voice letters to the editors
vernonia’s
july
2008
Readers lend their voices…
To the Editor-
I am putting together a video of the 2007 flood to be
used as a fund raiser for the Vernonia Pioneer museum.
If you have any video footage or other photographs
you could like to share with me,it would be greatly
appreciated. Youcan contact me at 503-429-4062 or
email me at blueshoes88@msn.com.
Donna Webb
Vernonia
To the Editor
I read all the articles about unleashed dogs. The con-
cern is basically around the lake- wrong! If we have a
leash law in Vernonia it’s at my home and yours. The
law covers every area of our town.
I have a dog. I love my dog. But I respect my neigh-
bor and the law (it is there for a reason). I don’t want
my dog in your yard and I don’t want your dog in my
yard.
It’s the law- is that so hard to understand? There is no
compromise is that area. Buy a leash, train your dog, and
use it. Or get the law changed- and wouldn’t that be nice.
-- Bob Bertonneau
Vernonia
To the community,
Our pancake feed held May 18th was a huge suc-
cess thanks to the Oregon Trail Rally, local business’,
and a hand full of community members. Those who
attended enjoyed homemade biscuits and gravy, pan-
cakes, eggs, and ham all put together by our volunteer
fire fighters and family. Fire fighter Luke Ellis headed
up this event and did a tremendous job preparing, or-
ganizing and cooking from scratch. We received un-
believable amounts of support and donations from
those that were able to come enjoy breakfast with us!
We are able to purchase a stair chair which is a big ne-
cessity for our community now that houses are being
lifted in the air. We were already able to put it to use
on a call, where the volunteer fire fighters were very
impressed by how easy and safe it was to get a patient
down a lengthy set of stairs. We would like to thank
Sentry and Black Bear Coffee for their bountiful food
and drink donations. To Vernonia Hardware and Sup-
ply, Vernonia Realty, Mike Pihl Logging and Wauna
FCU thank you for your big-hearted donations! With-
out your support we wouldn’t be able to do what we
do, thank you! We look forward to seeing all of
you and more at our next event!
-- With gratitude, Vernonia Volunteer Firefighters
A public discussion of the plan for the develop-
ment of the Vernonia airport business park is
scheduled for July 8, 2008 at 6:30 PM
With the local economy faltering it has never been
so imperative to plan for the future. Energy costs
are soaring and wages are not keeping pace with
inflation; it is time to diversify our local economy.
We need to focus on building local employment
opportunities. The plan for the Vernonia Airport
development is a good way to encourage small
manufacturing companies to locate in Vernonia.
As a long time local employer, I feel that the work
force of Vernonia has a lot to offer small manu-
facturing companies. The question we should be
asking ourselves is: Why have manufacturing
companies never come to Vernonia? The answer:
They have never been welcome. As a community
we have never zoned industrial land out of a flood
plane and built the structures needed in order to
persuade them. There are many local people that
are unemployed or under employed due to the lack
of opportunities. Every year we graduate another
class of bright minded young people and every
year they have little to no opportunity to stay in
the community and make a living. Its a shame! We
need to diversify our economy with a complement
of Timber production, seasonal tourism, local com-
merce and manufacturing.
The community of Vernonia is very lucky to have
an airport. This airport could becomea gateway to
travel and manufacturing jobs. We need to utilize
this asset. Across our nation, local business devel-
opment has always taken place around the local
airports and ours is no different. An increase in
the length of our runway and utilization of some
of the surrounding land would help support small
aircraft and light manufacturing. As with all small
communities we are fighting job losses to foreign
competition and a drain of local dollars to outside
counties. At the last county planning commission
meeting many of those who spoke out in opposi-
tion to Vernonia jobs did not live in our city or
county! To make a difference we need your sup-
port. I invite all Vernonians who have a vested
interest in our future to attend the CPAC meeting
on July 8, 2008 at 6:30PM.
-- Tim Bero, Chairman CPAC
Vernonia
ax:(503) 648-9191 • E-mail:ropads@hillsboroargus.com • Rep Phone (503) 214-1120
orrection Deadline:
0,13,17,20,24,27
Graphic Artist: Kay
Hillsboro Argus Courier-Mail
05
An Opinion: The Times,
They are a Changin’
By Scott Laird
Things just don’t seem to stand still in Vernonia these days. Some
major changes have taken place among our city leaders which I
feel deserve our recognition.
