Dunmoreans of the Month: Amanda & Rebecca Lucas

Posted on September 2, 2020 by The Dunmorean

Amanda Lucas – DHS Class of 2018 Valedictorian

Rebecca Lucas – DHS Class of 2020 Salutatorian

By Steve Svetovich

Raising two daughters as a single mom has its challenges, but Dunmore’s Janet Lucas has absolutely no regrets. And she sure did good.

Amanda Lucas, Dunmore High School Class of 2018 Valedictorian, and Rebecca Lucas, Dunmore High School Class of 2020 Salutatorian, daughters of Janet Lucas, Dunmore, and Curt Lucas, South Carolina, are now college students.

Both were officers and members of many clubs at Dunmore. Both participated in various varsity sports and cheerleading. They were asked to represent Dunmore High School in leadership roles, including the Rotary Youth Leadership Association (RYLA) and Hugh O’Brien Youth Leadership (HOBY). Both are active leaders in the Dunmore community.

Their proud mom feels their accomplishments are extraordinary coming from sisters two years apart.

Dunmoreans of the Month - JANET & family

Janet Lucas, at left, is shown at her daughter Amanda’s graduation in 2018 when she was valedictorian of her class. At right is daughter Rebecca, who was salutatorian of the DHS class of 2020.

“As a single mom,” she said, “I have strived to make my daughters feel like they matter, and that they are loved unconditionally.

“I always wanted Amanda and Rebecca to be respectful, grateful, thoughtful and conscientious. I worked hard to instill those qualities and give them a strong foundation. From there, it was all them.

“Their work ethic and self motivation is unbelievable, even when it was difficult. I am so proud of the young women they have become, and so excited to see what they will accomplish. I am in awe of my daughters.”

Amanda is a junior at St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, majoring in chemistry. She has an impressive 3.97 academic average. She serves as honor’s mentor for the Honor’s Program at St. Joseph’s. She is a resident assistant (RA) for a freshmen dormitory.

While at Dunmore, Amanda participated in golf, swimming, track and field, football cheerleading, yearbook editor, events coordinator for the engineering club, treasurer of the French Club and vice president of TACT. As a senior, she was Dunmore’s first female All Regional selection for golf. And she was class valedictorian and member of the National Honor Society.

Articulate, courteous and polite, Amanda said she learned a lot from her mom. “My mom taught me about perseverance and hard work. In order to accomplish anything in life, you need to work hard at it. And she did a lot for me to help me along.”

Amanda said she would like to eventually go to graduate school for Forensic Science and get into the field as a career.

She said it is nice to see her sister do well in school. “It is a friendly competition and it’s good for us. She sees what I do and then strives to do better. It’s a good thing.”

Amanda, well spoken, has high praise for Dunmore. “It was so close knit and personal. We know all the teachers and they know us. It is also kind of cool to have your coaches as teachers.

“St. Joseph’s is also a small school. I have a small major and the same kids are in most of my classes. Right now we are wearing masks and social distancing. We social distance in the residence hall.”

Rebecca, 18, is a freshman at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia where she majors in Pharmacy. It is a six-year program and she has intentions of becoming a pharmacist.

While at Dunmore, she was class salutatorian finishing with a 3.84 academic average. She was a member of track and field, golf, basketball cheerleading captain, Science Club, French Club, TACT, Art Club, SADD and National Honor Society.

Also polite and insightful, Rebecca praised her mom. “My mom always taught me to work hard. She always tells me no matter what, it works out in the end. She is always there for me.”

Rebecca said she is grateful how Dunmore High School handled the pandemic. “Our teachers were very helpful getting us the information we needed online. They posted information on the AP test.

“Besides school work, I did a lot of running and spent time with family during the pandemic. It caused us to miss the track season.”

Finally, her class graduated this past July 17 in a small ceremony outdoors at the football stadium.

Rebecca said her goal is to become a pharmacist and help with surgeries and new medicines. “Helping with new medicines is very important to me because of this pandemic.”

As Class of 2020 Salutatorian, she feels a sense of accomplishment. “I feel very honored. I put hard work into it and it paid off.”

She is also proud of her older sister’s accomplishments. “I have a strong sense of fulfillment for what she has done, but I don’t compare myself.”

Rebecca spoke glowingly of her experiences at Dunmore. “It was very fulfilling and heart warming. I received a great education and met a lot of amazing people.”

The sisters have one more thing in common. When asked separately who they would want to see in concert, if they could pick just one, both responded Harry Styles.

LOOKING FOR INFORMATION: Italian Restaurant Mystery

Posted on September 2, 2020 by The Dunmorean

Liliana Gemmo, married Melbert Molyneux, at Lackawanna County Courthouse in May of 1961. Afterwards, their best man, Dan McAlpin, shown at left, took them to “the best Italian restaurant” in Dunmore.

Maurice Molyneux of Oakland, CA., is seeking information from our readers.

His late mother, Liliana, who was from Vicenza, married an American, Melbert Molyneux, at Lackawanna County Courthouse on the morning of May, 1961. Afterwards, their best man, Dan McAlpin, took them to “the best Italian restaurant” in Dunmore.

Their son is trying to track down what restaurant that might have been, and points to a photograph of the newlyweds posing with their best man at 132 Chestnut St., Dunmore, where they may have parked.

Maurice notes that he was born in an ambulance between Vicenza and Verona and that the family lived in Verona when he was a “piccolo bambino.”

His father had been in the Army and stationed at Tobyhanna, and he suspects that Dan McAlpin was also into the service. The maid of honor had the name Grace Kelly.

As to how he knows the location shown in the photograph, he says that written on the back of the photo was the note “Dunmore.”

Italian Restaurant Mystery wedding day photo 00 location 400 Dix Court, Scranton, PA

Another photograph of the newlyweds was taken at 400 Dix Court, north of the Lackawanna County Courthouse in Scranton. Shown from left are: Don McAlpin, best man; Grace Kelly, matron of honor; Liliana Gemmo, bride, and Melbert P. Molyneux, groom.

“I studied the picture and noted that I could see the street ended in a T intersection, and the perpendicular street at the end was at a slight angle, and the lighting was such that the photos were taken facing in a northward angle,” he explains.

“So I went to Google maps, spotted any potential intersections that matched, then dropped to the street view and ‘walked’ back and forth,” he continues. “I pretty quickly realized it was probably Chestnut Street, and finally spotted the exact building in the background behind them, which still has the same stone pattern on the corner, and you can still see where the drainpipe was back in 1961.”

Molyneux adds that he has done the same thing to figure out where photos were taken in his mother’s home region in Italy.

If anybody knows what Italian restaurant it might have been, please email The Dunmorean at dpi22news@gmail.com and we will pass information along to Mr. Molyneux.

Doin’ Dunmore: A Little Princess with a Purpose

Posted on September 2, 2020 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

Three-year old Avery Schivock is a little princess with a purpose.

Wearing her “princess dress” for the occasion, the Dunmore preschooler has an unusual hobby for her age.

And she is not afraid of getting her hands dirty.

Daughter of Stephanie and Christopher Schivock, Avery picks up cigarette butts in her Dunmore Sherwood Park neighborhood on a weekly basis.

Her mom explained. “My husband and I were looking for something to do during the pandemic,” she said. “So to get some fresh air and exercise, we started walking around our neighborhood by Sherwood Park with Avery and our one-year-old son, Mason. We started picking up cigarette butts for recycling and to help clean up the area. Well, Avery especially loved doing it and knows it is for a good cause. We’ve been going every week since April and she loves it.

“Avery likes to get out and make a difference. We are a very eco-friendly family. Avery understands the cigarette butts are going to help our environment. We put them in a canister and send them off.

“Initially, our daughter wore a princess dress while we took our walk and she collected the cigarette butts. Now she always has to wear a princess dress while searching for the butts.

Doin Dunmore - Avery Shivock 2 “Now she looks for different colors and understands she is helping the Earth while collecting the different cigarette butts.

“She practices good safety habits. Avery wears gloves when she picks up the butts and places them in a can.

“The cigarette butts are filtered during the recycling process and even used for park benches and pallets.

“Our son Mason is still in the learning stages, but Avery is becoming an expert at this now. She loves it because she knows this is making the earth a better place for everybody.”

Avery attends preschool at the Greater Scranton YMCA in Dunmore.

Avery’s mom said the cigarette butts are placed in a container and sent to Terracycle, located in New Jersey.

“They have recycling programs for everything you can imagine,” she said. “Some are free, some are not.

“Our family recycles k-cups, plates, plastic utensils, fast food cups, straws, chip bags, cellophane wrappers, Gerber baby food cans, and other items in addition to the cigarette butts for Terracycle.

Doin Dunmore - Avery Shivock 3 “We also recycle foam, electronics and clothing for local facilities.

“We are very proud that a family of four, with a little one in diapers, make less than a single kitchen bag of garbage a week.

“Avery has been helping us since she was old enough to carry the bottles to the recycling can on the porch.”

Stephanie and Christopher both graduated from Bishop O’Hara High School in Dunmore. Stephanie graduated from Marywood University and is a proud stay-at-home mom. Her husband was in the United States Coast Guard Academy, served 10 years of active duty and now is a GIS specialist for Rutgers University Marine and Coastal Sciences Department.