Four candidates are vying for three seats on the Frankford Town Council in the Feb. 6 election. Voters will choose between incumbents Pamela Davis and Marty Presley, and challengers Dawn Beck and former councilman Edward “Skip” Ash.

Polls open Saturday at 1 p.m. and will close at 4 p.m., with voting at Frankford Town Hall. Those who are voted in will serve a two-year term.

A qualified voter must be a citizen of the United States; at least 18; have resided within the corporate limits of the town for at least 30 days prior to the election; and already be registered to vote in the town, as the registration deadline for new voters has passed for this election. (Registration to vote in state elections does not qualify residents to vote in the town council election.)

Those who wish to vote must remember to take with them proof of their identity and address, such as a current State of Delaware driver’s license or ID card and a current utility bill, bank statement, credit card statement, a paycheck or another type of bill or statement.

In preparation for the election, the Coastal Point has asked the four candidates questions about some of the issues. Their responses are listed alphabetically by the candidate’s last name.

Edward ‘Skip’ Ash

Q. What qualifies you to serve on town council?

A. I have been a resident of Frankford since 1987 and a member of the Frankford Volunteer Fire Department for 29 years. I have regularly attended town meetings for the last two years, and am up to date with the current issues facing the town. I am on the town Handbook Committee and the committee to make amendments to the town charter.

Q. What do you believe is the biggest issue facing the Town, and how do you plan to address it if elected?

A. I believe there are two big issues facing the town currently. One issue is creating a budget that is prepared in a timely manner. Moving forward with a complete balanced budget will be vital for the town. The water tower is a major topic that needs to be addressed immediately. I am in favor of the grant money being discussed in the general meetings.

Q. What role do you think a town council should have in the management of a town?

A. The town council’s main function should be transparency to the citizens of the town about projects and current issues.

Q. If you could talk directly to the voters, what would you say?

A. I have a good working relationship with other town council members, and I would like to be a part of that council to achieve the goals that we would like to see for the town. My goal is to continue the transparency, that we will reach out to the town citizens for input.

Pam Davis

Q. What qualifies you to serve on the Town Council?

A. As a lifelong resident of Frankford, I have a vested interest in our town and I understand the needs we are facing. I feel the residents know they can come to me with their questions and concerns, and they know I will address those issues. They know that what matters to them matters to me.

Q. What is the biggest issue facing Frankford and how do you plan to address it?

A. One of the greatest concerns we are facing in Frankford at this time is the need to replace the water tower. It is important to get input from all town members, and we need to come together on this major infrastructure issue.

Q. What role should a town council have in management of the town?

A. I believe the role of the town council is to be an advocate for the people and the needs of the town.

Q. If you could talk directly to voters what would you say?

A. Let’s continue to make Frankford move forward while addressing the needs and concerns of the people. We need to look to the future of Frankford while remembering the past.

Dawn Marvel-Beck

Q. What qualifies you to serve on town council?

A. In my hometown, I want to do things for the town’s people. I want to help make this a more of a balanced, family-oriented town, where people come together and help work to put this town back together, so the people of the town could be proud of where they live.

Q. What do you believe is the biggest issue facing the Town, and how do you plan to address it if elected?

A. There are things that (the council) are trying to change for certain people (for their own agendas) and not for all of the town’s people. There are things being done in town that the town’s people don’t even know about.

Q. What role do you think a town council should have in the management of a town?

I would like to help make better communication between the council and the town’s people, because not all of the town’s people have computers or the ability to get to the meetings, or are able to go to the town hall to read the bulletin board.

Q. What role do you think a town council should have in the management of a town?

A. The town council should help hire and retain the best quality employees that would benefit the town.

Q. If you could talk directly to the voters, what would you say?

A. I would like to be the voice of the town’s people. I would like to help to change the town for the better. I would like to help bring the town council and the town’s people together as one community, instead of being against one another.

Marty Presley

Q. What qualifies you to serve on town council?

A. I have been a resident of Frankford for 13 years, and my wife has lived here for over 30 years. Professionally, I am a certified financial planner and, as such, have been advising both individuals and businesses’ on taxes, investing, budgeting and risk management for 33 years. These are some of the same issues facing the town currently and into the future.

Q. What is the biggest issue facing the town?

A. I believe over the next 10 to 20 years our area will see a tremendous amount of growth, and it will be up to the council and residents to manage this growth. Delaware will continue attract retirees from the Northeast, and the coastal expansion will continue its westward push into Frankford and all along the Route 113 corridor from Georgetown south to the state line. This expansion is going to create winners and losers among our neighboring towns, and it is up to us to recognize this and plan for it, so that we are one of the winners.

Q. What role do you think a town council should have in the management of the town?

A. With a town our size and with our budget, it is a necessity that the council has a hands-on approach to how the town is run. Ideally, if money was no object, Frankford could have a town manager, which would serve as the CEO, and the council, would be a de facto Board of Directors, overseeing the manager. I don’t think we are there yet budget-wise, but possibly in the future.

Having the council involved on a day-to-day basis, like we currently do, has some decided advantages. A small-town municipal government may very well be the last government structure where a resident can voice their opinion to a council representative and possibly see immediate results and action.

Q. If you could talk directly to voters, what would you say?

A. The town has come a long way in the last year, but there is still a long way to go. It is going to require a lot of time and effort from all of us — residents and council — to get the town on a firm foundation. If we simply go back to the way things were a few years ago, where hardly anyone was involved in town matters, the town will resume the downward trend it was on before. I believe it is absolutely true that you get the government you deserve.

State police arrested a 17-year-old student at Indian River High School on Monday, Feb. 8, after the student reportedly brought a pellet gun and knife to school.

Delaware State Police said that school administrators were alerted by concerned students on Monday morning that another student was in possession of a knife and a gun. The DSP school resource officer was contacted and, upon his arrival at the school, he cleared the classroom in which the student was assigned at that time. The student was then searched, and the detective reportedly located an 8-inch knife in the student’s boot and a CO2 pellet gun in his bag.

“I would like to commend the school safety monitor who took action to detain the student and confiscate the weapons,” said Susan Bunting, superintendent of the Indian River School District. “For purposes such as this, we placed armed school security monitors in all of our schools three years ago.

“Monday’s incident shows how invaluable these constables are to our building personnel. The Indian River School District is committed to ensuring the safety of every student during the school day, and parents can rest assured that we are doing everything in our power to make our buildings secure.”

Bunting added that the student has been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation by state police.

Bunting also noted that no students or staff members were injured during the incident.

