BOX 334
G254¢
Vol. 97, No. 27
$71,
By JOHN HOINSKI
Staff Writer
Intermittent showers once more
plagued the Back Mountain Memo-
rial Library Auctiori, but again it
couldn’t dampem the spirit of the
40th annual event.
For the second consecutive year,
rainy conditions became part of the
affair. But in spite of the elements,
library officials termed the auction
a success.
“We were basically pleased with
the results,” said auction chairman
Dr. John Shaskas. ‘Despite the
rain, we had good turnouts. We
went an extra day this time and we
wound up grossing about $20,000
more than the year before. Plus, I
think the publicity for this year’s
auction helped a lot.”
Billboard advertisements had
been located near the Oddyssey
Fitness Center in Wilkes-Barre, on
River Street by the Wilkes-Barre
General Hospital and at the over-
pass by the Ranchwagon Drive-in
on Route 309 in Dallas.
‘We had people there from Mas-
sachusetts, Illinois and Indiana.
And, on one of the nights, we had
the biggest crowd we ever had in
the 40 years we have been having
the event.”
The auction, which ran from July
9-13, and which makes up about one-
third of the Library’s annual
budget, was comprised of about
4,000 new, used and antique items.
In addition, the auction pulled in
another $3,000 from the $5 raffle
tickets for a 1986 Chevy S-10, 4x4
Blazer, won by Francis McManus
Jr. of Harveys Lake.
Shasksas, who has been affiliated
with the auction for five years, will
relinquish his position next year to
Debbie Dinger who will become
chairman of the event.
car. Now he doesn’t have to.
Library Auction.
expensive.
fall.
and sent the stubs right back.
And he’s got a Blazer to prove it.
— JOHN HOINSKI
By JOHN HOINSKI
Staff Writer
The Dallas School Board, at its
monthly meeting Monday night,
announced it will advertise for a
middle school principal this week.
Money had been appropriated for
the position by the board last month
when the budget for the upcoming
year was passed.
In other business, the School
Board:
— recommended that a resolution
be adopted to permit the Dallas
School District to enter into a coop-
erative participation with the Luz-
erne Intermediate Unit 18 for the
instructional Math-Science improve-
ment Grant in the amount of
$878.00.
— Recommended that a resolution
be adopted to permit four adminis-
trators to attend the twenty-third
Annual P.D.E. Curriculum and
Instruction. Conference, - sponsored
by the Department of Education at
Shippensburg University July 22-25
at the approximate cost of $90.00
plus mileage.
— Recommended that a resolution
be adopted to accept the resignation
of Mr. Louis R. Bobeck, custodian,
for retirement purposes.
— Recommended that a resolution
be adopted to approve Mrs. Flor-
ence Gauthier, Mrs. Joyce Youren,
Mrs. Margaret Collett and Mrs.
Lucille Callahan for their services
in the kindergarten screening pro-
gram for the 1986-87 school year.
Auction fun
25 Cents
event.
By CHARLOT M. DENMON
Staff Correspondent
The huge red and white tents sprung up as
though overnight reminding one of colored
mushrooms covering the grounds behind the
Back Mountain Memorial Library. Inter-
spersed here and there with a sky blue
canopy, they added a festive air to the long-
awaited and long-worked for most important
event of the Back Mountain annual events —
the 40th Annual Back Mountain Memorial
Library Auction.
The appearance of the tents and the clang
of the huge bell atop the new barn and
auction block announced the day had
arrived, Wednesday, July 9, opening day of
the 1987 fundraising.
Volunteers worked feverishly to have
everything in order before the opening hour.
The refreshment stand was open and well-
staffed with mouth-watering aromas filling
the air. Ice cold lemonade and tasty, hot
pizza was waiting for the first customers
and the young ladies behind the counter
sampled both, rating the beverage and the
pizza as a ‘‘10.”
Antiques were tagged and numbered and
in perfect order to go over the block and the
odds and ends booth enticingly displayed all
sorts of goodies from colorful jewelry to
paintings to knick-knacks to wall-hangings,
etcetera.
The newly-constructed barn, finished in
barn red with the auction block in front of it
brought back memories of the many auc-
tions held on Lehman Avenue in front of
Howard Risley’s barn while the large tents
brought to mind old carnival days.
There was a new flavor to this year’s
auction, a flavor that was reminiscent of
grandmother’s peppermint candies she
always managed to extract from a hidden
pocket but also a flavor of newness, an
auction not like any of the past.
The ‘‘old” had joined with the “new” to
result in something bigger and better than
ever.
