Vol. 1, No. 45
Palmer, Alaska, March 3, 1948
Ten Cents
PHS Wins
Tourney Game
Stinging from two sound
spankings on the Anchorage
court in the Fur Rendezvous
tournament, Palmer’s quintet
pooled rabbits’ feet and lucky
pieces to grab a piece of luck
big enough for a win on their
third try.
Defeated first by Anchorage
and then by Seward, Palmer’s
Moose turned the tables on Cor
dova’s squad to chase them
around the court for a 63-14 vic
tory. That win gave Palmer a
boost up from the cellar, for a
final ranking of fifth in the six
team tournament.
Billot, Onkka, Stevens and
Hutchinson, the basketball vet
erans on the local squad, made
the last game of the tournament,
and the final game of their high
school careers for all but Hut
chinson, their opportunity to
show the Palmer youngsters how
to ring up basketball tallies.
Hutchinson was low point man
of the quartet with five field
goals to his credit. Stevens was
good for 13 points, Billot for 18,
and Onkka added a solid 20
markers to the Palmer total.
The youngsters were all score-;
less, with the exception of
George Pederson who made good
on two free throws.
Names of Palmer players
,iled to appear when honors
were passed out at the tourna
ment banquet on Friday evening.
Fairbanks and Anchorage split
first and second-team honors be
tween them, with Steele of
Seward, named guard on the
second team, the only outsider
to appear on the lists with team
members of the top pair in Rail
belt basketball.
Kodiak won the team trophy
award for sportsmanship. Kodi
ak was in fourth place in tourna
ment standings.
Fairbanks high school upset
Anchorage in the tournament
finals to win the right to appear
against the champions of south
east Alaska for the territorial
title. The northern five, playing
inspired basketball, topped the
over-anxious Anchorage squad
throughout the title game. Con
sistently worried by the fact!
that the Fairbanks five was de
termined to score a large black
mark on their undefeated rec- i
(Continued on back page)
Telephone Owners
Still Planning
Extended Service
Plans are still in the making
for an improved telephone sys
tem in the Valley, if Valley resi
dents want that service, May
nard and Dorothy Sands of the
Valley Telephone Exchange dis
closed this week,
l They report that they intend
j to extend service as far as pos
sible with present facilities, but
it is their hope to replace their
equipment with new, if Valley
residents request augmented
service.
The Sands have mailed post
cards to every electrical user not
now a phone subscriber, and
they request an answer on the
return postcard enclosed. They
say they’d like to hear, even if
no phone is wanted. And they’re
particularly interested in having
reasons for the request for serv
ice, or no service, in the remarks
blank on the postcard.
The owners of the Valley Tele
j phone Exchange expressed ap
preciation for the co-operation of
I subscribers now served by the
outmoded equipment. It is their
hope that those subscribers may
be better served in the near fu
ture by new and improved equip
i mnet.
A telephone directory of Val
j ley residents, printed elsewhere
j in this issue, lists more than 80
phone subscribers. This means
! an increase of more than 50 over
; the subscribers named in the
first published list only a few
months ago.
Red Cross Drive
Still Not Ready
Here In Valley
Planning details for the Red
Cross drive in the Valley still
were not quite complete at press
time today according to an
nouncement from Bill Bouwens,
Red Cross chairman for Palmer.
Mr. Bouwens said he expected
to be able to make a complete
announcement concerning the
1948 goal, drive dates for the
Valley and this year’s drive
chairman, by the weekend.
The Anchorage drive began on
March 1, and workers are con
centrating efforts toward reach
ing a quota of nearly $15,000 in
the first week of the month-long
campaign.
Back row: Coach Gray. D. Hutchison, E. Onnka, H. Bendix
son, G. Peterson. Front row: M. Hyland. B. Billot. W. Bendix
son, W. Stevens, W. Bouwens.
This departing gesture of winter, which painted powdery
hrushfuls of snow over Valley woodlots, soon will be but
a memory to Valley residents. Already days grow noticeably
longer. Morning sunrises paint winter's white blanket in
| brilliant hues along the Valley's mountain-fringed rims.
The weather is still a brisk reminder that winter is with us
yet. but spring's promise glistens in every added minute of
Alaskan daylight. (Photo by Palmer Photographic Center).
Electric Shop
To Open Soon
The Valley will have a new
electrical shop, dealing in elec
trical appliances and equipment
and in electrical contracting,
within the next two weeks. The
shop, to be known as the B and
C Supply, will occupy space in
the Palmer Automotive Service
building.
