Applegater Fall 2017
7
NONPROFIT NEWS AND UPDATES
— New name and direction for GACDC —
Announcing “A Greater Applegate”:
a new name and direction for GACDC.
No matter how long you’ve lived in the
Applegate, you have probably had some
opportunity to enjoy Cantrall Buckley
Park: picnicking, family and community
celebrations, swimming, fishing, and
hiking at this Applegate Valley treasure.
But not everyone knows that the
park, owned by Jackson County, is run
by community people. Since 1996, a
local nonprofit group with the awkward
acronym of GACDC (Greater Applegate
Community Development Corporation)
and its Park Committee have kept the
park open, thriving, changing, and getting
better all the time. The Applegater has
reported on many of those improvements
in recent issues.
The GACDC and those of us who
use the park appreciate everyone who
contributes financially beyond the modest
$5 per car parking fee. The need to
raise funds to operate and improve the
park is constant, and we must use every
opportunity to pass the hat—including
now! You can contribute to Cantrall
Buckley or to the general operation of
GACDC by writing a check to GACDC
and sending it to PO Box 335, Jacksonville,
OR 97530.
But that’s not the full story we want
to tell. GACDC was created to operate
the park, but its broader mission is to
provide assistance, coordination, and
resources necessary for economic and social
activities that help sustain the livability of
our community. Through the years that
mission has led us to produce directories,
surveys, and local initiatives, and to
support other efforts in the valley.
Most recently, we hosted the Applegate
Valley Roadmap Project, led by Rural
Development Initiatives and supported
by the Ford Family Foundation, Applegate
Valley Oregon Vintners Association, and
Grants Pass & Josephine County Chamber
of Commerce Foundation. A series of
six community meetings brought to the
surface a number of proposals and issues
to address, including promotion of local
and home-based businesses, economic
opportunities aligned with Applegate
Valley values, and challenges facing young
people and families.
The roadmap project has led us to a
new and exciting opportunity to support
the many interests of the Applegate
Valley. A smaller group of organizational
partners and community members is now
meeting with consultants funded by the
Ford Family Foundation to create a free
community website, with tech support,
which would enable public, nonprofit, and
local businesses to share and manage their
own events, stories, and more.
The GACDC is a volunteer-led
organization run by a small board whose
members reside or work in the Applegate
watershed in both Jackson and Josephine
counties. Our board continues to consider
new ways to better serve and represent
the Applegate Valley. We recently decided
to change our unwieldy name to “A
Greater Applegate,” and filed the necessary
paperwork with the State of Oregon. We
believe A Greater Applegate better reflects
our vision as we continue to grow beyond
our work as stewards of Cantrall Buckley
Park. We have also decided to expand our
board to incorporate more age and racial
diversity, while reflecting the expanding
work of community building.
Our role continues to evolve, and we
are excited by the new opportunities. If
you are interested in joining us as a funder
or volunteer, please contact board chair
Seth Kaplan at SethKaplanConsulting@
gmail.com, board vice chair Paul Tipton
at ptipton@frontier.com, or write to us
at PO Box 335, Jacksonville, OR 97530.
Paul Tipton • ptipton@frontier.com
Help support the Applegater
by purchasing these unique items!
Book.
From the Heart of the Applegate anthology of original essays,
poems, and short stories contributed by Applegate Valley writers in support
of the Applegater. Available now for $16 at Amazon.com and applegater.org;
Applegate Valley Realty, Jacksonville; Bloomsbury Books, Ashland; Oregon
Books, Grants Pass; and Terra Firma, Jacksonville.
Planter. Beautiful planters built with donated local wood
and volunteer labor. See these useful and long-lasting “Applecrates”
at Applegate Valley Realty, 935 N. Fifth Street, Jacksonville. A stock
planter box, 12” wide x 22” long x 14” deep, starts at $40. For more
information, call Chris Bratt at 541-846-6988.
— McKee Bridge Centennial Celebration —
The McKee
Bridge Centennial
Celebration on
June 10 was
over whelmingly
successful despite
the cool, cloudy
w e a t h e r. T h e
Applegate Lions
Club provided tasty
tri-tip sandwiches
and hot dogs for
folks to enjoy while
listening to the
Old Time Fiddlers
produce some fine
music for a couple
of hours. Then
Christina Lynn
Martin and Butch
Martin provided
songs and poems
with a local flavor,
and Merle Ming
Old Time Fiddlers entertained at the McKee Bridge
got in a couple of
Centennial Celebration in June. Photo: Patty Elliott.
poems from his
repertoire before
the rain came in.
On display were vehicles from the Stray park, our volunteers and helpers who
Cats Car Club and a local Porsche club, showed up at just the right time to do
and antique steam and gas engines from what needed doing, whether behind the
the Hit and Miss Club. Local crafters scenes or right out front, and the dedicated
displayed their wares alongside nonprofit committee members of the McKee Bridge
groups, writers, and book and bake sales. Historical Society who spent so much time
Several historical displays drew people onto and energy preparing for the event. But
the bridge, where they could also sample especially, the success was due to all the
local hard cider and children could work wonderful people who came out to enjoy
on embroidery projects. If you didn’t get the day and help us celebrate the centennial
your McKee Bridge Centennial t-shirt anniversary of an important piece of local
that day, drop by the bridge on September history. We can’t thank you enough.
weekends when t-shirts will be available or
We plan to continue our annual McKee
keep your eye out at local stores that may Bridge Days. In 2018, it will be held on
be selling them.
Saturday, June 9, and you can expect to
Our success overwhelmed the parking see much of the same lineup of offerings
area at McKee, and we apologize to anyone as at this year’s centennial celebration. In
who was inconvenienced. But our success the meantime, stop by to enjoy the bridge
was due to the outpouring of support from and the park, and, while listening to the
many local businesses and individuals river, imagine all the vehicles and people
who donated items for our raffle baskets who have used the bridge over the past
and silent auction offerings (thank them century. If only bridges could talk.
by shopping local), the great people at
Paul Tipton • ptipton@frontier.com
Star Ranger Station who take care of the Chair, McKee Bridge Historical Society
HAPPY
THANKSGIVING!
Used books from $1 to $1.50
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