Vol. 121 No. 28 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 August 15 - 21, 2010 The DALLAS POST. Serving the communities of the Dallas and Lake-Lehman School Districts | www.mydallaspost.com Proposed bills call for counties to govern locals By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Hearings will be held in Harris burg next week to discuss two bills in state Congress that aim to dis- solve local government. The Pa. House Committee on Local Government will hold public hearings on Aug. 17 and 18 con- cerning House Bill 2431, which aims to make counties the govern- ing bodies for municipalities, and Senate Bill 1357, which would reor- ganize and change the borders of townships, boroughs, towns and ci- ties. Proponents of the bills believe this measure would help local gov- ernments better serve residents and businesses. “Municipal governments have a lot of fiscal stresses and demands,” said Leo Kucewicz, executive as- sistant to state Sen. Ray Musto, D- Pittston Township, a primary spon- sor of Senate Bill 1357. “(This mea- sure) would try to help them to have moretoolstobringthemupto speed in the 21st century.” Senate Bill 1357 calls for the reor- ganization of the government with an 1l'member boundary change commission to examine and sug- gest changes to the borders of the commonwealth’s municipalities. Seven of these members would be “While it may make sense in some of those metro- politan districts, townships have worked really well in my legislative district.” Sen Lisa Baker R-Lehman Township appointed by the governor and four would be appointed by legislators. The commission may order for the restructuring of a municipality if it meets at least three of the fol- lowing criteria: inability to pay debt, inability to adequately pay employees, inability to follow prop- er financial procedures, inability to provide for health and safety of citi- zens, stagnant or declining proper- ty values, population less than 400 or declined by 25 percent within the last 10 years and inability to elect governing officials. State Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Lehman Township, believes bigger govern- ment isn’t always better. “While it may make sense in some of those metropolitan dis- tricts, townships have worked real- ly well in my legislative district.” Baker says she has good working relationships with the municipal- ities within her district, but she has also seen the benefits of partner- ships such as the Back Mountain Community Partnership, an inter- governmental cooperation be- tween Dallas, Franklin, Jackson, Kingston and Lehman townships and Dallas Borough. “I think that the concept is some- thing perhaps worth looking into,” she said. : House Bill 2431 aims to establish Pa’s 67 counties as the primary overseers of local governments with jurisdiction over personnel, law enforcement, land use, sanita- tion, health and safety. In an e-mail statement, state Rep. Karen Boback, R-Harveys Lake, disagreed with House Bill 2431, which was first proposed in April by state Rep. Thomas Calta- girone, D-Berks County. “Some communities may feel they would be better served by mergers and some may need to re- main independent, but it should be the choice of the people in those communities, not a mandate from Harrisburg,” Boback wrote. Kucewicz says the bills will not likely pass in the 2009-10 legislative session and will need to be reintro- duced in January 2011. HERE’S OUR WINNER, FOLKS! New program will honor LL alumni By SARAH HITE “It's a wonderful way shite@mydallaspost.com to show people exam- ples of successful peo- ple who have come from (this) school.” Jim McGovern Lake-Lehman superintendent The Lake-Lehman School District crest features two crossing swords, symboliz- ing the past and the future. This year, that emblem will come to life for high school students with a program called Knights of the Round Table. “What we're trying to do is pay tribute to graduates or contributors to Lake-Leh- man post-graduation,” said Superintendent James McGovern. “And the whole theme of it is going to be to inspire the future, we honor “It’s a wonderful way to show people examples of successful people who have come from (this) school,” said McGovern. Members of the Knights of the Round Table will be judged on four qualities: be- longing, or community in- the past.” volvement; mastery of The program, spawned by skills; generosity; and fos- McGovern, will feature pre- tering independence, or sentations by Lake-Lehman character. McGovern says this gives students a chance to see what academics can do for one’s future and how to maintain one’s personal be- liefs in an internationally alumni professionally suc- cessful and active in their communities. A selection committee will review nomi- nations made by the public and those chosen will be a part of a celebration during CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Levi Perillo, of Hunlock Creek, is declared the winner of the cake-eating contest during the Harveys Lake Homecoming Cele- ation by Brian Smigelski, a Harveys Lake Fire and Ambulance volunteer. For more photos of the Harveys Lake Homecoming Celebration, please turn to page 4. homecoming. See TABLE, Page 10 Former CTE employees catch up, share memories at first-ever reunion By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com “Do you remember me?” “How could I forget?” This was a common ex- change between former em- ployees of Commonwealth Telephone Enterprises (CTE) who gathered to reminisce and relax on Friday, Aug. 6 at Konefal’s Grove. Tom Davis, past Vice Presi- dent of Sales at CTE, and a few others organized the reunion of over 220 employees, but it wasn’t easy. “We compiled a list by mem- ory,” he said. There were no records of all of the company’s ormer Northeastern Pennsyl- nia employees, so Davis, ith the help of fellow CTE alums Don Dolfi and John Stu- “I'm getting emotional right now. It was like a fam- ily. Margaret Baloga Former CTE employee “We started planning in Feb- ruary 1989,” said Stubeda, a former engineer with the com- pany. The result of the trio’s labor was a day of fun, food and sharing memories under the pavilion at Konefal’s Grove. Employees who hadn’t seen each other in years hugged, kissed, laughed and cried as they reminisced with their past co-workers. “I'm getting emotional right now,” said Margaret Baloga, a former inventory control di- company, said the advance- ment of technology has the ability to reach more people without the heft of more posi- tions. “Companies are leaner now,” he said. “On a telephone circuit, you would have six parties on a line. With fiber optic cables, it’s millions of people. Now there are (fewer) jobs.” Dolfi also reflected on the changes in technology since his tenure at CTE where he worked as a Director of Engi- — CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK PHOTOS/ FOR THE DALLAS POST 5 a La a Spending time together at the Commonwealth Telephone Company Employees Reunion are, from left, Carlene McCaffrey, Harveys Lake; Joan Konnick, Kingston; Tanya Christ Factoryville; and Pat Giordano, Harveys Lake. monwealth Telephone Compa- ny building on Lake Street in Dallas, believes the expansion beda, made many phone calls rector for Commonwealth neers for 30 years. He and his comes at a cost. and kept a running tally them- Communications. “It was like team planned and designed “Technology now is more selves — for 21 years. a family.” the voice and data compo- complicated and less user- That “family” bonded over one thing - the constant changes in technology as the evolution of telecommunica- tion changed the career paths of many of the company’s em- nents of telephone networks. “When 1 started, circuits could hold 300 baud, or bits, per second,” he said. “Now, they can hold one gigabyte of information — millions of bil- friendly,” he said. Conversation didn’t linger on the subject of work for too long, though, as the group was served lunch and socialized throughout the afternoon. ployees. lions of bits.” “Some people will say a few : “ : Stubeda, who now owns a Dolfi, who at one time words, but it’s mostly just a Reminiscing are, from left, Judy Lemmond Hamm, of North Car- 618098 152007909 sales worked in the former Com- fun thing,” said Davis. olina, Skip Martin, of Dallas, and Jerry Brown, of Towanda. telecommunications vi
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