Young At Heart 
`it Wasn't Like It Was A Job' 
Andy Stetz, Who Is In His Early 70s (but Wouldn't Be Specific), Has Spent Most 
Of His Life In The Family Business, John B. Stetz Men's Clothing Store On 
South Main Street In Wilkes-barre.

24-hour Child Care Set To Help Homeless 
Additional Programs 
Will Help Families With 
Housing And Schooling For 
Their Children

By MELISSA M. JANOSKI and CHRIS SCHNEIDMILLER; Times Leader
Staff Writer
 Monday, December 28, 1998 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





WYOMING- The story of George and Jennie Troy's homes can be measured in
historical eras. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They married during Prohibition and lived in West Wyoming until bootleggers
bought the rented house. They rented a Fifth Street house until their oldest
son went off to World War II. He was overseas when they found the affordable
clapboard on East Fourth Street, shortly before Christmas 1945. It brought
Mrs. Troy, 93, close to her birthplace, on West Fourth Street. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Despite passing fantasies of moving to an area with warmer weather, they
have never given serious thought to leaving the white clapboard house with
green trim. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Their oldest son, George Troy Jr., feels the same way about the West
Wyoming home he's lived in for about 30 years. He's lived all over the
country, traveled all over the world, but came back and stayed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Their reasons are partly economic, partly the lure of family and friends. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It just comes down to stability, I guess," George Troy Jr. said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That stability is a Wyoming Valley hallmark. More than one-third of Luzerne
County and Wyoming County residents have lived in their homes for at least 20
years. That figure jumps to 76.1 percent for people 65 or older, according to
a 1998 report by the Scarborough Research Corp. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In Philadelphia, 18 percent of residents have been in their homes more than
20 years. The figure is 22 percent in Pittsburgh. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They do not have the incentive to migrate or move, as do some of the
younger groups, especially once they retire," said Marion Yoder, a research
analyst with the state Department of Aging. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Pennsylvania State Data Center estimates 87.7 percent of Luzerne County
residents are state natives. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Communities benefit from such stability, said the Rev. Michael Shambora,
the Troys' pastor at Wyoming United Methodist Church. The Troys, the oldest
parishioners, have held just about every volunteer post in the church. "We
look to them as pillars." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A step up &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Troys moved in because the house was vacant and affordable. The
two-story, three bedroom house was a step up for the couple, a railroad worker
and a homemaker who had worked in a silk mill. Three of their four children
still lived at home. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The biggest selling point: a built-in bathtub with running water. "It was
luxurious," said their daughter, Beverly Fulkersin. At their old house, they
bathed in an iron tub in front of a coal stove or walked to their
grandmother's house nearby. The children remember opening the stove's door in
the rented house to warm their feet on the grate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The walls of the family room and more formal parlor are hung with family
photos in black and white and color, and plaques celebrating milestone
anniversaries. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Their daughter, as a 5-year-old with flowers in her hair, beams down from
one wall. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A picture of son Lawrence in his Army uniform sits in a glass-front
cabinet. He was killed just before his 20th birthday, one of the first
American casualties of the Korean War. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Shortly before he died, he told his buddies that if anything happened to
him they should enjoy the box of birthday gifts he was expecting from home.
Later, the Troys received a letter from the soldiers, praising their friend
and thanking his parents for the candy in the birthday box. Other photos have
sad stories behind them, but they are passed over quickly for more cheerful
topics. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A 1915 photograph of a teenaged Mr. Troy with his parents stands on the
parlor coffee table. His father wears a gleaming badge. An index card stuck in
the frame says John Troy was West Wyoming's second chief of police. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A pewter plaque commemorating the Last Supper hangs on a family room wall.
It was presented by Worldwide Marriage Encounter last year, when the group
declared the Troys the longest-married couple in Northeastern Pennsylvania. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Longest-married &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Troys were married 75 years on Christmas Day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Most years, their anniversary was overlooked in favor of Christmas, a time
Mrs. Troy cherishes as "a day of contentment." Fulkersin, their daughter,
remembers rushing to the family room on Christmas morning to see the tree her
mother decorated after the children went to bed. "It was something you looked
forward to." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Today, the Troys put up a tabletop artificial tree. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But they haven't slowed down much. Mrs. Troy keeps up with the housework,
although osteoporosis put an end to her rose garden and she no longer paints
and hangs wallpaper. She's a regular at a senior citizens center and takes bus
trips to dinner theater outings. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 They get to church most Sundays, where Mr. Troy sometimes climbs to the
altar to read Scripture during the service. Bible study is one of the
mainstays of his life, Mr. Troy said. The leather covers of his Bible are worn
soft and limp. The pages are held together with a rubber band. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He still attends men's club meetings at church and she goes to the women's
club events. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mr. Troy, 96, proudly pulled a newly renewed driver's license out of his
wallet. It's good for another four years of trips to church and the grocery
store, despite his hearing loss, he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "You don't feel old inside. It's just that the outside doesn't do what you
want it do to," Mrs. Troy said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Younger neighbors help with tasks such as shoveling snow. The Troys
appreciate it but say the neighborhood isn't what it used to be. People come
and go too much these days. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The family no longer gathers at the house for big Sunday dinners, although
Mrs. Troy still cooks most days. "I'm tired of cooking," she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Family members are still frequent visitors. Like their parents, none went
too far from home. Their daughter lives in Tunkhannock. Their other son,
Donald, lives in Exeter Township. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Home is home. They always like to come back to the house," Mrs. Troy said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Times Leader/FRED ADAMS &nbsp;&nbsp;&amp;nb

Married 75 Years, Area Couple Exemplifies Stability Of Seniors Home To Stay