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About Appeal tribune. (Silverton, Or.) 1999-current | View Entire Issue (July 12, 2017)
S ERVING THE S ILVERTON A REA S INCE 1880 50 C ENTS ● A U NIQUE E DITION OF THE S TATESMAN J OURNAL V OL . 136, N O . 30 W EDNESDAY , J ULY 12, 2017 SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM Teen volunteer finds her niche Silverton girl is Youth Volunteer of the Year CHRISTENA BROOKS They say you can’t put a price tag on volunteers. But if you could, the dollar value con- tributed by Marion County volunteers last year was roughly $3 million. From January to December, 3,197 volunteers – more than half of them considered “ac- tive” – worked 137,701 hours for free, the county reported. One of those active volunteers was Anna Williams, a Silverton teenager whose unflagging service to the county in emergency services landed her the Youth Volunteer of the Year award. She was one of two individuals recognized from among Marion County’s 1,600 ac- tive volunteers, a group whose size sur- passes the county’s 1,400 paid staff work- ers. “Anna’s done a lot for our department, and, as much as she does for us, she also does for the Sheriff’s Office. It’s an amazing feat. She deserves this award more than anybody,” said Erik Ander- son, the county’s Community Emergen- cy Response Team (CERT) coordinator. MARION COUNTY VOLUNTEER SERVICES Anna Williams, second from left, is Marion County’s Youth Volunteer of the Year for 2016 for her service with Emergency Management/CERT and the Sheriff's Office cadet program. See VOLUNTEER, Page 3A Forest Service hiking plan would limit crowds Oregon mosquitoes tested for Zika virus 51 state residents infected last year ZACH URNESS STATESMAN JOURNAL ZACH URNESS/STATESMAN JOURNAL A hike to the summit of South Sister, Oregon’s third-tallest mountain, offers an incredible view of Middle and North Sister immediately to the north. ZACH URNESS STATESMAN JOURNAL News that the U.S. Forest Service is proposing a way to limit the num- ber of people entering Oregon’s wil- derness areas didn’t come as a major surprise. As the number of people hiking and camping in Oregon’s outdoors has skyrocketed, wilderness areas, often in fragile alpine environments, have been particularly hard-hit. What did surprise many was the scope of a plan announced this month by Willamette and Deschutes nation- al forests. They propose a system that would require a permit to hike or backpack in the Mount Jefferson, Mount Washington, Three Sisters, Diamond Peak and Waldo Lake wil- derness areas. The goal is to limit crowds and damage by restricting numbers, offi- cials said. But it would also represent a fundamental change in a state that, for the most part, allows people to recreate as they please on public lands. Reaction to the news was mixed. Many who’ve watched places such as Jefferson Park and Green Lakes Ba- sin get trampled were supportive of the proposal. “While it’s frustrating that it’s reached this point, I feel it is time for limited entry permit system in these areas,” Salem photographer Jeff Green said. “I feel user experience will vastly improve with less shoul- der-to-shoulder crowds and all the human impact and garbage that comes with it.” But many pushed back against fees associated with the proposal. The cost of a permit would range from $6 to $12, officials said. “The permits are overpriced and there is little control over the sys- tem,” said Matt Reeder, author of “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jef- ferson Region.” “It is disappointing to see a permit to access a public area cost $12, all for the privilege of hiking on public property.” Hunters were happy they would be exempt from the permit require- ment after purchasing a tag. But others worried about how an agency with limited on-the-ground resources could enforce the permit requirement over almost half a mil- lion acres. “If the Forest Service institutes this policy, they should be prepared to enforce it or else it will be totally useless,” said photographer and hik- er Greg Lief. Environmental groups said the episode demonstrated that Oregon needs more wilderness areas. “It’s supply and demand and Ore- gon has very little protected wilder- ness,” said Erik Fernandez, wilder- ness program manager for Oregon Wild. “Oregonians love to visit our amazing wilderness areas. Until our elected leaders step up and protect more, this trend isn’t going to go away.” Zach Urness has been an outdoors writer and photographer for nine years. He is author of “Hiking South- ern Oregon” and can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors. A Boutique for Him wins recognition Silverton resident’s startup is finalist for eBay SHINE award for small businesses CHRISTENA BROOKS SPECIAL TO THE APPEAL TRIBUNE A local online men’s boutique is in the virtual spotlight, thanks to eBay. A Boutique for Him, a startup by Silverton resident Katy Zilver- berg, is a finalist in eBay’s SHINE Awards for Small Business. Zilver- berg’s online shop was selected as one of three finalists in the eBay Rising Star category. Along with 14 other finalists in five categories, she’s won a trip to Las Vegas, where she’ll have a Online at SilvertonAppeal.com NEWS UPDATES PHOTOS » Breaking news » Get updates from the Silverton area » Photo galleries chance to win $5,000 or $10,000. Public voting is part of the selec- tion process; votes will continue to be collected through July 14. The SHINE awards recognize entrepreneurs who have used eBay to help build successful busi- nesses. A Boutique for Him spe- cializes in new and used men’s clothing with a focus on vintage 90’s street wear. Find more at https://ebay. promotionexpert.com/smbofyear/ INSIDE Classifieds..............................4B Life..........................................4A Sports......................................1B ©2017 Printed on recycled paper The Zika virus didn’t make a big im- pact on Oregon last year, even as the disease spread across multiple coun- tries and became a worldwide health concern in 2016. Fifty-one Oregonians were infected with the virus last year — all in travel- related incidents — and all recovered, according to officials. But that doesn’t mean officials are taking chances. Oregon will attempt to trap and test mosquitoes for the Zika virus all sum- mer, said Emilio DeBess, state public health veterinarian. “Historically, we have not been an area the mosquitoes that carry the vi- rus (would be in),” DeBess said. “But our climate is changing, so we have to expect the unexpected. We got funding from CDC to find out if the mosquitoes responsible for Zika virus transmis- sion are present here in Oregon.” The testing is taking place in loca- tions around Portland, Medford, Klam- ath Falls and across Eastern Oregon, DeBess said. He said they’d start to get results around July. “These mosquitoes tend to like warmer weather,” he said. “The traps are set up, but probably we will not have information until July when we have a good idea if they are here or not.” While DeBess stressed there wasn’t a major concern, he said he wouldn’t rule anything out. “There’s always po- tential based on a changing climate that new mosquitoes get introduced, get a foothold in and end up staying,” he said. Zach Urness has been an outdoors writer, photographer and videographer in Oregon for eight years. He is the au- thor of the book “Hiking Southern Ore- gon” and can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors. “Our climate is changing, so we have to expect the unexpected.” EMILIO DEBESS STATE PUBLIC HEALTH VETERINARIAN