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2 GOLackawanna Sunday, November 27, 2011

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Newsroom829-7242

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CirculationJim McCabe [email protected]

Delivery Sunday 75 per weekMailed Subscriptions Sunday

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Periodicals postage paid atScranton, PA

Postmaster: Send address changesto Times Leader, 15 N. Main St.,

Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711

+(ISSN No. 0896-4084)USPS 499-710

Issue No. 2011-331

3 NEWS

Page 4 Off-duty Duffy arrests woman for second timePage 5 Prison investigation going before grand jury

Page 6 Council resisting PEL plan

Page 9 UNC says need at holiday down slightly

11 ARTSPage 11 DEAL DETECTIVE: Cyber Monday tips

Page 12 It doesnt suck to be in Avenue Q

Page 15 Rockers Vanilla Fudge due in NEPA

22 SPORTSPage 22 Scranton residents book MMA wins

Page 22 ROBINSON: U of S coach close to record

Page 23 County teams knocked out of football run

Page 27 Cognettis fall game sets tone for spring

GO Lackawanna EditorChristopher J. Hughes [email protected] ManagerPaul Andrews [email protected]/PhotographerRich Howells [email protected] RepresentativeKaren Fiscus [email protected]

Obituaries 558-0113News [email protected] Paper 829-5000Classified1-800-273-7130Advertising 829-7101Subscriptions 1-800-252-5603Hours of Operation9a.m. 6p.m.; M-F; 210 WyomingAvenue, Scranton18503

OUR TEAM

Anyonewho worked,or at least didtheir best to,this weekknows howdifficult it was

to maintain some semblance of

a traditional method to the9-to-5 madness.

But my Friday night inter-view, featured this week in thearts section, put an end to all ofthe deadline dreading andheadline hating I developedafter sleeping in a bit thatmorning and having my rou-tine wrecked with ThursdaysThanksgiving holiday.

I spent about an hour at the

Providence Playhouse with thecast of DGM ProductionsAvenue Q. Like most modernnews tips, I learned the show

was being put on locallythrough a friends event post onFacebook and reached out forcontact information.

Knowing most of the raun-chy yet toe-tapping songs fromthe show, I knew what I was infor.

What I didnt expect washaving some connection withsix of the 11 cast members.

Three former fellow improvi-

sational comedy troupe friends,a fellow West Scranton HighSchool student, another formerKeystone College classmate,

and my best friends girlfriendare among those who willportray the misguided mon-sters and puppet people in theadult version of SesameStreet when the curtain risesthis weekend.

It was a welcome sight, even

for a 7 p.m. assignment that Ibooked for myself as my wifeworked a late retail shift onBlack Friday.

Seeing people who I knew instrictly separate circles work-ing together in the theater wasincredible, even when theywerent flawlessly masteringtheir puppeteer skills.

Coincidences like that makeme thankful that I report on

the events and people of myhometown. In an unfamiliarplace, thered be new names tolearn and new places to get lost

while traveling to.

That wasnt the case on

Friday.

Sometimes, being so close to

your subject matters can be

tough, like when the s alutator-

ian of your high school class

faces criminal charges or yoursenior class president starts

representing some of the crimi-

nals that you report on.

This was nothing like that.

While this column may show

bias to the people who I share a

connection with, consider this

disclosure as my apology if you

feel it leaks into the story itself.

Sometimes, your friends can

appear in the paper and not in

the police blotter. I was fortu-nate to be reminded of that this

week for the first time in a long

time.

Cast of friends a welcome surpriseBEHIND THEBYLINESC H R I S T O P H E R J .H U G H E S

CHRISTOPHER J. HUGHES missestime with his friends. Email him [email protected].

COVER PHOTO /JASON RIEDMILLER

JASON RIEDMILLER PHOTO

Frosty the Snowmanwas among the giantballoons led throughdowntown Scrantonlast weekend for theSanta Parade.PHOTOS: Page 10

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Sunday, November 27, 2011 GOLackawanna 3

PECKVILLE Robert

L. Brennes small

business is an exper-

iment in both commercial-

ism and functional art.

Brenne, 24, of Peckville,

founded Artistic Amplifica-

tion in August.

Thesmall, onlinebusinessop-erated from his parents homerepurposes common and some-times collectible items andturns them into amplifiers forelectric guitars or MP3 playersand other audio devices.

It actually kind of happenedon a whim, Brenne said, recall-ing a do-it-yourself project on-line where the posts author

turned a beer can into a guitaramp.I kindof wanted toseeif Icould do it, just as a challenge.

After a crash coursein solder-ing from his father, Robert W.,and a few failed attempts,Brenne mastered a Ruby ampcircuit developed by www.ru-noffgroove.com and a businesswas born.

Since August, hes turnedlunchboxes, Japanese vases,andmore into audio-driven art-works. Each guitar amp, which

Brenne said are ideal for prac-tice or travel, is fitted with vol-ume and gain knobs, runs on 9- volt batteries, and includessmall repurposed speakers.

Its surprising for beingabout a half watt how loud theyreally are. You can get cleansoundsor putthe distortionon,Brenne said while plugged intoan old rotary phone with hisFender Stratocaster.

The thing that I think is

unique is, depending on if itsplastic or wood or where thespeaker is, they all sound a bitdifferent, he said.

An old Pac-Man thermos, forexample, muffles sound for amore bluesy feeling, or you canremove the lid for a brightertone.

Another, built from an oldOuija board, was sent to Metal-lica guitarist Kirk Hammett tomatch one of his famed ESP ax-es.

They have it hangingin theirheadquarters, Brenne saidproudly.

Havingplayed guitaras a hob-

by and listened to a wide range

of artists for years, Brenne feltbuilding one-of-a-kindamps wasa great way to stay connectedtomusic without having to be-come a career musician.

By modifying the circuits he was building, Brenne has alsobuilt auxiliary amps to act as aspeaker dock for MP3 playersand otheraudio devices throughan auxiliary cable.

One such auxiliary amp, con-structed from Brennes own Su-per Nintendo console, is actual-ly turned on by using the sys-tems original power switch.

Its a good way to double themarket. People who dont playguitars would also find them in-teresting, he said.

While he considers himself asmall business, hes not behold-en to small business tactics.

Brenne dropped pricesfor theunique amps in honor of BlackFriday, was set to give away onebuilt from a cigar box through

an online conteston Small Busi-ness Saturday, and planned tokeep prices low at least throughCyber Monday. The extended

weekendafter Thanksgivinghasbecome a shoppers mecca ofsorts for finding the best dealson would-be Christmas gifts.

As much as cutting pricesbenefits customers, Im usingthose days to build momentumfor myself, too, he said.

Giving himself a presence onsocial networks like Facebookand Twitter and utilizing You-Tubefor demo videos,hes keep-inga modestbudget whilemaxi-mizing his reach.

With his fathers tools at hisdisposal, his mother Eileensdining room table available as a

showroom of sorts, and the pro-gramming skills of his sister,Stephanie, for his website, theproject has become somewhat

of a family affair.Theyve definitely been big

supporters. The 2005 Valley View High

School graduate and 2009 Keys-tone College graduate in busi-ness administration has taken aunique route to putting his de-gree to work.

I always thought it would be

fun to have your own business,but I always had the problem ofdeciding what type of business Iwould start. I came across this

idea, and I really enjoy makingthem, he said. Im not the firstperson to make an amp out ofsomething strange, but I thinkIm the first one to do it on thislevel.

Hopeful that Artistic Amplifi-cation is something that peoplewill go nuts over, Brenne takesthe most resolve in the creative

process.If worse comes to worse, Im

stuck with 15 amps that I thinkare cool, he said with a laugh.

Peckville small biz owner uses heavily commercial weekend to promote one-of-a-kind amplifiers

THE UNIQUE SOUND OF SUCCESS

JASON RIEDMILLER PHOTO / FOR GO LACKAWANNA

Robert Brenne showcases a guitar amplifier built out of an old rotary phone inside his Peckville home. The unique amps are soldthrough www.artisticamplification.com.

By CHRISTOPHER J.HUGHES

[email protected]

Brennes amps are made from collectible items that he has own-

ed or found at area thrift shops and flea markets.

For further details about ArtisticAmplification, visit www.artisti-camplification.com, follow @artis-ticamps on Twitter, view demon-stration videos at youtube.com/artisticamps, or email [email protected].

LEARN MORE

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SCRANTON Chief Dan Duffys Sun-daymorning yard work was interruptedby a womanwho allegedlyscreamed ob-

scenitiesnearhis home andlater chaseda man while swinging a machete.

According to an affidavit:Duffy, who was off-duty on Sunday

morning and raking leaves, heard the F-word yelled several times from thenear-by Hotel Luzerne, 1708 Luzerne St.,Scranton. As he got closer, thechief rec-ognized the man being screamed at asRonald Minnick.

Minnick allegedly threw somethingtoward the woman and shattered the

front driver-side window of her Jeep.Duffy thensaw a woman, lateridentifiedas Kayleigh Saltry, 22, of Meridian Ave-nue, Scranton,chaseafter Minnick with

what appeared to be a machete.Minnick allegedly fled inside the Ho-

tel Luzerne, and Saltrybegan swingingthe weapon wildly, striking the doorseveral times before smashing a side

window with it.Duffy drew his firearm and ordered

the woman to the ground. She contin-

ued screaming out of control whilekneeling on the ground.

