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PAGE7

“In high school, everyone’strying to find themselves.Parents can help – they keepyou with your roots eventhough everything’s chang-ing and school is differentfrom when they were there.You have to stay balanced.”Briana Konecke, 17, Dallas

“My biggest challenge isdeciding where to go tocollege. I’ve just been lookingat every college I can and allthe majors to try to make adecision.”Eric Yurko, 17, Dallas

“My friend Tom died thisyear – that’s probably thehardest thing. You have tostay close to the peoplearound you and don’t takeanyone for granted.”Carly Manganello, 18, Dallas

“There have been a lot ofdeaths of students this year,and one of my close friendshas cancer. It’s hard, buttalking with friends andfamily and being supportiveof each other helps.”Chelsea Martin, 18, Dallas

What is the greatest challenge you’ve faced in life so far, and how did you deal with it?

“When we lost Tom. The(Boy) Scout troop (we wereboth part of) stays together.”Lenny Javick, 16,Shavertown

“Losing Tom was the har-dest. He was my best friendsince first grade and we werein the same (Boy) Scouttroop. They call it a scoutingfamily for a reason – you canlean on each other.”Andrew Santora, 17, Dallas

“Keeping with school andsports. You just have to workhard.”Drew Harding, 16, Dallas

“Probably keeping goodgrades and playing sports.You just have to study butsometimes it’s hard whenyou have a lot of school-work.”Kayla Gleco, 15, Dallas8 April 29, 2012

Joe Butkiewicz/Executive Editor-News

Anne Woelfel/Assistant Managing Editor

Ron Bartizek/Project Editor

Lindsey Jones/Project Designer

OUR TEAM

DON CAREY/THE TIMES LEADER

Flooding in September of 2011 left many commu-nity members across Northeastern Pennsylvaniascrambling to protect homes and businessesfrom rising Susquehanna River levels.

ON THE COVER

Determining the themeofPro-file 2012 wasn’t much of a

struggle this year.“Meeting Challenges, Finding

Opportunities” has been anongo-ing theme for the people ofNortheastern Pennsylvania forsome time. The challenges fillthe daily news headlines: a strug-gling economy, extremeweather,our sons and daughters fightingand recovering from war.The opportunities are evident

in the stories of the people, busi-nesses and institutions that haverisen to those challenges andmade life better.They are business owners

steering efforts through Marcel-lus shale development, the retailhorizon of downtown Wilkes-Barre and the world of consign-ment shopping, helping commu-nities recover from flooding or a

soldier offeringa personal ex-ample of deter-mination.Such stories

are toldthroughout the

history of Northeastern Pennsyl-vania, from the pioneers to theentrepreneurs to the immigrantsto the greatest generation.Those people came from

farms, mines and factories. Theyspanned ethnicity, race and reli-gion. Meeting challenges andfinding opportunities is the ongo-ing legacy of our community.The news of the past year, how-

ever, brought those qualities intofine focus.Hurricanes Irene and Lee

pounded the area in 2011, the lat-ter sending theSusquehannaRiv-er to an unprecedented high level

and causing a record-breaking in-undation in areas such as Falls,West Pittston, Plains Township,PlymouthTownship,Mocanaquaand Shickshinny.Throughout the year people

havebeen challengedby a rapidlychanging technology that is im-proving lives but altering thewaybusiness is done. Families aretested when members are awayand fighting in awar. Public insti-tutions face diminished fundingstreams. Medical professionalsvolunteer to help the needy athome and overseas. First respon-ders never run out of emergen-cies.These are the stories of

Northeastern Pennsylvania andthe stories of Profile 2012. Wehope you enjoy this very specialsection.Joe ButkiewiczExecutive editor

CHAPTER 1CIVIC PURSUITS

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 2BUSINESS & INDUSTRY

CHAPTER 3EDUCATION

CHAPTER 4FUN & GAMES

CHAPTER 5HEALTH & WELLNESS

1 1

57

25

39

77

Letter from the editor

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12 April 29, 2012

FRED ADAMS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

RIGHT:Melissa Reynoldsinstructs a hip-hop classfor teenagers at the Jew-ish Community Center inWilkes-Barre.

TOP LEFT: JimmyMcGuire bounces on anexercise ball in the gym-nasium. The JCC wel-comes all people, Jewishand non-Jewish alike.

TOP RIGHT: A KlezmerBand plays in the audi-torium as people enjoy akosher lunch nearby.

AIMEE DILGER/THE TIMES LEADER DON CAREY/THE TIMES LEADER

Profile 2012 13

The senior citizens stand onone foot to improve theirbalance and, yes, they canhold onto a chair if they

want.Downstairs in the gym, energetic

tweens gyrate like mad in hip-hopclass.Upstairs in the weaving room, peo-

ple craft prayer shawls for their lovedones.And at mid-day, the auditorium is

filled with folks chatting over a Ko-sher lunch.Visit the Jewish Community Cen-

ter of Wyoming Valley in downtownWilkes-Barre and you’ll find all thoseongoing activities – and more – aswell as plenty of people who will tellyou they’re happy to be part of thecenter’s “big happy family.”Perhaps most grateful for the op-

portunity are the parents of autisticyoung people who bring their chil-dren to the JCC on Friday afternoonsfor a swim-and-gym activity session.“The JCC, they’re angels,” Scott

Rieder ofWest Pittston said as his18-year-old son, Michael, shot a basket-ball toward a hoop.“I credit this place with giving him

a life,” saidKathy Flaherty, whose 24-year-old son Robbie, “wouldn’t evenget outof the car for ice cream”beforehe attended the JCC’s summer camp.“My son can be free here,” Kathy

Mineo said as 18-year-old Alex ran

back and forth in the gym. “There’snoplace else. If itwasn’t for the JCC, Iwould have to leave the area.”The young people likely were in

structured classroom environmentsall day, session supervisor JoanKlein-mansaid, so it’s good for themtohavea chance tomove around, play and re-lax – and work on their socializationskills, which is a challenge for peoplewith autism.“Hey, what do you say?” Kleinman

said, greeting a new arrival and urg-ing him to say “hello.”Without a doubt, the JCC is a place

formanypeople, Jewish andnon-Jew-ish, to socialize.“We are available to everyone,” di-

rector Rick Evans said.It’s also an opportunity to stretch

their minds and bodies in all sorts ofways.“This is great for your rotator

cuffs,” instructor Bill Buzza ofSwoyersville said as he guided agroup of senior citizens throughshoulder rolls and stretches,marchesaround the room and even standingup and sitting down again 15 times.“We’re working on flexibility, some

rangeofmotion and trying to (streng-then) the hip area,” Buzza explained,in between entertaining the seniorswith stories about how his 2-year-olddaughter, Abigail, drank some bathwater.“I love this place,” said exerciser

Jeannette Garber, 85, of Wilkes-Barre.“It keeps us moving,” said Char-

lotte Cutler, 89, of Kingston.“It’s not Zumba,” said Shirley Co-

hen, 89, of Edwardsville.“Oh, butwedoHAVEZumba,” said

Barbara Sugarman,whohandles pub-lic relations for the JCC.Zumba is aworkoutofhigher inten-

sity, as was the hip-hop program dur-ing which Melissa Reynolds recentlytaught adance routine to the tuneof aJustin Bieber song.“Pretend you’re looking for her,”

Reynolds told a boy who appeared tobe 8 or 9, indicating he was supposedto search for “somebody to love,” pickher from the gyrating group and skipoffstage with her, hand in hand.The only problem was, 9-year-old

Natalie Zarad did not want to holdthe boy’s hand.“You can hold wrists then,” Rey-

nolds said.Why didn’t Natalie want to hold

hands with the boy?A reporter asked, and before Nata-

lie could answer, 12-year-old LilyDrak explained: “He’s her neighborand they have quite a history.”Last month, another kind of histo-

ry—musical history— actually wasone of several topics addressed in aweekly series of Adult Educationclasses.During a morning lecture, big-

band expert John McKeown ofWilkes-Barre regaled a groupofmost-ly senior citizens with stories aboutarea band leader Russ Morgan, whofirst started to play trombone be-cause his father believed it would re-build his lungs after a boutwith pneu-monia.As McKeown played some record-

ings, listeners joined in on such lyricsas “Cruising Down the River on aSunday Afternoon.”Later, attendees Cindy and Matt

Kruger of Shavertown said they lovecoming to the JCC to learn newthings, discuss books and just spendtime with friends.“It’s like an extended family,” Matt

Kruger said.“We moved here from Long Is-

land,” his wife added. “They didn’thave anything like this there.”The sentiment that there’s no place

like the JCC of Wyoming Valley isstrong in the tallis-making room,where StephenNachlis shows peoplehow to weave traditional prayershawls which are often given as barmitzvah or bat mitzvah gifts when ayoung person is about 13 years old.“People come from all across the

country to do this,” Nachlis said, andthey’re often eager to reserve a spot.“One grandmother literally called

from the hospital the day her grand-childwas born and asked to be put onthe list.”

By MARY THERESE BIEBEL/[email protected]

From hip-hop to prayer-shawl classes, JCC has it all

onebigfamily

14 April 29, 2012

By EDWARD LEWIS / [email protected]

On Hillside Road, the farm is a 10-minutedrive from the hustle of city life in downtownWilkes-Barre. While it may seem odd if a chick-en walked by you on Public Square, it’s thenorm here.The Lands at Hillside Farms has come a long

way since the nonprofit idea was born in 2005.The organization purchased the farm from theConyngham family in 2007 for $4 million, pre-serving and restoringmany of the buildings, in-cluding the summer cottage built in 1882 thatstill has original wallpaper and furniture.The summer cottage itself is a museum with

books, paintings, hand-painted tiles from Scot-land, place settings and the Conyngham fam-ily’s ledgers that detail coal-shipment salesthroughout the late 1800s.Back in its heyday, the farm was more than

800 acres, Ayers said.More than 100 volunteers have helped to re-

store and maintain the farm as it was back inthe late 1800s.Ayers said more than 50 Jersey dairy cows

have returned to the farm,which producesmilkused to make butter, ice cream and the Hillsidefamous chocolatemilk for sale to the public. Hesaid cows disappeared from the farm in 2001

KINGSTON TWP. – Step into the re-furbished dairy barn at the Lands atHillside Farms and almost immedi-ately you feel like it’s 1890.

Or head back to the past with a visit to themercantile barn constructed in 1800, later dis-mantled, moved to its current location outsidethe dairy store, and recently rebuilt using thesame 212-year-old wood and 24-inch-wideplanks milled from a Norway Spruce tree thattoppled last year on the 412-acre farm.Themercantile barnwith large slabs of Penn-

sylvania blue slate for the floor and soybean in-sulation in the walls was re-erected with woodpegs instead of nails and screws.The two barns are among themany buildings

at the 150-year-old farm that has transformeditself into a unique, nonprofit educational com-plex. More than 300,000 people visited thefarm last year, said SuzanneKapral-Kelly, direc-tor of advancement at the Lands at HillsideFarms.The goal of the farm is to teach people sus-

tainable gardening and farming practices tolive healthy lives, said Doug Ayers, a veterin-arian and co-founder of the Lands at HillsideFarms.

due to the high cost of feed and maintenance.Today, the cows are fed grass instead of corn.

Feeding cows grass produces milk that ishealthier to the human body, Ayers said.“We have cows that are 14 years old because

they were fed grass all their lives,” Ayers said.“You won’t see that in 98 percent of the farmsout there. Most farms have become industrial-ized feeding their cows corn and injecting themwith growth hormones. And in three yearsthose cows are off to slaughter.”Ayers said he can distinguish between a “hap-

py” cow, those feeding on grass and an “unhap-py” cow eating corn.“The cows’ guts are made for grass, not

corn,” Ayers said.A popular event that began a few years ago is

week-long day camps during the summer,which teach children gardening techniques andmaintaining livestock.“It’s competitive,” Kapral-Kelly said. “To reg-

ister, we have people calling early trying to signup their children. Children enjoy taking part indigging up the earth and planting vegetables orparticipating in feeding cows.”For more information about the Land at Hill-

side Farms, call 1-888-887-7811.

on solid & sustainable

Grass-fed dairy cows and restored farm buildingsbeckon visitors to the Lands at Hillside Farms

groundSuzanne Kelly, director of development andmarketing, pets Faith, a young Holstein cow.

Barbara Lawson, a horticulturalist, raisesplants in the greenhouses.

Doug Ayers, board chairman, talks about howthe farm functions on a daily basis.

Profile 2012 15

PETE G. WILCOX/THE TIMES LEADER

Dairy cows feed onhay at the Lands atHillside Farms inKingston Township.The organizationworks constantlyto raise money tomaintain and expandthe farm whileteaching the publicabout sustainabilityin agriculture.

valley

16 April 29, 2012

By ANDREWM. SEDER / [email protected]

added an auction that’s helped boostincome from about $35,000 aboutthree years ago to approximately$110,000 this past year.

The 2011 dinner was just two weeksafter the flood, but the communitystepped up in a time of tragedy to sup-port one of the region’s valuable re-sources.

