Press and Sun-Bulletin from Binghamton, New York • Page 3

COMMUNITYSTATE 4B Press Sun-Bulletin JVednesday, October JMj. 2000 West Point ignored fire safety rules, Labor Department says Lazio acknowledges running out-of-state TV ads OSHA is very mindful of the fact that not having adequate md properly unctioni ng fire alarm systems can have catastrophic consequences, as happened at Seton Hall University in New Jersey in 1999," said John Tomich, OSHA area director. ASSOCIATED PRESS WEST POINT The U.S. Military Academy was cited for lacking a fire alarm system and failing to provide access to an unlocked door exit in one of its buildings, the Department of Labor announced. posted daily at pressconnects.com Obituaries Lazio's fund-raising has relied heavily on direct-mail appeals attacking Clinton and the president.

McLagan said the Lazio Web site has brought in more than 1.6 million from 13,754 donors, but he n't know how much was raised by the national TV ad. Lazio plans to campaign upstate for most of this week. Clinton said Tuesday that she plans to go "upstate as often as I can in the remaining month." In remarks to 30 parents at the Cobble Hill Playgroup Preschool, Clinton reiterated her proposal to ban commercials aimed at very young children. She said her staff documented 162 ads during four hours of Saturday morning cartoons, mostly ads for cereals, toys and video games. Clinton called for Congress to restore the Federal Trade Commission's power to regulate ads aimed at preschoolers.

As an alternative to loading the shows with ads, she proposed public service announcements, ads aimed at parents or commercial-free shows. Clinton said she plans to celebrate her 25th wedding anniversary today with the president in Chap-paqua. Asked for the key to a long marriage, she laughed and said, "Stamina." CLINTON LAZIO approved of the ad strategy. "We should be looking for ways for the ordinary citizen to participate, not stuffing $500,000 checks in our pockets from West Coast concerns," Lazio said. Howard Wolf son, a Clinton campaign spokesman, said the first lady's campaign wasn't running out-of-state ads.

"It's time for Rick Lazio to come clean about his secret fund-raising strategy and release all of his fund-raising ads and letters immediately," Wolfson added. "In the summer, Mr. Lazio said he didn't write a negative fund-raising letter that he signed. Now, he doesn't know about a negative fund-raising ad that has been running for nearly two months." Relying heavily on what have become known as "Hillary haters" across the country, Lazio has raised more money than the first lady in recentweeks $10.7 million to her $2.6 million in the five weeks before Sept. 30.

Clinton camp criticizes move BY MARC HUMBERT Associated Press ROCHESTER Republican Rick Lazio has not only sent out fund-raising letters to non-New Yorkers in his bid to beat Hillary Rodham Clinton in New York's U.S. Senate race, he's used TV ads to pry that money loose, aides said Tuesday. Lazio spokesman Dan McLagan said fund-raising appeals have run on cable networks like MSNBC, CNBC and the Weather Channel. He said they started running before the national political conventions. "It's a small buy," McLagan said, describing it as probably under $100,000.

The ad lists Lazio's Web site and a toll-free number. Asked about the ad strategy during a campaign stop in Rochester on Tuesday, Lazio professed little knowledge of it. "New Yorkers watch those things," he said of the cable networks. Asked if the ads were running outside New York, Lazio said, "I don't know." Later, after a campaign appearance in Syracuse, Lazio said he Settlement called ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK Six large vitamin manufacturers that boosted profits by conspiring to fix prices in the 1 990s have agreed to pay $335 million to states to settle litigation. Many attorneys general called it a landmark settlement.

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said the agreement was the largest antitrust settlement ever negotiated by the states. "We have alleged that from 1989 through last year, these six companies met in secret at various locations throughout the world to conspire to fix prices and control the sale of vitamins and vitamin products throughout the LInited States," he said. landmark for vitamin makers, states The Labor Department said on Tuesday that the school committed two willful and four serious vio-. lations of safety and health standards. "West Point has basically failed to follow proper fire safety procedures at this building for four years.

Albert W. Kozina of Binghamton Albert W. Kozina, 72, of Binghamton died after an extended illness at Binghamton General Hospital, Satur- day, October 7, 2000. Predeceased by his parents, brothers and sisters. Sur- vived.by one sister, Elizabeth M.

