| | | “= EAP} EDITORIALS 4 The Dalias Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, April 30, 1997 Volunteers just do it for their communities When the last limousine pulls away from the “Volunteer Summit” in Philadelphia, many of the participants will jet back to palatial homes, secure in the knowledge that they have done something to make a difference in the lives of the downtrodden, ill and poor. President Clinton, smug in the belief that he has focused the attention of American citizens on an oh-so-impor- tant aspect of our culture, will claim that we have made “a good start” at solving the problems of our society, thanks to prodding by the government. Even some in the volunteer community will praise the effort, if for nothing else because it drew attention to what they do in anonymity day in and day out. And they’ll all be right, as far as they go. Ours is perhaps the greatest volunteer society in the history of the world, but not because government officials have decreed that it be so. Americans put in more hours working for causes, organizations and their neighbors than do citizens of any other modern state, continuing a tradition of cooperation that began in the earliest colonial times, when there was no government to which to turn in hard times, the hardest of which meant certain death. In response early settlers, first on the Eastern coastline and later across the vast expanse of Western prairie and mountains, worked together towards common goals, one of which was to give everyone the opportunity to live proudly and independently. Most of the people who reached that goal have offered the same assistance to those younger or less fortunate, as long as they showed the kind of gumption it took to build a successful life. Times have changed. The United States has become the most prosperous nation on the planet, perhaps the most prosperous ever, but there are still needs that aren't met by official institutions. Volunteers continue to perform vital services, from fighting fires to bringing a few moments of cheer to elderly people in nursing homes to staffing libraries. Most of us help in whatever way we can. To some people that means giving money, for others it's donating time or skills where they are needed. You sometimes hear a bit of reverse snobbery from the time-givers toward those who “only” donate money, but that’s not appropriate because both are needed, and are critical to the _ effective delivery of volunteer services. A "Volunteer Summit” wasn't necessary to create a spirit of ~ neighborliness, at least not judging by what happens every day in the Back Mountain. Take a spin around town and you'll see candy stripers at the Meadows, fire fighters and ambulance crews responding to emergencies, aides in the schools, Little League coaches and countless other examples of volunteerism. _ If there’s anything that needs reawakening in much of the ~ nation, it's the spirit of community that is the impetus for much ~ volunteer activity. Too many people have disengaged from the life of their towns, seeing little beyond their blocks or even their - own home and land. This is in part a consequence of our mobile society, in which it becomes difficult — even painful — to : develop close ties knowing they will be broken with the next job ~ transfer. Perhaps it’s time we saw all America as our commu- * nity, and our contribution as valuable in one place as in any - other. A photo-op summit meeting with a bunch of bigwigs doesn’t do much to create volunteers, and perhaps that’s as it should be. When volunteering becomes something to do to gain recognition, when it becomes the province of politicians looking for approval, it will lose its appeal to those who are its backbone ~— the men, women and children who take some money from : their pockets or some time from their busy days and give it to others simply because they have it and someone else needs it. Publisher's notebook It’s the time of year for the great-equalizer sport, golf. People - who enjoy the game are slowly making their way out onto the + fairways and greens, hoping for a sustained period of tolerable ~ weather so that at least they can be miserable in comfort. Golf ~ is a unique game; you alone are responsible for your perfor- - mance, which doesn’t prevent most golfers from finding some- - one or something to blame for a bad shot or a disappointing - round. I've played off and on for many years, never enough to get very good. But, every time I play I hit at least one shot that - makes me think I could be outstanding, and “it keeps me - coming back,” as the saying goes. I agree with those who say Tiger Woods is the best thing to - happen to the sport in years, but his appearance doesn’t come - without some cost. Courtesy and decorum have been hall- - marks of golf, among duffers and pros alike. That hasn't - changed among the players on the tour, Fuzzy Zoeller’s unfor- . tunate remarks notwithstanding, but I see a shift in the fans. - Woods's ability to hit monstrous drives has accelerated a trend as much as a 350-yard drive. I even heard fans shouting toward overemphasizing power that has been evident for