BRIGHTOHU,
#
VOL. 86 NO. 40
1975
On Nov. 4, citizens of the Back
Mountain will go to the polls to vote
for the candidates of their choice.
In the various townships of the area.
the strongest interest appears to be
centered in Lehman, Jackson and
Kingston Townships.
For the first time in the history of
3
See obituary: page 2.
Jackson Township, a woman is
running for supervisor. Mrs. Richard
Hogoboom, Sutton Road, is the
Republican candidate. Her opponent
A 5d
Photo by Stuart Caulkins
“Kids”
by Terry Bonifanti
(This is the final article in a series
dealing with the structure of the
family in the Back Mountain. The
series reviewed questions on family
on the Democratic slate is Andrew
Stofko. .
Millie Hogoboom is a housewife
with two children. She is presently
serving as chairman of the
was appointed when Felix Niedjaco
resigned.
She said that she wants to see good
government in the township with the
best possible services at the least cost.
She believes that the supervisors
should do some long-range planning,
improve road maintenance and
continue to improve police security.
In commenting on priorities in the
township, Millie Hogoboom said that
she feels it necessary to continue
working with the planning consultant
and rewriting the zoning ordinances
for the future benefit of the area. She
also believes they should continue to
investigate the funds available from
both the state and local government.
Mrs. Hogoboom believes that the
planning will determine the
township's recreation needs and
municipal building requirements.
Her Democratic opponent, Andrew
Stofko, served on the board, of
supervisors. during Governor
(Continued on Page twelve)
& i
life and life in general in the Back
Mountain in an attempt to answer the
question, “Who's raising the kids?’
This article gives “the kids’’ a chance
to comment.)
by Terry Bonifanti
(Editor's note: This historical
series on the Back Mountain is written
from the inemories of those now living
who made or remember the inter-
esting incidents of the area. Anyone
wishing to share memories or anec-
dotes of Back Mountain life in the past
is asked to call the Post at 675-5211.)
“It was like a family affair. child-
ren came. babies slept on desks while
parents danced.’ Mrs: Dorothy
Dodson remembers of the Kunkle
Farmer Dance. The Saturday night
dances were held at the Kunkle
Community Hall for nearly 40 vears.
ending just a decade ago.
“It really was a family affair.
Everyone was so close.” she saide
Nas Dodson remembered attend-
o Kunkle dances from her very
carly childhood. “The building was
actually the old Kunkle school house.
Then. in 1927. the Dallas Township
schools sold the building to John
Isaacs and the Kunkle students left it
to go to the Dallas Township Elemen-
tary School.
But they left it in good hands. For
John Isaacs (Mrs. Dodson's grand-
father) in turn sold the building to the
community and the deed to this day
bears the written proof of his good
intentions. ‘for allowing the com-
munity to have affairs”. He sold the
building at the same price he pur-
chased it.
Soon after Kunkle purchased the
hall. the dances started. ‘The desks
were still there, pushed with their
hacks to the wall. parents would bring
the whole family. some would dance,
some would sit on the desks. lit{le
babies would lay on the desks and
sleep through all the dancing.”
Two people would work at the door,
two in the kitchen, and everyone took
turns. At intermission. local girls
In early June 1976, wagons from six
states ‘will enter Pennsylvania near
Erie. The wagons will divide into
caravans and-follow parallel routes
across north and central
Pennsylvania. On June 27, the central
and the northern caravan will meet
here in Dallas.
® colorful conestoga wagons and
prairie schooners are part of
theBicentennial Wagon Pilgrimage to
Pennsylvania as a part of the
Commonwealth's tribute to the nation
on its 200th birthday.
Both Back Mt. boroughs will decide
on candidates for four council seats
during Tuesday election.
Voters in Dallas Borough will vote
for four candidates, each for a four
year term. Four candidates on the
Republican slate are William Carroll
Jr., Kenneth Young, Peter Arnaud,
and Harold Brobst, all incumbents.
