Vol. 1, No. 50
Anchorage, Alaska, March 20, 1948
A
Ten Cents
School Money
For Next Year
May Be Cut
*The financial outlook for
your school for the coming year
is far from good,” superintendent
Carl Snelling of Palmer school
warned members of the Parent
Teacher’s Asoeiation at last Tues
day’s meeting.
‘‘I believe we can complete
the present school year without
any trouble,” he continued, “but
_ the next school year is going to
cause trouble unless we can meet
the emergency in the meantime.
Our budget was approved in an
amount adequate to take care of
our needs, but cuts may be neces
sary.”
Mr. Snelling’s remarks were
contained in a brief report of his
recent trip to Juneau to confer
with Dr. James Ryan, territorial
commissioner of education. Again
he cautioned the P-TA of the im
mediate need to face Palmer’s
school situation with some plan
of incorporation that would sup
ply a measure of the school’s
needs from within the com
munity.
"You've simply got to rea
lize that you're going to have
to incorporate," he declared.
"You're going to have to in
corporate as an independent
school district and you're going
to have to incorporate as a
town. It's only a matter of
time before you must face it,
and I doubt that you'll get
through another session of the
legislature without assuming
some of the responsibility of
your school."
It was pointed out that it will
cost a good deal more to re-in
stitute a high school, once it has
been lost, as it may be unless
definite steps toward incorpora
tion are considered, than to
(Continued on back page)
Chamber Members Talk and Talk
Matters agricultural occupied I
most of the time of the Valley |
Chamber of Commerce at a long
drawn-out session last Wednes
day noon. Much discussion and
little action was precipitated by
the request of Alva Brooks, rep
resenting the Valley’s agricul
tural planning committee, that
the Chamber help that group by
assistance with 4-H club work
and by requesting the inclusion
of vocational agriculture in the
curriculum of Palmer school.
In respect to the 4-H club work.
Mr. Brooks told the Chamber
the work was lagging badly in
the Valley, probably because of
a serious shortage of club lead
ers.
In the group discussion which
followed, it was agreed that the
Valley needs a home demonstra
tion leader, located here, to best
serve the interests of the 4-H
club members. It was voted to
write Lorin T. Oldroyd, director
of Extension Service, asking that
Miss Marilyn Johnson, district
worker now stationed at Anchor
age, be allowed to make her
headquarters in the Valley.
Opinion was divided on how
best to proceed to get vocational
agriculture into the Palmer
schools. It was suggested that a
letter be written to Dr. James
Ryan, territorial commissioner
\ of education, to members of the
local school board and to Gover
nor Ernest Gruening, requesting
that this subject be added.
I
It was further suggested that
Del. E. L. Bartlett be written,
requesting that provisions of the
Smith-Hughes act be extended to
Alaska. Under this act, instruc
tion in vocational agriculture, vo
cational homemaking and indus
trial arts would be administered
under a territorial Smith-Hughes
supervisor.
It was at length decided that a
special committee made up of
Mr. Brooks and Stanley Balloun
should study the matter and
write the required letter.
Rev. W. L. Zeile asked that
the Chamber of Commerce be re
sponsible for placing signs on
the outskirts of Palmer, welcom
ing tourists into the town. Mr.
Zeile was appointed to head a
committee to investigate the cost
of needed signs. He will be as
sisted by Mrs. Elsie Brown and
Mrs. Betty Mears.
School Budget
Of $97,828 Gets
Official Sanction
A budget of $97,828.35 for the
coming school year has been ap
proved by Dr. James Ryan, ter
ritorial commissioner of educa
tion, it was reported this week
by Carl Snelling, superintend
ent of schools. Mr. Snelling has
just returned from a conference
with Dr. Ryan, at which the bud
get for the forthcoming year was
discussed.
However, Mr. Snelling added
that although the amount had
been approved, there was no
certainty that this sum of money
would be available for the com
ing year.
