Lititz Record Express

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T H E R E S S
SEi? F//VG TH E WARWICK A R EA FOR N E A R L Y A C EN TU R Y
99th Year ESTABLISHED APRIL 1877, AS THE SUNBEAM
(CONSOLIDATED MTU THE UTJTZ RECOBO 1937( Lltítz, Lancaster County; PA 17543. Thursday. March 4.1976 IO CEN1S A COPY; W OO PER YEAR BY MAIL
WITHIN LANCASTER COUNTY 18 PAGES— No. 50
Zoning
1 Hearings
i
U t l t s R t o o r t t X x p r o « P h o to
Michael Koch, son of Mr. and Mrs. Nevin Koch,
113 W. Third Ave., is a bright four-year-old who has
been chosen this year’s ambassador for the Easter
Seal Society of Lancaster County during its annual
fund drive.
Michael Koch Is
Easter Seal Boy b^Bonnle Szymanski
Five minutes with Michael
Koch, son .of Mr. and Mrs.
Nevin Koch,-413 W. Third
Ave., is all one needs to fall
in love.
The inquisitive, precocious
little boy with red hai^and a
smile envied by angels is so
tiny that his crutches look
like toys; but to Michael,
they’re serious mer­chandise:
very real, very
Important items that help
him walk out to the kitchen
where his grandmother
waits to spoil his appetite
with waffles and syrup.
Recently selected by the
E a ste r Seal Society of
Lancaster County as the 1976
ambassador for the society’s
annual fund raising effort,
Michael has been staying
with his grandparents, Mr.
and Mrs. Melvin Koch, 227 N.
Cedar St., during the day,
ever since last November
when his mother was
seriously injured in an
automobile accident.
Grandma and Grandpa
Koch are proud of their
grandson, not only because
he was chosen as die Easter
Seal ambassador, but
because “he has come a long
way” in the four years since
he was born.
Michael, like many babies
born with an open spine, was
not expected to live more
than a few days. His parents
decided to take him home
with them and care for him
as best they could, but they
were offered almost no hope
for his recovery.
Said Grandmother Koch,
“ She (Michael’s mother)
took care of him. No one else
could have taken better care
of him than she did.”
At home, Michael began
showing his true fighting
colors. It wasn’t long before
it became apparent to his
doctors that Michael wasn’t
as pessimistic about his
future as they were. They
realized that Michael,
showing a strong hint of the
determination he was to
develop over the next four
years, had definitely decided
to live.
Today, Michael is an
adorable package of hope for
all parents who have been
told there is no hope.
Michael’s grandmother
revealed proudly that his
doctor has said “he will fight
to get him in school.” And he
wasn’t talking about a school
for handicapped children; he
meant a regular classroom
where Michael can compete
with non-handicapped boys
and girls his own age.
For what Michael lacks in
mobility, he makes up ten
times over in enthusiasm,
charm, genuine interest, and
a maturity and intelligance
that far surpasses his
chronological age.
Easter Seal Society
Michael spent ap­proximately
the first two
years of his life at the
Elizabethtown Hospital for
Crippled Children and
Adults. He was la te r
referred to the Easter Seal
Society for supportive
services; and, according to
his grandmother, next to his
parents, it’s the best thing
that’s ever happened to him.
Hie Easter Seal Society of
Lancaster County serves
more than 6,000 clients. It
helps individuals who suffer
from such disorders as
cerebral palsy, stroke, ar­thritis,
multiple sclerosis,
muscular distrophy and
many other lesser known
disabling afflictions or-t
h o p e d i c a l l y a n d
neurologically caused.
Funds contributed to the
40-year-old society are used
for direct services. Officials
report that only five per cent
of the total Easter Seal
budget goes toward
defraying costs of fund
raising. According to the
society spokemen, 90 per
cent of all contributions
remain in the county for
local patients and clients.
A Star Is Born
When the Record Express
visited Michael Tuesday to
take his picture, he was
preparing to make his T.V.
debut as the new Easter Seal
ambassador.
We asked him if he’d
prefer having his picture
taken sitting down or
standing up. Without
hesitation, he opted for
standing up.
So Grandmother helped
him put on his braces, stood
him up, and he walked
across the room to pose for
the camera.
It’s amazing how a little
four-year-old can look so tali.
l
By Bonnie
Szymanski
R o b e r t B in g em a n ,
chairman of the Lititz Zoning
Hearing Board, told the
Record-Express this week
that board members, after
some discussion among
themselves and with
borough officials, had
reached a tentative
agreement to reinstate the
informal atmosphere at
zoning board hearings.
