Vol*
HOMER NEWS
T -TITHfR * ALASKA" — ' ~
Your Corriunity Ncasprspcr
f Nq, 33 __January 37, 1955
Alaska Historical
Library & Museum
Box 2051
Juneau, Alaska
10 Cents Per Copy
POLIO DRIVE
Monday, January 31, has been named
as the day for the Mother*s March on
Polio in the Homer area. The march
will be under the auspices of the Homer
chapter of the Alaska Crippled Child
ren*s Association.
The decision to j>ut their efforts in
a one-day drive for funds for the 1955
polio campaign was made at the Tuesday
meeting of the- group at the Aurora
Cafe. The ladies volunteered to or
ganize so that the entire area will be
covered and everyone will have an op
portunity to contribute.
It was noted that Homer had three
known cases of polio during the past
year with one fatality, Dempsey Deitz.
The Territory last year suffered its
greatest attack of the disease.
Funds raised through the 1955 polio
campaign will be used not only in
fighting the disease through mere re
search, hut in assisting these already
stricken to recover from the ravages of
the crippling disease.
Last year the polio campaign in Hom
er raised nearly $800. The eampaign
is getting underway here this year late
in the month, but it is hoped that the
people of Hpmer will be generous and
when the mothers make the founds next
Monday morning they will give as much
as they can to the 1955 polio campaign.
PUD DISCUSSES
Dr. Jack Provonsha told the board of
directors of the PUD Monday night what
he thought would be needed to operate
the Homer hospital-health center when
it is completed. The doctor was asked
a number of questions by the board and
he answered them all calling on his ex
perience in the medical field both here
and in the states.
The board had been pondering for
some time the number of people vho
would be using the hospital (or clinic)
daily. Dr. Provonsha said that his es
timate would be 12tf
The doctor pointed out that It
cakes between 1000 and 1200 people.oto
support a doctor and that as far as he
-Vnjw, no community of that size will
rupport a hospital. He noted that 3t.
Joseph’s hospital in Fairbanks recently
stated that they were having financial
^lrriculties* lie saia tnat the Terri
tory would assist in subsidizing the
jtomer hospital just as it does the Sel
hovia hospital* This is done on a
etching basis*
Concerning the amount of help needed
operate the homer hospital, the doc
tc- arid that around-the-clock nursing
■' hM be needed if patients were pres
ent in the hospital* This, of course,
s ‘ull call for three nurses during a
t fenty-four hour period* Also, the
'.’.jntor continued, one person to do the
co.rkirg, laundry and cleaning would be
; «eded plus a part-time maintenance
0':« i*
rfarses here would probably receive
the same salary as those in Seward, he
said* They are paid 5^275 per month.
The domestic help would probably cost
about &200 to ^225 per month. He es
ti*ated that the electricity and heat
{Coat, on Pag© 5#- Col* 1)
ROAD FUND ASKED
The "Tashington Newsletter received
this week from the office of Delegate
Bob Bartlett reveals that the budget of
President Eisenhower includes a request
for a million-and-a-half dollars for
surfacing the Sterling Highway,
In talking with Carl Sholin, local
Alaska Hoad Commission foreman, the
IRSWS was told that if the money i3 ap
propriated work on the surfacing would
probably begin at Kanai and progress
toward Moose Pass, 3holin said tfaAt
the ABC would be responsible for sur
facing the highway as far as the Nat
ional Forest boundary in the vicinity
of Henton's lodge# From that point on
to Moose Pass the responsibility for
the highwey will lie with the Bureau of
Public Roads which already has money
appropriated to surface their section.
Sholin reported that as a rule,
about 25 to 30 miles of highway can be
surfaced in Ala si# in one season.
PHONE CHANGE
Work was completed Monday on a three
digit dial telephone system, to replace
the two-digit system in use since 1952^
according to an announcement from the
Homer Tolephpne Company*
Preliminary work for the change has
been going on for some time, but the
actual snitch from too to three places
was made between Sunday evening and
Monday morning, at a time when fewer
calls would be made* The work was fin
ished between 10:30 and 11:00 a,m.