“The community has been gener-ous,” Petrilla said.

He said while he’s come to under-stand the generosity of the region, hewas still surprised that so many havecome through to donate when theythemselves have been hurt by theeconomy and flood.

“There’s a limited pool of resources,and when you get things like the floodoccurring, I thought for sure we’d takea hit. But people just dug deeper andspread the money around more,” hesaid.

He also said that while the addition-al revenue is great, it should be notedthat “there’s an increase in demand.”

“People are unemployed and therewas a flood,” he said, adding that theresults were the loss of vision insur-ance for some and in some cases theloss of a backup pair of glasses in thefloodwaters.

He said the organization has notscaled back on services though it didallow some positions that were vacat-ed by retirements or people leaving togo unfilled.

The recession caused a multi-tude of problems for nonprof-its and organizations thatserve the community.

And just as things were starting tohead in the right direction, the floodof 2011 hit Northeastern Pennsylva-nia, destroying businesses andhomes and putting an even greaterstrain on agencies that offer assist-ance.

The Greater Wilkes-Barre Associ-ation for the Blind is just one example.

“I think every nonprofit has had is-sues with the economy,” said Dr. RonPetrilla, the executive director of theExeter-based association that assiststhe region’s blind or those with limit-ed vision and offers preventative andeducational programs on the topic.

While many organizations haveseen budgets dramatically impactedby a combination of lagging dona-tions and cuts in state allocations,the Association for the Blind has ac-tually seen an increase in contribu-tions, though its state funding hasdipped slightly.

“We are, in a way, fortunate wedon’t get a lot of government fund-ing. When you get a pittance and it’sslashed, you still get a pittance,” Pe-trilla said.

Petrilla credits the increase in fun-draising the past two years to an in-creased emphasis on its annual fun-draising awards dinner, which has

“Like everybody else, we’re doingmore with less,” he said.

Ron LaBatch, 54, of Kingston, is vi-sually impaired and depends on someof the association’s services.

He also gives back by volunteeringhis time including reading newspaperarticles on WRKC, the King’s CollegeRadio Station, for those who are blinda couple of times a week.

He is able to get his prescription eye-glasses at a deep discount through theBlind Association

“Without them I’m in serious trou-ble,” LaBatch said.

In addition to vision screening, op-erating a summer camp for blind chil-dren and assistance with gettingglasses and eye exams for those withvision impairment, the associationalso hosts support groups and Brailletraining.

“Services like this are truly a giftfrom God,” LaBatch said.

He said he’s glad the associationhas been able to maintain its servic-es through the recession and hopesthe next obstacle – rising gas prices– doesn’t do any damage to re-sources.

If the past few years prove anything,he said, it’s that the moniker given tothe Wyoming Valley, “The Valley Witha Heart,” still rings true.

“It shows that the heart is stillthere,” LaBatch said.

“There’s a limited

pool of resources,

and when you get

things like the

flood occurring,

I thought for sure

we’d take a hit.

But people just

dug deeper and

spread the money

around more.”Dr. Ron Petrilla

Executive Director,Greater Wilkes-Barre

Association for the Blind

deep

Nonprofits find support in a generous public

digs

Profile 2012 17


Ron LaBatch, 54, of Kingston, reads news-paper articles for those who are blind onWRKC, the King’s College Radio Station,as part of the Radio Home Visitor Show.

18 April 29, 2012

Not so long ago, the release of a newalbum by a popular recording artistwas a pretty big deal. People wouldbuy a copy at their local record store

often on the first day of the album’s release. Forsome, the senseof anticipationwas sohigh they’dattend special “midnight sales.” Lines of peopleformed outside record stores, sales soared, andonsomeoccasions, anewreleasewould sellmorethan a million copies in its first week.This is not ancient history. Many of those art-

ists are still active. But in this age of digital down-loads and iTunes, people are buying far fewer al-bums, at least in the CD format. Instead, theysimply download the songs.This trend has hurt record stores inmonumen-

talways. InNewYork, iconic shops suchasTowerRecords and the VirginMegastore are long gone.Locally, the Gallery of Sound chain, which oncehad10 locations, nowhas four. But vice presidentand owner Joe Nardone Jr. says there are ways tosurvive and, equally important, there are stillplenty of peoplewhowill always prefer a physicalproduct over an MP3 on their iPod.“At this point, the challenge is convincing peo-

ple that it’s still OK to buy music, or to pay formusic and physical goods,” says Nardone, whosechain -- founded by his father -- is noting its 40thanniversary this year. “For the most part, if you

look at the demographic that just buys down-loads -- your straight ‘top-40 kids’ -- that’s a chal-lenge, to get them into the record store, becausethey don’t have a lot of use for us at this point.And that’s the part, going forward, that you haveto consider.”Nardone says one thing that has helped is low-

er CD prices. Some cost about the same as adownload,whichhe sayshas shifted somepeopleback into the stores, especially those interestedin more than just disposable pop and those whowant a fuller sound.“Some people like to own that CD, because

they feel more secure with the CD,” he says. Nar-done says that some in the record business feelthat while iTunes isn’t going away, CD sales haveleveled off and, more recently, have actually im-proved.One thing themajor record labels have figured

out is that it’s cheaper for them to sellMP3s thanactual records.“That business model wasn’t too sexy at first,

but all of a sudden, it’s a lot sexier than it used tobe,”Nardone says. “All theyhave todo is send thefile andsit back.Theydon’tmakeasmuchmoneyas they used to, but they don’t have any invest-ment, either. There is literally no investment.There are no bodies in the room at any of thoseplaces anymore. No inventory. No shipping. No

warehouses. No pressing. They all got out of thatbusiness. They used to own the pressing plantsand depots. They’ve divested from all of that.”

NOT JUST DOWNLOADS

Though Gallery of Sound has six fewer storesthan it did a decade ago, Nardone says digitaldownloading is not the only reason.“Some were too close together, some we just

harder tomanage andonewas in a college town,”he says. “There was a guy that had nine stores atPenn State, and he closed them all. He walked.And that was probably eight years ago. The col-lege market was pretty rough on the record busi-ness.”Still, Nardone says that some college students

are now good customers, as there has been a re-naissance in vinyl albums. About 75 percent ofthe business is the sale of new CDs. Vinyl, whichjust a few years ago was a nonfactor, now consti-tutes about 5 percent of sales.Another thing helping independent record

stores is the fact that chains such as Walmart --initially a challenge because of their ability to un-dersell some products and sign exclusive distri-butions rightswith someartists -- arenowpullingback on their stock of CDs.

By ALAN K. STOUT/ Times Leader Correspondent

See PLAYING, Page 19

In the era of digital downloads, record stores

find ways to meet today’s challenges

onplaying

Joe Nardone Jr. is vice president of Gallery ofSound.

Jay Notartomaso stands in front of a vintagerecord player.

Gallery of Sound , which once had 10locations, now has four.

Profile 2012 19

Through it all,Nardone saysGal-lery of Sound is moving forward.

“We’ve consolidated our busi-ness, we’ve cut our expenses, andwe’ve gotten into different things.We bring in live bands, we’re sell-ing used records, used CDs, usedDVDs and we’re doing closeoutmusic books. We’re sort of thehaven for physical goods.”

ANOTHER APPROACH

MusicalEnergi, located in down-town Wilkes-Barre, also is commit-ted to selling musical products.Founded in 1986 by owner Jay No-tartomaso, the store specializes inused CDs, records, tapes andDVDs. It also carries rock memor-abilia and rare and out-of-print mu-sic, much of which is sold onlinethrough its website. It, too, is mov-ing forward.

“For me the damage caused bythe Internet and downloads andiTunes happened maybe eightyears ago,” says Notartomaso.“That’s when it really affected us,and we’ve been fairly steady formaybe the last six years. Businessis not what it used to be, but it’s lev-eled off. In a way, what saved uswas the Internet, because we start-ed selling on the Internet. I have80,000 items in a database. Thegreatest thing about the Internet isthat you have the world as yourmarket.”

Notartomaso has found anotherniche for his business; about twoyears ago, he started selling and re-pairing old record players. “Peopleare buying them almost as fast as Ican get them cleaned up and run-ning again,” he says. “A lot ofyoung people are buying records.There’s just something more realabout playing music when it’s openand exposed to the air. For me, Ilike records because I grew up withthem. It’s a nostalgic thing for me.But I talk with 16- 17- 18-year-oldstudents that love to play records.”

As for the future, Notartomasoagrees with Nardone. He’s commit-ted to what he does, he loves it, andhe’ll continue -- amid the digital era-- to sell recorded music that youcan hold in your hands.

“The damage is done,” he says.“I’m still here.”

PLAYINGContinued from Page 18

FRED ADAMS PHOTOS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

“A lot of young people are

buying records. There’s just

something more real about

playing music when it’s open

and exposed to the air.”Jay Notartomaso

Owner, Musical Energi

ABOVE: Jay Notartomaso says heuses the Internet to store more than80,000 items on a digital databasefor sale.

20 April 29, 2012

‘Topline’

of the

Even before the SusquehannaRiver began flooding Lu-zerne County communitiesduring a record crest this

past September, thousands of coun-ty residents sprang into action toprepare for the worst.Many had past experience with

the wrath the powerful muddy wa-ters could unleash on their homesand places of work; others did not.

Among these flood survivorswere hundreds of men and womenwhohadmore to consider than theirpersonal safety and that of their fam-ilies, more than the protection oftheir personal property and theirown small businesses.Firefighters, police officers, am-

bulance drivers, paramedics, emer-gency-management coordinators,river rescue personnel – most of

them volunteers – all knew that thewell-being of countless others de-pended on how well they did theirjobs even while their own homesand livelihoods were at risk or de-stroyed.“The flood devastated a lot of

emergency responders who still hadto respond to the call of duty,” saidGale Conrad, supervisor chairwo-man in Plymouth Township, where

60 percent of the town’s residentswere flooded out.“They were just top of the line in

taking care of their own situation aswell as performing their jobs. I’m ve-ry proud of them,” Conrad said.Among the responders who expe-

rienced personal losses while help-ing others was township Fire Chief

Emergency responders first to help flood victimsBy STEVE MOCARSKY/[email protected]

CLARK VAN ORDENPHOTOS/THE TIMES LEADER

RIGHT: Chris Kroutis a Wright Townshipvolunteer firefighter.

ABOVE:Workcontinues in the

Plymouth TownshipFire Company Tilbury

Station kitchen.

See EMERGENCY, Page 21

REBENNACK’S APPLIANCE269 Wyoming Ave, Kingston (570) 287-1175

Area’s ExclusiveIndependent Dealer

Profile 2012 21

John Rinehimer.“All the firemen who live in

West Nanticoke (a section of thetownship), their houses wereflooded,” Rinehimer said.

“We knew the flood was com-ing; we just didn’t know how badit would be. We had to compart-mentalize. We knew we’d have totake care of our homes and thingsand had an idea of what to ex-pect” when a river crest of 38 feetwas forecast, Rinehimer said.“But once the numbers startedcoming in, that changed some-what.”

Not since1972, when a swollenSusquehanna crested at a record40.9 feet and devastated thehomes and businesses of thou-sands, had the Wyoming Valleyseen as much damage.

Levees had been built andraised since then, but many com-munities were left defenseless towithstand the Sept. 8, 2011, newrecord crest of 42.66 feet. Andwith local officials not realizingthat a river gauge could not mea-

sure water levels above 38.6 feet,the valley was unprepared to dealwith the level of destruction thatwas coming.

“I raised my home after the2006 flood,” Rinehimer said.“The original flood wouldn’thave reached my first floor. Butthis ...”

Rinehimer said his men knewthe fire station would be flooded,and they prepared to set up a newbase of operations. Then, aftermaking sure everyone was evac-

uated, all they could do was waitfor the waters to come and thenrecede.

“Initially, it’s almost unbelieva-ble,” Rinehimer said, describingthe destruction left behind. “Butshortly after, you go into a ‘you’vegot to do this’ mode.”

The first task at hand was get-ting the firehouse cleaned out,then church parking lots so emer-gency operations centers couldbe set up and American RedCross workers had staging areas

to work in. Firefighters from sur-rounding counties volunteeredtheir services and equipment.

“Everybody just got in a rou-tine every day, setting up forthese volunteer companies whocame in for a solid two weeks.They came in and cleaned ourtown up. That’s what really savedour skin. They came in by 9 a.m.And stayed till the sun wentdown,” Rinehimer said.

Rinehimer credits WrightTownship volunteer firefighterChris Krout for his work to getout-of-the-area volunteers andtheir equipment to the manyflooded towns in the county.

“Chris was highly instrumen-tal in making everyone’s lives a

lot easier,” Rinehimer said.When the flood hit, Krout went

to the county Emergency Man-agement Agency to offer his ser-vices. After a day or two of an-swering phones, he got the ideato coordinate assistance fromout-of-town fire departments.

Using EMA radio equipment,Krout also arranged coverage forflooded-out fire departments.