Francis Shonk and Edwin Delaney
are candidates on the Democrat
ballot.
Four councilmen will be elected in
Harveys Lake Borough for four year
’
The wagons coming into Dallas will
be from the Great Lake states. In all,
wagons from 49 states will follow
different routes through the state and
converge with each other for July 4 in
Valley Forge.
The wagons which have already
started from some of the Western
states make about 20 miles each day
and stop each evening to camp and to
put on a 40-minute musical show
produced by Penn State University.
The show and encampment activites
have drawn crowds of thousands in
the western states.
councilman
Thomas Mack, Rodney F. Sennett,
Ellsworth Croop, and Guy Giordano.
Robert Wintersteen, Margaret
Purcell, Robert DeRemer, and Fred
Merrill Jr., are the candidates on the
Republican ballot.
Vote
November 4
“who could do the Charleston or what-
ever.’ entertained according to Mrs.
Dodson.
The one thing everyone associated
with Kunkle Farmer Dance was its
amazing matchmaking ability. The
Dallas Post in 1965. on the occasion of
the dances end said. “The Kunkle
Farmer Dance had a phenomenol
record of introducing man and wife
and any number of ‘Back Mountain
couples owe their vears of marital
bliss to its spell.” ;
Mrs. Dodson agrees. “A lot of fellas
and dates met their mates there.”
» The dance’s last caller, ‘Red’
Jones said he can remember, in only
cight of those nearly 40 years while he
was calling ‘at least 30 couples who
got married after meeting there.”
“And another thing,’ Jones added.
“I can’t remember one fight the whole
Jones was the last on a long list of
well-known area callers who spent
their Saturday night's entertaining
square dancers from Kunkle, the
whole Back Mountain and-as far away
as Scranton. In the early days. Joe
Goebels from Centermoreland and his
sons provided the music. **Joe played
the fiddle and called.” Mrs. Dodson
remembers.
Other callers included Bill Hoover.
Abe Bellas. Carl Hank, Harry Wilke.
Herb Brunges. Wayne Weaver, Al
Derhammer. Carl Veraskie and Joe
McKeown.
Bill Rewlands, Berwick's Harry
and Marian Campbell. Panky Stolar-
ick from Lehman and a special local
rotating orchestra provided the musie
for all those callers.
The local rotating orchestra was a
product of World War 11.
“There was no gas, so we had to get
people close to home,” according to
Mrs. Dodson who was herself a mem-
ber of the band at times. Accompany-
ing Mrs. Dodson might be Bill
Thomas. Tom Jordan, Edwin Shoe-
maker, Don Cosgrove, Les Warhola,
Bob Scott or anybody willing. Some
would drop in, some out.
The dances were either sponsored
hy the community. the Silver Leaf
Club or the Harry S. Smith Fire Com-
pany and were billed as ‘‘the oldest
social function in the Back Moun-
tain.”
The late Phillip Kunkle, who served
as custodian for the hall for most of its
- remember one month in those years
when the dances didn't run, “*about a
month in 1955 when they had to look
for a new caller and band.”
“A lot of good times were had up
there.” Mrs. Dodson said, ‘the kids
today don’t know that they're
missing.”
When the “‘farmer dances’ ended
Oct. 23, 1965. an attempt was made to
try some new rock and roll dances.
Eddie Day and the Starfires appeared
at the hall until about 1967. “but it
never really gaught on.”
In their day the farmer dances
almost called for ‘widening the
Kunkle Community Hall.” to fit all
those ‘families’ in.
Eh He
hs. #.
left to right. are:
Eront row.
Standing. Barb
A 13-year-old Back Mountain
resident said her “mother was the
- hoss’? in her family. Her 16-year-old
hrother said his dad. then changed it
to “*hald and half’ between his mother
and dad and then said there was ‘no
boss.”
An 18-vear-old said his father was
‘definitely boss.” They all live in the
3ack Mountain and come from
similar social strata.