The teen, who police said is from the Bethany Beach area, was removed from the school and transported to Troop 4, where he was charged with carrying a concealed deadly weapon (the knife) and carrying a concealed deadly weapon, a firearm. He was arraigned and released to the custody of a parent, pending arraignment in Family Court at a later date.

Sea Colony’s indoor courts will be rockin’ Saturday evening, March 19, for the center’s annual March Madness free tennis event and fundraiser.

Open to the public for all ages and skill levels, March Madness features music, food and games, including fast-serve, slow-serve and accuracy contests, complete with prizes from 7 to 9 p.m., with free play and social from 9 to 10 p.m.

Held on the indoor courts at the Sea Colony Tennis Center, located at the crossroads of West Way Drive and Kent Avenue, just south of Bethany Beach, all proceeds from this year’s March Madness event will benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Dagsboro.

“This event is always a lot of fun and a celebration of tennis and the area’s tennis community —all ages and skill levels,” said Thomas Johnston, Sea Colony tennis director. “We’ve had toddlers barely able to hold a racquet to veterans in their 70s sharing the court in past years. Now that the dust has settled from the expansion, we’re excited that this fun-filled night can also raise money for the Boys & Girls Club of Dagsboro.”

March Madness is free; however, players are asked to donate to the Boys & Girls Club.

The Sea Colony tennis center features six indoor, 14 Har-Tru clay and 14 hard-surface courts, a full-service pro shop and facilities and instruction for all ages and skill levels. The public can participate in the center’s daily adult and junior tennis clinics, weekend camps and private lessons. Individual and family memberships are also available.

In the last few years, Sea Colony has earned local, national and global tennis honors. In May 2015, Tennis Resorts Online’s annual Top 100 camps and resorts reader poll named Sea Colony the No. 9 tennis camp in the world and No. 5 for junior programs, as well as a Top 50 resort. In 2012, the facility was named an Outstanding Facility of the Year by the USTA. Also in that year, Tennis magazine listed Sea Colony as one of its Top 50 American Resorts, including No.3 in the Mid-Atlantic.

For more information about March Madness or Sea Colony Tennis, visit SeaColonyTennis.net, call (302) 539-4488 or stop by the pro shop.

Winters at the beach are peaceful, but sometimes quiet. So South Bethany is warming the season with its inaugural town potluck supper on Saturday, Feb. 20. The feast begins at South Bethany Town Hall at 6 p.m.

“We’re just looking forward to a good turnout and lots of good fellowship,” said Lisa Saxton, a member of the Town’s Communications & Public Relations Committee.

“We’re trying to have more get-together type things, and that’s what our committee’s in charge of,” Saxton said of the new event. “We’re hoping to do several things that will get the homeowners together, … keep the communication with everybody during the off-months, when there’s not [much happening].”

In South Bethany, community breakfasts and dinners have already become a favorite for fellowship. From a New Year’s breakfast to the summertime barbecue, different town groups have come together at Town Hall feasts. Now, it’s a potluck.

“We’re trying to do things that get more people involved … trying to come up with new ideas,” Saxton said.

Many property owners fly south for winter. But soon, they’ll be “settling back in for the end of winter and early spring. We thought that would be a good time, before we get to busy with Easter,” she added.

Coffee and cold beverages will be provided, but other drinks are “BYOB.”

Everyone attending is being asked to contribute a dish, based on their last names, beginning with A-J (main dish), K-R (salad) and S-Z (dessert). Guests must RSVP to Lisa Saxton at saxtonln1@yahoo.com.

DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police reminded anglers this week that it’s time to purchase their 2016 Delaware fishing licenses, as their 2015 licenses expired on Dec. 31. A valid fishing license is required for fishing, crabbing and clamming in Delaware, in both tidal and non-tidal waters.

A resident annual fishing license costs $8.50 for anglers ages 16 through 64. Anglers younger than 16 and residents 65 or older are not required to purchase fishing licenses in Delaware. Some requirements differ for non-resident anglers.

Exempt anglers may purchase fishing licenses if they so choose, to help support fisheries management in Delaware.

Recreational anglers 16 or older fishing Delaware waters also are required to obtain a Delaware Fisherman Information Network (FIN) number; this number is generated automatically on all individual fishing licenses sold through Delaware’s electronic licensing system.

License-exempt anglers, including Delaware residents 65 or older; non-resident boat fishing license holders who do not have an individual license; and individuals fishing on licensed boats who do not have an individual license, must obtain their free FIN number by visiting www.delaware-fin.com or calling 1-800-432-9228.

Delaware fishing licenses are sold online, at the licensing desk in DNREC’s Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, and by license agents statewide. For additional information on Delaware fishing licenses, call (302) 739-9918. The 2016 Delaware Fishing Guide is available online, and in printed form at DNREC’s Dover licensing desk and from license agents throughout the state.

DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers between Jan. 25 and Jan. 31 made 1,052 contacts with anglers, boaters, hunters and the general public, including 62 vessel boardings for boating safety and fishing regulation compliance checks. Officers responded to 42 complaints and issued 20 citations.

Items of particular note:

• On Jan. 31, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police arrested Aaron R. Proden, 44, of Millsboro and charged him with one count each of operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol (OUI) and operating an unregistered vessel at the Lewes Boat Ramp. Proden was taken to Delaware State Police Troop 7 in Lewes for an intoxilyzer test and released pending a mandatory court appearance at a later date.

• On Jan. 30, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police cited Scott D. Melson, 47, of Smyrna, for one count of hunting migratory waterfowl with prohibited lead shot near Smyrna; on Jan. 26, Melson was cited for one count of hunting deer with a shotgun during muzzleloader season in the same area. Melson was fined $107, including court costs, for the waterfowl charge and $165, including court costs, for the deer charge.

In all, citations issued this week included: five citations for trespassing after hours on a state wildlife area, two citations for operating a motor vehicle off an established roadway on a state wildlife area, hunting deer with a shotgun during muzzleloader season and three citations for hunting off of an established blind site on a state wildlife area.

There were also three federal violations cited: hunting migratory waterfowl with prohibited lead shot, hunting migratory waterfowl without required HIP number and possession of harlequin duck out of season.

Other citations issued included: carrying a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle; operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol, two citations for operating an unregistered vessel, operating a vessel with insufficient number of life jackets and no boating safety certificate.

People deal with psychological issues and mental handicaps all the time. It’s common. So, if about one in five Americans suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder (according to the National Institutes of Health), police officers will definitely interact with such people on a regular basis.

“They need to be treated with respect and with dignity, just like anyone else,” said Cpl. Patrick Wiley of the South Bethany Police Department.

Local officers are learning to better serve their communities with the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training program. The 40-hour classes prepare officers for mental health crisis encounters. Officers learn how to identify mental illnesses, de-escalation techniques, interviewing skills and other resources for further support.

