VOL. III.
PALMER, ALASKA, DECEMBER IS. 1949
NUMBER 14
Wasilla Tot Succumbs To Pneumonia
Band And Chorus
To Stage Musicale
On Saturday
Playing and singing for uni
forms for the band of the Palmer
High School will be a full 80
Valley young people on Satur
day night. A combined enter
tainment of 17 band selections
and nine vocal numbers has been
planned for that evening by Paul
Bushong, music director for the
school.
The band concert will begin at
8 o’clock in the Palmer Gymnas
ium Tickets now are being sold
by members of the school band
and chorus. Additional tickets
will be on sale at the door on
Saturday evening.
Much of Saturday’s musical
program takes its theme from the
approafhing holidays. However,
Mr. Bushong has planned a v.ell
balance'd program of musical en
tertainment (including one selec
tion of his own composition.)
He has announced the selections
as follows:
Swinging Along March —
Clair W Johnson.
"Sequoia Overture"—W. D.
. McCaughey.
"American Patrol March"
—F. W. Meacham
"After the Victory March"—
A. Zordan.
"Evening Stars Waltz"—A
Zordan.
(accordion by Avis Hubbard)
"Washing Post March"—
John P Sousa.
"In a Garden Fair Caprice"
—J. R. Stellforth.
"Paramount March" — W.
D McCaughey.
BAND
"The End of a Perfect Day"
—Carrie J. Bond.
"White Christmas"—Irving
Berlin Ramona "Davis, ac
companied by Lavon Roet
man
"Torrey Pines March"—E.
-J.. Conway.
"Northern Lights Over
ture"—Paul Bushong.
"Normal March" — Harold
Bennett.
BAND
"©. Little Town of Bethle
hem"—P Brooks. Dorothy
Mau and Alma Roark, ac
companied by Mrs. Don
Mealy.
"Winter Wonderland" —
Smith-Bernard. Dorothy Mau.
Jean Carrol, Janis Barry.
Alma Roark and Billy Jean
Roark. .
• "China Clipper March”—
Ervin K. Kleffmann
"Roselia Waltz"—W. P. Mc
Caughey.
"The Thunderer March"—
John P. Sousa
(Continued on Page Eight)
School District’s Worth
$4 Million, Assessor Finds
Palmer’s school district prop
erty, including homes, farms and
businesses, is valued at approxi
mately four million dollars by the
owners, assessor Neil Miller re
vealed this week. Mr. Miller said
that on Nov. 20, on the basis of
tax statements returned, the tax
roll totalled $3,606,851- At that
time, there were about 120 tax
statements outstanding.
The four million dollar assess
ment will return Palmer’s school
district the sum of $40,000. This
is the figure of the district bud
get, as prepared by board mem
bers and Mr. James Ryan, com
missioner of education, when the
district was formed.
Broken down into farm and
home and business figures, the
assessor found that the Palmer
district’s home and farm proper
ty was valued at $2,591,000,
while business property was as
sessed at $1,100,000 The tax
roll shows that there are 100 bus
inesses in Palmer.
Of the 100 returns still out
standing, there are only a few
businesses which failed to make
an assessment. Many farm and
home owners have made no re
turn because the assessor has not
been able to reach the present
owner. However, Mr. Miller re
minded that failure to receive a
statement by mail does not ex
cuse a property owner from tax
payment.
One point, the question of who
shall pay the tax on property
which had changed hands in the
past year, can be settled only by
the parties to such a transaction,
Mr Miller said.
“The district has no jurisdic
tion to determine who pays the
tax, in these situations,” he stat
ed. “However someone must
pay, or we can place a lien
against the property and even
tually sell it .for taxes. The
problem should be worked out in
an agreement between the con
tracting parties, if the sale con
tract does not state who must pay
the taxes. This tax is against the
property and not against the in
dividual.”
FIRE DESTROYS
WIDOW’S HOME
' A widow, Mrs. Olga Ondola of
Birchwood, and her three chil
dren, are homeless today, after a
fire last Friday morning destroyed
their three-room cabin. The house
and all its contents were a total
loss.