years in the barrage of ads for ever-longer balls and clubs. A power game attracts power fans, and they tend to be more boisterous and less courteous than those who appreciate a good chip shot “wimpy” after Frank Nobilo hit a layup shot out of the rough on the way to winning last weekend's tournament. I hope that was ~ an aberration; a good part of golf's appeal is that it and its fans ~ aren't like sports where power, strength and size matter more ~ than skill, strategy and heart. As Woods attracts more young people to the sport, he and the powers that be had better make sure they are taught how to act on a golf course, and not just - how to play. The Dallas Post Published Weekly By Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 717-675-5211 Charlotte E. Bartizek ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Ronald A. Bartizek PUBLISHER Jessica Appolo ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC Kylie Shafferkoetter REPORTER Paul Rismiller PRODUCTION MANAGER Olga Kostrobala CLASSIFIED/TYPESETTING Jill Gruver OFFICE MANAGER SoA Re KL eas rd 2) PRINTED WITH NINE PENNSYLVANIA [=7|SOY INK] ASSOCIATION | en NEWSPAPER Ready and waiting..for next year, we hope. Photo by Charlotte Bartizek. LIBRARY By NANCY KOZEMCHAK The Back Mountain Memorial Library is featuring an English Tudor Miniature Home in the dis- play area at thelibrary. The house is loaned to us by Lois Hughes of Dallas. The house was made by Fred Hughes, husband of Lois in 1993. Fred did not use a pattern for the house, because it was expensive to buy; he built it free hand. The date appears on a calendar in the kitchen. There are 10 rooms in the house, 3 bedrooms, a nursery, sewing room, library, living room, dining room, kitchen and attic. Authentic miniature furniture is featured in every room. There are two large trees in the front of the house, a bird bath on the lawn, newspaper and kitten on the front porch. The nursery includes a play pen, crib, high chair, rocker and toys. The attic has a Chinese checker game, old pumpkin and Mr. and Mrs. Rabbit. The miniature home is to an- nounce the Miniature Home Show sponsored by ‘Dream Houses in Miniature Club’ on Friday, May 9 from 1-7 and Saturday May 10 from 10-5, at the Eastern Star Building in Dallas. The proceeds will benefit the Back Mountain Memorial Library Children’s Wing campaign. Re- freshments will be available by Miniature house on display the ladies of the Eastern Star. The cost is $3 adults, and $1 for children 6 to 11. A 50¢ discount coupon may be picked up at the library and taken off the cost of admission to the show. The Back Mountain Memorial Library was represented at the Gregory A. Skrepenak Founda- tion, Inc. Kick-off Celebration on Friday, March 21 from 7 to 1C p.m. at the Carriage Stop Inn in Wilkes-Barre, by Martha Wheeler, Librarian and Nancy Kozemchak, Business Manager. This founda- tion was formed in January of 1997 to assist children, students. and local charities to help the less fortunate. Greg's mission is tc provide an opportunity of positive growth and enrichment to the people of Northeastern Pennsyl- vania. Several fund-raising events have been planned including ¢ golf classic on June 30th. New books at the library: “The Law of Love” by Laura Esquivel is a story set in Mexico three centu- ries hence, when humanity has discovered that everyone goes through 14,000 reincarnations in order to achieve a perfect fu- sion with their twin soul. The heroine is an astroanalyst, who uses musicas power. “Pretend You Don’t See Her” by Mary Higgins Clark is a brilliant and terrifying novel. Set in New York and St. Paul, it is the story of Lacey Farrell, a young rising star on Manhattan’s high-powered and competitive real estate scene. Lacey becomes a witness to a murder and hears the victim's dying words. “American Pastoral” by Philip Roth is written with deep under- standing and great story-telling energy, with enormous power and score as he focuses on the counterforces: the longing for an ordinary life. It is a vivid portrait of how the innocence is swept away by the times in an America berserk. ‘Hail to the Chief” by Robert Dallek is an unprecedented and engaging examination of presidential ex- cellence—and its less distin- guished counterpart. Dallek ad- dresses five themes that have been typically manifested in success- ful administrations—vision, prag- matism, consensus, charisma and trust—and traces how they have been played out by the 41 men who have attained the highest rank of public service. “Faith and Treason” by Antonia Fraser is the story of the Gunpow- der Plot, the 17th-century terror- ist conspiracy. In England, No- vember 5, is Guy Fawkes Day, when fireworks displays com- memorate the shocking moment in 1605 when government au- thorities uncovered a secret plan to blow up the House of Parlia- ment— and King James I along with it. “American Tragedy” is the un- censored story of the Simpson defense, by Lawrence Schiller and James Willwerth. It is the untold story, from murder to acquittal, written from deep within the Simpson defense by a master re- porter. Each turning point in the months-long investigation