Committee Members

Jeanne Shaffer, Pamela Burns, Sandy Winhofer, Garth Hall, Gloria Zielinskie, Sol Bidding, Kevin Richardson, Lanza and Chris Williams, Dolores Splane, Maryann Levins, Jeff Tweed, Crystal Hall, Ann Slodysko, Beverly Katalinas, Meagan Baumgartner, Tracy Donnelly, Deb Yeager, Tara Venna and Joyce Sickora.

Sponsors

Clearwater Pools, McDonalds, Central Penn Physical Therapy, Tom Olcese Pharmacy, Olvany Insurance, Aqua PA, Fun Shop, M&T Bank, Susquehanna Bank, Cherokee Pharmaceuticals, The Plumbing Outlet, Toy Factory LLC, Bimbo Bakeries USA Inc., Mountain View Nursing LP, Service Electric Cablevision, More Than Just Hair, Safeco, OIP Italian Restaurant and the Medicine Shoppe.

Special acknowledgements

Shamokin Area High School football team, Shamokin Fire Police, The News-Item, Dave Burns, Northumberland County, Independence Fire Company, Shamokin and Coal Township police and fire departments, Maurer's Ice Cream, Brush Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, Shamokin City officials and Kevin Richardson and the Shamokin City Street Department.

In the only contested race for Kulpmont Borough Council, Bernard Novakoski defeated Nicholas Goretski III 229 to 150 in the Democratic race.

According to the Northumberland County website, 33 Republican and three Democratic write-in votes were cast in the mayoral race, but it's not yet known how many people that involves. According to state election law for boroughs, 10 write-in votes are needed to earn a place on the ballot.

Novakoski is set to become the borough's second Democratic mayor elected to office since 2009, when Myron Turlis won election after long-time mayor Robert Slaby did not run for office in 2008.

Turlis did not seek re-election this year, leaving office after one term as mayor.

Running for office for the first time, Novakoski is a member of Holy Angels Church and serves on the church's building committee. He is a charter member of the Kulpmont Sportsmen's Association and one of the original organizers of the Young Democrats of Northumberland County.

Both candidates said in campaign interviews that it didn't matter who won, since the two men have been friends for years.

In the race for four borough council seats, all of the incumbents running, Clarence Deitrick, Stephen Motyka, Bruno R. Varano and Joseph A. Winhofer, ran unopposed on a Democratic slate. Vote totals were Motyka, 294; Winhofer, 251; Varano, 237 and Deitrick, 208. Twelve write-in votes were reported on the Democratic side and 17 on the Republican side.

Write-ins will be judged at a later date to see if anyone secured a Republican nomination.

Linda M. Nolter earned re-election as borough tax collector, earning 318 votes. There were two write-in votes in the Democratic side and none for any Republicans.

Incumbent school director Donna M. James and challengers Joseph Edward Zanella and Tony Mazzatesta earned both Republican and Democratic nominations, putting them in a strong position for election in November.

William J. Brecker Jr., who only filed in the Democratic primary, earned that party's

nomination, and incumbent Dr. Raymond J. Kraynak won the Republican nomination.

In the Democratic primary, Mazzatesta finished first with 1,034 votes, according to unofficial returns, followed by Brecker with 868 and Zanella and James with 751 votes each. Four directors will be elected in November. Kraynak lost the Democratic primary with 698 votes.

Winning Republican nominations were all four candidates on that ballot: Mazzatesta, 303; Zanella, 244; James, 231, and Kraynak, 223.

The VFW welcomes festival-goers to bring their flags. The flags can be placed in baskets at the booth.

The VFW organizes and conducts a ceremony on Flag Day each year to carry out proper disposal of the flags.

Also, local veterans have organized a vigil for Friday evening at the Price of Freedom Memorial on Lincoln Street. It will start after the parade.

Dunkelberger outdistanced Jamie Saleski, an employee in the civil side of the prothonotary's office, 2,721 to 2,124.

The race turned contentious last week when Dunkelberger confronted Saleski at the courthouse over accusations her supporters were making slanderous statements. She denied the claim.

