'Top" concert by An
chorage Symphony Or
chestra at school gym.
2:30 p.m. Sunday.
Malley Mrontiergman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
n PAGES
■L TODAY
VOL. 4, NO. 23
PALMER. ALASKA. FRIDAY. FEBRUARY 16. 1951
PRICE 10c
Plans made for new Valley Hospital Here
Petition Hearing on
Palmer Incorporation
Held by Judge Folta
Local businessmen serving on
the steering committee in the cur
rent move to incorporate Palmer
as a city of the first class met
with Harold J. Butcher, Anchor
age attorney, last night to dis
cuss last minute details prior to
the hearing on the petition which
is set for today. Mr. Butcher is
Representing the Palmer business
men at the hearing.
The hearing on the petition
was scheduled to start at 2
o'clock this afternoon in Third
District Court before Judge
George W. Folta. Palmer resi
dents who will speak in favor
of incorporation at the hearing
include William Head, Howard
Andresen, Jack Maze, Steve
* Ward. Frank Brown, A1 Hagen
and R. E. Demming. Mr. Ver
millia of the Alaska Housing
Authority will represent the
AHA at the meeting.
Mr. Head will give a resume of
the budget and financial set up;
Mr. Andresen will speak on
Eklutna project views on incor
poration; Mr. Maze will give in
formation on federal funds; Mr.
Ward will review the need of po
lice protection here; Mr. Brown
will represent the North Palmer
water system; Mr. Hagen will
' give general information concern
ing the proposed incorporation
and Mr. Demming will give tech
nical information regarding the
proposed boundaries. Mr. Dem
ming has prepared a map showing
all lots, homes and business es
tablishments within the proposed
area. Mr. Vermillia will give the
AHA’s views on the proposed in
corporation.
The proposed area, planned
toward a city of 15,000 people,
includes 1340 acres. Of this area
30 acres are intended for parks;
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Mrs. Les Green Is
Appointed Official
Weather Observer Here
The Valley’s official weather
observation station for the U. S.
Weather Bureau is now located at
Palmer airport, it was announced
1fhis week. Mrs. Les Green has
been appointed as the official
weather observer. The airport is
considered by the Bureau as the
most appropriate location here
for the weather observations,
which were formerly made here
officially by Mrs. Oscar Beylund,
according to the announcement.
The Matanuska Valley has
basked in spring-like weather all
week with temperatures soaring
to unusual highs for this time of
the year. On Tuesday Mrs. Green
reported 33 above. Another har
binger of spring this week was
pussy willow bouquets with silken
> buds in full bloom. Hikers gath
- ered the bouquets while enjoying
the balmy weather last Sunday.
Members of the string section of the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, pictured above (left to right)
in the front row are Rica Swanson. DeEtte Davis, Ruth Hurst and Russ Lamoreaux. Second row:
Eleanor BraendeL Elmer Sellin, Olaus Tveden and Dorothy Suther. Behind them are Anthony van
Seventer and Arthur BraendeL Standing are S/Sgt. Floyd Suther and Capt. Robert W. Dei*. A
"pops" concert will be presented here in Palmer by the Symphony Orchestra on Sunday afternoon
at 2:30 p.m. at the school gym. The orchestra is coming to the Valley under the auspices of the local
Music Appreciation Group. Peter Brilch is conductor of the orchestra.—(Courtesy Anchorage Times.)
"Pops" Concert by Anchorage Symphony Orchestra
To Be Presented Here Under Auspices of Local Group
A “Pops” Concert by the An
chorage Symphony Orchestra un
der the direction of Peter Britch
will be presented in Palmer this
week end under the auspices of
the local Music Appreciation
Group. The concert will be given
at the gym at 2:30 Sunday after
noon with Miss Ruthella Wade,
dancer, featured as guest artist.
Seventy-five percent of the net
proceeds from the concert will go
to the local Music Appreciation
Group and will be used toward
some community project to be
announced later, Dan Fleming,
chairman of the Group, said in
making the announcement. The
concert has also been endorsed by
the Palmer Kiwanis Club, Presi
dent Hugh Johnson said this week
following the regular Kiwanian
meeting Monday.
The program to be presented
here is to be the same as given
by the orchestra in its first con
cert of the season at Anchorage
on February 9. Tschaikovsky’s
“Swan Lake” will be the major
work for the afternoon.