Bingeman said that, on his
suggestion, the board
decided to conduct the
hearings in a manner similar
to the ones held four or five
months ago when a more
in fo rm a l a tm o sp h e r e
prevailed.
It isn’t the board’s in­tention
or desire to flout
procedure, Bingeman e x ­plained,
it is merely their
intention to make zoning
hearings more conducive to
informal discussion among
residents who may wish to
express their opinions about
matters before the board.
“We don’t want to scare
people away from coming,”
said Bingeman.
He noted that since the
newer, stricter procedures
had been in operation in
zoning board hearings, some
residents had been reluctant
to come before the board
with applications or ob­jections
to applications.
He spoke for others on the
board when he explained
that they would like
residents to feel free to come
in and express their views
without feeling intimidated.
Appeals
In the past year, two ap­peals
were filed in county
court against the board. The
appeals were filed under
claims that the board’s
procedures violated both the
Pennsylvania Municipalities
Code and the Sunshine Law.
Alleged violations of the
board listed in the appeals
included the charge that a
v e rb a tim sten ograp h ic
record of the hearings had
not been made (tape
recordings had been used),
and that the decision for
approval in one case had
been made at a non-public
meeting.
The latest case remanded
to the Lititz Zoning Hearing
Board by the Lancaster
County Court was the one in
which Monroe Wonder, 301S.
Cedar St., had gained board
approval to open a barber
shop in his home.
Upon appeal by several
neighbors, the case was sent
back to Lititz zoners, who re­heard
the application under
more regulated c ir ­cumstances.
The shop was
again approved.
Said Bingeman, “The
Monroe Wonder case (which
utilized the services of the
boro solicitor and a court
reporter) cost the borough
about $1500.”
He explained that the
board feels that kind of
spending for every zoning
hearing is unnecessarily
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NOTICE The monthly meeting
of the Lititz Retailer’s
Association has been
scheduled for the second
Wednesday of this
month. The March
meeting will be held
next Wednesday, March
10 at 7:30 P.M. at the
General Sutter Inn.
Program will include
film on High Blood
P r e s s u r e e n t it le d
“ Silent Countdown” .
The film is provided by
Walt Popejoy.
All area businessmen
are welcome and invited
to attend this special
meeting.
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L i t i U R e c o r d B x p r e e e P h o to
Robert S. Bolinger, new president after 14 years with Irving Trust in
of Farmers First Bank of Lititz, New York City,
returns to his native Pennsylvania
Fanners Bank ‘Unique,’
New President Believes By Peggy Frailey
Robert S. Bolinger, new
president of Farmers First
Bank of Lititz, described the
Lititz headquartered in­stitution
as “unique” noting
that a bank with over $150
million assets in a rural
setting is not often found.
“By necessity I ’m thrust
intoareas here that I was not
in in New York City,” said
Bolinger, who was in
specialized areas of banking
during 14 years with Irving
Trust Company, New York,
one of the nation’s largest
banks. “This is an op­portunity
to be involved in
the entire banking operation.
It’s a challenge, and cer­tainly
broadening.”
Bolinger, who is 39 and
was manager of two of Ir­ving’s
largest offices, is no
stranger to small Penn­sylvania
towns, although he
has spent much of his adult
life in metropolitan areas.
He and his wife, the former
Reba Fleisher, both grew up
in Newport, Pa., a small
rural community just north
of Harrisburg, and their
parents still reside there.
Bolinger’s father is chief
executive officer of the local
bank in Newport.
At present Bolinger’s wife
and three young sons, Todd,
10, Steve, 9, and Mark, 6, are
living in the family residence
at New Providence, N.J. and
plan to move to Lancaster
County when school is over
for the year. Bolinger, who is
accustomed to commuting
an hour and half between
New Providence and New
York City, has taken an
apartment in the Lancaster
area and comutes to his New
Jersey home on weekends.
From Newport to Lititz, by
way of New York City, is a
circuitous route, but for
Bolinger it was marked by a
rapid climb upward in the
banking world.
After his graduation from
Newport High School, he
attended Dartmouth College,
majoring in economics, and
took advantage of a special
program that allowed him
to combine his senior year
with his first year of
graduate school at Amos
Tuck School of Business
Administration at Dart­mouth.
