THE 40TH ANNUAL BACK
MOUNTAIN MEMORIAL
LIBRARY AUCTION is history now
- and hats off to the dozens and
dozens of volunteers who worked so
hard and so long to make it the
success it was.
I don’t know
what it is about
that event,
though. It seems
Mother Nature,
for one reason or
another, simply
refuses to
cooperate with
the auction and
always provides
at least one day
of a torrential
downpour.
This year, General Chairman Dr.
John Shaskas and Company decided
to get a jump on the weather and
planned the auction for five days
instead of the usual four,
eliminating the need to extend it to
a Monday in the event of inclement
weather.
And - you guessed it! Mother
Nature still didn’t cooperate,
dumping buckets and buckets of
water on the auction grounds every
time you turned around.
When I was there Sunday - which
was probably the worst of the five
days weatherwise, auctioneer
Monty Evans and Dr. Shaskas were
encouraging bidders to seek shelter
inside so that the bidding could
continue. And, from what I heard
later, the skies dried up, the auction
went on as planned and Sunday
proved to be the most successful of
the entire five days. I'm afraid, and
maybe ashamed, to have to admit
that I did not stick around through
the heaviest downpour of the
weekend, but rather sought shelter
in my car right before the rains
came.
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CHEERS ALSO to all those
auction-goers who supported the
library auction, not only by braving
the weather, but by bidding on
items to benefit the library.
From what I’ve been told, an
awful lot of people managed to pick
up some pretty good buys during
the bidding process of the auction. I
think a lot of that success needs to
be attributed to the hard work of the
auctioneers.
I know even I like to talk a lot,
but I certainly don’t envy the
position of the auctioneers - that
sure looks like hard work. I
wouldn’t want to have to encourage
a crowd constantly like they do.
‘But, the auctioneers at the library
event do it, year after year, and
manage to do a darn good job as
thousands and thousands of dollars
are always reaped at this affair,
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HATS OFF, also to anyone who
was involved in the construction of
the new auction block at the rear of
the library - it is absolutely
beautiful.
The colors of it are really eye-
catching and the look of the block
and the barn and a really attractive
sight. It’s nice to see the auction has
a permanent heme once again.
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CONGRATULATIONS to Francis
McManus of Harveys Lake who is
now the proud owner of a brand new
1986 Chevy S-10 Blazer,
compliments of a raffle held in
conjunction with this year’s library
auction.
McManus, who claims he was in
the market for a new car anyway, is
reportedly tickled pink to be the
winner of such a nice shiny vehicle.
The black Blazer, which was on
display throughout the five-day
auction, sure is a nice looking piece
of machinery.
Best of luck to you with it,
Francis.
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I REALLY DO ADMIRE all those
who braved the weather, not only to
support the auction but those
volunteers who worked at it - from
the parking lot attendants to the
auctioneers to those who manned
the different booths set up on the
grounds.
Although the early days of this
year’s auction were provided with
some tolerable weather, the
weekend was nothing to brag about.
But, none of these people gave up -
they made the best of a bad
situation, stuck it out - and came
away the biggest winners of all with
a bundle of money to benefit the
library.
Just a word of advice to Back
Mountain residents. When the week
of the library auction rolls around,
don’t plan an outdoor cookout -
leave the weather juggling to the
people who know how to do it right -
the auction volunteers.
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SPEAKING OF OUTDOOR
COOKOUTS, Paul and Eunice Rauh
of Bunker Hill Road held their
annual family picnic this past
weekend with a full house in
attendance.
In between the raindrops, there
were games of softball, volleyball,
horseshoes and lots of good; old-
fashioned fun - not to mention the
tons and tons of great food and
drink.
Cheers to Paul and Eunice who
sure know how to put on a good
party. I told them I’m going to hire
them to plan my next party since
they always manage to do such a
nice job. 0- :
CONGRATULATIONS are in
order to Judie Mathers, a former
staff writer of The Dallas Post who
is currently residing in Littlestown,
Pa. That’s right - Littlestown, and
for those of you who may have
never heard of such a place, it is
located somewhere near
Gettysburg, or so they tell me.