Miss Wade, first dancer to ap
pear with the Symphony as its
guest artist, will dance a gypsy
number, with castanets, to the
music of DeFalle and a folk num
ber from the Spanish province of
Aragon. Miss Wade has appeared
in several Anchorage productions
including “Bonanza Days,” and
the Little Theatre’s “You Can’t
Take It With You.”
The program will close with
Aaron Copland’s “Rodeo,” written
by the American composer in 1942
for the Ballet Russe de Monte
Carlo. The ballet is a favorite
with audiences. The music is rem
iniscent of western folk tunes and
cowboy songs, ranging from sad
melodies of the lonely prairie to
the foot-stamping swing of the
Saturday night “hoedown.”
The Anchorage Symphony Or
chestra, now in its fifth year, is a
non - profit organization. It is
composed of amateur and profes
sional musicians from the Greater
Anchorage prea and the military
base.
Tickets for the concert here may
be obtained at the Palmer Drug
Store, the Palmer Fountain and
the Frontiersman office.
CHORUS TRY-OUTS
SET FOR MONDAY
Try-outs for the chorus of the
Kiwanis Minstrel Show will be
held Monday evening, February
19, at 7:30 p.m. at the school gym,
it was announced today. Every
one, including men and women
and teen-agers of both groups, is
urged to try out for the chorus.
The show will be held some time
in April. The second Minstrel
Show to be presented here by
the Palmer Kiwanis Club.
HALLEA LODGE IS SOLD FOR $50,000
The sale of Hallea lodge an
nounced this week with the pur
chase price in the neighborhood
of $50,000 is one of the biggest
private land transfers financially
that the Valley has seen. The
lodge was purchased from Hal
and Lea Halvorsen. It is located
on Lake Lucille approximately
one and one-half miles from Wa
silla. The purchasers are Mr. and
Mrs. Herbert Frederick, formerly
of Casper, Wyo., who recently
came here to make their home.
Mr. and Mrs. Halvorsen, who
have operated the lodge for the
past two years, said that “they
built the lodge from the ground
up.” The couple has resided in
the territory for six years. The
Fredericks plan to completely
modernize the lodge, according
to the announcement.
Valley Presbyterian
Hospital Is Proposed
Change of Name Here
Definite planning for a new
hospital here was brought before
the membership at the annual
meeting of the Valley Hospital
Association held last night at the
school cafeteria. The Rev. Victor
Alfsen announced that the women
of the Presbyterian Mission
boards in the states will raise
funds for a new hospital here as
their 1952 project for the year.
As a means of helping them in
the money-raising projects it was
proposed that the name of the
local hospital be changed to Val
ley Presbyterian hospital. With
the hospital here officially desig
nated as a Presbyterian hospital
the women working on the proj
ect in the states would have a
more concrete basis in obtaining
funds for the hospital.
In view of the urgent need for
a new hospital the proposal was
made to request an advance of
$50,000 from the Presbyterian
Board of Missions. Efforts would
then be made to obtain matching
federal and territorial funds to
get the construction of the hos
pital under way here as soon as
possible.
A vote was taken on changing
the name to the Valley Presbyte
rian Hospital with the majority
voting for the proposed change.
The vote was taken not for defi
nite action but as a recommenda
tion to the new board that is to
take office. *
The interest in the local hos
pital was evidenced by the at
tendance at the meeting with ap
proximately 60 Valley residents
present. An annual election of
board members was held with
Mrs. Earl C. Graves and Virgil
Eckert named to serve a one-year
term. Mrs. Jessie DeVries, Max
Sherrod and the Rev. George
Geiwitz were elected to the two
year term. Two permanent mem
bers on the board, the Rev. Victor
(Continued on Back Page)
CHAMBER OUTLINES
'BUY AT HOME' PLAN
FOR MERCHANTS HERE
The Matanuska Valley Cham
ber of Commerce gave local mer
chants and businessmen addition
al suggestions this week on how
they might lend their support to
the “Buy at Home” campaign that
is now being sponsored by the
chamber. President Hurley point
ed out that the “Buy at Home”
committee, comprised of Jack
Maze, Carl Rasmussen, Ed Johns,
Art Madison and Opal Lu Smith,
had mapped out the following
procedure:
1. Put on a super special for
one day of each remaining week
in February. Choose any day but
the merchant’s “slowest” day was
suggested as the best.
2. Advertise in any way the
merchant may wish but suggest
at least a sign in the window or
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