“Fairview, Dorrance, Rice(townships), we all work togeth-er in an emergency. But in thiscase, the fire departments in thevalley, their neighbors are flood-ed. They don’t have anybody tocall,” Krout said.

Lacking a statewide or evencountywide inventory of fire-fighting and other municipalequipment and apparatus, Kroutmade a list of available equip-ment and matched it to what lo-cal communities were asking for.

“I would deploy them wheretheir assets could be best used. …They checked in with me; theychecked out with me. It was quitean effort. I basically lived at theEMA center for about a week,”Krout said.

“It was exciting, and it feltgood to know I made a differ-ence.”

EMERGENCYContinued from Page

CLARK VAN ORDEN/THE TIMES LEADER

Joe Yudichak, Plymouth Township supervisor, John Rinehimer, firechief, Gale Conrad, supervisor, and Barry K. Lore II, deputy chiefstand in front of a township fire truck.

“They were just top of

the line in taking care

of their own situation

as well as performing

their jobs. I’m very

proud of them.”Gale ConradPlymouth Township supervisor

Profile 2012 23

more lessD

oing more with less is al-most the norm these days,but for libraries, the chal-lenge is intensified.

“We’re facing funding cuts from ev-ery level of the government, from fed-eral to state to county to city, and yetduring times of recession and low em-ployment, we see an increase in usageand more demand for new technolo-gy,” said Richard C. Miller, executivedirector of the Osterhout Free Libraryin the Luzerne County Library Sys-tem. “The pressure is coming at usfrom three directions.”In tough financial times, people

turn more and more to their library’sresources to fill gaps intheir budgets for every-thing from movies andbooks to providing theInternet access theycan’t afford, Miller said.“People without jobs

need a computer to workon resumes and to go online to fill outapplications and apply for benefits,” hesaid. “Our computers are almost alwaysin use, and when we offer classes oncomputers, they always fill right up.”With funding cuts from all sources

hovering at around 30 percent, Millersaid, the library’s budget is “cut to thebone.” The problem is compoundedbecause state and federal funding de-pendsonhowmuch local funding is re-ceived, so when local governmenttrims contributions, the library sufferstwice.“We try to do much more with less,

but we try not to let it affect the cus-tomers,” Miller said. “We cut back onhours, the staff, and the resources wepurchase. We recently lost access toseveral million dollars worth of elec-

tronic data bases thatwere available tolibraries statewide, but we have to de-cide what is more important – provid-ing some things people want or keep-ing the doors open.”And at the same time the library is

juggling ways to pay for things it hasalways had, it is also trying to findways to keep up with the changes intechnology. The library currently pro-vides electronic access to a number ofclassic works of literature that havebeen digitized. It’s also received agrant to help establish a system inwhich the librarywould loanKindle orNook e-readers that would allow pa-trons access to current bestsellers,

Miller said, but it’s an ex-pensive proposition.While there is definite

shift to electronicmedia,Miller said, many pa-trons still come in for agood, old-fashionedbook.

“I think we’ll always have peoplelooking for a book. There’s no substi-tute for the way it feels, the way itsmells – and it doesn’t cost a couple ofhundred dollars if you lose it.”Still,Miller said, the format isn’t the

most important thing.“We don’t have a stable funding

source, and that will always be the chal-lenge, but we have great public sup-port,” Miller said. “We just have to do alittle prioritizing and a little soul search-ing to make sure we’re following ourmission. We’re not here to push books;we’re here to offer services, and we’restill going to be here to offer those ser-vices. They might be in different for-mats and they might be more expen-sive, butour job is toprovideasmuchaswe can with what we have. “

Despite funding cuts, library stays true to its missionBy JANINE UNGVARSKY/Times Leader Correspondent

with

We don’t have a stable funding source, and that will always be the challenge, but we havegreat public support. We just have to do a little prioritizing and a little soul searching to makesure we’re following our mission. We’re not here to push books, we’re here to offer services …”

Richard C. Miller, Executive Director of the Osterhout Free Library‘‘


AT RIGHT: Rick Milleris the executive direc-tor of the OsterhoutFree Library.

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Tuft-Tex owner bounces back from flood’s wrath


Pat and MichaelMusto stand in

their PlainsTownship store,

Tuft-Tex.

26 April 29, 2012

backbusiness

in

When the flooding inSeptemberhalf-filledhis family’s shoppingplaza the optimist in

MichaelMusto surfaced.Theground-floorshopsintheTuft-

Tex Plaza on North River Road tookon nearly 8½ feet of muck andmud-dy water, but the second story was

spared.Musto estimated he lost nearly

$250,000 of inventory on display atthe Tuft-Tex carpet and flooringstore he owns with his brothers Patand Marty and sister Gabrielle Fur-ner and her husband, Sal.“Everything was gone,” said Mus-

to, 60, ofWilkes-Barre.

The overall damage to the plazawasmuchlargerat$1.1million,andafew of the tenants have left.Those who stuck around dried

out, cleaned up and moved back inand inMusto’scasereopenedtoadif-ferentway of doing business.He’s still selling carpets and floor-

ingbuthasshiftedmoretowholesale

rather than retail sales.He had an opportunity to make

that switch “because I lost every-thing,” he said in earlyMarch.Nearly sixmonthsearlier thenear-

by Susquehanna River reached a re-cord level of 42.66 feet on Sept. 9.

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See BUSINESS, Page 27

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Profile 2012 27

Two days before the crest hehad forewarning of high waterand moved inventory in a ware-house across the street off thefloor.Whenhetriedtogetintotheplaza the next day the water wastoo high, even though the proper-ty was built 40 years ago higherthanthesurroundinglowlandsonaccount of the flooding.“Iwasabletowalkintothefront

doorat7:30a.m. (theSaturdayaf-ter the crest),” he said. From thenon their recovery effort began.Insuranceandfundingfromthe

Small Business Administrationhelped rebuild. It was the gruntwork of himself, employees JohnShive and Tony Stoss and othersthatmade the difference.“What saveduswasourown la-

bor,” saidMusto.A few doors down from the

flooring store Michele Mleczyn-skihustledaboutinherSugarArt-ists Emporium preparing for anevening cookie decorating class.Mleczynski, 57, of Luzerne, is a

newcomer to the plaza.

“We had just opened in April,”she said.The bakery decorating and ac-

cessory store had been doingwell.“In August we probably finally

turned a corner,” she said. Saleshad increased 40 percent sincethe opening.The floodingcouldnothaveoc-

curred at a worse time for Mlec-zynski. She watched her success-ful business open and close with-in sixmonths.But she climbed back.“It was kind of a dream ofmine

todothis,” shesaidof startingherown business.It’s been hard for established

businesses to reopen, Musto ac-knowledged; so much dependsupon themakeup of the owner.“They’reeithergoing todo itor

not going to do it,” he said. He’sbeen flooded before.Musto’s reasons for starting

overareanchored in theplaza. It’sbeen there for 40 years and somuch is invested in it.“You can’t find a piece of prop-

erty likewe have,” he said, beforebacktracking. They’d probably beable to relocate, but at a cost ofseveral million, that’s somethingthat doesn’t enter hismind.

BUSINESSContinued from Page 26

AIMEE DILGER/THE TIMES LEADER

Michele Mleczynski finishes a bunny cake pop at her shop, Sugar Artists Emporium, in the Tuft-Texplaza along River Road.

RELIGIOUSSERVICES

HOLY CROSSEPISCOPAL CHURCH373 N. MAIN STREET, W-B

570-823-4436

SUNDAY SUNG EUCHARIST - 9:00 AMSUNDAY SCHOOL - 9:00 AM

SATURDAY HOLY EUCHARIST - 4:30 PMWEDNESDAY - 7:00 PM

HEALING SERVICE & HOLY EUCHARIST

Father Timothy Alleman, Rector

22 Outlet Rd., PO Box 21, Lehman, PA 18627 • 570-675-8109

River of Life Fellowship Ministries

Sunday Services - Sunday School 9:15-10:00 amPraise and Worship 10:30 am(Jr. Church & Nursery Provided)

Wednesday Nights - Adult Bible Study 6:30 pmYouth Group 6:30-8:00 pm (ages 2-18)

Friday Nights - Ekklesia Coffee House 6:00-9:30 pm(Christian Music, food, karaoke)

“You’re not too bad to come here & you’re not too good to stay away!”

TRUCKSVILLE UNITED METHODIST CHURCHRev. Marian Hartman, Pastor

Dr. Stephen L. Broskoske, Director of Music

“Making Disciples for Jesus Christ”

Sunday Schedule - 8:30 A.M. & 11:00 A.M.Sunday School for all Ages - 9:45 A.M. - 10:45 A.M.

101 Church Rd. Left off 309 at Carverton Rd, TrucksvillePhone: 696-3897 • Fax: 696-3898 • Email: [email protected]

SUPPORTING FAMILIES THROUGH LIFE

DISCOVERING TRUTH, CHANGING LIVES

FIRST PRESBYTERIANCHURCH

97 South Franklin Street • Wilkes-BarrePhone (570) 824-2478

Rev. Dr. Robert M. Zanicky, Minister10:00AMWorship Service • 11:00AM Sunday School

Nursery Provided, Handicapped AccessibleJohn Vaida - Minister of Music, Pamela Kerns - Christian Education Director

A friendly, inclusive, and welcoming churchAudio Sermons available on the web @ www.fpcwb.com

PARSONS PRIMITIVEMETHODIST CHURCH

Bible Study..............................Wednesday’s at 7pmWorship Services.......Sunday’s at 8:30am & 11amU-Turn Youth Ministry................Sunday’s at 6pmMark 10:14 Project Children’s Program...1st Sundayof every month from 3:30-5:00

193 Austin Avenue • Wilkes-Barre • 570-823-0345

Refreshing Worship. A Bold Message. parsonspmchurch.com

A variety of small groups to help to get connected.

RELIGIOUSSERVICES340 Carverton RoadTrucksville, PA 18708

570-696-1128 • www.bmha.org

Come Celebrate Jesus!Sun.Worship @ 9:15 & 11:00 AM

Dallas Baptist ChurchRoute 415 & Briarcrest Road

Dallas, PA 18612570-639-5099

Pastor Jerry Branchwww.dallasbaptistchurch.org

Church of Christ UnitingCorner of Market St. & Sprague Ave.

Kingston • 570-288-8434DEVOTIONAL LINE: 570-288-2334

Rev.Dr.Carol Ann Fleming • Rev.Dr. James L.HarringMorningWorship 10:00AM •Youth Sunday School DuringWorship

Adult Sunday School 11:30AMChild Care Provided • Choirs - Children,Adult,Bell Ringers

Air Conditioned • churchofchristuniting.org

MERGED PRESBYTERIAN & METHODIST

North Branch Friends Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends.1560 Wyoming Ave. • Forty Fort, PA 18604 • 570-824-5130 • http://northbranch.quaker.org/Adult Class 10:00 AM Sunday Morning (Sept-June)Meeting for Worship 11:15 AM Sunday Morning (Sept-June)Pennsylvania was originally founded as a Quaker colony by William Penn in 1681.We believe in Peace, Nonviolence, Justice and Equality for All.

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Sunday - 9:30AM Bible Studies for All Ages10:30AM Worship & Rootz Children’s Ministry6:00PM Pulse/JAM Youth Ministry

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High Point Baptist Church1919 Mountain Road, Larksville

570-371-4404 • www.highpointchurch.info

“Jesus is Lord!”Come join us as we worship and grow in our relationship

with our Savior, Jesus Christ!

C C C C370 Carverton Rd.Trucksville - 696.0399 - www.crosscreekcc.org

Sunday Morning Contemporary Services9am and 10:45am

Nursery and C4-KIDS for childrenWednesday Family Night - 6:30pm to 8pm

Our Lady of Fatima ParishOur Lady of Fatima ParishSaint Mary’s Church of the Immaculate Conception134 South Washington Street, Wilkes-Barre, PA

www.olfstmarys.weconnect.com

WEEKEND SCHEDULESaturday - 4:00PM

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Sunday Morning Worship Services8:00 AM, 9:45 AM and 11:00 AM

Sunday Evening at 6:30 PM

Wednesday Family Night at 6:30 PM

30 April 29, 2012

To glimpse opportunity, AlShaver needs only to lookout his office window.Outside Dominic’s

Equipment Rental, Shaver’s businessin Monroe Township, WyomingCounty, hecansee the trafficwindingitswayupRoute 309, and there’s con-siderably more of it these days thanthere was a few years ago.

“It’s all gas related, windmill relat-ed, pipeline related,” Shaver said.Sometimes it takes us a couple min-utes to pull out into traffic, there’s somany trucks going by.”Natural-gas drilling farther up

Route 309 bailed Shaver’s businessout of tough financial straits in 2008,he said, as his company picked upbusiness renting construction equip-

ment and vehicles to the gas indus-try.Dominic’s now does about 25 per-

cent of its business with the naturalgas andpipeline industries, andmorerecently with contractors buildingthe Mehoopany Wind Farm just upthe road.Dominic’s has found anicherenting smaller construction vehi-cles, lighting rigs and other site

equipment and dump trucks used tohaulmaterial to build access roads towell pads, Shaver said.“In ’08 I was selling dump trucks; I

was selling off equipment, not pur-chasing it,” he said. “… I had onedump truck; now I have 12 of them,and that is all due to the gas.”

newniche

A

In ‘08 I was selling dump trucks; I was selling off equipment, not purchasing it.I had one dump truck; now I have 12 of them, and that is all due to the gas.”

