The Frontiersman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
TRY A FRONTIERSMAN
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VOLUME 7. NUMBER 42
PALMER. ALASKA, THURSDAY. AUGUST 12. 1954
PRICE TEN CENTS
Four Girls Register
For Queen Contest
9
a weeK ago it appearea as
though the 1954 Valley Fair
queen contest might not get un
der way this year. However, be
ginning August 6 and continuing
through the week four Valley
girls have entered the annual
race for top Fair honors.
First to register this year was
Mara-Lynn, Rebarcheck, daughter
of Mrs. and Mrs. Ray Rebarcheck,
long-time Valley residents and
■Grade A dairy operators. Mara
L£ynn was 15 years of age this
past May 14. She was born in
Palmer and up until last year
schooled in Palmer. Last year
she attended the Williams High
School at Williams, Minnesota
where she was a member of the
-cheerleader team. She will enter
her sophmore year at Palmer
High School this fall.
Th first queen contestant is
five feet, four and one half inches
tall, weighs 130 pounds and has
blue eyes. She wears her blond
hair in a long hair style, lightly
curled. Her favorite hobbies are
dancing, singing, sewing and
cooking. She also collects pic
tures. Skating and all winter
sports, are her favorite sport
pasttimes. Other members of her
family are a sister, Mrs. Wesley
Verme of Palmer and a brother
Ronald who is in the U. S. Army.
Patricia Chandler
Patricia “Pat” Chandler, 1954
Palmer High Sehol graduate, was
the second local girl to register
for the queen contest, also on
August 6. Pat is being sponsored
by her employers, Knik Drive
Inn, and is daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Harold Chandler. The family
live at the Eklutna Project where
Pat’s father is employed in the
finance department, Bureau of
Reclamation. Mrs. Chandler is
bookkeeper at Hartley Motors
:here in Palmer.
Pat came to the Valley going
-on three years ago and attended
Palmer High School the past
two and one half years, where
during her senior year she took
the lead in the senior class play,
“A Date with Judy”. Pat was a
member of the Pep Club, Girls’
Athene Association, was a cheer
leader during her junior year
and a majorette her final year of
school. She plans to continue her
education at the University of
Seattle, leaving for the States the
latter part of September. Swim
ming is the favorite sport activity
of the blue-eyed contestant. She
said she has no special hobby but
likes to dance. Pat is five feet,
six and one half inches tall and
weighs 125 pounds. Her light
brown hair is worn in the popu
lar short cut.
Mary Jane Clark
Another native-born contestant
is 13 year old Mary Jane Clark,
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank
Clark who make their home on
Lazy Mountain. Mary Jane, who
as being sponsored by the Matan
uska Valley Farmers Cooperat
ing Association, registered for
the contest on August 11. She is
five feet, six inches tall and
weights 120 pounds. She has
brown eyes and short brown hair.
(Continued on page 4
DEMOCRATS TO MEET
TOMORROW NIGHT
There will be a Democratic
club meeting tomorrow night
at 8 p.m .at the Bertren Curry
home in the AHA housing
area. All area Democrats are
invited to attend.
FIREMEN ANSWER
PRACTICE ALARM
The first practice fire alarm
session for City volunteer fire
fighters last Tuesday was very
successful, according to a re
port made to members of the
City Council by Fire Chief
Joseph Gallant. No prior no
tice of the practice had been
given and the men had water
on the “fire” within ten minu
tes of the siren sounding, he
reported. Additional practice
will be held in the future,
along with regular training
sessions. Firemen who attend
the practice runs are paid the
same amount as for a dry run.
LOCAL BOY SCOUT
FUND DRIVE OPENS
The annual Boy Scouts of Am
erica fund drive is now under
way in throughout the territory.
A top figure of $59,000 is hoped
for in the territory, with $25,
000 of this amount being sought
in the Anchorage area. The drive
will be concentrated in a two
week period, beginning this week.
In the Palmer area members
of Palmer Kiwanis have volun
teered to handle the drive in the
business section of the city. Con
tact men or women are needed
in the residential sections of the
area. Anyone interested in volun
teering a few hours of his or her
time is asked to contact Ed Smith
or William Zahradnicek, Kiwanis
committeemen.