Wednesday night sounded the keynote to a
successful year. The weather was perfect
for the opening and the people kept coming -
many more than even the most optimistic
auction volunteer had imagined. The mood
was a cheerful one and. people exchanged
smiles and greetings with persons they had
never seen before.
The children’s game booth was doing a
thriving business and so were the refresh-
ment stands. The pony rides were a stroke
of genius. Kudos to the genius who thought
of something different for the children.
Congratulations to the faculty members of
the Dallas School District. Their baked
goods could be nothing less than a success.
Customers came away carrying packages of
homemade goodies and just as soon as they
did, teachers staffing the booth put out more
tempting delights. ;
There were many familiar faces in their
midst — Don Hopkins, Donna Trebilcox,
Larry Griffin, Gary Mathers, Larry Schuler,
Peggy ‘Schuler, and many, many more of
them. They are to be commended for their
support of the auction and in the cooperative
way in which they all pitched in and helped.
The auctioneers voices could be heard
above the crowd each night. Jim Anzalone
auctioned off many items and refused to
give up until he got his price for each one. A
beautiful pedestal table, a Bristol vase were
snapped up by auction-goers.
A seven-day trip for four to Disneyworld,
all expenses’ covered went for $500.00, a
terrific bargain. That was only one of many
such bargains that went over the block.
The book booth did an ongoing business,
always crowded with young and old search-
ing for some of their favorite reading from
romance to mystery to biographies and all,
but a very few left with four, six, even a
dozen or more books.
Despite intermittent drizzles Friday eve-
ning, the people kept coming, slow at first
but gradually the crowd picked up. Some
came walking, some of the younger ones on
bikes, some on motorcycles, a lot in cars
moving slowly looking for a vacant parking
spot. Each night the side streets were lined
with cars parked while the occupants went
to the auction.
The word had spread throughout the area
that this auction was bigger and better than
ever and people who had not been to the
auction in years came to see and liked what
they saw. Their names need not be men-
tioned, that isn’t important - the fact that
they came, like, stayed and spent money is.
As the auction draws to a close and
auction-goers and workers léave the
grounds, it is too early to know in what
amount the auction was successful but
successful it was in bringing together the
Back Mountain Community, in bringing
back the spirit of the days when Howard
Risley, Harry Ohlman, Alice Howekk, ‘‘Hix”
Doctor Sherman Schooley, Herman Thomas,
Bert Hill, Joseph McVeigh, Sarah Schmerer
and Mrs. Harris Haycox were among the
spirited volunteers who dedicated their
efforts to raising the necessary support for
the library and did it through one of the
biggest social events of the year-the Back
Mountain Memorial Library Auction.
Our deepest admiration to John R. Shas-
kas, DVM, who refused to accept ‘‘no”’ for
an answer and said “We’ll make this
auction a fun event but a successful event’
and he did. He started on the road and never
looked back. To Shaskas and his volunteers
“Congratulations!”
4
Learning to quill
By JOHN HOINSKI
Staff Writer
The Kingston Township Board of
supervisors at their monthly meet-
ing last week, approved the first
reading of an Alcohol Consumption
Ordinance, prohibiting the use of
alcoholic beverages in public places
throughout the township.
The ordinance, which will go into
effect upon the second reading at
the township’s August meeting, is
aimed at cutting down on beer
parties and littering that has been
on the increase. :
‘“The biggest problem has been on
A Trucksville man reported miss-
ing since last Friday night has been
found in Allentown.
John Konopki, 48, of 318 Terrace
Avenue, Trucksville, was found
Monday morning at the Allentown
Osteopathic Hospital. Although
details are sketchy as to how he
arrived there, a hospital spokes-
woman confirmed that he has been
admitted, but did not say for how
long he would remain a patient
there.
According to Kingston Township
Police, hospital personel said they
town relative in Konopki’s pocket
when he arrived at the hospital. The
state police were then called in and
notified family members.
Konopki had been shopping at the
Triangle Building Center in Wilkes-
Barre with his son last Friday night
when he suddenly vanished. Kon-
opki, who had surgery performed on
his head and who is paralyzed on
his right side, was on medication
and reportedly had a tendency to
become incoherent without that
medication.
— JOHN HOINSKI
Carverton Road at Francis Slocum
State Park near the boat launch
ramp,’’ township manager Fred
Potzer said. ‘‘You get guys 22, 23, 24
years old and they sit in the lot and
drink beer. Then they throw their
bottles and cans around and the
(See SUPERVISORS, page 2)
Inside The Post
Births .................... 8
Calendar ...... eins 16
Commentary .........6
Cookbook ............... 7
Health .................. 12
Obituary ................ 2
People .................. 8
Sports ............ 9,10,11