Since he had been in the
Navy ROTC at Dartmouth,
and since he did not know
what phase of business he
wanted to get into after
getting his master’s degree
from Tuck, he went “to sea”
for three years with the
Navy. He served abroad the
USS Canberra, was
discharged at a LTjg and
subsequently advanced to
lieutenant commander while
serving with Reserve Sub­marine
Division 3-51.
He decided at the age of 25
that he was interested in
finance banking, and went
with Irving Trust so that he
could deal with corporate
banking.
“I liked it, so I stayed,” he
said.
He started in the auditing
department, then moved into
the corporate lending
( cu s tom e r c o n t r a c t )
department.
Next he was assigned to
the Wall Street Division
(Irving’s headquarters),
where he dealt in ship
financing, and then moved
into a new unit where im­port-
export developments
were handled.
During the years he was at
the main office on Wall
Street, from 1964-1970, he
was promoted to assistant
vice-president, and in 1970,
he was transferred to the
L oan A dm in is tr a tio n
Firemen Called On Five Alarms
The Lititz Boro fire
company responded to five
fire calls during the last
week of February, but none
of the alarms resulted in
more than minor fires.
On Feb. 25, firemen were
called to the Chimney Corner
Restaurant where they put
out a fire in a trash dump­ster.
On Feb. 27, a call to the St.
Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran
church, 200 W. Orange St.,
revealed another dumpster
fire. Chief Howard Mowrer
said the cause of the dump­ster
fires is still unknown.
On Feb. 28, firemen an­swered
an alarm for a grass
and cornfield fire on the
farm property of John
Huber, West Millport Road.
The field fire started, said
Chief Mowrer, when a trash
fire got out of control.
Firemen were called to the
Beford Shoe Co. twice on
Feb. 29, once during the
early of the day and once
during the evening hours.
Both alarms were accidental4
false alarms started by a
malfunctioning a larm
system. The system was to
be repaired Monday mor­ning,
according to the chief.
In this issue
Business Directory 14
Church News 12
Classified Ads 16,17
Editorial Page 4
Sports Section 6,7,8
Women’s 10,11
Boiler Latest
Problem at
Lititz
Division, which set the
bank’s lending policies.
One year later he "went
uptown” to the bank’s
Rockefeller Center office,
becoming a vice-president
and the bank’s youngest
regional credit officer.
“In 1972 I was sent down
the street to a new office in
the new McGraw-Hill
Building and managed that
several years,” he went on.
He was named a vice-president
as well as
manager of that office. In
1974, he was moved back to
the Sperry Rand Building in
Rockefeller Center, as vice-president
and manager,
where he continued 15
months before coming to
Lititz.
In that time he managed
two of Irving’s largest of­fices,
and was the youngest
man in several of the top
positions he held, including
regional credit officer.
At Farmers F irs t,
Bolinger took over on Feb. 2
as chief administrative
officer, with supervision
over the operations of the
bank’s 10 offices throughout
Lancaster County.
A lot different from cor­porate
banking in New York,
we wanted to know?
“You just tack on a few
more zeroes up there,” he
smiled.
“But there is a lot less
pressure here,” he added,
noting that he likes the more
relaxed life style in Lan­caster
County and the
greater amount of open
space. His three boys are
anxious to get here, he said,
and expect all of Penn­sylvania
to be “one big
farm.”
Interested in what the
nation’s economy is going to
do in the next year or so, we
asked the new bank
president his views on the
matter.
“Well, I ’m a banker, not
an economist,” he smiled,
“but as a whole, I think we
can look for continued
gradual growth. I think 1976
will be slightly better than
1975, although not a real
strong year.”
“We’re kind of in a plateau
now as far as inflation is
concerned,” he said. Interest
rates will be slightly higher
in the latter half of this year,
he predicted, and higher
inflation rates can be ex­pected
toward the end of the
year and into 1977.
“We’re still coming out of
a recession,” he said. “But I
look for a continued return in
consumer spending and
borrowing. And the housing
industry is coming back
slowly. He added, however,
that he does not foresee a lot
of heavy capital expenditure
by industry in the next year.
Warwick school directors
are starting out March with
a variety of problems that
range from what is
becoming an incipient bad
news syndrome with the
L i t i t z E l e m e n t a r y
renovation project, to lack of
a teacher to direct the spring
musical at the high school.
The difficulties were
brought to the School
Board’s attention Monday
night at a committee of the
whole meeting.
In addition, directors were
also asked for more staff and
supplies for the art program
and were informed that
negotiations with the
teachers association have
now gone into mediation,
with Fred Edwards again
appointed meditator by the
state.