“You can’t talk to them as you regularly do with other people. That’s what this training focused on: how we talk with people … and the best way to interact with these people,” said Cpl. Rhys Bradshaw of the Ocean View Police Department. “Every situation’s different. There’s never one call that’s exactly the same when you’re a police officer.”

Police work with people who have a myriad of issues, such as autism, OCD, depression, alcoholism, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorder and more. A woman might call and say “My son is acting weird.” Or maybe she hears voices encouraging suicide. It’s a delicate situation each time.

For example, delusions come into play when a person has schizophrenia. Police officers can’t just dismiss that person’s visions.

“For them, it’s real. Just because I can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there,” Bradshaw said. “You don’t want to just dismiss that person, because then they might get worse for you, get violent with you.”

Just talking to people can diffuse a situation that could otherwise lead to violence or arrests. Empathy and reassurance both play a big part.

“We’re not here to hurt you; we’re here to help you,” Bradshaw said.

“We’re better prepared now that we’re CIT-trained. … It’s going to be easy for us, as officers, to basically look at that person and make that determination what they might have,” Wiley said. “We can make sure they can get to the person they need to see in order to get help.”

But police can also use the 24/7 state mobile Crisis Intervention Services.

Hotline workers will coach the police through what to look for, how to respond and how best to help the individual. Sometimes they’ll even send someone to treat or transport that person to a hospital or other facility.

“They’re the mental health professionals. They’re the only ones who can make the determination whether someone needs to be transported to the facility or not,” said Wiley, who now keeps the phone number in his wallet. “They taught us what to look for.”

“It was invaluable training,” said Ocean View Police Chief Kenneth McLaughlin. “I’ve been doing this like, 26 or 27 years now. I wish to hell I’d been exposed to that kind of training 25 years ago. There’s a million times I could have used those tactics, techniques to diffuse the situation. It was a no-brainer for us.”

For five straight days, officers learned from the experts in mental health and legal matters. One guest speaker described (from personal experience) what it’s like to handle a shooting situation involving someone with mental illness.

By the week’s end, officers practiced their new skills in role-playing scenarios, with critiques afterward.

“It was good hands-on training. That was one of the parts of the training that I enjoyed most,” Wiley said.

“I think it’s a class that every single officer in the state of Delaware should have to take,” Bradshaw said.

Since CIT training came to Delaware in 2014, more than 100 law enforcement officers have been trained.

In 2015, the South Bethany Police Department was the first Delaware department to train its entire force and its police chief. The Ocean View Police Department is just two officers away from training the entire force, including its chief.

“It is wonderful when law enforcement leaders commit their agencies to the CIT program, and it is even more impressive when the leader graduates from the program, as well,” stated Joshua Thomas, project director for Delaware’s CIT and executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Delaware (NAMI Delaware).

In particular, coastal Delaware can be especially risky for people who could become disoriented among so many canals and waterways. There are also many elderly people in their late retirement years. The police are charged with keeping them all safe.

Thomas encouraged, and appreciated, every officer who completes training.

To learn more about biannual Crisis Intervention Team police trainings, visit www.namidelaware.org.

Coastal Point • R. Chris Clark: Erik Schreiber works the bag at the new Custom Fit 360 facility in Millville.Accept the challenge.

That’s what Erik Schreiber told himself he had to do when, after making a career out of fitness, he finally decided to open his own gym last month. And at Custom Fit 360 in Millville, that’s what he asks his clients to do, too.

What he doesn’t ask those clients to do, however, is work out the way that he works out, or the way that anyone else works out, for that matter, because, as the name suggests, Custom Fit 360 is all about one thing: customizing the fitness experience for each individual client.

“Everybody has different things that they need to work on,” Schreiber explained. “You’re not gonna get P90X in here. You’re not gonna get Jillian Michaels — because that’s not customized; everybody does the same thing. You’re gonna get your own workout based on what your goals are, and we’re gonna accomplish those goals by working together.”

Individualizing everything from the exercises to the way he puts his clients through them, and even down the music selection, Schreiber is able to put the focus on specific, and typically very different, needs.

One of those clients has been local restauranteur Steve Hagen of the Off the Hook Restaurant Group, who has lost more than 30 pounds since signing up with Schreiber around three months ago.

“He’s customized my workouts for me,” Hagen said, putting the emphasis on the “me,” and also noting that the training has helped both his back problems and his golf game. “What’s impressed me the most are the results. I’ve made gains I didn’t think were possible before I started, and now I’m obsessed about what he has in store from week to week. I’m proud he has started his own business and believe he has a recipe for success, in building on his existing clientele and reputation in our ever-growing community.”

The rapport with his clients is another thing that Schreiber prides himself and his new business on, with his growing reputation leading to an array of fitness-seekers.

“My oldest client is 78,” Schreiber said. “I specialize in functional fitness, functional movement, just making everyday tasks easier, like picking up your laundry basket and putting it on a shelf.”

Playing semi-professional football as a linebacker for the Delmarva Crusaders, Schreiber of course knows a thing or two about adding size, speed and agility for more intense workouts and holds his fair share of clients from local high school football teams looking to do just that, as well. But with a young child of his own at home, some of his senior clients, such as the one he helped be able to pick up her grandson, really hit home with him.

“She’s 63, and when we first started working together, she couldn’t pick up her grandson. She didn’t have the strength.” he explained. “It’s emotional. It makes you emotional, imagining if my mother couldn’t pick up my kid, or just myself not being able to tie my shoes. It’s such a small thing, but it takes away so much of your independence.”

Even though his new business venture is rewarding, Schreiber also noted that it was still a little bit scary finally being off on his own. Originally from the Fairfax, Va., area, Schreiber spent six months in St. Thomas before deciding to move back to the States, choosing the area after always being fond of it from spending vacations at the Schreiber’s family beach house. It’s here that he not only found a home to finally launch his dream and start his business, but a home to start his family, as well.

“It’s still surreal — it’s like with my son — I still can’t believe it. I’m not working for somebody else anymore, I’m working for myself,” he said with a laugh after noting that he finally made the leap when his wife gave him permission. “We’ve been talking about this for so long. It’s super-exciting.”

But no matter what he’s feeling about the new venture, one thing’s for certain: Erik Schreiber is ready to “accept the challenge.”

“I like the ‘You fail 100 percent of the times you don’t try,’” he said of his philosophy. “Exercise is challenging, especially for people that haven’t been doing it. I’m gonna challenge you. Challenge yourself. Accept the challenge.”

