may2008
ò'ram unity
volume 1 issue 11
v e m o n ia
v is it o r s
g u id e
Pages 12 & 13
Make Vemonia Shine Day! Oregon Solutions Accepts
Vernonia Schools Project
By Scott Laird
Make Vernonia
9 a.m. ■ 1 p.m
Saturday
May 10th
More than ever, we need your help to give
Vernonia its annual spring cleaning!
For more information call: (503) 429-5201
Sponsored by Vernonia Pride
G ood new s arrived in early A pril for the Vernonia S ch o o l D istrict and the co m
m unity o f V em onia. O regon G overnor Ted K ulongoski has approved the in
v o lv em en t o f O regon Solu tion s in assistin g the Vernonia com m unity w ith the
sitting o f a n ew sch o o l cam pus outside o f the flood zone. C olum bia County
C om m ission er Tony H yde and Tom K elly o f N e il K elly C om pany w ere nam ed
co-con ven ers for the project and have assem b led a team to help shepherd the
project through to com pletion.
The in v o lv em en t o f Oregon Solu tion s is a breakthrough for the V em onia S ch ool
district, w h ich has been exploring the idea o f m ovin g the sch o o ls but is under
pressure to m ake d ecisio n s qu ick ly as w e ll as find funding sources. O regon
Solu tion s provides a ccess to k ey d ecisio n m akers at state agen cies, and it brings
a record o f su ccess that foundations w ill find appealing w hen presented w ith
funding proposals.
“I am o b v io u sly a real fan o f this process because it brings everybod y to the
table at the sam e tim e,” said W endy W illis, Program M anager for O regon S o lu
tions. “W hen w e are able to g et everyone together, it stream lines the d ecisio n
m aking process. The group process also m akes it easier to patch together fund
ing because m any m ore players have been in v o lv ed in planning the project from
the b eg in n in g .”
O regon S olu tion s has as its m ission the develop m en t o f sustainable solution s to
com m u nity-based problem s! It works to support eco n om ic, environm ental, and
com m unity ob jectiv es that are built through the collaborative efforts o f b u si
n esses, governm ent and non-profit organizations. It operates as part o f a pro
gram o f the N ational P o licy C onsensus Center at Portland State U n iversity that
prom otes a new w ay for com m u nities and lo ca l governm ents to so lv e large is
su es usin g the principles o f collaboration, integration and sustainability.
“O regon Solu tion s w orks w ith consensus as part o f our process w h ich lim its
opp osition as a project m o v es forw ard,” said W illis. “E veryone is part o f the
d ecisio n s at each step along the w ay, so a project k n ow s it has the fu ll support
o f the team .”
O regon Solu tion s has participated in the d evelop m en t o f thirty-seven lo ca l proj
ects around the state sin ce its incep tion in 2 0 0 1 .
G overnor K ulongoski is quoted on the O regon Solu tion s W eb site: “I b eliev e
that to m eet the ch allen ges w e face today it is essen tia l to engage b u sin esses,
governm ent, non-profit organizations and citizen s in c o lle ctiv e action. O regon
Solu tion s creates the place to com e together and provides the m eans to reach
com m unity agreem ents that con n ect O regonians in so lv in g these ch a llen g es, in
com m u nities across the state.”
Maddy O’Leary is State Gymnastics Champ
M adeline O ’Leary, a 7th Grader at Vem onia M iddle
School, qualified for the Oregon State G ym nastics Cham
pionships held in M edford April 4 -6 and returned as L ev
el 8 State Champ on the Vault. She and her teammates
all had a great w eekend as they brought the level 8 team
cham pionship trophy hom e to their gym , the Oregon
G ym nastics A cadem y o f Beaverton.
M addy’s performance at the state m eet qualified her for
the R egion II Championships that were held in Spokane,
W ashington, April 19-21. This m eet featured the best
qualifying gym nasts from Oregon, Washington, Idaho,
Montana, A laska, and Hawaii.
For those unfamiliar with gym nastics, the athletes per
form routines on four events: the bars, the beam , the
floor, and the vault. M addy was solid in each event in the
R egional Championships as she finished 5th all-around
against nearly forty outstanding competitors.
While Maddy is relieved that her competitive season has come
to an end, the practice never stops. She’ll now go to work on
new skills and routines to prepare for next season.
Congratulations Maddy!