March 24, 1966: 5 Will Tour Washington, New York

Originally published in The Vidette-Messenger of Porter County on March 24, 1966.

5 Will Tour Washington, New York

Five high school students from Porter county will have the opportunity this year to see Congress and the United Nations in action during the World Day Affairs spring tour April 3-8, under the auspices of the Indianapolis Council on World Affairs.

Spearheading the drive to secure Porter county organizations to sponsor and defray the $130 cost and expenses of the tour is the Porter County League of Women Voters.

Mrs. Albert Langlutting, league president, and Mrs. Phillip M. Cagen, chairman of the student tour, were pleased with the enthusiasm evidenced by sponsoring groups this year.

Students selected by their respective high schools and the organizations which will sponsor them are: Miss Joyce Casbon, Valparaiso High school, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Donald G. Casbon, 562 Grove, Tri-Kappa; and Miss Christine Mrak, Portage High school, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Mrak of 10522 E. 29th, Portage, Portage Federated Woman’s club.

Also, John Carlson, Liberty High school, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harold E. Carlson, RFD 5, Liberty school, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Meska, RFS 5, Liberty PTA; and Miss ROse Baranko, Jackson High school, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Baranko, RFD 1, Chesterton, Jackson Township PTA.

In Washington, D.C., students will visit foreign embassies, the state department, the capitol and will watch Congress and US senators in action.

The group will then travel to New York where the main emphasis will be placed on the United Nations where special appointments will be made.

Also on the New York itinerary is a Broadway musical and a special summing-up session at the World Affairs center.

Students will be accompanied by adult leadersーone for each 12 persons participating in the tour. Adult leaders are under the direction of Dean Virgil Hunt, head of Indiana University’s downtown campus.

The five students from Porter county and their mothers attended a briefing Wednesday night at the home of league member Mrs. Paul Viezke, 1302 Summit place.

Present also were representatives of two sponsoring agencies and Valparaiso High school students who participated in the tour last spring.

Those taking the tour are all junior students and were selected by their high school faculties because of their interests in world affairs.

Because they will all return to their schools next fall as senior students, they will have the opportunity to share their tour experiences with their fellow students and respective communities.

TALK ABOUT MUSICAL

Mrs. George Schiller, (left) representative of Portage Woman’s club which sponsors a student to World Day Affairs tour, tells students selected for tour they will see a Broadway musical in New York, Students are Rose Baranko, Jackson High school, (center) and Christine Mrak, Portage High school.

FROM LIBERTY

Liberty school juniors Darlene Meska and John Carlson who will take World Day Affairs tour, talk over itinerary with Mrs. Paul Vietzke (left) who held briefing session for all county participants in her home Wednesday night.

SIGHTSEEING PAMPHLETS

Mrs. Charles Anderson (left) representing Tri-Kappa sorority which is sponsoring Valparaiso High school student to Washington and New York, and Mrs. Phillip Cagen, (center) Tour chairman from County League of Women Voters, give sightseeing pamphlets to VHS student Joyce Casbon. All students will have opportunities to see Washington and New York during tour.

Dec. 9, 1970: Break School Windows - Vandals Smash 350-400 Panes

Originally published in The Vidette-Messenger of Porter County on December 9, 1970.

Break School Windows

Vandals Smash 350-400 Panes

Between 350 and 400 windows and glass door panels at six schools and a gymnasium in Porter County were broken early this morning by vandals, who also struck two business firms where six windows were smashed. One school cancelled classes today.

A white compact car, possibly a Ford, was being sought by police who said a vehicle of that description with three persons was observed driving away from the scene of one vandalism.

Schools sustaining damage and the number of windows or door panels broken include Washington Township, 115; Jackson, 95; Kouts, 86; Morgan, 46; Liberty, 17; Westchester Junior High School, 7. Two glass door panels and a window were broken at Chesterton High School’s Goldsborough gymnasium.

Business firms sustaining damage by vandals are Don’s Sinclair Station, U.S. 6 and Meridian and Brown Tire Co., Inc., Indiana 49.

The vandalism in most cases occurred between 4:45 and 7 a.m., Sheriff’s Detective George Earley said. Deputies regularly patrol the schools and when Jackson and Liberty were checked at 4:45 a.m. everything was in order.

All classes in schools are in session with the exception of Morgan Township School.

There was no estimate of damage, but costs of replacing windows and other school equipment will probably mount to the thousands of dollars.

Vandals used rocks, pipes, teeter-totters, and portions of cement blocks, to cause the damage.

Band equipment at Morgan and Washington schools was damaged by items which were thrown or pushed through windows.