Dunkelberger, who counted among his supporters county commissioner Chairman Vinny Clausi, was in a happier mood Tuesday night.

"I feel very good that the voters saw my message and believe in me to carry that message to November, and win there," Dunkelberger said by phone from his victory party at the Sunbury Elks.

In the November election, he will face the Democratic nominee, Meg Bartos, of Mount Carmel, who ran unopposed in Tuesday and received 3,053 votes.

Dunkelberger said he and Bartos are like-minded.

"Mrs. Bartos and I have similar goals. We want to make the prothonotary's office self-sufficient, improve the technology there and improve customer service," he said.

District Attorney Tony Rosini said last week police were still conducting interviews about the courthouse incident, but didn't think criminal charges were warranted.

Asked the hypothetical question if Saleski would remain employed in the office should he win election in November, Dunkelberger was non-committal Tuesday.

"I think every position will be evaluated at that time," he said. "Any person coming into a new job should evaluate every position."

Coming to an end of a six-year term in Point Township, Dunkelberger, the CEO of Penn Wind LLC, did not seek re-election in order to run for county office. A 1996 graduate of Shikellamy High School, he earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Penn State University. In the last year, county commissioners named him to the SEDA-COG Foundation and Local Loan Review Board of Directors, the Northumberland County Industrial Development Authority Board of Directors and the Northumberland County Planning Commission.

Saleski, a six-year employee of the office, announced her candidacy after the current prothonotary, M. Kathleen Strausser, announced she would not seek re-election. She campaigned with a goal of increasing the staff in the office, which had been cut in half during her time there, and upgrading technology to bring in more revenue.

UGI CPG will notify the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) of this rate change through a purchased gas cost filing.

UGI CPG is also filing its annual request with the PUC to establish purchased gas cost rates as of Dec. 1. If UGI CPG's requests are approved, the average residential heating customer's bill will increase by approximately 6.9 percent on June 1 and by approximately 3.6 percent on Dec. 1.

Even with full implementation of UGI CPG's June and proposed December purchased gas cost adjustments, the average monthly bill for UGI CPG customers will remain more than 25 percent lower than it was five years ago, the company reports. The availability of increasing volumes of reasonably priced, locally produced supply from the Marcellus Shale range has allowed costs to remain well below their 2008 levels.

With full implementation of UGI CPG's June and proposed December purchased gas cost adjustments, the bill for a typical residential retail heating customer who uses about 68.4 hundred cubic feet (ccf) of natural gas per month will increase from $90.02 per month to $96.20 on June 1 and to $99.61 on Dec. 1. The bill for a typical commercial retail customer using 23.7 thousand cubic feet (Mcf) per month will increase from $225.94 per month to $247.23 on June 1 and to $260.07 per month on Dec. 1. The bill for a typical industrial retail customer using 154.6 thousand cubic feet (Mcf) per month will increase from $1,304.98 per month to $1,443.73 on June 1 and to $1,527.42 per month on Dec. 1.

Customers may call UGI CPG at 1-800-652-0550 to receive further information on the proposed rates.

The company serves approximately 77,000 customers in 35 counties in eastern and central Pennsylvania.

Barring any changes when the official count is made by election officials, the winners

are Ed Griffiths, Rich Kashnoski, Rosalie Smoogen and Matt Losiewicz.

If the results hold firm and the four are the official nominees, they've all but wrapped up the general election, too, since there are four terms to be filled in November.

Tuesday's results mean the current school board president, Brian Persing, will be out of office when the board reorganizes in December.

Griffiths led all vote-getters with 846 votes from Democrats and 583 from Republicans. He was followed by Kashnoski with 633 and 492, Smoogen with 596 and 420 and Losiewicz with 499 and 398.

There is a potential for shake up at the bottom, where Losiewicz barely edged out two challengers, including Diane Serafin on the Republican ticket by just two votes. He unofficially out-gained Serafin and Mark Anonia by 15 and 13 votes, respectively, on the Democratic ballot.

Serafin received 484 votes from Democrats and 396 from Republicans, Anonia 486 and 378, Persing 443 and 327 and Sol Bidding 412 and 271.

