Thought of the Week.
HAPPY
NEW
YEAR
VOLUME 16. NUMBER 14
Lad "
o • *
U
PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF THE AAATANUSKA VALLEY
PALMER. ALASKA. THURSDAY. DEC. 26. 1963
TWELVE PAGES
I
SENIOR BALL
Swanson School
Dec. 27—8:30 p.m.
PRICE 15 CENTS
r i ltnamAn rrx\ji\j uy wara w. wens, t'noTograpner
Santa Didn't Forget
THE MAN IN THE RED SUIT made three little
boys in red pajamas happy on Christmas
morning at the Max Clements home on Val
ley Street in Palmer. Last minute doubts
about "having been good enough" were dis
pelled when the trio dashed into the living
room at the crack of dawn yesterday morn
ing. About to dig into the colorful wrap
pings are, from left, Brooke, Mike, and David
Clements. Just out of camera range, no
doubt, are parents Max and Arlene.
ALUMNI LOSE TO
STUDENTS, 59-51
Members of the Palmer high
school basketball team battled
Palmer Alumni in a close game
Monday at Central school gym,
the student team finally for
ging ahead in the final quarter
to win by a score of 59-51.
The alumni led by ten
points at the close of the third
quarter of the nip-and-tuck
game. However, skilled inter
ception on the part of Mick
Pettit and Hal Ingalls in the
fourth quarter brought the
student team back to the fore.
Members of the alumni team
were Don Jones, Charles Fel
zien, Wayne Eckert, Jackie
Snodgrass, Dick Estelle, Bob
Bissett, Fred Barnes, and Da
vid Schreiber. Leif Kopperud
coached the former Moose
players.
CORSAGES
for
THE SENIOR BALL
and
NEW YEAR'S EVE
Floral Arrangements
for
NEW YEAR'S DAY
MAUD’S
FLOWERS
745-3913
Queen for Day Ends
Slay Here Tomorrow
Bubbling with enthusiasm
for Alaska, its people, and the
beauty and comfort of Willi
waw Lodge on Lake Wasilla.
Mrs. Barbara Stone and her
husband, Daniel, extended
their stay at the local rescrt
an extra five days. The cou
ple will leave for Pasadena to
morrow.
Mrs. Stone was the Oct. 25
winner on Jack Bailey’s
“Queen for a Day” program,
one of her prizes being the
trip to Alaska for a vacation
at Williwaw.
The young couple arrived
here on Dec. 17, and report
only one flaw in an otherwise
perfect vacation—no snow, and
in Alaska yet. However, their
hosts, Muriel and “Rojo” Reed,
saw that Barbara got her prom
ised dog sled ride. She was
taken to Independence today,
where the snow is six feet
deep.
The Stones have seen much
of this oart of Alaska from the
air, as Dave Tressler of Busi
ness and Bush Aircraft has
taken them on several flights,
including one over Lake
George and the Knik Glacier.
' They have also seen Mt. Mc
I Kinley from the air, but heavy
| snows have prevented them
\ from landing at the park,
j The California couple ap
peared on Norma Goodman's
show last Friday, and have
been night-clubbing in Anch
orage.
“But most of all,” Barbara
! said, “we’ve been enjoying our
I stay right here at the lodge,
ice skating, hiking, and relax
ing.”
She said they have taken
moving pictures of all their ac
tivities to show their friends
back home, and added that
they are so delighted with Al
aska that they have discussed
coming here to live.
She said she would particu
larly like to thank her hosts
for their hospitality; Dave
Tressler; and the Alaska Fur
Factory for the beautiful parka
made especially for her as one
of her “Queen for a Day”
prizes. The Stones will be
flown back to Anchorage to
morrow in a helicopter from
the ERA Helicopter Service.
MARCH OF DIMES
CAMPAIGN OPENS
The annua! March of Dimes
campaign in tht Matanuska
Valley will begin on New
Year’s Day, Charles Wilson
chairman of the drive in the
Palmer area, said this week
Mrs. L. J. Smith, Sr. is March
of Dimes chairman in the Wa
silla area.
The March of Dimes drive
will continue throughout the
month of January. Wilson
said. Funds derived from the
campaign will ht used this
year in research to combat
arthritis and correct birth de
fects, he added.