Right now, Custom Fit 360 is offering introductory pricing and taking on clients of all needs. Also offered at the facility are classes in Muay Thai, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and boxing for youths and adults from instructor Noel Bowman and Bowman Systems. For more on Custom Fit 360, check them out on Facebook at www.facebook.com/customfit360 or their website at www.customfit360de.com. Custom Fit 360 is located at 35259 Atlantic Avenue in Millville, in the same shopping center as Al Casapulla’s. To schedule a consultation, call (703) 626-3157.

Coastal Point photos • Submitted: Indian River High School JROTC students organize food, clothing and toiletry donations.Sussex County is a small place, but it’s not immune to nationwide problems, including military veterans committing suicide. Some young people have been victims, but some of their peers are now pushing for a brighter future.

Richard Pope, 18, founded Operation Yellow Spear in 2015 “to spearhead the assault on veteran suicide through art, love and grace.”

Based in Laurel, his homeless outreach program is attacking the statistics from the ground up.

“Veteran suicide starts with the community they live in and the struggles they face. We’re reaching out to veteran homelessness, because that can lead to suicide,” Pope said.

They visit vets living on the street and provide counseling, food and job-seeking skills. The program has already helped seven homeless vets find jobs and a place to stay.

The rehabilitation program includes different pieces to help create a meaningful life. That means résumé writing, job-seeking, home-hunting, arts training and (if desired) Bible study.

“We teach them an art, whether it be music, writing, drawing, painting,” or other coping skills, Pope said. “What do they need to survive? In our opinion, the biggest thing any human being needs,” he said, is something to do and an art.

Volunteers are trained to safely check on homeless vets on a weekly basis and help connect them to other Delaware agencies as needed. (Vets with more serious problems are connected straight to the VA.)

“What do you need to be happy, productive member of society?” Pope described as the outreach’s mission focus.

Some vets have subsequently turned around to continue helping Operation Yellow Spear.

For the name, Pope said, he wanted a more action-packed version of the traditional yellow ribbon. Spears are a symbol of tradition and the first weapons used by early military. More importantly, he said, these Delawareans want to punch through the issue of homelessness.

As a teenager, Pope founded Operation Yellow Spear after seeing what veterans can endure on a daily basis. The 20th-century wars found in history books also weave through Pope’s family history. His own father suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“I see all these guys with shiny medals. On Veterans Day and July 4, everyone loves the veterans,” Pope said, but that’s just one day out of 365. “These veterans aren’t just veterans on the holidays.”

They struggle year-round.

IRHS chips in

At Indian River High School, senior John Wharton spearheaded a clothing and food drive to help Operation Yellow Spear. He serves with Pope in the Delaware Army National Guard, but also serves as cadet captain in the IRHS JROTC.

The clothing and supplies drive began in early January, starting with the JROTC and extending to the more “civilian” side of the school population.

Wharton estimated that they collected more than 350 items, including more than 200 pieces of clothing, nearly 100 personal-hygiene items and 50 food items.

IR’s clothing drive wasn’t the teachers’ idea, either.

“I’m really impressed that they took the initiative on their own,” said IR teacher Lester “Gunny” James. “He came, and he said, ‘This is what we want to do,’ and, of course, we were 100 percent behind him. … I was really impressed that teenagers took the initiative to think of others.”

Those supplies make a difference, Pope said.

“We need the support of these other organizations because, yes, we specialize in the initial contact and crisis management … but we can only do so much. So, to see the JROTCs … jumping in and helping out and giving us the supplies we need to do our job [is] amazing.”

Keep it going

Based now in western Sussex, Operation Yellow Spear aims to grow smart, not swiftly, into Salisbury, Md., and they’ve got the youthful energy to do so, in spades.

At least half of Pope’s board and volunteers are younger than 21.

“Even high school students and teenagers can help support such a big cause,” Wharton said.

Having already hosted two rallies and other awareness events, Operation Yellow Spear is planning a 22-mile ruck march, poker run and after-party for this May.

They’re also running a “Bibles for Vets” drive, aiming to collect 1,000 Bibles for local veterans in crisis who are interested. Bibles can be dropped at Laurel Wesleyan Church from Monday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. They can also be mailed to P.O. Box 175, Millsboro, DE 19966. Other churches are being invited to participate.

To help or learn more, contact operationyellowspear@gmail.com, visit the website www.facebook.com/operationyellowspear or call (302) 296-7064. Donations are welcome at www.gofundme.com/oyssnow or by mail to P.O. Box 175; Millsboro, DE 19966.

“Money will go to buying Bibles, books, clothes, food — anything that can help these guys out, whether it be spiritually, physically or mentally,” Pope said in an online video designed to spread awareness of the group.

Millsboro Middle School student Will Kenney, 13, of Delmar and Micah Freer, 18, of Wilmington were recently named Delaware’s top two youth volunteers of 2016 by the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism.

Kenney was nominated for the honor by school officials, while Freer was nominated by his school, Mount Sophia Academy in Newark. The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, now in its 21st year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).

Kenny is an eighth-grader at Millsboro Middle School, and he organized two carnivals that raised more than $15,000 to help fund medical research and benefit patients who have Sturge-Weber syndrome, a rare neurological disorder. A little girl he knows has the disease and inspired his project.

“I decided to have a carnival with activities for all ages, so that she could enjoy the fun,” he said.

After the first Will’s Carnival for a Cause in August 2014 was a success, Kenney said, he was more determined than ever to raise money and the public’s awareness of Sturge-Weber, with a more elaborate carnival.

For his second carnival, last September, Kenney gathered a core group of seven volunteers to help him plan. As chairman of the event, he organized monthly meetings, wrote emails and letters soliciting donations for game prizes and a silent auction, asked businesses to donate food and other items, and recruited fellow football players to help with logistics.

In addition to the auction and 23 games, the event included three rides, a petting zoo, food and refreshments, a dunking booth featuring football coaches and a county councilman, and an appearance by Miss Delaware.

To help people understand more about Sturge-Weber syndrome, Kenney distributed literature at the carnival and posted information on social media. Most of all, he said, the experience taught him the value of teamwork.

“One person cannot move a mountain, but a village can,” he said.

Freer, a senior at Mount Sophia Academy, spearheaded a yearlong effort to build a pavilion to be used by church, school and community groups, and by families and individuals who hike, bike and jog at an adjacent state park. In search of a project that would have a lasting impact on his community, he brainstormed with officials at his church and came up with the idea of building a pavilion where people could meet, sit and talk.

To begin, he drew up designs of the pavilion and began applying for permits from the city. He recruited volunteer engineers to review and give feedback on his plans, asked professional drafters to make blueprints, and consulted construction experts to ensure that the structure would be built correctly. Then he started fundraising, writing letters to individuals and businesses seeking money, materials and discounts.

