Page 2 - Mount Joy Bulletin September 25, 1974 The Mount Joy BULLETIN | —ED ITORIAL— 11 EAST MAIN STREET MOUNT JOY, PA., 17552 PHONE (717) 653-4400 Published Weekly on Wednesdays Except Fourth of July Week and Christmas Week (50 Issues Per Year) Richard A. Rainbolt ¢ BY, Editor Be ©. and Publisher Advertising rates upon request. Entered at the post office at Mount Joy, Penna., as second class mail under the Act of March 3, 1879. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Editor Mount Joy Bulletin Main Street Mount Joy, Pa. Dear Sir: [ am writing this letter due to a deep concern of mine and many other parents of students in the Donegal schools. My concern is with the lack of support the music organizations receive from the administration and the school board. Our high school band is now composed of 120 members. Not too many organizations in the high school can boast of as many. The pre-game drill they performed on Saturday was commendable. Yet, even though this organization has developed over the past few years from a small group of 48 members to its present size, il seems to get less and less support in the budget. This year there were students turned away from playing in the marching band. The reason was that there are only 96 out-dated uniforms for our playing band members; therefore only 96 students could be admitted. There were several uniforms that had to be altered. The ad- ministration refused to even present the bill to the school board; (why help out such a worthwhile organization; let us, the band parents handle the bill). Why should the band parents be forced to foot all the bills of this organization? That's like paying taxes twice. We work like dogs (and so do the kids) to raise money for things the kids need. Although the band parents should pay for band trips and extras for the band, the school board should foot the bill for necessities: school instruments, (in- cluding decent & up-to-date drums), adequate music, new uniforms, and ample instruction. They are shunning their duty to the kinds in all of these areas. When inferring that there is not ample instruction, I am not saying that our past band director and our present band director have not done fine jobs. They have done and are doing fine jobs. They have done and are doing about three men’s jobs to the best of their abilities. I am referring to the fact that not many school districts require one man to run both junior high and senior in- strumental music programs — especially with such a large number of students involved. Our junior high band has more enrolled than even the high schools, which means next year and the following years more and more students will be turned away because the administration and the school board are trying to hold the band down to the level of other organizations within the school. Come on — get with it! We have a winning organization in the school. Let’s give them the support they need! Signed, A concerned citizen September 18, 1974 Mount Joy Bulletin Mr. Rainbolt, If Imay, I would like to say in public that there are many people in East Donegal township that I know who appreciate the stand of Mr. Lewis Bixler. When he said that the green topping on the D.H.S. track ‘‘isn’t necessary’ he was voting for the people who voted for him. That makes him something of a taxpayers’ hero these days. For some reason or other, about everyone is tightening his belt these days to keep financial things going along the best they can. I've heard it said recently, and I agree, that the true tragedy of the ‘‘for” or ‘against’ vote about the track is that only one school board member was willing to stand up and speak for holding down unnecessary expenses. Thus, I would like to say to Mr. Bixler, “thank you and congratulations’’ from a lot of taxpayers. We appreciate it. East Donegal Taxpayer and Parent Bulletin: It is with a great deal of dissappointment that we read the local newspaper account of the school board’s decision to spend an ad- ditional $5,500 on the Donegal High School track in order to make the finished surface green in color. What was even more disturbing was the fact that only one member of the board saw fit to seriously question the propriety of the expenditure. We are all aware of the current decline in pur- chasing power of the dollar. As taxpayers, we would have hoped that our elected officials would have this same awareness to the ex- tent that they would strive to gel as much as possible for EE E4046 te 2480 S800 AYEY EEL ECE EIEN EE BANS BR AR aR RR we ww President Ford talks about getting something done about inflation — sometime next year? Perhaps with all the joys of honeymooning for 30 days and with his other busy work he has overlooked the fact that the economy of this nation needs attention NOW!! Surface attention to the most pressing problem in the country has been given with fancy public relations exercises in economic summit meetings but nothing of nitty gritty has ap- peared. For a lot of people — and that means about everyone you talk with — inflation is digging deeper and deeper into their lives and there is nothing but disaster ahead. : Mr. Ford, if he is to be the leader of all th people in this nation, must take immediate steps to cool the economy. The alternative is not a pretty picture. This country has known depressions but the early 1930's might be child’s play as compared to the disaster of continued inflation