“With the devt.opment oi
the Salk and Sal in vaccines,
polio is no longer the threat
that it once was,” the local
chairman stated. Assisting Wil
son in the Palmer area will be
the two local chapters of Beta
Sigma Phi.
Wilson poinied out that in
the past 26 years the March of
Dimes has invested $81,100,000
in basic research into polio,
birth defects and arthritis,
making possible both the Salk
and Sabin vaccines.
A total of 75 March of Dimes
chapters in Washington, Alas
ka, Idaho and Montana sup
port a birth defects treatment
center at the University of
Washington Hospital in Seattle.
First Baby of 1964
To Get Many Prizes
UNE STRAYS
TURNS UP IN
WRONG MESSAGE
Those lines of type that the
Linotype machine produces
are time-savers in many ways
—if a mistake is made, the op
erator sets a new line, a n d
the makeup man throws away
the one in error and inserts the
corrected line. But suppose
i there are several corrections to
I be made—isn’t it possible to
put the new line in the wrong
place?
Yes, sad to say, it is. And
that’s; what happened at the
Frontiersman last week. In
| the Palmer Transfer Christmas
| message on page 22 the words,
i "Pat, Alma, and Dean” appear
in the signature instead of
"Car; and Eoith Meier.” The
mistake didn't catch the eye of
the proof-readers either, a n d
rolled merrily on its way
| through-1 it. tie entire edition.
The i't -ntier.-.n ,ai offer* its
aw >2 .siw ‘ Mr. .nd Mrs.
Meier, who have been in the
trucking bus1 ness here since
| 1941. The Meier family came
| to the Matanuska Valley with
| the colonist: in 1935. and frrm
i ed here until 1945.
i
In the early days of his
business, Meier hauled coal,
then coal and oil, before
switching to merchandise truc
; king. He made the difficult run
to Anchorage when the load
| was still a muddy, pot-holed
j trail.
Four of the five Meier chil
dren still live in Alaska—Mrs.
Charles Shaver and Mrs. Betty
Rice in Palmer, Bud and Bob
in Anchorage.
SENIOR BALL
IS TOMORROW
The annual senior dinner
1 and dance will be held on Fri
day, Dec. 27. The dinner,
which is for seniors and their
escorts only, will be at the
| Elks hall at 6:30 p.m. and
1 will be prepared and served
I by members of the Elks Lodge.
The dance will start at 3:30
p.m. in the multipurpose room
of Swanson school, and will be
followed by a midnight movie
at the Center Theater.
Mike Pinquoch, president of
the senior class, will give a
welcome speech at the dinner.
; David Cottrell will act as mas
i ter of ceremonies. R. C. Car
' ter, superintendent of schools.
, and Walter Ward, high school
■ principal, will also be asked to
• speak.
:
Admission for the dance is
$2 stag, and $3 for a couple,
with no one to he admitted
without an invitation. Terri
| Granger, last year’s prom
, queen, and Wayne Eckert, last
! | year’s senior ball king, will
crown the king and queen. A
| prince and princess will also be
! crowned.
Karen Sand is chairman of
, the refreshment committee.
Ann Fowler, chairman of the
decoration committee, and
Holly Scnroeder made the in
vitations.
Holly Schroeder is in charge
of the coronation and Harry
■ Hartung is chairman of the
clean-up committee.
Because the senior class
sponsor, Mrs. Margaret Cope,
is spending the holidays in
California with her daughter
and grand-daughter, Miss Rid
dle will take over as sponsor.
The music for the dance will
: be furnished by t h e Bishops
! Four.
Local Merchants
Contribute Gifts
Merchants of Palmer a n d
Wasilla will give the first baby
of the 196*4 year a gala wel
come.
Winner of the “First Baby”
| contest, publicized on page 4 of
this issue of The Frontiersman.
! will receive merchandise, gift
certificates, cash and free ser
vices.