— Al Shaver, owner of Dominic’s Equipment Rental

Drilling,windfarms,pipelinesrefuelWyomingCountybusiness

By MATT HUGHES/[email protected]

‘‘


Al Shaver, owner of Dominic’sEquipment Rental, is picturedwith triaxle dump trucks he rentsto contractors in the natural gasdevelopment companies

See NICHE, Page 31

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Profile 2012 31

He has also begun haulingwater for the natural gas in-dustry through his other busi-ness, Shaver and Sons, andnow owns five water trucks aswell.

And the extra business hasled to new hires. Shaver saidhe now employs two full-timemechanics, while a few yearsago he would go out of shopfor repairs.

Some of the companieswith which Dominic’s doesbusiness, including Chesa-peake and Talisman Energy,are curtailing drilling in theMarcellus Shale region andparticularly in NortheasternPennsylvania due to the lowprice of natural gas.

Even though constructionof natural gas pipelines andthe Mehoopany Wind Farmare unaffected, the slowdownhas posed a challenge to Shav-er’s business, and the risingcost of diesel fuel hasn’thelped matters. But Shaver

said offering diverse servicesto diverse clients is helpinghim weather the slowdown.

“For me personally every-thing is dumped into a bar-rel,” he said. “Dominic’s,Shaver and Sons and that’sgood for Al Shaver and for 27employees between bothcompanies.

“One has the other one tofall back on to,” he continued.“A lot of my drivers are qual-ified to drive a water truck,and they’re qualified to drive atriaxle dump truck, so we cankeep the employees busy.”

Shaver believes drilling willpick back up, though he ac-knowledges the drilling boomwill not last forever. The de-velopment of infrastructuresuch as water pipelines mayalso lessen the need for someof the transportation serviceshe provides, but Shaver isn’toverly concerned about thatday.

He saw an opportunity andadapted to capitalize on it,and when the time comes, hewill adapt again.

“That’s the only way to sur-vive, being able to fall back onsome different thing,” he said.

NICHEContinued from Page 30


Al Shaver’s business has certainly grown since natural gas and wind farms have come to the area.

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34 April 29, 2012

WILKES-BARRE – At82, Al Boscov lovesthe daily challengesof running a 40-store

empire.Boscov’s opened as The Boston

Store in1879, later becomingFowler,Dick & Walker, The Boston Store;Boscov bought it in 1980, and it’sbeen a staple in the city’s downtownever since.

In the 1950s, The Fowler, Dick &Walker store completed a $5 millionrenovationproject that tooknearly10years. It included an expansion toSouth Franklin Street, the installa-tionofescalatorsandmore floorsanda1,000-vehicle parking facility.Boscov said last month that the

Wilkes-Barre storewill be remodeledsoon. He said the store has been thechain’s top-performing store so far in

2012 – sales are up 14.9 percent, hesaid, noting that the store’s volumeranks 35th in the 40-store corpora-tion.Boscov’s filed for bankruptcy in

2008, and its owner said the corpora-tion cameout of that just fine andhasbeen profitable ever since.“Wilkes-Barre’s improved its

betterthan ever before

Boscov’s owner says Wilkes-Barre store expects remodel

By BILL O’BOYLE/[email protected]

“We work hard at (cour-

tesy). And Wilkes-Barre

and its people have

always been good to us.”— Al Boscov See BOSCOV’S, Page 35

TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTO

Al Boscov walksthrough the down-town Wilkes-BarreBoscov’s store.The store will berenovated soon,Boscov says.

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Profile 2012 35

downtown and that’s helpedour business,” Boscov said.

How does he stay on the cut-ting edge against big-boxchains stores such as Macy’sand JCPenney?

“Who are they?” Boscov jok-ingly asked. “No really, we buyrightandwepass thosesavingson to our customers. It’s as sim-ple as that.”

Add to that customer rela-tions – most of the employeesknow their customers andtheir names.

Chuck Thomas has beenwith Boscov’s for 32 years – hestarted at Fowler Dick andWalker. Thomas, 65, of BearCreek, said the key to thestore’s success is the people –his co-workers and the custom-ers.

“We like what we’re doing,”Thomas said. “We like to helppeople.”

Thomas said all Boscov’semployees realize how impor-tant the store is to the city’s

downtownandtheregion–notto mention their own budgets.

“If Boscov’s wasn’t here,there would be a lot less peoplein this city,” Thomas said.

Ann Marie Kravitz, 55, ofNanticoke, has worked in thecosmetics department for 32years.

“I love it here,” she said. “Ilove working for Mr. Boscov. Iadore him.”

Kravitz also does her shop-ping at Boscov’s. She said thestore has the best sales.

“We have our own custom-ers,” she said. “We have builtsolid relationships.”

Kravitz said her job has al-lowed her to raise her two chil-dren. She said there have beensome tenuous times, but whenBoscov returned to the busi-ness a few years ago, everyonesighed with relief.

Ann Wickizer, 48, of Hanov-er Township, sells boys andgirls clothing on the secondfloor. She’s been at Boscov’s for29 years, loving every minuteof it.

“They care about us,” shesaid. “They work with us. Theyunderstand we have familiesandtheyareveryaccommodat-

ing.”Store manager Tony Geor-

getti said customer service isthe top priority. He said Bos-cov’s has “an honest pricingpolicy” that offers the lowestprices possible to their faithfulcustomers.

“We’re a one-stop shop,” hesaid. “Our customers can buyjust about anything they needhere.”

Georgetti holds a “morningrally” every day to get histroops pumped up. He said hisemployees are ready to go ev-ery day and they look forwardto serving their customers.

And you can bring your chil-dren to see Santa Claus and theEaster Bunny – features manydepartment stores don’t offerthese days.

The escalator creaks as cus-tomers go from floor to floor.The aisles are wide and filledwith merchandise. Customersmeet and chat, and sales peo-ple are eager to help.

Courtesy fills theair themin-ute Boscov’s opens its doors.

“We work hard at it,” Boscovsaid. “And Wilkes-Barre and itspeople have always been goodto us.”

BOSCOV’SContinued from Page 34

DON CAREY/TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTO

Al Boscov, chairman of the board of Boscov’s Department Stores, hugsWilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton during a breakfast gathering at Genet-ti’s in Wilkes-Barre.

36 April 29, 2012

What recession?

Members of theBrown family, who findthemselves marketing

one man’s trash as another’s treasure,opened their fifth consignment shop inLuzerne in November and business isbooming.

“If anything, it’s getting better forus,” said Karen Brown, owner of MySister’s Closet. “We used to have aslow period in January, but now it’sgetting busier and busier.”

She attributes the family’s custom-er-service expertise and the model ofconsignment as major factors for suc-cess during a recession.

During tough times, consigning isa win-win, Brown said. She (or anoth-er member of her family, dependingon which store you visit) will sortthrough the gently used or new itemsbrought into the store. Then she’llput the items out for sale and handover half the profit once they’re offthe rack.

“A lot of times people say they usethe money for gas,” Brown said.“Sometimes people will get theircheck and then end up spending it onthings in the store.”

Brown’s son, 21-year-old Cody, is thenewest entrepreneur of the family,manning Brown’s Got Everything at177 Main St. After tweaking the storeidea a bit, the furniture, housewaresand antiques shop filled up with items

in less than a month.Shoppers get a pretty good deal, too.

Karen Brown estimated buyers cansave up to 75 percent on clothing byshopping consignment.

“We only take name brands,” saidKaren Brown. “And we have sales allyear long. There’s a new sale everyday.”

Karen Brown’s daughters, NicolePerry and Brittany Allen, own Baby

and Beyond, a baby clothing and waresstore, and Rumor Has It, a teen andyoung women’s consignment shop, re-spectively.

Allen’s husband, John, startedJohn’s Consignment Shop for maleshoppers on a budget in 2007.

The stores were born from each oth-er. Brittany Allen said she kept men’sclothing in Rumor Has It, formerly MyTeen’s Closet, for a while before the

need for a men’s-only shopping experi-ence became apparent.

“I have a guy who comes in once aweek, and every morning he brings inhis cup of coffee and shops,” said Brit-tany Allen. “Sometimes families cometogether, and the women will shop inone store and the men or children willshop in another.”

Karen Brown said she got into con-signing when her daughters wereyoung pageant participants. She didn’twant to just toss the ornate (and ex-pensive) dresses they’d worn in com-petitions.

She found a consignment shop inNanticoke and the dresses sold imme-diately. When she told her husbandMurray about the experience, he saidshe should try it herself.

“He said, ‘You could do that,’” KarenBrown said. “He gave me space in hisstore in Wilkes-Barre to try it with hissister.”

She found even more business onceshe moved to the West Side - first toKingston, then to Luzerne. TheBrowns attribute their current loca-tion for their soaring success.

“You can’t lose in Luzerne,” BrittanyAllen said.

And the Browns aren’t the only con-signment shop owners on Main Street– there are three more just a few doorsdown.

“People get addicted to it,” KarenBrown said.

Karen Brown, center, poses in Brown’s Consignment Shop in Luzerne withfamily members Nicole Perry, Cody Brown, John Allen, Brittany Allen, hold-ing John Jr., Trenton Perry and Dylan Perry.

Brown family turns tough times into successful consignment shops

By SARAH HITE/[email protected]

Rackingsalesup

A lot of times people say they use the money for gas.Sometimes people will get their check and then end up spending it on things in the store.”

— Karen Brown‘‘

Profile 2012 37

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40 April 29, 2012

Lisa Giovannini beams agrin while making an in-congruous request:“Please, only write the

good stuff!”As if there’s anything else to

write. Finding a complaint or elic-iting a downside to public schoolteaching from Giovannini would beharder than pulling teeth from ateddy bear.

A 20- year veteran who has seensweeping changes in the profes-

sion, the 44-year-old 5th grade hu-manities teacher at Solomon/Plains Elementary still overflowswith enthusiasm.

High-stakes state tests, dramaticshifts in technology, complex NoChild Left Behind mandates, teach-er bashing almost becoming a na-tional pastime, and huge cuts instate funding all seem like prettyserious impediments to enjoyingthe job. Yet Giovannini bubbles inthe classroom and exudes nothing

but positives out in the halls.“I like kids, I like being with kids

every day. It’s different every day,”she says, the smile never slippingfrom her face.

A Plains Township native andgraduate of Wilkes-Barre AreaSchool District’s Coughlin HighSchool, Giovannini got her degreeat Wilkes University. She said shesubstituted for years before landinga full-time job when Solomon/Plains opened, allowing her to

teach in her home district andhometown.

In the two decades since, she’sweathered the introduction of statetests in math and reading in 1995,the addition of science and writingtests, and the 2002 implementationof No Child Left Behind mandatesrequiring math and reading test re-sults to rise steadily until all stu-dents score proficient or better.

Students continue to inspire Solomon educatorBY MARK GUYDISH/[email protected]

See POSITIVE, Page 41

positive proof


Lisa Giovannini is a 20-year education veteranwho teaches fifth-gradehumanities at Solomon/Plains Elementary.

Profile 2012 41

Those rules raised concerns that testscores would supplant personal atten-tion. “I think I fearedwhenNCLB cameout that we would losesight of student likes anddislikes,” Giovanninisaid. In fact, she creditsthe law with forcingteachers and administra-tors to work togethermore, to ensure test re-sults improve before andafter a child reaches yourclassroom.

“Everybody is ac-countable for all thesestudents,” she said.

Giovannini uses a sim-ple strategy to cope withsharp criticism aimed atteachers. “I don’t talk topeople who are mean tome,” she said with a laugh. “I just tunethem out. Arguing with them is not go-ing to get you anywhere.”

As to the belt tightening in Harris-burg that left districtswith budget gapscausing program cuts and larger class-es, Giovannini is philosophical about

that, too. “I buy a lot of supplies withmyownmoney,” she said. “Because I’mhere, andmy students are here, and I’vegot to make it work.”

There are even more changes barrel-ing down the pike from Washingtonand Harrisburg, including a new teach-er evaluation that uses student statetest results, a “common core curricu-

lum” that will reshapehow things are taught,and more changes inhow the state funds edu-cation that could furthercut intodistrict budgets.

“I have concernsabout all those things,”Giovannini said with yetanother smile. “But wecan’t change what’s go-ing to come down fromHarrisburg.We justhaveto dealwith it, and everyday we have to look atwhat the studentsneed.”

And that’s the themeshe keeps coming back

to in one variation or another. The trickto getting through the rough stuff is tofocus on the reason she’s there: the stu-dents.

“I love my job. If I hit the lottery to-morrow, Iwould still keep cominghere.I would keep coming.”