"The financial outlook for
the entire territory is far from
bright," Mr. Snelling declared.
"It is possible when all avail
able funds are determined, that
Palmer will receive only a por
tion of the total amount ap
proved for its next year's bud
get."
Ministers Announce
Holy Week Rites
Palmer’s churches are plan
ning a series of religious services
Which will extend through Holy
Week, beginning next Monday
and ending with Easter services
on the following Sunday.
St. John’s Lutheran church
has a special service planned for
the 11 o’clock hour next Sunday,
which is Palm Sunday. Good Fri
day services in St. John’s will be
held at 8 o’clock Friday evening
and Easter services will culmin
ate the Lutheran Holy Week at
11 o’clock on Easter Sunday.
June Barker and Les Ray will
sing Easter music at the Sunday
service.
Palm Sunday at the United
Protestant church has been set
aside as the day for baptism and
' dedication of infants at the
morning service. Parents who
wish to have their children bap
tized at this service are asked to
r/feet with Rev. Victor Alfsen
before the beginning of the 11
o’clock service.
On Thursday evening of Holy
Week, there will be a special
copimunion service in the church
at 7:30. At that time new mem
bers will be joined to the church,
i Those now members of the com
municants class, which has been
meeting for the past six weeks,
will be taken into the church at
this service.
Other Valley residents who
wish to unite with the church in
this service are asked to meet
with the session at 7:15 that eve
ning.
Easter services in the United
Protestant church, will begin
with a sunrise union service to
be held in the Valley Chapel of
the Church of God. Five Valley
churches will participate in this
service, which will dedicate the
auditorium of the recently-com
pleted chapel. Further announce
ment of the time and program of
this service will be made next
week.
The Easter cantata of the
United Protestant church will be
presented at the evening service
on Easter Sunday.
Other Valley churches are
planning special rites for the
Easter Sunday details to be an
nounced next week.
Local Man
Is Suicide
Ivan Johnson of Palmer shot
and killed himself at his home
here early Thursday morning.
Mr. Johnson, who earlier had
been apparently enjoying the
evening in company with his
wife and a friend, James Smith,
left no note explaining his ac
tion.
The trio returned from an eve
ning downtown at about ten
minutes of one Thursday morn
ing. Mrs. Johnson stepped into
the kitchen of her home for a
moment, and Mr. Smith started
upstairs. Startled by the sound
of a shot, they rushed to the !
bedroom to find Mr. Johnson j
unconscious and dying as the re
sult of a self-inflicted bullet
wound. The death weapon was a
.22 caliber pistol.
Dr. Bert E. Long was called,
and he arrived to find Mr. John
son approaching death. He placed
the time of death at about 1:09
Thursday morning.
Walter E. Huntley, U. S. Com
missioner and coroner, listened
to the stories of Mrs. Johnson
and Mr. Smith early Thursday
morning, and ruled that the
death wound was self-inflicted.
The body is at the Phillips
Mapleton funeral home in An
chorage, pending funeral ar
rangements.
Well-Baby Conference
To Be Next Tuesday
There will oe a Well Baby
Conference at the Health Center
next Tuesday between the hours
of 2 and 4 p.m., it was announced
this week by Miss Dolores Zeis,
public health nurse. Miss Zeis in
vites parents to bring their chil
dren to the Health Center for
inspection and conference with
herself regarding the child’s
progress.
COMING NEXT WEEK
Miss Marilyn Johnson, home
demonstration leader, will be in
Palmer next week to meet with
members of the Valley’s Home
makers’ clubs. She will discuss
4-H club work.
The annual Easter bake and
food sale of the Ladies Aid of
the United Protestant church
will be held at the Trading Post
on March 27. The sale is to be
gin at 10 o’clock that morning.
$100 In Prizes
To Be Offered
In Grange Contest
The Northland Pioneer Grange,
at its regular meeting last week,
approved the report of plans
formulated by its contest com
mittee to conduct the roadside
clean-up and home beautifica
tion projects in the Valley.
