Page 12—SUSQUEHANNA TIMES
Maria Soliz at work on a fireplace she is making for Christmas at Kraybill School
Maria Soliz travels from home in Bolivia
to teach at Kraybill Mennonite in Mount Joy
Maria Soliz, age 22, of
Cochabamba, Bolivia, South
America, loves the child-
ren with whom she comes in
contact at the Kraybill
Mennonite School, Mount
Joy RDI.
Maria is in Pennsylvania
through the Mennonite
Central Committee Training
Program. She will stay in
the area for one year, living
as a guest with Dr..and Mrs.
Kenneth Brubaker of
Rheems.
Maria has come. to
Lancaster County to learn of
life in the United States and
to take this information back
to her native Bolivia.
Maria has a college
degree in accounting, from
Bolivia's Commercial Super-
ior Institute. She spent six
months following her grad-
uation working in the office
of the Bolivian Baptist
Union, a clearing house for
the Mennonite and Baptist
churches. She functioned as
an accountant. ‘‘l majored
in accounting since math is
my best subject,” Maria
tells us.
During her stay in the
U.S. Maria is working as a
volunteer teacher’s aide at
Kraybill, but hopes to return
to her chosen profession
upon going home to Bolivia.
Senorita Maria is one of
nine children, the daughter
of Assunta and Paulino
Soliz.
Her father, a retire
soldier from the war with
Paraguay, cures alpaca
skins as a hobby. The furs
are brought down from the
mountains, where the ani-
mals, very similar to the
llamas, are numerous.
Her one brother owns a
factory that produces rugs
and products made from fur.
Many of the products travel
to his two outlets in Chicago
and New York. Much of the
work is done with the fur
from the Merino, another
animal of Bolivia.
Maria is not the first
accountant in her family.
Maria has a brother and
sister in the accounting
field.
Her mother has a shop in
Donegal’s Sherri Kinsey
b-ball tournament MVP
Sherri Kinsey, the first
Donegal High School
basketball player to score
more than 1,000 points, has
found college ball much to
her liking.
Sherri, who now plays for
Elizabethtown College, was
named Most Valuable Play-
er at a tournament held at
Messiah College last week-
end. She was also named to
the tournament All-Star
team.
Not only was Sherri
named MVP, but her
Elizabethtown team won the
tournament.
E-town defeated Ran-
dolph-Macon College, 66 to
32, on Friday night, and
Messiah College, 68 to Sl,
on Saturday. Gettysburg
College was also in the
tournament.
Sherri is one of six
freshman on the E-town
[continued on page 7]
her residence where she
sells glass and kitchen
items. The home is in the
downtown business district
of Cochabamba, which is the
second largest city in the
country.
“Our country is very
different from America,”
notes Maria. ‘‘The value of
the currency has depre-
ciated, and the government
spends so much money on
elections. We have already
had two elections this year,
and another one must still
be held to determine the
future rulers of the coun-
try.” 3
Maria tells us that most
people grow fresh fruit in
their gardens as a main
source of food. Sugar is
grown and processed, the
main industry of Bolivia.
Shoes and cooking oil are
manufactured, and tin is
mined. There are rumours
of an automobile factory
locating there in the future.
The population of Bolivia
speaks Spanish, and Maria
had help with her interpret-
er, Mrs. Susan Godshall,
during this interview. Mrs.
Godshall is also an aide at
the Kraybill School.
Maria told us that there
are three nations of Indians
living in the Andes
mountains of Bolivia. ‘‘Our
Indians don't wear feath-
ers,’’ says Maria. Each tribe
has its own language, and
some of the children come
down from the mountains to
attend schools.
As a hobby Maria likes to
explore art. She is always
busy at the school with
projects requiring painting
and drawing.
Maria likes her stay in
Lancaster County, but she is
looking forward to returning
to her home in August of
1981.
December 10, 1980
MABA organizes
for upcoming year
The Marietta Area Busi-
ness Association recently
held an organizational meet-
ing at the Railroad House
Ltd. where the following
officers for 1981 were
elected: president, Tom
Lavin of Chateau Art; vice-
president, Judy Nissley of
Nissley Vineyards; sec-
retary, Rosemary Patterson
of The Rosemary Shop;
treasurer, Bud Kell of
Mabius Marketing Inc.
Nancy Bromer of Susque-
hanna Times & Magazine
will be MABA representa-
tive at board meetings of
Lancaster Association of
Commerce and Industry,
with which MABA is
affiliated.
The meeting was followed
by a social hour at which
Marietta area business
people and government
officals were guests.
Marietta Mayor Flanagan
spoke briefly to the group on
an upcoming Borough Coun-
cil meeting which will
address pollution problems.
James Huber, chairman
of the Lancaster County
Commissioners, spoke on
his concerts relating to
farmland preservation,
water runoff control, hous-
ing (he complimented the
Marietta Restoration Asso-
ciates on their influence on
adaptive use of old struc-
tures) and the growing
problem of the disposal of
solid wastes.
President-elect Lavin
spoke briefly on the busi-
ness future of the Marietta
area and invited all local
business to participate in
MABA programs.
Members of the Mount Joy High School class of 1925 get together for reunion and
photographs. Pictured here, left to right: Fred Diffenderfer, Guy Myers, Mrs. Paul
Dick, Joe Shaeffer, Mrs. Ray Strickler, Joseph Moore, Mildred Way, Mrs. Harry
Engle, Alois Heilig and John Eshleman.
Mount Joy High class of 1925
meets for 55th reunion recently
Fifty five years have come
and gone since that memor-
able day in 1925 when
eleven boys and nine girls
took their diplomas and
went out from Mount Joy
High School to the world
awaiting them.
The class recently held
its SS5th reunion at the
Historic Strasburg Inn..
Class members attending
the reuinion were Guy
Meyrs, Joseph Moore, John
Eshleman, Fred Diffenderf-
er, Alois Heilig, Joe Shaef-
fer, Mildred Way, Mrs. Ray
Strickler, Mrs. Paul Dick
and Mrs. Harry Engle.
Guests at the reunion
were Dr. and Mrs. D.L.
Biemsderfer and Dr. and
Mrs. Richard Kettering.
What did class members
do and talk about after SS
years? They looked ate the
class photographs and
school materials on display
and took lots of pictures.
Each member also jook a
few minutes to tell the group
what happened during the
past year.
Of the twenty members
who graduated, sixteen are
still very much alive and
enjoying life, according to
class research. Members of
the class who have died are
Albert Booth, Ralph Byers,
Olga Hyson and Mary
Peoples.
Members who could not
attend the last reunion are
Walter Becker, Mrs. Paul
Arndt, Mrs. Paul Forney,
Earl Shaeffer, Charles Siller
and Mrs. A.H. Weidman.
The Mount Joy High
School class of ’2S colors
were purple and gold, the
class flower was the Ophelia
Rose, and the class motto
was ‘‘No Reward Without
Labor.”
The next reunion is
scheduled for September 19,
1981, at Historic Strasburg.