After talking to them and several
other Back Mountain ‘children’ from
11 to 23. the answer to ‘‘who’s raising
the kids?” in the Back Mountain
would seem to be ‘‘the kids.”
None of the children interviewed
could think of any real restrictions
placed on them by their parents. They
have to ‘do our chores.” be “‘in by
midnight when babysitting’ and
“sometimes need permission to do
things.”” For the most part. however,
they ‘make their own decisions.”
And the older ones feel the younger
brother or sister makes more
decisions than they (the older ones)
The Honorable Robert J. Hourigan
will serve as toastmaster when the
Back Mountain Protective
Association bestows its Community
Service Award on U.S. Rep. Daniel .J.
Flood (D-Pa.), Oct. 31. The Luzerne
County judge will open the Friday
banquet at the Irem Temple Country.
Robert W. Laux. BMPA board
Rev. Andrew Pillarella will give
benediction.
Rep. Flood will be the first award
recipient not residing in the Back
Mountain. Over the years the award
has been presented to Howard Risley.
Msgr. Francis Kane. Rev. Yost. Atty.
James L.. Brown, Sen. Andrew J.
Sordoni and twice it has gone to
College Misericordia. Dr. F. Budd
Schooley. BMPA president. will make
the presentation.
The award is presented at the
discretion of the association on the
basis of service by individuals or
institutions ‘beyond self’’ according
to Dr. Schooley. Rep. Flood's honor
comes on the heals of an ‘‘over-
whelming majority” of nominations
from local citizens and groups, since
the BMPA opened nominations in
early Setember.
Rev. Yost. Atty. Brown, Robert W.
Laux. Edgar Lashford. John George,
Edward Buckley, Donald Evans, the
Rev. Thomas Jordan and E.V.
Chadwick have been assisting Dr.
Schooley in preparations for the
banquet.
The banquet is set to begin at 6:30 at
the country club.
Musical selections will be provided
throughout the evening by the College
Misericordia String Ensemble under
the direction of Ferdinand Liva.
made at the same age and: will con-
tinue to take on more responsibility as
they grow.
Their parents are there if they need
them. It’s just that they seem to have
less and less to need them for. This.
too. seems to change as generations
change. Children who have become
parents in. their own right see
parenting in a little different light
than their own parents.
Questions on the ‘cultural change’
supposedly taking place in today’s
society were answered by the older
brothers and sisters of children who's
parents were shocked by today's
“open society © They see the. same
shocking element as “good.”
One young father said. “1 don't
think I'll be as strict as my mother
was. | was always hesitant to ask
questions. I don’t want my kids to
think 1 am keeping something from
them. I want stuff out in the open.”
Having things ‘out in the open’ is
how the kids views the cultural
change.
“Things like drugs. alcohol abuse,
abortions, were always there.” they
said. “Now people talk about them so
they seem worse.”
" Maybe the problems of growing up
are a little greater. but so are the
expectations. One person said he felt
his vounger brother. the youngest of
five children is ‘‘gonna be smarter
than all of us.” This child is exposed to
“hetter educational systems.” ‘more
people in the larger school district”
of his four older syblings along with
his parents.
The one thing he and his peers in the
Back Mountain may find. that older
brothers or sisters did not have to deal
with, is that his parents aren't home
as much. Mothers work. both parents
are “in” to a lot of things.
The children say they don’t. mind. In
most cases the mother did not begin
working until the child entered school
and was home for the important
things. Brothers and sisters fill a lot of
the time.
now (the 11 to 16 year olds) do not
really feel the abuse of the parent.
When asked about responsibility. they
did not say they felt pressure from it.
“Most of the responsibility is on my
older brothers and sisters,’’ one said.
The Back Mountain may be the
reason for all these attitudes. All
those interviewed felt, or at least said
they did that the Back Mountain was a
good place to grow up. Those coming
from other schools, however, are split
on their choices as better school
districts.
(Continued on Page four)