When it was time to begin construction, Freer got hands-on help from 50 volunteers, including church members, Boy Scouts, friends and family. The total cost of building the 18-by-24-foot pavilion was a little over $15,000.

As state honorees, Kenney and Freer each will receive $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expenses-paid trip in early May to Washington, D.C., where they will join the top two honorees from each of the other states and the District of Columbia for four days of national recognition events. During the trip, 10 students will be named America’s top youth volunteers of 2016.

“Prudential commends each of these young volunteers for using their creativity and compassion to bring positive change to their communities,” said Prudential Chairman and CEO John Strangfeld. “We hope their stories inspire others to consider how they can make a difference, too.”

“We are pleased to honor these students not only for their exemplary acts of service, but for the powerful example they’ve set for their peers,” said JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. “Congratulations to each of the 2016 honorees.”

Valentine’s Day dates back to the Roman Empire, when people observed a holiday on Feb. 14 to honor Juno, the queen of Roman gods and goddesses, and the goddess of women and marriage. The fertility festival known as the Feast of Lupercalia followed this celebration.

In modern times, Valentine’s Day is a time to remember our loved ones with a gesture of affection through cards and gifts. It is a time to recollect the reasons why love blossomed between man and woman, as well as family members and friends.

During the Civil War, Union Gen. John Reynolds held a secret he told no one prior to his death on the first day of battle at Gettysburg. He had met and fallen in love with his Valentine, by the name of Kate.

Reynolds was universally admired by those who knew him for his character and professionalism as a soldier fighting to prevent the breakup of the Union. In 1863, he was a 42-year-old bachelor who hailed from Lancaster, Pa., and had graduated from West Point in 1841.

On July 1, 1863, Reynolds was a major-general in command the Army of the Potomac’s left wing, numbering more than 32,000 men. It was his decision to initiate the battle at Gettysburg, in response to an appeal from Brig. Gen. John Buford for assistance for his cavalry brigades under attack just west of this small south-central Pennsylvania community.

Reynolds led elements of his First Corps into position out the Chambersburg Road in the area of Edward McPherson’s farm. A general who led from the front, Reynolds was with the “Iron Brigade,” charging into Herbst Woods to challenge the oncoming Rebels, when he fell from his horse — a bullet had pierced his head.

As Michael A. Riley describes in a Farnsworth House booklet, Reynolds’ death occurred almost instantaneously. He had called upon his men to prevent the Confederates from capturing the town of Gettysburg with the urgent plea: “For God’s sake, forward!”

When aides carried Reynolds’ body from the battlefield and loosened his collar, they unexpectedly found a Catholic medal and a gold ring hanging around his neck. Matthew Schmitz wrote that this was surprising, because Reynolds was a Protestant.

The truth would not be learned until July 4, in Philadelphia where Reynold’s body was laid out for the public to pay tribute. A young lady by the name of Katherine May Hewitt walked into the viewing, wearing John Reynolds’ West Point ring, and informed his stunned family that she and Reynolds had been engaged to be married.

John and Kate had met in San Francisco, where he was stationed at the time and she worked in a Catholic girls’ school run by the Daughters of Charity. Evidently, neither one had told their families about their love interest, because of religious differences. Kate’s association with nuns at the school had led to her conversion to Catholicism.

Kate made a pact with John. In the event he was killed in battle, she would never marry, but rather would enter a convent. Consequently, Kate decided to join the Sisters of Charity, founded by Elizabeth Ann Seton, located in Emmitsburg, Md., a few miles south of Gettysburg. She took the name of Sister Hildegardis.

The story does not end there, however, because Kate left the convent five years later, without taking formal vows to be a nun. In “Civil War Women” (http://civilwarwomenblog.com/kate-hewitt/), Maggie MacLean relates that Kate, who was ill and still brooding over John’s loss, returned to her hometown of Stillwell, N.Y.

Kate kept her promise and never married. She remained in Stillwell until her death in 1895. On her tombstone is carved the Hebrew word “Mitzpah.” It refers to a blessing meaning, “May God watch over you until we are together again.”

The moral of this story of unfulfilled love may be to treasure each other for the time we are permitted to be together. Valentine’s Day is set aside for that purpose.

Thomas J. Ryan is the author of “Spies, Scouts & Secrets in the Gettysburg Campaign” (available at Bethany Beach Books). It is a History & Military Book Club selection, and rated five stars on Amazon.com. Contact him at pennmardel@mchsi.com, or visit his website at www.tomryan-civilwar.com.

John J. Williams Highway (Route 24) recently got some attention in the latest DART public transit redesign. A year-round bus route will now make the rounds on Route 24, and the schedule will match the shift changes at the Mountaire poultry processing plant.
Special to the Coastal Point • DART First State: Delaware’s Route 24 is the newest road to get public transit, with DART Route 215 from Rehoboth Beach to Millsboro.But much-needed updates also mean a much-delayed fare increase. The Delaware Transit Corporation (DTC) postponed both changes from mid-January until Sunday, Feb. 14, to finalize them.

“There’s been a need for service in that area. It’s just a more rural area. It is more difficult to serve with more public transit,” said Julie Theyerl, DTC-DART Marketing & Public Affairs officer.

On weekdays, the new DART Route 215 will connect Millsboro to Rehoboth Beach with 10 trips, half heading eastbound and half westbound.

Route 215 stops run from Route 1 at Pelican Square Shopping Center (includes Super Fresh); to Route 24 opposite the Eye Institute; Route 24 opposite Beebe Health Campus; Route 24 opposite Love Creek Marina; Route 24 at Peddlers Village; the Route 24 and Route 23 intersection; Mountaire Farms; and Mid-Sussex Shopping Center opposite Roses.

Trips begin in Rehoboth at 5:45 a.m., 7 a.m., 2:45 p.m., 3:39 p.m. and 4:39 p.m. Trips begin in Millsboro at 6:30 a.m., 7:45 a.m., 3:33 p.m., 4:24 p.m. and 5:24 p.m.

The routes connect to other DART bus routes. From Millsboro, riders can join the Route 902 Flex for Georgetown/Millsboro. From Rehoboth, riders may cross the highway to reach the Movies at Midway, a stop on DART Route 206—Georgetown/Lewes/Rehoboth.

Buses only stop at designated locations. People cannot exit the bus elsewhere along the route. Riders can bring cash, purchase a DART card or purchase daily pass on the bus itself.

Mountaire gets flexible

Mountaire is joining two bus routes.

Working men and women can also catch the Millsboro Flex Route 902, which will be extended five times a day to Mountaire on Route 24.

