The Mail-Journal, Volume 23, Number 52, Milford, Kosciusko County, 24 December 1986 — Page 4

4

THE MAIL-JOURNAL — Wed., December 24,1986

Editorial

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. And she gave birth to her first born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn Luke2:l-7RSV Christmas, 1986 The major religious feast of the year and principal holiday of the western world, commemorating the birth of Jesus, is celebrated on December 25. It’s not really certain this is the date on which Jesus was born. Various scholars have fixed the date in April, May, January, and in other months. Christmas was first observed ih the second and third centuries and our name for the day dates from the eleventh century in England and “Cristes Maesse.” The giving of presents, which is a solidly entrenched custom in the United States, was taken from the Roman custom of exchanging gifts on January 1. German Christmas carols are traced back to the eleventh century and British and French songs to the thirteenth. The custom of decorating the house in green stems from an early English belief that certain flowers blossomed at Christmas. The use of mistletoe stems from the Druids, who long revered the plant. The Christmas tree was first used in Germany. Some scholars believe the first occasion was in Strasbourg in 1605, though legend has it that Martin Luther decorated a green branch in his home in the preceding century. The belief in Santa Claus, as a jolly man who brought gifts, also comes to us from the Germans, derived from the legend of St. Nicholas (Santa Claus is a corruption of the Dutch San Nicholass). Fireworks are sometimes used in the South at Christmas, and this stems from Italy, Spain and France, which enjoy the custom. It’s thought the practice was introduced by French settlers in the Louisiana area. Christmas was, interestingly, observed earlier in the South than in the North. The challenge of Christmas is to spread love of one's fellow man and peace on earth. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year! This age-old greeting retains youthful zest, and continues to express the best wishes of friends. We extend holiday greetings to our subscribers, advertisers, workers and friends — enemies, if any. If you are MERRY, as we wish you to be, you will enjoy the holiday season as friends and loved ones surprise you with the evidence of their affection. If you are HAPPY, as we hope you will be, you will have shared the Christmas spirit in the giving of yourself and your substance to others. To be both MERRY and HAPPY in this world, one must enjoy the material and experience something of the spiritual. One must be well in body, satisfied in mind and spirit. The road is clear: accept with genuine gratitude, enjoy with moderation and give with generosity. Remember: “It is more blessed t give than to receive and that: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” ■ What others say — Roots “Christmas.” Mere mention of the word brings visions of home, hope, happiness and hearth. As these thoughts bubble up, each of us for a brief time is changed. Friendliness is accentuated. Peace and Goodwill replace griping and grumpiness gives way to generosity. And so it should be, but to understand why Christmas brings out “the best in us” we should consider the One whose birthday is celebrated on December 25. Jesus. Raised in near-poverty at Nazareth, a town from which it was said nothing good could come. Apprenticed to the trade of carpentry. A nonconformist whose words and actions brought death by crucifixion at age 33. Not much of a biography for One whose short stay on earth made this planet so different that calendars count time from His year of birth. What was special about Him? Why does the celebration of his birthday affect even those who call it “Humbug?” The answer, we believe, lies deeper than we may think. Christmas brings together the family, young, middle-aged, and especially the old whose recollections of how it was ‘way-back-then put a halo of perpetuity over the group. Hearing how it was, perhaps in another land, gives meaning to the traditions each family holds for the holidays. Christmas, then, is a time of seeking roots, absorbing the recollections of people who lived and loved under conditions different than those we know today and the message of good will, the gift of peace which the Christ of Christmas brings, is to an extent reflection of how things were in His former home. In drastic oversimplification the warmth and love we sense at yuletide may be primarily what we have learned about Heaven from One who came from there. There is more, of course. But for starters this Christmas, think of the season’s generosity and joys as part of our heritage as children of God, a fleeting preview of things to come. Tn the book of Luke, the shepherds are told to “fear not, for I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the pity of David a saviour which is Christ the Lord. Tidings of joy! May they bring warmth andlove, health and happiness to you and yours during this holy season and throughout the year to come. ? DON WOOD — AUTOMATIC MACHINING: DECEMBER 1986

Away in a manger, jL no crib for his bed, Ok The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head: The stars in the heavens look’d down where He lay, The little Lord Jesus asleep in the hay. *** ms jfe" iW