Saltry shouldnot have been at theHo-tel Luzerne because, according to Min-nick,she hada protection from abuse or-der against him.

Minnick told police that he threw arock towards Saltry in an effort to getheroutof here.Thecouples small child

was seated in the vehicle at the time.Saltry was set to be charged with ter-

roristic threats, reckless endangerment,

simple assault, disorderly conduct, andpossession of a controlled substance foralleged possession of Xanax.

Saltry was arraignedNov. 20 andheldfor $10,000bail. All chargesare pending,anda preliminary hearing is setfor Nov.29.

The woman had pleaded guilty onOct. 19 for another incident where she

was charged by the then-off-duty chief.Saltry and Kashona Sartin, 20, of Scran-ton, were among five women fighting ina parking lotin the600 block of LuzerneStreet on Oct. 3. Duffy helped stop thefightafterhe heardit whilefilling hisgastank at a nearby Turkey Hill station.

Machete-wieldingwoman stopped

by Chief DuffyDuffy crosses paths with

woman twice in two months.

By CHRISTOPHER J. HUGHES

[email protected]

SCRANTON - As theU.S. PostalSer-vice aims to adapt to a changing busi-ness climate, post office officials arestudying the impact of consolidating anumber of mail processing facilities inPennsylvania,includingtheoneonStaf-ford Avenuein Scranton.

For the approximately 300 employ-ees who work at the facility, Tuesdayevening offered a chance to voicetheiropinionsand concernsabout the moveand tout the cost-effectiveness andeffi-ciency of the Scranton facility.

Approximately 400 people were atScranton High School as representa-tives from the Central PennsylvaniaDistrict ofthe U.S. PostalService heldarequired public meeting on the pro-posedclosingoftheScrantonmailproc-essingfacility.

KevinMcAdams, Central Pennsylva-niaDistrict Manager forthe U.S. PostalService, said moving operations to Al-lentown is part of a series of proposedchanges that shift from an overnight

servicestandardtowarda two-to-three-dayservicemodel.The proposal is stillbeingstudied by senioradministrators.

Employees at the Scranton facility

aredoingafantasticjobThereisnotanegative thing to sayabout the produc-

tivity or efficiency of the facility, McA-damssaid.Thepostalserviceisinasit-uation where we as an agency are sur-

viving paycheck-to-paycheck. If wewere a Fortune500company,wewouldbe forcedto declarebankruptcy.

Scranton facility employees- some ofwhompreviouslyworkedat asimilarfa-cilityin Wilkes-Barrethat wasclosed in2009 came to defend work that theysaidis more efficient and cost-effectivethan that which is donein Allentown.

Many cited an August2010 reportby

the Office of the Inspector General forthe USPS as proof that the service cansave money by keeping jobs in Scran-ton.

According to figures distributed byemployees, the 2010 study shows thatScranton has a lower rate of delayedmail delivery - 4.2 percent over 7 per-cent - and a lower cost of processingmail-$17.87versus$24.16-thanLehighValley. The same 2010 report showsScranton as havingimprovedoverallef-

ficiencyof 20 percentversus 4 percent.Employees and local officials want

Efficiency, effectiveness cited as reasons to keep operations

CHRISTOPHER J. HUGHES PHOTO

Hundreds of residents, including National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 163 - Carbondale members Stephan Ja-

blonski, left, and Amanda Esgro, right, attended Tuesdays meeting at Scranton High School.

Post office backers deliver caseBy GERARDHETMAN

For Go Lackawanna

The following excerpts were taken froma letter from Pennsylvania Rep. KevinMurphy, D-Scranton, to the United StatesPost Office Central Office on Nov. 23:

On behalf of the constituents of the113th Pennsylvania Legislative District, Iexpress strong opposition to the pro-posed closing of the Scranton Mail Proc-essing and Distribution Facility and thetransfer of these services to a facility inthe Lehigh Valley.

First and foremost among my concernsis the potential impact this could have onour areas economy. I am deeply con-cerned about the workers who will lose

their livelihoods and the businesses thatwill experience slower mail service. Now isnot the time to eliminate jobs and createdelays for businesses that could costthousands, if not millions, of dollars. I alsoam concerned that citizens, and in partic-ular senior citizens, will experience delaysin receiving Social Security checks, med-ical payments, mail-order medicines, andother important mail.

I realize the United States Postal Ser-vice is experiencing substantial financialdifficulties, but I fail to see how closingthis facility will make the Postal Servicemore efficient over the long-term.

On behalf of my constituents and allresidents in northeastern Pennsylvania, Iurge the USPS to keep this facility inScranton.

REP. MURPHY RESPONDS

See POST, Page 5

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SCRANTON - A profes-sionally accredited scubadiving instructor wascharged Tuesday by theLackawanna County Dis-trictAttorneys Office withasingle countof possessionofchild pornography.

Keith Mel Murphy, 62, ofRiver Street, Scranton, wascharged after a nearly year-

long investigation spurredby a tip from the NationalCenter for Missing and Ex-ploited Children.

According to an affidavit:Lackawanna County de-

tectives received a tip aboutpossible child exploitationin Dec.2010 concerningsev-eral uploaded images ofchild porn from a live.comemail address. The targethad also been reported innumerous CyberTipline re-ports.

Using a variety of search-es on social networks andthrough several search en-gines, detectives trackedprofiles on Tagged, Yahoo,andMySpace to Murphyus-ing his alleged email ad-dresses.

Detectives visited Mur-phys home in June. At that

time,Murphytold investiga-tors that he used his com-puterto runhisbusinessasatraining director, examinerand dive medic instructor

withthe ProfessionalDiving

Instructors Corporation In-ternational.Investigators then told

him about the various re-ports regarding the tradingof images of nude boys, andhe acknowledged that hedoes use the computer andinternet (sic)for thosetypesof searches. He also alleg-edly told officials that hehas been homosexual his

whole life, has an attrac-

tion to teenage boys, andthat he didnt believe there

was anything wrong withsearching for explicit imag-es of teen boys on the Inter-net.

Detectives allegedly dis-covered a single image of anude boy, estimated to be 9

years old, on Murphys com-puter.

When told about the im-age, Murphy allegedly re-sponded, OK, Ill give youthat one.

A further forensic searchcompleted in October re-

vealed no other images. Itdid, however, discover rem-nant posts of hisInternetac-tivity including Googlesearches and search sug-gestions for trading nakeds(sic) photos of boys, childmolestation, and pedophi-

lia.Murphy was arraignedNov. 22 andheldfor $25,000bail. All charges are pend-ing, and a preliminary hear-ing is set for Nov. 30.

Scranton scuba instructorfacing child porn chargesBy CHRISTOPHER J. HUGHES

[email protected]

SCRANTON - CommissionerBruce Smallacombe voted

Wednesday against the countys2012budget that calls fora 38 per-cent taxandprovidedsomeheavycriticism in a prepared letter andremarks after the meeting.

We have overspent by$250,000 forvariousprojects. Thecountyhasalso sold most ofits re-maining assets, Smallacombe

wrote. The majority has alsohired 109 new full time (sic) em-ployees since 2008.

Smallacombe said followingthe meeting that not enough hasbeen done over thelast four yearsof this administration to correctproblems and find solutions.

I feel strongly that the tax-

payers are getting a very high in-crease at this time, and its goingto be tough to absorb, he said ofthe tax hike.

The budget, which raises taxesto a total of 55 mills, passed uponsecond reading, 2-1, Wednesday

morning. A mill is a $1 tax on ev-ery $1,000 of assessed property

value.Smallacombe, who was ap-

pointed in June to fill a vacancycreated when former commis-sioner A.J. Munchak resigned hisseat following a guilty verdict inhispublic corruption case, said he

wouldusehis finalmonthin officeto continue to examine the bud-get for additional changes.

Ivecut almost$1millionthat Icanforesee.Over fouryears,thats$4 million, and thats just in the

week since I got the budget lastThursday, he said.The commis-sioners have actually agreed withme. I think youll see some ofthese changes moving forward.

In other business, commission-ers approved:

Providercontractsworth a to-tal of $220,896 for the Depart-ment of Human Services by unan-imous vote. The allocation of theHSDF fund represents a 37 per-cent drop in funding from last

year, according to Director of Hu-

man Services William Browning. Children and Youth Services

providercontracts worth a total of$498,250 by unanimous vote.

A cooperative grant agree-mentwith thecommonwealthDe-partment of Aging and an AgingMedicaid Waiver program withPDA and the state Department ofPublic Welfare were unanimouslyapproved. Browning said thegrants represent all funding for aperiodof fouryearsfor servicesre-lated to the Area Agency on Ag-ing.

The food service bid for theLackawanna County Prison wasawardedto CBMManagedServic-es,Inc.,NorthSiouxFalls, S.D, byunanimous vote. Deputy Directorof Purchasing Jim McLaine saidCBM was among the five respon-dents submitting bids andwas se-lected based on pricing, menu

quality, and references. The newcontract will create an estimated$250,000 savings as it adds freshfoods and more proteins to themenu. The bid was also approvedlater Wednesday by the countyprison board.

LACKAWANNA COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

Budget with hike passes, 2-1Smallacombe speaks out against planBy CHRISTOPHER J.HUGHES

[email protected]

SCRANTON LackawannaCounty District AttorneyAndy Jar-bola said Wednesday that he willnotpursuecriminalchargesagainstguardsterminatedfollowing thees-cape of murderer Michael Simon-son on Sept. 28, but informationgatheredduringan investigationin-to the escape could be brought be-fore a grandjury in thenear future.

