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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 2008)
10 vernonia’s voice community august 2008 Memorial Is a Celebration of a Life By Scott Laird Amy Barton wanted to find a sig- nificant way to honor the memory of Cory Kepple, her friend, fiancé and the father of her son Tanner. “We were together for eight years. He was my best friend,” Barton recently said about her relationship with Kepple. A Vernonia resident, Kepple was killed in a mill accident on February 7, 2004, in Banks. He was twenty- four years old. Barton chose to have a headstone created by art- ist Hibiki Miyazaki, a headstone that would honor Kepple’s life and his passions: hunting, fishing and his family. “Cory always loved the outdoors, he loved to be by himself in the woods,” said Barton. The head- stone shows Kepple displaying the first and last bucks he ever shot. It shows Tanner’s name in the sunset and Amy’s name on the wing of the dove. Artist Miyazaki’s work on Cory Kepple’s diamond- Almost immediately upon arrival at the hospital, Dean suffered a severe stroke caused by a blood clot that went unnoticed by hospital staff as Dean had been put into a chemically induced coma. Surgeons had to do surgery and removed large portions of Dean’s brain which has led to vision problems and right side weakness. “When the Doctors first came and talked to us, they said they were 100% sure he would never see again.” etched, hand-colored marker has been recognized with an Honorable Mention award in 2006. The headstone and gravesite are in the Vernonia Memorial Cemetery, on the far side near the woods. “I’ve been told people come here and ask where it is so they can see it, “ said Barton. “There is so much detail in the work. It’s really helped Tanner and me to have it. It’s almost like sitting here and talking with him.” “I don’t want people to forget him,” said Barton. It is a wonderful tribute to a life. HMGP – An Important Acronym Defined By Jill Hult Columbia County Flood Relief is currently focused on guiding residents affected by the flood through the sea of information and requirements in relation to repair- ing, rebuilding, elevating, and insuring their homes. Some of the biggest questions are: What flood zone am I in? Do I have to get flood insurance? I have flood insur- ance, but how do I get Increased Cost of Compliance? What is substantially damaged? Is it better or worse to be substantially damaged? How high do I have to go? When will the funds be available? Our goal is to repair and rebuild as many homes as we possibly can. It is imperative that we accurately edu- cate residents to the programs available and to the rules of those programs we are governed by. Back to basics – What is HMGP? HMGP stands for Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides a Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to assist states and local communities in implementing long-term hazard mitigation measures following a major disaster declaration. To be a qualifying community, a City or County must have been in the declared disaster area and must also have a FEMA approved natural hazard mitiga- tion plan in place at the time of the disaster. Twenty per- cent of the overall cost of the declared disaster is given to the State and then allocated to the eligible communities through a competitive application process. Hazard Mitigation is any action that reduces the effects of a future disaster on a community asset. In terms of our flood event, Hazard Mitigation requires a com- munity to enforce compliance in a flood hazard area in one of three distinct ways. One is to elevate the home to a height at least one foot above the flood of record or three feet above the base flood elevation (whichever is higher), the second is to move the home out of the flood plain, and the third is to buy-out the home creating green space. Homes that are in or will be in flood zone A and have been substantially damaged are required to be mitigated and carry flood insurance. Currently we are working closely with those residents to determine the best option for them. The community that applies to the State for Hazard Mitigation Funds must have projects established in the application for these HMGP funds. The Federal Gov- ernment has established criteria for these projects. One is that the project on its own or as an aggregate must meet a Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA). This means the applicant has to prove that the money spent in a mitiga- tion project will ultimately save the taxpayers money in a future event. Federal Funds will only pay up to seventy-five percent of the project costs, so the project must also show that the individual is able to contribute the twenty-five percent non-federal match. We are continuously gathering the necessary information to establish a clearly defined project. This includes identi- fying eligible projects and working with the state to see if the project(s) will meet the Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA). Columbia County Flood Relief will be continuing to provide program information and updates on our progress. We encourage anyone with questions to call (503)-429-4948 or stop by our offices at 939 Bridge Street for assistance. West Oregon Electric Co-Op 715 Maple Street, Vernonia, 503-429-3021 Three or four days after his accident Dean had back surgery; two weeks later he had ankle surgery. He had another back surgery on April 14. “We really didn’t know who or what we were going to get back from the hospital,” said Terry Schaumburg, Dean’s father. “They told us he might be totally brain dead. We feel very lucky.” Dean’s recovery has been almost miraculous. He has made great strides since he’s been home. He has been doing physical therapy every day - twice a week with trained professionals who come to the Schaum- burg’s home and then the rest of the time with friends and family. He is able to use his left side almost ful- ly, but he needs help with the right side. “John Trent, who used to work for the city in the Public Works De- partment, comes by almost every day at 9:00 AM and works with Dean. John has been just amazing!“ said Terry. “And I come over almost every evening.” Dean won’t let Kendra do his therapy treatments which has been very frustrating for her. “He would not do the work with me,” said Kendra. “He was being such a jerk and refusing to do the exercises.” When asked why he wouldn’t exercise with Kendra, Dean explained. “I didn’t want to overwhelm her. She already had so much to do.” Kendra appears to be the rock, the solid foundation that allows the household to function almost normally in the midst of a terrible tragedy. She jokes and laughs and tries to takes the whole situation in stride, acting as if it’s normal to have a hospital bed in the living room and visitors into her home a couple times a day. She fol- lows Sylas around, trying to keep the two-year-old out of trouble, and chats about their situation as if it’s just part of life. “We have accepted what’s happened and are just trying to keep moving forward,” she explains. When asked how Dean and Sylas are doing together, Kendra explained that it was scary at first for Sylas which caused Dean to get nervous. “But now they are doing fine. Sylas uses him as his own jungle gym. And he likes to help with the therapy. He brings the ball and helps all the time.” In early December 2007, three and a half months after his accident, Dean Schaumburg was prepar- ing to finally come home. Dean was scheduled to ar- Banks Christian Academy ‘Care to Share’ Energy Raffle! ‘Care to Share’ Energy Assistance Raffle Tickets for Sale at the WOEC Office Great Prizes! Schaumburg Recovering (continued) I nsurance for all your precious possessions. Now Enrolling Preschool through High School Students Now Open! Bridle s, Bits, Saddle s, Blanke ts, Helme ts - English and We stern 503-429-TACK (8225) Located Inside Creatures 736 Bridge Street, Vernonia OR 97064 Affordable Tuition Excellent Education Shuttle from Vernonia Available 22785 NW Fisher Road Buxton, OR 97109 503-324-4500 James Dias Insurance Agency 2504 Sykes Road, P.O. Box 1077 St. Helens, OR 97051 503-397-4259 Fax: 503-397-5557