| (| 4 The Post EDITORIAL Sunday, August 15, 2004 OUR OPINION Farmers market offers healthy support for area institutions t least one visitor to the Dallas Farmers Market, and probably many more, has had this thought pop into is head while trudging back to the car laden with fresh fruits and vegetables: “Why didn’t we do this years ago?” Indeed, given that we are surrounded by fields and farms producing every manner of natural goodie, why has it been that the closest farmers market was on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre? Yes, individual stands and farms dot our land- scape, each with its own mix of items, and we certainly would- n’t discourage anyone from continuing to patronize them. But the farmers market being held Saturdays at the Back Mountain Memorial Library is different, with a wide array of enticing produce and products available in one place, sold di- rectly by the growers and producers. Whether you're addicted to succulent squash, tempted by cherry tomatoes, buggy for blueberries or a sucker for cider, you'll find satisfaction here. And you'll want to go back every week, because the selection will change as the growing season progresses and other ven- dors of unique products may be added. We've heard a lot in recent years about the benefits of healthy eating, and getting our daily dose of fruits and veggies may be the best reason to shop this handy market. But there’s also an element of economics at work, If our trade helps local farmers stay afloat, we'll be assured of an ample supply of tasty, truly fresh produce and they'll be able to stay in busi- ness, rather than being forced to sell off every last acre for new subdivisions. Many of the vendors are from multi-generation family farms, while others are just getting started, and they all add a pleasing dimension to our surroundings. The market also aids the library, which collects participation fees from the vendors. It’s‘ handy, too — open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each Saturday through October 2. So stop by, pick up some fresh food, chat with friends and know you're helping yourself and others as you eat a peach. School board actions make you wonder There was no full moon last week, so we can’t blame that. Maybe it’s the water. Scratch that idea, they use different sup- plies. What is it, then, that seems to have caused local school boards to veer off on such odd tangents lately? At Dallas, board member Frank Natitus has privately circu- lated a scheme under which four administrators would occupy new positions, ostensibly for one year until Assistant Superin- tendent Michael Speziale returns from a sabbatical leave. But, lacking the majority needed to adopt it because two board members were absent, the plan was not put up for a vote at the August 9 meeting, the last before the new school year begins. Instead, after informally agreeing to fill the middle school as- sistant principal position, two board members voted against in- terviewing candidates, some of whom applied when the slot was advertised in May. At Lake-Lehman, board president James Mahon used this rationale for pushing through new principal assignments: They were picked by the superintendent, and who could be more qualified to select them? That might be a hard position to ar- gue against, except that the superintendent has been in the district — and the job — for only a month, and has not had the opportunity to observe personnel in their day-to-day routines. This is not to say the new principals are poorly chosen, only that the justification for a 5-3 vote to appoint them is foggy at best, and shady at worst. It would be nice if the people in control of both school boards stopped treating parents and taxpayers like mush- rooms, keeping them in the dark and feeding them you-know- what. If they don’t, these power brokers may find themselves holding temporary assignments come the next election cycle. MOMENTS IN TIME The History Channel ® On Aug. 18, 1590, John White, the governor of the Roanoke Island colony in present-day North Carolina, returns from a supply trip to England to find the settlement deserted. White and his men found no trace of the 100 or so colonists he left behind, and there were no signs of violence. The fate of the first English set- tlers in the New World remains a mystery to this day. : ® On Aug. 21, 1920, Daphne Milne, wife of writer A.A. Milne, gives birth to a son, whom the couple name Christopher Robin Milne. Christopher Robin would be immortalized in A.A. Milnes books “Winnie-the-Pooh” and “The House at Pooh Corner.” ® On Aug. 19, 1934, the first All-American Soap Box Derby is held in Dayton, Ohio. The event was later moved to Akron be- cause of its hilly terrain, and to this day, boys and girls ages 9 through 16 from the United States and several foreign countries compete each year with their home-built racers. ® On Aug. 20, 1968, in the largest deployment of military force in