Coastal Point • RUSLANA LAMBERT Ed and Judy Wesloskie have gone all-out on the decorations at their home near Clarksville.

JROTC saved from financial ax
School faculty, parents and Junior Reserve Officer Training C orps (JROTC) members rallied Tuesday in what turned out to be a successful attempt to save the program in two Indian River School District (IRSD) high schools.

Millville deals with future, past
It’s a juggling act for officials of many small towns along Delmarva in recent years — balance the burgeoning growth and subsequent administrative needs with doing everything possible to maintain the small-town feel that residents have come to enjoy. Perhaps no town faces this challenge more obviously than Millville.

County council shuffles parking ordinances
Sussex County Council did a good impression of the Delaware General Assembly on Dec. 13, loading five public hearings into the long, late-night, last council meeting of the year.

Jury still out on Streetscape design
Bethany Beach citizens and town council members were presented with information on and a direct comparison of two plans for the planned Streetscape project for Bethany Beach’s Garfield Parkway this week, at a Dec. 10 special meeting of the council.

DelDOT talks bridge design
Major roadwork continues at the Indian River Inlet Bridge (IRIB), whether or not the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) knows who’s going to build the new bridge. Or even what the new bridge is going to look like.

County introduces new clustering amendment
Sussex County Council members spent most of the Dec. 13 council meeting wrangling with parking, but they did cover some land use issues, too. The county has set a moratorium on new clustered subdivisions, and Council Member Vance Phillips introduced another possible adjustment on Tuesday.

Friends seek support for ailing mother
Amanda Parkinson’s story is one that puts things in perspective. She hasn’t asked for media attention, and for her children’s sake probably doesn’t want media attention, but by all standards, Parkinson is in a very tough spot.

South Bethany re-ups with Bethany lobbyists
South Bethany Town Council members voted to renew their share of a contract with beach replenishment lobbyists Marlowe & Company at the Dec. 9 council meeting, entering their second year with extra-governmental support for local replenishment projects.

The Agenda

County P&Z defers decision for eagles
Bald eagles threw a monkey-wrench into the works of an eight-lot subdivision planned for Bunting Road west of Dagsboro, near Pepper Creek and Piney Creek, when it came up for review by the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission (P&Z) on Dec. 8.

IRSD honors departing board member
Members of the Indian River School District’s school board and Superintendent Lois Hobbs honored outgoing member Greg Hastings at their Dec. 13 meeting, directly on the heels of his official resignation from the board.

Hastings ready for state board
Greg Hastings has served on the Indian River School District (IRSD) School Board for more than 12 years now, but publicly announced his resignation this week, in preparation for a move to the state Board of Education.

Local legislators outline plan for 2006
Sen. George Howard Bunting may be a Democrat, and Rep. Gerald Hocker may be a Republican; but they seem to get along well enough, as evidenced at a recent Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce membership breakfast.

Big Easy celebrates local musicians
It was a night for musicians.

Guest Commentary
For the last six months, there has been a great deal of speculation, opinion and misinformation about the financial problems connected to DelDOT’s transportation project planning process. As members of the Joint Bond Bill Committee, we feel the need to offer some insight on the current situation, how we got here and what we need to do in the future.

New head of the ship
The Sussex County Association of Realtors (SCAOR) has pegged Coldwell Banker’s Rick Allamong to take over the top leadership spot for the coming year. Allamong was set for induction at SCAOR’s annual installation dinner (Thursday, Dec. 15) — he will serve as president in 2006.

Indians get off to quick start
Indian River wrestling is off to a hot start after annihilating Charter Wilmington 81-0 on Dec. 7 and placing sixth out of 21 teams at the War on the Shore tournament on Dec. 9 and 10. Seven Indian River wrestlers placed in the top eight in the tournament, with Andy Bokinsky and Mike Magaha grabbing first and second place, respectively.

Indians take down Seaford at end
You can’t knock the hustle. The Indian River High School Varsity Basketball Team — led by junior guard Brian Bell’s game-high 29 points and game-winning shot — held on to notch a 63-62 victory Dec. 13 over Seaford with only 1.7 seconds remaining on the clock.

Croll earns national honors
Indian River alumnus Brittany Croll concluded her field hockey career at Franklin & Marshall by being named to the 2005 Dartfish/National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-American second team and the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III All-Star field hockey team.

Lynch overcomes size with skill, heart
Size is overrated. Some of the greatest athletes to play sports were told that they couldn’t or wouldn’t succeed because they weren’t the ideal size.