Griffiths is currently in his third term. He said Tuesday he was humbled by the results.

"I just can't say enough about the people of this area that have so much confidence in me," he said.

He congratulated the other candidates who were nominated and said he will work with everyone who takes office at Shamokin Area.

"I can work with anybody. We might not see eye to eye on everything but I can work with anybody," Griffiths said.

Kashnoski was seeking office for the first time and was elated to have won.

"You want the public to accept you, but at same time you're nervous to see if they agree with your points of view," he said.

"I'm feeling that it's time for some new insight, time for some programs to be brought back to life," Kashnoski said, referencing his hopes to restore art, music and physical education as stand-alone programs in the elementary and middle schools. Those programs were cut in last year's budget process.

Losiewicz and Smoogen were unavailable for comment Tuesday.

Persing said Tuesday he was taking the loss in stride but was surprised he wasn't nominated on at least one of the tickets.

He was proud to serve one term and proud of his accomplishments, referencing his fundraising efforts and his efforts with fellow directors to bolster security at district buildings, take over the educational programs at Northwestern Academy and privatize cafeteria services.

Persing said seeking election to a school board hinges largely on personality, and he believes hard feelings swung the election out of his favor.

"I would do everything exactly the same way. I thought I did a lot of good for the district," he said. "I love Shamokin Area, I love it. ... I will hold my head up high and represent the district through November, just like I've always done."

The low voter turnout was expected in an election with mostly municipal races, noted Alisha Herb, director of the board of elections office.

Of 53,700 registered voters, only 9,990 cast votes, she said.

Shamokin and Sunbury were lower than normal. The places with the highest turnout were in the Milton area, which Herb attributed to a magisterial district judge race there.

The day went smoothly, but Herb said there were minor issues with registered independents calling to ask why they were not on the list of voters.

There were also only four minor issues at the polling stations, three of those issues in the Shamokin area. Two candidate signs had to be moved a few feet away from the entrances to the polling stations at Liberty Fire Company and Trinity Evangelical Church in Shamokin. Also, someone campaigning for Shamokin Area School Board outside the polling station at Shamokin Area Middle/High School was asked to move away from the entrance.

A local Sunbury council candidate was asked to stand back from the entrance to a polling station at Sunbury Community Hospital.

All those asked to move did so without incident, and there were no other issues about which Herb was informed.

"With 94 precincts, we did excellent," she said.

Herb said an official count will be conducted Friday.

For controller, incumbent Tony Phillips, a Republican, will be challenged by Chris Grayson, Democrat. Both were nominated without opposition in Tuesday's primary. Phillips had 4,118 votes and Grayson, who is currently Mount Carmel Borough tax collector, had 3,439 votes.

For coroner, incumbent Democrat James F. Kelley earned renomination with 3,881 votes. His Republican opponent in November will be Leo Mirolli Jr., who had 3,663 votes.

Mary Zimmerman, the county register and recorder, earned renomination as a Republican, with 4,484 votes. No Democrats filed for the position. There were 71 write-in votes in the Democratic primary, but a minimum of 100 would have been required for nomination.

Jessica Mirarchi, 29, said toys, stuffed animals and children's clothing can be dropped off in the bar area at East End Fire Company in the borough between Monday and June 8. Volunteers will gather the donations from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 8 at the fire company and make arrangements to have them sent to Oklahoma.

Asked what prompted her to start the drive, Mirarchi said, "I feel a need to help them. I have two boys, ages 5 and 2, and I would want help if I was in their position."

Mirarchi, who urged everyone to pray for the victims, said anyone wishing to donate items or volunteer with the drive can contact her at 850-2701.

There were five other contests for the school board in the district, including three at-large positions and races in Regions 2 and 3. The results from the rest of the district, which is located in Columbia County, were unavailable at press time.

For the Region I seat, Klebon defeated Mike Yeager in the Republican primary, 146 to 48 votes, and in the Democratic primary by 104 to 40.

