8 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, November 11, 1998 Masons (continued from page 1) finished a wall at the edge of a driveway on Idetown-Huntsville Road in Lehman. Father and son built the accompanying wall 27 years ago, when Allan was just 17 years old. “It’s inherited, like some dis- eases,” said Emmett Hoover. “I followed in my father’s footsteps.” In a family with two boys and one girl, Hoover was the only one who made a life out of masonry. “It was a challenge. I always liked it because I liked to see what I could do,” he said. Hoover works with the two main available types of local stone, flat fieldstone and bulky rustic stone. He used to get much of his stone out of Bowman's Creek. Hoover built his own home on Troxell Switch Rd. from rustic stone. The solid home is right next door to the farmhouse in which Hoover was born and raised. Family is important to Hoover and luckily they're all close by. His daughter, Adele, lives in the stone house he built 50 years ago, with her husband, Tim, and their two children. Hoover lives in the ‘stone addition he put on the house years ago. All of his children, four sons and two daughters, live next to each other. “This house has a lot of senti- ‘mental value,” said Adele, from the front steps of the house she has lived in most of her life. “He put every rock into place by hand. He put a lot of work into this. It's kind of a one-of-a-kind,” explained Adele, who thinks ma- sonry is a dying trade. Hoover is proud that his son, Allan, chose to follow in his foot- steps. “I'm happy he’s carrying on. It's company and it’s nice to work with family and he can lift the heavier stones,” said Hoover of his 45-year-old son. “I don’t know of any young fel- lows who are taking it on. All the ones | know are either retired or have died.” Emmett Jr. said his father is a Christmas bird program on Nov. 16 The Christmas Bird Counts, Past and Present, will be the program topic at the meeting of the Greater Wyoming Valley Audubon Society. Monday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m. at the Dallas United Methodist Church. Dallas resident Ed Johnson who has led the annual bird count in our area for 40 years, will present highlights of the effort and comparisons of the abundance of different species of birds over the decades. Learn how to participate locally in this national research effort by birding on a certain day in December. The program is free and open to the public. Sweet Valley Auxiliary to sell cookies The Ladies Auxiliary of the Sweet Valley Fire Co. are baking Christmas cookies again this year. One dozen assorted cookes cost $2.50. To order, please call 477-5323 or 477-2176 or any Auxiliary member no later than December 4. Pick up will be at the Fire Hall, Main Rd., Sweet Valley on Dec. 18 from 5-7 p.m. 2. i Noon 'til 7 15% OFF Holiday items with this ad 331-3333 SE &: ¢ Christmas ~ OPEN HOUSE Join Us at our beautiful showroom for refreshments and gouriiiet treats at 447 Market Street, Kingston November 11,12, & 13 POST PHOTO/KYLIE SHAFFERKOETTER Emmett Hoover, right, and his son, Allan, recently completed a stone driveway entrance on ldetown-Huntsville Rd. in Lehman. Emmett Hoover built the accompanying wall 27 years ago. hard worker. “He does a nice job. It's hard work mixing mud and carrying stone,” said Emmett Jr., who was paid $1 an hour to mix mud when he was 12 years old. When the senior Hoover first started with his father and uncle, he was paid 20¢ an hour. He remembers before the back hoe was invented. “We had to dig all our own foundations,” said Hoover, as he lit a pipe. Hoover tried retiring a few years back, but found it was not for him. He's a doer just like his parents and grandparents, who all stayed active and lived to a ripe age. Hoover's father helped him build a stone wall in his yard when he was in his 80's. When the majority of the Back Mountain was still farmland, farmers would help each other lay out their fields, recalled Hoover. “It’s a stony country,” he said. Farmers, known as Stone Bees, would help plow fields, remove the stones and build stone walls to be used as cow fences or just field borders. “It’s kind of like a barn raising,” he said. Hoover said he has been stack- ing stone so long he knows just how to place the stones. Mostly, he just tries to keep the stones straight. “You get used to it and can tell which stones you want to use,” he explained. The Hoovers do not advertise, not even on their truck. The World War II veteran, who landed at Normandy on D Day, is proud of his work and believes it takes a good deal of artistry. His many monuments are sure to stand for many more years. Free program adapts holiday toys for children with disabilities Holiday toys can be modified for children with disabilities, through Allied Services Free Holi- day Toy Adaptation Program, at both its Rehabilitation Hospital in Scranton and the John Heinz In- stitute of Rehabilitation Medicine, Wilkes-Barre Township. The program is a free commu- ‘nity service and is available by appointment from November Start this Holiday season with... attern's ~ Come Celebrate the sights and tastes of the holiday season through January. In addition to toy modifications, Allied occupa- tional therapists and technicians will also provide parents with pre- shopping advice on choosing toys for children with disabilities. ! For more information contact Allied’s occupational therapy de- partments in Scranton, at 348- 1342 or in Wilkes-Barre at 826- 3948. Dallas (continued from page 1) 39th out of the 50 states. Georgia was first last year, but fell to sixth place. Oklahoma and Texas shared a 49th ranking this year. Wega presented the board with arevised technology plan that the board will vote on in December. Since technology is always chang- ing, the district's plan must change with it, Wega told the board. In other business, the board passed the revised policy book for the district. One addition prohib- its a board member who is related to an applicant of the district from voting on his/her employment. Honor books at library Board member Maureen Banks voted no on all of the changes because they were not discussed in previous meetings as the board - has planned. “When we originally talked about the policies, we decided we would discuss a couple sections at a time at each meeting (so that we understood each section clearly). We did not do that, so I voted no,” explained Banks. The board also accepted the resignation of Chet Hiester, the middle school eighth grade bas- ketball coach and hired Ken Yakobitis to fill the position. The Back Mountain Memorial Library annouces the additon of new honor books: In honor of Gwen Zarambo, “Lindberg” by A. Scott Berg, presented by Mildred Zarambo. In honor of the 25th wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. David Posatko, “The Keeping Quilt” by Patrica Polacco, presented by Bruce and Beth Rosenthal. In honor of Matthew Ernest VanArsdale, “Goodnight Moon” by Margaret Wise Brown, presented by The Borthwick Family. ur new Diamond Pricing Philosophy provides you with the highest quality diamonds at the lowest everyday price. In fact, we’re so confident in the quality and price of our diamonds, we’ll buy them back. So, don’t get caught up in how much diamonds are marked down, come see how affordable buying a quality diamond can really be. od GIA Graduate Gemologist on Staff eo Over 100 Years of Personal Service kowsky— Since 1887 — Parti CLEAR-CUT DIAMOND PRICIN Jewelers 141 SOUTH MAIN STREET, WILKES-BARRE, PA © 717-823-7111 oO Bb oO
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