POSITIVEContinued from Page 40


Lisa Giovannini works with a student.

“I love my job.If I hit the lottery tomor-row, I would stillkeep cominghere. I wouldkeep coming.”

— Lisa Giovanni

42 April 29, 2012

lay landof the

Penn State University Wilkes-Barre’s Surveying Engineer-ing program is the only pro-gramof its kind inPennsylva-

nia In fact, it’s one of only five offeredin the country.

With the average age among profes-sional surveyors in the state of Penn-sylvania at 58, an influx of young tal-ent is waiting – and willing – to be-come the next tier of professionals inthe field.

Add to that, the recent surge of thenatural-gas drilling industry in the ar-ea, andPennsylvania standsprimed togain the most from an emerging engi-neering field.

“Right now, Northern Pennsylvaniais where everyone is going,” said Dr.Charles Ghilani, Penn State Universi-ty Wilkes-Barre professor of engineer-ing.

Involved in education since 1974,Ghilani holds a doctorate and mas-

ter’s degree in civil and environmentalengineering from the University ofWisconsin-Madison, and a bachelor’sdegree in mathematics and educationfrom the University of Wisconsin-Mil-waukee.

He has spent the last 22 years teach-ing surveying engineering at PennState.

“I’ve watched the program gothrough spurts,” he said. “But it’spicked up in the past five years.”

Third-year student Ryan White sawan opportunity to enter a field able toboast relatively sound job security –even in a poor economy.

However, having worked as a sur-veyor for almost four years, Whitelacked the license needed to become adecision-maker in the field.

A surveying engineer earns be-tween $70,000 and $95,000 in most

Even in a recession where no one was getting hired, our students were.”— Dr. Charles Ghilani, Penn State University Wilkes-Barre professor of engineering

Surveying engineering program drawing more studentsBy JOE DOLINSKY / Times Leader Correspondent

See SURVEYING, Page 44

‘‘CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/FOR

THE TIMES LEADER

Third-year surveyengineering student

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cases, with the salary mostly influen-ced by experience and, of course, per-formance.“I knew I needed a degree to contin-

ue,” he said.White enrolled inPennStateWilkes-

Barre’s four-year baccalaureate pro-gram in surveying engineering, citingthe job security as a major motivator.“I originally went to school to be a

civil engineer, but didn’t like the oddscompared to being a surveying engi-neer,” he said.In what has been a see-saw econo-

my, surveyors are in high demand.“Even in a recession where no one

was getting hired, our students were,”Ghilani said.Land surveyors, aswell as surveying

technicians, held nearly 147,000 jobsin theUnited States in 2008, accordingto the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.That leaves employers scouting for

technicians and professionals to fillbudding positions.“We’re not even close to putting out

enough students,” Ghilani said.Nonetheless, Penn State’s program

keeps churning out professionals inthe field.Justin Brezovsky, ’07 B.S. Surveying

Engineering, had significant expecta-tions when he first stepped onto cam-pus.“I had high expectations,” he said.

“But they were met and exceeded.”Brezovsky was immediately im-

pressed with the diverse knowledge ofthe faculty.“They each have their own specialty

and professional background,” he said.“I benefited from small class sizes

andbeing able toworkoneononewithsuch a diverse faculty,” he added.Acertainmeasureofdiversity canal-

so be applied to the degree itself.It is estimated that for each profes-

sional land surveyor, a minimum offour technicians are required to helpgather, reduce and map data.PennStateWilkes-Barre’s Surveying

Engineering program offers studentsthe opportunity to become both.Students interested in the field can

choose between two tracts to follow:the two-year associate’s program andthe four-year baccalaureate program.At Penn StateWilkes-Barre’s School

of Engineering, the two-year associatedegree in Surveying Technology is de-signed to place technicians into pri-vate and public sectors of the survey-ing profession.

Ultimately, its purpose is to providestudents with the technical skills tosolve problems typically encounteredin boundary, construction, photo-grammetric and topographic survey-ing.The four-year degree in Survey-

ing Engineering, directly devel-oped with the help of the Board ofDirectors of the Pennsylvania So-ciety of Land Surveyors, was specif-ically created in response to thegrowing need of professionals in thefield of land surveying.The degree itself is designed to give

students all the tools necessary to be-come a professional land surveyor,able to proficiently applymethods andknowledge to perform surveys andanalyze the results produced.Recent advances in technology

make gathering those results mucheasier.Most surveyors use electronic dis-

tance and angle measuring equip-ment, as well as the traditional transitand tape.Today, somesurveyorsmayevenuse

satellite positioning equipment as ameasuring tool, making gathering da-ta much easier.

Modern computer systems aid in ef-ficiently gathering measurements andin evaluating all collected evidence re-quired to perform the survey.Despite these advances, the success

behind each professional surveyor liesin the tools taught to them duringtheir education.“The real part of the degree isn’t just

about gathering data, but being able to

analyze and interpret it,” Ghilani said.Whenasked to analyze and interpret

the jobmarket,Ghilani didn’t need anymeasuring tools.“Right now, prospects couldn’t be

better,” he said.Those prospects are only expected

to grow, with the rate of job growth forsurveyors expected to grow19 percentbetween 2012 and 2018.

SURVEYINGContinued from Page 42

CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

Survey engineering student Ryan White and Dr. Charles Ghilani, Penn State Wilkes-Barre Campus, mount a GPSreceiver on a tripod for surveying work. ’Our students don’t know about the recession,’ he says. ’Most of them findjobs after graduation.’

A Topcon laser scanner provides state-of-the-art scanning capabilities tosurveying and engineering students.

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Profile 2012 49

Many people haveread about the clos-ing of Catholicschools through-

out the Wyoming Valley, but forJames Jones, they were morethan a newspaper headline: Theywere part of his life.Jones is the principal of Good

Shepherd Academy, a school

formed in 2007 in the aftermathof the closingof fiveotherCathol-ic schools: Sacred Heart Schoolsin both Wilkes-Barre and Lu-zerne, Regis Academy in FortyFort, St. Boniface inWilkes-Barreand Bishop O’Reilly Junior/Se-nior High School. It was a bigchallenge to integrate studentsfrom all the schools, Jones said,

but therewasanevenbigger chal-lenge.“Students are very resilient,”

Jones said. “The environmentand teaching style here modeledon where they came from, andthey were quickly at ease. Theparents, on the other hand ... theywere invested and attached totheir schools.”

The team that came togetherto form the new school saw thatattachment as an asset, Jonessaid.“That investment is a good

thing. It shows theyhave a vestedinterest in their kids’ educationand see the school as their home,

BILL TARUTIS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

Former Gate of Heaven School student Anthony Grandinetti of Dallas, third from left, checks out a book from librarian Susan McFarlane, right, as fellow students MollyMcHale of Kingston and Jeremy Mayerski of Pringle wait in line at Good Shepherd Academy in Kingston.

Parents and teachers fold closed schools into new home

By JANINE UNGVARSKY/Times Leader Correspondent

good

news

See GOOD NEWS, Page 53

50 April 29, 2012

facedistricts

changeT

ightening budgets and shift-ing demographics are dra-matically reshaping areaschool districts, both phys-

ically and in the curricula. The days ofconsistency seem longgone as admin-istrators struggle to adapt to ever-changing demands.

“It’s going to be like making brickswithout straw,” Dallas Superintend-

ent FrankGalicki said, referring to thebiblical story of the Egyptian pharaohwithholding straw slaves needed tomake bricks for monuments.

Districts are getting less moneyfrom the state, thanks mostly to theend of federal stimulus funds, butmust still meet state and federal man-dates, Galicki and others noted. AfterGov. TomCorbett took office last year

and curbed what had been a steadyannual increase in state money, dis-tricts responded by closing schools,eliminating programs and not replac-ing retiring teachers.

School closings also led to reconfi-guring grades in some cases. WhenNorthwest Area closed Garrison Ele-mentary, it converted the remainingtwo elementary schools to grade cen-

ters, one housing all kindergartenthrough second grade students, theother taking third through sixthgrade. Proponents of such grade clus-ters – becoming increasingly com-mon – contend the arrangementmakes it easier for teachers to collab-orate and implement changes.

Schools struggle to adapt to budget cuts, smaller staffs


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Districts are trying less con-ventional approaches as well.Dallas launched an educationfoundation, a nonprofit that cancollect contributions to help off-set education costs.Wilkes-BarreArea is mulling reactivating adormant foundation. Lake-Leh-man is hoping its foundation, re-vived about four years ago andnow helping cover small costsand provide scholarships, willgrow into a more substantialsource of income, Superintend-ent Jim McGovern said.“Alternative funding is going

to be the future of education,”McGovern said, “You’re going tosee the commercialization ofeducation.”Local school boards have be-

gun publicly mulling ways to getmoney out of large corporations,including talk of sponsorshipsand naming rights.Corbett has done more than

simply curb state spending; hehas dramatically shifted howmoney is doled out, lumping sev-eral budget line items togetherunder a new “Student AcademicAchievement Block Grant.”Corbett “inherited a budget

that provided $250 million state-wide in Accountability blockgrants, which we used for full-day kindergarten. He eliminatedthat,” Hazleton Area Superin-tendent Francis Antonelli noted.“We previously had another $229million for charter school tuitionreimbursement when our stu-dents attended a charter school,he eliminated that. He also elim-inated $50 million that went to-ward tutorial services.”Despite all this, Antonelli said

the district avoided cutting

teacher staff last year, “But it be-comes more difficult to do aseach year passes and money be-comes even more scarce.”Unlikemost local districts, Ha-

zleton Area is coping with thesecuts while enrollment soars. Thedistrict is converting a buildingin the Can-Do Corporate Centerin Butler Township into a “mag-net” high school that focus onScience, Technology, Engineer-ing and Math learning, a fairlycommon idea elsewhere but newto Luzerne County. The districtalso is converting the formerBishop Hafey High School to akindergarten through eighthgrade school to alleviate over-crowding, and expanding McA-doo/Kelayres elementary with15 more classrooms.All the construction work is

paid for by issuing bonds andma-naging long-term debt, Antonellistressed. The district is stillforced to cope with less money

from the state, like everyone else.It’s familiar turf to Greater

Nanticoke Area SuperintendentAnthony Perrone, who is oftencredited with saving the districtfrom bankruptcy more than adecade ago.“It’s different this time in that it

was our fault last time,” Perronesaid. This crunch is caused byfactors beyond district control.“Last year we cut teaching staff,this yearwe’re cutting in other ar-eas, possibly the support staff. Idon’t like to do that.”Districts are facing a flurry of

changes beyond the budget. Thestate is implementing a newteacher evaluation system thatrelies partly on student state testresults. The state also is adoptingthe “Common Core Standards”recommended by the federal gov-ernment as a way to assure moreuniform curriculum in key sub-jects. And the state is implement-ing high stakes “Keystone ex-

ams” in several subjects that stu-dents will be required to pass be-fore graduating fromhigh school.There’s also a growing issue of

catering to students who opt forcyber schooling, attending pub-lic school online at home. Somedistricts have begun offeringtheir own online learning whileothers are moving in that direc-tion.Despite themyriad challenges,

local superintendents tend tostay upbeat about their own dis-trict’s fate, primarily by trying tokeep the focus on students.“The governor can continue to

make the rules and we’ll contin-ue to be successful,” McGovernsaid, “Because I don’t give a hootas long as we’re showing pro-gress.”Districts can and will reinvent

themselves, he added, offering asentiment voiced by others. “Ourgoal is simple: We want to makegood people.”

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Alternative funding is going to be the future of education.

You’re going to see the commercialization of education.”— Lake-Lehman Superintendent Jim McGovern‘‘

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too.Weshowed themthat theywere leavingone home and the doors were opening on anew home.”To ease that transition, Jones said, he

worked with a core team made up of repre-sentatives of each of the original schools.“We were never given a guide to know

how toopen anewschool, butwehad a coreteam made up of five parents from eachschool and we systematically planned ev-erything, from the uniforms to the text-books to the cafeteria service, athletics, ex-tracurricular activities — everything. Theownership was by the parents from the con-solidated schools,” he said.There were some bumps along the road,

mostly because they were converting the for-mer Bishop O’Reilly High School into an ele-mentary school and faced problems such ashaving little children using big-kid sinks. Butthe parents and staff that made up the teamfound ways to overcome both the practicalconcerns and the worries of parents and stu-dents.Theyapplied these lessonswhenGoodShepherd later took in the children from St.Aloysius in Wilkes-Barre, and then Gate ofHeaven in Dallas and St. Mary’s Assumptionin Pittston. The Dallas and Pittston closingshelped swell the school by 166 students lastyear alone.The persistent support of Bishop Joseph

Bambera, a strong supporter of Catholiceducation, and thededicationof theparentswent a long way towardmaking what couldhave been a challenge an easy transition,Jones said.