Judie, who migrated to the
Gettysburg area when her husband,
Hap, accepted a job there, wasted
no time getting into the newspaper
business once she got there. After
spending just a few weeks
developing and overseeing a weekly
section of the Gettysburg Times,
Judie has already moved up in the
world and is now employed as
Lifestyles Editor of the Gettysburg
Times, a daily newspaper serving
that area.
And, I for one, couldn’t be
happier. If I can’t have Judie
Mathers working for me at The
Dallas Post, then I certainly want to
see her lending her talents to a
newspaper somewhere, wherever
that may be. Congratulations and
the best of luck to you, Judie -
nobody deserves such an
opportunity more than you do.
Judie has told me, however, that
she had to take this position once it
was offered to her in order to pay
for her phone calls to Dallas. Maybe
now that she’s such a big shot, we’ll
hear from her more often.
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WE HAVE A NEW MEMBER to
our family. His name is Rubin, he’s
orange and wife, he’s eight weeks
old, and he’s as cute as a button.
Rubin entered my life, not by
choice, but rather by fate. Last
Sunday evening, as I was returning
from a day of boating and water
skiing at my brother’s in New
Jersey, I met this little feline as he
pulled himself across a street near
my house, dragging his back end
because it was totally out of
commission.
Rubin had been hit by a car and
left to fend for himself. As a pure
animal lover, I couldn’t pass up the
chance to help this poor critter,
even though he managed to bite me
out of fright and force me to have a
tetanus shot later. We were finally
able to get this little guy into a box
and take him home to our house.
Since it was a Sunday at
approximately 10 p.m. and our
regular veterinarian was not on
duty that particular weekend, I
chose to take this critter to the vet
who was covering at the time. When
I arrived, the verdict was simple, or
so I thought - this cat is ruined. He’s
done. His back legs are both
crushed and he’ll never walk again.
He’ll have to be put to sleep. That
was the advice of the veterinarian.
Being rather unable to accept that
diagnosis - or prognosis - if you will,
I chose to argue with the man who
supposedly knew what he was
doing. When he explained to me that
I would have to accept reality, I
paid his $30 fee and left his office.
Once out in my car, I really don’t
know what came over me, but I was
hit with the realization that if I left
this cat there to be put to sleep, I
would never be able to live with
myself.
Trudging back into the vet’s
office, I simply asked if the cat
told me that was a possibility but
that I could take the cat to any vet
in the country and would get the
same advice. I took him up on his
offer and took the cat to the
veterinarian I take my dog to all the
time.
Dr. William Rubin gave me two
choices - force the cat to undergo
two separate operations, one on
each leg to put pins in them so they
would heal - OR - confine him to a
box for three or four weeks and his
bones would heal themselves so that
he could walk again.
Imagine the thrill of victory I felt
when I heard those words. Anyway,
Rubin (appropriately named after
the man who gave him a second
chance on life) is now a full-fledged
member of our household and even
though he walks with a limp, he
does walk - and it’s only been a
week and a half since his
unfortunate encounter with that car.
He eats like a horse, purrs like he
should, romps with the dog and is
preparing to lead a very normal
life. As Dr. Rubin put it, ‘“Wouldn’t
you rather grow up with a bum leg
than never grow up at all?”
I thought the man had a rather
valid point with that statement.
(Dotty Martin is the Executive
Editor of Pennaprint Inc.,
publishers of The Dallas Post. Her
column appears weekly.)
Dallas Bank
photo, the First National Bank of Dallas.
Only yesterday
50 YEARS AGO - JULY 17, 1936
The area’s most severe heat wave in all recorded
history departed bringing light, cool breezes. How-
ever, the cooler weather did nothing to relieve the
threatened crops suffering from the drought.
Luzerne County’s 1936 Presidential campaign opened
at Lehman High School with a meeting of the National
Republican Builders of Luzerne County.
Vigorous attacks upon the New Deal policies of
President Roosevelt were made. Optimistic predic-
tions of victory for Landon and Knox were stated.
