THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2007
VOL. 12 NO. 33
50 cents
Victorian Christmas is this weekend at Ross Mansion
NEWS HEADLINES INVISTA - A handful of citizens speak out against a request to continue dumping ash in a landfill near the Nanticoke River. Page 2 DRAWBACK - The Seaford drawbridge will be closed on Monday, Dec. 10, through Friday, Dec. 21. How will motorists cope? Page 3 HUNGER - Since this program was formed in 1992, nearly one million meals have been provided to combat hunger. Page 3 VETERANS - William Flynn of Bridgeville had one of the toughest assignments imaginable during World War II. Page 8 MEMORIAL - Over 800 attend a Celebration of Life for Seaford cross country coach and athletic director Vince Morris. Page 11 THREAT - A teacher is charged with terroristic threatening after reporting a bomb threat at school. A video tape helps bring her arrest. Page 17 LOOK-IN - In a prominent corner of the lobby at Nanticoke Memorial Hospital is an enchanting gift shop. Page 30 TAR HEEL - Seaford’s Derrik Gibson recently signed a letter of intent to play baseball and attend school at the University of North Carolina. Page 42 WINTER SPORTS - The winter sports season starts this week. Local previews start on page 41 and scores from Tuesday’s games are on page 48.
$500
HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY See page 11 for details
19 Shopping Days until Christmas
INSIDE THE STAR BUSINESS BULLETIN BOARD CHURCH CLASSIFIEDS EDUCATION ENTERTAINMENT FRANK CALIO GENE BLEILE GOURMET HEALTH LETTERS LYNN PARKS
6 20 24 32-35 18 28 39 45 19 30 50 14
MOVIES 7 OBITUARIES 26 PAT MURPHY 23 PEOPLE 38 POLICE JOURNAL 36 52 SNAPSHOTS SPORTS 41-48 TIDES/WEATHER 55 TODD CROFFORD 25 TONY WINDSOR 40 VETERANS OF WWII 8
SANTA AND MRS. CLAUS ARRIVE - Santa and Mrs. Claus pass in front of City Hall during the Seaford Christmas parade on Saturday night. Additional photos and parade winners are shown on page 16. Photo by David Elliott
The Seaford Historical Society will host the 11th annual Victorian Christmas Celebration at the Ross Mansion this weekend. On Friday there will be a reservations only card and game party with refreshments, table prizes, and tours of the decorated Mansion. Children and their parents are invited to a Bagels, Berries, and Bells Brunch with Santa. Reservations are needed. Call Teresa Wilson at 629-6417 by Friday at noon. The Mansion will be open for tours on Saturday, Dec. 8, from 1-4 p.m. Visitors will be able to see the 13 rooms of the Mansion decorated by local florists. Live greenery, artificial flowers and Christmas ornaments will showcase the architecture of the pre-Civil War estate. Tour guides will be dressed in period costumes. The Christmas boutique Continued on page four
Hospital requests public hearing on proposed outpatient surgery center By Lynn R. Parks A planned for-profit, outpatient surgery center for Seaford could mean a $1 million drop in income for Nanticoke Memorial Hospital, said new hospital CEO Mark Rappaport. This for a hospital that is already struggling — last year, it posted a $1.8 million loss and the year before that, a $1.1 million loss. But proponents of the Seaford Specialty Surgery Center say that $1 million is a drop in the bucket of Nanticoke’s $116 million patient revenue. With a surgery center, they say, patients would save time and money. And, added Rob McCarville, principal of the Medical Consulting Group, Springfield, Mo., which is developing
and would manage the facility, there is a need in western Sussex County for more operating rooms. On Nov. 15, the Delaware Health Resources Board approved construction of the 5,700-square-foot surgery center, planned for land near the hospital’s Mears Campus at the intersection of Bridgeville Highway and Herring Run Road. The hospital is protesting that decision and has requested a public hearing on the board’s approval. “A separate surgical facility would just not be good for us,” said Rappaport. “It would take surgical volume out of the hospital.” The hospital performs about 1,700 outpatient surgeries a year. Opposition to the center is an aboutface for the hospital. Earlier in the cen-
ter’s planning stages, Nanticoke was part of the partnership of five doctors. But the hospital dropped out. “We recognized that it was not a good thing for us to be involved in,” Nanticoke spokesman Tom Brown said. “We think that there is enough surgical capacity already and the center would be a drag on hospital funds.” McCarville said that about 20 percent of the 27 surgical centers his company has developed nationwide have partnerships with hospitals. Bay Health, Dover, is a partner in the Dover Surgery Center, developed by Medical Consulting Group. “We were disappointed that Nanticoke chose not to participate,” McCarville said. “Then we were even Continued on page four