Europe since the end of World War II, some 200,000 troops and 5,000 tanks from the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact nations invade Czechoslovakia to crush the “Prague Spring” — a brief pe- riod of liberalization in the communist country. (c) 2004 King Features Synd., Inc. | Tie POST TIMES*LEADER Community Newspaper Group 15 N. MAIN ST., WILKES-BARRE PA 18711 + 570-675-5211 thepost@leader.net Patrick McHugh PUBLISHER Ronald Bartizek EDITOR Justin Wisnosk ADVERTISIN Greg Stauffer AD PRODUCTION MANAGER : i SAY Fy Sit Fa Summer mix of nature and man. Photo by Charlotte Bartizek. LETTERS Church and state need not be at odds in America Editor, Your editorial opinion (Kingston Township properly separates church and state, Sunday, July 25) stated Kingston Township rightly re- pealed Ordinance 2002-2, but for the wrong reason. The ordi- nance exempts “institutions of purely public charity for the advancement of religion” from paying building, planning and zoning fees. The township may have found it in their best interest to repeal the ordinance from a financial standpoint, but con- trary to your editorial opinion, that would be the only proper reason. Kingston Township Su- pervisors were not only in the right when passing the original ordinance, they were also in good ‘company. The Continen- tal-Confederation Congress, a legislative body that governed the United States from 1774 to 1789, was convinced that the “public prosperity” of a society depended on the vitality of its religion. Nothing less than a “spirit of universal reformation among all ranks and degrees of our citizens,” Congress de- clared to the American people, would “make us a holy, that so we may be a happy people.” Congress appointed chap- lains for itself and the armed forces, sponsored the publica- tion of a Bible, imposed Christ- ian morality on the armed forces, and granted public lands to promote Christianity among the Indians. Contrary to your ending argument that trustworthy government and honest religion should not lean on one’ another, our Founding Fathers established the exact opposite, saying that it is es- sential they should work to- gether for an effective society. In fact, in 1904, the Govern- ment Printing Office published 9,000 copies of The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth by Thomas Jefferson and distrib- uted the copies to Congress in early 1905. Thomas Jefferson set out to produce the “pure moral prin- ciples” of Christianity in 1819- 20. He literally cut out and pasted verses from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John into an 82-page book. He described his compilation as the “most sub- lime edifice and benevolent code of morals which had ever been offered to man.” The phrase used in your headline about the separation of "church and state: comes from a letter on January 1, 1802, by Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptist Associa-'. tion of Connecticut in response’ to a rumor that the Congrega-; tionalists, another denomina- tion, were to become the na-: tional religion. Jefferson made | it clear in his letter that the separation was to be that gov- ernment would not establish a; national religion. As long as the Kingston Township Super-; visors don’t establish an official religion for the township, ther{\d§ was nothing dishonorable” about the original ordinance from a church/state stand- point. If the ordinance winds up costing the township mon-' ey it does not have, that’s an- other matter. : Timothy S. Madeira! Dallas - "ONLY 70 Years Ago Aug. 17, 1934 FIREMEN REPORT ON CARNIVAL RECEIPTS Members of the committee in charge of the recent carnival held by Dr. Henry M. Laing Fire Co. announce that after payment of all expenses all pro- Since the company is in seri- ous need of money to carry on its work in the vicinity, every effort will be put forth to make the annual Clam Bake to be held Sept. 1 at Frank Martz’s Farm one of the largest in history. YESTERDAY Paul Shaver, local electrician, has recently installed a modern radio tube testing equipment capable of testing all makes and sizes of radio tubes for household and automobile sets. Mr. Shaver has offered to test all radio tubes that are brought to his shop free of charge. At the request of persons suf- fering from Hay Fever, Dallas ~ Borough council will enforce the ordinance requiring the owners of vacant lots to cut their weeds. Numerous com- plaints have reached council that the provisions of the ordi- nance are being neglected and that weeds are being allowed to go to seed on many of the vacant lots of the borough. 