® onmental Protection @: Gathering/PVR Partners Sunday, December 30, 2012 THE DALLAS POST PAGE 7 012 Continued from Page 5 Township was awarded a $975,000 grant from gaming funds on behalf of the partnership for the project. Trula Hollywood, director for the Area Agency on Aging for Lu- zerne and Wyoming Counties, said requests for proposals were currently being sought for a new Dallas Senior Center. The Dallas Foundation in- stalled a sign in front of Dallas Elementary School off Hilde- brandt Road to track the progress of its first major project — the in- stallation of another sign. The group hoped to raise enough funds to install a state-of-the-art electronic sign on State Route 309 to replace the current sign that dates back to 1962. Dallas Township supervisors told residents about new plans proposed by the State Depart- ment of Transportation that would remedy traffic flow issues on Upper Demunds Road. The new plan would feature a throughway from Upper De- munds Road through township property to State Route 309 which would have a traffic light at the intersection. It was announced that former Dallas High School football coach Ted Jackson Sr. would be honored at a reunion of Moun- taineer football players spanning his career from 1985-2011. After watching her husband coach youth sports nearly ever year since the 19702, Sandy Jackson said the family had had a difficult time dealing with the transition. She and her son, Ted Jr., were planning the reunion for May 27 at Irem Country Club. John Miliaskas, of Dallas, was inducted into the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association of Fame at the PMEA An- In-Service Conference Awards Luncheon in Lancaster. During his 35-year tenure at Lake-Lehman High School, Mi- liauskas repeatedly produced award winners in parade, con- cert, field show and indoor guard in competition after competition up and down the east coast. Concerned about the effects that drilling mud spills may have on several wells near natural gas sites, Dallas Township residents and officials said they wanted the water tested. Representatives from the state Department of En- A and ded questions regarding re- cent incidents during which wa- ter, containing bentonite clay, erupted through the ground. Damp weather and a few dark clouds couldnt keep about 135 youths and their families from participating in the Sixth Annual Kids Fishing Day hosted by the Back Mountain Police Associ- ation at Frances Slocum State Park in Kingston Township. Ross Piazza, Back Mountain Police As- sociation vice president, said the event is sponsored by local busi- nesses and residents to provide a day of fishing and activities for children at no cost. The Fourth Annual Spencer Martin Memorial Bike Ride for Habitat in memory of long-time devoted volunteer for Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity. Martin volunteered for many years at Habitat work sites and on the board of directors. JUNE : Standing near a proposed hik- ing/bicycling trail route that would went its way between sev- eral tombstones in the Sacred Heart Cemetery off Dorchester Drive in Dallas, Mary Jean Taran- tini, of Harveys Lake, urged fam- ilies who have plots on the prop- erty to contact Diocese of Scran- ton officials and request the trail be rerouted away from ‘this sa- cred place.” Tarantini was joined by more than 30 people collec- tively calling themselves the Concerned Families of Sacred Heart Cemetery. She said the group did not know about ongo- ing discussions for a potential trail right-of-way through the cemetery until reading about it in a newspaper last Decenber. The Waterfront Banquet Cen- ter became a Nautical Night when 336 students attended the Dallas High School Junior/Se- nior Prom. Chloe Alles was se- lected as Prom Queen while Lo- gan Bullock was named Prom King. The Lake-Lehman Junior/Se- nior Prom was held at Genetti’s in Wilkes-Barre with a beach theme and the venue was decorated with glass centerpieces that held sand and candles, shells, starfish and netting. Kyle Fine was voted Prom King and Lindsey Bennett was named Prom Queen. Sandy Cooper worried she wouldn’t be able to show respect for family members buried in the Chapel Lawn Memorial Park in Dallas Township as the flowers she buys for graves kept disap- pearing. The latest event hap- pened on Mother’s Day. A Chapel Lawn maintenance employee posted signs warning trespassers of video surveillance in an at- tempt to prevent flowers from be- ing stolen. Four new members were in- ducted into the Knights of the BILL TARUTIS FILE PHOTO/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Eight-year-old Wycallis Elementary student Madison Carisson of Trucksville reaches for a flip-flop-decorated Vienna Finger cookie. Roundtable during a brunch at Irem Temple Country Club. The program in its second year, aims to honor former Lake-Lehman students and employees who have had a positive effect on the community to inspire current students to become better citi- zens. Inductees included John Miliauskas, former band direc- tor; Joseph Lopasky, a standout football player; Ricky Bonomo, a former wrestler; and Brian Kelly, a soccer