for another year or so. Economically, inflation has the same effect, in the long run, as depression. The buyer simply does not have enough money to pay for his needs. And, when that situation becomes of crisis proportions, government themselves break up and fall. Itis late, very late, for remedy to be applied on the inflamation of inflation, but Mr. Ford, as the leader of this nation, is obligated to move and to move and to move at once. THE Mayor Reports Now that school is in session, I feel that we should be aware of our children who are walking and riding to and from our schools. We should obey all traffic laws and speed limits, especially around school areas. I can’t mention enough about the safety of our children. “Burning Ordinance’ — I would like to refresh our memories on burning. There shall be no open burning of trash, leaves, or any other flammable material. All burning should be done in containers that will withstand heat and be covered with a 15” mesh top to eliminate hot debris from escaping into the air. If we must burn, I urge you to be extremely careful with fire. Halloween season is approaching. The date set for “Trick or Treat” night is Wednesday, October 30. I hope that everyone has a great evening at this spookie time of the year. I also urge the younger people to dress up in clothes that can be seen by motorists or people walking on side- walks. Also I ask that you carry a flash light when out walking. Let’s have a-safe and happy Halloween. A reminder on riding bicycles — It is mandatory to have a light on bicycle when riding at night. Please remember safety rules and regulations for your safety and someone else’s. Jame A. Gingrich Mayor Mount Joy each tax dollar spent. case, we would be speaking Apparently, this is not the out of turn. But based on the case. The $5,500 in question does not appear to us to have been spent wisely. It would seem that these funds could have been more wisely expended to replace some of the dilapidated, and in some cases obsolete, text books which we see our children using or to offset some of the continually increasing costs of transporting students in a school dsitrict such as ours. Perhaps we do not possess all of the facts relating to this situation. In which bah bh (a) v4 2 facts that have been made public it is our opinion that $5,500 of the taxpayers money has been wasted. We realize that our ob- jection probably comes too late to effect a reversal of the board’s decision. However, we take comfort in the fact - that we live in a democratic society in which we will be able to express our feelings about such actions during the next election year. MOUNT JOY JAYCEES NINN WW NE Ae MAIN STREET (Continued from Page 1) As a matter of good logic, he just might have a point there. +++ Mount Joy merchants have been hit hard hard hard by merchandising changes and methods during the past several years. + We mentioned a few weeks. ago that there are only two places in the community where the late Clarence Schock is mentioned in public places, despite his many gifts to the community. +++ One is on the front of the Schock Home on Main street, which he and his wife gave as a retirement home. The other we spoke of is on a bronze plaque at the en- trance to SICO park. + 4 There is another, in public, though it is not often seen. +++ In front of Donegal high school there stands a row of oak trees, planted there in his memory in 1955. A stone tablet, mounted flush to the ground, simply says, “Clarence Schock, Memorial Trees, 1955”. +++ In light of the seriousness of the Saturday afternoon ac- cident west of Mount Joy in which there was a tragic death, it is interesting to note that Mount Joy has a police policy, set by the Borough Council last fall, stating that police cruisers shall not go more than one mile outside the borough, unless by permission of the Police Chief. ++ That policy was set im- mediately following a serious accident in which a Mount Joy cruiser nearly a year ago figured in a serious accident on a run toward Columbia. No one was seriously injured but the car was damaged considerably. +p) (The ‘underpass’ off Road 230 onto the Old Harrisburg Pike, is .4 of a mile west of the west Mount Joy borough limit.) +++ Several years ago there was a difficult situation when emergency vehicles ‘came screaming along Main street, particularly am- bulances from the west going to Lancaster hospitals. +++ At that time it was established that drivers of emergency vehicles have a responsibility not only for those people who may be served directly but they also continue to bear the burden of exercising full caution for the rights and safety of all persons using the high- ways. a At this point, it might be well to point out that the vehicle which was wrecked Saturday in its hasteto reach another trouble spot was of no help to anyone but proved to be a serious negative service to everyone con- cerned. rp op Ape E'town College Representative At DHS Oct. 1 Kevin J. Manning, assistant director of ad- missions at Elizabethtown college, will be meeting with interested students at Donegal high school on Tues. Oct. 1, at the invitation of the guidance department. Manning will be at the high school at 11 a.m. PETER TODD IS coming to Marietta bringing new life for all Oct. 6-11, 7:30 P.M. Congregational Bible Church Rts. 441 & 141 Benne ses ERA RTA RE Arr reer erwin
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