The big problem at Lititz
Elementary now is the new
heating system, which is not
working.
Dr. H. Dale Winger,
superintendent, said both an
engineer and the heating
contractor had gone over the
system in December, and
had been given until Feb. 16
and 17 (dates of school
vacation) to make correc­tions.
But, according to Dr.
Winger, the work was not
completed, the following day
the system was shut down
while school was in session,
and Dr. Winger asked the
School Board’s authorization
to turn the whole matter over
the the district’s solicitor,
Roger Reist.
Dr. Winger next met With
the architect, the job
engineer, and the solicitor,
and the results were that the
solicitor was to demand that
20 specific items be
corrected by the heating
contractor, Harry Ressler,
and that the boiler
manufacturer, H. P. Smith
Co., be contacted about the
faulty boiler.
“The district is at a point
of total frustration,” Dr.
Winger told the Board. He
said the primary respon­sibility
for the present dif­ficulties
lies with the heating
contractor.
Spring Musical
Regarding the spring
musical at the high school,
the Board was informed that
dramatics coach, Mrs.
Kathleen Kuttruf, had
resigned from this position,
and no one is willing to take
her place. Dr. Winger said
the district has been sear­ching
for a replacement for
two weeks, has even tried
non-staff persons, but with
no success.
If no one can be found,
there will be no musical, the
Board was told.
Art teacher, Mrs. Helen
Miksch, was present to ask
the Board to authorize more
staff and supplies for the
district’s art program. She
said that in the high school,
more students are enrolling
in art courses, and there just
aren’t enough courses, or
enough supplies to offer
them.
Tennis
The Board approved a
request from the Rec Center
to reserve three of the
district’s tennis courts, on a
trial basis, for three
Saturdays in April from 1:30
to 4:30 p.m. for intercounty
tennis meets.
Fifteen men in Lititz area
have formed a team, but to
belong to the intercounty
league, they must be able to
provide tennis courts for
some of die matches.
One of the team members,
Barry Sensenig, was present
at the Board meeting and
said that the men would also
be interested in giving free
tennis clinics to local
children Saturday mornings
at the courts.
Directors were divided
over whether or not to okay
the request, with some
believing that no group or
individual should have any
kind of a monopoly on the
courts, others saying the
matches would be in­teresting
for local spectators
to watch, and would only
involve three Saturday af­ternoons
in April. The policy
had been not to reserve the
courts for anyone.
House On Forney Dr.
Opposed By Neighbors
Residents of Forney Drive
and Plum Street were on
hand at the March meeting
of the Lititz Zoning Hearing
Board Monday evening to
dispute a request by Douglas
Woolley, Lancaster, for
variances to build a three
bedroom ranch style house
on a 50 by 150-foot lot at the
corner of Forney Drive and
East Plum Street.
Most objections to the
proposed building were
voiced by those whose
property was close to the lot
under consideration.
Mrs. Anna Showers, 132
Forney Drive, complained
that she was afraid blasting
for a foundation would crack
the walls of her home.
“I know from experience,”
said Mrs. Showers. “I owned
a home once where they
blasted, and the walls were
ruined.”
To Woolley’s protest that
he wasn’t even sure blasting
would be necessary since the
house is to be built without a
basement, Mrs. Showers
replied, “There’s nothing but
big rocks at the center (of
the lot). You can’t help but
blast.”
Henry O. Reinard, 43 E.
Plum St., objected to
Woolley’s request for a
variance to construct the
house close to his
(Reinard’s) property. He
asked zoners to enforce the
ordinance regulation that
states the building must be
20 feet away from the ad­joining
property to the rear.
Woolley’s request for
variances were made on the
grounds that the property,
though sold and taxed as a
building lot, was actually not
large enough for a house in
that R-l low density district
under normal zoning
regulations.
Asked by board member
Devoe Bear if he had been
aware that he would need
variances to build a house on
the lot before he purchased
it, Woolley answered that he
had known.
He asked the board to
allow him to move the house
closer to the roadway than
most of the homes in the
area. He said he wanted to
build the house at a 19-foot
setback from the sidewalk
and noted that other houses
in the area are at distances
of 22, 23 and 15 feet from the
sidewalk.
Board member Robert
Derek explained that the
ordinance stipulates a 28-foot
setback from the sidewalk is
n e c e s s a r y , m a k in g
Woolley’s request 9 feet less
than the mandated distance.
[Continued on Pago 2|
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