Court news

Marriage Licenses The following couples have applied for marriage licenses in the office of Kosciusko County Clerk Jeanne Weirick; Bowling-Ryan Rickey Glen Bowling, 27, r 2 box 572-A, Syracuse, and Shelly Yvonne Ryan, 18, r 2 box 275, Warsaw Davis-Hotchkiss Howard A. Davis, 62, New Haven, and Anna M. Hotchkiss, 68, r 3 lot 21, Syracuse Lupke-Carey James Richard Lupke, Jr., 23, 45 Honeycomb Lane, Cromwell, and Michelle Renee Carey, 18. 45 Honeycomb Lane, Cromwell County Court The following persons have paid fines and costs in Kosciusko County Court. Judge James Jarrette presiding: Possession of marijuana — Mark J. Thorn. 25. Cromwell. $153 Battery — Max R. Clipfell, 29. Syracuse. SIOO. four days KCJ suspended; Rick Griffin. Syracuse, $153. Public intoxication — David Larry Hughes, 34, North Webster, SB6; Max R. Clipfell, 29. Syracuse, SSO. Conversion — David Carey Miller, 18, Syracuse, $253,12 days KCJ; Eugene R. Gregory, 18, Leesburg, $253. one year KCJ suspended, one year probation. 20 days KCJ. Fleeing law enforcement officer — Jeffery A. Hutcherson. 26. Leesburg, S7B; Mark J. Thorn, 25. Cromwell, $l5B, six days KCJ. Illegal consumption — Anthony Wayne Pollard. Jr., 19, Cromwell, SB6. Minors in tavern — William David Hull, 17. North Webster. SB2 Furnishing alcohol to minors — Lori Dawson. Leesburg. $136, 60 days KCJ suspended, one year probation, five days KCJ. Circuit Court The following petitions have been filed in Kosciusko Circuit Court, Judge Richard Sand presiding: Complaint On Note Lake City Bank versus Teresa Police officers graduate North Webster Deputy Marshal Shad L. Hunter and Syracuse Patrolman Robert J. Houser, were among 80 officers who graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy Friday, Dec. 19. The academy is located one-half mile southwest of Plainfield. Rev. Wilbert A. Cunningham, senior chaplin with the Indianapolis Police Department, will be principal speaker at the event. Colonel Arthur R. Raney, Jr., the academy’s executive director; and Deputy Sheriff Jan W. Kistler, Marion County Sheriff Department, class president, also addressed the graduating officers, their families and guests. Indiana requires all nonelected law enforcement officers to successfully complete basic training within their first year of service. Failure to complete the training results in the officer losing the power of arrest. There is no charge to the officer or department to attend the training. The training is funded through court costs paid by traffic violators and persons charged with criminal offenses. The line with the academy’s motto, “For AU The People,’’ civic groups and families are invited to tour the facility any Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Evening tours can also be arranged. TO arrange a tour call 317-839-5191.

L. Roberts, r 2 box 20, Leesburg. The plaintiff is seeking judgment against the defendant for the sum of $4,393.92 plus interest, attorney’s fees and all costs of action, and a 1982 motorcycle used a security for note. Verified Complaint For Permanent Injunction Kosciusko County Board of Zoning Appeals versus Steven A. Hobbs, Darice L. Hobbs and Patrick Bruggeman, all of Ft. Wayne. The plaintiff is seeking a permaner* injunction against the defendants forcing them to comply with an Aug. 11, 1986 decision which denied the defendants use of specified real estate as a commercial parking lot at The Other Side. Plaintiffs are seeking an order that the defendants cease and desist from all further use of said property as a parking lot, plus all costs of action and relief. Verified Petition For Hardship License James Coon versus Michael L. Miner. Prosecutor of Kosciusko County; C.A. Rovenstine, Sheriff of Kosciusko County; and Commissioner of Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The plaintiff has filed a petition seeking issuance of a hardship driver s license. City Court The following fines have been levied and paid in the Goshen City Court: » Speeding — Ricky A. Burger. 18. Syracuse, $52.50; Mitchell G. Grevenstuk, 23. Milford, plea bargain. $62.50 File judgment in unfair dismissal Jack E. Essenburg, of 1715 Willow Lane, Warsaw, has filed judgment against the Warsaw Times-Union with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of Indiana, seeking further compensation for his 35 years with the newspaper publishing firm. Essenburg served in the advertising department, for a number of these years as advertising director. He claims to have been abruptly dismissed, which had nothing to do with his job performance. His case is being handled by Parrish Knight Beal,.a Fort Wayne legal firm.