Two weeks ago Tod Purcell,
Boy Scout field executive, ap
pealed to the local Kiwanis Club
to assist in the fund drive in the
Valley region. During his visit he
acquainted members with a few
statistics on the cost of support
ing the Boy Scout program. “A
nickel a day^supports one Boy
Scout for a year”, he pointed out
to the group. Costs of supporting
a patrol of eight Scouts is only
$136 for a year.
Money collected in the drive
help boys develop loyalty, honor,
integrity and mental, physical
and spiritual strength. Scout lead
ers are selected from the troops’
local area and their many hours
(Continued on page 8)
KIWANIS GOVERNOR
TO ATTEND PALMER
EVENT AUGUST 14
C. E. Thompson, governor
Northwest District Kiwanis In
ternational, and Mrs. Thompson
will be guests of honor at the
Palmer Kiwanis ladies’ night
planned for this Saturday at the
Co-Op club room, according to
Emil Ganschow, Palmer Kiwanis
president.
Gov. Thompson, who makes his
home at Redman, Oregon, will be
guest speaker during the evening.
Jim Gentleman, lieutenant gov
ernor Yukon Division, has indi
cated that he will also be in at
tendance if at all possible.
Kiwanians and their guests
will be treated to a steak dinner,
which will be catered by the Pal
mer Fountain and Cafe, begin
ning at 7:30 p.m. Lloyd Morley
will be toastmaster.
In addition to a planned pro
gram, two new members, Gray
son Murphy and Mann Leisser
will be initiated into the local
club.
The committee in charge are
Morley, Murphy, Leisser, Jim
Hurley, and Allan Mick.
COUNCIL NOTES
Final hearings for those tax as
sessment protestants who have
not yet been heard will be held
by the City Council sitting
as a board of equalization on
August 18, it was announced at
the August 10 council meeting.
• • •
Members of the telephone com
mittee announced the hiring of
Norman France as telephone op
erator. He is filling a vacancy
and will work the night shifts,
with the exception of two nights
a week. A new work schedule will
be worked out for telephone op
erators. Four new telephone poles
will be put in the Co-Op area
to replace rotten ones now in use.
The new poles are needed to carry
the cable which will be installed
as soon as an easement to run
the cable under the railroad
tracks is received by the city. The
Co-Op has agreed to purchase the
poles and the city will bear the
cost of installation. The cable has
already been installed in the west
side of the tracks.
* * *
A letter to the Matanuska Val
ley Chamber of Commerce from
the city indicated that no action
has been taken on the Chamber’s
(Continued on page 8)
GO-OP MEMBERS
TO HEAR ANNUAL
REPORTS AUGUST 14
One hundred and eight mem
bers of the Matanuska Valley
Farmers Cooperating Association
are eligible, as producing mem
bers, to vote at the annual mem
bership meeting to be held in the
Palmer School gymnasium this
Saturday, August 14, beginning
at 10:00 a.m.
Production reports of the four
departments, creamery, ware
house, garage, and trading post
will be posted for viewing by
members. Annual financial re
ports will be given, annual divi
dend rate will be announced, and
the expiring term of Grayson
Murphy, board of director mem
ber, will be filled. Promptly at
10:30 a Zenith transoceanic radio
will be awarded to a member.
Other prizes to be awarded thr
oughout the meeting include:
Half-inch Black and Decker elec
tric drill; a 650 by 17 tire; a $25
Pendleton blanket; $25 in groc
eries and meat at the Trading
Post, and a Westinghouse electric
frying pan.
To be eligible to cast a vote at
the meeting a member must have
held a producing membership in
the association for at least one
year. Other members are welcome
to attend the meeting, board
members pointed out, but they
may not vote.
Lurch will be served at noon,
catered by the Palmer Fountain
and Cafe.
WATER SPECIALIST
SPEAKS AT
KIWANIS MEETING
Frank Trainor, of the United
States Geological Service, spoke
to members of the Palmer Ki
wanis Club on water potentials
in the Matanuska Valley area
during the club’s August 9 meet
ing.