Konecny, Endwell; one nephew, Jo seph; two nieces, Dolores and Blanche, He was a veteran of the United States Merchant Marines. Private Graveside services will be held at the convenience of the family. Burial will be in Riverhurst Cemetery, Endicott. Arrangements by the Allen Memorial Home, 511-513 East Main Endicott. Marion Parry Brock of Binghamton Marion Parry Brock, 87, of Bing hamton, loving mother, grandmother and great grandmother who will be sadly missed, died on Tuesday, October 10, 2UUU at Wilson Hospital.

She was predeceased by her husbands, John Parry and Rodney Brock. She is survived by one daughter and son-in- law; Eunice and Robert Hertzog, Bing hamton; two sons and daughters-in-law, John and Pat Parry Jupiter, Robert and Marlene Parry, Palm Beach, one brother, Stanley Cundey, Binghamton; grandchildren, Cheryl, Debbie, Terrie, Robert, Todd, John, Renee, Drew, Leigh; 15 great grandchildren; several nieces and nephews. She was a member of the Boulevard United Methodist Church. A Funeral service will be held on Thursday at 12 noon at the Barber Memorial Home 428 Main Johnson City. Her Pastor, the Rev.

C. Earle Cowden, will officiate. Burial will be in Vestal Hills Memorial Park. The family will receive friends on Thursday at 11 a.m. until the time of the service at the Barber Memorial Home.

Donations in her memory may be made to the Memorial Fund of the Boulevard United Methodist Church, 1 13 Grand Binghamton, N.Y. 13905. Bertha M. Kithcart of Windsor, N.Y. Bertha M.

Kithcart, of Windsor, went to be with her Lord, Tuesday, October 10, 2000 with her loving family by her side. She was predeceased by her son, Floyd Hill, and a sister, Phoebe Wiggins. She is survived by her loving husband of 46 years, Harold Kithcart; four sons, William and Sue (Marion), Johnson City, Brian and Peg (Margaret) Kithcart, Tampa, Michael and LeeAnn Kithcart, Windsor, and David Kithcart, Windsor; 12 grandchildren; a niece, Ruth and Nelson Pratt, Newark Valley; nephew, Ralph and Ruth Wiggins, Wooddale, one sister-in-law, Doris Kithcart, Zephyr Hills, one daughter-in-law, Ellen Hill, Endicott. Bertha enjoyed gardening and butterflies, but most of all she, enjoyed spending time with her loving family and dear friends. Funeral services will be held Friday, October 13, 2000, at 2 p.m.

at Wm. R. Chase Sons Funeral Home, 88 Chapel Windsor, N.Y. with Rev. Jose Valencia officiating.

Burial will be at Knox Cemetery, Ouaquaga, N.Y. Friends may call at the funeral home Thursday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. In lieu of flowers, those wishing, kindly consider memorial contributions to the Diabetes Association of the Southern Tier, PO Box 5, Johnson City, N.Y. 13790-0005, the National Kidney Foundation of Upstate N.Y., Central N.Y. Chapter, 731 James Syracuse, N.Y.

13203, or the Blind Work Association, 55 Washington Bing hamton N.Y. 13901. Stephen F. Zunic of Endwell Stephen F. Zunic, 83, of Endwell passed away Monday morning, October 9, 2000 at the Vestal Nursing Center.

He was predeceased by his wite, Edna T. Zunic in December of 1995. He is survived by one daughter, Kathleen M. Zunic, Allentown, four sons and three daughters-in-law, Stephen F. Zun ic, Binghamton, John M.

and Diane Richard D. and Kerilee Zunic, Kenneth C. and Debbie Zunic, all of Maine, N.Y.; five grandsons, John Jr. and his wife, Beth Ann, Joseph, Kenneth, Daniel and Mickey; three brothers, Paul, Gregory and Joseph; three sisters, Katherine and Elizabeth; also many nieces, nephews and cousins. He was a member of St.

Casimir's Church, Endicott; a veteran of the U.S. Army serving during World War 11 and a retired Lndicott Johnson employee. Steve was well known for his gardens, flower beds and oil paintings. The family wishes to thank the staff and residents of Vestal Nursing Center for the love and compassion that was given to Steve dunng his stay with them. Funeral services will be held Thurs day, 9:30 a.m.

from the 'Leon Pucedo runeral Home, imo Watson Endicott and at 10 a.m. at St. Casimir's Church where a Funeral Mass will be offered. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the Pucedo Funeral Home, Wednesday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m.

Expressions of sympathy in memory of Mr. Zunic may be made to St Casimir's Church Memorial Fund. 212 N. McKinley Endicott, N.Y. 13760.