Following the conclusion of thecountys monthly prison boardmeeting and a brief executive ses-sion on Nov. 23, Jarbola said that aDepartment of Corrections reportoutlining deficiencies at the Lacka-

wanna County Prison would haveimpededalegal caseagainst atleasttwoguards.

Former Sgt. BrianCwalinski andcorrections officers Richard Pito-niak, Kevin Dolphin, and Michael

Zemantauski were terminated onOct. 7. Two of those guards, whoJarbola did not name, have accept-ed their termination,he said.

Thereare twoother (unrelated)guards that may have affected the

judgment of theguardsactions be-cause they didor didnot docertainthings. The warden is dealing withthem in a very severe disciplinarynature. It didnt rise to the level ofcriminal conduct, he added.

Information gathered since theSept. 28 escapeaddsnew details toanother investigation that beganbefore Simonson broke out of the

prisonand stole a utility truck.This investigation was opened

up a littlebeforethe escape. Asa re-sultofquestioninginmatesandoth-er guards, it added more informa-tion. Were in a position that weregoingtobringitbeforeourgrandju-ryorpotentially doa jointinvestiga-tion with federal authorities, Jar-bola said.

Overtime skyrockets

Overtime at the LackawannaCounty Prison was up because of aproject to repair fencing followingSimonsons escape and negotiated

sick leave, Warden Robert McMil-lansaid.

For the last 21 pay periods over-time had averaged $48,170.26, butit climbed to $89,897.36 and$94,305.04 in thelast twopay peri-ods.

A lot of it was attributed to theescape,theadditionalsecuritymea-suresthatwere putin place,andtheadditional fencing project whichis almost near completion now,

McMillan said.Butthe farbiggest contributor to

overtimecostsis thecountybenefitsystem, he said

Its 20 sick days every year,McMillan said.

This stuff needs to come backdown to therealworld here,Com-missioner Corey OBrien said.This ishaving a difficultimpactonour operations.

The current prison employee

contract doesnt expire until 2012and,untilthen,the wardenhopestotrimovertimewithrecenthiresthat

will fill up to13 vacancies.

New info on prison to reach grand juryBy CHRISTOPHER J.HUGHES

[email protected]

jobsat theLehighValleycen-ter moved to Scranton.

Our service is excellent,our delays are nonexistent,and our overtime is mini-mal, said Kevin Gallagher,president of theScrantonLo-cal of the American Postal

Workers Union.Theclosing ofthis facility

could cripplethe fragilelocaleconomy of Northeastern

Pennsylvania, LackawannaCounty Commissioner Co-reyOBrien added.

Tom Gavin, president of

National Association of Let-ter Carriers Branch 17 inScranton, took aim at a largecongressionally mandatedpayment as the reason be-

hind the proposed consolida-tions.

Yes, the postal service isin financial trouble, but thatsbecause of a $5.8 billion pay-ment we have to makeevery

year for our future retireesbenefits,Gavin said.Weareactually prefunding benefitsfor people who arent evenbornyet.

Postal officials stressed

that theproposalsarestillun-der review, and that a deci-sionis notexpecteduntillateDecember or January.

POSTContinued from page 4

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262972

262972

724358

Scrantons appointed Act 47

coordinator, the PennsylvaniaEconomy League, released itslong-awaited 2011 revised andupdatedRecoveryPlanonMon-day, Nov. 21, mandatingthecityto increase real estate taxes 42percent in 2012, reduce wages,and make further employmentcuts,among otherdirectives.

The city declared distressedstatus in 1992. PEL estimatesthat Scrantons projected oper-ating budget deficit will in-

crease from $6.1 million in 2011to$15.6millionin2015,withthecityscumulativeoperatingbud-getdeficit for2011through2015projectedto be $63.1 million.

PELs 2002 revised RecoveryPlan was implemented within

anenvironmentofextensiveliti-gation anddelays that have pre-

vented many of their recom-

mendations from being imple-mented.Under 2012 expenditure

mandates, PEL has asked thecityto reduce non-employeede-partmental expenses by 5 per-cent, reduce the police and firedepartments by one employeeeach,decreasebasesalariesandbasehourlywageswere applica-ble,reduce theParks andRecre-ation budget by 25 percent andpursuean increase in payments

inlieuof taxes thatwillbe dedi-cated to park maintenance, in-crease employee contributionsto health insurance, and findcost savings through intergo-

PEL suggests 70 percent hike through 2015ByRICH HOWELLS

[email protected]

See PEL,Page 8

SCRANTON City Councilunanimously passed the firstreading of an ordinance to pet-ition theCourtof CommonPleasof Lackawanna County for per-mission to fund unfunded debtnot to exceed $6.7 million toclose the citys 2011 operatingbudget deficit on Tuesday.

Council President Janet Evanssaid the move was a result of theadministrations incomplete au-

dit for 2010 which provided diffi-culty in attracting bids for 2012

Tax AnticipationNotes.Council solicitor BoydHughes

said he drafted a new paragraphin the legislation to specify thatthe $6.7 million shall only beused bythecityto payfor2011op-erating expenses and paymentsrequired to be made on the citysoutstanding indebtedness andcannotbe usedfor any other pur-pose unless it was approved bycouncil.

Council alsoreactedextensive-ly to Mondays release of thePennsylvania Economy Leagues2011 revised and updated Recov-ery Plan.

Arriving on the heels of the

mayors 2012 budget, this places

the plan in an increasingly ques-tionable light, particularly sinceits proposed 42 percent tax hikeseems to make the mayors 29percent appear more reasonablethan it is, she said, referring toMayor Chris Dohertys proposed2012 budget.

PELs plan recommends a 42percent real estate tax increaseand further employment cuts,along with maintaining close tothe current level of 129 fire fight-

ers. Evans called it a piecemealeffort.

I amamazedby thearroganceof PEL and DCEDThey ledScranton down the path to finan-cial destruction in the SupremeCourt of Pennsylvania, and whatis their solution now? Theyrehanding the taxpayers of Scran-ton a bag of bills they activelyhelped to create to the tune of a42 percent taxtoday, andoverall,a 70 percent tax increase I willnever give my approval to thisplanas it stands, Evans stated.

Councilman Bob McGoff saidthathe feltthat neither PELsplannor the mayorsproposed budget

wasa workable plan.I think both would need revi-

sion, and Im probably saying

somethingthatwe allknow, butIthinkthat theanswerisone that will come through cooperationand compromise through allthree parties involved in this,McGoff said.

International Association ofFire Fighters Local 60 Presidentand Scranton Fire Lt. Dave Ger-

vasi clarified while speaking infront of council that the revisedplan and the mayors proposedbudget do not address the over

$20 million in court awards duetounions afteran Oct.19Pennsyl-

vania Supreme Court ruling, sothe unions cannot be blamed forany 2012 tax increases suggestedby PEL or the mayor.

Nelson Ancherani, recordingsecretary for Fraternal Order ofPolice E.B. Jermyn Lodge No. 2,said that PEL could not be trust-ed to help the city consideringtheir dismal record over thepast 19 years. The city declaredAct 47 distressed status in1992.

Evans also made clear thatcouncils handsare tiedconcern-ing the elimination of 29 fire de-partment positions because thecourt ruled in 2011that they may-or has the right to cut them.

SCRANTON CITY COUNCIL

Council approves borrowing, balks at PEL planByRICH HOWELLS

[email protected]

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GOLACKAWANNA, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2011 PAGE 7

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SCRANTON The ScrantonSchool Boardof Directors beganits series of meetings this weekby presenting a budget with a$3,558,415 deficit and ended

them by firing its solicitor andhiring the citys Department ofPublic Works Director as thenew director of buildings andgrounds for the district.

Assistant Superintendent ofFinance Gregg Sunday saidMonday said expenses in the2012 plan are $1,279,827 higherthan the 2011 budget at$117,814,015 while maintainingall programs and existing staff.Increased expenses were attri-buted to rising healthcare costs

worth $1.55 million this yearand mandated contributions tothe Public School EmployeesRetirement System worth $1.25million.

Revenues are down to$114,255,400 from last years$116,534,188. Local revenuesclimbed by $2,592,412 whilestate and federal funding drop-ped by $2,134,200 and

$2,737,000, respectively.Directors stressed Mondaythat thebudgetis a workingdoc-ument and voted Tuesday, 7-0,

to approved the preliminaryplan. Directors BrianJeffersandPaul OMalley were absent on

Tuesday.In the next 30 days, well be

doing some paring down,

Board President Bob Lesh saidMonday.The district could only raise

taxes by 2.1 percent based on anadjusted index provided by thePennsylvania Department ofEducation. The current millagerate in the district is 109 mills,according to Sunday. A mill is a$1 tax on every $1,000 of as-sessed property value.

Public hearings on the budgetare set for Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. at

West Scranton High School andDec. 15at 7 p.m. at Whittier Ele-mentary School.

Personnel changes

The district hired fiveindivid-uals Tuesday evening includingthree newpositionsto be fundedthrough a surplus in the dis-tricts technology budget.

Jeff Brazil, current director ofDPW for the city of Scranton,

was hired as the new director offacilities and grounds as JosephSlackwas appointedthe mainte-nance day shift foreman.