Trainor, who works out of the
Anchorage office ground water
branch, water resources division
of USGS, reported on studies
made in the area over a period of
many months, on availability of
water, quantities and potentials.
In addition he spoke briefly on
the functions of his department.
Other guests present at the
meeting were Robert Pettys who
operates a chicken ranch on the
highway north who was a guest
of Jim Wilson, and a Dr. Meiers
of Ohio who w'as luncheon guest
! of Cy Brewer. Dr. Meiers visited
! in Palmer while making a vaca
i tion tour of the territory.
Emergency Funds Asked
For Polio Fight
New Plant Manager
Named at
Co-Op Creamery
Jack Flint of the Co-Op
Creamery department was re
cently named by the board of
directors as new manager of
the Palmer plant. Flint has
been manager of the Fairbanks
plant since it’s opening sever
al weeks ago and rejdlaces
Keith Walker who recently re
signed his position to move to
Washington.
The Flint family, who had
moved to Fairbanks, have
moved back to Palmer and
will be making their home in
the Co-Op housing area. .
Replacing Flint in the Fair
banks plant is Darwin Heinie,
former employe in the Palmer
plant. He moved to Fairbanks
over a week ago and immedi
ately took up his new duties
as manager.
FIVE FILE FOR
SENATE SEAT
Five candidates filed for the
; unexpired term in the territorial
senate of the late John Gorsuch
before the closing hour this week
Tuesday. Of these, were three
I Independents and one each Re
[Pufclican and Democrat. Inde
: pendents include Alex W. Bow
ker, chairman of the recently
I formed “Committee for Common
i wealth”; Harley E. Poole of Port
age and Homer who was the first
to file, and Bill Buxton of An
chorage, former editor of the Al
askan Post publication while he
was with the U. S. Army in Alas
ka.
Democrats who gathered at
Seward last Saturday for -con
vention nominated Jack Werner,
Seward business man, for the
.Senate seat. Among those attend
ing the convention, were four
Palmer Democrats, representing
Palmer precincts one and two
and the Eska precinct. They were
Betty Mears, Minnie Clark and
Mr. and Mrs. Bertren Curry. The
delegates from the Valley indicat
ed their pleasure with the choice
of candidate made at the conven
tion. Mr. Werner told the local
delegates of his intention of visit
(Continued on page 8)
Valley Sportsmen Plan Game, Trophy Exhibl
Always one of the most popular
j exhibits at the Fair, the Matanus
ka Valley Sportsmen will again
this year supervise the exhibit of
game furs, hides, trophies, guns,
ect. The exhibit will be held in
the log cabin building on the fair
grounds and will coincide with
an exhibit planned by the Fish
and Wildlife Service.
Agricultural Exhibits
Four prizes,, the first being $100,
will be offered in the individual
farm displays. Rules for enter
ing this exhibit state that the
products exhibited must have
been grown in the Valley, or have
been made by the exhibitor and
his immediate family. Displays
will be scored separately, with
the judges rating like products
against like only, but total points
will be judged according to the
ingenuity of the arrangement of
the display.
Displays are to be arranged on
a six-foot frontage and are to
be six feet deep. All displays
must contain not less than 25
specimens nor more than 40.
Wall space behind the exhibit is
to be decorated by the exhibitor.
Farmers must apply to Manager
Kirsch at least 10 days before
fair time to secure space for this
class exhibit.
In the agricultural and farm
products department there are
seven classes in division A in
which exhibitors may enter.
Class one, potatoes, will offer
first, second and third prizes of
$5, $3 and $1, plus a grand cham
pion ribbon for the outstanding
entry. Vegetable prizes will be
offered in class two on a variety
of over 30 types and all will also
giv£ free transportation to care
takers of livestock exhibits. How
ever, the following provisions
must be followed: Exhibits must
be billed to the Matanuska Val
ley Fair at Palmer. If desired,
these exhibits may be billed in
care of any party. When so bill
ed, shipments will be handl'd
free, using commercial wav-t 11.