If Obituaries Senior citizens' prescription costs outpace Social Security Elizabeth Watkins of Apalachin A Memorial Mass for Elizabeth Watkins will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at St. Margaret Mary Church, 1110 Pennsylvania Ave, Apalachin. The family will receive friends from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Coleman Daniels Funeral Home, Rt.

434, Apalachin. Anne Rudy Jablonski of Vestal Funeral services for Anne Rudy Jablonski will be held Wednesday, October 11, 2000, at 10 a.m. at the Chopyak-Schneider Funeral Home, 326 Prospect Street, Binghamton, with the Very Rev. James Dutko officiating. Interment will be in St.

Michael Cemetery, Binghamton, N.Y. In lieu of flowers, you may make memorial contributions in Anne's memory to the Vestal Nursing Home, 860 Vestal Road, Vestal, N.Y. 13850. Ray C. Everett of Great Bend, Pa.

Funeral services for Ray C. Everett, will be held at the Tuttle-Yeisley Funeral Home, Hallstead, Pa. on Thurs day, October 12, 2000, at 2 p.m. with Pastor Craig Mark, officiating. Interment will be in Woodlawn Cemetery, Great Bend, Pa.

The family will receive relatives and friends on Wednesday evening from 7 to 9 p.m. at the funeral home. Memorial donations may be sent to the Lourdes Hospice, Binghamton, N.Y. 13905 or the Alzheimer's Unit of Vestal Nursing Center, Vestal, N.Y. 13850.

Q- In Memorial In Loving Memory of James H. Harris 2817 to 101198 Dad, it's been 2 long years since we've seen your smiling eyes heard that famous Harris laugh. Sis I miss your guidance wisdom. We could always go to you Dad, no matter what. We all love miss you very much.

You are in our hearts always. Love, Wife Lillian, Children, Maria Ellen Terry, Mary Jane Denny, Grandchildren, Bill, Kara Chris, Great Granchild, Scotty. In Loving Memory of Bob Luke Jr. 1-14-48 to 10-11-93 Bob, Help us to be more like you. Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light. Where there is sadness, joy.

Oh Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; To be understood, as to understand; To be loved, as to love; For it is in giving, that we receive, It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; And it is in dying, we are born to Eternal Lite. Love, Cookie, Jason, Kate and Monica In Loving Memory of Luke Malarkey 101123 to 43089 Although your presence is always with us; your face and voice in our minds, your honor in how we live, your love in our hearts, still there's nothing we wouldn give to laugh at your witty humor, smell the scent of your cigar, here your truck pull up the drive, and feel your rib crushing hug, just one more time. Loving and missing you on birthday and always, your In Loving Memory of Buddy Reilly October 11, 1959 September 22, 2000 You are gone, but not forgotten. We all love you. Love, Fran and your children Forever in our Hearts In Loving Memory of Connor "Beeper" Burrows August 17, 1991 October 11, 1997 Love you always.

Miss you even more. Mom, Dad, Adam and Misty The Obituaries, In Memoriams and Cards of Thanks that appear here are paid announcements. The list of deaths that appears elsewhere in this section, is provided free of charge. Obituary Department: 798-1104. HOURS: Monday-Friday Saturday Sunday Holidays Thomas M.

O'Hara of Vestal Thomas M. O'Hara, 92, a lifelong resident ot vestal, died Sunday after noon, October 8, 2000, surrounded by his family. He is survived by his loving wife of 65 years, Julia C. (Hogan) O'Hara, Vestal; two daughters and six sons, Mary A. O'Hara, Vestal, Julia E.

O'Hara Murphy and Timothy Murphy, Naperville, 111., Thomas H. O'Hara, Vestal, Gerald E. and Peggy O'Hara, Chenango Forks, Robert J. and Ro-seanne O'Hara, James B. and Mary Ann O'Hara, all of Vestal, Edward J.

O'Hara, of White Plains, N.Y. Joseph M. and Maureen Hara, Lutherville, 19 grandchildren, 14 great-grand children; his surviving sister, Eleanor K. Hara Yonkin; also many nieces, nephews and cousins. Tom was a member of St.

Vincent De Paul Church, Vestal, and a member of St. Vincent's Men's Club and the Vincentian's; member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians; retired 29 year employee of the IBM Corporation and a member ot the IBM Quarter Century Club. His family was one of the original residents of Vestal and owner of a large dairy farm. In his youth, he was a well-known area baseball player. He continued his love of baseball by being an original founding father of the Vestal Little League, a manager of a team for 14 years, where he was affectionately called "Coach Casey" and was a loyal follower ot the New York Yankees Funeral services will be held at the J.A.

