Neral 4 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, April 20, 1994 The Dallas Post Job 1: Replace Native Textiles When Native Textiles moves its last few jobs to Glens Falls, New York sometime in the next year, it will leave behind more than an empty building. Nearly 50 years of hopes, dreams and financial security for hundreds of families were tied to the plant’s prospects, both directly to employees and indirectly to the stores and services that benefitted from the company’s payroll and involvement in the community. For the rest of us, there is no more important task than replacing the lost jobs and tax base, and perhaps even improving upon it. It's not uncommon that a large employer looks for ways to maintain an existing facility before making the decision to pull out. They often seek tax or wage reductions, or demand greater efficiency. That apparently wasn’t the case this time, as the Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce, to which Native be- longed, was as surprised by the company’s announcement as the people who work at the plant. If the parent company’s reasons for the relocation are to be believed, there wasn't much that could have been done to keep the jobs here. The local work is to be consolidated with two plants in the Glens Falls area, where living costs and wage scales are not that different {rom here. To its credit, the company announced its plans far in advance ol implementation, though that’s small consolation to those who will lose their jobs or face the difficult choice of whether to leave their hometowns to move with the company. The Back Mountain may have been the wrong place for Native Textiles in 1994, but it’s surely a great spot to put a business. We can offer a new employer many good reasons to move into the mill, among them a seasoned work force, reasonable living costs, easy highway access to major popula- tion centers, four seasons of recreation, good schools and many more. We also have a great group of people willing to do whatever is necessary to replace the $2 million payroll that will vanish in the next year. They are the members of the Back Mountain Citizens’ Council and the Back Mountain Business & Professional Association. Their efforts and those of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce will boost the already good odds that the plant won't long stand empty. Publisher's notebook | Ron Bartizek: =! On the way to pick up my daughter at her friend's house the other day, I was driving on Sutton Road and saw a fallen tree limb blocking hall the roadway at the crest of a small hill. It was still there when we were on the way home, so I stopped and dragged it off the road. I don’t know how long it was there; perhaps a few minutes or a few hours, but I wondered why no one had bothered to remove it. Because it blocked only half the road, everyone had driven around it, even though its location on the hill crest made that move somewhat dangerous if an unseen car had been coming the opposite way. Then it struck me. They all were waiting for someone else to remove the ob- struction. Perhaps they figured their responsibility had been fulfilled with the last tax payment, and it was the town’s job. Maybe they thought the nearest property owner was respon- sible. And besides, if they made it safely around the branch, what did they care about the next driver? This small incident was another reminder of the decline in personal responsibility that seems endemic in our society. (XX J A well-known radio loudmouth has referred many times to The Dalla Post as “teacher lovers.” Apparently, in his mind (?) anyone who doesn’t thoughtlessly bash teachers can only be the exact opposite of a teacher hater. I doubt that Bill Wagner, the head of the Dallas Education Association, would count The Post among his union’s supporters, but I think he knows we've tried to be fair and accurate, two qualities that some talk-show hosts hold in contempt. I wonder if the folks who are relentless in their criticism of teachers realize the message they're sending to students. Encouraging youngsters to think of their teachers only as greedy incompelents weakens our already tenuous educa- tional system. “» Do you agree? Disagree? Editorials are the opinion of the management of The Dallas Post. We welcome your opinion on contemporary issues in the form of letters to the editor. If you don't write, the community may never hear a contrasting point of view. Send letters to: The Dallas Post, P.O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612. Please include your name, address and a daytime phone number so that we may verify authenticity. We donot publish anonymousletters, but will consider withholding the name in exceptional circumstances. We reserve the right to edit for length and grammar. The Dallas Post Published Weekly by Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 Telephone: 717-675-5211 Ronald A. Bartizek Charlotte E. Bartizek Editor and Publisher Associate Publisher Peggy Young Grace R. Dove Advertising Acct. Exec. Reporter Paul Rismiller Olga Kostrobala Production Manager Classified/typesetting Jill Urbanas Office Manager MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION AND THE PENNSYLVANIA NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER'S ASSOCIATION J W.J. Let's put our money where our future is By J.W. JOHNSON Earth Day—1994. It will be observed Friday, April 22. And you would have had to have been living in a plastic soda bottle not to have at least heard of it. But what is Earth Day? As issues of collective impor- tance often are first raised by extremists on either side of the political spectrum, Earth Day was first observed in 1970. The event was launched by radical, left-wing activists out to