Late Rep. Edward Staback praised by Josh Shapiro, Wayne County constituents

A long-time state representative and one of the few Democrats in that role to serve in Wayne County in recent decades, Edward G. Staback is remembered locally as one who served his constituents well.

Staback, an avid outdoor sportsman, died while hunting with his son in Nebraska on November 16. The retired legislator from Sturgis (near Archbald, Lackawanna County) was 85.

He served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives nearly 28 years, or 14 terms, from 1985 through 2012, Staback represented what at that time was the 115th District, comprising of much of the northern Lackawanna County valley and parts of western Wayne County.

His district boundary expanded in western Wayne with succeeding census redistricting maps, based on population shifts. For the last 10 years he served, the 115th reached from Lehigh Township in the far southwestern end to Waymart Borough, excepting South Canaan Township.

"He was a very straight forward guy," Maurice Meagher, retired career Navy veteran and ardent Democratic supporter from Honesdale, said of Staback. "I always thought he did the right thing and always strived to do the best for the people of the area. He always looked out for the farmer and the hunter and the outdoorsman."

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Jane Varcoe, who has been a Waymart Borough council member 50 years, had much praise for Staback, who represented the borough for his whole time as a House member. A majority Republican area, she commented, "I really liked him; he treated us like we were Democrats of the [Lackawanna] Valley… He did a good job and didn't ask what your politics were."

She said that Staback greatly assisted Waymart by backing grant applications Council made, including the one that allowed building Wayside Park. Calling it a "gem" of the borough, the park replaced the Waymart High School. He also aided in getting the state funds to erect the veterans' monument in the park.

Varcoe is also president of the Waymart Area Historical Society. She said that Staback helped get the funding to save the historic 1870 Delaware & Hudson Canal Company gravity railroad depot, which was sold to the borough in 1900. Used as a town hall for some time, the old depot on South Street had fallen into poor repair. In 1994, Council was considering tearing it down, but the Historical Society pleaded for time to find grants. The depot has since been fully restored as a museum and showpiece for the Waymart area.

She said Staback was a "very pleasant" and highly personable man.

He was easily picked out in the crowd by his stature (being over 6 feet tall) and bright white hair. Staback was a leader on hunting and fishing issues, and acid mine land reclamation.

He was a long-time chairman of the House Game and Fisheries Committee and was considered a statewide authority on outdoor issues. His obituary stated that he found it his "greatest joy" hunting with his sons and grandsons for deer in Nebraska, Kansas and Pennsylvania. "He loved his beagles and would spend countless hours hunting behind them for rabbits," the obituary noted.

On October 9, Staback came to Honesdale to see his old friend from the Pennsylvania House, Attorney General Josh Shapiro who was making a campaign stop in his successful bid for governor. Now Governor-elect Shapiro, the candidate expressed delight at the surprise of meeting him there, and singled him out at the rally held at the Wayne County Democratic campaign headquarters.

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"Eddie taught me a lot over the years," Shapiro, 49, told the crowd. He referenced his own time representing House District 153, in 2005-2011, where he would look up to Staback. "Thank you for being here."

After Staback retired, he was succeeded by Frank Farina, a Democrat. Legislative redistricting in 2011, however, shifted the 115th House District to northwest Monroe County. The region where Staback last served became parts of the 111th and 139th in Wayne County, which has since been held by Republicans, and the 114th and 112th in Lackawanna County, which have remained in the hands of Democrats.

After serving in the House, in 2015 Staback was appointed as Lackawanna County Commissioner to fill a one-year vacancy.

This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Late PA Rep. Edward Staback praised in Wayne County