Married - Mary E. Keyser and Jack V. Crocker.
Deaths - Luther Roushey, Shavertown.
You could get - Wheaties cereal 10c pkg.; coffee 17¢
Ib.; macaroni 2 pkg. 19¢; salad’ dressing. 2-25c; ice
cream 25c¢ qt.; salt 3 pkg. 10¢; condensed milk 20c
can; Pillsbury’s flour 48 1b. $2.19; corn 3 cans 29c;
apricots 1g. can 15¢; pears, tall can 10c.
40 YEARS AGO - JULY 19, 1946
William George Hart, Dallas Township High School
graduate was selected as one of two Luzerne County
winners of a four-year State scholarship to be used at
the college of his choice.
Three new teachers were hired by the Dallas
Township High School, school board, Helen Guyler,
Jane Nagro and Grace Moore joined the staff.
Allen Bisbee, executive of Native Lace Works Inc.
made preliminary arrangements for construction of
the company’s new lace plant which would be known
as Natona Mills.
Engaged - Cora Clark to Daniel Joseph Carey;
Elinor May Dieruff and Robert Francis Niemeyer.
Anniversaries - Mr. and Mrs. William F. Cairl,
Dallas, 55 years.
Deaths - Anna Lozo, Shavertown.
You could get - Peaches 3 1b. 29¢; onions 4 1b. 19c;
cucumbers 2-9c; carrots 2 1g. pkg. 17c; pollock fillets
25¢ lb.; Spic & Span 20c pkg.; Nabisco Shredded
Wheat 2 pkg. 21c; rye crisp 14c pkg.; Koolade 5¢ pkg.;
mason jars, pts. 55¢ doz.; qts, 65¢ doz.
30 YEARS AGO - JULY 20, 1956
Back Mountain Memorial Library’s Tenth Auction
netted a profit of approximately $11,000. Bad weather
cut profits and prevented emptying of the barn. A
special auction was scheduled for August 11 to dispose
of leftovers.
Pupils in the Dallas Borough-Kingston Township
Joint Schools purchased $9,406.80 worth of stamps and
savings bonds during the school year. Trucksville
students purchased the most with a total of $2,718.30.
Engaged - Doris Ruth Bush to Carl G. Henning;
Faith Harding and Daniel Kozick; Wilma Ruth Titus
and Frederick Mahle.
Married - Nancy D. McGraw and Lawrence Brace.
Deaths - Anna Check, Dallas; Lester Davis, Hunts-
ville; Mabel Knorr, Trucksville; Vera Gale, Huntsville
Road; Guy Woolbert, Forty Fort.
You could get - Sirloin steaks 79c Ib.; veal roasts 49¢
Ib.; fish sticks 3 8-oz. pkg. $1; honeydews 49c ea.;
blueberries 35¢ pt.; Eskimo pink salmon 16 oz. can
55¢; Philadelphia cream cheese, 8 oz. pkg. 35c; cider
vinegar 18c pt.; Minute Maid frozen orange juice 4
cans 85¢.
20 YEARS AGO - JULY 21, 1966
During one of the hottest weeks of the summer
season forest fires kept Trucksville and Harveys Lake
Fire Companies busy with persistent flare ups
demanding their almost constant attention. The prob-
lem areas were located in Meeker and Carverton.
Snowball, a young sheep belonging to the Roy W.
Thomas family, was killed by a bear. The Thomas’
lived in Mt. Zion. Black bears had been sighted
throughout the Back Mountain area for the past few
weeks.
Anniversaries - Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Laskowski, 25
years; Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Bottoms, 33 years; Mr.
and Mrs. Donald Paeglows, 17 years.
Deaths - Alice Kilpatrick, Shavertown; Chester
Shields, Exeter Township; Phoebe Henderson, Dallas.