Majority of damage at the schools occurred on the first level, Earley said, and vandals kept away from the fronts of the buildings to avoid detection.

Rocks found at the scenes indicated that vandals picked them up elsewhere than on school grounds.

Washington School, where the largest number of windows were broken, is not covered by vandalism insurance. Most of the county schools do not have vandalism insurance and the cost of repair will have to come from the schools’ budgets.

Damage At Washington

All windows in overhead door in shop area at Washington Township School were broken today by vandals. Removing glass (top photo) is Glenn Brown, who along with other Washington students assisted in clean-up so classes could be held. Principal James Dold holds 3-pound which was thrown with such force it traveled 30 feet, broke exterior overhead light fixture and smashed through inner office glass panel.

Dec. 9, 1940: Schools Put On Carnival To Boost Athletic Fund

Originally published in The Vidette-Messenger of Porter County on December 9, 1940.

Schools Put On Carnival To Boost Athletic Fund

BY HERB STEINBACH

(Photographs by Paul Pattee)

The old fashioned “carnival spirit” pervaded Jackson township one night last week as the populace of that north Porter county area milled around the small gymnasium trying their skill at various improvised boothsーand incidentally helping the high school athletic fund out of narrow financial straits.

Because of a small seating capacity and comparatively small number of families dwelling in Jackson township, athletics at that high school have a hard uphill struggle to meet expenses. Three years ago school officials devised a community carnival to help the cage and diamond sports pay their freight, and it has since become an annual institution.

Last Thursday afternoon the pupils left their textbooks early to erect their stands and decorations for the night’s big “shindig.” Each class was responsible for its own concession, which it had previously devised and hastily constructed several hours before the carnival opening. Enterprising merchants from throughout the count donated suitable prizes for the various games of skills, and other knick-knacks were purchased in gross lots. For their part in aiding Jackson township the contributing merchants had their names boldly listed on the south wall on a large “honor roll.”

Armed with paper hats of all descriptions, balloons, horns and various noisemakers the students sold their wares to their parents and friends as they joined in the evening of merrymaking. The blaring of horns, and screechings of noisemakers, and occasional bursting of balloons helped put the crowd in jolly mood as they made the rounds.

In 1938, when the idea of an indoor carnival first took hold in the Jackson school, the athletic fund realized a boost of $75 from the night’s entertainment. Last year the “take” was upped to a top of $98. In those two years a night shortly before Thanksgiving was chosen, but because of conflicting events in the community this year the carnival was not held until the first week of December on a night when the thermometer hovered around the five-degree mark. As a result attendance dropped and the receipts fell to the level of the first endeavor.

Despite the raw lake breezes which were stirred up outside the goodly crowd on hand did manage to warm up, once inside. Piping hot coffee and red hots were sold to aid the cold and hungry patrons. The usual line of pop and ice cream bars were also served.

One of the busiest individuals present that night was The Vidette-Messenger photographer, who pressed his way around the crowd, as he sought suitable subjects to help the readers get a pictorial view of what transpired at the carnival in Jackson township. The results are shown above.

To the left in the above series of pictures is a general shot of the gymnasium as caught by the camera’s eye from atop the stage. Along with a portion of the crowd present some of the concessions can be noted here.

The photograph to the right of the general shot shows a fair young coed trying her skill at putting. She is bending over a golf club and ball, preparatory to “sinking a putt” in the “cup” located by the wall at the end of the uphill runway. Curious onlookers are making the studious Miss Muriel Youngkin, a junior in the high school who resides on Valparaiso route one, extremely nervous. P. S. ー She missed the putt!

The young man with the air gun at the extreme right, trying his luck at the shooting gallery, is Don Metzner, an eighth grade pupil. The fellow attacking a boiled “puppy” with vigor and delight is the school’s head man, Principal Clarence Olinger. (The photographer says Mr. Olinger’s apparent delight is due to said photog’s spending a nickel for the hot dog as his contribution to the athletic fundーMr. Editor please note).

The eagle-eyed fivesome appearing in the left bottom picture are awaiting the outcome of Lady Luck’s spin. As the cameraman perched his lens at the rear of the wheel the group intently looks on to see whether their number has “come up.” The man with the smileーwhose name was not obtainedーholds Card No. 23ーthe winner!

Among the other concessions not photographed here were a fish pond, ten-pin game, dart ball contest, dodge-’em baseball in which the customer tried to smack a baseball mask hiding a youth’s face, a “guess your weight” contest and several other entertaining features. There was also a free show, in which the crowd was presented with a half-hour musical program provided by the newly organized school quintet.