star. Officials, community leaders, former constituents and friends mourned the loss of a long-time contributor to the Back Moun- tain, whether it was through his duties as state senator, a judge, an attorney or a friend when for- mer state Sen. Charles Lemmond died on May 30 at the age of 83. Lemmond was a state senator from 1986 until 2006 when his protégé, Lisa Baker, took office. Visually-impaired students in the Dallas School District got a chance to mingle with children from Scranton and have fun at their inaugural field day on the Dallas campus. Visual teacher Bridge Gavin coordinated with a friend from the Scranton School District to have visually-impaired students from that district attend the event. Longtime employees of the Dallas School District said their final “goodbyes” at a school board meeting. Five faculty retirees with a combined 115 years of ser- vice were honored by the board and given the opportunity to talk about their experiences at the district. Retiring were Dallas Ele- mentary kindergarten teacher Lucy Callahan, high school En- glish and language arts teacher Candyce Fike, high school band director Todd Hunter, middle school librarian Louie Roberts and Dallas Elementary gifted in- structor Linda Doughton. The Dallas School Board ap- proved its $32.9 million budget for the 2012-13 school year with calls for a 2.1 percent millage in- crease to 11.8052 mills. The bud- get also included a per capital tax of $10, an earned income tax of 1 percent split with district munici- palities and an emergency servic- es tax of $52, $5 of which is dis- trict funds. All the squawking about rais- ing chickens in Kingston Town- ship came to an abrupt halt as su- pervisors voted against changing the zoning ordinance to allow the keeping of fowl in residential ar- eas. Supervisors James Reino Jr., Jeffrey Box and Shirley Moyer voted against changing the ordi- nance while Gary Mathers re- mained the lone supporter. Resi- dent Chris Mathers, of Trucks- ville, wife of Gary Mathers, cham- pioned the issue a few months ago and presented research on the topic for the board to digest. Trinity Presbyterian Church, Irem Road, Dallas, marked its 50th anniversary on June 10 with more than 170 members and friends attending a special ser- vice of worship, remembrance and celebration. It was all pomp and circum- stance in the Back Mountain as the class of 2012 from Lake-Leh- man High School received its di- plomas on June 13 and the Moun- taineers of Dallas High School graduated on June 15. The Lake-Lehman School Board narrowly approved the budget for the 2012-13 school year which includes funds to de- velop a district-run daycare cen- ter, decreased health care costs BILL TARUTIS FILE PHOTO/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Sunglasses were the order of the day for Dallas High School seniors entering Mountaineer Stadium for the 51st commencement. for teachers and other spending strategies. The $26.8 million spending plan raises taxes t0 9.27 mills, a 4.26 percent increase for Luzerne County taxpayers with- in the district. Family and friends joined em- ployees of Frontier Communica- tions to host the annual Alex’s Lemonade Stand at the Back Mountain Little League Field. The event raises funds and awareness for the battle against childhood cancer. JULY Recent Dallas High School graduate Sarah Bilski learned that she was the recipient of the Roy W. Piper Charitable Trust Scholarship, which awards her $60,000, or $15,000 each for four years, when she attends Penn State University. Piper was a Wyoming County businessman who died in 2007. He set up scholarships for high school se- niors in Wyoming, Luzerne and Lackawanna counties six years before he died. Trustees adminis- tering the scholarships take into consideration financial need, community service and citizen- ship. A zoning hearing for the Dallas Area Municipal Authority’s appli- cation to create a compost facility at the State Correctional Insti- tute at Dallas was cancelled due to DAMA’s application withdraw- al. At a supervisors meeting earli- er in the month, residents had ex- pressed concerns about noise, traffic and security at the pro- posed site. Andrew Duda, of Maryland, told a group of volunteers that all 17 lots had been acquired for a proposed wildlife sanctuary, which has been named Woodland Springs, but zoning require- ments may be an issue. The Dallas High School Stu- dent Leadership in Civics group unveiled its most recent project — a military honor wall. The wall features two plaques with name plates — one for Dallas-area mili- tary personnel who have earned the Purple Heart and one for fam- ilies of service men and women who have received the Gold Star. The 66th Annual Back Moun- tain Memorial Library Auction came to an end when local artist Sue Hand's painting of the auc- tion grounds went across the auc- tion block and garnered $4,600 for the library. Friends and family of 22-year- old Paige Selenski weren’t exact- ly surprised when the 2008 Dal- las High School graduate was re- cently named to the U.S. Olympic Field Hockey Team. For Selenski, a University of Virginia senior majoring in English, making the team was a long time