“We’ve gotten a lot of requests from Mountaire and … it’s basically scheduled to meet Mountaire’s shift times,” Theyerl said.

Drop-offs will occur around 6:20 a.m., 7:20 a.m., 3:20 p.m., 4:20 p.m. and 5:20 p.m. Departures will be soon thereafter.

For an extra dollar, Sussex County’s flex routes will collect or deliver riders to any location within one mile of its regular bus loop, from Georgetown to Millsboro (with a reservation made at least two hours in advance).

Fare-well

Those are just a few of DART’s statewide changes to update service on many routes, including time changes on other Sussex County routes.

Riders will also pay a little more money. This is the final part of a three-phase fare increase that began in 2014. Flex service began that year, too.

As of Feb. 14, the statewide fares will increase:

• Fixed-route or Sussex County Flex (cost per trip) — cash fare $2 (formerly $1.75); reduced fare 80 cents (formerly 70 cents); daily pass $4.20 (formerly $3.70); off-route Flex option by reservation is still $1 (cash or DARTCard).

• Intercounty Route 303 (cost per zone) — cash fare $2 (formerly $1.75); reduced fare 80 cents (formerly 70 cents); daily pass $4.20 (formerly $3.70)

• Intercounty Routes 301 and 305 (cost per zone) — cash fare $2.60 (formerly $2.30); reduced fare $1 (formerly 90 cents); daily pass $5.50 (formerly $4.80).

New schedules will be available online at www.DartFirstState.com. Details can be found at http://dartfirststate.com/information/routes/index.shtml.

In November, the Town of Ocean View lost councilman Tom Sheeran, who was first elected to the council in April 2011. At Tuesday’s council meeting, state Rep. Ron Gray presented a memorial resolution from the state legislature to Sheeran’s wife, Pat, and thanked her for sharing him with the community.
Coastal Point • Maria Counts: State Rep. Ron Gray presents a memorial resolution to Pat Sheeran, the widow of the late Ocean View Town Councilman Tom Sheeran, at the Feb. 9 meeting of the Ocean View Town Council.“Tom will be sorely missed. He was great and did so much for the Town,” said Gray. “With Sen. [Gerald] Hocker, we looked into public safety for about a year and a half, and Tom came in and sat on our committee and was active in that. He was helpful for me in understanding the public safety in the town of Ocean View, and I know his service here was very valuable to the council as well.”

The memorial resolution from the Delaware House of Representatives extended its sincere sympathy to the Sheeran family.

“It is with great sadness we fondly remember this remarkable man,” read Gray on Feb. 9.

Sheeran, who was born in Lorain, Ohio, graduated from George Mason University and would spend his life serving others.

“A man of simple tastes, he dedicated his life to his country and to his community,” read Gray. “Mr. Sheeran’s lifetime of service began in the United State Army and continued with a career with the United States government.”

Following his retirement and subsequent relocation to Delaware, Sheeran served as a volunteer for the Ocean View Police Department and helped found the Ocean View Citizens Auxiliary Patrol, prior to joining the town council.

“Mr. Sheeran knew no strangers and was loved by all who knew him… He will be remembered by the citizens of Ocean View for his integrity, work ethic, pride of accomplishment and loyalty to its citizens,” said Gray. “This husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, cousin and friend will be dearly missed.”

The conclusion of the reading was met with a standing ovation from those in attendance.

“We, as a town council, echo those sentiments,” added Mayor Walter Curran.

The Ocean View Planning & Zoning Commission recently unanimously approved the final site plan for Phase II of a mixed-used planned community, Silver Woods, as submitted by Robert Thornton.

At the hearing on Jan. 21, Ocean View Public Works Director Charles McMullen said the property on Beaver Dam Road would eventually include an assisted-living facility, which had previously been discussed with the commission. He noted that a full review of the facility is required but has yet to be presented to the commission.

Garth Jones of Becker Morgan Group, who represented Thornton at the hearing, said finding a company interested in the assisted-living facility has been more difficult than anticipated.

“Most who are interested in facility will not commit until they have some proof of the development going on,” he explained, adding that they believe that, once development begins on Phase II, that could change.

The commission approved the final site plan with conditions that included submitting a phasing plan and construction timeline and changing the plans to reflect the community having rolled curbs.

The commission also unanimously approved a preliminary land development site plan for 24, 26 and 28 Atlantic Avenue, submitted by the Evergreene Companies on behalf of the property owners OK Land Ltd. and Gerald and Mary Hurley.

Josh Mastrangelo of the Evergreene Companies said they hope to construct 15 townhouses in four clusters, with a community pool, on the property, which is zoned GB-1 (General Business).

That site plan was approved with a 4-0 vote, with the conditions that the name of the electric service that will provide power to the community be provided to the Town, along with the type of fence surrounding the community’s bulk trash receptacle being changed from chain-link to vinyl, and that an agreement be drafted explicitly stating that the community’s road will not be dedicated to the Town.

Good planning starts with good information. That’s why the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) forum met on Jan. 29 to learn about three data-collection projects regarding the Atlantic Ocean.

Hosted in Dewey Beach, with the Rehoboth Bay as a backdrop, the MARCO meeting revolved around one idea: What do we know about the Mid-Atlantic?

The MARCO partnership includes Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey and New York.

The online toolkit and resource center consolidate available data and let users visualize and analyze ocean resources and human-use information, such as fishing grounds, recreational areas, shipping lanes, habitat areas and energy sites, among others.

Their Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal is an online resource where people can map out as many or as few ocean elements as they’d like. Users can see where sea turtles, boaters or wind-energy planning occurs.

The mapping tools are online at portal.midatlanticocean.org.

That data will help the Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body (RPB) prepare its official report this year. Their goal is to increase coordination between government and tribal agencies, fisheries and other stakeholders, ultimately leading to better-informed decisions about use of ocean space.

RPB will be drafting a regional Ocean Action Plan in March, with a public release in June and possible final approval in autumn.

“This entire process is non-regulatory,” said Sarah Cooksey of the MARCO management board and Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Board. “A lot of people think we’re going to come up with new laws.” Instead, the goal is just to collect good information, under one roof.

“As a biologist, I think it’s fascinating. I love to see where the whales are,” as well as human activity and more, Cooksey said.

The group was commended by Secretary David Small of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Control.

“[Let’s create] a fundamentally strong set of information and build on that, so that at some point in the future, … we are using the data to make really strong policy decisions and management decisions,” Small said.

Data already informs current decisions, but Small said he sees the power in doing that on a regional scale.

“I think that putting that science in front of us to inform those types of policy decisions is our obligation, quite frankly, as a science-driven agency,” he said. “I think we’ve all come to learn that the intersection of policy and science is a dangerous one. I think the common denominator is the information that you have begun to construct.”