McCormack Sons Funeral Home, 141 Main Binghamton, Thursday, at 10: iO a.m. and at 11 a.m. at St. Vincent De Paul Church, where a Funeral Mass will be offered. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery, Johnson City.

The family will receive friends at the McCormack Funeral Home, Wednesday, from 4 to 8 p.m. Expres sions of sympathy in memory of Tom may be made to St. Vincent De Paul Church, 165 Clubhouse Road, Vestal, N.Y. 13850 or the Vestal Emergency Squad, 324 Myrtle Vestal, N.Y 13850. Audrey Morgan DeVaul of Lynchburg, Va.

Audrey Morgan DeVaul, 78, of Lynchburg, died Monday, October 9, 2UUU, in Avanu at Lynchburg, she was the wife of Robert E. DeVaul. She was born March 3, 1922, in Johnson City, the daughter of the late, Elmer Joe" Morgan and Virginia Urce Mor- gan. She was a member of Heritage 'Baptist Church. In addition to her husband, she is survived by two sons, Robert E.

DeVaul and his wife, Carol, Lynchburg and Randy E. DeVaul and his wife, Lori, Chester, one brother, Donald Morgan, Binghamton; four sisters, Dawn Edwards, Binghamton, Beverly Fleming, Vestal, Joan Drum, Johnson City and Myra Anglin, Springfield, six grandchildren and six great grandchildren. A Memorial service will be held at 1 p.m., Thursday, in Whitten Timberlake Chapel in Lynchburg, Va. Ira V. Kunkel of Windsor, N.Y.

Ira V. Kunkel, 78, of Windsor, N.Y., passed away at his home, Sunday October 8, 2000. He is survived by one brother, Frank Kunkel, Afton, N.Y.; two sisters, Aline Randall, Chenango Bridge, N.Y., and Helen Dickinson, Ouaquaga, N.Y.; and many nieces and nephews. Ira belonged to the NYS Trappers Association, and was an avid bowler and a true outdoorsman. A Memorial service will be held Saturday, October 14, 2000, at 11 a.m.

at the Windsor United Methodist Church with Rev. John Goodell officiating. Friends may call at the church Saturday from 10 a.m. until the time of the service. Arrangements are by Wm.

R. Chase Son Funeral Home, 88 Chapel Windsor, N.Y. Joan F. Higgins of Clearmont, Fla. A Memorial Mass for Joan F.

Higgins, will be held at 10 a.m., Saturday, October 14, 2000, at St. Rita's Church in Chenango Forks. The Rev. Stanley Gerlock, will officiate, with the assistance of Rev. Tim Teeter, of West Point, Miss.

Immediately following the service Joan will be laid to rest in Calvary Cemetery next to her son, Kevin, who predeceased her in January 2000. Charles W. Rising of Vestal There will be a Memorial service in celebration of Charles W. Rising's life on Wednesday, October 11, at 10 a.m. at Ross Comers Baptist Church, Owego Vestal, at which the Rev.

Rollin Howard will officiate. In lieu of flowers and in loving memory of his work with youth, contributions can be sent to the Youth Building Project at Ross Corners Baptist Church, 2101 Owego Vestal, N.Y. 13850. Ella R. Walker of Smithville, N.Y.

A Memorial Service for Ella R. Walker will be held Saturday, October 14, 2000 at 1 p.m. at the Smithville Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Lynn Shepard Dildine officiating. Memorial contributions in her memory may be made to the Smithville Presbyterian Church, Smithville Flats, N.Y.

13841. Arrangements are under the direction of the Root Funeral Home, 23 N. Chenango Greene. Four former executives of BASF and Hoffman-La Roche agreed earlier this year to plead guilty, pay fines and serve time in U.S. prisons for scheming to fix vitamin prices.

With the settlement announced Tuesday, the companies will pay $255 million to create separate funds to benefit consumers, farmers and grocery store owners and state governments. A separate $80 million settlement with California brings the total to $335 million. A total of $1 17.6 million will go to nonprofit charitable groups and local governments. Spitzer said $19 million of the $25 million to be given to New York State will be used to fund programs in areas, including prenatal care. cent.