New M-J Subscribers Gerold Bogfer R 1 Box 18 Syracuse,lnd.46s67 Gary Vanator 3029 E. Topaz.. Circle Phoenix, Ar iz? 85028 Clearwater Resort R 1 Box 204 Warsaw, Ind. 46580 Forest Stahley 218 Primo Dr. Fort Myers Beach. Fla. 33031

THE MAIL-JOURNAL (U.S.P.S. 3258-4000) Published by the Mail-Journal every Wednesday and entered as Second Class Matter at the Post Office at Syracuse, Indiana 46567. Second class postage paid at 103 E. Main Street, Syracuse, Indiana 46567 and at additional entry offices. Subscription: sl6 per year in Kosciusko County; $22 outside county. POSTMASTERS: Send change of address forms to The Mail-Journal, P. 0.. Box 188, Milford, Indiana 46542.

"CRUZIN AROUND 'CUSE''

THE REAL MEANING OF CHRISTMAS May Christmas time mean more to you Than gifts on Christmas morn; May you feel the peace The whole world knew When Christ the Lord was born! May you know the special gladness And hope that came to men; And may it thrill your heart just now As Christmas comes again! It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself Jesus ’ birth occurred in an unlikely place, at an unlikely time, in order that unlikely man might ha ve life abundantly. — Ernest L. Case CHRISTMAS IS more than just a time to be jolly and happy. It’s a time for reflection... a time for giving and for forgiving... it’s a time to think of those less fortunate than ourselves .. .it’s also a time to reflect on the year just coming to a close, and to think how we might make the next year brighter and more meaningful, not only for ourselves but for all our friends as well. With this, we offer a sincere MERRY CHRISTMAS to all our friends and readers. IT’S TRULY the time of year to be jolly, and any number of local groups are getting into the spirit of things. Take, for example, the Syracuse Jaycees, a year-old 28-member club of young men and women, and their Toys for Tots program. Even they are thrilled with the success they have had with this year’s project. According to Mike Fiumbaum, project chairman, last year (the first for the Toys project) they were able to provide toys for 43 children in the community. This year the project has swelled to the point they will be able to provide toys for about 300 kids. Not bad: not bad at all. Ambitious Jaycees met at the Lakeland Youth Center Saturday afternoon to wrap the toys, and appeared to be getting as much fun from the project as the kids will in receiving them. Fiumbaum called the project “a heck of a challenge,’’ and he wants to credit others than himself for the effort. He gave us this list as a partial list of helpers: Bruce Vandermark. Mike Murray. Gloria Maumaw, Roger Shipley. Niel and Nancy Donaho and Darle Hoover. ANOTHER SERVICE club that has its proverbial shoulder to the wheel in making this a happy holiday season for any number of local families is the Wawasee Kiwanis Club. This group has been collecting money and goods of all types to be given away, and on Monday of this week they, too, spent a lot of time at the Lakeland Youth Center putting their package together. Herschel Wells, president of the Kiwanis Club, said it was too early to *ell how this year would stack up against years past, but he had no reason to believe it wouldn’t compare favorably. He noted there’s still time for anyone to contribute who cares to, simply by contacting him or any other Kiwanis member. A closer tally on this effort will be forthcoming at a later date. A NUMBER of homes in Syracuse and a few in North Webster will have the enjoyment and warmth of a Christmas tree this holiday season, thanks to the Syracuse Lions Club. For a good number of years the Lions have been selling Christmas trees as a fund-raising project, but found sales down this year, due to a number of reasons: among them an increased cost per tree and greater competition. When Lions found themselves with “extras” on their hands, they went to work to make the greatest use of the excess trees. Handling the job were Lions Jim Stuckey and Ralph Thornburg. Through the good offices of North Webster Principal Richard Long, six trees went to that community’s- Church of God for distribution. Lion President Stu Walker and member Charles Haffner both called this year’s crop of trees “super trees.” And we might add, that idea of giving the trees to needy families is a “super Lions idea. ” EACH YEAR about this time we think so much more could be done to-dechcate business houses and private homes in the Yuletide spirit So many of us have taken a so*so attitude in this regard. Remember when the Chamber of: Commerce sponsored a community Christmas