New positions created wereawarded to AV Technician PhilHinton, IT Technician RonelleBarrett, and Inventory Control

Technician Justin MacGregor.Barrett bears no relation toSchoolDirector Nathan Barrett.

The appointments passed,6-0, as Director Chris Phillips

left the meeting during execu-tive session after approving thetentative budget.

Directors also voted unani-

mously, 6-0, to terminate theservices of solicitor HarryMcGrath, effective immediate-ly, and appoint the firm of Min-ora, Minora, Colbassani, Kro-

wiak,and Mattioli as interim so-

licitor for at least 90 days.Lesh said following the meet-

ingthat McGrath wasshockedto learn of the termination dur-ing an executive session be-tween the budget vote and per-

sonnel meeting. McGrathservedthe districtfor more than16years,including14 withLesh.

I feellike I justattended a fu-neral, Lesh said following the

vote.

SSD budget

has $3.6million holeBy CHRISTOPHER J. HUGHES

[email protected]

vernmental cooperation.PEL believes the city should

sell its parking meters to theScranton Parking Authority toproduce approximately $6 mil-lion in one-time revenue with alossof approximately $1.1millionin recurring revenue, thoughthis

will reduce city meter collectionexpenses by approximately$485,000.

Mandates through 2015 in-clude butarenot limitedto a 70.7percent increasein realestatetax-es,a 50 percent decrease in recre-ation spending, and wage de-creasesof15percentintheadmin-istration,publicworks,andpublic

safetydepartments.PEL believes if their mandates

arefollowedandfullyimplement-ed, they will eliminate the citysprojected operating budget defi-cits for2011 through 2015. Coun-cilmemberswerecertaintheplan

would not be approvied simulta-neously with a 2012budget.

City Council is engaged, obvi-ously, in more pressing and criti-calmatters,suchas the2012oper-atingbudget and 2011 borrowingatthistimeandwillnotdeliberateon the recovery plan until some-time in the new year. We will ad-dress one issue, one crisis, at atime, Council President JanetEvans saidTuesday.

Theplanalsodoesnotfactorinthe Oct. 19 Pennsylvania Su-preme Court ruling that willcostthecity over $20million.

PELContinued from page 6

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SCRANTON Dawn Deriso said shehadnever seen anything like what shewit-nessed Tuesday.

Deriso, 42, of South Abington Town-ship,was oneof 1,500 peoplewho receiveda free Thanksgiving meal through the32nd United Neighborhood Centers An-nual WNEP Feed-A-Friend ThanksgivingFood Basket Program.

I cant believe they do this here, Deri-so said inside St. John Neumann Church,633 Orchard St., Scranton.

Iusedto live inGeorgia,andtheyneverdidanythinglikethis foranybody, Derisosaid. They had food pantries and youcould get food if you needed it, but noth-ing to help outfamilies.

After movingto the area two years ago,Derisosaid times area bittougher this ho-liday season. Work has been slow for herhusband, a truck driver, and she discov-ered the program after signing up for theWomen, Infants, and Children, or WIC,program earlier this year.

The turkey alone is a big help, she

said,notingthefamilyof six she was set tofeed Thursday.

More than 200 volunteers came fromthe Old Forge, Dunmore, Valley View,andScranton schooldistricts,along withBankof America, McCann School of Businessand Technology, ITT Technical Institute,and the community at large.

Its amazing. I cant say enough about

it. HereI am, downon myluck, I want tomake sure that my kids have a great holi-

day, and these kids are volunteering theirtime to help people, Deriso said.

That need is what brought 37-year-oldAshley Ali Morgan,37, of Scranton, to St.Johns on Tuesday. Dressed in a pig cos-tume as a mascot forChefPigsBBQ,1330Pittston Ave., Scranton, Morgan handedout turkeys with gusto.

I figured what better way to give backthan to offer my volunteer services, hesaid.We just wantto helpout as muchaspossible. Its a long, tough road out therefor some people, and every little bitcounts.

Mary Endrusick, community servicesdirector for UNC, said the Thanksgivingprogram served more than 1,500 familiesthisyear, compared to about1,700in 2010.

Organizers said the slight reduction inturnout may be attributed to families uti-lizingprogramsofferedby UNCand otheragencies .

Some of those programs, like UNCsfood pantry and Angels Attic, have beenhithard by increasedneedand sloweddo-nations.

Theres definitely been a greater need

throughout the year, UNC Communica-tions Coordinator Alison Woodysaid.

UNC: Holiday need down slightly

RICH HOWELLS PHOTOS

A volunteer from Bank of America sifts through paper bags during the UNC and WNEP Feed-A-Friend basket distribution.

Group says, however, demand to help needy was higher throughout yearBy CHRISTOPHER J.HUGHES

[email protected]

Ashley Ali Morgan was one of UNCs

more animated volunteers this year.

Food, clothing, household items, andmonetary donations are accepted byUnited Neighborhood Centers year-round,and monetary donations can be sentonline at www.uncnepa.org/donate.

GIVE BACK

Obama due in Scranton

The White House announced on Tuesday that

President Barack Obama will visit the city of

Scranton on Wed., Nov. 30 to discuss the Amer-ican Jobs Act.

Details on the time and location of Obamas

appearance were not available at press time.

Proposed PA electoral vote change

failing?

A Republican-sponsored proposal to change

how Pennsylvanias electoral votes are counted

in next years presidential election appears to be

running out of steam.

GOP Gov. Tom Corbett, a key supporter of the

idea, suggested Monday that its going nowherefor the time being.

I see no movement on it. Im not going to

push for movement, but I still support it, Corbett

told a Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon in

Harrisburg.

The proposal that first surfaced in September

ditch the current system of awarding Pennsylva-

nias 20 electoral votes to the winner of the

states popular vote in the 2012 presidential

election. Rather, candidates would win an electo-

ral delegate for each of 18 congressional districts

they carry, and the winner of the statewide votewould gain two additional electoral votes.

The bill, if it becomes law, would guarantee

that a Republican wins an electoral vote in

Pennsylvania for the first time in 24 years. The

bill is in the Senate State Government Committee

but isnt scheduled for a vote.

- ASSOCIATED PRESS

Local MainStreetChamber branch

opens

The Lackawanna County branch of Main-

StreetChamber, a national membership orga-nization dedicated to helping small businesses,

has been opened by new president Chris Musti,

according to a release.

I want to work to save, maintain, and bring

additional jobs as well as better paying jobs into

Lackawanna County, Musti said.

A grand opening event is tentatively set for

Jan. 2012.

The local chapter is still hiring membership,

corporate, fundraising, and sponsorship repre-

sentatives. For more details, call 1-888-233-1522,

email [email protected], or visitlackawanna.mainstreetchamber.net.

NEWS BRIEFS

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Welcoming SantaHundreds of childrenand families crowdedthe streets of downtown

Scranton on Nov. 19 to wel-

come Santa Claus to the

city.Santa arrived at the con-

clusion of the 2011 Greater

Scranton Jaycees Santa Pa-

rade, which included floats,

live music, and much more.

For details on the Scran-

ton Jaycees, visitwww.scrantonjaycees.org.

From left, State Rep. Ken Smith, State

Sen. John Blake, and State Rep. Sid

Michaels Kavulich.

Coen Holland waits for Santas arrival.

The Penn State Nittany Lion.

Heather Slody of Tunkhannock.

JASONRIEDMILLERPHOTOS/ FORGO LACKAWANNA

Santa and Mrs. Claus arrive in downtown Scranton.

Ronald McDonald greets parade goers.

A Frosty the Snowman balloon travels

down Lackawanna Avenue.


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Its the most wonderfultime of the year for deals!

The actually Black Fridaydeals were available on mostwebsites this year, and welllikely see the deals get betteras we get closer to the holi-day.

With the state of our econ-omy, most people are turningto online deals rather thanbuying in store. If you didntget a chance to wrestlethrough the crowds on BlackFriday or beat the lightning

deals online, you will notwant to miss the deals hap-pening on Cyber Monday.

There are a few tips toshopping online like search-ing websites for couponcodes that can be added to

your order. The top onlinecoupon sites are retailmenot-.com and couponcabin.com.Its also a good idea to signup for emails from your fa-

vorite retail stores in order to

receive advance notice ofsales.

On Cyber Monday, thesales are comparable to thoseon Black Friday and somemay sell out very fast.

Sign up for cash backprograms like Ebates-.com and ShopAtHome-.com, two online rebatesites that can earn youcash back with every

online purchase. When

you sign up for an account,you will receive a $5 bonusonce you spend $20 online

within 60 days.Amazon also offers free

shipping on many products.Amazon Prime, which can bepurchased for $79 a year, also

offers free two-day shippingon most purchases. If youhave a student email address,then score Amazon Prime forfree for one year or get threemonths of Amazon Primefree if you are a caregiver.Just visit amazon.com formore information and searchAmazon Student or Ama-zon Mom.

Amazon has been matchingmany of the hot store deals

and offering lightning dealsthat are gone within minutes.

There is also a new sitecalled Shoprunner that pro-

vides free two-day shippingon lots of online retailers

including drugstore.com,

Toys R Us, Babies R Us, andLord & Taylor, to name a few.

This service costs $79 but isworth it if you tend to shoponline a lot.

Some of the top CyberMonday deals can make greatgifts. Canvas On Demand isoffering 30 percent off plus a$50 voucher. ShoeMetro.comis offering 25 percent off allorders. FAO Schwarz willoffer 30 percent off hot toysand games, and Leapfrog willbe offering 15 percent off

bundles excluding the LeapPad.

