Vol. 112. No. 35
as Post _
SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF THE DALLAS & LAKE-LEHMAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS
August 29 to September 4, 2001
Legion honors |
scholarship
recipients
J Program at Post 672
targets 2-year schools
By HEATHER B. JONES
Post Staff
DALLAS - “Most kids want to be a
fireman or a policeman, but he wanted
to be a cooker man,” said Joyce Wolfe
about her son David.
A cooker man, or as grown-ups say,
“a chef,” is exactly what David Wolfe is
going to become. He is a second year
food production management student
at Luzerne County Community College
(LCCC) working toward an associate's
degree. He was an outstanding culi-
nary student at West Side Vocational
and Technical School for three years
and has continued to work hard on the
college level.
Last year, David was one of five Back
Mountain students who received a
$1,000 scholarship from the Daddow-
Isaacs American Legion Post No. 672.
This year David and his fellow scholar-
ship winners from last year will each
receive $500 to help further their edu-
cations. 2
“It was a big help, definitely,” said
David, who used his scholarship for tu-
ition and books last year. This year the
money will. help pay for his uniform
and lab fees.
American Legion Post 672 has given
over $50,000 to Back Mountain stu-
dents atiending two year technical
schools over the last 10 years. The
money is raised from the Post's annual
scholarship golf tournament.
“A lot of scholarships are for four-
year programs, not two-year,” said
Clarence Michael, member of the golf
tournament committee. He said this
scholarship program tries to fill that
gap for local students.
“We have invested our money wise-
ly,” said Michael at the recent scholar-
ship presentation. “We had no doubts
that you'd all be successful.”
Stephanie Card, a Lake-Lehman
graduate, was this year’s $1,000 schol-
Gitty-up horsy
Ss
POST PHOTOMIM PHILLIPS
See SCHOLARSHIPS, pg 8 Riley Rose Frederick climbed aboard the mechanical pony outside of Thomas’ Family Market for an afternoon ride.
‘Hot Dog Bob’
kicked oft lot
J But he might stick it
out to test the penalty
By HEATHER B. JONES
Post Staff
HARVEYS LAKE - “Hot Dog
Bob” has been ordered to take
his cart elsewhere in the bor-
ough by the Harveys Lake Zon-
ing Board.
At the August 22 zoning
board meeting, testimony was
heard for the Kaye-Jones appeal
regarding Bob Prescott selling
hot dogs at Pole 4 at the lake.
Damien Kaye, owner of
Damien's On The Lake, and
Kent Jones, owner of Jones's
Potato Pancakes, filed an appeal
to the board after Prescott was
granted a transient business li-
cense and started selling hot
dogs on the land between the
two restaurants.
“Why are we here?” Jones
asked the board. He said he sat
in front of the zoning board four
years ago regarding a different
business that was on the land
at Pole 4. He said it was deter-
mined at that time the lot did
not meet
commercial zoning needs and
the decision was upheld by
Luzerne County Court and the
Pennsylvania Superior Court.
“That was a variance case,”
said James Lesho, the attorney
who replaced Mark McNealis as
See HOT DOG BOB, pg 8
POST PHOTO/M.B. GILLIGAN
Frequent Dallas bicycles riders, Laura Raczkowski and Erika
McKeown are pictured at Demunds Corners which they consider to
be one of the most dangerous intersections to cross on a bicycle.
Bikers take it cautiously
on Back Mountain roads
By M.B. GILLIGAN
Post Correspondent
BACK MOUNTAIN - Riding a
bicycle in the Back Mountain,
whether for fun, exercise or
transportation, can be a frus-
trating experience.
“Drivers are nuts,” exclaimed
Erika McKeown of Dallas. She
and fellow Dallas High School
junior Laura Raczkowski fre-
quently ride bikes to get from
one place to another.
“It is really dangerous because
there are no sidewalks,” said
Erika. “We try to stay off the
highway and the main roads but
sometimes we can't.”
The girls were traveling re-
Boy details
complaint
against
Kocis
By HEATHER B. JONES
Post ‘Staff
TRUCKSVILLE - A rape charge was
dropped against a Dallas Township
man who is accused of performing sex-
ual acts with a 15-year-old boy.
