Vol. 117 No. 13 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 March 26 - April 2, 2006 SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF THE DALLAS AND LAKE-LEHMAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS Above, Maureen Devine makes a splash as she enters the frigid water. At right, from left, Cait- lin Rhodes, Bailey Van Jura, Allyssa Pyros and Lindsey Szalkowski get out of the water after taking the plunge. FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Second annual Polar Bear event raises money, awareness to help fight cancer ‘Taking the p-p-p-plunge FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Lindsey Szalkowski, left, and Nicole Clemson react after jumping into Harveys Lake. By DAVE KONOPKI Post Editor HARVEYS LAKE - It wasn’t a sizzling summer afternoon, but Caroline Boris says her father would have loved to be at the lake last weekend, jumping into the frigid water with a few friends while raising money for a great cause in the proc- ess. “He would have been right there with them,” said Caroline, whose father Frank “Buddy” Boris passed away in July 2003 from colon cancer at age 53. “Dad really enjoyed the lake. We spent a lot of time there, especially during the summer.” More than 60 people braved a biting wind and a mid-30 degree air temperature to take part in the second annual Polar Bear Plunge. Organized by Lake-Lehman High School students Boris, Megan Devine and Chris Jones, the event raised approximately $6,000 for the Back Mountain Re- lay for Life and the American Cancer Society. “It’s pure shock,” said Boris, one of the 63 peo- ple who took the plunge. “It catches your breath. It’s an adrenaline rush. I ran in the water, dove under, and ran right back. That’s what most peo- ple did.” But not all people. Lake-Lehman teacher Scott Kerkowski and stu- ekdents Matt Pall and Scott Davis braved the ele- ments in the water for 3 minutes and 30 seconds to establish a new record, breaking Kerkowski’s time of 3 minutes from a year ago. “(The weather) didn’t seem to bother Mr. Ker- kowski and Matt too much,” said Boris. “But Scott was shaking. He was a trooper.” The idea for the Polar Bear Plunge was the brainchild of Boris’ sister Allison, who held the event last year as part of her senior project. Last year’s event drew 39 people and raised approxi- mately $5,000. The Boris family has combined to Lake-Lehman seniors Caroline Boris, Chris Jones and Megan Devine are selling T-shirts from the Polar Bear Plunge. The words “Freezin' For A Reason" are printed on the adult medium and large shirts. The cost is S10 per shirt and all proceeds benefit the Back Mountain Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. To purchase a shirt, call Boris at 696-1544. raise more than $15,000 since the death of Frank Boris, who was a well-known area dentist. “I think it’s incredible how much they've been able to raise,” said Susan Halbash, publicity co- chairperson for Back Mountain Relay for Life. “(The Polar Bear Plunge) took only 36 minutes and they raised about $6,000. They're an incredible family, They truly, truly are.” The Boris family is part of Team Boris in the Back Mountain Relay for Life, a 24-hour walk-a- thon that is held each year. This year’s event will take place from 5 p.m. Friday, June 2 to 5 p.m. Sat- urday, June 3 on the College Misericordia campus. The money raised for Back Mountain Relay for Life, including the proceeds from the Polar Bear Plunge, will be used in the local community for cancer education, research, patient services and advocacy, says Halbash. Devine says he’s proud to have been part of an event that raises money — and awareness — to fight the deadly disease. “A lot of people die from cancer,” said Devine, whose paternal grandfather, Mel Devine, lost a bat- tle against the disease. “It feels good to know you're doing something for a good cause. It makes you feel good inside.” Megan wasn’t the only member of her family to jump into the lake. Maureen Devine, the swim- ming coach at Lake-Lehman, says this year’s water See PLUNGE, Page 8 L:L students By GENELLE HOBAN Post Correspondent 1 LEHMAN TWP. — Thanks to their creative talents and techno- logical skills, a group of students from Lake-Lehman High School recently took first place in the 7th Annual Great Valley Computer Contest. Matt Proemba, Steve Heindel, Michael Caffery and Jeff Franklin competed in the competition, which was sponsored by the Ha- zleton, Scranton and Wilkes- Barre Chambers of Commerce at Marywood University in Scran- ton. “I try to get my kids in the gift- ed program involved in as many competitions as I can,” teacher win Web competition See COMPUTER, Page 8 FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Lake-Lehman High School principal Tracey Wagner, second row third from left, receives a $1,000 gift certificate from Jane Ashton of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Com- merce. From left, first row are Jeff Franklin, Mike Caffrey, Matt Poremba and Steve Heindel, winners of the Web site design competition. Second row: teacher Jean Lipski, teacher Richard Morgan, Wagner, Ashton and Brian Mur- phy, director of technology. V Inside The Post Students shine v How To Reach Us News: 675-5211 thepost@leader.net 15 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre, Pa. 18711 Advertising: 829-7101 Subscriptions and Delivery: 829-5000 In science, math Lake-Lehman High School recently captured first place in the Test of Engi- neering Aptitude, Mathematics and Sci- ence regional competition at the Penn State Wilkes-Barre campus in Lehman Township. MMI Preparatory School of Freeland took second place, while Dal- las High School finished third. Sixteen teams from 11 school partici- The Post wants to give our readers a chance to get to know the candidates who are running for two high-profile offices in the May 16 primary election - state Senator in the 20th District and state Representative in the 17th Legislative District. All candi- dates are welcome to submit a biography no longer than 175 words. Longer information will be edited for length. Headshots of the candidates are also welcome. All information - biography and photos - must be e-mailed to thepost@leader.net no later than Wednesday, April 19. Photos must be sent in a JPEG format and the biography must be sent as a plain text message. The in- formation about the candidates will appear in the May 7 edition of The Post. For more information, call editor Dave Konopki at 829-7248. pated in the one-day, two-part competi- tion. Almost 130 students in grades 10- 12 competed for regional, state and na- tional awards. Members of the Lake-Lehman team are Aime Sgarlat, Emily Deubler, Mallo- ry Delaney,- Eric Stankiewicz, Josh Steel, Steve Heindel, Matt Poremba and Jeff Franklin. The team is coached by See TEAMS, Page 8
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