Crocs.com will be offering25 percent off sales sitewide.KMart is offering an extra$10 off Toys & Games ordersof $100 or more, and Wal-greens will be offering $10 off$40 sitewide and free ship-ping on $25.

Mark your calendars forDecember 16 when over 750merchants will offer free

shipping for a 24 hour peri-od.

Do you have any CyberMonday or online shoppingtips? Share with us on

www.facebook.com/golacka-wanna.

Cyber Monday preview and tips

DEAL

DETECTIVEJ E N N A U R B A N

Goodthingsareall around

us.For me, Ilookaroundmyhomeandseemy beauti-

fulwife andtwo wonderfulchil-dren.No matterhowbusyI amorhow many billsfoundtheir waytomy mailbox,I always enduprealizing howverylucky I am.Icouldnot bea richerperson,andmywifeand two boys have mademe thisway.

Im also blessed because ofthefamilyI was raised in.

Familyfirst,my father al-ways said.That continuestodayasI canstill visitwithmy parentsandsiblings orspeakwiththematany time. We alllivein thesame small town,within a fewminutes of eachother. To some,that maysound crazy, butto me,its somethingelse to be thankfulfor.

I hope toinstill inmy children

what myparentsinstilled in me.Family first, thenworkhard, andtherest will workitselfout.

Yourgood things inlife maybecompletely differentfrommine,butthat doesntmatter. Whatmattersis thatyou have them.

Bydonatingto thelessfortu-nate, teachinga class, savinglives, fightingcrimes, healingpatients,farming,or,in ourcasehereat Go Lackawanna,compil-

inga newspaper, weall contrib-ute, insomeway, tothe goodthings thatare allaroundus.

Thestaff here hasthegreathonor of keepingreadersin-formed.We take thathonor veryseriously.

We alsoappreciate greatlytheopportunity to bringnew memo-riesand mementosinto yourhome. Manyproudparentsburstthroughour doorMondaymorn-ingofferingto buyadditional

copies becausetheirchild wasphotographedor featuredin asportsstory.

Tom Robinson, oursportswriter, placesa greatdealof pridein reportingon localsports,justasJason Riedmillerplaces a greatdealof pridein photographingathletesand communityleaders.

We enjoyhelpingpeoplefur-thertheir businessesthroughadvertising.We arevery drivenbythesuccessof youradvertisingcampaigns, andI especiallyenjoyassistingyou in creatingthem.Ouradvertisersmean a great deal

tous, andwe are thankfulforyourbusiness.

We appreciate andare thankfulfor theunmatchedsupportof ourparent company. Manyreaderscount on Go Lackawannafordailynews coverage online, and

withthe support of ImpressionsMedia,ourabilityto expandourdailynews coverage online will

continueto flourish.We alsorealizethe importance

of appreciatingeach other.Oureditor,Chris Hughes, has

a knowledge of online journalismthat amazesme, andhe hasanuncannyability tobringfairnesstoeachand everynewsstory he

writesor edits.RichHowells, a recent Keys-

tonePressAward-winningjour-nalist, possessesa work ethicandtalent thatallowshim to cover

nearly anycategoryof reporting,from municipalnews topopcultureandbeyond.

Astoughas timesmay be,wehave to rememberto remindourselves of thethingsaroundusthat wearethankfulfor, andnot

justduring theholidays.By doingthis,eventhetoughesttimesarent really that badat all.

Celebrate all that we haveOPINIONP A U L A N D R E W S

PAUL ANDREWS is the general

manager at Go Lackawanna.

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NEWS

ARTS

SPORTS

VISUAL ARTSAFA Gallery, 514 LackawannaAve., Scranton.

Galleryhours: Thurs.-Sat., 12-5p.m. Info: (570) 969-1040,www.artistsforart.com.

Life Drawing sessions, Mon., 7-9p.m. Call Phil for info, (570)561-7817.

Drawing Socials, Sun., 6-9 p.m.Cost: $5, $2 students.

ArtCouncil of theAbingtons,ClarksSummit

Info: [email protected] Friday art walk, Fri., Dec.

9ArtWorksGallery, 502Lacka-wanna Ave., Scranton.

Fall galleryhours: Tues.-Fri., 11a.m-5 p.m.; Sat., 11 a.m.-2p.m.; or byappointment.Info: (570)207-1815,www.artworksnepa.com.

EverhartMuseum, 1901Mul-berrySt.,Scranton.

Cost: $5 adults; $3 students/seniors, $2 children6-12,members free. Info: (570)346-7186, www.everhart-museum.org.

Buds, Blooms & Berries: Plantsin Science, Culture & Art,through Dec. 31 in the MaslowGalleries.

Linder Gallery, Keystone Col-lege,OneCollege Green,LaPlume.

Info: (570) 945-8335,www.keystone.edu.

The Pros and Cons of UnitizedConstruction, works ofVaughn Randall, exhibit con-tinues through Dec. 2.

New Visions Studio andGal-lery, 201 VineSt.,Scranton.

Galleryhours: Tues.Sun.,12-6p.m. Info: (610) 636-9684,

www.newvisionsstudio.com.Off the Wall, works of HeatherMurphy, Lolita Nogan, EricaSimon, and Michael Swanson,exhibit continues through Nov.27.

Give the Gift of Art, exhibit andholiday sale, works by ErinJordan, Emily Taylor, AnthonyFanucci, Christine Altmiller,Casey Heyen, Matt Mroz, SallyRussick, Jeff Bensley, MaryCrespo, Erica Simon, FrankOhotnicky, Michelle Wheeler,Megan Hughes, Sarah Gilmer,

Amber Weeks, Kevin Vogrin,Samantha Nardelli, AmyWyman, Gerry Stankiewics,Lyndsey Hughes, ShaneMcGeehan, Michael Swanson,Stephanie Shotwell, NickShotwell, Jeff Kuratnick,Jenna Mancini and more,opening reception, Fri., Dec. 2,5-10 p.m., continues to Dec.28.

STARGallery, Mallat Steam-town, 300Lackawanna Ave.

Info: (570) 969-2537or (570)343-3048.

Ceramic sculpture and the Chil-drens Art Corner. Call TomGates, (570) 877-3261.

Drawing and painting classes.Call Karen Mahalik, (570)383-1220.

Private Photoshop classes. Call

Gerry Stankiewicz, (570)709-9203.

COMEDYWise CrackersComedy Club atClarionHotel, 300MeadowAve., Scranton.

Info: (570) 344-9811, www.wi-secrackers.biz/scran-ton.html.

The Legendary Wid, John Kensil,Teri Lee, Dec. 2-3, 9 p.m., 21+,Cost: $15.

Joey Kola, Laurence Mulaney,

Dec. 9-10, 9 p.m., 21+, Cost: $15.

CONCERTSScrantonCultural Center, 420N. Washington Ave., Scran-ton.

Info: (570) 346-7369,www.scrantonculturalcente-r.org.

Listen Local series, with Langorand Rogue Chimp, Fri., Dec. 2,8 p.m., Shopland Hall. Cost:$10.

Let It Show!, presented by

WKRZ, with Joe Jonas andHot Chelle Rae, Sat., Dec. 10,7:30 p.m. Cost: $27, $32, $100for VIP package.

THEATERDGMProductionsat Providen-ce Playhouse, 1256Provi-dence Rd, Scranton

Info: (570) 313-2123.Avenue Q, Dec. 2-3, 8 p.m., Dec.

4, 3 p.m., Dec. 8-10, 8 p.m.Cost: $15, adults; $12, studentsand senior citizens.

MusicBoxDinnerPlayhouse,196Hughes St,Swoyersville.Info: (570) 283-2195 or 800-698-PLAY.

Irving Berlins White Christmas,Thurs. to Sun., Dec. 1-4, 8-11,and 15-18, Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m.,Sun. at 3 p.m.

ScrantonCultural Center, 420N. Washington Ave., Scran-ton.

Info: (570) 346-7369,www.scrantonculturalcente-r.org.

The Nutcracker Ballet, presented

by Scranton Civic Ballet Com-pany, Fri., Dec. 9, 7:30 p.m.,and Sun., Dec. 11, 2 p.m. Cost:$16, $19.

WRITING/POETRYTheVintage Theater, 119PennAvenue, Scranton.

Info: (570) 589-0271,www.scrantonsvintagethea-ter.com.

Writers critique group, Sat., 12-2p.m. Bring work samples. Cost:Free, donations encouraged.

Open microphone night, lastThursday of each month,registration at 6:30 p.m.,event at 7 p.m.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

Whether or notyoufeel Avenue Q is more Sesame Street-meets-South Park or

Rent with puppets and without terminal disease, cast members agree that re-

hearsing for the upcoming production of theBroadway hit has been a blast, even

before the curtain riseson Dec. 2.

Weve sung these songs 300times,and werestill laughing. Itsthe only show Ive been involvedin where people are asking to doscenesoverbecause of howfunnytheyare, Mark Petrole, of Tama-qua,said.

The show, indeed, haspuppets,but this isnt Public BroadcastingSystems type of puppet show.

All of the same stuff thats onSesame Street like equality andgetting along is there but from adifferent angle. Instead of sayingweshould allget along,it kind ofsays everyone sucks so weshouldembrace that, John McNulty, of West Wyoming, said. McNultyportrays Nicky, one half of theBertand Ernie-esque roommatesin Avenue Q.