You could get - Semi-boneless hams 69c 1b.; chuck
roasts 59c¢ 1b.; turkey breasts 69c lb.; white seedless
grapes 29c Ib.; cantaloupes 3-$1; bananas 2 lb. 25c;
lemons 5-29¢; mild cheddar cheese 65¢ 1b.; cottage
cheese 29c lb.; Campbell’s soup 6 cans $1; Tide
detergent 3 lb. pkg. 65¢; Ivory soap 4 bars 27c; stuffed
olives 1b. jar 95c.
10 YEARS AGO - JULY 22, 1976
Lake-Lehman School Directors affirmed their pledge
to open the Noxen Elementary School in September.
The board applied for an emergency construction
permit from the Department of Education to enable
necessary repairs to be made.
Area firemen were kept busy attending to fires.
Sweet Valley volunteers fought a cottage fire that was
suspected arson. Harveys Lake firemen fought a
garage fire on the property owned by A.L. Berrettini
of Sayre. Kunkle firemen assisted in fighting the fire.
Engaged - Barbara Kwasnik and Michael John
Anniversaries - Mr. and Mrs. Steven Pavlick, 50
years.
Deaths - Rev. J. Rolland Crompton, Harveys Lake;
Catherine Gaynor, Harveys Lake; Sophie Hart,
Trucksville; Thomas Yeager, Harveys Lake; George
Sponseller, Chase Road.
You could get - Chicken legs 49c 1b.; chicken breasts
53c Ib.; pickle loaf $1.29 1b.; Spic 'n Span 16 oz. box
35¢; Tide 49 oz. $1.29; Miracle Whip 99¢; cauliflower,
Green Giant frozen 10 oz. 59¢c; plums 49c 1b;
cantaloupe 2-99c.
Letters
DAVID F. CONNER
General Manager
DOTTY MARTIN
Executive Editor
DEAR EDITOR:
Recently you printed a story
about the new traffic lights at the
intersection of Routes 309 and 115,
by Franklin’s Restaurant in Dallas.
In the story, your writer basically
said, “It’s about time.” I agree, it
IS about time, and the saving of it
for those who drive.
As a resident of Pioneer Avenue, I
would like to inform the motoring
public that our street is available
for your use to avoid this new light,
as well as all the other lights, and
has virtually NO police harrasment.
You can enter at the light in
Dallas and get back on 309 by Duke
Isaacs, and vice-versa, without a
stop or a worry about a police
officer interfering with you. I know,
because I checked with the State
Police, and they’ve told me that
while Pioneer Avenue is regulated
by the state, the local police are
supposed to patrol it, and they have
NEVER asked the State Police to
help them by setting up a radar
This means that you can drive
just about as fast as your automo-
you find that there is a driver in
front of you who is obeying the
posted 35 Mile-Per-Hour limit, well,
just pass him! You can go on your
merry way, and perhaps save as
much as five minutes of your valua-
ble time going to and from work.
Since it’s now summer, and
Pioneer Avenue has children walk-
ing along it, as well as people on
bikes and walking dogs or what-
ever, your dodge-’em and honk
skills could be sharpened, too. If
you happen to hit and kill someone,
well, that’s their hard luck, right?
After all, for you to be able to save
a few precious minutes is more
important than the life of another
person or two. Besides, they
shouldn’t have been anywhere near
the street anyway, even though they
live on it.
You can ask the drivers of the
school busses, or any of the com-
mercial vehicles that use our street
as a shortcut, 60 MPH isn’t too fast
when your time is at stake. You
want to get home to your family,
and we can appreciate that; life is
too short to waste a second of it
sitting at a stop light.
To sum up, then, come on down
our residential street. If we don’t
like the way you drive, we should
move.
ANNOYED RESIDENT
Airport grateful
DEAR EDITOR:
On behalf of the Wilkes-Barre/
Scranton International Airport’s Bi-
County Board of Commissioners, we
would like to again thank you for
the excellent coverage and coopera-
tion you and your staff extended in
connection with the ARMED
FORCES AIR SHOW & TRANS-
PORTATION EXPOSITION at this
airport.
The airport appreciates your con-
for coverage
tinuing interest in our events and
the coverage which you gave to the
show added greatly to its over-
whelming success.
We look forward to working with
you during next year’s show which
is scheduled for June 27-28, 1987.