After two continuances, Bryan Kocis,
60 Midland Drive, appeared before Dis-
trict Justice James Tupper for a prelim-
inary hearing on August 22. The 39-
year-old man is charged with statutory
sexual assault, aggravated indecent as-
sault, indecent assault, involuntary de-
viate sexual intercourse, corruption of
minors, sexual abuse of children, and
unlawful contact or communication
with a minor. He had been arrested
July 12.
Kocis walked into the courtroom very
composed, wearing a navy blue suit
and sunglasses. He brought a single
yellow piece of paper and a pen, and
sat very still beside his attorney All Flo-
ra, staring straight ahead with his
hands clasped together, placed on his
lap.
Sitting on the other side of the room
two rows back was Kocis’s accuser and
his parents, from Lehigh County. The
teenaged boy dressed in khaki shorts
and a blue shirt looked out of place in
such an adult setting. But what he de-
scribed to the court during his testimo-
ny told a story of innocence lost.
The teenager sat in the witness box
and began his story when he first met
Kocis on the internet in late May. He
said it was his first time in a chatroom
called Allentown Male to Male. He said
Kocis made the initial contact by in-
stant messaging him on the computer
under the screen name cobravideoco as
the boy was leaving the chatroom.
Kocis asked the boy his age, and the
boy told him he was 16. Kocis also
asked him to send photos. The teenager
said he used his webcam to take the
See KOCIS, pg 8
18 Pages, 2 Sections
cently from Trucksville, through
Shavertown, to Dallas to visit
some friends and to shop at Mr.
. Z's and at the CVS Pharmacy.
“I use the crosswalk buttons
on the highway and that helps,”
said Laura. “Drivers just don’t
give us enough time to move,
though. They beep at us a lot
and that startles me. Maybe
they just want us to know that
they're there, but that really
doesn’t help.”
Bicycles must travel with the
traffic and follow traffic laws.
They must stop for stop signs
and red lights.
“Even though we have the
See BICYCLES, pg 8
Admitted drug user bounces string of stolen checks
By HEATHER B. JONES
Post Staff
TRUCKSVILLE - A Harveys
Lake man was arraigned Au-
gust 22 on 27 counts of theft by
deception, nine counts of bad
checks and one count of unlaw-
ful taking.
Daniel Short confessed to po-
lice he stole checks from his
uncle, William Short, and his
brother, Steven Short. Daniel
Short used the checks at a
number of Back Mountain busi-
nesses, including Lehman
Sunoco, BilLo, Grotto Pizza and
Valentine's Jewelry, according
to police reports.
William Short contacted po-
lice when he noticed a charge
on his bank statement that he
did not write a check for. He
told police he had problems
with Daniel Short stealing guns
from him in the past and a
neighbor had seen Daniel Short
on the property recently.
At the Lehman Sunoco, owner
Robert Jones informed police
several checks has been re-
ceived from the same man.
Some of the checks were from
William Shorts account and
some from Steven Short’'s ac-
count, which had been closed
almost two years ago. Jones
was able to give police a de-
scription of the man and his ve-
hicle who had written the
checks.
During the investigation,
Daniel Short turned himself
into police. He said he was sor-
ry for what he had done and
wanted to do the right thing. He
also told police he has a serious
drug problem.
Daniel Short admitted using
the checks for gas, cigarettes
and food. He also said he would
buy items with the checks and
then return the items for cash.
Police found a check written
out to Eehman Sunoco ripped
up in the garbage at Daniel
Short’s residence. He said he
had filled the check out but
then felt bad. He decided not to
write any more checks.
The checks totalled over
$2,000, not including incurred
service charges from the banks.
He is currently free on $15,000
bail. He will appear before Dis-
trict Justice James Tupper at
9:30 a.m. on August 30, for his
preliminary hearing.
Calendar....................is.. 18
Classified.................. 14-17
Crossword...........ccuaiiins 10
Ediforials............cciiinens 6
Obituaries...........iiitsiveens 2
SCHOOL... oii. 11-12
SPOS...iiin bh 9-10
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