“We tried at the end of last school year toreally smooth the transition,” said Jones,adding that the parents’ group ran an AlohaDance for current and future students. Thedance, combined with numerous openhouses, helped make Good Shepherd feellike home right from the start for the newstudents.“GoodShepherdAcademy is family, and I

think that we know our children and ourchildren know us. We greet them at thedoor,” Jones said. “We meet and serve theneeds of our children at every level, andwe’redoing itwell.Thegoodword is gettingout there and that goodword is Good Shep-herd.”

BILL TARUTIS PHOTOS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

Members of a seventh-grade class race around the gymnasium during a physicaleducation class at Good Shepherd Academy in Kingston.

GOOD NEWSContinued from Page 49

Principal James Jones, right, and VicePrincipal Mary Jane Kozick stand outsideof Good Shepherd Academy in Kingston.

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Profile 2012 59

To say that it’s been challeng-ing for the Wilkes-BarreBears to overcome an embez-zlement case would be an un-

derstatement.The local youth football nonprofit or-

ganization, which helps youngstersfrom low-income families accomplishgoals in athletics, lost more than$24,000when its treasurerwas chargedwith and convicted of stealing moneyover a three-year span.Circumstances got so bad that orga-

nizers couldn’t even buy soda for theconcession stand and the entire 2006season was in jeopardy due to the out-standing debt.But the Bears – a team comprising

football players and cheerleaders ages6-14 from the Wyoming Valley – re-bounded that year. After about fouryears of recuperation, the team is thriv-ing.“Everything is in thepast andwe’re in

thebest financial shapewe’ve ever beenin now,” said Ray Lauer, who has beenthe Bears’ president for five years and apart of the organization for the past sev-en. “I can’t thank the communityenough. When that was going on, wehad nothing.”Lauer, whose wife, Stacey, is the

Bears’ head cheerleading coach, helpedcontribute to helpwith the debt, and sodid several other people in the commu-nity.

The football club, which competes inthe Northern Area Junior FootballLeague (NAJFL) and does not have alimit of players for either of its threeteams, stronglydependson its financialstate because of the low cost of $35 forplayers to participate. The average reg-istration cost in the NAJFL is $85.The Bears and Lauer also provide

some transportation to games for play-ers and cheerleaders – some games areplayed more than 50 miles away – andthe team provides all equipment.The club recently upgraded the field

onO’BrienDrive in the Parsons sectionof Wilkes-Barre thanks to the help ofvolunteers.The organization has added a newer

storage trailer, a walk-in freezer andnew uniforms. A scoreboard was alsoadded after receiving an old basketballscoreboard and weatherproofing it.The upgrades were a necessity becausethe NAJFL requires teams to have ascoreboard to host a playoff game.“It’s aheckof a lotnicer for thekids to

see a score,” Lauer added. “As a privateorganization, we’re trying to get upwith the times.”The Leadership Wilkes-Barre Class

of 2012 has taken on the Bears as one ofits projects for this year.In addition to Lauer, Wilkes-Barre

Bears officers are vice president KarenSchmidt, secretary Lynell Ent and trea-surer Tara Zielinski.

Youth football organization now flourishingafter fighting its way out of debt

By DAVE ROSENGRANT/[email protected]


The Wilkes-Barre Bearsequipment trailer is locat-ed at their football field inParsons. The team facedmoney problems head onand is now flourishing.

gobears!

60 April 29, 2012

The biggest obstacles are not al-ways the most obvious ones.For local charitable organiza-

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er.Just as important, however, is evolving

to suit the community, helping to main-tain those levels of support.For the YMCA, which has been on

Northampton Street in Wilkes-Barresince 1933, striving to adapt was part of

the motivation behind the building’s$5.7million renovation that is nearingcompletion.Executive director Jim Thomas, who

joined the organization in 1980, has seen

community

countsYMCA,Back MountainRecreation respondto new needs,new times

By DEREK LEVARSE/[email protected]

See COMMUNITY, Page 61

BILL TARUTIS PHOTOS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

Kelsey Williamsof HanoverTownship triesout the station-ary bicycles atthe new YMCAWellness Center.

Dan Schultz, Kingston, runs on the treadmill atthe YMCA Wellness Center.

Jeff Hanadel, Swoyersville, has little troublelifting 225 pounds on the bench at the YMCA.

Laura Zdancewicz, Larksville, monitors her pro-gress on a hand cycle at the YMCA.

Profile 2012 61

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plenty of changes in his timethere.“We’ve tried to be able to fill a

need, whatever that might be inthe community,” Thomas said.“The ‘Y’ has a way of adaptingitself. Twenty years ago we werenot big in daycare; now 200 kidscome here daily.“What’s in our new wellness

center, all of the cardio equip-ment, we didn’t used to havethat. It used to be it was thegym or the pool that was fea-tured, but now this has becomewhat people do when they workout.”The wellness center opened

in January, a strength trainingroom in March and a spinningroom in April. Filling anotherrole, the building will beginleasing apartments geared to-ward college students in June.Looking ahead, one possibil-

ity is getting involved with a

national diabetes program – fo-cusing on both prevention andhelp for those afflicted – thatother YMCAs are adopting.Likewise, Back Mountain Rec

has looked to provide a varietyof opportunities to the area. Thegroup has incorporated conser-vation, youth sports and hikingtrails under its umbrella withroom still to expand.Significant gifts were an-

nounced in 2008 as donationsfrom three area families helpedfurther develop the 130-acrecomplex. A lacrosse field and

two soccer fields were namedfor the donors. Those threecomprise the upper fields, withfour more soccer fields (twofull-size) and a football fieldmaking up the lower.The property, off Outlet Road

in Lehman Township, also con-tains an environmental study ar-ea.It’s a big difference from the

start of the project, which start-ed off as “nothing but cow pas-tures and woods,” as BackMountain Recreation Inc. presi-dent Rick Coslett described it.

The group also sponsors pro-grams for football, lacrosse andsoccer.Both Back Mountain Rec and

the Wilkes-Barre YMCA haveworked to meet challenges bybeing more than just a physicalplace for Luzerne County.“When people think of com-

munity centers, sometimes youonly look and see the building,the property,” Thomas said.“But it’s important to do a lot ofthings outside this facility. Itfurther helps the community bygetting people active.”

COMMUNITYContinued from Page 60

‘‘We’ve tried to be able to fill a need, whatever

that might be in the community. The ‘Y’ has a way of adapting itself.”— Jim Thomas, Executive Director

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64 April 29, 2012

FRED ADAMS PHOTOS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

Stephanie Jallen works outat Danko’s Fitness Center in

Plains Township with freeweights as her strength

trainer Earnie Baul looks on.The 16-year-old Harding resi-

dent and honor student atWyoming Area High School

became a U.S. national cham-pion by winning the gold

medal in slalom at the Water-ville Valley Resort in New

Hampshire last year, and wasselected to the U.S. ski teamthat will compete in the 2014Paralympics in Sochi, Russia.

Profile 2012 65

Before she became a nationalchampion on the ski slopes,before she started givingspeeches moving enough to

overpower emotions of state lawmak-ers, Stephanie Jallen was a little girlwith a big problem.Only she never saw it that way.Jallen was born with CHILDS Syn-

drome, which left her entire left sideunderdeveloped and caused the am-putation of her left leg when she wasan infant.But her hardship never stunted her

growth.“The cards you’re dealt with are the

cards you have,” Jallen said with ashrug. “Why not have fun with it?Why not fold it into paper airplanes?”Her skiing career is in full flight

now.The 16-year-old Harding resident

and honor student at Wyoming AreaHigh School became a U.S. nationalchampion by winning the gold medalin slalom at the Waterville Valley Re-sort in New Hampshire last year andwas selected to the U.S. ski team thatwill compete in the 2014 Paralympicsin Sochi, Russia.Because of her success on the ski

slopes, Jallen has become a hot ticketon the motivational-speaking circuit.Five years ago, she was invited by

then state Rep. Raphael Musto toshare her inspiring story in front ofthe Pennsylvania Senate,She doesn’t remember much of

what she said that day, but she vividlyrecalls the impression she made.

“They were crying,” Jallen said ofthe room full of senators. “That wasthe only time I saw that many men intears. Right now, if I were told, ‘Gospeak in the Senate,’ I’d be absolutelyterrified.“But I was 11 years old.”Yet, she was old enough at the time

to know her potential was practicallylimitless.From the age of 7, when Jallen first

attempted to ski, she set her goal ofmaking the Paralympics.“Skiing gives me a reason and a

purpose to stay in shape,” said thedaughter of Deb and Mike Jallen.“Having the disability that I have putsme in a situation where it is critical tostay in shape, so I can do simplethings like walking and carryingthings easily.”As fluid as she makes her life ap-

pear, there have been difficult times.“When she was younger, she knew

she was different,” Deb Jallen said.“She had her friends. (But) she didn’tfit in when it came to going to themall and going to the movies.”

It got Stephaniepretty down oneday, her mom said.“That was the on-

ly time I ever sensedher feeling asthough she didn’t fit

in,” Deb Jallen said. “She understoodwhy. She never complained about it.She knew her place in life at a veryyoung age.”That place, it turns out, is at the

top of the mountain.Earnie Baul, Stephanie’s strength

coach at Danko’s American Fitness,marvels at the way his young protégécan leap a monster truck tire in onebound and change direction on adime while doing lateral leapsthrough a row of squares withouttouching the lines that separate them.I teach her strength to get the

skill,” Baul said.And now, everyone’s awed by the

way this paralympic skier effortlesslyspeeds down the slopes.“I couldn’t go down a mountain on

a sled that fast,” Baul said.All because Stephanie Jallen never

looked her at hardship as somethingthat was hard to overcome.“The way I look at it, everybody

looks different,” she said. “The phys-ical appearance never really mattered.Every day is overcoming a challenge– simple things like buttoning mypants, tying my shoe in the morning.Everything’s a new challenge. Everyday is a gift, not a given right.“I think that’s a good way to live.”

view topfromthe

Paralympic skier Stephanie Jallen takes each day to new heights

By PAUL SOKOLOSKI/[email protected]

The cards you’re dealt with are the cards you have.Why not have fun with it? Why not fold it into paper airplanes?”

— Stephanie Jallen

Stephanie Jallen works out at Danko’s Fitness Center in Plains Townshipjump up and down on a large tire.

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stage lovecommunities show thEIr

On a recent Friday after school, 16-year-old Tyler Ocasio fell to the carpetedfloor and moaned that he was givingbirth to a chinchilla.Orperhaps anen-

tire litter.And, no, this was not science fiction.Welcome to an improv workshop in the base-

ment of the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre,where SecondCity comediansBarryHite andAn-gela Dawe, several hours before their show thatevening, encouraged students from Meyers HighSchool drama club to shed their inhibitions.“You’regonnalookdumbforthenexthouranda

half. You’re gonna look ridiculous,” Hite said, be-fore the aspiring thespians launched into solosinging, carrying imaginary weights and panto-miming activities as diverse as starting a lawnmower, braiding hair and…um…giving birth. Toan imaginary rodent.“This is a great experience,”Meyers teacherAl-

ice Fink whispered as the class continued.From the Dietrich Theater in Tunkhannock to

theAliceC.Wiltsie PerformingArtsCenter inHa-zleton – and of course at the Kirby Center – threehistoric buildings regularly host entertainmentranging from classic rock to illusionists to Broad-way-style shows.There’s also awhole lot of learning going on for

people of all ages, said Carisa Tyler of Tunkhan-nock, who brought her 5-year-old daughter, Tier-ney, to theDietrich for aWednesday-morningpre-schoolnatureclass,duringwhichthechildrenmeta live owl.“I was born and raised in Southern California,”

Tyler said, “This reminds me of what they havethere.”“Theyhave really developed this into a commu-

nity-resource center,” Tabitha Powell of Tunkhan-nock said as her 3-year-old daughter, Sophia, col-ored an owl mask.The Dietrich is more than a place for people to

visit, executive director Jennifer Jenkins said. Itbelongs to the community. People proved howmuch they care when flooding hit the theater inSeptember, just days before a Fall Film Festivalwas to take place.“Hundreds showed up to help, and we were so

grateful,” Jenkins said. “They came from Dallas,fromScranton, fromWilkes-Barre.Theycamecar-ryingbucketsof supplies. Itwas smelly andmoldyand dirty and no one complained.”Those who weren’t up to ripping out carpeting

or replacing walls helped in other ways.“They fed us every day,” Jenkins said.

From volunteering to donating to flood cleanup,locals get into the act of supporting theaters

By MARY THERESE BIEBEL/[email protected]

BILL TARUTIS//FOR THE TIMES LEADER

The Dietrich Theater suffered flood damagebut is open again after community support.

BILL TARUTIS/FOR THE TIMES LEADER

A kiln in the basement of the Dietrich The-ater allows for ceramic projects.


The Alice C. Wiltsie Performing Arts Centerin Hazleton was remodeled in 2007.

F.M. KIRBY CENTER FORTHE PERFORMING ARTS1938: Opens as Comerford1986: Darkened for years, theater reopensas F.M. Kirby Center after community funddrive.2006: Community raises more funds forrefurbishing2011-2012: 25th-anniversary season

DIETRICH THEATER1936: Built by George Dietrich1980s: Closes, unable to compete with mallmovies1998: Friends of theater begin work to save itApril 2001: Theater reopensSept 2011: Despite flooding, theater iscleaned up and hosts film festival nextweek.