Several rules, however, must
i be observed in the contest The
winning baby must be born in
| the Valley Presbyterian Hos
pital and his or her parents
l must live in the Valley area;
the exact time of the baby's
I birth must bo ' citified by the
attending p,,,sic an .n the
event i f a t;• , . wards will be
made at the disi reticm of the
1 committee: and prizes n.u •; be
| picked up by t! e parents >f th•
! winning baby t the donor's
j place ot busi i.. s.
| The first Little Miss o: M •.
| of 1964 will receive, from Pip
I pel Insurance Agency, a silver
spoon; Betty’s a $5 gift certifi
cate; Ketchikan Spruce Mills,
S5 in trade; D <s A Super, two
cases of strained hah.' food;
B & B Supermarket, one ca ■
! of milk; Kirk’s Sales and Ser
vice. $5 in cash Reed’s Hard
ware, a diaper pa 1; and Maud’
Flowers, a fiorai arrangement
tor mother and baby.
Other donors and their gift
are Lea’s, a $5 gift certificate
Mac’s Plumbing. $5 in cash
Matanuska Electric Associa
tion, a baby bottle warm i
Koslosky’s Department Store
| lined diaper bag; Wasilla Cock
Mail Lounge, a baby book; and
| Bert’s Drug, $10 in merchan
! dise.
i The first baby will also rr
| ceive, from Eenson’s Depart -
| ment Store, a $h gift certifi
cate; Valley Peoples Store,
; nursery ( hair: Bonita’s Beaut,
Shop, hair styling, shampor
, and set I r the mother; A. B
iand J. Mechanical Co., $11 i
trade; The Frontiersman, $5 i ,
cash; Teeland’s Country Store
Wasilla, a $a gift certificate
Matanuska Valley Bank, a
savings account and Mata nu
ka Telephone Association,
free three-minute telephon,
call anywhere in the Unite 1
States.
1963 CROP SEASON ONE OF
MOST UNUSUAL ON RECORD
'One of the longest and most
unusual on i.cord,” is the des
ignation given the 1963 crop
j season in the Matanuska Val
ley by the U. S. department of
I agriculture statistical report
I ing service.
Ground was mostly bare
throughout the winter, per
mitting deep frost penetration;
then surplus soil moisture from
late spring snows, augmented
by cold ground, delayed seed
ing until mid-May, statistician
Paul Pownall noted.
Growth of crops was slow
and uneven, and by mid-Au
gust most crops were still a
week or two later than usual.
Bright spot in the season,
however, was 1he unusually
warm, clear weather from late
August to the end of Septem
ber. which prolonged the
growth of most crops and pro
vided ideal harvest conditions.
Palmer and Anchorage had 147
days between the last below
freezing temperature in the
spring and the first in the fall
—25 days longer than usual.
Although oats and barley
production dropped below lev
els of the past few years, and
the hay crop was 14 per cent
less than last year, silage pro
duction increased in 1963, the
statistician said.
Production of potatoes in
Alaska totaled 7,030 tons from
760 acres, one per cent more
than last year but four percent j
less than in 1961 Ideal harvest
weather and a very late freeze '
Rive producers full opportun
itv to harvest the entire crop
which went into the cellar^
clean and in very good conch
tion.
Biggest increase was noted
in the cabbage crop, up 175
per cent over last year. The
crop was harvested from 45
acres, with an average yield of
seven tons per acre compared
to six tons last year from 30
acres. Quality was generally
good throughout the season.
Highway Hearing
To Be Jan. 16
Location of the federal-aid
primary route 42 from Eagle
River to Peters Creek on the
Glenn Highway will be the
subject of a public hearing in
the general purpose room of
the Eagle River school at 8
p.m. on Jan. 16.
The reason for the hearing
which will be held by the state
department of highways, is to
assess the economic impact of
two basic alternative routot
which have been studied f o r
engineering feasibility.
The “A” route would run.
through the Lower Fire Lake
area and the Birchwood resi-1
dential area. “D” route follows
the present highway quite
closely, cutting to the north of,
the present route between
Chugiak and Peters Creek.
V
SPECIAL ON MAYTAG
Washers & Dryers
OFF on
Models in
Stock
• NORGE DISHWASHERS • AUBURN COAL STOKERS
• FAIRBANKS MORSE WATER PUMPS
• BRUNER WATER SOFTENERS
GOODRICH
Plumbing and Heating
Phone 745-3000 Palmer
NEW YEAR'S DANCE
NEW YEAR’S EVE
MOOSE NALL
MUSIC BY THE
MOOSE ORCHESTRA
(Tom, Owen & Virginia)