Mayor Sally Harrison recently accepted the resignation of Ver-
nonia Councilwoman Shirlee Daughtry. Ms. Daughtry is the
woman we all affectionately refer to as “...the lady who’s lived
here all her life.” Which she has. And she has served this com-
munity for many years with dignity and effectiveness. Shirlee has
been instrumental in helping accomplish so much here, I could
probably devote an entire issue of Vernonia’s Voice to praising all
she has done for this town. She was the person most responsible
for the rebuilding of the Scout Cabin, almost single-handedly find-
ing funding, donations and volunteer labor. She was a founding
members of Vernonia Pride, a group still influencing how we feel
about living here. She has served on the City Council through
both good times and bad. She continues to volunteer, making
sure our city parks are maintained and cared for. She turns up
at almost every community function. She often does the little
things, the things no one notices until they are left undone.
Shirlee Daughtry has been our biggest cheerleader, and she has
done it without ever asking to be recognized. In fact, this past year,
when the city tried to re-name Park Drive in her honor as “Shirlee’s
Way” (“It’s Shirlee’s way, or the highway,” she joked at the time),
she graciously turned it down.
So here’s to a true Vernonian- Shirlee Daughtry. May we all fol-
low her example and give as selflessly to our community as she
has.
This year’s proposed city budget did not include funding for the
position of Vernonia Community Learning Center (VCLC) Di-
rector, a position that has been filled for the last two years by Jesse
Jones. Ms. Jones’ contract was not renewed, and the VCLC will
have to use volunteers to continue with its programming. Jesse
Jones, who grew up in Vernonia, has been an advocate for alterna-
tive education, the arts, low income residents, public transporta-
tion, Vernonia youth, watershed issues, community and economic
development - the list goes on and on. She worked exhaustively
during the initial flood recovery days and weeks, helping develop
the response to citizens with unmet needs. She was working hard
to develop meaningful programs for the Learning Center, and un-
fortunately budget constraints have short circuited the progress
she was making. She has cared deeply for the people of this town
and been a champion for those who needed a voice. Her energy,
vision and passion for this community will be missed.
Another major change is the hiring of Interim City Administrator
Jim Johnson who has replaced another Interim, Aldie Howard.
Howard had been serving last year as the City Planning Direc-
tor on a contract basis, working 8-10 hours a week. When the
HOW TO SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITORS
Vernonia’s Voice welcomes and requests your
flood hit Vernonia in December, Howard stepped up and assumed
thoughts, opinions, and ideas. Please include your name, address, and phone number; limit your
the City Administrator’s position, a thankless job in most respects
letters to 300 words or less. Vernonia’s Voice reserves the right to edit, omit, respond, or ask for
under normal circumstances, but an almost impossible task in a
a response to letters submitted. We will print letters, space permitting. Deadline is the 15th of the
natural disaster recovery process. Howard initially proved to be
the right man for the job, assuming leadership and establishing a
month. Email to: news@vernoniasvoice.com or mail to: Letters, PO Box 55, Vernonia 97064.
commanding presence at City Hall. Howard worked hard to find
solutions to some long term and short term
problems. He was tireless, looking for an-
Reach thousands of
swers, finding solutions, and getting help.
He looked to protect his overworked staff
potential customers
at City Hall. He took a pay cut and worked
Small and Large Animals
two jobs (City Planner and City Adminis-
trator). He wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea,
but one thing was sure- you always knew
where you stood with Aldie Howard. He
wore his feelings and his emotions on his
sleeve, showing Vernonia he really, really
cared. Eventually his shoot-from-the-hip
Plus Cemetery
Cemetery Costs
Costs
Plus
style started to wear a little thin, and City
Council chose to replace him, retaining him
Wednesday & Saturday
as City Planner.
Direct Cremation
550
Direct Burial
$ $
750
$ $
Tualatin Valley
Funeral Alternatives
~ There are Options ~
www.tualatinvalleyfa.com
237 West Main St., Hillsboro
503-693-7965
Midway Veterinary
Clinic
Open in Vernonia
advertise
here!
9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Call for Appointments
(503) 429-1612
Or 24 hr. Emergency Number (503) 397-6470
805 Bridge Street Vernonia, OR
email us at:
ads@vernoniasvoice.com
call us at: 503.367.0098
Whether you liked him or not, our citizens owe
Aldie Howard a debt of gratitude; he stepped
up in our time of greatest need and helped us
get through a critical time. I for one would like
to say “Thank you, Aldie Howard.”