ALICE C. WILTSIE CENTER1926: Built at Hazleton High School1998: Scheduled for demolition, whichdoesn’t take place2003-2007: Hazleton Area School Districtremodels most of building for elementary/middle school.Autumn 2011: Thanks to fund drive, unfin-ished auditorium is now state of the art.Grand opening brings band ‘Chicago’ totown.

A BRIEF TIMELINE

See STAGE, Page 69

Profile 2012 69

By opening night the Dietrichstill showed some signs of its or-deal. “You could see the drywall.The floors were bare,” Jenkinssaid.

Yet people gathered for the gala,and watched the movies, asplanned. The mood was one of ex-citement, sherecalled,because theDietrich was recovering. “Itshowed Tunkhannock could comeback.”

Just as many peo-ple pitched in to helpTunkhannock’s Die-trich Theater afterthe flooding, manyhelped bring to lifethe Alice C. WiltsiePerformingArtsCen-ter in Hazleton.

TheWiltsieCenteris part of a spacious,marble-floored struc-ture that was built in1926 as the HazletonHigh School. Withturrets and wallsconces and a $1 mil-lion price tag (thefirst school buildingin Pennsylvania tocost that much) theold high school wasaffectionately knownas “The Castle.”

But by 1998, thebuilding had lost some of its lusterand was scheduled for the wreck-ing ball. Former Hazleton MayorMichael Marsicano, however, re-fusedtosignthepermit fordemoli-tion.

Forsixyearstwolocalmen,TomGabos and Bob Tombasco, volun-teered for caretaking duties andearned the nickname “Keepers ofthe Castle.”

“If they needed to tar the roof,we’dgetthemsomebucketsof tar,”said Elaine Maddon Curry, whowas on the school board at thetime.

By January 2007, the buildingwas renovated and rededicated asthe Hazleton Middle and Elemen-tary School, but the auditorium re-mained unfinished.

Curry and fellow school boardmembers Carmella Yenkevich andSteven Hahn soon found them-selves on a committee determined

to create a community center.“We told ourselves, ‘We can do

this,’ ” Curry said.“And some days, we said, ‘We

can do this, can’t we?’ ” Hahn saidwith a laugh.

The undertaking was massive,but community members lovedtheir old school.

Dr. Stanley Yamulla, a memberof the class of 1937, made the firstsizable donation, followed bymany other organizations and peo-ple who gave what they could af-ford.

“Alumni classes tried to outdoeachother,”Yenkevichsaid.“Someclasses ‘bought’ a whole row of

seats.”“And the people

who gave $5 or $10,that was just asmeaningful” as thelarger amounts,board member To-ny Cusatis said.

Members of theWiltsie Centerboard of directorspoint proudly tostate-of-the-artlighting and soundequipment and arejust as pleased thatthe performing artscenter can enrichpeople’s lives,whether senior citi-zensareattendingaBroadway showclose to home or acorporate sponsoris setting aside tick-

ets that can be given to a needyfamily.

“We’re here to serve the under-served,” Curry said.

Similar programs take place atthe Kirby Center, which distrib-utes hundreds of free tickets eachyear through social-service agen-cies.

One of her biggest joys, execu-tive director Marilyn Santarellisaid, is to see children attendingtheir first theatrical shows.

The Kirby and the people wholove it have a kind of synergy, evi-denced by the fund drive of the1980s, spearheaded by entrepre-neur Al Boscov, and the 2006 driveto “keep the brass doors open.”

“Withoutthesupportofthecom-munity, we would not be here,”Santarelli said as the Kirby cele-brated the silver anniversary of itsrebirth. “We just want to say thankyou to the community.”

STAGEContinued from Page


ABOVE LEFT: Stu-dents fromMeyersHigh School dramaclub participate in animprov workshop inthe basement of theF.M. Kirby Center inWilkes-Barre withSecond City comedi-ans Barry Hite andAngela Dawe.

BILL TARUTIS/THE TIMES LEADER

BOTTOM LEFT:Four-year-old AvaLeslie of Tunkhan-nock gets a close-upview of a horned owlat the Dietrich Thea-ter in Tunkhannock.

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There are a few old hotspotsin Wyoming and Sullivancounties where Dallas resi-dent Russ Bigus won’t

hunt anymore.It’s not that those places where Bi-

gus often found turkey and deer nolonger produce -- they simply nolonger exist.

Well pads, access roads and pipe-lines for Marcellus Shale drilling op-erations have claimed some of theareas that hunters, such as Bigus,enjoyed for years. The increase indrilling activity is forcing some out-door enthusiasts to move elsewhereto find opportunities, and Bigushopes such impacts are temporary.

“Right now I’m not too terriblyupset because hopefully in a fewyears things will return back to nor-mal,” he said.

Bigus has seen the most impactson areas where he hunts for springgobbler. A well pad in WyomingCounty removed the large roosttrees that attracted turkeys, he said,while another series of pads nearWyalusing resulted in a 10-acreclearing of what used to be a primehunting spot.

“I’m going to walk away fromthose areas for a few years,” Bigussaid. “The turkeys have moved outof those areas so I’ll go somewhere

else.”Since gas drilling moved into the

northeast corner of the state severalyears ago, the Pennsylvania GameCommission has heard concernsfrom hunters and trappers about theindustry impacting the areas theyhunt and trap. Although an agencysurvey has found that MarcellusShale activity isn’t necessarily forc-ing hunters away from the sport, theGame Commission does take stepsto lessen the impacts on hunters andtrappers.

PGC spokesman Jerry Feaser saidin situations where the agency doesown the oil/gas rights on StateGame Land, there are provisions inplace so drilling activity doesn’t co-incide with the peak hunting sea-son.

“If the Game Commission ownsthe rights to the subsurface re-source, we can stipulate that nodrilling, road or pipeline construc-tion activities be permitted duringpeak hunting seasons,” Feaser said.

Standard language in all leaseagreements with the PGC statesthat drilling activities are not per-mitted during the opening days ofarchery, youth and special-use sea-sons, early fall muzzleloader, smallgame, fall and spring turkey andbear. In addition, drilling activities

aren’t allowed during the first threedays and all Saturdays of the rifledeer season.

“In situations where the GameCommission doesn’t own the oil andgas rights, the agency can’t preventthe operator from exercising hisrights in a reasonable manner,”Feaser said. “We do strive for volun-tary agreement to our standardhunting season restrictions withthose companies.”

Still, the impacts of gas drilling onhunting are more than just surfacedisturbances.

Bigus said there are some areas ofgame lands that, even though thereis no drilling occurring on the prop-erty, activity from adjoining parcelsthat have been leased make it diffi-cult to hunt.

“The noise coming from the drill-ing on the neighboring propertiescan be bad,” Bigus said. “There werea few places during last spring’s tur-key season that you just couldn’thear anything because of the noise.It should only be a temporary im-pact, but I still avoid those areas.”

Pete Sussenbach, land manage-ment supervisor for the PGC’sNortheast Region, said steps weretaken to avoid conflicts with hunt-ing activity in 2010 when gas compa-nies conducted seismic testing on

game lands in Bradford, Sullivanand Susquehanna counties.

“Just the sheer volume of activityon the game lands during that timewas generating complaints, specifi-cally from archery hunters who de-pend on natural deer movement,”Sussenbach said. “They were beingnegatively impacted.”

To remedy the problem, the PGCprohibited seismic testing on thegame lands during all of the fall andwinter hunting seasons and againfor the spring gobbler season.

Sussenbach said he hasn’t re-ceived many complaints from hun-ters regarding drilling, but GilesEvans, owner of Brady and CavanySporting Goods in Tunkhannock,said he has heard from many hun-ters who said they had to give uptheir hunting spots due to the pres-ence of gas wells.

Even after the drilling has beencompleted, Evans said, the huntersoften don’t return because the land-scape has changed.

And finding a new place to go maynot be easy as drilling increases,Evans said.

“You had your place that you setyour heart on, a place that was a tra-dition for you to hunt, and now it’sgone,” he said. “It could be tough tofind another place like that to hunt.”

A balance in

‘‘

nature

If the Game Commission owns the rights to the

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activities be permitted during peak hunting seasons.”— Jerry Feaser, PGC spokesman

Sportsmen encounter the challenges of drilling industry

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78 April 29, 2012

During dismal economictimes, it can be difficult tochoose which nonprofit or-ganizations, if any, are

most deserving of your hard-earneddollars.Leaders of Community Cares for

Kids, a charity for which plastic sur-geons travel annually to Ecuador toremedy children’s physical deformities,

say every last donated penny issqueezed to ensuremaximum benefit.“Oneof the things that’s verydisturb-

ing involunteerwork is thehighadmin-istrativecosts,” saidSusanCollini,pres-identof theorganization.“Morethan90percent of themoneywe receive is usedfor themission.”The team of surgeons, who come

from all over the country, is led by Dr.

Francis Collini, of Dallas Township,who along with Susan, his wife, runsthe Renaissance Center for Plastic Sur-gery in Shavertown.Community Cares for Kids was

formed in 2006, but Dr. Collini previ-ously had worked with another organi-zation, Hands Healing Hearts. He’sbeen making yearly trips to Ecuadorsince1997.

Dr. Collini and teams of medical pro-fessionals spend up to a week perform-ing back-to-back surgeries. Most oftheir work focuses on reconstructivesurgery performed on young childrensuffering from cleft lips and palates orclubbed feet.Medical supplies are donated, and


Karen Turi, a registered nurse at The Renaissance Center in Shavertown, has traveled to Ecuador three times with Dr. Francis Collini and the CommunityCares for Kids program. This is a poster of one of the children helped.

By SARAH HITE/[email protected]

See EFFORT, Page 79

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Profile 2012 79

thoughsomeareoutdatedforU.S.doctors, the tools might be leapsand bounds above what Ecuador-ian doctors have available. SusanCollini said the most expensiveaspects of the group’s work aretravel and anesthesia costs.

“Anesthesia drugs are not read-ily available even here, so we haveto pay for it,” she said.

Susan Collini said last year’strip cost about $34,000. The num-berschangeregularly,butkeepinga close eye on the fiscal situationand working hard at fundraisingefforts ensure the trips continue.

“Even in our own backyard, wehad the flood last year, and every-one was directly or indirectly af-

fected by it,” Susan Collini said.“We just make more phone calls,more personal appeals – it’s a

numbers game.”Juliane von Schmeling, the or-

ganization’s secretary, said the

fundraising staff has had to workharder to keep the mission afloatin recent years, but stopping thetrips is not an option.

She also said the public may al-sobewaryofdonating toacharitythat doesn’t support local causes.Susan Collini said the organiza-tion does offer its services to any-one who needs it – the group re-cently aided its first local surgery,a boy from Shickshinny with cleftpalate complications. Children inThird World countries are oftenleft to die with these common dis-figurements.

“Most children here (in theUnited States) don’t fall throughthe cracks,” she said. “We alsotake very seriously the education-al aspect of our organization, andwe try to teach the Ecuadoriandoctors the latest techniques forperforming this type of surgery.”

In 2008, the organization had

its first patient brought to the Re-naissance Center from the Philip-pines, and the entire process wasalldonation- andvolunteer-based.The group even managed to snagthe flight for the nearly 8,500 miletrip at no cost.

“A friend donated his frequent-flier miles – he had over 200,000miles,” said Susan Collini. “We doas much as we can because wecherish the money we do receiveand so we don’t want to use it ar-bitrarily. It’s always been thatway.”

Susan Collini said the Renais-sance Center’s cosmetic surgerypractice “ebbs and flows with theeconomy,” but its reconstructivepractice is busier than ever.

“It allows us the opportunity todo our benevolent work for chil-dren globally, as we subsidizemuch of Community Cares forKids’ expenses,” she said.

EFFORTContinued from Page 78


Lily, a young Filipino girl, was recommended to Dr. Collini by a localpatient and came to Wilkes-Barre for corrective surgery.

