10 Winter 2011 Applegater
Become a Master Recycler
Applications due Friday February 4
Applegate
Library
Come one, come all to our Friends
of the Applegate Meeting in the Applegate
Library Meeting Room on January 11,
2011, at 5:00 pm. We have a lot of plan-
ning to do for the new year. If you have
suggestions for programs, we will welcome
them and put them on our schedule. If
you have any other suggestions for the
library, this is the time and place to bring
them to the table. We are a friendly group
and welcome new faces, and may even
have some cookies to share at the meeting.
On November 14, Thalia Truesdell
presented a spectacular program on recy-
cling. If you missed it,we may have to
ask her to bring it to us again this coming
year as a reminder of how essential it is for
all of us to be recycling our plastics, glass,
paper, metal, etc. It is not only economi-
Pass the Book
In Spring 2010 the Storytelling
Guild distributed 4,974 new and gently
used children’s books to 19 agencies in
Jackson County. Every child in Head
Start in two counties received a book to
own. Every child who visits the Children’s
Advocacy Center, La Clinica del Valle’s
three health clinics, and the three Com-
munity Health Centers is invited to take
a book. Books are distributed to children
at the Dunn House, Kids Unlimited, the
Magdalene Home, On Track, the Boys
and Girls Clubs in Phoenix, Talent, and
White City, and the North Medford
High School Child Development Cen-
ter. Children in foster care receive books
through DHS. Books are delivered to the
Family Nurturing Center, the Juvenile
Detention Shelter, the Juvenile Detention
Hall, Access, Inc. and Healthy Start. The
Butte Falls Community School Partner-
ship received books for their preschool
program and for their weekly “Nature
Friday” program.
Where did these books come from?
They were donated by generous Jackson
County citizens to the annual “Pass the
Book” drive held in January. Collection
bins were located at all 15 Jackson County
Libraries and 8 branches of the Umpqua
Bank in Jackson County (631 books). The
free performance of “Rumpelstiltskin” was
held on January 17, 2010 by the Tears of
Joy Theatre at the Craterian and collected
787 books, Other donors and purchases
at yard sales contributed an additional
234 books.
For the month of January 2011
Jackson County Recycling Part-
nership and OSU Extension Service
invite residents and business represen-
tatives to become Master Recyclers,
gaining a broad understanding of waste
prevention, recycling, the local solid
waste infrastructure, hazardous waste
avoidance, and composting.
Join a 11-week training course
that offers an extensive training manual,
discussion-based classes, presentations
from local and regional experts and
field trips to relevant sites, including
the regional landfill, waste-to-energy
plant, composting facility and waste
cally important, but also, important to our
health and welfare. Thalia also has skills in
raising worms for compost. Just ask her!
We would like to thank the Apple-
gate community 4H club for their hard
work in setting up the book sale that began
on November 30 and lasted until Decem-
ber 4. They did such an excellent job of
selling the books on a donation basis and
collected almost $500 for the Friends of the
Applegate Library. What a great bunch of
young people! We are so fortunate in the
Applegate to have such a dedicated tribe
of young folks. Thanks to all you 4Hers!
CRITICAL
Storytime continues to be at 4 pm
on Tuesdays. Come in and enjoy the sto- stations, in order to ensure an adequate
response.
ries, puppets, and flannel boards.
Our volunteer firefighters are
Our display case becomes more
and more interesting every month. Even trained to put out house fires and wildfires,
if you’re not looking for books, it’s worth perform water and rope rescues, and pro-
a trip to the library just to see what’s new vide emergency medical care until an am-
bulance arrives. (One even delivered his
in the display case. Don’t miss it!
own son in a car on the way to the hospital
Joan Peterson 541-846-6988
several years ago!) When thunderstorms
hit parts of our valley on hot summer days
they are found working elbow-to-elbow
with state and federal firefighters to keep
collection bins will once again be in all 15 our homes safe.
These volunteer firefighters are folks
Jackson County Libraries and all 9 branch-
es of Umpqua Bank in Jackson County. who have gone through various degrees of
Books are needed for all age groups, from professional training, and now volunteer
babies (board books are very welcome) to their time and expertise to take care of their
teens and all ages in between. Teen books community when the 9-1-1 tone sounds.
are especially needed. Share your love of Their training is top-notch and provided
books and reading: donate children’s books free; their equipment is up-to-date safe,
to the Storytelling Guild’s “Pass the Book” and their hearts are in their work 110%.
But their numbers are starting to seriously
program.
The Storytelling Guild is a group decline.
