6
community
june16
2016
Columbia Century Challenge Bike Event to Visit Vernonia
Cycle Columbia County will be bringing a
Century Plus and a Metric Century Plus bicycle ride/
event to Columbia County on June 18, 2016.
The Columbia Century Challenge will start
and end in St. Helens, and will feature a 108 mile
Century Plus loop that passes through the communities
of Vernonia, Mist, Clatskanie, Rainier and Columbia
City, and a 66 mile Metric Plus loop through Vernonia,
past Camp Wilkerson, to Columbia City and back to St.
Helens. The ride course will open at 6:00 am and all
riders will begin before 9:00 am.
Columbia County features some great, bicycle-
friendly backroads, from rolling roads through the old
Oregon timberlands to farm roads through the open
fields and pastures along the Columbia River, plus the
unpaved historic Crown-Zellerbach trail (12 miles of
which will be featured on the ride). Add charming rural
towns, and you have the perfect backdrop for a fun
and epic bike ride that has the potential to become an
instant classic!
Columbia Century Challenge is organized
by a local team of cycling enthusiasts excited about
bringing an event to Columbia County that will have a
positive impact on all of the surrounding communities.
The team is also committed to ensuring a positive ride
experience from start to finish.
The Columbia Century Challenge will be fully
supported with aid/feed stations spaced approximately
15 miles apart. Free mechanical support, free off street
parking near the start/finish line and much more.
Sponsors for the inaugural year of this event
include the City of St. Helens, NW Natural, Wauna
Credit Union, PARG Phantom Amateur Radio Group,
Barlow Bikes and Boards, Gevenall, Vernonia Dental,
Online Marketing Resources, Keep St. Helens Geared,
M.J.K. Carpet Services, Fort George Brewery, Tea
Time, Dave’s Killer Bread, Klondike Restaurant & Bar,
Odwalla, and Skout Backcountry.
For more information go to www.
CycleColumbiaCounty.com.
New Hosts Welcome Guests at Anderson Park
a former nurse in a doctor’s office. The
customer service skills they acquired in
those earlier professions are a real asset
to the park and the City.
“I went through all the training
at Disney World and it kind of changes
your life; you start looking at things dif-
ferently and try to make everybody’s ex-
perience better,” explains Copenhaver.
“Melinda and I thought we might be a
good fit as park hosts.”
Over the past several years the
City of Vernonia has been through a se-
ries of hosts at Anderson Park that did
not provide the quality of work they
were looking for. The park was also
damaged during the high water event
this past winter. The City has been more
than pleased with the job Copenhaver
and Carter are doing mowing the grass,
weed eating around the park, keeping
the restrooms clean, welcoming guests,
and enforcing the rules.
“Adam and Melinda have done
an amazing job of getting the park back
into shape,” said City Finance Director
Angie Handegard. “They’ve been a real
asset to the Parks staff and have made
some great suggestions for improve-
ments. Reservations have increased since
they started and we have been hearing a
lot of compliments from the community
on how nice it is to have Anderson Park
looking so nice. I’m hopeful that they
will stay with us for a long time.”
“The conditions when we ar-
rived were less than ideal,” says Copen-
haver. “But we took the challenge and
continued from front page
it’s worked out really nicely. We were
really busy on Mother’s Day weekend
and we just walked around the park
smiling because people seemed to be
enjoying themselves and having a good
time. That’s what we had envisioned, to
make it a nice park again.”
The change in the park is pro-
nounced and visitors are noticing. “We
just had a big group on Memorial Day
weekend who used to stay here regularly
but haven’t been back for several years,”
says Carter. “Every one of them stopped
by and told us the park looks amazing.”
Not only does the park look
great, the couple also try to treat their
guests extra special as well. A recent
guest in her 70s told Copenhaver she had
never ridden on a motorcycle before, so
he got out his bike and took for her ride
all the way out Timber Road to Highway
26 and back. Later he took her across
the river to the local shooting range to
shoot her new handgun. “She marked
two items off her personal bucket list
during her visit here,” says Copenhaver
with a big grin.
Another camper went into labor
while staying at Anderson Park and Co-
penhaver and Carter looked after their
dog and pet ferrets while they were gone
for three days.
“For us it’s not like we’re do-
ing anything extra, it’s just people taking
care of people,” says Copenhaver. “We
treat this park like it’s out own back yard
and the guests like they’re our friends.”