emasculate corpo- rate America—the making of profit seen then by those extremists to be equally as sinful as spoiling the environment in the process. What Earth Day has evolved into some 24 years later is an observance which will now be marked by hundreds of millions of people in 150 different coun- tries. The radicals are still out front leading the charge; thank- fully, those closer to the middle of the spectrum have chosen to at least. hear the message and act. There is only one Mother Earth, and we, its caretakers, have not only raped the woman, but have attempted to poison her food and water with toxic wastes, strangle her with foul air, and suffocate her under mountains of garbage. On the other hand, it seems that corporate America has finally (and because it is not only socially conscious, but it will also become profitable) jumped on the envi- ronmental bandwagon. Almost daily I now see T.V. and magazine ads touting environmental aware- ness by this or that corporation. It would behoove those corpora- tions to move beyond the public relations effort as it is now not only the radicals who are scream- ing about the environment, but the so-called silent majority are at least acknowledging individual responsibility for environmental awareness. There is growing number of area residents who, and because they now participate in recycling programs as a matter of course, by those actions are demonstrat- ing an understanding that the throw-away lifestyle must be changed. Not that there is universal agreement with all the issues still being promoted by the extrem- ists; for example, some see nu- clear power as an enemy. Agreed, nuclear power and its attendant toxic wastes are frightening. But what are the alternatives in a society which values its individ- ual liberties over its collective concerns. The world’s supply of oil is limited and coal production will never be able to keep up with demand. Unless we go to collec- tive housing (as opposed to single- family homes) on a large scale, the alternative energy sources of so- lar, wind, geo-thermal or tides are just not financially feasible un- less approached collectively. For those who haven't been living in a plastic soda bottle, you also must have noticed that many politicians have run up the envi- ronmental flag of late. There are a few with long-standing beliefs, i.e., our Governor Robert Casey, and Wayne County Commis- sioner, Tony Herzog, to name just two. Although I often disagree with our governor, it was he who in 1970 called for the creation of a state agency for conservation and environment, which agency later became the state Department of Environmental Resources. The DER isn't one of my favorite state agencies, primarily because it attempts to find one-size-that-fits- all solutions to environmental questions. But do we need the DER? You bet we do. How are we going to pay for taking the necessary action now that we've become environmen- tally aware? According to public information distributed by Con- gressman Joseph McDade, nearly $1 billion is spent by the military in northeast Pennsylvania alone, with $280 billion earmarked for the entire military budget this year. Perhaps now, as the world begins to see the folly of the mili- tary/industrial complex, we can begin to enjoy some peace divi- dends. And one of the first bene- ficiaries should be putting those dollars not spent on the military where our environmental mouths are, and should be. As | was saying... Lionel Hampton: a true master of jazz By JACK HILSHER Jazz great Lionel Hampton at 85 (!!) averages several appear- ances each month, plus college seminars, low-income housing work, benefits, festivals and campaigning for his favorite poli- ticians - Republican of course. He's had several White House receptions, dozens of honorary degrees and has toured Europe, Japan, Australia, Africa and the Middle East, playing to packed houses everywhere. He also ap- peared as soloist at London's Royal Festival Hall. His performances tend to be as sensational as his career: hot mallets flashing, rapid two-fin- gered piano breaks and frantic drum rolls using four sticks at once. It's all pure showmanship, only one aspect of this multi-tal- ented jazzman. ‘Underneath however, is a quiet, more reflective Hampton. The one who, on his favorite instru- ment the vibraphone, can take a simple, almost banal ballad like “Moonglow” and elevate it to clas- sic status with his treatment. Once having heard his version, it cannot ever be forgotten. Sometimes called vibraharp (or vibes for short) the vibraphone was invented in 1920, looks like a xylophone but works differently. Its vibrato is produced by rotating fans on the ends of “resonater” tubes....in other words, it must be plugged in to play while a xylo- phone does not. In the 20s vibraphones were only used for chime notes at inter- missions on the radio (like NBC's “Bing-Bang-Bong"). One was in a studio where Hampton was re- cording with Louis Armstrong. Louie asked if Hamp could play the strange new instrument, and since the keyboards looked the same, Hampton took a chance and said yes. They dragged it out, plugged it in, and Hampton played an Arm- strong solo from memory, note for note. Armstrong (lipped, insisted on recording it. The song - Eubie Blake's “Memories of You” - was the first time a vibraphone was used to play jazz, but far from last. A discography in his autobi- ography (HAMP) lists aover 100 pages of his subsequent record- ings, possible something of a rec- ord for records! From '36 to '40 Hampton and vibraphone appeared regularly with the Benny Goodman Quar- tet, then formed his own band which has been highly successful ever since. Hamp says that he “keeps contemporary.” He boasts that his concerts feature the