The Mail-Journal, Volume 19, Number 25, Milford, Kosciusko County, 7 July 1982 — Page 4

THE MAILJOURNAL — Wed., July 7,1982

4

Editorials A real gala Fourth of July week end — It’s a great big hats off to the groups of the greater Syracuse community for pulling off one of the most gala Fourth of July week ends in recent memory. It was fun from beginning to end, and the weatherman cooperated for most events. Most of us didn’t realize a community could have so much fun just having a good time. The fact that the Lakeland Daycare Center was trying to raise funds for a new building might have had a little to do with the overall cooperation. It seemed like everyone wanted to get into the act. It starred on Friday night with the bicycle race in which 47 ardent bicyclists literally “sweat out’* their event. Saturday started with the Road Race (the fifth annual) in which 274 runners finished. A constant, cold rain failed to‘deter runners. But at about the same time as the race started, 25 swimmers, began a mile and a quarter swim across Lake Wawasee, and 25 swimmers swam laps at the high school pool to raise $4,864. And of course the Lake Wawasee Flotilla this year drew 35 entries* and it all came off splendidly under a burning sun. It was one of the best Flotillas, observers noted. And at the same time as the Flotilla made its 29-mile-trip around the Big Lake crowds gathered at the Lakeside Park for picnics, fun and games, and Enchanted Playhouse performers sang to a milling crowd of thousands. Sunday night the fireworks at the park were spectacular as usual — and the added “Big Boomer’’ proved a real spectacular as a rousing finale. (Note: See more on the “Big Boomer’’ in the ’Cruzin Around ’Cuse’ column.) Literally thousands gathered on the Syracuse Lake shoreline and in several hundred boats on the lake to witness the fireworks. Even the moon cooperated to give the Fourth of July week end a cosmic touch as it slid into the earth’s shadow in the early morning hours Tuesday for something over 100 minutes as Americans slept getting ready to go back to work. We won’t see that again for a good many years, and certainly not on a Fourth of July week end. Wasn’t it a dandy week end, though? Why drown ? Already this summer the news has indicated numerous unnecessary drownings. Fathers and sons, children uncared for, elderly swimmers and others have lost their lives taking chances on or in water. It continues to amaze lifeguards and safety experts that so many Americans who can’t swim venture out in flimsy or overloaded boats. Why should anyone take such a chance, without a life preserver? Yet mnny do, apparently ashamed to admit fright or fear. The undertow at ocean beaches annually fools and drowns many. The danger from sharks and barracudas is minimal compared to the danger of drowning. Death also occurs in swimming pools, especially private pools where babies and little children often sneak or fall into the pool. (Football star O.J. Simpson recently lost a child in his home pool.) No one should be timid about acting carefully, in fear of the water. This summer many lives can be saved if more are cautious and prudent about risks and chance-taking at beaches, lakes and pools. What do you read? ,' The television age has added many hours to the time most Americans watch films. It has reduced the reading time otsome. Part of the result can be seen in the failure of certain once-popular magazines, though a comeback is now underway. ‘ Newspapers and books have not been adversely affected; book publishing has enjoyed good health in recent years and new newspapers continue to spring up, though most are shopping guides or local papers. In metropolitan areas, however, competition is so keen famous papers have failed or been forced into > mergers. Reading remains, despite television, the greatest pleasure, and source of reliable information, to millions. That being true, the reading public is to be encouraged to read worthwhile books. The recent trend toward permissiveness means almost anything can be printed today. As a result, many have turned to thrills, perversion and formerly banned fare as a steady reading diet. For all who wish to increase their knowledge, and become more interesting and informed citizens, reading should include nonfiction, the best reading there is.

What others say — A new day is dawning? Is it possible that a new day is dawning following the jury’s decision on the Hinckley case last week? All indications are that federal legislation is going to be passed to change the present system, arid we think it is time. We wonder what might have been the result had President Reagan died after this assault by Hinckley. Would he have been found “not guilty” just as he was last week? We strongly doubt that the result would have been the same. No, this newspaper does not have the answer, but we do join the millions and millions who are dissatisfied with the findings last week. We, too, think it is time that the system is changed. — CARROLL COUNTY COMET Joy of being editor. Getting out the newspaper is no picnic. If we print jokes people say we are being silly. If we don’t, they say we are being too serious. If we clip things from other newspapers, we are too lazy to write them ourselves. If we don’t we are sticking in our own stuff. If we stick close to the job all day, we ought to be out hunting news. If we do get out and try to hustle, we ought to be on the job in the office. If we don’t print contributions, we don’t appreciate true genius. And if we do print them, the newspaper is filled withjunk. If we make a change in the other fellow’s write-up, we are too critical. If we don’t, we are asleep. . Now like as not some other guy will say we swiped this from some other ne *V^did.CARRIGO SPRINGS (TEXAS) JAVELIN

