Grange finds it hard to compete in television age
ki.NNI WICK. Wash (Af>) -
The state Grange is fighting to
reverse declining membership in
on age in whic h television has
replac ed the potior k dinner as a
favored leisure activity
As its membership ages, the
12H year old agric ultural organi
zation is struggling to prove it hasn't outlived its use
fulness.
Most of us have one frK.it in the grave." said l-eonnrd
Auhy. 91. n memlier of the Kennewx k Valley Grange "A
lot of us hail hobln farms >nd that sort Now we c;nn
handy make it up the steps And the younger folks (ust
don't seem interested
The Grange was founded m lHf.7 i>v a Minnesota
farmer to provide a plac e where farmers could hold
potiuck dinners, meet neighbors, compare farm prices
and swap lip*
The organization, which came to Washington in Ihh'i
provided an escape from the isolation of rural Anwrim
and (.mated an opportunity for poor farm families to for
get the daily struggle
Valeria Pilgrnen was H when she Joined the Columbia
Valley ('.rang*' in 1*121
Our fathers were all there to address fanning prob
lems and find new ways to grow our 1 rops," said the
Past o woman, who today is 71 and one of the hall’s four
sun iving charter members "But it was a soun « of enter
tainment for nu- I just wanted to know who tin nest
dance partner was going to be."
I he Grange flourished on Pattern Washington's
Columbia Basin after Congress passed the Enlarged
Homestead At t of 1909. which encouraged farmers to
settle in the arid region.
Twenty three Grange halls wore formed in Benton
County between 1010and 1941 Today, only five remain
in Benton (bounty and neighboring Franklin County.
Meanwhile, state Grange membership has declined
from a peak of 72,000 in 1070 to less than 61.000 today,
state Grange Master Robert Clark said. Fifteen to 20 per
< «nt of today's members are fanners, and although some
halls report hundreds of members on paper, many rarely
take part in (.range activities
Rural families today often have a hard time making
ends meet and often are difficult to recruit. Clark said
Modem tm hnology and changes in leisure time activ
ities also have played a role in the Grange's declining
membership, said Anne Ross, one of eight remaining
members of the Lot ust Grove Grange Hall in Benton
( uunty VII..IS." I le.is ei; Hills
High traffic fines may curb reckless driving rates
IV\OT1 a im i 4
rUKIUVND lAP) The Stale * higher
traffic fine* may be a deterrent to speed
ing. reckless driving and tailgating — vio
lattons that could cause accidents,
m ( ording to Oregon State Police
While many traffic fines increased bv
100 percent or more last year, the number
of citation* and warnings issued b\ state
troopers declined
The ball schedule may have had an
effect," said l.t Hill Johnson. ,1 stale
police patrol division administrator in
Salem.
rickets issued for violations such as
speeding, reckless driving and tailgating
fell to about 100,000 in 1904 from
121.000 in 1993, Johnson said
Warnings also declined to 1.1,000 in
1994 from 64.000 m 1091. so it doesn't
apjrear that trooper* are issuing warnings
ItlStfiJli of tickets
And it's not Imh iiiisc them am fewer
troopers patrolling While thorn am fewer
officers on patrol, the actual number of
patrol hours spent on the road mi reused
by t.(MK) m 1994, to 205,000 hours. John
son said.
The higher fines prompted the forma
tion of Citizens Against Highway Rob
hery. which laum bed an initiative pen
tion drive Inst year to fight the higher
fees The group is aiming its measure for
the 1996 election
Hut even Eugene attorney Drake Kim*
food. who began the effort, suspm ts the
threat of expensive traffic tickets may
rtut# fewer violation*
I think people maybe ,ire more para
noid. Koefood Mid "I know I certainly
watt h for iops imin' now than I used to."
Inw maker* approved the higher fines
in toot, hut some wish they hadn't Rep
John Schoon. R Rickrenll, foresample,
has introduced a bill to reduce them to
pre-1993 levels or. in one case, to prw
tou t levels plus 20 pert ent
"The people who have complained to
me are not people who have gotten tick
ets. Schoon said "They're the parents of
kids who have gotten th kets and people
who are worried about jvoor people trying
to pay them."
Schoort said he dors not believe that
higher fines lead to fewer violations He
said troopers realize the fines, such as
SM9 for driving a or lai king a front
lit ense plate, are unfair and often t ost
more than people can afford.
I think it means the state polit e have
a heart and common sense." he said
I he mi tvased coat of tit kets has l>een a
major t orn ern for state polite, confirmed
I.t Hernie tbusto. ngein v spokesman
Is the purpose of traffic to kets to be
punitive or to he instructive'" (dusto
asked "Our agent v thinks it's to he
instructive That's why vve reserve the
right to warn somebody "
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