decorating contest, actually giving prizes (and 3 much publicity) to winners in several 3 categories? This sort of thing was curtailed when we were asked to turn the lights off in an 4 energy-saving program. Then there was the in- -J creasing cost of lighting up. 3 We’re of a mind it would be nice to resurrect some sort of Christmas lighting contest. S Couldn’t do much harm, and it could do a lot toward lighting up the old town and lifting a lot » of spirits. -O’MR. AND Mrs. Ken Curtis arrived at their | Syracuse area home last Wednesday to spend s the holidays here with family and friends. Ken tells about the continuous building of con- g dominiums, large luxury hotels and private i homes in the Naples area, reported to be one of the fastest growing cities in Florida. Their own « condominium overlooks the Gulf of Mexico. KAY HARE plans to be boning up on the $ Peoples* Republic of China in the weeks ahead. preparing herself for a three-week trip there in 4 April with her mother, Joan Spurgeon of Mun- s cie. Kay is a resident of Run-Away Con- a dominiums on Lake Wawasee. and is in the > retail advertising department of The Goshen a News. — ‘ J ANN, DAHLSTROM is more than just | secretary to the English department of » Wawasee High School. She’s also in her second year as sponsor of the school’s Junior Varsity cheerleaders. 1 Her cheerleaders came under sharp attack last week in the Speak Out column, a regular feature in the Kosciusko County, issue of ‘the PAPER’; and this is something Ann Dahlstrom doesn’t take lying down. The anonymous attack under the heading | “Players deserve better,” referred to the Dec. 6th Prairie Heights game at the Wawasee gym, M and stated, “They (the cheerleaders) were too busy talking to the students and boy cheerleaders sitting on the front row. Even though there were only two cheerleaders who were apparently well and still eligible, they could have certainly led some cheers. Or is this not their job? Are they just to stand in front of the crowd and talk?” j 1 a And, it went further, “Why do we have cheerleaders when they don’t lead cheers? The 'i basketball players put in too many hard hours of practice to be embarrassed in this manner. They deserve better support than this.” Ann Dahlstrom, their sponsor, sees | another side to this, allowing that the writer i has every right to criticize. Ann calls the letter ! ’’totally unfair," but admits it was “not their 3 best night.” B She said of the five regular junior varsity ; cheerleaders, three were unable to perform, one because she had missed a practice session g thus making her ineligible for that one game, m She added that most cheers are geared for a 8 team of five, and with only two. some of their « best cheers could not be performed. Mrs. g Dahlstrom called the Prairie Heights game a g “dead night." when audience response was not * very good. "We have nights like that,” she 8 said, pointing to the difficult job cheerleaders » have under those circumstances. 2 She said cheerleaders stay at school every Wednesday afternoon until 5 p.m. to practice and perfect their routines. And on Thursday a nights they stay around to decorate the locker * room, and working with the team to perfect a •’> dramatic entry onto the floor. “People don’t ?. realize how much these girls go through, ’ ’ Mrs. $ Dahlstrom commented. The JV cheerleaders include three g sophomores and two juniors. While we want to rt agree with Mrs. Dahlstrom on the unfairness of « the unsigned comments, we have a feeling « these five young girls might be well on their -J way to becoming five of the school’s best g cheerleaders ever. We ll have to wait and see. -o- I 8 THE OLD saying about not being able to g keep a good man down certainly applies to S Gene Kitson, of 418 Parkway Drive. Gene » retired October 31 as a city mail carrier out of g the Syracuse Post Office following 31 years on g the job of delivering mail to 537 city postal g patrons five days a week. In an article that ap- 8 peared in this paper on Wednesday. Oct. 29, 3 Kitson said he estimated he had walked around g the earth two and one-half times at the equator. g 3 . ■ 3 You’d think a fellow would sit. down in a g chair after all this and let the world go by. But « not so. You’ll find Kitson working just as hard 3 at a new job as clerk at the Ace Hardware in a the Village, getting in 35 to 37 hours each week. g _ 'i Kitson's daughter, 2d Class Petty Officer g Marie Kitson, stationed at Key West, Fla., is g visiting the family at this time and will return * to active duty on December 39. ««««««