In the race for two at-large seats for four-year terms, the Ralpho Township totals were: Republican, Klebon, 161; Yeager, 89; and Charles E. Porter, 83. On the Democratic ballot, it was Klebon, 120; Yeager, 74, and Porter, 47. Again, these totals do not include votes from Regions 2 and 3, both of which are located in Columbia County.

Incumbent Janice Costello had 291 votes to earn the Democratic nomination for tax collector. She will be unopposed in November.

County commissioners feared upgrades could cost up to $12 million, but a proposal submitted by Motorolla Solutions of Columbia, Md., lists the base price of a "VHF-trunked" system at approximately $5.5 million, excluding pagers, radios and other equipment, which could cost up to $1 million.

Controller Tony Phillips reported at Tuesday's commissioners' meeting that five companies submitted bids, but only Motorolla included a proposal for the trunked system. Motorolla also submitted a separate proposal for pagers, mobile and portable radios for $965,508.20, and a discounted price of $665,508.20 if the county accepted its proposal for the main system.

Commissioners Vinny Clausi, Richard Shoch and Stephen Bridy said they are pleased the cost for the upgrades will not be as high as originally anticipated and agreed to accept the proposals for tabulation and review before awarding a contract at a future public meeting.

Clausi made mention of previous comments by Shoch about the overall cost of the upgrades. He said Shoch claimed the county could lose $5 million because it did not follow former Commissioner Frank Sawicki's plan in 2010 to meet the new requirements for the communications system.

At a December press conference called by Clausi, Shoch said the county was in a seller's market "because this problem was ignored" for more than a decade, and predicted the county would spend $11 million to $12 million if a digital-trunked system was needed due to the lack of analogue narrow-band frequencies. Clausi said at the time that county officials weren't confident in 2010 in the system that had been proposed and that he followed the advice of experts.

On Tuesday, Clausi said, "The evidence shows I was right all along." He told Shoch, "You can take the money off my bill."

Shoch responded, "I'll take it off your bill, but you'll probably make up for it in legal fees."

Shoch said later the county should feel lucky the price isn't higher. He said the county will be able to obtain special frequencies for the system that it didn't think would be available after the project was delayed.

In December, the county received notification that it's deadline to meet the federal mandate for the 911 upgrades was extended by the Federal Communications Commission to Dec. 31, 2013.

The county, which originally sought an extension until March 1, 2014, entered into a contract in November with Mission Critical Partners, State College, for approximately $450,000 for consulting services for the upgrades. Shoch said the consultant informed him that penalties could be imposed as high as $10,000 per day if the deadline is missed.

Bids were also received from Leavitt Communication LLC, Paradise Valley, Ariz, for 490 regular pagers ($332.75 each) and 490 voice pagers ($368 each); United Communication Corp., St. Charles, Mo., for 490 pagers at a total of $182,408; Relm Wireless, Hagerstown, Md., for mobile and portable radios, $391,709.70, and Tactical Public Safety, West Berlin, N.J., for different style radios and optional equipment ranging in cost from $1,816.70 to $365,967.

Penny Balavage, also running unopposed, won the Democratic nomination for tax collector with 55 votes. No Republicans sought the office.

No Democratic candidates filed for supervisor.

Bonnie Collier, a Democrat, was nominated with 41 votes for township tax collector. She was unopposed.

There were no candidates listed on the ballot for constable.

- Free festival programs and maps

- Tickets for trolley and carriage tours

- Festival T-shirts and F&S T-shirts for sale ($15)

- First and second edition commemorative note cards ($3 each)

- Shamokin songs CD ($10)

- 1939 Diamond Jubilee parade and 1940s era of downtown Shamokin businesses DVD. ($15 each)

- DVD of 1989 125th anniversary parade ($15)

- WISL Jingles with Tom Kutza CD ($10)

- Carriage Historical Tour Photo Book ($20)

- Edgewood Park book ($20)

- Book on the building of the Eagle Silk Mill ($20)

- Past and Present Book ($20)

- F&S Brewery book ($20)

- Matinee Memories of Shamokin's Movie Theaters ($20)

- Shamokin "My Hometown" CD for computer featuring 2,500 pictures ($10). Books featuring the images will be on display at the Arts Center art studio.

