Elderly see Inflation No. 1 Problem

by Wayne Robinson AVALON - If the White House is listening, what do the senior citizens of the Jersey Cape want it to hear? According to a recent White House Conference on Aging forum convened here by the Cape May County Office on Aging, the 34 participants 60 years or older wanted: •Jnflation brought under control. •Revision and update of Medicare. •Additional and more convenient public transportation.

Township Man Heads Co. Chamber CAPE MAY - Robert Smeltzer of S. Cold Spring will be seated as president of the Cape May County Chamber of Commerce, and two other Lower Township ■ men will assume other ■ officer spots in the ■ county group during ■ the annual installation ■dinner 7:30 p.m. Oct. 1 ■ at the Top of tjie Marq ■here. I Smeltzer, director of ■ Public Relations and ■ Recreation for the City ■of Cape May, is also ■president of the Cape ■May Kiwanis and is —■vice chairman of the SMELTZER Lower Township Zoning Board of Adjustment. Other incoming Chamber officers to be installed by Chamber solicitor Louis Dwver (also a S. Cold Spring resident) include first vice president Dennis Curley, of Avalon, second vice president, William Leahv, of Avalon, secretary Peter Smith, of Villas, and treasurer Carlton Owen, of Fishing Creek. CUR LEY,'WHO IS CHAIRING this year’s Meeting and Dinner Committee, has announced the feature speaker this evening will be Thacher Longstreta, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce since 1964 and a noted speaker throughout the area. Mr. Longstrcth, the Republican candidate for mayor of Philadelphia in 1955 and 1971 and city councilman at large 196671, also heads the PenJerDel Council, an economic development group serving the Delaware Valley. Besides the installation .and talk, this evening’s gathering will also serve as a mortgage burning ceremony for the bank note held on the Chamber’s headquarters building and information center off the Garden State Pkwy. in Court House; and the presentation of the Chamber’s 1960 Beautification Awards. THIS YEAR THERE ARE three categories with a dozen entries in all; they include: New Construction, Business — The 7* House Dinner Theatre. Swainton; and A A J Fisheries and Blue Claw Restaurant, Ocean Dr., Cold Spring; Renovation, Business^— The Gazette Building. Court House; Gazette leader parking area, North Wildwood; H.N. Hand office, Court House; Yankee Clipper Motel landscaping, Wildwood Crest; Goodie Corner, Ocean City; Cape Island Campground entrance, Erma; and Wildwood Linen Supply, Wildwood Crest; Clvic/Communlty/Non-pro/lt — The Dominic Raffa Community Center, Sea Isle City; Lower Township Municipal Hati; (Page 3 Please)

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST Eric Heiden, in Wildwood Saturday for the International Pro-Am Bike Race, whs probably the most popular guy In town, certainly among these young autograph seekers at Marine National Bank.

Bill Boosts Ailing Fishing Industry

•Additional low cost housing. A TOTAL OF 55 citizens helped compile the report, being forwarded to Washington via Trenton, which lists economic security as first in the concern of those 60 and over, with inflation as the number one problem. Those present recommended no limit on earnings for Social Security recipients. They asked tax relief in double exemptions. "Tax structure should consider age instead of income," one suggested. Others recommended elimination of energy taxes, elimination of mandatory retirement, and a standardization of pharmaceutical costs. HEALTH recommendations included national health insurance, intermediary care facilities, educate physicians to geriatric needs, expansion of medical social services, and nursing home monitoring. In transportation, the forum urged "additional and convenient" public transportation, and the provision of more medical transportation. Following discussion of living arrangements, there were recommendations for additional low-cost housing and the elimination of age barriers in congregate housing facilities. SPECIAL concerns reported to the forum included a recommendation to encourage elderly to become self-reliant and involved socially, culturely and educationally. The countywide results will be forwarded to the Governor’s Conference on Aging for consideration in the spring. Refined, they then will be considered during the national White House Conference on Aging next fall.

Registered? Next Monday, Oct. 6, is the last day to register for the Nov. 4 General Election. In addition to President, area voters next month will help decide who will represent them in Congress, on the County Board of Freeholders, and, in some instances, municipal government. Two state bond issues and three proposed amendments to the state constitution will be decided also. See today’s Editorial Page for a mail-in Registration Form. Or register in person at the municipal clerk’s office or County Election Board.

WASHINGTON, DC. - Legislation sponsored by Congressman Bill Hughes designed to provide a lift for the country’s slumping fish industry has been approved by the House of Representatives. According to Hughes the legislation is particularly important for South Jersey, where fishermen have been hit hard by inflation, rising fuel costs, and depressed market conditions in the industry. "I'M VERY PLEASED that this bill has passed the house." Hughes stated in a new release "Our fishing industry has probably suffered as much as any other industry in the country in recent years because of poor economic conditions. It’s gotten to the

point where some fishermen arc forced to tie their boats to the dock, rather than go to sea." Hughes said the legislation complements a number of projects which are already underway in South Jersey to help improve the commerciarfishing industry. Just last week, he pointed out. the Economic Development Administration approved a $52,256 grant to Middle Township to study the feasibility of building a fish processing plant in Cape May County. HUGHES. WHO worked with township officials in support of the application, said (Page 3 Please)

DEDICATION CEREMONIES Sanday at the Great Havea complex for the county's new $475,699 training center far police, fire and rescue personnel attracted several hundred persons. In addition to all five county freeholders, officials taking part in the ribboncutting included members of the committee who will over see the facility: Lower Township Police Cpt. Larry Dalton, second left; next to him Erma Fire Chief Bob MeNaulty, and Cape May Rescue Squad Chief Joseph Crouch, right. With scissors Is North Wildwood Fire Chief George Curvan who was cited for being especially Instrumental in the facility's expansion.

Co. Seeks Bikeway Grant COURT HOUSE - The County Planning Board has formally applied for a government grant to fund an $80,000 bike path along Sunset Blvd. in the southern part of the Jersey Cape. In announcing the board had made formal application with the state Dept, of Transportation for the bikeway proposal, Freeholder Gerald Thornton said the project "will be the first in a series of bikeways throughout the county ." Ironically, it was Thornton's predecessor, formef freeholder Bernard Berk of Cape May, who had announced a similar bike route and others in 1976 Those much touted paths, however, never came to fruition. THE 2.2 MILE I^)NG bikeway along Sunset Blvd. would parallel one of the (Page 3 Please)