2 Summer 2020 Applegater
OBITUARIES
Jonathan Clifford Spero
Daryl Jackson
November 30, 1952 - April 13, 2020
October 26, 1951 – March 23, 2020
Join us in remembrance and celebration
of Jonathan Clifford Spero. Jonathan was
a hard-working man with a heart of
gold, who was still farming and writing
on his last living day on Earth. He left
this realm peacefully and unexpectedly
on April 13, 2020, at home in Provolt,
Oregon, in
his sleep.
Jonathan came
to this world on
No v e m b e r 3 0 ,
1952, in Buffalo,
N Y, i n t o t h e
loving home of his
parents, A. June
and Robert David
Spero. He joined
o l d e r b r o t h e r,
David, and
later welcomed
y o u n g e r
brother, Daniel.
He was an
adventurous
spirit with a great
l ov e o f m u s i c ,
who ventured to
Wo o d s t o c k i n
1969. He loved
to sing and play guitar and was a great
supporter of local musicians.
Throughout his life, Jonathan was
active in political causes, opposing
the Vietnam War and supporting the
women’s rights and anti-war movements.
An aspiring farmer, Jonathan bought
How to Grow Vegetables & Fruits by the
Organic Method, by J.I. Rodale, and
immediately left New York in search
of cheap and fertile land. His search
brought him to Glenville, West Virginia,
where he met the love of his life, Jessie
Ellen Rader. They married on September
20, 1975. Jonathan became a land
surveyor, and they moved to Southern
Oregon, where they raised their three
children, Orion, Rose, and Heidi.
Successful and revered as a professional
land surveyor, Jonathan retired in 2011
to put his time and passion into plant
breeding. He brought to fruition many
of his own varieties, including Siber
Frill Kale, Solstice Broccoli, Emerald
Fan Lettuce, and Top Hat, Festivity,
Zanadoo, Tuxana, and Aloha #9 open-
pollinated sweet corns.
A founding board member of the
Open Source Seed Initiative, Jonathan
worked tirelessly to maintain fair and
open access to plant genetics. He wrote
numerous articles on plant breeding
and agriculture
and was often
invited to speak
at conferences.
He was a Grange
member from
1981 until
his death.
Seedsman,
S e e d M e n t o r,
Seed Protector,
Seed Friend, Corn
Bre e d e r, E a r t h
Lover, Righteous
Fa m i l y Ma n ,
Beloved Friend of
Many, Jonathan
planted his love
into the hearts of
his many friends
and family and
into the land and
the seeds he bred
and cultivated for the greater good of
people and planet.
He also helped lead a successful
campaign banning GMO crops in
Jackson County, all the while fighting for
statewide protections for seed diversity,
and keeping seeds open-source and
accessible to all farmers.
Preceded in death by his parents,
Jonathan will be dearly missed by
his loving wife of 45 years, Jessie; his
children and those he treated as his own
children; his son-in-love, Mukil; his
brothers and their partners; nephews
Sekani and Mathias; Ron, Donna
and Ira; his many friends; and fans
of his work.
Jonathan was laid to rest at Hartley
Cemetery in his beloved Williams. A
celebration of life is planned for later
in the summer. Friends are invited to
contact Karen at karen@gaiasophia.
com to attend work parties being
planned to help care for Jonathan’s land
and gardens.
Mike Kohn
November 29, 1949 – May 7, 2020
Mike Kohn, Diana
C o o g l e’s h u s b a n d a n d
Applegate Neighborhood
Network board member,
passed away on May 7, 2020,
at his home in Medford.
Mike was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
on November 29, 1949.
He lived at Molto Bene,
on Slagle Creek in the
Applegate, for 30 years.
He was a strong hiker
and an advocate for
e n v i ro n m e n t a l h e a l t h ,
especially in the Applegate.
As a board member of
Mike Kohn and Diana Coogle, on their honeymoon
Applegate Trails Association,
near Trinidad, California, in May 2019.
he helped build the popular
East Applegate Ridge Trail.
cheerful demeanor and competence with
Both employees and customers of his his business.
business, Home Comfort Hearth, held
Our corner of the world is a better place
him in great esteem and will miss his for his having been here.
Daryl Jackson, 68, of Williams, died
March 23 after a battle with cancer.
The third-generation southern
Oregonian grew up here and loved it.
He was an avid river person who rafted,
guided, and fished.
Friends remember him as a force of
nature in the Williams/Applegate area
who was very much committed to the
preservation of our environment and as a
caring, compassionate, giving, generous,
loyal friend. He helped initiate Applegate
and Williams Watershed Council riparian
tree planting programs and was biologist
and coordinator of the Williams Waterway
Project, which served as a statewide model
for maintaining roadside vegetation
without the use of herbicides.
Daryl was a member of the Williams
Town Council. In a campaign flyer, he
wrote, “I have always believed that it is
important to give something back to
the place we live. For me, that means
improving the land and waters of Oregon
and specifically Williams.”
He lived lightly on the earth. He was
an animal lover and Alpine skier. He was
a father and a grandfather. He loved his
family dearly.
Paragliders launch from Woodrat Mountain. Photo: Terri Eubanks.
Flying will—someday—return
to the Applegate Valley
BY TERRI STEWART
Woodrat Mountain, in the Applegate
Valley, has been a well-known launching
site for thrill-seeking aviators since
the late 1970s. The launch site was
pioneered by two men, Jeff Van Datta
and Doug Hildreth, who recognized
Woodrat Mountain, near Ruch, Oregon,
as a safe location and whose enthusiasm,
leadership, and methodic thinking would
evolve into the creation of a local club
and decades of continuous flight from the
world-class site.
Their knowledge and mentorship
pioneered flying instruction from Woodrat
and planted the roots of the Rogue
Valley Hang Gliding and Paragliding
Association. The dynamic duo taught
hang gliding in those early years, though
the majority of pilots using Woodrat today
are paragliding pilots. Both popular sports
demand respect for the environment,
including knowledge of the weather and
landscape, while delivering a sense of
absolute joy no other sport comes close to.
Pilots come from all over the world
to take to the Applegate skies, where on
a great day pilots are able to fly to Grants
Pass and as far as Weed, California. And
spectators come, too, taking advantage of
local wineries and restaurants to catch sight
of the colorful canopies that have become
part of the local culture in the Applegate.
Today, local leaders carry on the
legacy built by Hildreth and Van Datta,
incorporating careful learning instruction
and opportunities, formulating practical
flight patterns, and generally teaching
respect for the love of flight.
The club consists of roughly 60
members who support each other and
the community through partnerships
with landowners whose properties
serve as landing zones; the Bureau of
Land Management, which owns and
manages the launch site; and the Oregon
Department of Transportation, which
benefits from club members’ annual
cleanup along Highway 238. They also
do other small projects such as providing
signage at Cantrall Buckley Park, and they
sponsor the Applegate Open, an annual
sanctioned race event, typically held in
June, that fills the sky with hundreds of
paragliders as pilots race to their goal.
As of early May, it appears the
COVID-19 pandemic is likely to force
the club to cancel its 2020 event, but flight
will continue from Woodrat for decades
to come. Those who are interested in
instruction or in simply learning more can
visit RVHPA.org for a list of instructors,
and information about Woodrat and other
nearby flying sites, including Whaleback
in northern California.
The club also typically sponsors
another small fly-in annually in
September. Both events serve as a great
opportunity to visit the Applegate Valley.
Terri Stewart, President
Rogue Valley Hang Gliding and
Paragliding Association
president2019@RVHPA.org