New items this year

- Shamokin brick door stops done by local artists ($15)

- Knoebels Park Books ($20 for one volume or $35 for two editions)

"I would love to make that motion. I'd second it if I could," Yorwarth said Tuesday night, referencing the many roadblocks the parks has seen over the years.

Although the authority members must wait on approval of the contracts from the state, they're expecting construction to start June 3 with a finish date of Sept. 2.

The contracts, which total $1,637,281, were awarded to Paul Risk Associates Inc., of

Quarryville, in the amount of $1,429,000 for general construction; J.B. Electric Corp., of Minersville, in the amount of $92,390 for electrical; Bognet Inc., of Hazleton, in the amount of $58,205 for plumbing, and Shannon A. Smith Inc, of Myerstown, in the amount of $57,685 for mechanical/HVAC.

Money to fund the construction is coming mostly from two grants totaling $1.9 million that were awarded in 2010 and 2011 from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).

The trailhead area, which will be just off Route 125 south of Burnside, will have an administrative building with an office, conference room and three maintenance garages. There will be 75 parking places on a paved lot and 180 spaces on a gravel lot, with additional overflow parking. The area will also include an ATV safety course, benches, lights and signs.

The motion by Yorwarth was seconded by authority member Pat Mack, and it passed unanimously 5-0.

"We're on our way, if there's no back up," Chairman James Backes said following the vote.

There was no further discussion about the bid approvals and no questions or comments from the approximately 10 members of the public present.

Earlier this month, the authority hosted some 20 contractors for a pre-bid meeting at which details about the construction were provided. They had until noon Monday to submit bids.

Grant sought; donations received

The board also approved a letter of support for a technology grant from the federal Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to update the authority's technology.

Mack said the grant will update the AOAA website, develop QR codes and apps for smart phones and map the trails for GPS uses.

By updating the website, the authority members hope to provide a place for people to purchases passes online and businesses to advertise their services for people from out of town.

"It'll be one place to go for everything. It'll make the visit easier," Backes said.

In other business, the authority members approved:

- The purchase of AOAA T-shirts to sell as a fundraiser at a cost not to exceed $4,000. The marketing, events, grants and fundraising committee chaired by Mack will be working on designs.

- Delaware Jeep Association for use of the park on Saturday, July 27.

- Donations from Durdach Brothers, which provided an advertising banner with a $200 value; Vought Equipment Rentals, which provided the use of an excavator for gate installation with a $400 value; and North Shore Railroad, which provided railroad ties with a value of $1,000.

It was also announced that volunteers will be installing gates and no trespassing signs along Route 125 Saturday.

6:15 p.m. - Vintage vehicle caravan begins on parade route. Cars should be lined up by 6 p.m.

6:30 p.m. - Formal start of parade.

Lineup

Section 1 - Marine Corps League color guard, grand marshals the Schmidt family, Shamokin Mayor George Rozinskie and Northumberland County Prothonotary candidate Meg Bartos, state Rep. Kurt Masser, Knights of Columbus, Geisinger Children's Miracle Network Miracle Child Curtis Lahr, Brady Fire Company flag, Knoebels Amusement Resort.

Section 2 - Line Mountain High School band, Shamokin-Coal Township Little League Baseball, Shamokin Rotary floats with prettiest baby and Santa Sleigh, Bear Gap Vaulters, Northwestern Academy, Indian Hills Golf and Tennis Club, Leo Mirolli vehicle.

Section 3 - Shikellamy High School band, Shamokin-Coal Township Girls Softball League, H&R Block, Clear Channel Radio, Ancient Order of Hibernians, Northumberland County Career and Technology Center, The News-Item van and walkers, political vehicle.

Section 4 - Shamokin Area Middle/High School band, Boy Scout Troop 250 and Cub Scout troops 254 and 3254, Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area, Aaron's Sales and Service van, Jack Williams Tire, additional participants who did not register before the parade, Sump Pumpers of Shenandoah, AREA Services and all other emergency vehicles.

Judges

Chris Venna, Lanza Williams, Geno Welsh and Nicole Edmondson. Announcement of parade winners will be done by Marla Kane at the festival stage following the parade. Prizes can be picked up there.