Other workshop guests represented various levels of government, public agencies, fisheries, industry, contractors, the general public and other stakeholders.

MARCO contracted different groups to prepare three sets of information.

The Mid-Atlantic Regional Ocean Assessment is found at roa.midatlanticocean.org. It is a regional assessment that shows or describes the marine environment and human activities there.

Topics are widespread, including beach replenishment, ocean acidification, industry values (from tourism to shipbuilding) and more.

Designed to be easy to navigate for professionals and the general public, it contains a library of data, maps and links to more of the same.

Animals are the focus of Marinelife Data & Analysis Team (MDAT). Detailed maps will be released, possibly in February, on animal populations and migration. That starts from the bottom (individual species) and runs to the top (determining ecologically diverse areas).

Humans are studied in Human Use Spatial Data Synthesis (HUDS) project. That team studied recreation, shipping, security, fisheries and renewable energy uses in the Atlantic.

The public will be able to view the layers of mapping data in late February.

Community volunteers were recognized at this week’s Sussex County Council meeting for doing their part in the County’s annual Caroling on the Circle food drive.

“This past year,” said County Administrator Todd Lawson on Feb. 9, “was the County’s 32nd year of the Caroling on the Circle event, “where friends and neighbors gathered on Dec. 7 to sing carols and ring in the Christmas season, but more importantly to collect canned goods and nonperishable items for local food banks.”

Caroling on the Circle was started in 1984 as part of the Delaware First Initiative. The event serves as a community food drive to benefit local food pantries.

“To date, the community has donated more than 670,000 canned goods through the Caroling on the Circle program during the course of its 32-year history,” said Lawson. “Thanks to the great generosity of this community and the tireless efforts of our volunteers, many of whom have joined us today, we collected over 23,500 items and raised over $6,000, which was also used to purchase additional items.”

Lawson said the items collected were donated to approximately 15 area pantries, shelters and organizations for distribution within Sussex County.

The Sussex County Council recognized and presented a plaque to the following groups for their contribution:

• Colonial East L.P., which donated $400 and 480 items;

• West Bay Homeowners Association, which donated $400 and 480 items;

• Fuqua, Yori & Willard P.A., which donated $500 and 600 items;

• Delaware Manufactured Home Owners Association, which donated 2,561 items and 11 bags of clothing;

• First State Manufactured Housing Association, which donated $2,085 and 2,502 items;

• Millsboro Middle School, which donated 2,452 items;

• Sussex County Council, which donated $500 and 600 items;

• Sussex County employees, who donated 1,352 items;

• All-Span Inc., which donated $200 and 240 items;

• Georgetown Elementary School, which donated 2,405 items;

• Georgetown Middle School, which donated 200 items;

• H.O. Brittingham Elementary School, which donated 500 items;

• Milton Elementary School, which donated 650 items;

• Long Neck Elementary School, which donated 2,622 items;

• Sussex Academy, which donated 307 items;

• Little Einstein Preschool, which donated 151 items;

• A.P. Croll and Son Inc., which donated 1,000 items;

• Sussex County Association of Realtors, which donated $250 and 300 items; and

• Aloft AeroArchitects, which donated $2,000, 48 turkeys and 3,074 other items.

Lawson said the County also thanked Mark Roethel for his donation of a portable storage container in which to store the donations throughout the food drive, and Best Equipment Inc. for the donation of their wagon.

“Again, another tremendous effort by the community this year,” Lawson said. “Thank you all very much.”

The county council this week also awarded a $500 grant to Cape Henlopen High School for the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program; a $2,000 grant to River Soccer Club for its field construction project, to replace one of its seven soccer fields; and a $2,500 grant to Camp Barnes for its mess-hall renovation project.

The citizens of the Town of Frankford made their votes count this week, in an election held on Saturday, Feb. 6.

Voters re-elected incumbent Pam Davis to her seat for a new two-year term, with a total of 65 votes. Marty Presley — who was appointed by two members of the council in August to fill a vacant seat following the resignation of Jesse Truitt — was this time elected to serve a two-year term, with 60 votes. Edward “Skip” Ash, a former member of the council, was also elected to a new two-year term, with 62 votes.

The fourth candidate, Dawn Marvel-Beck, received 22 votes and will not be serving on the council.

The council will convene with its new make-up on Monday, March 7, at 7 p.m. at the Frankford Fire Hall, for the regularly scheduled council meeting. At that time, the three council members will be sworn in, and the council will reorganize.

It’s hard to go anywhere in the Ocean View area without seeing an aspect of the community that the Lord Baltimore Lions Club has touched.

In the 70 years since the club was formed — initially from staff and administration at the Lord Baltimore School — members have worked to improve the lives of others through projects ranging from providing glasses to those who need them but cannot afford them to building a house for a family in the community.

Many are familiar with the Lions Clubs’ assistance with eyeglasses and other issues involving eyesight, but few know where the connection began.

Club President Karl Gude said Helen Keller spoke to a national Lions group in 1925, challenging members to help those who could not see.

“She challenged them to be ‘knights of the blind,’” he said.

More than two decades later, on Jan. 23, 1946, the first Lord Baltimore club members signed its charter. Although none of the original 30 members original are still living, Gude said member Harry Dukes Jr. is the grandson of a founding member. He said at least three current members — Bill Scott, Kenny Crooks and Bobby Jones — have been members for more than 50 years.

The group first met at the school itself, and at Mariner’s Bethel United Methodist Church. Meeting places over the years reflect popular eateries in the history of the area: Murray’s Topside on the Indian River Bay in Cedar Neck and the Holiday House on the boardwalk in Bethany Beach, among others.

In the years following, the club took root in the community. In addition to services for the vision-impaired, the club has branched out to reach others in need. Providing medical equipment for community members has been a particularly rewarding and successful endeavor, Gude said.

“If you need a hospital bed, if you need a walker, the Lions Club will provide it,” he said, noting that they will even deliver the equipment and pick it up again when it is no longer needed.

That program has been so successful, Gude said, that the club often has more medical equipment than it can identify a need for. So the club works with a fellow Lion upstate who takes the surplus equipment and distributes it throughout Appalachia.

A major component of the Lions’ mission internationally, Gude said, is feeding the hungry.

“We realize that people are not only hungry at Thanksgiving and Christmas,” he said. The Lord Baltimore Club has recently partnered with the SOUL Ministries homeless shelter in Bethany Beach, he added.

The club also supports local Special Olympics athletes, participating in an annual cookout at Camp Barnes for the past several years. Another recent partnership with John M. Clayton Elementary School provides a party each school quarter for students who achieve A grades, Gude said. The club also sponsors three scholarships each year for Indian River High School seniors.

