The LuLac Edition #2997, July 22nd, 2015

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

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(Photo: LuLac archives, Garden 253 N. Main).

THE HISTORY OF THE TOMATO FESTIVAL

Our friend Wil Toole sent me an e mail this week telling me he has been asked many times to write a piece on the history of the Pittston Tomato Festival because as time goes on, the true history and purpose gets lost to those who prepare current articles which will be destined to tell our history.
Toole brings up a good point because the news media is now populated by people who weren’t there to see an event born. Now I give all due respect to the news reporters of today but Toole brings some interesting insights into the history. We’re sharing that this week on “Write On Wednesday”.
Dear Editor,
As one of the few remaining original organizers of the Pittston Tomato Festival and Farmer's Market, I have often been asked how the whole thing actually began and where the idea came from. I tried to recall the events as best I could and put the details from the very beginning right up to present day. I hope that you will publish this history in its entirety to preserve what has become an important that has survived over 30 years. I'm not sure if this would be a letter to the editor or a news article.
How the Pittston Tomato Festival Started
Tuesday night at the Gramercy Restaurant in Pittston was what we called Bowling Night. I won't go into who the "bowlers" were but most were well known Pittston Area guys. Conversation was always lively and the image of Pittston was often the topic.
Having lived in South Pittston all my life, I had many Italian Americans as friends and there was not a bad guy among them. We didn't understand nationalities and it never mattered to us where our families migrated from. The character of the person is the only thing that mattered.
I've been asked how the idea of a Tomato Festival originated so I will tell the story of how and why the Festival began. During those days, Pittston was known as the Voter Fraud Capital of the World, it was also known as the birthplace of the Mafia in America. That was my childhood background and the reputation of Pittston at that time and that was the basis of the Tomato Festival, to change the image of our city.
After much discussion of our city's image, I thought it was time for a real change and so I, along with the late Paul McGarry, P.J. Melvin, Ken Scaz and Anne Bradbury began to meet. Our thought was to create an event to facilitate the needed change. At first, it was our thought to renew the former Miss Wyoming Valley pageant which was a stepping stone to Miss PA and eventually Miss America. The logical person to go to for advice on that was the late Joe Ristagno of the famous Ristagno's Bakery. Joe was always very involved in the Arts and in particular, the Wyoming Valley Beauty Pageant. We invited Joe to a meeting and explained our goal and the first thing he said was the pageant is a one day affair and we needed a weekend event. We talked about various events around the country including a Garlic Festival and even a Cow Chip Festival. We needed a "thing" that would be catchy and never used before. Ken Scaz mentioned that his neighbor Val Delia was a tomato enthusiast, thus the Pittston Tomato Festival.
At first, the name sounded ridiculous and impossible to make into a big event, especially one that would last a weekend. But that's what we settled on and we invited Val Delia to meet with us and to say he was thrilled would be a gross understatement, he loved the idea. It was agreed that he and Ken Scaz would go to Mayor Tom Walsh to seek the city's blessings and Tom being his usual self said he never stood in the way of a party. He allowed Paul McGarry, then City Administrator and me (I was the Mayor's deputy) to spend a few working hours devoted to organizing the soon to be great and long lasting Pittston Tomato Festival.
Val Delia explained the 1920's term "Pittston Tomato" as the term the NY and NJ wholesalers used to describe the tomatoes grown in this area simply because they were shipped out of Pittston, the term "Pittston Tomato" was born. Make no mistake, these dealers wanted the Pittston Tomato as it was known for its taste. Val explained that the name referred to all tomatoes grown between Tunkhannock and Berwick and it got its' great taste from the acidity in our soil due to the presence of coal.
We promoted the Pittston Tomato as the greatest tasting tomato in the world and Pittston as the Tomato Capital of the world. I recall an incident when an out of town newspaper reporter called city hall and spoke with Paul McGarry and asked him how he knew that the Pittston Tomato had the greatest tomato taste in the world and Paul with is quick wit said simply he knew it because Mayor Walsh said it and everyone knows Mayor Walsh would never lie. So there it was, proof positive that the Pittston Tomato was the greatest tomato in the world and Pittston City was the world's tomato capital.
The success of the Tomato Festival was due to hard working and dedicated citizens and the cooperation of the late Pidge Watson and the Sunday Dispatch along with the other Wyoming Valley media. We even had help with the production of free TV commercials and almost constant media coverage during the festival. The small group quickly grew with dedicated members such as Emil and Honey Posluszny, Jimmy and Judy Deice, Stanley, Judy and daughter Angel Strelish, Sam Micelli, Bill Hopple. Bob Conway, Jay Goham, Gary Bradbury, Sam Valenti. the Farugia brothers, Sal and Steve and so many others contributed. I apologize if I’ve forgotten someone. The generosity of Atty. Michael Cefalo, the Insalaco brothers, Walter Kuharchik Electric who all donated to the purchase of the band shell and the late George Menn of Pittston Electric who believed in our effort and gave us all of the electrical equipment on credit, the Pittston Tomato Festival was off and running.
The spin off benefit of the event which became a driving point for us was the opportunity for small non-profit and volunteer organizations to have the entire functioning facility available to them for the cost of only $150.00. We provided a space 10 feet wide by 20 feet deep, lighting, electricity, tent coverage, entertainment, rest room facilities, security and garbage removal. Space was given on a first come basis with non-profit and volunteer groups getting preference, followed by local individuals working as a neighborhood group and finally professional vendors. During the management of the original festival organizers, non-profit and volunteer groups made up over 65% of the stands with the remaining being filled with neighborhood friends and professional vendors. The Finance Committee determined each year what the minimum amount of "rent" was needed to cover the expenses of the festival. It was never the goal for the festival to make money, just to cover expenses.
At the same time the first Festival was being planned, Ken Scaz and I drove to every farmer's market we could find in Luzerne and Lackawanna counties begging farmers to come to the newly formed Pittston Farmer's Market. As the chairman of the farmer's market, I was about to pull the plug on the idea because farmers said they just didn't have time for another market, they needed time to work the fields. With just days to go before the planned opening date, Plains farmer Harold Golomb and a few others decided to give it a try and the farmer's market was a huge success (Golomb Farms continue to this day to sell produce in Pittston). Every Tuesday we had fresh locally grown produce, entertainment, great news coverage and the cooperation of the late great Manny Gorden and help from the state's Dept. of Agriculture. The parking lot on Kennedy Blvd., now the home of the Burger King, became a very busy spot on Tuesdays and was the original location of the Pittston Tomato Festival.
Now, 32 years later, the Pittston Tomato Festival and the Pittston Farmer's Market survive and flourish and with the new addition of the Pittston City St Patrick's Parade, Pittston will soon become known as the Citizen Volunteer Capital of the World.
Wil Toole
Original Organizer and Former General Chairman
EDITOR’S NOTE: Toole tells me the article also appeared recently in The Sunday Dispatch this past week. Here’s the Dispatch link:  http://pittstonprogress.com/news/how-the-farmers-market-and-tomato-festival-took-root-1.1910152