>«P^awffPP*Bwnap*«li«P*^ m^mmmmmmmm^m^mmmmfmmfmmr^mm wmmmmm Family reunion a Happy occasion, A3 HonKnown <onvr.su:.M H'»NS M.I WOHK Putting you in touch Thursday with your world September 2,1999 '-Servingthe'WestlandCommunity for 35 years VOLUME 35 NUMBER 26 WESTWND, MICHIGAN • §4 PAGES • http://observer.eccentric.com SEVENTY*BVE CENTS 0.1999HOM'CTO'WA CoirnnunlcAlions Network. Inc. IN THE PAPER Good time: Best of friends and Baby in neighbors TODAY Alyssa Brummit, 8, (left) a coma; fourth- grader, and - . r Alyssa Our picks: We offer our Genovese, endorsements for the 7% a third - Westland City Council grader, walk to primary Sept. 14. The Madison general election is Nov. Element aty in grief 2./MO on their first day of school yes­ • A Westland infant is in a COMIUNITY LIFl coma after apparently terday. rolling off a floor mattress Below, ner­ and coming" close to suffo­ Shaping up: Kathy Ship­ vous on cating. Police don't believe ley of Plymouth doesn't let starting foul play is a factor. her multiple sclerosis get her first day as a BY DARRELL Cl.F.M in the way of exercising. first-grad­ STAFF WKITK.R She uses her walker for er, Corey [email protected] balance while doing the Kelly, 5, A 4-week-old Westland piii remained characteristic slow, grace­ holds onto in a coma Wednesday five days after her mother said she rolled off a Hour ful movements oftai her mother, mattress and nearly died from suffoca­ chi./Bl Chris Kelly. tion, police said. The baby - a twin - couldn't be revived despite attempts" by her moth­ er, Westland police officers and para­ AT HOME STAFF PHOTOS BY TOM llAWIXY medics. The newborn had stopped breathing Art with heart: Decorative when her mother found her about 9 artist Diane Bert of a.m. Friday on the living room floor School bell ringing her face pressed against a small mat­ Bloomfield Hills, former tress where she had been sleeping, principal of MacGowan police Sgt. Michael Terry said.. Bi' JULIE BROWN stopped by. The incident happened -inside-the Elementary School in STAFF WRITER "He was here," said Principal Mary family's residtnee on Ginger, in the [email protected] Red ford, puts joy as well Goedert. "Hi* missed Kalamazoo" and Westland Meadows mobile home park as creativity into her ednesday was the first day came to Madison: The evening on the city's southeast side, of school in Way tie-West - included other musical entertain­ "The baby, according to the mother, work./DS land, and all was well at ment, and parents could sign up fur had rolled off the mattress, and its face w had become compressed against the Madison Elementary. events and conferences. "It's going to be a great year." said The school on Carlson sunt}] uf side of the mattress."' Terry said. PTA President/parent Fred Weaver, Cherry Hill ha,s some 480 students in "From the preliminary stages of our' •pausing from answering the office kindergarten through fifth grade. investigation, no foul, play has been phone and greeting visitors shortly The open house party ease'i trars, of found at this time." he said. Jazz: Dave Brubeck will before school started. ''We've got a lot many, Goedert said. After finding the baby, the 26-,'year- be performing this Mon­ planned." "We're going to have just an out­ old mother tried to revive her by call­ Students at Madison got a preview standing year." The'school has new ing 911 and following a dispatcher'-; day at the Montreux Jazz of the school year Tuesday night with CPR instructions, Terry said. Festival, at Hart Plaza, a party at school. Elvis Presley • Please see SCHOOL, A3 Two police officers who arrived at the house also tried to revive the baby, as along the Detroit river­ .did four Westland paramedics while front. /El rushing the infant to Oakwood Hospi­ tal/Annapolis Center in Wayne, Theater: Laurie Kuhlman "There was no noticeable change Get your motor running for event between the residence and the hospi­ of Livonia creates a tal," Fire Chief Mark Neal said. believable and t?,u$ti?ig The baby was iiansferred to Oak- BY DARRELL CLEM for charities it supports. wood Hospital in Dearborn, where her Jenny in the Marquis STAFF WfilTKR The group, sponsored by.Motor City Harley Davidson.-of condition still hail n't improved Theatre production of——>- [email protected] -Kofjiiiiigtiai-i Hills ha^-seen its event steadily-grow since it Wednesday.. ".'•'» . "RumplestUtskin.", , These motorcyclists are HOG wild about helping children. started five years ago. "the t)ab\.ts in critical Condi:ion ;mii' Hundreds of bikers are expected to join a Sept. 19 'toy . "We started it as a toy run in honor of a couple of our. in a-coma;" Terry.said.