Musical numbers include IfYou WereGay andEveryones aLittle Bit Racist and approachsuch topics ina way that eventheactorsadmitwouldbetoughtodo

candidly if it werent fortheir felt-clad companions.

Its what everybody dealswith, except puppets are doing itwhichmakesit funnier,said Jere-my Crisi, of Lake Ariel, who por-trays Trekkie Monster, an Inter-netaficionadoand investmentgu-ru, to put it politely, who edu-

cates audience members on themajority of content available on-line.

Its so much easier to say anddo those things when youre be-hind a puppet.

Crisi said the puppeteeringprocessbrings a newcomfort lev-el for aspiring actors like himselfand Travis Davis, a Wilkes-Barre

resident who portrays buildingsuper GaryColeman.

Yes, thatGary Coleman.Andwhileoneofthemostnota-

ble songs from the show is ItSucks To Be Me, cast memberssaid theyve truly enjoyed beingthe first local company to bringAvenue Q to lifein Scranton.

Its always exciting to be thefirst theater to do anything, said West Wyoming resident DaneBower. I know when I saw theshow on Broadway years ago, I

JASON RIEDMILLER PHOTO / FOR GO LACKAWANNA

Cast members in AvenueQ include, from left, John McNulty asNicky, Mark Petrole as Rod, DaneBower at Princeton, Meaghan Fadden asKate, andJeremy Crisi, in front, asTrekkieMonster.

Take a local stroll downAVENUE Q

WHAT: Avenue Q presented byDGM ProductionsWHEN: Dec. 2 to 4 and 8 to 10, allshows at 8 p.m. except for Sun-day, Dec. 4 matinee at 3 p.m.WHERE: Providence Playhouse,1256 Providence Rd., Scranton.COST: $15 for adults, $12 forsenior citizens and students.The price pays for the whole set,but youll only need the edge!cast member John McNultyquipped.INFO: (570) 313-2123 or www.ave-nueqscranton.com

IF YOU GO

By CHRISTOPHER J.HUGHES [email protected]

SeeAVENUEQ, Page 16

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The holidays bring thehustle and bustle intofull swing with frantic

Black Friday shopping, hecticplanning for the perfect party,the brain-numbing work offinding ideal gifts, and, finally,an elaborate and decadentfeast.

The many customs that existat our shared tables this seasoncan be traced back to the Vic-

torian Era when the mainChristmas dinner consisted ofturkey, ham, potatoes, turnips,oysters, and plum pudding. Inaddition, the Victorians alsohosted smaller gatherings withlighter fare including fingersandwiches, cakes, cookies,and, of course, more plumpudding.

Plum pudding originatedfrom a medieval plum porridgeor pottage. It was a left-over

dish filled with meat, breadcrumbs, raisins, spices cur-rants, prunes, and red wine,and is considered to be theforerunner of todays popularmincemeat pies.

Another must have duringthe Victorian Christmas was a

Wassail. The Wassail Bowl isderived from the Anglo Saxoncustom of Wassailing.

On Jan. 5, Wassailing time,young men would roam the

fields banging drums and clash-ing cymbals to ward off anyevil spirits. The term Weshaill literally translates to togood health or be well andmeans to be free of evil spirits.After the young men returnedfrom the field, they woulddrink a Wassail cup, which wasa combination of warmedbrown ale, sherry, spices, roast-ed apples and lemons, and theoccasional bit of rum.

Today, recipes for Wassailvary but should always includefruit and a warm cider drink.

While many people dont real-ize it, they are continuing the

Wassailing tradition every timethey offer a warm drink to

visiting carolers.Of course, food was not only

used for meals during the holi-days but has also had a longtradition as part of the seasonaldecorations. The custom ofdecking the halls can betraced back to a Roman festivalcelebrated in late December.Romans would fill their homes

with greens and give wreathsof holly as a symbol of friend-ship.

Christians continued thispractice, first to mask theirreligion, but later they adoptedthe custom as their own. Bythe Victorian Era, the customhad blossomed as a wonderful

way to mark the season andfestoon their homes with gar-lands and more, but they alsocreated paper cornucopiasfilled with sweets, fruits, andnuts. Popcorn and cranberrygarland strings are a reminderof this tradition.

Another food themed deco-ration was the Victorian Kiss-ing Ball. Made with boughs ofevergreen and herbs implantedin ball-shaped items like applesor potatoes, Kissing Balls werehung from ceilings or doorwaysto provide a sweet scent duringthe holiday season and, in themore romantic sense, to sym-bolize love. It was a commonpractice to include mistletoe

under which a kiss could beshared.

To learn more about theseand other popular holidaytraditions, stop by the Lacka-

wanna Historical Societys

Annual Holiday Open Houseon Friday, Dec. 9, between 7and 9 p.m., and dont miss thespecial free Kissing Ball mak-ing workshop on Sunday, Dec.4 at 2 p.m. The workshop is

free and open to the public butparticipants are asked to bringa Styrofoam ball, 10-12 inchesin diameter.

For more information, call(570) 344-3841.

Wassailingand otherholidaytraditions

MINING HISTORY

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1000 Dunham DriveDunmore, PA

www.nawarhorse.com

570.346.2453 (BIKE)NORTH AMERICANWARHORSE

Its probablynotfairto com-

pare thetwove-ry differentconcert experi-ences I hadthispast week, but

forthe sake of argument,lets talkabout theupside anddownsideofcreative freedom in the musicbusiness.

The first show I attended wasGuns N Roses on Nov. 20 at theMohegan SunArena at Casey Pla-za inWilkes-Barre, which wassin-cerelythe weirdestconcert I haveever been to. Considering GnR isan80s hairmetal band, I figuredIknewwhatI wasgettingmyselfin-to. I waswell-prepared forAxlsin-famous tardiness, though I cantsayI find itexcusable,andI antici-pated some insane instrumentalsolos andpyrotechnics.The songchoices, however, threw me forloop.

About half of thethree-hourset

felt like it was made up of coversongs, and while I dont mindhearing a new take ona oldfavor-ite, theyve been playing PaulMcCartney & Wings Live andLet Die for many years now. Arather ill-placed and pointless in-strumental cover of Pink Floyds

AnotherBrickin theWallPart IIalso made me question why ittookChineseDemocracya dec-ade to come out if GnR onlyplannedtoplaytwoorthreesongsoff the entire album.

Axlexited thestageformanyofthese covers, leaving his bandmembers to take on The WhosMyGeneration andBaba ORi-ley. By the time the guitariststarted into a rock version of thePink Panther theme, of allthings, I had to check my ticketagainto besureI hadcome totheright show.

When the Great Bandana-edOne did decide to grace us withhis presence, I must note that

while the guitar amps were turn-ed up to 11, his vocals were atmoreof a five orsix.Ill let you de-cide whether or not it was theacoustics or an attempt to hidethose minor imperfections thatcomewithage andhardpartying.

And since it took Rose untilal-

most11:30 p.m.to take the stage,people started leaving only three

or four songs in. By the time theencore came around and all theGnR classics started to play, atleast half the arena had clearedout, along with my interest. OnNov. 23, however, I had a muchdifferent experience. As an avidfan of Maynard James Keenan,known best as the singer of ToolandA PerfectCircle, Ive seen themanperformmoretimesthananyother national recording artist,butthe Puscifer showat the Tow-er Theater in Upper Darby gaveme a whole new perspective intohis multifaceted and creativebrain.

The night began with a beauti-ful and powerful set by Britishsinger/songwriterCarina Round,who rocked the hell out of anacoustic guitar and a little blackdress. Few present seemed toknow who she was, but just a fewsongs in,shealreadyhad theaudi-

enceeatingout of thepalm of herhand.

She brought that same level ofenergyto Puscifer, joiningKeenanon back-upvocals forthe durationof the show. As she is featuredprominently on the new album,Conditions of MyParole,theev-

er-revolving band membersplayed through the record in al-

most its entirety while stillsqueezingin a fewolderfavorites.Carina held her own next to thecowboyhat-clad frontman theen-tire time, which is no easy feat if youve ever seen Maynard dowhat hedoesbest.

Puscifer,unlikehisotherbands,is a completely independent pro-ject under his complete creativecontrol. It shows, too, becausethese songs are as funny andtongue-in-cheek as they are deepand emotional. Entering an emp-ty stage,Maynard engagedthe au-diencein a conversationabouttheimportanceof artandcreativitytohumanity while setting up propswith his bandmates.

By the time they had finished,theywere surroundedby a trailer,folding tables and chairs, and agrill spewing fake fire. Images onscreens behindthem ranged frombeautiful landscapesto goofy par-

odies of living the hillbilly life-style, transporting himself andtheaudienceto thedeserts of Ari-zona, where he currently resides,and the inner workings of his ec-centric mind.

The receptiveaudience dancedand swayed in front of their seats

to the calm and meditative beatsand thrashed as more aggressive

tunes were interspersed through-out. Highlights included the lat-estalbums titletrack, ManOver-board, The Weaver, and Cari-nas solorendition of Rev 22:20.

While Axl is known for whinytantrums and public break-ups,Keenan stays out of thespotlight,even literally during his ownshows. You hear little about himinthemediaforareasonhelikeshis privacy, and what he wants tosharewithaudiencesishisart,nothisego.I maybe biased,beingon-ly a passing fan of GnR while fol-lowing Keenan carefully through-outhiscareer, butthere isa reasonforthatbias themusic, thestagepresence, and the respect for thefanscannot even begin to be com-pared.

