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ByMaryEsch The Associated Press ALBANY, N.Y. For38years, a few black-and-white pho- tographs have provided comfort to a woman who suffered terrible burns as a baby and endured years of playground taunts and painfulsurgeriesthereafter. The photos show Amanda Scarpinati at just 3 months old, her head thickly wrapped in gauze, gazingintentlyintotheeyes of a young nurse who was cradlingher.ShotfortheAl- bany Medical Center's 1977 annual report, the images have a beatific, "Madonna and Child" quality. As a baby, she had rolled off a couch onto a boiling steam vaporizer. Melted mentholated ointment scalded her skin. The burns would require many recon- structive surgeries over the years. The photos helped. "Growing up as a child, disfigured by the burns, I was bullied and picked on, tormented," she said. "I'd look at those pictures and talk to her, even though I didn't know who she was. I tookcomfortlookingatthis woman who seemed so sin- cere, caring for me." Scarpinati now lives Athens, 25 miles south of Albany, and works as a hu- man resources manager. All her life, she wanted to thank the nurse who showed her such loving care, but she didn't even know her name. She tried to find out 20 years ago, without success. The pictures, shot by pho- tographer Carl Howard, didn't identify the subjects. At a friend's urging, she tried again this month, posting the photos on Facebook and pleading for help. "Within 12 hours, it had gone viral with 5,000 shares across the country," said Scarpinati. She had her answer within a day: The fresh- faced young nurse with the long wavy hair was Su- san Berger, then 21. Angela Leary, a fellow nurse at the medical center back then, recognized her and sent Scarpinati a message, say- ing Berger "was as sweet and caring as she looks in this picture." Preserved by the pho- tos, their encounters in the pediatric recovery room turned out to have a last- ing impact on both their lives. "I remember her,"Berger said before they met face to face on Tuesday. "She was very peaceful. Usu- ally when babies come out of surgery, they're sleeping or crying. She was just so calm and trusting. It was amazing." Berger had been fresh out of college, and baby Amanda was one of her first patients. Now she's nearing the end of her ca- reer, overseeing the health center at Cazenovia Col- lege in New York's Finger Lakes region. Both women were thrilled to see each other again Tuesday, sobbing and embracing as cameras clicked all around them in a medical center confer- ence room. "Oh my God, you're real! Thank you!" Scarpi- nati said. "Thank YOU!" Berger responded. REUNITED Woman, burned as baby, meets nurse who cared for her 38 years later CARLHOWARD—ALBANYMEDICAL CENTER Nurse Susan Berger cuddles baby Amanda Scarpinati, who had been severely burned by a steam vaporizer at home in 1977. By Regina Garcia Cano The Associated Press FLANDREAU, S.D. The San- tee Sioux tribe has already proven its business acu- men, running a success- ful casino, a 120-room ho- tel and a 240-head buf- falo ranch on the plains of South Dakota. But those enterprises have not been immune to competition and the linger- ing effects of the Great Re- cession, so the small tribe of 400 is undertaking a new venture — opening the na- tion's first marijuana resort on its reservation. The ex- periment could offer a new money-making model for tribes nationwide seeking economic opportunities be- yond casinos. Santee Sioux leaders plan to grow their own pot and sell it in a smoking lounge that includes a nightclub, arcade games, bar and food service, and eventually, slot machines and an outdoor music venue. "We want it to be an adult playground," tribal Presi- dent Anthony Reider said. "There's nowhere else in American that has some- thing like this." The project, according to the tribe, could generate up to $2 million a month in profit, and work is already underway on the growing facility. The first joints are expected to go on sale Dec. 31 at a New Year's Eve party. The legalization of mar- ijuana on the Santee Sioux land came in June, months after the Justice Depart- ment outlined a new policy that allows Indian tribes to grow and sell marijuana un- der the same conditions as some states. Many tribes are hesitant to jump into the pot busi- ness. And not everyone in Flandreau, about 45 miles north of Sioux Falls, be- lieves in the project. But the profit potential has at- tracted the interest of many other tribes, just as the de- but of slot machines and ta- ble games almost 27 years ago. "The vast majority of tribes have little to no eco- nomic opportunity," said Blake Trueblood, business development director at the National Center for Ameri- can Indian Enterprise De- velopment. For those tribes, "this is something that you might look at and say, 'We've got to do something.'" Flandreau's indoor mari- juana farm is set against a backdrop of soybean fields. If not for a security booth outside, the building could pass as an industrial ware- house. Inside, men are working to grow more than 30 dif- ferent strains of the finicky plant, including those with names like "Gorilla Glue," "Shot Glass" and "Big Blue Cheese." Pot is prone to mildew and mold, picky about tem- perature and pH level and intolerant to tap water. So the Santee Sioux have hired