schools
2012
Service Beyond the Call
By Savannah Brown
Vernonia High School requires a
minimum of 40 hours of community service
to graduate. Most students don’t want to of-
fer up that much of their time, including, at
one time, me. I used to think that between
being busy with sports, homework, and so-
cial life, where is there time to help my com-
munity?
But it turns out I was wrong. Three
years ago when I moved into this commu-
nity, my father wanted my brother and I to
be more involved and have the chance to
get to know our neighbors. That summer, in
2010, we headed over to the local volunteer
fire department and signed up. Little did I
know, Mist-Birkenfeld Rural Fire Depart-
ment would have me suited up and ready for
drills within a few months. I started to real-
ize that this wasn’t just a duty as a volunteer
fire fighter; it was a duty to my community. A
community I’ve sunk roots into and thrived
in ever since.
In the northern Nehalem Valley is
the aptly named, sleepy town of Mist. Once
upon a time it was a one-horse town, with
a general store established in 1874. Unfor-
tunately, and coincidently for this story, it
burned down in July of 2001 and was never
rebuilt. Prior to its demise, it was the oldest
continuously operating business in Oregon
that offered food, hardware, Post Office and
unofficial community hub. Inside was cov-
ered in historic newspaper clippings and an-
tique logging equipment.
Nowadays, all that remains is a
GASOLINE sign where the store used to be,
a silent little chapel with adjacent cemetery,
a four-room school house built in 1917 and
a county gravel lot that stays busy during in-
clement weather. Also along the way is the
largest operating sawmill in Columbia Coun-
ty that employs a few locals.
Through volunteering with my local
fire department not only have I learned about
the history of the area and the people whom
I share geographical location with, but what
it’s like to be a part of something. I have met
people who are honest, hardworking and
who inspire me every day to do better.
One such person is my Assistant Fire
Chief, Mary Lou Busch, who is the backbone
of our department and is always patient with
the constant demands of the job.
Volunteers like Merle Noakes and
Etta Epling assist MBRFPD in the kitchen
and office, sit on various committees and are
part of the ladies of the Mist Helping Circle,
a foundation established in 1935 that orga-
nizes and aids the community in local ac-
tivities including funding street lights for the
school, and providing scholarships to VHS
yearly.
october23
The visionary of our department is
Chief Dave Crawford who is a grant-writing
wizard and always has a smile and good
word to say. Over 40 local and not-so-
local people that have vacation homes here
also give their time, talent, and spirit to this
place, attending drills, working during the
Hood-to-Coast run, and providing numerous
services to this community.
What volunteering at this fire depart-
ment has taught me (besides how to put the
wet stuff on the red stuff) is perseverance- I
don’t always want to get up and stop what
I’m doing every Wednesday night to go and
sit through long meetings, but I always leave
13
VHS Fall Sports Report
Football—Homecoming was a
disappointment for the Loggers this
year. The Vernonia Loggers that is.
The Knappa Loggers came
to town for homecoming on October
19 and defeated the Vernonia
Loggers 44-6. The Vernonia fans
and alumni did not have much to
cheer about, at least on the field.
The hometown crowd honored
their graduating senior football
players, the homecoming court was
introduced and the marching band
performed during half time, and
the Vernonia Education Foundation
accepted a check for $3500 from
a group of alumni. It was a great
night to be a Vernonia Logger,
except for the football result.
After a disappointing 66-
21 home loss to Gaston on October
5, the Loggers rebounded on
October 12 with a hard fought 7-2
win at Nestucca on a rain soaked
evening.
The Loggers defense
played a terrific game, shutting
out Nestucca; the only points
the Bobcats scored were against
the Loggers offense on a safety.
Loggers head coach Gordon Jarmin
praised the Loggers defense,
mentioning the great play of T John
Wolf and Bo Clark at linebacker
who each had two sacks of the
Nestucca quarterback. He also
mentioned the outstanding line play
of Dawson Shay, Ethan Johnston
and Jonathon Anderson, and Austin
Cutright at outside linebacker
who had a big interception for the
Loggers. “Nestucca was a very,
continued on page 14
Meet
the Exchange Students
continued from page 12
there with a sense of connectedness and be-
longing. Volunteering has taught me respon-
sibility to my job. When our pager and radios
sound off, I am responsible to help in times
of crisis. I’m on-call to pitch-in however I
can and receive ample training to do so. Vol-
unteering has taught me about being a part
of a team. More than participating in high
school team sports, the people you volunteer
with become your extended family, and you
rely on them to be there for you –just as they
rely on you to be there for them-- even in the
most miserable of conditions and times.
In this rural, isolated community,
we’ve found a way to be connected. Tech-
nology has offered us an ability to stay con-
nected around the globe via social network-
ing sites-which is great, but it lacks the depth
and experience of connection I’ve learned
from getting out there and connecting lo-
cally. Volunteering, like social networking,
crosses sociological boundaries, but it also
strengthens our local community. It is also
time well spent.
Savannah Brown is a senior at Vernonia
High School and an intern with Vernonia’s
Voice.
and field in the spring. Helena says
she has traveled extensively with
her parents. This is her third time
in the United States; she has been
to New York and on the west coast
before. She has also traveled to Sri
Lanka, Egypt, and all over Europe.
“What I like about Vernonia is that
it is such a small community and
everybody knows everybody,” says
Helena. “When you come here you
are somebody for other people and
I like that because in big cities that
never happens.”
Maina Martin is from France and
is living with the Lindauer family.
Maina is a senior who is running
cross country and says she would
like to play basketball and run
track. Maina says she has traveled
a lot with her parents and has been
to the Caribbean Islands five times.
This is her fourth time in the United
States. Maina agrees that she likes
that everyone knows each other in
Vernonia. In fact, sometimes peo-
ple who she doesn’t know come up
and greet her. “They say, ‘Hello—
you are Maina?,’ and I say ‘Yes’,
but I don’t know who they are,”
says Maina. “It’s just so funny, but
I like it.” Maina says she is worried
about all the rain everyone tells her
to expect in Vernonia. “It’s always
rainy here and where I come from it
is sunny all the time, so I am afraid
of that.”
Yuliya Pestova is from Russia and
is living with her American sister
Brittanie Young and her family.
Yuliya also made the varsity vol-
leyball squad as a junior this fall
and plans to play basketball and
run track. She says in the past she
has traveled close to Russia—to
Bulgaria, Ukraine, and a few other
countries and this is her first time in
the U.S. Yuliya says that the Amer-
ican people have been very nice
and that they smile all the time, un-
like in Russia. “We’re like a family
here, all of Vernonia,” Yuliya says.
“Everybody knows you and they
are waving all the time and saying
hi. It’s kind of cool.” Yuliya says
she has really enjoyed the mild fall
weather, because in Russia it would
already be cold and raining.
Vardan Grigoryan is a senior
from Georgia and is living with Di-
ane Benes and her family. Vardan
is running cross country and will
wrestle this winter. He says he also
plans to join the VHS jazz band and
play guitar for Mr. Izzett. Varden,
who is Armenian, has only trav-
eled in the past to the neighboring
country of Armenia. Varden says
Vernonia is much smaller than his
hometown in Georgia. “But the
level of development and the econ-
omy in Vernonia is much higher!”
says Varden. “The school and ev-
erything is much better here.”
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