Once again, thank you for your
cooperation.
Library news
By NANCY KOZEMCHAK
Library Correspondent
If one day into the 1986 library
auction is any indicator, this 40th
annual Back Mountain Memorial
Library Auction should be the best
ever. The tents were so festive
looking on the grounds, the new
booths added so many extras and
the people attending, both sitting
and selling, were super.
This year the auction was planned
for a five day period, including the
first Wednesday ever. The rain,
stopped in time for things to dry a
little, the sun came out, the people
arrived and the crowd was just
great. Actually, this first
Wednesday surpassed most
Thursdays and even some of the
Fridays in years past.
The cash sales over the block and
from the booths were $2,358.15 and
the charge amounts came to
$1,627.00 for a total of $3,985.15,
which is a good amount for the first
Wednesday of a five day auction.
Monty Evans appeared as one of
the auctioneers wearing his auction
tuxedo jacket from last year. It has
become a conversation piece
because of the axle grease which he
acquired while reaching under the
flat bed temporary auction block
last year to adjust some wiring.
Most of us were given the
opportunity to autography the
jacket after that and it has now
become his ‘auction jacket.’
I had seen a special flag at the
Meadows Apartments on my visit
hanging with their American and
Pennsylvania flag and inquired as
to where they had acquired it. I was
told they had purchased it from
Frank’s Flags in Nanticoke.
I called there and ordered one for
our flag pole and they then donated
one to us for the auction. It is a
special Statue of Liberty flag with a
picture of the statue and the years
1886-1986 — a very special flag. It is
now flying on our flag pole on the
auction grounds with the American
and Pennsylvania flag.
(Nancy Kozemchak is the
assistant librarian at the Back
Mountain Memorial Library. Her
column appears weekly.)
State Capitol
roundup
By REP. FRANK COSLETT
Special to The Dallas Post
Here is a summary of important
events that occurred on Capitol Hill
last week from: Rep. Frank Coslett,
120th Legislative District.
CAPITAL PUNSIHMENT —
When deciding whether to impose
the death penalty, juries in
Pennsylvania will have two new
factors to consider under legislation
signed by Gov. Dick Thornburgh
this week. Sponsored by Rep.
Dennis O’Brien (R-Phila.), the law
will expand from 10 to 12 the
number of aggravating
circumstances to be considered
when deciding to send a convicted
murderer to the electric chair. The
new circumstances would be
whether the individual was
previously convicted in another case
of murder or voluntary
manslaughter. O’Brien said the
statute would prevent a two-time
murderer from escaping the death
penalty.
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GAME LAWS — With a swipe of
the governor’s pen, the first major
revamping of the state’s game laws
since 1937 occurred this week. In
general, the bill increases penalties
for most game law violations and
hikes the fees for most special
permits. It also creates the violation
of hunting under the influence of
liquor or drugs and moves the
beginning of the licensing year from
September to July. “This is overdue
legislation. Pennsylvania has
changed greatly since 1937 and it’s
about time we brought the laws
governing hunting up to date,” said
Rep. Bruce Smith (R-York), a
member of the House Committee on
Game and Fisheries which
developed the bill.
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TEEN SUICIDE — The House
Select Committee to Investigate
Teenage Suicide concluded its series
of statewide hearings in Harrisburg
this week. The panel was eager to
receive testimony from Nancy M.
Noonan, president of the
Pennsylvania State Education
Association (PSEA), on the issue. It
was the first time the committee
heard officially from teachers.
Noonan said teachers are willing to
help in the battle against teen
suicide but need training and
resources to be effective. Rep. Roy
w. Cornell (R-Montgomery), vice-
educational system must play a
significant role in stemming the tide
of suicide. ‘‘One message we've
heard repeated by parents, experts
and now the teachers is that schools
must be involved with developing
and instituting a program in (self-
esteem improvement) for children.”
The committee will now consider its
findings and report to the House.
(Rep. Frank Coslett serves the
120th Legislative District which
encompasses parts of the Back
Mountain area. His column appears
weekly.)
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