and trial is recounted in authentic, often startling detail in the words of Simpson's confidents, lawyers, special investigators and expert witnesses, woven into a brilliant narrative. LEGISLATORS DIRECTORY Federal Officials Congress Representative Paul E. Kanjorski (Democrat) Wilkes-Barre: 825-2200 Washington: (202) 225-6511 10 East South Street, Wilkes-Barre PA 18701-2397 or 2429 Rayburn Building, Washington, DC 20515 Senator Arlen Specter (Republican) Wilkes-Barre: 826-6265 Washington: (202) 224-4254 116 South Main Street, Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 Senator Rick Santorum (Republican) 120 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Washington: (202) 224-6324 Fax: (202) 228-4991 State Officials State Senator Charles D. Lemmond (Republican) (717) 675-3931 22 Dallas Shopping Ctr., Memorial Hwy., Dallas PA 18612-1231 State Representative George Hasay (Republican) 18707 287-7505 or 542-7345 or 474-2276 or 477-3752 144 North Mountain Boulevard, Mountaintop PA Hasay's district encompasses: Harveys Lake, Leh- man Township, Jackson Township, Lake Town- ship, Franklin Township, Ross Township, and Dal- las Township's north voting district. State Representative Phyllis Mundy (Democrat) 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 dis- trict, and Kingston Township. ONLY YESTERDAY 60 Years Ago - May 7, 1937 MOVIE DEMONSTRATES COOKING TECHNIQUES “The Bride Wakes Up” a talking , motion cooking school, presented by The Dallas Post at the Himmler Theatre Wed., Thurs., and Fri. See the demonstrations of many new and fascinating recipes in close-up technicolor. Free ad- mission. Unless the directors of King- ston Township School Board re- consider their defiance of the new Pennsylvania Teachers’ Tenure Act their failure to renew the con- tract of Supervising Principal J.A Martin may develop into a court test of the strength of the new law. Directors who reappointed all teachers except Mr. Martin on Wednesday p.m. have failed to file any charges against him. They had until midnight last night to give him his contract. If no recog- nition of his claim is made man- damus proceedings will be insti- tuted against them within a few days. 50 Years Ago - May 9, 1947 KIWANIS PROVIDE MOMS A RIDE ON MOTHER'S DAY Dallas Township School Board at its meeting Tuesday evening, discussed and tentatively adopted its budget for 1947/48 term. A resolution to invite school direc- tors of Back Mountain districts to discuss common problems was tabled after opposition of Direc- tors Elston and Hughey. 5 Any aged or infirm mothers in the Back Mountain area who wishes to attend church services on Mother's Day and has no means of transportation, will be taken to church and returned home by members of the Dallas Kiwanis Club. Fred Anderson, president of the club said all pastors have been informed so that they can notify the Kiwanis of any semi- invalid or infirm person who might want to take advantage of the offer. You could get - Rib roast, 49¢ 1b.; hamburg, 37¢ 1b.; new Texas carrots, 2 bchs. 15¢; U.S. #1 po- tatoes, 5 lbs.” 25¢; Syprerhe Bread, Ig. loaf 11¢. 40 Years Ago - May 3, 1957 MISERICORDIA DEDICATES BUILDING TO BISHOP Bishop Hafey Memorial Science Building will be dedicated on Col- lege Misericordia campus Tues- day at 4 with His Excellency Jerome D. Hannan D.D. Bishop of Scranton presiding. The mod- ern brick and glass structure of panel wall construdtion willhouse the physics, chemistry, biology and home economics depart- ments. Beretta Construction Co. has started excavation for the con- struction of a new addition that will house eight or more alleys at Crown Imperial Bowling Alleys. 30 Years Ago - May 4, 1967 BMT LIBRARY KICKS OFF ANNUAL AUCTION Back Mountain Memorial Li- brary will initiate its annual sum- mer event with a Library Auction Kick-off Dinner May 24 at Irem Country Club. Harry Lefko, auc- tion chairman announces that RobertdJ. Reed will be dinner chair- man. Mr. Lefko says there will be no speeches, the most painless dinner on record. If all goes according to plas, Evergreen Cemetery Lot Owners Association will become a reality this afternoon and the cemetery will become their property as:of this date. A meeting with Mayor Frank Slattery, Loren Steinhauer, son of the present owner and rep- resentatives of lot owners com- mittee has been arranged for 2 p.m. at the office of Atty. Mitchell Jenkins at which time negotia- tions are to be completed and deed transferred. Sale price was set at $1,200 by Slattery at an earlier meeting with the group.: 20 Years Ago - May 5, 1977 LAKE-LEHMAN STUDENTS - GO TO NIAGARA FALLS Five buses including 140 mem- bers of prize winning Lake-Leh- man High School Band, parents and chaperones will leave from lake-Lehman High School May 6 for Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada where they will compete in the National Blossom Festival. They will also appear in the New York Bicentennial and Miss Niagara As- sociation Parade on the American side of the Falls. The trip is fi- nanced by the Band Sponsors Association with help of the band and the community.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers