voice letters to the editor
vernonia’s
august
2008
Readers lend their voices…
To The Editor:
What I wanted to say was that it has only been 3 years
not 5 since we had cheerleading in the high school. It
was here in the 2004-2005 winter term of the school
year. I brought it back as much as I could and tried
to get a lot of people to join in, with contributions and
donations as well. I was a junior that year and also I
was co-captain of the squad. So that is all I wanted to
mention- that it has been only 3 years, not 5, and if you
don’t believe me then I have the yearbook to prove it!
Janelle Bashaw
Vernonia
To the Editor:
Now that I am somewhat settled back in my home
and awaiting elevation of same, it is time for me to
acknowledge all those generous people and organiza-
tions that have helped me throughout the last 8 months
to recover from the flood damage. Having lived away
from Vernonia for so many years, it is heart warming to
be the recipient of such thoughtful, welcomed help.
A big thank you to:
Groups - CCFR, Americorp, Vernonia Community
Church Youth Group, Dept. of Veterans’ Affairs, Ver-
nonia City Hall & Police, and Silverton Zenith Wom-
en’s Club
My friends & family - Jack Macy (my son who wanted
to drive through rain swollen rivers and creeks to rescue
me on Monday of the flood, but couldn‘t get through),
George & Donna Tice (who moved & stored half of my
belongings in their banquet room plus helping in other
ways), Janice Bernardi, Nancy & Don Dailey, Sunny
Hunteman, Pat McEntire Peterson, Sally & Leroy
Weathers, Sally Harrison, Sharron Rockwood, Terry
Rockwood, Janet Gagnon (my neighbor who kept an
eye on my house), Kim & Ray Pultz, Kate Conley fam-
ily (who all stopped on the 12/5/07 to help for a little
while before they left Vernonia to fly to Alaska), Robb
Wilson, Genny & Dale Fisher (who lifted my spirits),
Jesse Jones (my young mentor), Julie Prohaska (my
wonderful case worker at CCFR), and all my wonder-
ful cousins, who are too numerous to list, who came at
a moments notice to help pack and move me twice.
Sadie (my faithful companion) and I lived in Hillsboro
during the 6 months it took to rebuild our house. As
with all of us who were deeply affected by this flood,
she and I suffered. We both missed the closeness of our
community and all those familiar faces we love meet-
ing every day. If I have forgotten to mention anyone, I
apologize. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart
for helping me put my life back together.
Sincerely,
Janelle Thomas Cedergreen
Vernonia
Letter to the editor:
I would like to clear up some confusion being gener-
ated about our blackbird populations.
It was stated that we have only 30 or so blackbirds
around the Vernonia Lake due to the pumping of water
and the fishing derby and cattail removal for fishing
areas. We walked halfway around the Lake follow-
ing the derby and the pumping of water and counted
104 blackbirds without really searching very hard. The
nesting cycle is very brief for these birds as the attached
article from the Audubon Society states.
Reproduction: In late winter, male Tricolored Black-
HOW TO SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
birds begin to sing, then move into nesting areas in
early spring. Flocks of males sing in a loud chorus and
fly together in order to establish a colony, which some-
times displaces other blackbird species, like the Red-
winged. With song and ritualized displays, individual
males usually establish territories before the females
arrive. A typical display features lowered and spread
wings and tail, an arched neck, and ruffled neck feath-
ers. One to four females, most often one, make a small
territory within the male’s larger territory. A male that
attracts more than one nesting female at the same time
is considered polygynous. Courtship displays and ritu-
alized nest selection bond a pair.
Attached to standing vegetation or thin tree branches,
the female weaves a cup nest of stems and leaves. For
about 12 days, she incubates 3-4 pale blue or green eggs,
marked with browns, purples, or black. The male evacu-
ates the colony, only to return shortly after the chicks
emerge practically naked and blind. In about a week,
fledglings leave the nest to form creches. Adults encour-
age flight and eventually lead the young flock to form
a group in an adjacent marsh. Females may produce a
second brood, but often change locations to do so.
I personally resent the ranting and exaggerations used
to stir up many issues in our town by this one indi-
vidual when we all need to pull together and help each
other move on past our flood tragedy.
I will say the latest issue of the Independent was posi-
tive and helpful and hope we can put bickering behind
us and keep on working together.
