Dallas, Pennsylvania The Back Mountain's Newspaper Since 1889 November 29 to December 5, 2001 L United We Stand Vol. 112. No. 48 Cl i COMMUNITY SCR Church children enjoy fall cele- © 8 bration. Pg 3. SCHOOL auction. Pg 11. Sem parents plan Mardi Gras 50 Cents SPORTS Jackson Twp. man is one of only 27 to take an elk. Pg 9. Contractor R problems puzzle board, engineer * Changes could cost district an additional $90,000 By ELIZABETH ANDERSON Post Correspondent ® LEHMAN - Bonding issues in the se- nior high School addition and alter- ations project frustrated Lake-Lehman school board members at the Nov. 20 school board meeting. Construction Unlimited, Inc. of Duryea has with- drawn its bid for the plumbing contract due to a bonding issue and now, Main Electrical Supply and Contracting, Inc. of Luzerne is having bonding problems. @ an Electric has asked to change ponding companies and the new com- pany is requesting a funds administra- tion agreement that would require the school district to funnel all monies -through them, said Peter Savage, solic- itor for the board. Of the 14 contrac- tors, 12 have their contracts in place and none of the other bidders has such an agreement. “I've been doing this stuff for 35 @.. and this is the first time I've ever experienced this,” said Douglas Trum- bower of Trumbower and Associates, construction manager for the project. Although Trumbower and Savage con- ceded that the insurance industry is undergoing changes daily, board mem- bers had reservations about the funds administration agreement. Charles Boytin, first vice president of the school board noted there were red flags being waved by the bonding com- ies. “The bonding people have a problem with these people because they are charging a higher rate to do the bid bond and now all of a sudden they switch to another company,” he See L-L SCHOOL, pg 8 POST PHOTO/RON BARTIZEK Emergency personnel worked quickly to get a 15-year-old girl out of the car she was driving when it was struck broadside by another car Tuesday evening on Pioneer Avenue. After she was extricated using the “Jaws of Life,” she was treated and released at Wilkes-Barre General Hospital. Crash closes Pioneer Avenue at rush hour TRUCKSVILLE - A 15-year-old girl, driving a brand-new car, escaped seri- ous injury Tuesday evening when the Honda Accord she was driving appar- ently failed to stop at a stop sign, crossed into Pioneer Avenue and was struck broadside by another car. The accident shut down Pioneer Av- enue for more than a half hour after the 5 p.m. accident as dozens of emer- gency personnel rushed to the scene. The girl was removed from her car with the “Jaws of Life” equipment, which was used to tear off the driver's door, where the impact took place. oJeachers take pies for cause By ELIZABETH ANDERSON Post Correspondent LEHMAN - As a reward for their gen- erous community work, Lake-Lehman School District junior high school stu- dents lived the dream of every seventh and eighth grader — to pitch a pie into the face of a teacher. The Wednesday afternoon before Thanksgiving break pund the school gymnasium filled with e exuberant yells of the entire stu- dent body. All 14 homerooms had ful- filled their grocery lists for a Thanksgiv- ing dinner for a local needy family. They were geared up for their just desserts. Excitement ran high. The faculty of the Lake-Lehman Middle Level Educa- tion Building are veteran pie-in-the-face warriors. Led by their fearless leader and principal, Mrs. Marilyn Glogowski, they donned their battle regalia; bright yellow rain slickers, hair nets, dispos- able surgical gloves and face masks, with bath towels at the ready. After do- ing this for four years, they came pre- pared. ; As she slipped on her clear plastic safety goggles, Glogowski said with a grin, “This is great, isn’t it?” and the pie throwing began. : Margo Johnson and Kevin Konicki, 8th graders, both spattered Ms. Jill Broadnix, one of the class advisors who helped organize the project with John Jobociaski, the other class advisor re- See L-L PIE, pg 4 The girl was transported by ambu- lance to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where she was treated in the emer- gency. room and released. The driver of the other car was taken to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Hospital. A condition report was not available in time for this issue. According to police, the 15-year-old, driving a Honda Accord with 120 miles on the odometer, was traveling east on Warden Avenue and failed to stop at a stop sign at the intersection with Pio- neer. The other driver, Jennifer Savignano- Jill Broadnix peered through