
sidered for tax relief.
However, not all counties
have adopted the measure:
Chester County 'did so
because the entire county
was reassessed last year, a ‘
move which means higher
In Lebanon Co. , ..
Ruth Miller Named
New Dairy Princess
Ruth L. Miller, _ 20,
daughter, of Mr. and Mrs.
Roy F. Miller, Myerstown,
was selected as the 19? i
Lebanon County Dairy
Princess pt the annual
banquet and pageant held
Thursday evening, June 13,
at the Mt. Zion Fire Hall.
Ruth graduated from
Eastern Lebanon County
High School and is also a
graduate of the Licensed
Practical Nursing'Program
at the Lebanon Vo-Tech
School. She was active in 4-H
work and is presently em
ployed as an L.P.N. by-the
E.C.C. Retirement Village in
Myerstown. Ruth’s parents
own 55 Holstein cows. ..
The runner-up title went to
Sharon Bomberger, 18, the
daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, June 15,1974
-tax bills in 1975 for all lan
downers. Many- counties
haven’t adopted Act 515
because House'Bill 1056 is
still pending in the Penn
sylvania Senate. HB 1056 is
the preferential tax measure
which grew out of.the suc
cess, of the so-called Clean
‘ and Green constitutional
[Continued on Pane 8]
Mark H. Bomberger, RDI,
Lebanon.
Sharon graduated from
Cedar Crest High School and
is presently a sophomore at
West Chester State College,
majoring in elementary
education 'with a music
concentration.
’ Sharon has also been
active in 4-H, holding many
offices and attended the
National Congress in.
Chicago. Sharon also comes
from a Holstein farm.
The 1974 Miss Congeniality
Award was captured by
Mary Ann Heist, 17,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Herman K. Heist of BDI,
Lebanon.
Mary Ann is a graduate of
Cedar Crest High School and
llontmued on Pace 25)
First of its Kind . . .
Hinkletown Alternative
School to Open Sept.
What may <rdl be the first
school of its kind in the
country win open Its doors in
September. Hie Hinkletown
Alternative School, part of
Lancaster County’s Garden
Spot School District, will
accept 75 students in the
sixth, seventh and eighth
grades during its first year
of operation. Students wUI
have a varied program of
academic training along
with a strong vocational
emphasis.
According to Dr. Robert
Herr, who will be the
school’s supervisor, the
alternative school program
is geared to the educational
needs of conservative far
mers - mostly members of
|bc plain sects - in |he
eastern portion of Lancaster
the introduction
to a program'prepired 'ior
tile school, Herr explains the
rationale for alternative
education in his school
district
The intent of the school, he
says, is to reach
“ ... children who are
members of the conservative
Mennonite and Amish faiths,
which constitute an im
portant segment of our
community. Because of their
- Ruth Miller (center) the 1974
Lebanon County Dairy Princess, is
shown with runner-up, Sharon
religious beliefs and their
desire to maintain their
by. ,these
beliefs, they have par
ticularly resisted sending
their children to public
secondary schools.
“At one time, most of these
children attended public
school through the eighth
grade. As the kindergarten
through sixth, followed by
seventh through twelfth
grade pattern developed,
FARM
TRENDS
Plummeting Prices Hurt Area Farmers
Egg, hog and tattle prices have zoomed downward
in the past few weeks, and local farmers are hurting.
Eggs at 32-cents and live beef prices under $36. a
hundredweight are sure to sting many producers
where it hurts the most - in the bank accounts. The
only thing keeping some farmers solvent is the fact
that last year was one of the best ever for farm in
come. High feed costs make the problem even worse.
High retail meat prices, which cause consumer
resistance, are also taking their toll.
[Continued on Page 25]
Bomberger (right) and Donna
Bennetch the 1973 Lebanon County
Dairy Princess.
$2.00 Per Year
many continued to attend
through grade six and then
transferred to a parochial
school. Here they either
completed eighth grade and
attended , a ‘three-hour
school’ until becoming 15
years of age, or stopped
-schooling atage 15 on a farm
or domestic permit.”
In the report, Herr pointed
out that the parochial
schools are limited to a basic
I Continued on Page 24]
by Dick
Wanner