I really appreciate the Voice and their editorial contents
and hope we can have two papers working to strength-
en our community.
Jack Lindsley
Vernonia
For the last few years, country music station KUPL has
hosted a fishing derby at Vernonia Lake; in 2007 and
2008 the city prepared for this by cutting a small por-
tion of the cattails surrounding the lake. The Indepen-
dent criticized the city for this both times it occurred,
claiming that it was an unlawful act and that these ac-
tions decimated the red-winged blackbird populations.
As a wildlife professional who specializes in wetland
birds, these accusations disturb me. While perhaps le-
gally correct about the protection of the birds under the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Independent shows a
basic lack of understanding as to how populations and
ecosystems function and subsequently respond to dis-
turbances of various magnitudes. I have personally been
down to the lake and must admit that I see no issue with
the action that has been taken there. I don’t believe that
the cattails around the lake ever could have supported
hundreds of breeding blackbirds, nor that cutting less
than 10% (my estimation) of the approximately 2 km2
of cattails ringing the lake could have been a legitimate
factor in their breeding/survival rates. Having worked
in wetland marshes for the last several years, graduated
from Oregon State University with a degree in Fisher-
ies and Wildlife, and been watching birds as a hobby
for some time, my opinion is that the actions of the
city were not detrimental to the birds. These actions
even may have helped the overall system by providing
a range of habitats for other animals. For example, dur-
ing the summer you can see ducks foraging in the shal-
lows absent of cattails, presumably looking for shallow
water invertebrates. I do not believe that the Indepen-
dent had any evidence for their accusations against the
city, and were reporting based on what is scientifically
referred to as “observer bias.”
Colin Tierney
Vernonia
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05
An Opinion: Find a Way
to Fund Teen Court
By Scott Laird
At the recent Vernonia City Council meeting on July 7,
a presentation was made by Jean Lewis from Youth Ser-
vices Initiatives, asking for the city to support her bid to
begin a Teen Court in Columbia County. Teen Courts
are used as an alternative to the regular juvenile justice
system. Generally they are reserved for younger, first
time, non-violent offenders. The basic concept is to
offer teen court as a voluntary option. In teen courts
youths charged with an offense forgo the procedures
of juvenile courts and after pleading guilty, participate
in a forum that is made up of a jury of their peers who
play a variety of roles in the court. Often their sentence
includes community service. Teen courts rely on the
premise that if peer pressure can cause youth to get into
trouble, positive peer pressure might help them stay
away from it in the future.
According to studies done by Jeffrey Butts and Janeen
Buck, teen courts have proven effective in reduc-
ing recidivism in seventy-five percent of the systems
analyzed. Madelynn M. Herman, in a report for the
National Center for State Courts, concludes that Teen
Courts are a “...positive diversionary alternative for ju-
venile first-time offenders.” Herman cites Teen Court
as a way to give offenders “...an improved perception of
justice by our young people, fosters the ability of teens
to learn from their mistakes because of early interven-
tion, and educates them about the judicial process.”
Lewis explained during her presentation that she is try-
ing to raise $15,000 to pay for a coordinator for the
program for a year, the only real expense to operate the
Teen Court she is proposing. She also stated that she
had asked Columbia County to look over their records
and identify cases that would fit the criteria to be con-
sidered for the program. They identified an average of
300 per year, which equates to a savings of $111,900
for the County juvenile justice system.
According to Lewis, the City of Scappoose has given
$3500, the Rotary has given $1000, and she is looking
for more support. Both the City of Vernonia and Co-
lumbia County are currently in difficult financial situa-
tions. But this seems like a no-brainer to me. If a teen
court could reduce costs by even a third of what Lewis
is projecting, it would still be a big win for county fi-
nances. Columbia County should look for ways to help
finance this program.
If this is a program that could be run effectively, we
might see reductions in vandalism and petty crime
among our local youth. Finding ways to keep youth
out of the criminal justice system at an early age should
be a priority for our juvenile justice system. And if
Teen Courts help our youth recognize bad decisions,
before they repeat them, then we have done something
positive for them.
The City of Vernonia spends approximately $500,000
on our Police budget each year. I would like to think the
city could find a couple of thousand dollars to support
a progressive and alternative program that has a good
chance of benefiting all of us, especially our youth.
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