80 April 29, 2012

They diagnose, heal, and pro-vide medication to treat andprevent ailments. They offersocial services to help those

who are downtrodden get back ontheir feet. There is a general feeling ofcomfort and compassion given to arearesidents who visit – and everything isdone free of charge.Area health clinics have served the

community well for several years, andtheyseeanincrease inneedaseachdaypasses.“We’ve become the primary care

physicianfora lotof folks,”GloriaBlan-dina, director of Care and ConcernFree Health Clinic at the former SetonCatholic High School in Pittston said.The clinics provide non-emergency

care, such as general check-ups, limit-edmedical prescriptions and lab tests,

at nocost to thepatient.Thevolunteercrews at free clinics cover every base,from the obvious doctors, nurse practi-tioners and registered nurses to licens-ed social workers and translators. If apatient’s needs should fall beyondwhat is provided on-site, clinics areable to refer them to doctorswho havevolunteered services. Area medical fa-cilities also offer up as much help aspossible.“Geisinger does our lab work for

free,”PhyllisPelletier, administratorofWilkes-Barre Free Clinic in St. Ste-phen’s Episcopal Church in Wilkes-Barre said.“We look toGeneral Hospital for lab

work, and Wilkes-Barre Imaging andGeisinger help out with things like X-rays andMRIs,” Blandina said.Dental service is an area that many

clinics have a hard time keeping upwith.“The need is so great out there, but

we just don’t have the facilities to helpeverybody out,” Blandina said. “We’llget calls from people who want 22teethpulledanddentures.We try todowhat we can here, and if we can’t andit’s a dire situation we refer patients toa dentist.”“We’re in need of dentists,” Pelletier

agreed. “We currently only have onethat comes in once a month. If we hadonly five or six we could provide thatservice every week, and the individualdentist would have to work only onceevery month and a half.”As the economy has fallen, the num-

ber of people with a need for free orlow-cost care has increased.“Right now we are about 300 pa-

tients more than what we were at lastyear at this time,” Blandina said.Care and Concern sees between 25

and 40 patients each Wednesday, thesole night the clinic is open. TheWilkes-Barrecliniccaters toanaverageof 35 patients on Tuesdays and about20 everyWednesday.“Wegetpeople fromallwalksof life,”

Pelletier said. “We have seen severalcaseswherethesepeoplehadhigh-pay-ing jobs, lost thembecauseof the econ-omy,andarenowwithouthealth insur-ance.”A man in his late 40s who frequents

Care and Concern, and whowished toremain anonymous, found himself insuch a situation.“For the first time in my life I was


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Comfort & compassion

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82 April 29, 2012

healthy habits

Adiabetes seminar first drewVirginia Thomas to theHealthy Woman program.That interest in a better

lifestyle soon evolved into a year-longrelationship with the program, and asort of “girls’ night out” for Thomas, ofWilkes-Barre, and a few friendswho al-

so found the program insightful.“The information is great andyoual-

ways learn something new,” Thomassaid at a recent seminar on eatingwell.

Thomas is one of1,100 localwomen,ranging in age from 25 to 64, who par-ticipate in the Healthy Women pro-gram, organized and run by Wilkes-

Barre General Hospital.The program offers free monthly

talks on health, communication, rela-tionships and life, said program coor-dinator Jamy Powell.

“It’s nice for networking and com-radeship for women,” Powell said.“Women are typically the ones who

make health care decisions (in fam-ilies), and (this program) gives themnew knowledge.”

The Healthy Woman program wascreated in 2004, and began in 13 U.S.hospitals as a tool for women.

Area women stay well and well-informedthrough W-B General Hospital program

AMANDA HRYCYNA/ FOR TIMES LEADER

Two women listen to a lecture during a Healthy Woman program. The group is organized by Wilkes-Barre General Hospital.

By SHEENA DELAZIO/[email protected]

See HABITS, Page 83

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There are 103 hospitals in theUnited States that carry the pro-gram, with more than 110,000members.

The program touts itself as away for women to remember toconcentrate on them, when theyare usually busy concentratingon others.

Thomas said the program is afun way – and excuse – for her tohang out with six of her friends.The group goes to dinner andthen will attend the HealthyWoman seminar of the month.

“I saw a pamphlet somewhere,so I called to find out what(Healthy Woman) was all about,”Thomas said.

Thomas, and Peggy Hamilton,of Nanticoke, say their favoritepart of the program is the annualanniversary luncheon – the firstof which took place last year.

“It was so much fun,” Thomassaid, adding the featured speaker,a motivational speaker, had thecrowd “in stitches.”

Hamilton said she saw an ad-

vertisement in a local newspaperfor the luncheon and attended.

“I enjoyed it,” Hamilton said,adding she enjoys exercising andeating right, and thought the pro-gram would be beneficial.

“I try to use what I learn. Evenif it’s one small piece of informa-tion,” Hamilton said.

Powell said monthly seminarsare free, and include everythingfrom heart health to breast can-cer awareness.

Some events include treats orlight hors d’oeuvres, and some-times even a door prize.

Events are usually sponsoredby local businesses and in-kinddonations, while am advisorycouncil helps plan events.

The annual luncheon includesa health expo, healthy lunch andkeynote speaker.

HABITSContinued from Page 82

Women are typically the ones who make

health care decisions (in families), and (this program) gives them new knowledge.”— Jamy Powell, Healthy Woman Program Coordinator

AMANDA HRYCYNA/ FOR TIMES LEADER

A woman and child listen to a lecture about healthy eating.

The local Healthy Woman programwill celebrate its second anni-versary on April 28 at a luncheonat the Woodlands Inn and Resortin Plains Township.The keynote speaker is scheduledto be Ali Vincent, the first femalewinner of NBC’s "Biggest Loser".For more information on the pro-gram, contact Jamy Powell at570-552-4534

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without health insurance,” hesaid. “It was terrifying. The firsttime I felt like Iwas comingdownwith something I panicked. Ithank God that places like thisare here to help. Knowing that islike having a big weight lifted offyour shoulders.”

The economy has had an effectnot only on the patient load buton how the clinics are funded.“People think that because

we’re a free health clinic we getour medications for free, we getmany things for free,” Pelletiersaid. “We’ve had people donateequipment and other things,sure, but there are medicationsand lab work to worry about.”Health clinicsmust rely on two

main sources to provide enoughmoney to cover costs. One key

source of income has been fund-ing from the state. Though thatstill exists, it has decreased inpast years.“Last year the state gave us

$36,000,” Pelletier said. “Thisyear we received $13,200, a sig-nificant cut.”By this point the clinics know

what to put the big money to-ward. Both have used large dona-tions to fix up the physical as-pects of the clinics.“Money like that takes care of

big-ticket items, renovations,”Pelletier said.Care and Concern allots it to

lab work.“The bill last year for lab work

was over $20,000,” Blandinasaid.Another source of income,

which fluctuates from year toyear, is money provided throughdonations.“Random people on the out-

side that heard of us will write acheck,” Pelletier said.

“We have local groups that fo-cus on us for charity projects,”Blandina said.Thoughmoney is hard to come

by lately, it still arrives in suffi-cient amount for these clinics.“God provides these things, I

believe it,” Pelletier said. “At theend of the year I look at the bookand think, ‘How in the worldcould this balance?’, but it does.It’s amazing, but we get exactlywhat we need each year to keepdoing what we’re doing.”

COMPASSIONContinued from Page 80

86 April 29, 2012

WILKES-BARRE –AnybodywhogetstoknowBryanAn-derson will be

awed and inspired.In October 2005, Anderson, 30,

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As a result of his injuries, he re-ceived a Purple Heart. For 13months, Anderson received reha-bilitation at Walter Reed ArmyMedical Center in Washington,D.C.He isoneof the fewtriple am-putees to have survived his inju-ries in Iraq.

But to really be inspired by An-

derson is to talk to him. He will beat the John Heinz Institute of Re-habilitation Medicine on MundyStreet on May 8-9.

Andersonsayshe liveshis life ashe pleases – it’s not about being aninspiration. Yet, he is just that.

“Inspiring others is kind of aside effect of what I was just do-

ing,”Anderson said. “I didn’twantto be depressed my whole life.”

Anderson said he decided earlyon to accept what happened andrefused to dwell on it.

“I realized I could do anything,”he said.

DON CAREY PHOTO/THE TIMES LEADER

Iraq war veteranBryan Andersonspeaks at Miser-

icordia University insupport of the

Cleary Foundationrecently. Andersonwill be at the Allied

Services John HeinzInstitute on May 8

and 9.

See VETERAN, Page 87

Iraq veteran Bryan Anderson has survivedand surmounted devastating injuries

By BILL O’BOYLE/[email protected]

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Anderson said he was embar-rassed when he first realized he in-spired others. He said when theyseewhathecandoandhispositiveattitude, they “flip their ownswitch” in their heads.

“Being depressed and dwellingon the negative is no way to live,”he said.

Anderson said his message issimple – it’s about living life to thefullest.

“You don’t always get to controlthe hand you’re dealt,” he said.“But you can control what you dowith it.”

Anderson said he could have re-tired at age 25, but sitting homewith little to do would drive himcrazy.

“I have five different jobs,” hesaid. “Staying active, that’s what

it’s all about.”Anderson enjoys challenging

his limits. He enjoys snowboard-ing, wakeboarding, whitewaterrafting, rockclimbing,archeryandtable tennis. He has thrown outthe first pitch at a Chicago Cubsgame and has driven a NASCARrace car.

Anderson serves as the nationalspokesperson for Quantum Re-hab, a division of Pride MobilityProducts Corp., based in Exeter.

“Initially, we reached out toBryan after seeing his story,” saidDick McLane, general manager/product marketing. “His over-whelmingly positive attitude andactive lifestyle made it apparentfromtheget-gothathewastheper-fect embodiment of the freedomwestrive toprovidewithourprod-ucts. It really was a natural pro-gression, and Bryan quicklyprovedtobeanexcellent fit as spo-kesperson.”

Anderson splits his time be-tween Scranton and the Chicago

area near his parents, Jim and Ja-net, identical twin brother Bob,and teenage sister Briana. In addi-tion to academic excellence, An-derson excelled in sports duringhis high school years and compet-ed as an accomplished gymnast instate level competitions.

Anderson served two tours ofdutyinIraqandwasstationednearBaghdad. He attained the rank ofsergeant in the Military Police(MP), conducted police trainingcourses in Iraq and gained addi-tional law enforcement experi-enceatLeavenworthFederalPeni-tentiary as a prison guard.

As national spokesman forQuantum Rehab, Anderson trav-els thecountrymakingappearanc-es while delivering his message ofperseverance and determinationin major rehab facilities. In addi-tion, he is a spokesman for USACares, a non-profit organizationbased in Radcliff, Ky., that is fo-cused on assisting post 9/11veter-ans in times of need.

VETERANContinued from Page 86

‘‘DON CAREY PHOTO/THE TIMES LEADER

As national spokesman for Quantum Rehab, Bryan Anderson trav-els the country making appearances while delivering his messageof perseverance and determination in major rehab facilities.

Aperson’s free time can be just asvaluable as money these days,so service clubs such as the Li-ons and Kiwanis use their vol-

unteers’ time wisely.Area Lions clubs have held successful

eyeglass-collection campaigns, given out$30 gift cards to area flood victims andsponsored a lunch at St. Vincent de PaulKitchen in Wilkes-Barre.

Over the years, local Kiwanis clubs haveorganized highway clean-ups, purchasedchildren’s books for the Hoyt Library andhelped with the U.S. Marine Corps Toysfor Tots program.

But all of these efforts take time.Kathy Breznay, secretary of the

Swoyersville Kiwanis Club, and Len Bon-fanti, secretary and past president of theExeter Lions Club, agree they try to use

their members efficiently to benefit asmany recipients of aid as possible.

“Membership is always difficult,” Brez-nay said. “But it (volunteering) makes youfeel good inside.”

Bonfanti said the Lions Club used to bemade up “strictly of area businessmen.”About five or six years ago the organiza-tion opened its doors to women. Now, outof 42 members, about a dozen are women,he said.

“More and more women are joining,” hesaid. “The more members we have, themore productive we can be.”

Breznay said the Swoyersville Kiwanis,celebrating its 60th anniversary this year,has 27 members and usually 14 to 16 at-tend two monthly meetings. The club cov-ers Forty Fort, Swoyersville and Luzerne,she said.

Often finding the time to volunteer is anissue for people, so keeping their meetingswell-organized and short, a total of two tothree hours a month helps, Breznay said.

“We try to keep it exciting, too,” shesaid. “When people hear about all thethings we do, they get excited. All we askfor is an honest effort.”

Programs such as selling roses for theChildren’s Miracle Network and holdingfundraisers for St. Jude’s Medical Center,offering finger-printing kits for childrenand providing “comfort bears” for the po-lice department to give to children duringemergencies are only some of their activ-ities.

“We hold programs throughout the yearto energize the group,” Breznay said. “Weeven hold family picnics or bowling eventsfor our members.”

Bonfanti said the Exeter Lions Clubholds a Night at the Races as its big annualfundraiser in April. Money collected goestoward offering scholarships to WyomingValley West students and covers event ex-penses. His group also visits Highland Ma-nor Nursing Home during the holidays toprovide holiday cheer through carols andgifts to the residents.

“We also help the Salvation Army by vol-unteering to help ring the bell for collec-tions,” he said.

To look for a club in your area, searchthrough the organizations’ main websites,www.lionsclubs.org or www.pakiwani-s.org.

A variety of other local service clubssuch as Rotary clubs and the Boys andGirls Clubs of NEPA also provide volun-teer opportunities.

Civic clubmembers giveback to theircommunities

By EILEEN GODIN/Times Leader Correspondent

88 April 29, 2012

timewell

spent


The ExeterLions Clubdiscusses itsNight atthe Racesfundraiser.

PROFILE,S

UNDAY,A

PRIL

29,2

012

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