On The Shelves
By Shannon Romtvedt
The library is busy with the start of Summer Reading
this week. Children birth through age 14 can sign
up. See “Upcoming Events” for more information
about this program and free performances coming
up at the library.
On Friday, July 1, 11:30 am – 1 pm, library
staff will be at the Summer Meals program giving
away free books to all children and teens. The
Summer Meals site is at the Grace Family Fellowship
Church on 957 State Ave. Books have been donated
by an organization called All Together Now, based
out of Forest Grove. All Together Now partners with
individuals and organizations to bring hands-on arts
experiences and books to children and families with
limited means. Thank you to Linda Stiles-Taylor for
offering Vernonia this opportunity.
The library is in search of volunteers! We
are currently looking for volunteers to help with
Summer children’s craft programs, shelving and
desk help, and watering and weeding over the
summer. We are also looking for volunteers for a
special project to make our digitized newspapers
more searchable and accessible. For more
information about these opportunities, contact
the library (503) 429-1818 or email shannonr@
vernonia-or.gov.
Library Board has an open position, starting
in September 2016. Library Board members
support the library by recommending changes and
improvements to policies and services. This is a
great opportunity to have a voice in what happens
at the library. Applications are available on the city
website, at City Hall, and at the Library.
Upcoming Events at the Library
Summer Reading 201P
For children, birth through age 14. Sign-up at the
library June 13 – July 22. Receive free Oregon State
Fair, Oregon Zoo tickets (limited number) and other
incentives. Enter a weekly prize drawing for every
hour you read. Return your time log between July
25 and August 12 to choose a free paperback book
and enter a grand prize drawing.
Readers Theater
Thursday, June 16, 6:00 pm
Performance of The Little Red Hen, Three Hens and a
Peacock, and The Bremen Town Musicians by Young
at Heart Readers Theater based out of Forest Grove.
Story and Craft Programs
Every Tuesday, 10:30 am, June 14 - July 19.
For Pre-K through Grade 5 and families.
Charlie Brown Juggling Comedy
Thursday, June 23, 6 pm
Open to all ages. Sponsored by Oregon College
Savings Plan
Family Movie Night
Thursday, June 30, 6 pm
Relax at the library with a movie and popcorn! Call
or visited the library for movie titles.
Ongoing Programs
Baby and Toddler Time
Mondays, 10:30 – 11:15 am
Songs, short stories, toys, and bubbles for 0 – 3.
Older siblings welcome.
Book Discussion Group
Thinking back to my college days, I was
obsessed with Nikos Kazantzakis’ Zorba the Greek.
Authors I have grown to love are Barbara Kingsolver
for her fiction book Bean Trees and the non-fiction
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Also Elizabeth Gilbert
who can write terrific fiction - The Signature of All
Things along with her classic Eat, Pray, Love. Her
most recent non-fiction piece Big Magic is inspiring,
too.
Other fiction recently enjoyed are All the
Light You Cannot See by Anthony Doerr and The
Book of Illusions by Paul Auster. A few years ago
I re-read Twain’s Huckleberry Finn and Harper
Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird - incredible stories so
magnificently written!
Other non-fiction favorites are When Breath
Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi, Rising Strong by
Brene Brown, and In Defense of Food by Michael
Pollan.
Library Volunteers
Thank you to our graduated senior library
volunteers Mariah Miller, Haily Fennell, Connor
Fennell, Breanna Gardner, and Nichole Gardner for
all your work this past year. We will miss you and
hope the best for your future!
Thank you to Audeen Wagner, Janelle
Cedergreen, and Lorna Poetter for selecting plants
and planting the pots in the courtyard.
Last Monday of every month, 5:30 pm
Selection for June 27: The Greening of Ben Brown by
Michael Strelow
Library Closures
Volunteer Pick’s: Some of CiCi’s Favorites
Hours & Contact Info
CiCi Bell is a volunteer at the Vernonia Library,
a member of the Friends of the Library, Board
Member of the Columbia County Cultural Coalition
representing Vernonia, and a member of the
Vernonia Grange and Community Garden Club. She
has lived in Vernonia for 45 years. What CiCi has to
say about books:
Phone: (503) 429-1818
E-mail: library@vernonia-or.gov
Monday, July 4
for the Independence Day Holiday
Mon, Wed, Fri 10 am – 5 pm
Tues & Thurs 1 pm – 7pm
Sat 10 am – 4 pm
Closed Sundays
