6
community news
june21
2018
Lack of Fire Volunteers
Carbon Monoxide - The Silent Killer
Local resident helps bring aware- Prior to calling her on the phone he had Critical continued from page 3
ness after tragedy two years ago
Two years ago Elana Brasure lost the
love her life, Daryl Tuttle, to carbon monox-
ide (CO) poisoning. Daryl was also a father
and grandfather figure, a son, a brother, an
uncle, and a friend to many. A carbon mon-
oxide detector might have saved Daryl’s life.
“It’s an important message for me to
help spread,” said Brasure in a recent inter-
view, “because it can affect anybody.”
CO is colorless, tasteless, and odor-
less, and is often referred to as the “silent
killer” because it is virtually undetectable by
humans. Elevated levels of CO can be dan-
gerous to humans depending on the amount
present and length of exposure.
About 170 people in the United
States die every year from carbon monoxide
produced by non-automotive consumer prod-
ucts. These products include malfunctioning
fuel-burning appliances such as furnaces,
ranges, water heaters, and gas and kero-
sene room heaters; engine-powered equip-
ment such as portable generators; and fire-
places and wood stoves.
Brasure says Daryl was camping in
the family motor home in February 2016.
turned on the heater in the RV. When he fin-
ished talking with her he went inside to sleep
and never woke up.
“What is important to me is that peo-
ple are aware of the danger,” says Brasure.
“People need to check the gas lines in their
motor homes, travel trailers, and campers.
Install a CO detector in their RV because it
can save the lives of their families, because
you can’t see it, you can’t smell it, and you
can’t taste it, and then it’s too late. I had been
talking with him just 15 minutes before the
medical examiner said he died. It was that
quick and he was totally unaware.”
CO detectors are available for pur-
chase in local hardware stores and other re-
tail outlets, and come in a variety of styles
and price ranges, starting at about $30.
“It’s been two years but I still find
myself expecting him to pull in the drive-
way,” says Brasure. “Losing someone so
suddenly and unexpectedly changes every-
thing. Life has been so hard without him,
so if I can help save even just one person’s
life, that would mean the world to me and
my family. I just want to save another family
from going through this like we did.”
scenarios in order to limit travel for
volunteers.
Smith says Oregon has
loosened some requirements allow-
ing a volunteer to train to just drive
an emergency vehicle and run the
water pump, giving rural fire dis-
tricts the ability to recruit volunteers
who don’t have to go through all the
firefighting training. “There has
been some movement at the legis-
lative level in an effort to fix this,”
says Smith.
With so many older homes
in the community, most dwellings
don’t have any kind of fire suppres-
sion or sprinkler systems installed,
which makes many homes vul-
nerable to fire. “During new con-
struction, we have been trying to
encourage homeowners to install a
sprinkler system,” says Steinweg.
“Otherwise we stress having an es-
cape plan in place that your family
practices and understands.”
VRFPD is considering sev-
eral options as ways to increase the
number of firefighters who respond
to calls. One possibility is to con-
struct some type of living quarters
at the station and create an out-of-
district volunteer program or an in-
ternship program. Steinweg says he
and Chief Smith are also working on
teaching a high school class the lo-
cal students could take for duel high
school and college credits through
Portland Community College. “All
these programs are a real process to
put together,” says Steinweg.
“Our volunteers and our
paid staff can only run calls and
respond to emergencies, and put the
community first while neglecting
our families and our personal lives
for so long, before it starts to take a
real toll,” says Smith. “Our goal is
to always do what we can to help,
but the key part of that is ‘what we
can...’”
Vernonia’s Voice is published
twice each month on the 1st
and 3rd Thursday. Look for
our next issue on July 5.
On the Shelves
By Shannon Romtvedt
Checking in from the Vernonia
Library to let you know the new
carpet is in, books back on the
shelves, doors open, and we are
starting in on a summer full of
activities. Thank you so much to our
28 volunteers who put in over 100
volunteer hours to help us move out
and back in for new carpet. Thank
you to the Freewheelers Club, Easley
Custom Builders, LLC, and City staff
for all the heavy lifting.
Once again we have a fun
Summer Reading program for kids,
ages 0-14. The theme this year
is: Libraries Rock! Sign-ups have
started and we have 83 kids signed
up only 3 days into the program!
The Vernonia Lions Club this year is
supporting the Library and Summer
Reading program by donating eight
family memberships to Out-of City
Limit library users. The household
fee for using the Library if you live
outside the city limits is $25. If
your family lives outside the city
limits and wants to try out using
the library, this opportunity is for
you. Thank you to the Lions Club for
encouraging the use of the Library
through this sponsorship.
