Complaint didn't cost lights fundraiser after all

Well, someone complained to the Marion County Health Department that goods baked at home would be sold at Saturday’s fundraiser for the Monongah High street lights, so Susan Staron Sanders will have to buy a permit and cut into the amount of money going for the street lights.

Monongah women have been baking at home and selling in churches and elsewhere forever. But someone didn’t like it this time, I guess, for whatever reason.

Susan, the guiding light behind the Christmas street lights for Monongah, explains:

“Well I just got a call from the Health Department. Someone called them and told them we were selling baked goods. We are not allowed to sell them, period. They must be made there to do so. “I am a very honest person and would not do anything wrong that would hurt someone. I am going into the Health Department to get a permit. Of course, this will affect the funds coming in for the lights. Which makes me very sad. So please keep those donations coming. I will respect the rules.   “Thank you. “Susan.” After hearing about the mean-spirited attempt to rain on the Christmas lights fund-raiser, Susan received a check for $75 to more than cover the $50 permit cost. So the complainer actually brought the fundraiser $25 more than it would have gotten without the complaint. Well, I’ve been outed. This is a Facebook post from Susan Sanders: “Hi all, well after a bump in the road this morning with the Christmas Light yard sale tomorrow. I can proudly say that there are people who really love this town.   “After a phone call to the Health Dept.  that affected our donations to getting the lights a dear friend stepped up to the plate to help us. It cost me $50 to get a permit this morning to make everything legal. “John Olesky called a few minutes ago and wanted to help with the loss of funds. He is sending $75 made out to the Town to cover the $50 fee plus an extra 25 as a gift for the lights.   “God Bless you John. I will never forget what you have done.   “Sincerely, Susan Sanders”   I just couldn’t stand by and let a mean-spirited person drain $50 from lighting up the birthplace that I love so well. The $25 was so that the fund-raiser would get more money that it was getting before someone went to the Health Department to complain about something that has been going in Monongah for most of my life.   People have been baking goods at home and bringing them to churches and public places for at least 70 years that I know of, and no mean-spirited person ever tried to stop them.   Sometimes you just can’t stand by and let unpleasant things happen. So I mailed Susan the check for $75.   In my family, I’m accused to “tilting at windmills” when I see an injustice, just like Don Quixote in “The Man of LaMancha.” I guess that makes me The Man of LaMonongah. I can live with that.

Let's let Susan have the final word:

“I want to thank my wonderful girls for their hard work to make this happen. We will be setting up tables (Friday night) around 6 at the Town Hall. The response has been wonderful.”   The money will buy and erect more Christmas lights for the town, to go with the seven donated by White Hall. Minus, of course, the cost of the permit that someone saw fit to cause. If you can't make it to Saturday's fundraiser, but would like to contribute to the Monongah Christmas lights fundraiser, just mail a check to Susan at: Susan Sanders 713 Thomas Street Monongah, WV 26554 Make the check out to: Monongah Christmas Lights Or you can call Susan at (304) 365-2074 and tell her how you'd like to help brighten Monongah for Christmas. By the way, Susan lives in the 2nd house from Church Street, which is next door to the Olesky home till the 1940s when my parents bought the home on Church Street, across the street from our Thomas Street rental. The Mangino family lived there in the 1940s, before they moved to the Germantown section of Philadelphia. Filomena Mangino was proud of her snowball bush, till I trampled it to the ground and got a well-deserved miner-belt whipping from my father. Son Lanny Mangino was the one who took me to Fairmont Field Club for the first time to caddy. Not wanting to dilute the labor field, others broke his leg because he brought in more competition. It was a different time. The 3rd house from Church on Thomas Street was occupied by the Catania family, which moved to Covina, California where the surviving siblings live today.