- run" that starts 4nd'ends in Westland, winding through. deceased. members," chapter director David Higgins, better Police described the mother and i-ht- Livonia, Plymouth, Northville, Garden City'and other com­ known as "Mother Dave," said. SO'vear-old father as very distraught: munities! - . Higgins, a Westland resident, earned his nickname some . "It's just ai\ unbelievable tragedy." The Motor City Chapter of HOG (Harley Owners Group) Terry said, "My heart -.really goes out to hopes to collect hundreds of toys and thousands of dollars :;'. •• •'• • .-... '. •• • ; Pleaso see MOTOR, A12 Up," up and away: Midyear : Please see 8ABYtA12 home sales .prices'are up in most communitiesiin ciS western Way tie ami Oak­ y land coWitws' BY JULIE BROWN A funeral Mass was set for Thursday "He was kind of the inspiration Grandpa: STAFF WRiTKR morning at St. Richard's Catholic behind Toarmina's Pizza." Toarmina's jbrown^oe.homecomiriinet Frank Church in Westland. The elder Toarmi­ dad helped him establish the business na had founded Mickey's Dairy Twist after college. '. ' • Toarmina Lou Toarmina doesn't hesitate when relaxes asked what he'd like people to remem­ and later, with son Lou, Toarmina's. "It was his lessons that really made v ber about his dad, Prank Toarmina. Pizza. Frank Toarmina and wife Marie, it successful," with •."Thathe was a good friend and fami­ known as Mickey, had eight children. Frank Toarmina was vice president 'grand­ • Obituaries A2 ly man," said the younger Toarmina of The Toarmihas recently celebrated of his union at Uniroyal Tire Co. He daughter S Classified Index F5 his dad, who died at age 71 on .Monday. their 50thwedding anniversary. served in the U.S. Army .just before the Sarah. ' Real Estate F5 "He -had a great laugh and sense of "That's what .the ice cream stores Korean War. humor." His father loved the grandkids were named after," Toarmina said of He was an original member of West, Crossword G2 and was "just a nice man that every- his mother's nickname. There'are now land's Downtown Development Author- Jobs ;. G6 body liked," - ' ' three icecream stores and 18 pizzerias. '" ~~<~ ri»„l..rt ,.„,. Tfi A r>»«ii,i» To Home & Service Jl 1 iCanC Sec- lUniiiiiinni t\u Automotive J4 • Opinion A10-11 Part of history • Calendar B4 one problems vex • Sports; CI • RealEstate Fl couple from Westland ...,Tim. and Tina lkuczel of Westland the central office on HOW TO REACH US are getting some help with ongoing their line is being used. phone problems; "That would help us The Berczols l\ad reported other isolate the problem," Newsroom: 734-953-2104 calleis'.voicca bleeding through onto she said. Newsroom-Fex: 734-5917279 their lino; in some cases, they could"" "The—Here 7-el s^tnTd, £ma///J brown® 66, rt6mec6rnm.net talk to those people. reported phone prob­ Such crosstalk "is such a rare occur­ lems since April, Roehr ' Nigmiine/Sports :734-953-2104 rence affecting very, very few cus­ said. Thev also received Mary Roehr Reader Comment lit\e.•734-953-204 2 tomers," said Maty O'Connell Roehr, an AT&T bill with a Artieritcch Classified Advertising,:734-591-090 0 Amen tech spokeswoman.'Trying to call for more than $'J00 Display Advertising:734-591-230 0 identify its source "is particularly diffi­ they had not made. cult/' ''We have been working to help iden­ Hpme Delivery, 734-5910500 When Roehr left the Herczel home tify where the .problem is along the net­ Friday, Ameriteoh staffers were still work.". Roehr said of the crosstalk. '-It's working on the problem. A device at an intermittent .problem." STMT PlioIitM llHWMlll liHI Local lore: Frank.Hemhisz, Wayne County Office on Aging 'It's an intermittent problem/ director, has an office in one of the fciv remaining buddings that were part vf Eloise. The Flotse .story is told on l\igc AY. Maty O'Connell Roehr 6 63174 10011 6 ••••••Atneritccli Ifltt A2(W) The Observer & Eccentric/ THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1999 Toarmina from page A1 ity and served on an early com­ meet his parents. Man faces more trouble mission to study environmental Frank Toarmina was born Now, however, 36-year-old Mark Allen concerns, Dec: 21,1927, in Detroit. BY DARRELL CLEM he broke in on the 33-year-old woman and ST AFK WRITER her 43-year-old boyfriend, Terry said. Bookout faces a Sept. 9 court hearing on Frank Toarmina had had a Survivors include: wife, Marie [email protected] ._••*..-,•.: The suspect suffered the worst injuries new charges of first-degree home invasion, heart attack in early July and- G,; sons, Peter (Laurie) Toarmi­ neyer recovered; He was recently A Westland man, awaiting sentencing on during the scuffle, the sergeant said, but no aggravated stalking and assault.