On Sunday, I felt like I was be-ingforcefed,whileon Wednesday,IfeltlikeIwaspartofamutualandpersonal experience, right down

to thepersonalthankyou at theendof Puscifers show.

All the fireworks and big-bud-getdistractions in the worldcantgiveyou a timelikethat.

Takenote, Mr. Rose sinceritybeats theatrics any day of theweek,particularly this week.

A tale of two very different frontmenINFINITE

IMPROBABILITYR I C H H O W E L L S

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Classicrockband VanillaFudgemay have had their biggest hitbackin 1967,but the group isstillliving the message in its lyricsover 40 years later.

VanillaFudges Farewell TourwiththeCraigThatcherBandwillbe stopping at Penns Peak, 325Maury Rd., Jim Thorpe, on Fri-day, Dec. 2.

Vocalist and keyboardist MarkSteinsaid heusedto sing along totheradioand picked up thepianoat a young age, telling everyonethathe would one day bea star.

I think, basically, I was prettymuch born with this ability tohear melodies.I must have been 4years old, as early as that in mylife, and I just think it was some-thing I was meant to do, Steinsaid.

Standing in front of a disco inNew York City in 1966 with bassplayer Tim Bogert, he heard TheSupremeshit You KeepMe Han-gin On over the radio and itstruck the young musician in away that wouldchange hislifefor-ever.

Itseemed like it was going byreally quick, and I just looked atTimand said,Wow, thiswould besuch a cool song to slow down.Thelyrics areso soulful. It wasre-

allycool toputthatkindof a treat-ment to it,Steinrecalled.

The magical arrangement

that would follow would doublethe songs length and change itscontext completely, creating asound that would later influenceupcoming acts like Deep Purpleand Led Zeppelin. Their subse-quentappearanceonTheEdSul-livanShowsolidifiedtheirrocknrollfame.

Thatreallyblew usrightoutofthetopinfrontoftheworld,Steinsaid.

The bandbroke up,however, in

1970,butVanillaFudgecontinuedtoreformagainandagainovertheyears, often with mostor allof theoriginal members.

Its a very difficult business,you know, and I think when youreflect on the title You Keep MeHangin On,it isntjust thebighit

I hadwith Vanilla Fudge. Its alsowhen youbecomeaddictedto themusic business itself, as tough asitis, that inandof itselfkeeps you

COURTESY PHOTOS

Vanilla Fudge frontman Mark Stein performs.

The group has been playing with three original members sine

1997.

Vanilla Fudge still hangin onByRICH HOWELLS

[email protected]

See FUDGE, Page17

What: Vanilla Fudge FarewellTour with the Craig ThatcherBand

Where: Penns Peak, 325 MauryRd., Jim Thorpe

When: Friday, December 2, doorsat 6 p.m., show at 8 p.m.

Cost: $22 advance; $27 day ofshow

IF YOU GO

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NEWS

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158 Memorial Hwy.

Shavertown1.800.49.SHOES

Dear Santa,

All I want

for

Christmas

is a new

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COLTS needs your help to Stuff the Bus on the Spruce Street side of Courthouse Squareas we collect unwrapped toys,books and monetary donations for the Marine Corps Toys forTots Foundation!! The Rock 107 Morning Show with DiRienzo and Prospectorwill broadcast live from the Square,and Santa Claus will handout COLTS goodies to everyonewho donates.

Stuff the BusToy DriveStuff the BusToy DriveSpruce Street Side of Courthouse SquareSpruce Street Side of Courthouse SquareTuesday, Dec. 6, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.Tuesday, Dec. 6, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

723474

said tomyself,I dontknowwhenorwhereorhow,butdammit,Iamgoing to do thisshow.

Proving that fantasiesdo cometrue, Bower portrays Princeton,thenewestresidentalongthe ave-nue.

Withall of tongue-in-cheekmo-ments, the show does hit home

with the young cast, includingduring the number I Wish I

CouldGo BackToCollege.Everybodys had that bad day

where theyve said, Man, I wish Icould be back to college again,Petrolelamented.

Actors said theyre stickingclose tothe voicesthatpeople arefamiliar with in their interpreta-tionof AvenueQ.

That hasnt prevented themfrom bringing their charactersthrough life with what limitedbodylanguage theycan achieve.

Theresanewfoundrespectforany puppeteer, McNulty said.To realize the kind of work and

talent it takes to pull it off well isimpressiveto me.AVENUE Q

Continued from page12

SCRANTON Standingin themayorsofficeonTuesdaysurroundedbyprevious

Scrantonlandmarks hespainted, GreaterScranton Chamber Commerce PresidentAustin Burke proudly unrolled a freshly-printedposter of hislatest work,a snowyportrait of the David Wenzel Tree Housein NayAugPark.

The prints, donated by Panel Prints,

Inc. in Old Forge, will be sold for $5 onweekends at Nay Aug during the annualHolidayLightShow, whichstartedon Fri-day and will run through mid-January.

Proceeds will benefit the park and theScranton RecreationAuthority.

First opened in May 2007, the hand-icapped accessible tree house was con-structed150feet above the parks famous

RICHHOWELLSPHOTO

From left, Austin Burke, former Scranton Mayor David Wenzel, Panel PrintsCEO John McInerney, and Mayor Chris Doherty gather at the unveiling of

Burkes new print on Nov. 22.

Prints to support parksByRICH HOWELLS

[email protected]

See PRINTS, Page 17

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gorge by Forever Young, Inc. andisthefirstofitskindinthestate.It

wasnamedthenumberoneparksproject in America four years agoby Parks and Recreation Maga-zine, Mayor Chris Doherty said,

which he felt was quite an hon-or.

The tree house says so many

greatthingsaboutthecity.First,ithonors (former) Mayor Wenzel,of course, but secondly, its proba-blythe onlyhandicappedaccessi-bletree house in thearea, Burkesaid. I like what it says about thespiritof the community.

Gertrude Hawk Chocolateswill also use Burkes painting ontheirChristmaschocolate box,asthey have done in previous years.

Doherty estimatedthat 50,000cars carrying roughly 200,000people will travel through NayAug in the next six weeks to see

the holiday light display for free,though donations for the parksupkeep, including those raised

through sales of the print, are al-waysacceptedandappreciated.

Its agreatwayto celebratethe

park, celebrate the tree house,andalsocelebratetheholidaysea-son,Doherty said.PRINTS

Continued from page 16

hangingon throughthe highsandlows. You justkeep ongoing.

The title is not just a motto forStein,but now it is the title ofhisnewbook, You Keep Me HanginOn:TheRagingStoryofRockMu-sics Golden Age, which he co-

wrote with history author LarrySchweikart. Dueto bereleasedonAmazon.com in December, the

bookcovers 50yearsof rockhisto-ry.

ThisisactuallythefirsttimeanAmerican historian has teamed

upwithanartistoftheeraandcol-laborated on a piece of work like

this, he noted.ImproudofitItsatruehisto-ryof rock.

Their latest excursion may belabeled a farewell tour, but Steinadmitted that this probably

wouldnt be the last the worldwould hearfrom theFudge.

The fact that weve broken upand come back and played somanytimes,Ithink,isatestamentto our will. People are digging it.People are enjoying the band,

theyre enjoying the music, andImreallyhappythatwestillhaveafollowingafterallthese years.

Iguesswell rocktil wedrop.

FUDGEContinued from page 15

18

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, , ,

PAGE 20 GOLACKAWANNA, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2011

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y

SCRANTON Kris McCrayand Dave Morgan posted unani-mous decisions in professionalbouts Friday night to highlightCage Fight9, a NortheastMMA-sponsored card at the Lacka-

wanna College Student Union.McCray, from Woodbridge,

Va., defeated Gemiyale Adkins,from Newark, Del., in the mainevent of the Mixed Martial Artscard that featured five profes-sional and seven amateur bouts.

Morgan (3-1) recovered fromthe only loss of his career to de-feat Evan Velez of Ithaca, N.Y.

John Flock, Evan Bates andLewis Rumsey each stopped op-ponents in the other pro bouts.

Flock scored a technicalknockout of WilliamGrandallin55 seconds. Bates used a rearnaked choke holdto getKyleDo-lan to tap out in 1:08. And Rum-sey stopped Chase Owens by

TKO at1:47of thesecondround.GaryPetersof Pittstondefeat-

ed Dave Spadell of Freeland forthe PACage Fight Amateur Wel-terweight belt, then told thePittston Dispatch that he isready to turn pro. Peters (6-2)

won, 29-28, on all three cards.Michael Baresse of West

Scranton and Sean Oliveri ofOldForge were among theama-teur winners.

Baresse stopped Mark Man-giardi with a guillotine chokehold at1:21 of thesecond round.

Oliveri posted a unanimousdecision over Terry Evans ofMoosic in his MMA debut.

It was a really good jiu jitsubattle and I tried to domy thing

on the ground, Oliveri told thePittston Dispatch. I wish Icould have knocked him outstanding up, but he was sostrong.

Scrantons Joe Martin fell toCioval Cuevas by unanimousde-cision.

In other bouts: Richard Gatesstopped Anthony McGlynn in36 seconds; Ian Brofsky won byunanimous decision over JasonLapage, and Darlington Peralta

won by decision over MichaelZolla.

- Reporting by Josh Horton.