Denver-based consulting firm Monarch America to teach them the basics. Triballeadersfromacross the country and South Da- kota legislators will tour the Flandreau facility in mid- October. "This is not a fly-by-night operation," said Jonathan Hunt, Monarch's vice pres- ident and chief grower. Triballeaders"wanttoshow the state how clean, how ef- ficient, how proficient, safe and secure this is as an op- eration. We are not looking to do anything shady." RESERVATION South Dakota tribe to open nation's 1st marijuana resort PHOTOS BY JAY PICKTHORN — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Josh Stout, a consultant from Denver-based consulting firm Monarch America, works in the new marijuana growing facility on the Flandreau Santee Sioux Reservation in Flandreau, South Dakota. Stout germinates seeds at the new growing facility. By Michael Biesecker The Associated Press WASHINGTON In stock car racing, there's an old ad- age: If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'. You could say the same sometimes for auto makers up against stricter environmental rules. Volkswagen is far from the first company to stand accused of trying to game required emissions tests. Al- mostsincethepassageofthe Clean Air Act in 1970, ma- jor manufacturers of cars, trucks and heavy equip- ment have been busted for using what regulators call "defeat devices" — typically programing a vehicle's on- board computer to boost horsepower or fuel mileage by belching out dirtier ex- haust than allowed. Critics blame a federal regulatory system that largely relies on manufac- turers to "self-certify" that their vehicles meet required fuel economy and emissions standards.TheEnvironmen- tal Protection Agency spot- checks only a low percent- age of the vehicles made in the U.S. or imported to test the accuracy of the data re- ported by manufacturers. Donald Stedman, a Uni- versity of Denver chemistry professor who specializes in testing the real-world emis- sions of cars and trucks, said the economics of the auto industry can make it profitable to cheat. Comply- ing with clean air regula- tions can add thousands of dollars to a vehicle's sticker price while diminishing the driving performance that customers demand. "Every car company has an incentive to do this," Stedman said. "Some of them get caught." Revelations this month that Volkswagen used so- phisticated software on its "Clean Diesel" models to beat emissions tests has rat- tled the auto industry and angered hundreds of thou- sands of customers who thought they bought en- vironmentally friendly ve- hicles. Both state and fed- eral investigations are un- der way and congressional hearings are planned. Over the years, several major auto manufactur- ers — including GM, Ford, Honda and, yes, Volkswa- gen — have been forced to pay hefty fines and re- call vehicles after getting caught using defeat devices. General Motors agreed to spend $45 million as part of a settlement with govern- ment regulators over defeat devices installed in Cadil- lacs sold between 1991 and 1995. According to EPA, the cars' computers were pro- gramed to enrich the vehi- cle's fuel mixture when the climate control system was turned on, increasing car- bon monoxide emissions to as much as three times the legal limit. GM agreed to a $25 mil- lion recall program to fix the emissions and agreed to pay $11 million in civil fines. In 1998, Ford agreed to spend $7.8 million on fines and fixes after defeat de- vices were installed in about 60,000 of the compa- ny's Econoline vans. What EPA described as Ford's "so- phisticated electronic con- trol strategy" was designed to improve the thirsty van's fuel economy at highway speeds, but also increased smog-causing nitrogen ox- ide emissions to well be- yond the law's limits. Ford agreed to voluntarily stop the sale of the vans and im- plemented a recall. During the same period, Honda agreed to $267 mil- lion in recall costs and fines to settle allegations it dis- abled a misfire monitor- ing device on 1.6 million Accords, Civics, Preludes, Odysseys and Acuras built between 1995 and 1997. Because of the disabled de- vice, malfunction indicator lights intended to indicate poor engine performance wouldn't come on. Unaware their cars needed to be serviced, vehi- cle owners continued driv- ing, damaging their ex- haust systems and releas- ing more pollution. As part of its settlement with fed- eral officials, Honda agreed to extend warranties for all the affected models, as well as provide free oil changes and tuneups. Also in 1998, EPA re- ferred cases to the U.S. Jus- tice Department against seven major manufactur- ers of heavy-duty diesel en- gines used in big trucks and earth-moving equipment after testing showed they used computer program- ing to pass emissions tests, then shift in actual use to reduce fuel consumption while pumping out prohib- ited levels of nitrogen oxide. EMISSIONS TESTS SCANDAL Volkswagen just the latest in long history of cheating car companies BRE#01920740 www.assetdevelopment.net TOBE BUILT New Custom Home $425,000 * 2366 sf. * Stucco * Stone * Side Loading Garages * Fiberglass Entry Doors * Beautiful 4.5 Acre Parcel off Happy Valley Trail in Cottonwood. 4/2 or 3/2 with Office or Formal Dining Room Option LicensedGeneralContractor. 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