i-fSISE One-year-old Daniele Dunithan. Syracuse, seemed uncertain how to react to the butterfly "tattoo" that was applied to her face at a booth in Syracuse Lakeside Park Sunday when M-J photographer Doug Walker snapped this photo. Face painting was just one of many events which took place over the holiday week end. Unsung heroes —

— Sr — ■BSSSEEk 7 - k ■ per r 7 ‘ rl? I*— A (1 MARLENE EVANS Being an EMT means helping people

Becoming an medical technician for Marlene Evans of Milford was only natural. Since childhood she had a desire to assist people in times' of distress and do what she could to help them. Even today, if she wasn't so busy working at the family store. Evan's Family Variety in Milford, she says she'd like to work in the emergencyroom of a hospital. "Helping people when they need it the most. I guess, is why 1 like being an EMT." says Mrs. Evans. "You don't have time to worry about yourself in an emergency." she adds Marlene served as secretary for the EMS for several years, recently turning over the job to Susie Chupp. She has been on the Milford EMS seven years, joining in June of 1975. ".I first became interested in joining after watching the television show Emergency'." says Mrs Evans. Her husband. Max. is also an EMT in Milford "When he's on duty at night. I run the radio," says this week's unsung hero "When you have a run in the middle of the night and you've been asleep it's sometimes a while before you get back home, which really makes for a long night." she says. But according to Marlene the calls aren't that frequent and aren't all that bad She says less than five per cent of the EMS runs are for serious accidents that involve a fatality or excessive injury to the victims. Marlene says she responded to one such call which turned out to involve her best fnend. who was injured very badly, and her children, one of whom was killed. This was one of the hardest calls she ever was involved in and such runs are seldom. Another difficult case involved a victim of a motorcycle accident. The man was seriously injured but did survive thanks to the efforts of Milford EMS. "You swallow hard," says Mrs Evans adding, "and try not to think about anything but just helping the person. " "Serving on the EMS is very important to the community." say Marlene. According to the EMT people sometimes just think others will get involved in the

program so'they don’t have to. But it takes support from the community and most importantly volunteers to get involved in the emergency work. There has been some discussion about getting an EMT class started at Kosciusko Community Hospital rather than having people drive to Goshen, where it is currently being held. Again community interest will be the key and people who care about the community and are interested in serving should get in contact with any of the Milford EMS members. North Webster’s EMS has recently begun its own classes in instruction as well When this very busy lady isn’t working or responding to emergency calls she tries to find time to sew. crochet, try new craft ideas and do gardening. Born and raised in Bremen, Marlene is a graduate of Bremen High School and moved to Milford after her marriage to Max. The couple have three dhildren. Marcia. 16 years old; Melissa (“Missy ”). age 13 years old; and Marc, 11 years old. What do they think of their mother being an EMT? “Marcia is really interested." says Mrs. Evans. She has taken first aid courses- in school and water safety courses. asTiave all three children. “We all like to watch emergency type shows on TV," says their mother. “Marcia will probably be into some form of it,” says Mrs Evans.

THt MAIIJOUMUL . (US PS 32SM) ' Published hy Th* Mai* Journal (vary Wednesday and entered as Second Class matter at the Past Office at Syracuse. Indiana «OM7 Secand class postage paid at in E. Main Slr**t. Syracuse. Indiana «4M7 and at additional entry offices. Subscription Sil par year in Kascvsk* County. SIS outside county POSTMASTERS: Send chan** of address farms te Th* Mail Journal. P.O. \ Boa IM. Mdtord. Indiana asset.

