Vol. 116 No. 43 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 October 23 - October 29, 2005 50¢ SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF THE DALLAS AND LAKE-LEHMAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS Drug dogs prove effective By DAVE KONOPKI Post Editor DALLAS TWP. — Frank Gal- icki wants the students and par- ents of the Dallas School District to know the high school and mid- dle school provide a safe, drug- free learning environment. Bringing in dogs to search the schools is just one way for the su- perintendent to show it. Four drug-sniffing dogs from the state police's K9 unit searched the high school and middle school for narcotics last week. The thorough search - which included student lockers, the gymnasium, and the audito- rium — failed to find any evidence of drugs. “I think it's a proactive ap- proach,” said Galicki, a former high school principal who is in his first year as superintendent. “We don’t want to reactive. I be- J&8R it sends a message to kids tI they go to school and learn in a safe, drug-free zone. It’s add- ed protection for the kids. There are a lot of good kids out there who don’t want to get involved in The district has been conduct- ing random searches for the last four years, said Galicki. Last week’s search was planned by the school district, but students knew nothing about it. Galicki said he hasn't received any calls from angry parents about the search. “Even when I was a principal I idn’t get many calls from par- 8 he said. “Tve spoken to a lot of people and there's a strong feeling in the community to keep drugs out of the school.” During the four years the searches have been conducted, no drugs have been found, said Galicki. “I think the first thought that goes through your mind is a relief that they haven't found any drugs,” he said. “But other thoughts go through your mind. Do we need to do something else? How else can we educate the students and get them to talk about drugs?” The district has a zero toler- ance for drugs, said Galicki. In addition to legal action —local po- lice would be called immediately if a search revealed drugs — there is an automatic 10-day suspen- sion and a review process. There is also referral to the schools stu- dent assistance team, as well as local drug and alcohol services. Rhere’s going to be legal ac- we can’t control that,” said Galicki. “But there is also ther- apeutic action. We want to pro- vide help to the student.” The district will continue with the searches, says the superin- tendent. They can take place at any time, and on any day of the school year. “The kids know there’s always a possibility for another search,” said Galicki.” V Inside The Post 10 Pages, 1 Section Gio Tony IR RI 2&6 CIVIC NEWS ..cccioniivnirranives 5 Only Yesterday................ 4 SCNOO: ciiivsccsdssiinresssssvisiins 9 SROIES.... hi iene. 7-8 ¥ How To Reach Us News: 675-5211 thepost@leader.net 8, 15 N. Main St. ilkes-Barre, Pa. 1871 Advertising: 829-7101 Subscriptions and Delivery: 829-5000 sms. pe- Celebrating a milestone By DAVE KONOPKI Post Editor It was April 1865. The United States was nearing the end of the Civil War. Slavery had been abolished two years ear- lier. President Abraham Lincoln was on the verge of being assassi- nated. And the Idetown United Meth- odist Church was born. Members of the church — now known as the Lehman-Idetown United Methodist Church - kicked off a yearlong celebration of its 140th anniversary last week- end with a special service at the Idetown United Methodist Church. “It was a wonderful day, a great day,” said the Rev. Nancy Russell a few days after the celebration. “People are still talking about it.” Idetown resident Mary Oliver purchased the land for the church for $100 in 1893 and the cost to build the church was $2,150. Ground was broken on July 6, 1893. The Idetown United Meth- odist Church was the first area church to welcome Fresh Air kids from New York City and the first to have training for Sunday school teachers. In 1932, church members who were out-of-work carpenters built the church house, which was used as a social hall. The church bell — which still works today — was dedicated on Mrs. Solomon P. Ide’s birthday and she was giv- en the honor of being the first per- son to ring it. “It’s kind of neat to be member of a church with that'much histo- ry,” said Barbara Ide, who has been a member for 35 years. “If you think about it, the church was started in the 19th century. There are a lot of five-generation families that still attend.” Financial matters forced the Lehman and Idetown United Methodist churches to merge two years ago. The weekly wor- ship services are held at Lehman United Methodist Church, which will celebrate its 150th anniver- sary in September. Russell moved to the area 2% years ago to take over the pasto- ral duties. “It’s been a wonderful experi- ence to be part of the area,” said the Massachusetts native. “Being here is more like my home, ex- cept for the ocean. I think the members of the congregation are building closer relationships. It was sad to leave one church or the other, but I think people have made some new friends.” Although she was sad to see the Idetown church shut its doors, Barbara Ide says there have been some positives to See IDETOWN, Page 8 ! 4 Idetown UMC begins 140th anniversary celebration Former Idetown United Methodist Church parishioners William and Naomi Ward came back to visit old friends at the church's 140th anniversary celebration. FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Pastor Nancy Russell greets parishioner Beverly Ide at the Ide- town United Methodist Church's 140th anniversary celebration. Back Mountain residents among many Audubon Society members BY GENELLE HOBAN Post Correspondent DALLAS - Each morning many of us hear the tweets, chirps and peeps out of the birds living amongst the trees in Northeastern Pennsylvania while we are trying to get a few extra hours of shuteye. One Eaton Township resident, however, doesn’t roll over and throw a pillow over his head to drown out the sound. Instead, he listens intently to try to identify the type of bird it is just by listening to its chirps. Bill Reid, a member of the Grea- ter Wyoming Valley Audubon So- ciety for 25 years, has been a birder since 1937. “It’s a fascinating interest that is always changing,” he said. “You get in touch with nature and learn a lot.” Reid and other birders are mem- bers of the Greater Wyoming Val- ley Audubon Seiety, which is an official chapter of the National Au- dubon Society. Geographically it covers the majority of Luzerne and Wyoming Counties. The group held its monthly meeting at the Dallas United Methodist Church earlier this week. The program fea- tured a demonstration about vari- ous bats which live in the area. “I got my start in birding because of scouting,” Reid said. “To be- come an Eagle Scout we had to identify 40 different kinds of birds for our Bird Study Merit Badge. My sister was the family naturalist, and she pointed out an English sparrow to me and ever since then I've been interested. Reid’s favorite type of bird to watch for is an owl. They have fas- cinated him for years, he said. According to its Web site, the goal of the Greater Wyoming Val- ley Audubon Society is to encour- age an appreciation for, and a need to protect, the natural beauty and biodiversity that exists in az4 out FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Amber Zygmunt gets a close up view of a Jamaican fruit bat from naturalist Susan Gallagher during a meeting of the Greater Wyoming Valley Audubon Society. of the region. zerne County and Wyoming Coun- Its members participate in a ty Spring and Fall North American number of bird counts, including Migration Counts. four Christmas Counts, and the Lu- Lx man Township resident Deb Information about the Greater Wyoming Valley Audubon Society can be found at www.gwas.org. Petroski joined the organization in 1998 when she moved to the area. “I've been a bird watcher all of my adult life,” said the Ohio native. “My first experience was with my grandmother. She was a backyard bird watcher. 'm more of a garden variety backyard bird watcher my- self. » Petroski, the treasurer and mem- bership chairwoman of the Greater Wyoming Valley Audubon Society, said she joined because she wanted to meet new people who had simi- lar interests. “The club is just great because the people in it all love birding,” she said. . See AUDUBON, | age 10
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