60 Years Ago Aug. 18, 1944 RICE CALLS MEETING OF GLF MEMBERS George Rice of Dallas, com- mittee chairman, today an- nounced that the annual meet- ing of local GLF members will be held in the Kunkle Commu- nity Hall, Kunkle, on Tuesday evening, Aug. 22, at eight o- clock. The program will in- clude the election of two mem- bers of the local GLF commit- tee to succeed Rice and Arthur Gay, both of Dallas, whose terms have expired. . Contract for the erection of a cafeteria at Lehman High. School was awarded to Robert Eyerman & Son of Wilkes- Barre at their low bid of $4,640 Monday night at a meeting of Lehman Township School Board. There was only a $56 between the Eyerman bid and that of the next lowest bidder, Curtis-Pethick Company. Sgt. Thomas J. Neyhard is in an English hospital recovering from wounds received in France on June 19. In recent letters received by his parents, ‘Mr. and Mrs. Charles Neyhard, of Fernbrook, Tom says his arm and leg bother him a lot, but he hopes that he won’t have to go through too many hospitals before he can get patched up and back into action again. 50 Years Ago Aug. 13, 1954 GOV. FINE'S NEW HOME TO STAND NEAR SEN. WOOD Sordoni Construction Co. has broken ground for Gover- nor John S. Fine’s new home on the former John Hildebrant farm between Meeker and Loy- alville. The home is in a wood- ed section just off the township road and affords a fine view of surrounding countryside and the spacious farm of Senator T. Newell Wood. Shavertown’s new fire truck, a 1000-gallon pumper from the Peter Pirsch Company, came in over the road from Kenosha, Wisc., on Saturday. Rev. RW. Edmondson, fire chief, made the 823 miles in two and a half days, averaging 40 miles an hour. Robert Voelker, president of Shavertown Fire Co., says that now is the time for pledges to be paid. Plans for the construction of the community parking lot in the rear of Dallas Borough Building and Dallas Branch of Miners Bank have been ap- proved by the Directors of Min- ers National Bank and Borough Council, and work is expected to start there within the near future. Dale Parry was the low bidder. 40 Years Ago Aug. 13, 1964 CHARLES F. HESS IS NAMED HEAD OF PA CONSERVATION COMMISSION ‘Charles F. Hess Jr, Man- heim, and formerly of Dallas, has been appointed director of the State Soil and Water Con- servation Commission. Mr. Hess succeeds David G. Unger, who resigned. Long an ardent conservationist, Mr. Hess is well qualified for his new post. Dr. H.B. Harris, Wardan Av- enue, Trucksville, will return to his office on Sunday after spending two weeks at Cooke County Hospital in Chicago, where he has been taking post- graduate work in general sur- gery. Debbie Rogers, Trucksville, won first place in the Line Breeding entry for Dogs at the Pennsylvania State 4-H Day held at Pennsylvania State University on Tuesday. Also winning first honors was Pat Holdredge of Trucksville, who captured top award in the Con- servation and Wild Life divi- sion with her entry on “Sedi- ment.” 30 Years Ago Aug. 15, 1974 ROTARY HONORS MISERICORDIA FOR 90 YEARS SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY College Misericordia has re- ceived special recognition from the Dallas Rotary for 50 years of service to the Back Moun- tain community. Pete Arnaud, president of the Dallas Rotary, described Misericordia as a “real asset to the community.” Approximately 45 Rotarians at- tended the ceremony held at the Irem Temple Country Club. A resolution to appoint / Joseph O'Donnell head coach of the Dallas Senior High School varsity basketball team was voted down by the board of directors last Tuesday night, in a narrow five to four vote. Robert Cicon, past basketba coach, was not re-appointed fi\ the 1974-75 school year on rec-., ommendation of Mr. athletic, chairman, William Dierolf. A ban on the use of hoses by customers of the Meadowecrest | Water Company has been lift- ed, Bernard Banks, president of” the company, announced Tues-" day. However, hoses can be used only between the hours of 6 and 8 a.m. and 6 and 8 p.m. Sprinklers and automatic sprin-~ klers are still strictly forbidden. 20 Years Ago Aug. 15, 1984 wy 1 DALLAS BOARD HIRES | THOMAS CYPERS AS | NEW PRINCIPAL : The Board of Education of | the Dallas School District ap- | pointed a new junior-senior | high school principal and | agreed to meet with members, of the ARA Food Service g and their effort to resolve mat} ters between the two. Named | to the principal position was.) Thomas Cyphers of Miller stown. H] Kingston Township police re- ported a 1977 Volkswagen, owned by Sheldon Hoover, had the passenger side door ripped | off Sunday evening. The car | was parked in the parking lot of the Pizza Bar when the inci- dent happened. Police reported there was no apparent motive for the vandalism. wean samanaisnateed Plans are progressing for the Back Mountain Antique Car Show and Flea Market as an- | nounced by chairman Spence | Holmgrem of Noxen. The show | will be held on Sunday, Aug. 19 | at the Edward Edwards Stadi- | um of the Lake-Lehman Senior | High School. Co-chairman Lar- | ry Sorber of Harveys Lake in- | vites all interested persons to | participate in the flea market and or car corral, which will be ™ in a special section of the stadi- | 3 urn. a
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