The AVFD started up thirty years
of volunteers dedicated to serving the
community by providing opportunities ago in 1980, and there are 5 volunteers that
for children to be exposed to the magic have been with the District for at least 25
of books and the joy of reading. “Pass years. Historically, AVFD has always had
the Book” is just one of their programs. an extremely high average tenure for its
They also present an annual “Book Walk” volunteers; right now it’s over 9-1/2 years!
fashion show of books to third graders, Wow, you say?! That sounds good, right?
present a weekly preschool storytime at What’s the worry?
Today AVFD has about 37 vol-
the Medford Library Wednesdays at 11:30
am. Additionally, they sponsor a free show unteers, down 10 or so from a couple of
at the Craterian each January, provide 24 years ago. This number varies as folks join
hour access to Dial-a-Story at 541-774- up, retire, or move out of the area; many
6439 in both English and Spanish, and are now retiring or simply due to age are
provide a scholarship to an RCC (Rogue no longer able to perform at the required
Community College) student passionate level. (Nationally, the number of volunteer
about early literacy and/or early child- firefighters has been declining and the aver-
hood education. The Storytelling Guild age age is climbing, which is no surprise
is best known for the annual Children’s to those of us in the Applegate.) So while
Festival. Planning has begun for the 45th the need for new volunteer firefighters
Children’s Festival at the Britt Grounds in has always been constant, I’m writing this
Jacksonville in July 2011. Exact dates of article because it’s now “critical” per our
the three-day festival will be announced Fire Chief.
Fire Chief Fillis feels that adequate
in January. More information about the
Storytelling Guild is available at www. response times for the Applegate and Pro-
volt areas are reaching critical conditions
storytellingguild.org.
due to low volunteer numbers. Other
Anne Billeter • 541-944-2802
regions within the District are follow-
billeter@entwood.com
ing close behind. Even though the total
number of volunteers may pencil out, the
number of volunteers at each station and
time availabilities of each do not.
Observe: this is not the usual “Janu-
ary Firefighter School – Come Join Us”
article. This is for real. We desperately
need more volunteers to sign up for train-
ing to become firefighters, because given
the size of our District, hiring more paid
employees is not a viable solution. Bottom
line? Without these invaluable volunteer
firefighters responding to the emergency
needs in all areas of our District, our re-
sponse times will lengthen significantly,
and eventually someone is going to lose.
water treatment plant. Master Recyclers
are required to give 40 service hours to
support and expand local waste diversion
programs and projects.
Weekly classes will take place on
Thursday evenings, March 3–May 12,
5:30–8:30 pm at the OSU Extension
auditorium, 569 Hanley Road. Ap-
plications are due Friday, February 4,
2011 and are available online at www.
jcrecycle.org.
For more information,
contact OSU Extension Service at
541-776-7371
FROM PAGE 1
So, can you be a volunteer fire-
fighter? Do you have good people skills?
Do you enjoy problem-solving? And
wouldn’t it be great to know and work
with dedicated, caring people who honestly
give a darn? In the past, some residents
have thought that if they were over fifty,
they might not be able to be volunteers.
Chief Fillis told me that some of the best
volunteers he has are in their fifties and
sixties! (This undoubtedly depends on an
individual’s physical condition.)
Why do they do it – make such a
volunteer commitment? Is it the challenge
of problem-solving their way through such
a wide variety of calls? Is it the quality of
training received? Or, is it that people just
love their community and want to give of
themselves in some way? Yes, yes and yes.
From my past interviews with our AVFD
folks, I found that the single most common
reason they sign up and volunteer their
time is “to give back to their community.”
Isn’t that what rural living is all about, to
take care of your own?
While this might sound like a lot
of work, perhaps even daunting, every
volunteer that I’ve ever spoken with has
said that the real meaning behind working
with this Fire District is being a part of the
“family.” Creating bonds with the other
volunteers and staff, receiving top-notch
training, sweating and solving problems
together, that’s what it’s all about.
AVFD is holding its next training
for new recruits this coming February, and
we need to have a full class that will help
fill in those weak areas. Classes will be held
on the weekends. Once you’re accepted
into the program, the initial 5-week (free,
in-house) training course familiarizes you
to the organization, its protocols and safety
practices; you become a basic firefighter
upon completion. There are many options
available beyond this, such as moving into
the First Responder medical level or EMT,
learning to operate the heavier vehicles
such as a water tender, search and rescue,
wildland fire training, and also command
and control positions. Something to pique
just about anyone’s interest!
Have we piqued yours? I sincerely
hope so, because we’re at a critical point
right now. Our rural fire district is vital to
our well-being and that of our loved ones,
but they can’t operate without dedicated
volunteers. Give either Brett Fillis or Chris
Wolfard a call at 541-899-1050 and see if
this is a fit for you. It might change your
life, and could save the life of someone
you know.
Sandy Shaffer
541-899-9541
AVFD Budget Committee
sassyone@starband.net