European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 28, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Monday March 28, 1968 the stars and stripes Page 3 elementary school teacher Sylvia Zappoli a come full Circle und is now being Rumi Ilerd with her former students who Are returning m Wallora or sailors Simonella teacher sees sex students return Byj. Kin Cruger Mediterranean Bureau Simonella. Sicily when Sylvia Zappoli started teaching elementary school at inc naval air station in 1962, she never dreamed she would stay Long enough to is c former pupils return As adults. Some have come tuck As sailors others As wives of sailors Zappoli Laid one of my students who lived Ocul door to me about 20 years ago. Has re turned As an agent fur the naval investigative serv ice. I had him Over for dinner on sunday. Zappoli teaches second Grade Al is Gonella s Ste phen Decatur school. The school has 700 students in kindergarten through i2lh Grade. Most of those a to have come Back Haven t been surprised to still find me Here she said. There arc a Tot of is Gonella reunions held Back in the states and people keep up with what is happening with one another. I be Kepi in Contact with Many of the folks from the Early Days. There Are 250 names on my christinas card list Sylvia 2appoli was Sylvia Crock when she arrived Al Simonella to teach for the department of defense dependents schools. A native of Seattle Wash she had previously taught for the system at schools in Germany Japan and Turkey. We had five teachers plus a ice Chiffi principal to Leach about 125 kids in grades one through eight recalled Zappoli 57. A strange thing had happened the year before i arrived. They had too Many Leach cars then so they put them to work doing other jobs on base. As More kids came into the school they brought the teachers Back As teachers. In those Days there was so much housing on base that nearly everyone had to live there. Now housing is so scarce both on and off base thai everyone is scattered All Over the place Back then we had just one school bus and it was used to haul one child i think parents were slate department Back and Forth to Catania 12 Miles  she remembers inc american Community at then sleepy is Gonella As being very closely knit. "1 guess Here were probably i.6gd americans Here. Fifty people would Sec someone off at the air port. Now Simonella Home for nearly 7,000 Ameri cans counting dependents is so big you hardly know the person sitting next or you. Is Gonella started gelling More important and bigger around Itic time who club a in Libya closed. People now arc More Independent. They Don l share As much everyone lives so far apart that the care seems to have  Zappoli me her husband Luccio Al Signorella. And they were married in 1965. Their 20-year-old daughter Christina is a Junior at Seattle University. Luccio works in the family Marble business. His firm cuts and polishes Marble used for flooring stairs windowsills and sinks. Although Sylvia Zappoli spoke some italian when they were married her Hus band spoke no English. She soon remedied that situation. I put him in immigrant school in Seattle one summer and he loved it. Now he loves the slates and every Lime we come Back from Summers in Seattle he has trouble readjusting to the chaotic traffic conditions  Zappoli observed thai most of the changes she has seen on the Island have been for the better the roads have improved tremendously it used to Lake seven hours to drive from Here to Palermo. Now it lakes about two hours. Naples used to Lake 12 hours by Road and that s Down to about eight hours. Transportation is boiler now but Llic crime is worse. Television has had a tremendous Impact on Sicil Ian culture. A a pfc used to look very suspiciously at strangers and womb a were not free to go anywhere they pleased. Many of he sicilians looked upon women who were Oul on i hair own. As being promiscuous. That situation has changed greatly. Now the local women drive cars and have jobs. It has made for a a cider Culi Urc she said. Some of Zappoli s students love living in Sicily while others arc not Happy about being Here. It depends on the attitude of their Parynis kids who have parents who Are enthusiastic about being Here and who Lake them around the Island to Sec things like it. Sicily is somewhat like Naples in that people who love it really love it and people who hate n really Hale it. I think that what has kept me Here so Long aside from the fact that Sicily is my husband s Home is Sicily s wonderful weather great food and col Worful local festivals life overseas is so exciting thai the years seem to Al y by. I be still got awhile to go before 1 retire but when i do. I Wani to spend six months of the year Here and the other six months in stank. That would be Ideal City accounts released bankruptcy avoided East St. Louis. I. A a judge has lifted a freeze on inc City s Bank accounts that had threatened to cast the Community into bankruptcy it was Raponi d saturday. The St. Louis Post dispatch said a Compromise has been reached Between the City and the lawyer for a family seek ing payment of a u million jury award permitting the lifting of the Fame. The lawyer Clyde l Kuehn and City spokesman James Ingram would not comment on the n port. However a spokesman for the Union Bank of East St. Louis said the. Bank received a copy of the judge s order reins ing the accounts according to the news paper. It did not identify the spokesman. St Clair county circuit judge Roger m. Scrivnor drop own the freeze wednes Day in response 10 a Mamion filed by Kuehn. Who represents Walter Dubow of Granite City. Dubow suffered permanent brain damage in 1964 after being beaten by a cellmate Al the Hail St. Louis jail he was awarded $4 million and the Illinois supreme court ordered the City of  residents to pay the settlement. Kuehn successfully petitioned Scriv Ner to freeze the Hank accounts to Force i Cecily to comply with the order. The latest action Wilt allow at least 185,000 in outstanding checks o be cashed and probably came in time to enable the City to meet next week s payroll for its 300 employees treasurer Charlotte r. Moore said. The Post dispatch reported that inc Perec mini culls for payments 10 do Bow of $25.000 tuesday and a further $54,000 by May 17 to bring in Crest on the but Cuenl current. The newspaper said the agreement also Calls for monthly payments of 120,000 to my interest of 6 Perchem while kiting up a payment plan and a restructuring of the City s Utility tax Bonds a pay off the award