Until Educators Begin To Teach Self-esteem, We Will Have Drunk Drivers 
There's Been A Lot Of Controversy Regarding Caroline Petrini And The Accident 
Which Took The Lives Of Two Men.

13c 12-17-94 Cougars Trying Despite Lack Of Numbers

Sunday, December 18, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1F 





Another chance in Mocanaqua hristmas presents don't always arrive in green
foil and red bowsLast weekend, a holiday gift of sorts showed up on a yellow
plastic sign at the side of Route 239, just outside the quiet town of
Mocanaqua. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On Tuesday morning, 8:30 a.m., the sign read, a new company named Data File
would hold interviews for jobs at the former shoe factory on Jeanette Street. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mocanaqua is as neat and tidy as America gets. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Its 700 or so residents live in well cared-for wooden homes, nestled into
one of the most beautiful settings in Pennsylvania. Steep mountain ridges rise
from the town's back yards; the dark Susquehanna River glides by in front. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Streets are clean, speed bumps slow down traffic, and families are looking
forward to a big event next summer -- using a new town pool which was donated
by a generous neighbor. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And at this Christmas season, lighted creches, Santas and candy canes
decorate Mocanaqua's two churches and nearly half of its homes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But there are no jobs in Mocanaqua, save a handful at the PNC bank branch
and the beer distributor on Main Street. And getting by isn't easy on the
community's $18,080 per-household median income. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We're mainly a retirement village," says supervisor Ralph Galicki.
"Everyone has to leave Mocanaqua to find work in Berwick or Bloomsburg or
Wilkes-Barre." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The last substantial employer in Mocanaqua -- Country Cousins Shoes Inc. --
shut down in June 1993, putting dozens of people out work. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "There are lots of those people who still want to put in some hours,"
Galicki says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They will get another chance with Data File, a company which makes
expandable cardboard files and sells them at Kmart and other stores. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Data File, a 15-year-old firm, moved to Mocanaqua from Berwick because, it
"got a great deal" on buying the former shoe factory, says Ed Czwartacki,
factory manager. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Forty of the company's 70 employees have come along from Berwick, and
Czwartacki says he'll hire about 25 more starting Monday. Hopefully, he says,
they'll be Mocanaqua neighbors. "We heard there's a pretty good group of
workers here." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Czwartacki predicts he'll get along fine in Mocanaqua. "I'm Polish and
Italian, just like most everyone here," he says proudly. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 obody's going to get rich working at Data File. And not everyone is happy
about its arrival. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Czwartacki is offering only minimum wages to start, although, he says, pay
may go higher within several months when the company shifts from hourly wages
to paying by the number of pieces each worker completes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And Czwartacki has a familiar story to tell -- one that casts early shadows
of doubt on the company's future. "We're a small struggling business. All our
competitors manufacture in Mexico." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Parking will definitely be a problem on Jeanette Street. Galicki says he's
already fielding complaints from residents who have long considered the
curbside their own private parking spot. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But Hazel Slominski, who used to work at the shoe factory, is happy about
Data File and her new job just five minutes from home. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I think it is good to have a business in town," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So does Irene Matusek who hopes Data Fi

Another Chance In Mocanaqua Hristmas Presents Don't Always Arrive In Green Foil And Red Bows.