"CRUZIN AROUND 'CUSE"

THE LAKELAND School Corporation is something most of us take tor granted, but few of us noted that it turned 20 years of age last Thursday, July 1. This fact was called to our attention by Lewis S. Immel, the corporation’s first superintendent, and a man who has a continuing interest in the corporation’s activities in its three and one-half townships. ( Immel called our attention to the fact that it was Chapter 202 of the Acts of 1959 of the Indiana General Assembly that allowed counties to form school re-organization committees. In Kosciusko County we had the Kosciusko County School Re-Organization Committee headed by tbeflate John F. Augsburger of Milford. Others who served on the committee were Marcus White of Pierceton, Ralph Brubaker of Leesburg, Mary Elizabeth Fosbrink of Syracuse (replaced by Jack Vanderford when she later resigned), and Carl Burt, who was superintendent of the Warsaw schools at the time. After many meetings throughout the county, covering a period of several years, when voters of the county were given ample opportunity to voice their opinions on how their schools should be apportioned, a recommendation was forthcoming from the re-organization committee, and the time for a vote on a proposed plan was set for the May 1962 primary election. It broke down something like this: Lakeland School Corporation — Tippecanoe. Plain, Van Buren, Turkey Creek and the east half of Jefferson Township. Warsaw Community School Corporation — Wayne and Prairie Townships. Woodland School Corporation — Washington, Monroe, Jackson, Clay and Lake Townships. Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation — Harrison, Seward and Franklin Townships of Kosciusko County and Henry Township (including the town of Akron) in Fulton County. A Etna Township was to join with several townships in Marshall County to form Triton School Corporation and Scott Township and the west half of Jefferson Township were to join the WaNee School Corporation. In the May 1962 election all of these proposed new school corporations were adopted except the Woodland Corporation. It was flatly rejected. In subsequent action, Lake and Clay Townships voted to join the Warsaw Community School Corporation, and at about the same time there was considerable unrest in Plain Township (Leesburg) with their new school arrangement. Voters of Plain Township asked for a referrendum on the matter and finally, in March 1965, a vote was taken in the Leesburg school. An overwhelming number of Plain Township voters cast their ballots to join the Warsaw school system. In the interim considerable repairs had been made to the Leesburg schools. This made the decision of the Lakeland school board much simpler as to where they would locate the new high school, to be later named Wawasee High School. Close proximinity to the town of Syracuse, with its city sewer system and round-the-clock police protection, seemed appropriate, even desirable. Meanwhile, the people in Washington, Monroe and Jackson townships, located in the southeast corner of Kosciusko County, were without a school home. In 1963 these voters elected tp form a Metropolitan School System, effective July 1 of that year, and later voted to join with two townships in Whitley County — Richland (Larwill) and Cleveland (South Whitley), to form what has become known as the Whitko School Corporation. This information from Whitko Superintendent J. O. Smith. 4 But things were not all that smooth in that new school corporation. A proposed site, located just across the line in Whitley County and known as the Thompson Site, way hotly disputed by many school patrons, and Anally this site was abandoned for a new high school in South Whitley, with Pierceton, the other major town in that school corporation, retaining an elementary and junior high school. That school corporation, crossing county lines, has been the subject of constant acrimony which has failed to die. The Whjtko School Corporation has 2.959 students, according to superintendent Smith. In commenting on the 20-year history of the Lakeland School Corporation, former superintendent Immel said most everyone takes the present school system for granted, thinking “it was always the way it is now.” But he mentioned such innovative things as elemdhtary music, elementary physical education, elementary libraries, elementary principals, girls' sports and football at the high school that have come on stream one at a time over this two-decade Mr. Immel is retired new and resides on r 4 (OH State Raed 13) with his wife Gwen. -OCURTIS ELECTRONICS, TV and Appliances is due to leave its uptown Syracuse location on or before July 10, to move to its new location on Pickwick Road in the Village, in the building formerly occupied by True Value Hardware. The building they are vacating, however, has a new renter, according to Tom McClain, owner. It wifi be “OOPS,” a Nappanee clothing outlet. —o— IF SYRACUSE has a proud gentleman fanner it wouM have to be Gaylord Jones. At the drop of a split infinitive, “Big G” will load almost anyone in his pick-up truck for a guided tour of his Apple Valley Farm north of town. He’ll tel you be has M acre* of apple tree*, ranging from two to five year* old, and most of them are loaded with apples being readied faf a late summer harvest. He started the project in