The Library is offering a new
series of programs this summer,
thanks to a summer grant sponsored
by the Columbia County Cultural
Coalition. Crystal Tabaldo of Laika
Studios will be coming to the Library
on Thursday, June 21, 1 pm, to teach
kids about flip book animation, with
an opportunity to make their own
flip book. On Thursday, July 26, 1
pm, Library volunteer Amy Ragan
will be offering a one day puppetry
workshop. Kids get to make their
own puppets to take home and will
learn some puppetry skills. And in
August (Tuesdays, August 14 and
21, 1 pm), Crystal Tabaldo will be
coming back to the Library to teach
Lego Stop Motion Animation. The
Lego Animation workshop is two-
part and children must be entering
3 rd grade to participate. For the
Puppetry Workshop and the Lego
Stop Motion Workshop, register
through the Library by calling (503)
429-1818.
Thank you to the Community
101 Leadership Class for presenting
a $900 grant to the Library to fund
Summer Reading award books
and our Border Collie International
performer. Greg Gustafson will be
coming to Vernonia with his team of
rescued border collies to entertain
kids and families with stunts and
tricks. This event will be held at
Hawkins Park on Tuesday, July 17,
6:30 pm.
So come to the Library this
summer and see what we have to
offer! We look forward to having
you.
Upcoming Summer Events
Summer Reading 2018:
Libraries Rock!
For children, birth through age 14.
Receive a free book, book bag (one
per family), and Oregon State Fair
tickets. Return your reading time log
between July 23 and August 11 to
enter prize drawings and earn a free
ticket to the Oregon Zoo.
Summer Meals Book Giveaway
Friday, June 22, 11:30 am - 1 pm at
the Summer Meals site. Everyone
ages 0-18 coming to the Summer
Meals program gets to choose a free
book to start off the summer with
some good reading! Sponsored by
All Together Now.
Red Yarn:
Folk Music and Puppetry
craft at 11 am. Monday and Friday
storytimes will resume in September
Tuesday, June 26, 6:30 pm
Andy Ferguson “Red Yarn” weaves
folksongs and puppetry into high
energy shows for all ages. Red Yarn
released his fifth album in April 2018,
Red Yarn’s Old Barn.
Did You Know?
Membership Passes
Family Movie Night
Thursday, June 28, 6 pm
Enjoy a free movie and popcorn at
the Library. Featuring Flushed Away
(PG, 85 min.)
Oregon Rocks!
Thursday, July 12, 3 pm
Geology event with the Museum of
Natural and Cultural History. Geared
toward families with elementary
age children. Interactive displays,
activities, and information.
With your library card, you can
check out a pass to visit Rice Rock
Museum, OMSI, Hillsboro Shute
Park Aquatic Center, or the Oregon
Historical Society Museum and
Research Center for Free! Reserve a
day to pick up the pass by calling the
Library (503) 429-1818. Number of
people admitted is specific to each
pass. Membership passes check out
for 2 days and must be checked out
by an adult.
Featured Titles:
Staff Recommends
Thursday, June 21, 6-7:30 pm
3 rd Thursday of every month. For
writers with all levels of experience.
Meetings are now back at the
Library.
Aside from new books, the Library
features staff recommendations
and a display we call “Hidden in
the Stacks” to highlight interesting
stories and unique titles. Currently
recommended by staff:
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
selected by Jamie Adams;
The Girls of Atomic City by Denise
Kiernan selected by Shannon
Romtvedt. Staff and volunteers
have diverse reading tastes, so
you never know what might pop
up as a recommendation. We also
appreciate patron recommendations
and add them to our displays.
Book Discussion Group
Library Closures
Last Monday of every month,
5:30 pm. Discussion for June 25: The
Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend
by Katarina Bivald
Wednesday, July 4
for Independence Day
Border Collie International
Tuesday, July 17, 6:30 pm at Hawkins
Park. Traveling dog show with
rescued border collies. Sponsored
by the Community 101 Leadership
Grant.
Ongoing Programs
Writer’s Group
Storytimes
Summer Family Storytime
Wednesdays, 10:45 am, June 20 -
August 22. Snack served at 10:45
am provided by the Summer Meals
Program. Followed by stories and a
Hours & Contact Info
Mon, Wed, Fri 10 am - 5 pm
Tues & Thurs 1 pm - 7 pm
Sat 10 am - 4 pm
Closed Sundays
Phone: (503) 429-1818
E-mail: library@vernonia-or.gov
