PITTSTON, Pa. — A month ago, the Pittston Redevelopment Authority bought some buildings with plans to develop them in the future. Before that can happen, they have to go through and clean out what's left behind in the old hospital and a nursing school.
"November 30, 1964,
Dear Miss Kennedy, I am a senior at Central Catholic High School in Kingston. I will be graduating this June 1965."
That's how a letter starts that Pittston Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Joe Chacke found inside an old desk inside the hospital.
"For the most part, when we acquire properties, we walk in, and it's just garbage and things that people didn't want. Every now and then, we find that rose in the thorns, like this letter," Chacke said.
The letter continues about the opportunities that were once present inside this building.
"I'm interested in your school of nursing and would appreciate any information you can send me about it. Also, will you please send me an application? Thank you."
"Respectful yours,
Virginia Tomasik"
The redevelopment authority wants to find someone connected to the letter's author.
"I would love to talk to her or somebody who knew her who was in the program. It would be so cool to just learn about it and what they had to do and what they went through," said Cara Wenger.
Folks with the redevelopment authority hope to integrate stories like Virginia's into the development, along with some of the old hospital equipment found on the fifth floor.
"The view is incredible from up here, especially on the roof and the fifth floor. You can see the whole valley pretty much in the river, so it's really, really neat, and I'm sure it'll be really cool once we have it developed into something in the future," Wenger said.
If you know a Virginia Tomasick who graduated from Central Catholic in Kingston in 1965, you're asked to contact the Pittston Redevelopment Authority.