The Consumer Price Inde, a widely-used government measurement of how much prices have change over time, increased 23 percent during the same period of time. As a result, since 1993, elderly people have had to spend an average of 82 percent more to buy prescription pharmaceuticals, while their incomes have gone up by less than half that rate. Today, many elderly couples spend as much as 13 percent of their income buying prescription drugs, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute study. Jeff Trewhitt, a spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Researchers and Manufacturers of America, which represents many of the nation's biggest drug makers, acknowledged that drug prices have shot up in the last decade, but he said the Fiscal Pol icy Institute report is misleading because the price increases seem to have moderated in the last year or two. "We are moving away from hospitalization and toward the use of more drugs in medicine," Trewhitt said on Tuesday.

"That has caused a big increase in volume usage, but it has paid off in terms of better health." CONTINUED FROM IB from Social Security, which has increased what it pays to retirees by 23 percent since 1991. During the same period of time, the average price of prescription drugs increased by 58 percent, according to the study. The institute's study is set to be published at a time when there is an enormouspolitical dispute being waged in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere over how much the elderly have to pay for the prescription drugs that keep their hearts from malfunctioning or that help tame their arthritis. That question has been one of the most divisive problems to come before Congress this year and it is among the biggest issues in this year's presidential campaign. The elderly are particularly ceptible to high drug prices because, as a group, they tend to use more prescription drugs than the rest of the population, but fewer of them have health insurance to help offset the cost.

Largely as a result, lawmakers are considering ways to add prescription coverage to Medicare, the government's health insurance F. Hoffmann-La Roche of Switzerland; BASF of Germany; Aventis of France; and Japanese companies Takeda Chemical Industries Eisai Co. and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co. took part in the settlement. The settlement follows a Justice Department investigation that led Hoffman-La Roche and BASF to be ordered to pay $725 million in criminal fines for colluding to divide up markets and set wholesale prices.

Justice Department officials say the vitamin conspiracy from January 1990 to February 1999 drove up the price of vitamins commonly used as nutritional supplements or to enrich food such as milk and bread as well as animal feed. program for the elderly. Citizen Action, which paid for the report, has lobbied heavily for such legislation and has sought on several occasions to inject the issue of prescription costs into many of the nation's political campaigns. But drug makers and industry groups said the pattern found by the Fiscal Policy Institute has been apparent at least anecdotally for some time. "There's no question that this report is correct.

Thcincreases are enormous," said Robert Milanese, the president of the National Association for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers, which represents many of the nation's low-cost drug makers. The report, titled Impossible and Housing or Prescription Drugs, says the price increases have been driven by a flood of expensive new drugs that have been appearing on pharmacy shelves in recent years and by sharp spikes in the cost of drugs that already were on the market. In the last eight years, the average cost of filling one prescription has gone up by almost 50 percent, while the cost of food, for example, has increased by only 22 per program, with more than 3,000 of them in Broome County. Under the new guidelines, almost 250,000 people will be eligible. The typical EPIC participant is a 79-year-old widow living on an income of $12,000.

Just under half of the participants are more than 80 years old and nearly 80 percent are women. The average cost of prescription drugs for participants is about $2,800, EPIC Community Outreach Representative Everett Thompson said. That's about $400 shy of what the Chamberlins pay for prescription medications each year. Although most of Walter Chamberlin's medications are paid for through his veteran's benefits, he has watched with dismay at the climbing cost of a cholesterol medication for his wife Prescription plan will save money CONTINUED FROM 1 to get the word out to residents like the Chamberlins. He will likely face more questions about what drugs are covered (almost all prescribed, even name brands) and whether coverage could extend to anyone younger than 65 (it won't).

"What's exciting is we have an opportunity to help people reduce the cost of prescription drugs," Libous said. "This is an excellent program." The expanded EPIC eligibility requirements were made possible by additional state tax money and an influx of $125 million from tobacco settlement funds into the program. The extra money also means lower co-payments and fees for participants. More than 120,000 state residents are currently enroOed in the EPIC "Every time I turn around to get a new prescription, the price has gone up," Gloria Chamberlin said. Her husband said the EPIC requirements should provide relief from some of those costs, but insurance and medication expenses for the couple total nearly $5,000 each year.

That has meant making sacrifices here and there, sometimes canceling small trips they had hoped to take, Gloria Chamberlin said. It's those small sacrifices that Thompson hopes seniors will be able to avoid under the expanded program. "You can take yourself out to dinner," Thompson said. "Head out to the South for the winter. Take a vacation." "Just stay away from the casino," he joked.

of 54 years, Gloria..