coming. The Lake-Lehman School Board approved a raise for the su- perintendent and his assistant. The board approved a 3.5 percent raise for Superintendent James McGovern which changed his an- nual salary to $116,763.53. A $0.60 per hour raise was ap- proved for Assistant to the Super- intendent Mary Jo Casaldi, in- creasing her salary to $40,081.60. AUGUST PVR Partners, formerly Chief Gathering LLC, donated a Pola- ris Ranger 800EF all-terrain vehi- cle to Dallas Fire & Ambulance Inc. The vehicle will be fitted with equipment that will enable responders to reach wooded ar- eas. The Collie Club of Northeast- ern Pennsylvania donated three pet oxygen masks to the Jackson Township Volunteer Fire Depart- ment. The Back Mountain communi- ty mourned the loss of a young man considered by many of his friends as “the strongest person” CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK FILE PHOTO/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Madison Crawn, of Exeter, can hardly believe she caught this very large brown trout at the Sixth Annual Kids Fishing Day sponsored by the Back Mountain Police Association. CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK FILE PHOTO/ FOR THE DALLAS POST PennDOT placed these signs on Route 309 in Shavertown, closing the main highway to allow crews to repair the Overbook Avenue bridge which had been crumbling. they know. Corey Ehret, 18, of Dallas, died July 22 after a three- year battle with embryonal rhab- domyo sarcoma. After four months of construc- tion, Hillside Road in Jackson Township was about to reopen to the public but officials warned nearby residents that the bridge replacement project does not mean the area is no longer prone to flooding. The Back Mountain continued to rally around Paige Selenski, a native of Shavertown and 21008 graduate of Dallas High School, who was playing on the United States Olympic field hockey team in London, showing its support in many ways. Employees at The Lands at Hillside Farms created “The Paige” sundae, consisting of vanilla ice cream, strawberry and blueberry topping, whipped cream and a cherry on top. The former Castle Inn was sold to the Triangle 24 Hour Club, Inc. and would serve as a meeting space for recovering alcoholics, addicts and their families. Ac- cording to county property re- cords, the historical landmark lo- cated on State Route 415 was sold to the non profit recovery group for $307,000. Dallas Township supervisors continued discussion about whether to contribute toward the Kingston Township-run D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Educa- tion) program. Kingston Town- ship asked Dallas Township to donate $2,500 toward the pro- gram. The program cost is divid- ed between Kingston, Dallas and Franklin townships, Dallas Bor- ough and the Dallas School Dis- trict. The life of 22-year-old Kelci Gibbons was celebrated at the Harveys Lake Beach Club by those who knew her and loved her. A 2008 graduate of Dallas High School where she was a member of the 2007 state cham- pionship soccer team, Gibbons was killed in an automobile acci- dent on July 24. Dallas Township supervisors unanimously adopted a resolu- tion to appoint a committee to begin drafting a new comprehen- sive plan for the township's antic- ipated growth over the next few years. Schools opened on Aug. 28 for students in the Lake-Lehman School District and on Aug. 29 for students in the Dallas School District. SEPTEMBER The Luzerne County Fair, held every year at the fair grounds on Route 118 in Lehman, enjoyed its 50th year. The long-awaited news that the senior center in Dallas was scheduled to reopen in the Twin Stacks Center on Memorial High- way came. After receiving several responses to its latest request for proposals, the Luzerne & Wyom- ing Counties Area Agency on Ag- ing presented and gained approv- al for the lease of the new senior center at the Twin Stacks Center from the Luzerne County Coun- cil. The largest private team in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Scranton consisted of about 35 Back Mountain resi- dents, including breast cancer survivors Chris Ostroski and Kathy Bufalino, both of Shaver- town. The Dallas Harvest Festival, the annual block party held along Main Street in the borough, cele- brated its 10th anniversary. Eighty vendors from all over the Back Mountain took part in the event that also hosted special guests Cherie and Dave, clowns from the Ringling Bros. and Bar- num & Bailey Circus. Members of the Harveys Lake Borough Council scrapped pans to build a new police station on Little League Road when the mo- tion to open bids for the project was made but not carried. All council members except Vice president Francis Kopko carried the motion made by councilwom- an Michell’e Boice. The Dallas School Board adopted the Pennsylvania De- partment of Education’s career mentoring program as part of the district’s curriculum. The pro- gram is based on area business professionals volunteering as mentors to work with students, giving them early exposure to what they mind find upon enter- ing the work force. See 2012, Page 8
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers