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Jimmy Breslin, chronicler of wise guys and underdogs, dies

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Ex-Penn State president heads to trial

<p>So Stella dumped a ton of snow on our area last week and, as inconvenient as that may have been for some of us, it also brought out the good in a whole lot of people.</p><p>Neighbors with large snow blowers were seen clearing the sidewalks of people whose smaller snow blowers became clogged after one pass through the heavy white stuff.</p><p>Area residents, at least a good deal of them, took to social media to proclaim their thanks to Department of Public Works employees who worked around the clock to clear local roads.</p><p>Mayors of small towns, like Andy Tuzinski in Forty Fort and Chris Concert in Swoyersville, were out in the thick of things getting cars moved from main thoroughfares so those roads could be plowed and making arrangements to clear the way to local ambulance departments so those vehicles could get out if emergency called.</p><p>When someone put out a plea for help in getting his mother&#8217;s car dug out at the Meadows Apartments in Dallas, teachers from the Dallas School District, who had missed four days of classes due to the storm, answered the call and showed up to remove snow from cars belonging to the apartments&#8217; residents.</p><p>In Forty Fort, a neighbor went running to help when a woman fell in the snow while a man who had been somewhat estranged from his sister for years used a construction vehicle to clear her driveway of snow.</p><p>People who work in group homes and hospitals worked long, long hours because their coworkers were unable to navigate their way in. Leaving behind their own families to fend for themselves, their priority was to provide care for their clients and patients.</p><p>Times Leader reporter Bill O&#8217;Boyle succumbed to needing help from a female neighbor and her daughter when he attempted to get out of his garage and drive to work before removing an inch of snow from his property. We&#8217;ll refrain from commenting on that move, other than to admit Bill is truly dedicated to his job.</p><p>Our photographers braved the worst of the storm all day Tuesday, capturing both the good and bad of Stella &#8211; blocked driveways and people working together to clear them &#8212; allowing our homebound readers to see what was going on around them.</p><p>We have a tendency to envy Aimee Dilger and Sean McKeag on the days they&#8217;re assigned to photograph a calf giving birth at The Lands at Hillside Farms or high school students flying planes they built with their own hands for the annual Science Olympiad at Penn State Wilkes-Barre. Last Tuesday, from the warmth of the newsroom, we didn&#8217;t envy them at all.</p><p>And, for those of you who woke up Tuesday and Wednesday mornings with a newspaper on your front porch, thank those who delivered it. Not even two feet of snow hinders our carriers who have the most difficult job in this business &#8212; especially when they have to make their way down snow-covered roads and around what seem to be mile-high snow banks.</p><p>A lot of what went on around here last week was heartwarming. It shouldn&#8217;t take a woman as angry at Stella to show us how to be kind to one another.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">The snow storm that hit the area overnight left cars buried, as seen here on South River Street in Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. 3/14/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/web1_TTL031517Snow10-8.jpg</photo0><caption0>The snow storm that hit the area overnight left cars buried, as seen here on South River Street in Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. 3/14/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>

Our view: Stella brought out best in area’s residents