At the recommendation of that
committee, the Grange approved
a plan of offering cash prizes for
local farms which show the
most improvement in appear
ance during the contest period.
Prizes of $50, $30 and $20 will
be offered to the top three farms.
The Grange agreed to con
tribute half of the prize money
and to ask the Fair Association
to contribute the other half. Prize
winners will be announced on the
opening day of the fair.
Anchorage
w'
Mayor Buys
First Bonds
When Mayor Francis Bowden
of Anchorage stepped to the front
of Palmer’s gymnasium to plunk
down the purchase price of two
hospital bonds last Monday eve
ning, he officially opened the
Valley’s latest hospital drive. Fif
teen other purchasers followed
the mayor’s steps Monday, to
bring total bond sales at the rally
to $1,700.
(Mayor Bowden was acting as
representative of the retail
clerk’s union of Anchorage, when
he made his bond purchases.)
Since the Monday meeting,
volunteer bond salesmen have
collected additional funds which
swell the hospital’s total build
ing fund to S3.829.75. A portion
of that money already was set
aside for the building fund of
the permanent hospital plant.
Hospital board members now
are planning to complete further
plans for the bond sale at a
meeting of board members and
heads of Valley civic organiza
tions and clubs. That meeting
will be held in the basement of
j St. John’s Lutheran church at 8
o’clock next Tuesday evening.
Members of Wasilla clubs, as
, well as Palmer groups, are in
vited to be in attendance.
One important decision to be
| reached at that meeting is
! with regard to disposition of
I hospital stock. Some stock will
continue in circulation since
bonds do not carry any
voting power. However stock
holders who possess a number
of shares of hospital stock prob
ably will be given the oppor
tunity to redeem their holdings
in the near future.
(Continued on Back Page)
PALMER SCOUTS GUN
FOR SECOND TROPHY
BULLETIN
Members of the Boy Scout
troops gathered in Anchorage
for the district rally will be
heard over the air next Satur
day afternoon, it was an
nounced this week by Hal
Gribble, Scout executive of
this district. A number of
boys will be interviewed over
Station KFQD at 3:45 that day.
Prepped to carry home their
second trophy from a district
Scout rally, members of the Pal
mer Boy Scout troop ended ral
ly practice sessions on Thursday
of this week. Friday, in com
pany with members of the Wa
silla Scout troop, they drive to
i Anchorage to participate in a
rally with other Scouts from all
over this section of Alaska.
About 20 Boy Scouts will
1 make the trip from Palmer and
Wasilla. More than 125 boys, in
all, will participate in the Sat
urday evening competition in
the gymnasium of Anchorage
high school. The rally will begin
at 7 o’clock that evening.
I Scouts will be scored on troop
inspection, with scoring to be
; considered on the basis of the
conduct of the troop during in
spection and the rally, percent
age of Scouts and leaders in uni
form, amount of leading by the
boy leader and the correct pro
cedure during the inspection.
Each Scout troop will bring to
the rally one or more displays of
work of a Scouting nature, which
also will be counted in the
troop’s score. Each troop will be
expected to present one stunt of
a Scouting nature for added
points on their scoreboard.
In addition several Scout con
tests are planned to boost the
total points. Contests on the
rally program include a knot
tying relay, a three-division sig
naling contest (semaphore, wig
wag and light and buzzer), a knot
race, an undress relay, a first aid
relay and troop and patrol drill.
Executives in charge of events
at Saturday’s rally include Orvis
Brown, recorder, Burrell Tudor,
chief timer, Allan Brandeis,
chief judge, and Walter Williams
and Col. Thomas Mosley of Fort
Richardson, inspecting officers.
Palmer Scouts will return to
the Valley late Saturday eve
ning. They will make the An
chorage trip in the cars of their
leaders and troop committeemen.