a shaving cream haze after being “pied.” Dallas boy scout restores historic Legion cannon By Sandy Peoples Post Correspondent Na) Es 03 Rr SA AL: NA a RRA RNR RIG POST PHOTO/SANDY PEOPLES Paul Luksa, standing at left, posed with scouts who helped unveil the refur- bished cannon that sits at the front of the Dallas American Legion Post. DALLAS - Sixteen-year-old Paul Luksa had to decide on a project that would help him earn the rank of Eagle Scout. “I wanted to do something that would make a real difference in the community,” he said. And indeed, he touched the lives of many who have given us so much. After consulting with Bob Glicini, his scoutmaster from Troop 281, and his fa- ther, Ed Luksa, Paul decided to take on the very large task of restoring the can- non on display at the Daddow-Isaacs See CANNON, pg 7 Gay, 26, of 40 Tripp St., Forty Fort, was traveling south on Pioneer in a Toyota Camry. She told police she saw the Ac- cord pull out of Warden, tried to go around her, but the Accord kept mov- ing into her path. The impact of the collision spun the Accord around and drove it into the yard of a home on the west side of Pio- neer Avenue. The other car continued southbound and ran head-on into a tree, also on the west side of Pioneer. “It could have been a lot worse,” said James Balavage, Kingston Twp. Police Chief. BMT Food Bank provides feasts for Thanksgiving J But need continues, and more donations are sought By SANDY PEOPLES Post Correspondent TRUCKSVILLE - “It was like Thanks- giving and Christmas rolled into one around here November 20,” said Bar- bara DeBellis, food bank coordinator. “That's when many of our parents and senior citizens came by the Trucksville United Methodist Church to pick up their Thanksgiving baskets so they too could have a nice dinner for their fami- lies to come home to.” The event was made possible thanks to the generosity of Back Mountain neighbors who donated food and money so that others could share in the spirit of the holiday. “A local department store gave us some new clothing, and someone else dropped off a large box of stuffed animals for the children,” said DeBellis. “The food baskets contained a fresh turkey with all the trimmings and some fresh fruits and vegetables. The simplicity. of it all was overwhelming — some new clothes, a turkey dinner and a toy for a child. Many who came in gratitude left in tears as they couldn't imagine that so many people cared.” The events of September 11 have af- fected us in many ways. Experts tell us we seem to have a delayed reaction to the holidays this year, and this was true at the food bank as well. On No- vember 1 The Dallas Post published a See FOOD BANK, pg 3 Daylight robbery at bank branch DALLAS - Police are seeking informa- tion that could lead to the apprehen- sion of a man who stole a bank deposit from employees of the Rite Aid drug- store in Dallas. According to a police report, at about 5 p.m. Sunday, two employees were at- tempting to make a night deposit of store receipts at the PNC Bank branch in the Dallas Village Shopping Center, across the parking lot from the store, when a man approached them with a pistol and demanded money. The em- ployees handed over the bag, which is identified by a Rite Aid logo and con- tained cash and checks written to Rite Aid. The man then fled on foot in the direction of Friendly’s restaurant, where he may have entered a waiting car. The suspect is identified as a black male, approximately 59” tall, with a medium build, wearing a blue knit hat with white on it, and a black leather jacket. Dallas Borough Police ask that any- one with information about the inci- dent call the police at 675-0161. Frank Townend, long-time solicitor and military figure, dies at age 90 By ANDREW TUTINO Special to The Dallas Post DALLAS TWP. — Retired Maj. Gen. Frank Townend, a man described as a : the past” and “grandfa- ther” to all military men and women in the Wyoming Valley, died Saturday night. He was 90. A veteran of the World War II and the Korean War, Townend was the marshal emeritus at this year’s annual Wyoming Valley Veterans Day Parade. See TOWNEND, pg 8 TOWNEND 16 Pages, 2 Sections Calendar...............cieesvss 16 Classified.................. 13-15 Crossword. .......c.... vais 10 Editonrials...........o.oiinie 6 Obituaries.............cooics verse 2 SCHOOL... cinil iiviciciin 11 SPOS... isin iaininrisni 9-10 CALL 675-5211 FOR HOME DELIVERY, NEWS OR ADVERTISING E-mail: dallaspost@leader.net The Dallas Post Please enclose this label with any address changes, and mail to The Dallas Post P.O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612-0366