Bena Mae’s Kitchen: America is changing, and I don’t like it

A flag is flying at half-staff outside The Hershey Co. plant in Reading, Pa. where production of York Peppermint Patties is ending. After 23 years in Reading, the chocolate maker is closing the plant Friday and moving production to a new factory it has built in Monterey, Mexico. Another Hershey plant in California has also closed its doors and moved to Mexico.

This makes me sick to the bottom of my stomach. All of my childhood memories are associated with the Hershey bar that cost a nickel in those days. That was when a nickel was hard to come by, but achieving that, I would spend an hour breaking off each delicious square, savoring each bite and making it last as long as I could. After I’d finished every last square, I would save the thin tinfoil wrapper and add it to a tinfoil ball, which was a national craze at the time. One man had saved enough of the tinfoil to make a ball that was 6 feet in diameter.

In time, I predict that all the Hershey plants will be out-sourced to other countries, which is a shame. It appears that “Made in America” is only a meaningless logo anymore. And I find this unconscionable.

I may be fighting my own little war but I refuse to buy anything not made in America if I can help it. And I intend to shop locally whenever possible. It is up to us to save our small town businesses from becoming karate shops and boarded up windows.

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Eddie Poynter:

What can I say about my good friend who departed this earth a few days ago?

If I were giving his eulogy, I would say that he never met a man who didn’t like him, the reversal of Will Rogers who said he never met a man he didn’t like, although this was also true of Eddie.

And he loved his home town and family and the abundance of friends who will mourn him but who will never forget him. In some ways he was larger than life and when he counted you as one of his friends, you knew you had a friend for life.

Before he became ill, he would call me on the phone to talk about old times or to tell me he liked an article I had written. In every conversation we wound up playing the game of one-upmanship or which of us could tell the tallest tale. Eddie usually won. He had the gift and I often accused him of kissing the blarney stone.

Corbin will miss Eddie Poynter. The likes of him doesn’t come around very often. But think of his beloved wife, Evelyn, and the host of friends who have passed over to the other side. What a welcome he will get!

This fruity frozen salad will tantalize your taste buds!

Frozen Fruit Salad

1/2 cup white sugar

2 cups water

1 (6 ounce) can frozen orange juice

concentrate, thawed

1 (6 ounce) can frozen lemonade

concentrate, thawed

4 bananas, sliced

1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple

with juice

1 (10 ounce) package frozen strawberries,

thawed

Dissolve sugar in the water. Add orange juice, lemonade, bananas, crushed pineapple with juice, strawberries and mix well. Pour into 9 x 13 inch glass pan. Freeze until solid. When ready to serve, let it sit out for about 5 minutes before attempting to cut.