The fire occurred about 9:10
Friday morning, from what sec
tion crev.hands believe to be a
defective chimney. The cabin was
located about 300 feet behind the
Birchwood section house, and was
completely ablaze before help
came. Passengers on the Palmer
Anchorage Brill car and members
of the section gang attempted to
help extinguish the flames.
Mrs. Ondola, who is believed to
have several other children be
sides the three who lived at home
with her, has been widowed for
the past five years. Her husband
was formerly employed by The
Alaska Railroad.
The woman and her children
are temporarily sheltered at Ek
lutna. where Mrs. Ondola’s father
lives.
Jay's Gone Home
Jay Maule, until recently em
ployed on the road construction
work to the north of Palmer, left
this week for his home in Lynn,
Mass He plans to spend the re
mainder of the winter there, but
will be back in Palmer early next
spring.
POT LUCK SUPPER
PLANNED BY P-TA
Eating, voting and enjoyment
all are a part of plans for the
next P-TA meeting, to be held on
Tuesday, Dec. 20, it was announc
d this week by Mrs. Lucy Mick,
president.
Eating comes first, for mem
bers will gather in school cafetria
promptly at 6 p. m, to share in a
pot luck supper. Then sharp on
the stroke of eight, they’ll drop
their knives and forks to consider
the matter of P-TA sponsorship
of a teen-age social dub. The sub
ject is expected to come to a vote
in short order, and once a decision
is recorded, the group will ad
journ to the Gym for the enter
tainment portion of the evening.
A Christmas program is being
planned by chairman Harry Wim
mer Children of the Palmer
school will participate. Numbers
are being prepared by several
'Continued on Page 2)
Independents, Hotel Squads
Play Next Tuesday
There will be another double
header basketball feature in
Palmer Gym next Tuesday eve
ning, it was announced today by
Dale Roetman, manager of the
Matanuska Hotel squad. At 7:30
p. m the Independents will meet
an Army five, and at 9 o’clock the
Hotel men will meet the Medics
from the 57th Fighter Squadron.
This latter team is the one which
defeated Palmer’s Shamrocks on
the local floor recently.
STERRETT CHILD
TO BE BURIED
AT WASILLA
WASILLA — Seven-months
old Dale Sterrett. infant son of
Mr. and Mrs John Sterrett,
was found dead in his crib here
last Monday morning. Cause
of death, at first believed due
to suffocation, was determined
by a post-mortem in Anchor
age, to be pneumonia.
The infant was the only child
of the Sterretts. who are
Wasilla homesteaders.
The baby was brought to
Palmer for examination by Dr.
Vernon Cates, and was later
taken to Anchorage by the Bly
Funeral Home The child's
body was returned to Wasilla
today, where funeral services
will be held.
Dale was born to Mr. and
Mrs. Sterrett on May 27 of this
year.
Independence Miner
Injured By Ore Car
Alva L. McFadden, miner at
Independence, was injured when
struck by an ore car at the mine
late Saturday afternoon. The
man was brought to Valley Hos
pital, where he was found to be
suffering from a broken vertebra
in his neck, in addition to cuts
and bruises.
Dr C. C. Bailey, attending
physician, said today that Mc
Fadden was making an “excel
lent recovery” and could be con
sidered completely out of danger.
M. P. Officer Fined
For Reckless Driving
Lt. John M Bagwell, an offi
cer in the supply section of- the
Military Police of Fort Richard
son, was found guilty on a reck
less driving charge here last
week. U. S. Commissioner Dor
othy Saxton fined the officer
$150, revoked his driver’s license
for 30 days and gave him a 30
days suspended sentence, upon
payment of his fine.
Lieutenant Bagwell was ar
rested upon the complaint of A1
King At least a half dozen Val
ley residents were witnesses to
the reckless driving. One by
stander said the man was spin
ning his car in circles in the
down-town section of Valley
street.
The complaint was filed on Dec.
4 and Bagwell was tried the fol
lowing Tuesday.
Mrs. Roetman Returns
Mrs. Ernest Roetman returned
to Palmer this week after a stay
of several months Outside. Mrs.
Roetman was ill while away, and
had surgical treatment before she
returned.