Morgan,Baresse

among MMAwinners

The Uni-versity ofScranton hasalways beena nationalpower in

womensbasketball under Mike Strong.

That consistent excellence,over 32 seasons, is the reasonStrong is just games awayfrom becoming the nationsall-time winningest coach inDivision III womens basket-ball.

The Lady Royals have wonmore than four out of fivegames throughout Strongscareer, but they have lostthree out of four to start thisseason, their first such start in21years.

Scranton is accustomed tobeing part of the nationalscene, but as its coach pursuesa national record, the team

will first be tested to cling tosomething that has been a

given for years - its status asthe best in the area.

The Lady Royals host Mary-

wood University Wednesdayat 7 in the continuation of alocal rivalry they have dom-inated. Then, Saturday at 4they will face Moravian Uni-

versity in the Landmark Con-ference opener.

Marywood has been thesecond-best program in Lacka-

wanna County behind Scran-

ton just as Moravian has beenthe second-best program inthe Landmark Conference.

It is only a matter of timebefore Strong, who is 755-162,catches and passes former St.John Fisher College coachPhil Kahlers record total of757 wins.

This years team will be ableto enjoy the run to the recordbooks a bit more, however, ifit can handle its local and/or

conference rivalry this weekand get turned in the rightdirection.

Marywood comes in with a3-1 start that has been helpedby two local freshmen. AshleyMurray, who led Dunmore tolast seasons state Class AAchampionship game, has start-ed each game. RiversidesMorgann Haduck has beencoming off the bench but isthird on the team in bothplaying time and scoring (10.8points per game).

Murray and Haduck are twoof six Lackawanna County

women on the Marywood

roster, making it a team wellaware of what it would meanto be able to beat Scranton,even just once.

Strong has created a specialprogram. After winning anational title in 1985, the LadyRoyals went back to the FinalFour seven more times, in-cluding back-to-back appear-ances in 2005 and 2006.

Scranton has played in 24NCAA Tournaments under

Strong while Marywood hasbeen to the tournament once.

The 2010-11 season, howev-

er, saw the Lady Royals go19-7 to fall one win short oftheir 20th straight 20-winseason and miss the NCAA

Tournament for the first timein a decade.

Scranton also failed to winthe Landmark Conferencechampionship for a secondstraight season. The LadyRoyals have gone 50-6 in thefour full seasons since theconference was formed. Mora-

vian is second-best at 42-14.Juniata, however, is the

defending champion and con-ference favorite.Scranton and Moravian

enter the season in the un-common position of beingpicked third and fourth in apreseason poll of conferencecoaches.

To my knowledge this isthe first time weve beenpicked third in the confer-ence, Strong said, accordingto a preseason press release.

One of our team goals is

GO LACKAWANNAFILE PHOTO

University of Scrantons womens basketball head coach Michael Strong is quickly approaching a Division III womens basketball

record of 757 wins.

Record within Strongs reachKEEPING SCORET O M R O B I N S O N

See ROBINSON, Page 26


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y

BETHLEHEM A dozenteams 10 regular-season oppo-nents and two more in the Dis-trict 2 playoffs combined ef-forts for nearly three months.

Those teams scored ninetouchdowns and 61 pointsagainst a Valley View defensethat ranked among the stingiestin the state.

Allentown Central Catholicmatchedthose exactnumbersinone stunning effortFridaynight.

Just as shocking was the factthat Valley View equaled theoutput by the defending stateClass AAA champion Vikingsuntilthefinal 31seconds of a 61-54 loss.

The Cougars, playing in theirfirst Pennsylvania Interscholas-tic Athletic Association tourna-ment game since winning it allin Class AA in 1992, used the fi-nal31seconds to advance alltheway to the Vikings 23 before fi-nally falling short.

Im so proud of this team,Valley View coach George Ho- wanitz said a number of times while answering questionsabout a game that he acknowl-

edged he could not envision pri-or to Friday night.

South Carolina recruit Bren-dan Nosovitch continued a tor-ridplayoffrun byhitting 22of 35passes for 492 yards and eighttouchdowns. In his spare time,Nosovitch ran 18 yards for theotherAllentown Central Cathol-ic touchdown.

Nosovitch sidestepped theValley View passrush on fourth-

and-17, giving Kevin Gulyastime to break open while run-ning across the end zone. Noso-vitch found Gulyas for a 23-yardtouchdown that brokethe 54-54tie in the final minute.

I moved to my right to buy alittle time, Nosovitch said.Their defensive back didnt getover the top on him and I sawKevin continuing across thefield.

Gulyas, the leading receiver

in state history, had just onecatch in the first quarter but fin-ished with nine for 226 yards

and five touchdowns.On a night when the teams

combined for1,203yards of total

offense, Valley Views groundgame matched Allentown Cen-tral Catholics passing attackand allowed theCougars to leadfor much of the second half, in-cluding a 48-40advantage lateinthe third quarter.

Valley View mixed the abilityto poundthe ball forfirst downsagainst a defensive approachthatoftenjams all11men withinfive yards of the line with a se-

ries of gaping holes forbiggainsagainstthe blitz.Those holes re-sulted in five touchdowns of 32yards or longer and nine runs ofat least 20 yards. The Cougarshad 17 runs of at least 13 yardswhile piling up 542 yards rush-ing.

Even while struggling to stopthe pass fromAllentownCentralCatholics no-huddle attack, theCougars left an impression onNosovitch.

Their defense stops the run

61 VIKINGS VALLEY VIEW 54

Vikings battle past

tenacious Valley ViewByTOMROBINSON

For Go Lackawanna

FIRST QUARTERACC Snyder-Scipio 63 passfrom Nosovitch (DiGiacomo kick)VV Phillips 32 run (Brady kick)ACC Snyder-Scipio 4 pass fromNosovitch (DiGiacomo kick)VV Phillips 57 run (Brady kick)ACC Gulyas 65 pass from Noso-

vitch (kick blocked)SECOND QUARTERACC Robb 27 pass from Noso-vitch (run failed)VV Wartman 33 pass fromCallejas (Brady kick)ACC Gulyas 12 pass from Noso-vitch (DiGiacomo kick)VV Wartman 15 pass fromCallejas (Brady kick)THIRD QUARTERVV Callejas 65 run (kick failed)ACC Gulyas 30 pass from Noso-vitch (DiGiacomo kick)VV Kapinus 13 run (Brady kick)VV Phillips 52 run (Brady kick)ACC Nosovitch18 run (DiGiaco-mo kick)FOURTH QUARTERACC Gulyas 80 pass formNosovitch (DiGiacomo kick)VV Jeffers 9 run (kick blocked)ACC Gulyas 23 pass from Noso-vitch (DiGiacomo kick)

SCORING RECAP

See VALLEY, Page 26

SHAMOKIN Matt

Moore created the

eighth lead change

of the game, then made

sure it was the last.Moore carried 16 times

for 252 yards and four

touchdowns, including the

last two of thegame Friday

night, to helpSouthern Co-

lumbia outlast Old Forge,

45-34, in a wild Pennsylva-

nia InterscholasticAthletic

Association Class A foot-

ball playoff opener.

Southern Columbia, whichhas made a record 12 trips tothe state final while winningsix, had pounded Old Forge,48-0, in2006 in theBlueDevilsonly previous trip to the stateplayoffs.

This time, the Blue Devilsengaged in a shootout with the Tigers behind 328 yards and

four touchdowns passing byColin Carey.

Old Forge, the Lackawanna

Football Conference Division 3and District 2 Class A cham-pion, threatened to extend itsseven-game winning streakwhen it moved in front 21-10 onthe way to a 21-17 halftime ad-vantage.

Carey, who ran for the otherOld Forge touchdown, ralliedthe Blue Devils into the lead

two more times in the secondhalf with scoring passes.

The last time came whenBrian Tomasetti took a screenpass 39 yards for a touchdown with 10:50 remaining. The

touchdown, which created a34-31 lead, was made possible when Louis Febbo ran four yards on third-and-three thencaught a 12-yard pass.

Moore scored twice in thenext fiveminutesto finallyturnback the Blue Devils. He hadSouthernColumbias last threetouchdowns, including a 68-yarder in the third quarter andan 82-yarder for the clincherwith 5:55 remaining.

The District 4 champion Ti-gers had two runners surpassthe 200-yard mark.

Tyler Levan carried 22 timesfor 213 yards and two touch-downs.

Old Forge compiled its bigoffensive numbers through theair.

Dave Argustcaught fourpas-ses for 134 yards, including a91-yarder early in the second

quarter to give Old Forge its

45 SOUTHERN COLUMBIA OLD FORGE 34

BILL TARUTIS / FOR GO LACKAWANNA

Old Forge wide receiver David Argust, left, gets tackled just short of the goal line by Southern

Columbias Joe Kleman.

Tigers too much for OF

Old Forges Michael Vieira

runs outof a Southern Co-

lumbia tackle in the firstroundof the PIAA Class Aplayoffs in Shamokin on Fri-

day night.

See DEVILS, Page 26

PAGE 24 GOLACKAWANNA, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2011

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For daily roundups of local college sports,seewww.golackawanna.com/sports.

TOP STORYA record-setting effort by Carolyn Gillespie

helped the University of Scranton remainunbeaten in womens swimming with a keyLandmark Conference victory Nov. 19.

Scranton topped preseason conferencefavorite Susquehanna, 142-120, to improve to4-0 in the conferen

go lackawanna 11-27-2011

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