In case of caretakers in large
of livestock exhibits, in uding
live fur-bearing animals, the
number of caretakers, together
with their names will also be en
tered on the way-bill, which will
be authority for their transporta
tion. Exhibits and caretakers of
livestock exhibits will be handled
only on freight or mixed trains
unless otherwise authorized. Ex-,
hibits will be returned free to
the originating station and will
be handled as above, except that
shipments will be billed to the
party originating the shipment.
The Matanuska Valley Bus
Line has promised its fullest co
operation and announced that
schedules will be maintained suf
ficient to handle all passengers
both coming and going to the
fair.
Foor Concessions Limited
There will be a limit of six
food concessions, not including
i the restaurant in the admimstra
| tion building. The limit pertains
| to those concessions selling such
items as hot dogs, hamburgers,
sandwiches and the like and does
not include ice cream stands or
those selling single items such
as pies, coffee, cakes, etc,.
Barns Ready
Exhibition barns at the fair
grounds have been cleaned and
disinfected in preparation for the
1954 Valley Fair, Gene Kirsch,
fair manager, announced this
week. In making the announce
ment Kirsch urged livestock own
ers to begin grooming/their ani
mals for what is hoped to be the
largest exhibit of local livestock
ever shown at a Valley Fair.
There are boxed stalls ready foi
large cows and horses and many
i valuable and worth-while prizes
I will be offered.
Attendants will be presenl
throughout the Fair to feed anc
care for the animals, Kirsch ad
(Continued on page 8)
An immediate need for 20 mil
lion dollars has prompted an
emergency March of Dimes by
the National Foundation for In
fantile Paralysis. Although noth
ing definite has been announced
for the Valley, it is believed that
some type of fund raising activ
ity will be conducted during the
emergency fund drive from Aug
ust 16 through the 31st.
The sum needed is required to
pay the high costs of continuing
care for 67,000 patients stricken
in earlier years and unknown
numbers of victims of current
record outbreaks, according to
Basil O'Connor, national founda
tion president. Simultaneously
money is needed to meet the cost
of increasing the nation’s supply
of gamma globulin and financing
the polio vaccine study
Although the March of Dimes
last January was the most suc
cessful in polio history, it fell far
short of the tightly budgeted
needs for 1954. That is why an
emergency, all-out appeal is be
ing made to the public. Funds
have been exhausted in paying
for care of polio patients plus
the vaccine tests and gamma glo
bulin. But there are new victims
daily and more money is needed
to bring the research fight to
a successful conclusion.
A team of three specialists and
additional equipment have been
sent to the Anchorage area, to
aid in the outbreak of the dread
disease in that city and Seward.
Funds from the emergency March
of Dimes is helping finance the
special equipment being sent to
Alaska.
Palmer School
Students Register
August 26 and 27
Registration for all new stu
dents, beginning with first grad
ers on through the high school
grades, will be held Thursday and
Friday, August 26 and 27, accord
ng to William T. Zahradnicek,
uperintendent of schools.
All students entering the Pal
ner schools for the first time are
required to register prior to open
ng day. The two days, the latter
part of this month, were desig
lated to facilitate the registra
ion and avoid confusion on open
ng day.
Public Health Nurse Dolores
Mattila and Jeanne Shaver will
be available on those dates to give
immunization to those children
who have not yet been vaccinat
1 ed or immunized.
A. J. DeJULIO ELECTED
TO CITY COUNCIL SEAT
A1 J. DeJulio, publisher
and owner of The Frontiers
man, will be sworn into the
office of Palmer city council
j man by City Attorney John
Shaw at the next regular
i council meeting on August 17.
Members of the city council
unanimously elected DeJulio
to fill the existing vacancy in
the council during the August
10 meeting. He will serve in
office until the city election
on October 5 at which time the
council seat will be filled by
the voters, along with two ex
piring terms of two city coun
I cil members.
Dr. and Mrs. James Pazaruski
plan to leave the Valley August
! 20 for a three-week vacation in
1 Washington, planning to fly both
j ways. Dr. Pazaruski is territorial
j vetinarian.
RliflSKR’S FAVORITE GUIDE EVERS TUES.
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