Milbrand defeated fellow Democrat R. Craig Rhoades in the mayoral race, with an unofficial tally reported Tuesday night of 250 votes to 187 votes. He will face Republican Dan McGaw in November.

McGaw ran unopposed in the primary and received 229 votes.

Milbrand and Rhoades are each members of city council. Although he missed out on a nomination, Rhoades' sixth consecutive term on council runs through 2015.

If Milbrand is successful this fall, his council term must be filled by an appointee.

Milbrand was enjoying his primary election victory at James' Pizza in the city's Fifth Ward. He received word of his win through Rhoades, who he said called to congratulate him - something Milbrand said he appreciated.

"There's certainly no hard feelings between us," he said.

He acknowledged his victory Tuesday is simply a "stepping stone." He expects McGaw will pose a strong challenge in November.

Milbrand said it felt good to gain the support of his party's voters. He hopes that support swells in the general election.

"I can't say enough about how much I love this city," he said.

Moyer topped a crowded Republican field for one of two city council nominations, leading all candidates with 186 votes. Verano followed right behind with 184 votes to get the second nomination.

Both bested current councilman Bill Strausser's 169 votes and Bob Gilligbauer's 53 votes.

Democrat Scott Anderson received 357 votes in his party's primary, setting up a challenge between he and the two Republican winners this fall for two council seats.

There were 32 write-in votes on the Democratic ticket for city council, the most for any of the city's races. A write-in candidate would need 100 votes to appear on November's ballot for council.

Moyer was hosting a small party at her East Sunbury Street home Tuesday night and was watching in anticipation as the results trickled in online on the county's website. When the race was called about 10 p.m., there were "many cheers all around."

The scene was similar for Verano at his North Pearl Street home.

"I'm as happy as can be," Verano said late Tuesday. "Nobody thought I could do it, but I did it."

Both victors congratulated their opponents, with Moyer calling the campaign "honorable." She hopes that will continue in the run up to the general election.

"I feel very honored that those who came out to vote had put their faith in me," Moyer said. "I look forward to meeting with fellow citizens and discussing some of the ideas that I have."

Verano said the two met earlier Tuesday and said they'll work together moving forward.

Barring any changes when the votes are officially counted, the primary election will bring an end to Strausser's time in City Hall. He's in the final year of his first term on city council. Prior to that, he spent 10 years as city controller and another 38 years as the city clerk.

City Treasurer Brenda Scandle, a Democrat, received 388 votes. City Controller Gary Haddock, a Republican, received 264 votes. Both incumbents were unopposed in the primary, as will be the case in the general election.

On the national front

Today's national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $3.654. This price is 7 cents more expensive than one week ago and 14 cents more than one month ago.

While the average American motorist has enjoyed a less expensive year-over-year pump price for 79 consecutive days, the savings have narrowed to just four cents per gallon, down substantially from the peak year-to-date discount of 39 cents on April 18. With the national average rising steadily, compared to a year ago when prices were tumbling, it is likely that the average will once again rise above year-ago levels in the coming days and may be more expensive than last year for the approaching Memorial Day holiday weekend.

Higher crude oil prices may be the reason drivers in every state are paying more for gasoline than two weeks ago, but tight regional supplies and refinery maintenance - both planned and unplanned - are the reason for the dramatically higher pump prices in the Midwest and West Coast.

Rising Midwest prices slowed over the weekend from their recent breakneck pace, but motorists are not out of the woods yet because regional supplies remain low and heavy storms continue to be forecast across the region. No refinery disruptions have been reported as a result of the storms, but the potential remains for additional refinery issues in the already supply-strapped region.

With much of the focus on volatile regional gasoline markets, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices have continued to drift higher in recent weeks. At the close of Monday's formal trading on the NYMEX, WTI settled up 69 cents at $96.71 per barrel. This is the highest settlement price for WTI in more than six weeks.

(AAA East Central, part of the AAA family, serves members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, New York and Kentucky. Fuel Gauge is published each week in The News-Item.)