Owner E. L. Baty has leased
half the space in the garage, and
will be ready to do business in
his new quarters as soon as a
partition can be constructed and
garage doors rehung. Mr. Baty
expects to stock a complete line
of appliances, motors and elec
trical supplies, although he will
not be equipped to handle stoves
and refrigerators at once.
Mrs. Baty will assist her hus
band in the shop. The couple,
who have lived in Anchorage for
the past year, formerly made
their home in Texas.
The Batys plan to be per
manent residents in the Valley.
They are living, at present, in
their trailer house which is
parked behind the Palmer Auto
motive Service building.
FUNERAL STILL PENDING
Funeral services for Wilbur
Granger, who shot and killed
himself last week, still were not
definitely scheduled at presstime
today. Services will be con
ducted under the auspices of
the American Legion.
LUTHERAN AID MEETS
Members of the Ladies’ Aid of
St. John’s Lutheran church will
meet at the home of Mrs. Wil
liam Ising on Wednesday, March
3 at 8 o’clock.
Sportsmen To Meet
Wednesday Evening
Members and everyone inter
ested in becoming a member of
the Matanuska Valley Sports
men are reminded of the regular
March meeting of the group to
be held Wednesday, March 3.
That meeting will be called to
order at 8 o’clock in the Grange
hall.
Organization of the club into
groups of interest in the various
phases of club activities will be
discussed.
Following the business session,
Mrs. Maude Hosier will show
movies of wild life taken in Mt.
McKinley national park.
Elks Lodge
Coming Here
On March 13
Because Louis Odsather, now
Exalted Ruler of the Elks lodge
n Anchorage, was initiated into
hat order in Palmer just 10
•ears ago. Palmer will be the
••'ene of another such initiation
"n the evening of March 13.
That evening a special train
'rnm Anchorage with a party of
200 Elks and wives will arrive
:n Palmer to initiate a class and
Institute a Bills’ club here. A
tinner will precede the initia
tion, at which visitors will be
honored guests.
Following the initiation, for
which a list of 14 prospective
Elks is already registered, there
will be a public dance to which
all Valley residents are invited.
Music for the dance will be sup
plied by an orchestra which the
Anchorage lodge will bring with
them.
All local members of the Elks
lodge are working on prepara
tions for the event. Wives of
Elks held a planning meeting
Saturday night, and members of
the Elks met Monday to com
plete their plans and name indi
vidual committees.
L. C. Stock is general chair
man of the planning committee.
He is assisted by Fred Wallace,
as well as by all 47 members of
the Elks now living in the Val
ley. T. Cadwallader, Heinie Sni
der and Walter Teeland of Wasil
la are also assisting in plans for
the entertainment of the An
chorage visitors.
The initiation and dance will
be held in the gymnasium of
Palmer school.
Further announcement of en
tertainment plans, in which the
entire Valley may participate,
will be made at the end of the
week, chairman Stock promised.
Arrangements are already in
progress to provide special dec
orations and window placards to
welcome the visiting Anchorage
ites.
SPORTSMEN’S DIRECTORS
PLAN COMING MEETING
A discussion of general plans
for Wednesday’s membership
meeting occupied most of the
time of the board of directors of
the Matanuska Valley Sports
men last Sunday evening.
The question of affiliation
with the National Rifle Associa
tion still was unanswered at the
Sunday meeting. Ralph Good
rich and Claude Carroll wrote
the Association requesting in
formation on the status of the
local club, which now has a
paid-up membership of 52. The
letter also contained complete
information regarding rifle
ranges planned by the club and
stressed the interest of members
in both small and large bore
shooting.
The directors hope to have def
inite information on the subject
by Wednesday evening, when
the club meets as a unit.
L. C. Stock reported that per
mission had been obtained to use
the Grange hall for membership
meetings.
The group discussed immedi
| ate organization of a skiing
group. Mr. Stock said he had
discussed leadership of that
group with Russ and “Rusty”
Dow, who promised to be pres
ent at the next meeting of the
membership. Tentative plans for
j a skiing outing for next Sunday
I were discussed. They will be
i presented to the membership for
approval.
i Committee heads reported
briefly on the activities of each
group. Full reports will be made
at the next membership meeting.
It was decided that all minutes
of the directors’ meetings also
will be presented at membership
meetings.
Membership goal was set at
double the present 52 by early
summer. An open invitation was
extended to all Valley residents
interested in the Sportsmen to
attend the March meeting of the
group.