1977 after sharing a hospital room with an apple grower who promised this type of enterprise to be painless and profitable. ' Not only that, but he has plans of converting a barn at the south farm into a roadside fresh vegetable outlet sometime in the near future. He’s proud of LaMar Hershberger, his attendant, and of twin grandsons, Ken and Kyle Swartz, high school juniors whom he is “teaching to work.” • —O’JON SROUFE, general chairman of this year’s Flotilla, new at the running game who ran the 3.3 mile stint Saturday morning for the first time, came up with this cryptic comment on ~ running: “I never saw an endeavor where one could so easily find an excuse for.” —O'JANE NEARING has had all sorts of publicity during her tenure as Commodore of this year’s Flotilla. And she’s taken plenty of “ribbing” as a result. She’s told friends, “Everyone knows me now. I think I’ll run for public office.” —o— THE ENCHANTED Hills Playhouse Guild is planning an “exciting happening" in conjunction with the Playhouse. Time: Around the first of August. Keep watching for details. —o— THE WAWASEE High School marching band, placed first in the North Webster Mermaid Festival parade a week ago Saturday in Class “B”, for schools with under 900 students, has been invited to march in the American Legion Parade at Indianapolis on July 17. Hlf v -a\® “ ■ ! t “GOSH ALL hemlock,” we felt like saying when handed this picture of the 1950 Cutie Queen at the Mermaid Festival. It was the first year the Festival held a Cutie King and Queen contest. And you'll never guess who it is. Wonder of wonders, it is (or was) Kay (Kruger) Huffer of r 1 Leesburg (Barbee Lake). Kay and her husband Larry have two sons. Larry is a custom painter and Kay is a beautician at the Princess Parlor at North Webster, and. get this, is an auctioneer on the side. —o— WINNERS OF prizes in the Rotary Club's j bike-a-thon are listed below: Jeff Richardson, 10-speed bike: Jamie VanLue. Ron Thomas, Bryan Hurd, Jeff Dunithan, and Jay Newcome, Three Flags; Lisa Rinker. Kevin Pohl and Vera Hall. Dairy Queen; Julie Taubert, Syracuse Hardware;, Charles Dippon, Ace Hardware; Mark Mast. Melody Center (Radio Shack); Ryan Bucher. Pilcher Shoes; Dan Clodfelder, Curtis Electronics: Jerry VanLue. Maryann Drive-in; Rod Mast, Gropp’s Fish; and Mark Ray. PJ> Pizza. , —o— TOM AND Jane Tuttle and their two children, Jennifer and Michael, moved last Monday from their Deerfield. Fla., home to their Lake Wawasee home and Tom will resume active management of the South Shore Country Club. He had been managing the Deer Creek Country Club and Golf Course at Deerfield for the past several years. Meanwhile, Craig Perna, who has managed South Shore, will take over Tom’s job at Deer Creek. ; —O— ' , YOU’RE NEVER too young to jog, as a young brother and sister team can testify. They ran in the Saturday Road Race from Lakeside park. Anne Miller, age 4, ran the 3.3 mile in 48:35 minutes while her brother Kris, age 7 years, ran the eight mile in 94.59 minutes, to come in second in his age class. Anne never ran before, but Kris ran in the Mentone six-mile Egg Festival race in Mentone in June. They are the children of Gary and Sharon Miller of r 1 Claypool. —o— THE THOUSANDS who saw the traditional fireworks at Lakeside Park Sunday night got a special treat. As a finale to the 34 minutes of display, a special number — appropriately called the “Big Boomer” — was fired. Now get this: It was 22” in diameter and was buried four the ground. It went 7,000 feet into the air and its display covered six city blocks. It drove its mooring another foot into the ground. It’* retail cost was 1500. but an enterprising committee raised 3205 from private sources, an ~ amount which proved to be a final, negotiated price for thejinusual display. Big Boomer brought out plenty of “ohs” and “ata” from those along the shore line and no doubt from boat-watchers, too. Without a doubt this feature will be a regular each year at the park. PAUL PHILLABAUM. president of Sea • Nymph Corp., Syracuse small boat builders, whose faithful workers make entering a float in the Flotilla a project of personal and company pride, claim to have worked some 150 man-hours on this year’s winner — From Sea to Shining Sea. And it all showed, for they waked away with the Commodore’s Trophy for a fourth consecutive year for a handsome trophy and 3500. and won , second in the Industrial Class for a trophy and 350. (Continued on page 5)