If a community member needs help with heating oil, or needs firewood, the Lord Baltimore Lions will also help with that. Whatever the community needs, the Lions are there to help, Gude said, including some projects that might surprise today’s residents. Gude said there was a time when the community had a “rat problem.” So, he said, “The club put out a bounty on rat tails,” and local boys took to hunting rats and eradicated the problem.

The club currently supports a number of international programs, including one that targets measles.

“Measles is still a major problem worldwide, and it causes blindness,” Gude said.

Lions Clubs across the country have joined a challenge issued by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, in which the foundation pledged to match up to $5 million in contributions if the Lions Clubs raised it.

“We met that challenge” Gude said, resulting in vaccines being made available to millions of children around the world.

One of the major changes in the Lions organization’s history was the decision to admit women, Gude said.

“I think the best thing the Lions Club ever did was allow women. It gave us a whole new dimension,” he said. “Now that women are in the Lions Club, it’s more of a family thing.” Across the board, Gude said, “the common thread among Lions is a desire to serve.”

If there is one thing Gude would like to see change in his Lions Club, he said it would be for its membership to grow beyond its 60 current members. He recognized that his group is in a unique position because of its location in the midst of an area heavily populated by retirees and “retirees are always looking for something to do.”

Gude encouraged younger folks to join the ranks, since they are the future of the community and of the club, and he admitted that he would like to see more members step up into leadership roles. He emphasized that the club changes those who join it, forming within them a sense of their own purpose.

“You join the Lions Club and you become a Lion,” he said.

The Lord Baltimore Lions’ three largest fundraisers continue to be its fried chicken sales, its fruit sales and its annual car raffle.  Even after 70 years, Gude said, the club continues to thrive and grow.

“We are still a strong, vibrant club.”

The Lord Baltimore Lions Club meets on the first and third Wednesdays of each month, except July and August, when they meet on the first Wednesday only. The club’s meeting place is currently in transition, he said, adding that anyone wishing to attend may call him at (302) 745-9279 for the location.

State police arrested a 17-year-old student at Indian River High School on Monday, Feb. 8, after the student reportedly brought a pellet gun and knife to school.

Delaware State Police said that school administrators were alerted by concerned students on Monday morning that another student was in possession of a knife and a gun. The DSP school resource officer was contacted and, upon his arrival at the school, he cleared the classroom in which the student was assigned at that time. The student was then searched, and the detective reportedly located an 8-inch knife in the student’s boot and a CO2 pellet gun in his bag.

“I would like to commend the school safety monitor who took action to detain the student and confiscate the weapons,” said Susan Bunting, superintendent of the Indian River School District. “For purposes such as this, we placed armed school security monitors in all of our schools three years ago.

“Monday’s incident shows how invaluable these constables are to our building personnel. The Indian River School District is committed to ensuring the safety of every student during the school day, and parents can rest assured that we are doing everything in our power to make our buildings secure.”

Bunting added that the student has been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation by state police.

Bunting also noted that no students or staff members were injured during the incident.

The teen, who police said is from the Bethany Beach area, was removed from the school and transported to Troop 4, where he was charged with carrying a concealed deadly weapon (the knife) and carrying a concealed deadly weapon, a firearm. He was arraigned and released to the custody of a parent, pending arraignment in Family Court at a later date.

At the Feb. 1 Frankford Town Council meeting, Councilman Marty Presley announced that the Town was facing a lawsuit filed by its former administrator, Terry Truitt.

“She’s suing for 100 percent of her back vacation and sick time,” said Presley. “We actually received the suit a couple months ago.”

Presley said Truitt was suing the Town for just under $12,000, and that town solicitor Chad Lingenfelder had been apprised of the matter.

“Chad is on top of it. He has looked at everything. He has presented a counteroffer which we think is absolutely fair. She has declined that counteroffer, so it’s going to go to trial.”

According to Truitt, on her last day, with her having stayed through the last payroll of the month, both then-council-president Joanne Bacon and Councilwoman Pam Davis signed a check paying her for her unused vacation and sick days. However, Bacon placed a stop-payment on it the following day.

“The payroll denoted on my regular paycheck, each and every week, the same totals as I ran for the vacation and sick time that was owed to me on that separate check,” said Truitt. “It was on each and every check, week in, week out. For the whole duration of my 14 years there.”

Truitt, who has retained Greg Morris of Liguori, Morris & Yiengst as her attorneys in the case, said she was not informed by any council member about the stop-payment but instead by her own bank.

Although the Town has referenced an employee benefits policy from 1998, according to Truitt, the council had never followed that policy when it came to former employees.

She noted that former employees, including police officers William Dudley and Nate Hudson, had been paid for their unused sick days and vacation days following their departures from the Town’s employment, both of which were within the last year.

Truitt said she is requesting to be paid all of her owed unused sick days and vacation time, under $12,000 net pay, which, after taxes, equates to just over $7,000.

“We think our offer was fair and according to her employment contract,” said Presley. “We think what is owed is about $4,500, based on her contract… She had the same contract as all Town employees, which is vacation and stick time, how it’s accrued. She was subjected to the same vacation and sick time as all employees of the Town have over the last 15 years.”

The matter is scheduled to go to trial on March 22 in Dover.

Art and music will be on display as Indian River High School hosts a lively new concert, mid-winter and mid-week. The Multicultural Art Festival & Concert are free to the public on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at the Dagsboro high school.

Guests can arrive at 6 p.m. for the fine-art exhibit, then be seated for the 6:30 p.m. band and chorus concert.

Led by the band, chorus and soloists, audiences will travel musically through the Middle East, Spain, Russia, the British Isles and South America,

“Even though it’s a shorter concert, it’s definitely one full of interesting music,” said band director Nathan Mohler. “I know the audience will enjoy the selections,” since the students already do, he said.

“There’s a menagerie of things going on,” said Mohler, adding that he is glad for an excuse to have a department-wide exhibition. “This’ll, hopefully, be a regular, yearly thing.”

The festival is a new event, adding to the music department’s regular offerings of spring and winter concerts, plus a springtime variety show.

Around the corner, the art gallery will display works created at the hands of IR students.

“People [are] going to be able to enjoy something before the concert or during intermission,” said art instructor Steven O’Boyle.

That connection between visual arts and music only enhances the experience, he said. Plus, the mini-show prepares students for the big art exhibition later this spring.

“It’s definitely going to be a really good night of entertainment for anyone who visits,” O’Boyle said.

Indian River High School is located at 29772 Armory Road in Dagsboro.