Monday morning, and the first call over
the new system was completed by Carolyn
Turkington*
At present all telephone numbers
must be preceded by 2 when dialing.
A new telephone directory will be is
sued soon by the Homer Telephone Com
pany. Work on the directory is being
done by the Homer News*
For better service to all concerned,
the Telephone Company suggests that* you
hang up when you get a busy signal, and
call back in a few minutes..
It is expected that work on the big
switchboard will be completed in the
next two or three weeks and at that
time business telephones will be given
the prefix number throe instead of two.
CSG MEETS
At the regular meeting of the Citi
zens- Study Group held Friday, January
21 j ReT« Nelson Moyer, local Civil De
fense chief? spelled out in detail hor
Homer can get and stockpile material
vitally needed in case of emergency*
The Territorial Civilian Defense head
quarters has huge quantities of blank
ets, cooking utensils, first aid kits
and other it cans necessaiy to take care
of refugees, Moyer said, hut it does
not have any funds to transport those
items to areas uhich uould be refugee
centers* Homer is one such area, and
if transportat ion could be found, the
community could receive the above mate
rial plus such things as a field x-ray
machine, a fire truck, pumps, and other
fire-fighting equipment* Much of this
material could be used by the community
(Cont* on Page 6, Co^f 3)
The annual mooting or tne iiamer
Electric Association, Inc. will got un
derway Tuesday evening at 8 p.m., ac
cording to Jiggs Tice, manager.
Primary businoss of the evening will
be the election of three directors for
the coming three years. Candidates for
the three positions as named by a nom
inating committeo include Richard Fre;.~
muth and Bon Barbeo of Anchor Point;;
Marion Eneolewski of Ninilehik and Jack
Scott, Noel Holt, Marion Kooppel aid
Bud Uminski of Homer. Others may to
nominated from the floor during the
meeting.
On the lighter side, four films will
be shown during the evening and numer
ous prizes will be given away to some
of the lucky ones attending. The films
are provided- by the Alaska Steamship
Company and the Kaiser Aluminum Com
pany. v '**
B. V7. Rothsrford, HEA consulting
engineer from Anchor ago, wi,i;L discus 3
hydro-electric development pn the kenai
Peninsula.
Expected in town for the meeting are
Bussell Wade, REA fioldmam and Julianna
1 Wilson, EEA attorney from Anchorage.
(Cont. on Page 6, Col. l)
WEATHER
High Low
January 20 31 19
January 21 41 35
January 22 39 32
January 23 39 27
January 24 37 27
January 25 39 24
January 26 43 35
CHAMBER NOTES
Herman Schultz announced at the Mon
day meeting of the Chamber of Commerce
that he will put a 48-foot curiser in
service for tourists on Kachemak Bay
next summer* Bob Turkington, he said,
will assist him in operating the boat.
The Cruiser, he continued, will car
ry 20 passengers comfortably on pro
posed one-day tours of the Bay starting
about June 15, the beginning of the
tourist season* Present plans call for
the boat to be brought to Homer some
time in Iwsy.
A letter from Col. Arthur C* Bass,
XJ. S. Army Quartermaster, informed the
Chamber that he plans to procure over
500,000 pounds of cannod and fresh fish
from Alaskan suppliers this year* He
stated that anyone interested could
place their name on a list to receive
notices of bids and specifications*
Included in the order will be 100,000
1-pound cans of canned salmon, 213,756
pounds of halibut steak and 53,436 lbs*
each of cod fillet, flounder, haddock,
ling cod,perch fillet and salmon stoak*
The Chamber numbers approved a mo
tion to get the bids and specifications
ard pass them along to local fishormen
for any action they might want to take.
Clare Hinor, local fisherman and
Chamber member, said that due to the
lack of a boat harbor and the lack of
cold storage facilities, it would be a
difficult job for local fishermen to
fill the demand*
Howard %hill suggested that an en
deavor bo made tp interest someone with
(Cont* on Page 5, Colv 4)