STORIES FROM THE PAST

50 years ago

Bilingual education is just another means to provide an equal opportunity to all children in a democratic society.

This evaluation was made last night by Dr. Theodore V. Andersson to nearly 60 Imperial County school teachers and administrators at Ben Hulse Cafetorium, Imperial.

Andersson, chairman of the Department of Romance Languages at the University of Texas, has been acting as consultant to the Calexico Unified School District on its bilingual program, English as a Second Language (ESL).

In his speech on the problems of bilingual children, Andersson cited the struggle to provide opportunities for physically, mentally and emotionally handicapped children and noted “how very far we are from doing enough.”

Likewise, he felt, the bilingual program in elementary schools today is simply another extension of society’s attempts to bring the child to its full potential, even though “no one knows today the potential of a child.”

40 years ago

HOLTVILLE — Fire gutted the Alamo Theater on Thursday, wiping out another scene of this community’s youthful memories.

The fire was spotted shortly after 10 p.m. and firemen stayed on the scene until 3:30 a.m. today; they returned again at 7 a.m. to wet down hot spots.

There was immediate speculation among spectators that the fire had been set. Local people have good reason to suspect arson in big figures. In the past 15 years, the community has seen several fires blamed on arsonists, including a spectacular spree of haystack burning a year ago.

The Police Department said today that while arson is always suspected, there is as yet no evidence to indicate the theater fire was deliberately set.

Fire Chief Leslie Rubin said he still had no idea of how the fire started. The concrete block building was still too hot for investigation this morning.

The fire probably started at the rear of the building, which was built in 1948 by the late John A. DePaoli Sr.