latest pop songs as well as the old stuff. “It’s all jazz,” he says. “From ragtime to Dixie to swing to bebop to cool. Whatever you hear today is gone tomorrow, but it's always jazz. You can put a new dress on her but she’s still the same old broad.” Retire? Never! Marshall Royal, the great al- toist and long-time Hampton friend, said, “Lionel will topple off the bandstand one night, proba- bly during a chorus of “Flying Home,” and they will say, well, that's the way he wanted to go out.” Can you think of a better way for him? Federal Officials Representative Paul E. Kanjorski (PA 11th District) (Democrat) Wilkes-Barre: 825-2200 Washington: (202) 225-6511 Address: 10 E. South St., Wilkes- Barre PA 18701-2397 or 2429 Rayburn Building, Wash- ington, DC 20515 Senator Arlen Specter (Republican) Wilkes-Barre: 826-6265 Washington: (202) 224-4254 Address: 116 S. Main S., Wilkes- Barre PA 18701 Senator Harris Wofford (Democrat) Telephone Scranton: 347-2341 Washington: (202) 224-6324 Address: 116 N. Washington Ave., Suite 3K, Scranton PA 18503 State Officials State Sen. Charles D. Lemmond (R) (717) 288-3925 or 287-0474 701 West Market Street, Kingston PA 18704-3496 Lemmond’'s dis- trict includes the Back Mountain. State Rep. George Hasay (R) 287-75050r542-73450r474-2276 or 477-3752 369 South Mountain Boulevard, Mountaintop PA 18707 Hasay's district encompasses: Harveys Lake, Lehman Township, Jackson Township, Lake Town- ship, Franklin Township, Ross Township, and Dallas Township's north voting district. State Rep. Phyllis Mundy (D) 283-9622 or 655-3375 Suite 107, 400 Third Avenue, Kingston PA 18704 Mundy's district encompasses: Dallas Borough, Dallas Township except for the north voting district, and Kingston Township. Only yesterday 60 Years Ago - April 27, 1994 FIRE DESTROYS J.R. DAVIS SUMMER HOME The financial problems of Dal- las Borough School District will be explained and discussed at a meeting of Borough Taxpayers . Association in the high school tonight. The necessity for prompt - # action to relieve the financial = ™ pressure on the district will be:* stressed. . The second local showplace to * be destroyed by fire in several:* months was when the summer» home of Jonathan R. Davis, at] Idetown burned to the ground. :* Fire is believed to have been’. started by a person who forced * entry into the home. Married on April 28, 1884, Mr. #) and Mrs. James Ide marked their -, Golden Wedding anniversary on Sunday. #1 # 8 50 Years Ago - April 24, 1944 SGT. RODERICK KILLED IN ACTION IN ITALY ‘o Dallas Borough boys and girls will present their first minstrel . show under the auspices of the AD Parent-Teacher Association in the»! high school at 7:30 this evening.» Joseph LeGrand will act as M.C.+% Mr. and Mrs. Elmer D. Roder-s ick of Centermoreland received as telegram notifying them that theirs’: son, T/Sgt. Robert M. Roderjelgy was killed in action on the Anzio! Beach in Italy on March 1. wy You could get - Smoked bacon, +! 31¢ Ib. ground hamburg, 25¢ Ib. asparagus, 17¢ 1b.; new potatoes ty 5 lbs., 29¢; lettuce, 10¢ hd. pH 40 Years Ago - April 23, 1954 = FOREST FIRE BURNS 5 ACRES NEAR HILLSIDE ; William Harlos, fire tower op- erator at the Harvey tower above Irem Country Club reports that at 1 p.m. Wednesday a forest fire § which burned 5 acres on the" mountain above Hillside was.) under control. Lehman Volunteer Fire Co. has received tentative bids for the, construction of .a 40 x 60 foot addition to the present building, - in Lehman. The addition is planed... to serve as a Community Center, with ample room for community meetings, dinners, and recrea- @ tional activities. Blood Donor Day is scheduled for Friday, noon to 6 p.m. at Dal- las Borough School. The goal is; 125 pints. St., Therese's, Gate of i. Heaven and Our Lady of Victory parishes are cooperating 100% to make this drive a success. Minis- ter of Protestant churches are also ry urging their membership to give. 30 Years Ago - April 23, 1964 AREA KIDS TO ATTEND © SPECIAL CONCERT i Tickets for the Library Auction Kick-off Smorgasbord Dinner may be obtained at The Dallas Post and Back Mountain Memorial, Library as well as through mem- bers of local service clubs cooper- " ating in the dinner, May 7 at Irem Temple Country Club. Lee Vin- cent's combo will play. a The annual special Children's ~ Concert for 5th and 6th grade students will be presented Satur- day by the Wilkes-Barre Philhar- . 7 he i A 1 Li 3 oJ / 4 " 3 monic Orchestra at Irem Temple. There is no charge for admission thanks to the grant from the Recording Industries of the Ameri- - can Federation of Musicians Lo- cal 140. 5 : You could get - Turkeys, 5-9 1b. average, 36¢ lb.; strawberries, pint. basket, 39¢; Jane Park Jelly Roll, , 29¢ ea.; Betty Crocker cake mixes, +! 3 pkgs., 95¢; cucumbers, 4/29¢ 3 F&e 20 Years Ago - April 25, 1974 BIKE-A-THON NETS $4,400 FOR RETARDED ; Dallas School District and its | superintendent Dr. Linford A. i Werkheiser were honored by the | American School Counselor As- sociation at its annual national convention in New Orleans, La. | Dr. Werkheiser was recognized as } the “Administrator of the Year” for the most outstanding and signifi- | cant contribution to the guidance » and counseling fields. b Two hundred eighty seven | . - . - ELE L - £ @ people of all ages completed the 25 mile Dallas Junior Women's Club Bike-A-Thon on Sunday, collecting a total of $4,400 in pledges to help the retarded citi- zens of Pennsylvania. Dallas halted St. John's and Wyoming Seminary in the open- ing week of Wyoming Valley Base- ball League to go into the second week tied with pre-season favor- ites Hanover Hawkeyes and GAR .. Grenadiers for first place. we 5 4 A | | ) | - L] [] LJ} 5 | 1 8
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers