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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 2021)
10 Fall 2021 Applegater Donna Mickley says farewell to local ranger district BY DONNA MICKLEY You can help SOLVE litter at Cantrall Buckley Park Volunteers pause to have their photo taken during the 2018 SOLVE cleanup at Cantrall Buckley Park. This year’s event is set for October 2. Photo: Audrey Eldridge. BY JANIS MOHR-TIPTON Save the date! A Greater Applegate’s Park Enhancement Volunteer Team is sponsoring a volunteer event this fall (following all safety guidelines) that will give people a chance to work in the outdoors at their favorite community park. It’s our participation in the statewide beach and riverside cleanup (known as SOLVE, which originally stood for Stop Oregon Litter and Vandalism, and is now the name of a Portland-based nonprofit) on Saturday, October 2, from 9:30-11:30 am. This statewide annual event—the 39 th !—engages over 5,000 volunteers and includes over 130 cleanup and restoration projects across Oregon. We are glad to be able to join the effort again this year. At Cantrall Buckley, we will work in small groups (six to eight individuals, or family groups with a maximum of eight participants) spread out in various areas of the park with a volunteer crew leader. All ages are welcome. Children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult. We will be cleaning up woody debris and trash, weeding and mulching in landscaped areas and established beds, and removing invasive ivy, vinca (commonly called periwinkle), and blackberry. The goal is to release native plant species and clear overgrowth on trails and around a multilevel platform which is the future site of “Dragonfly Place,” a project of the Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council’s Cultural Committee (see related story on page 1). Dragonfly Place is an example of the “working together” partnerships among nonprofit organizations that benefit our communities of the Applegate Valley. The SOLVE event will take place rain or shine, so wear layers and sturdy shoes. Bring hand tools and gloves, though we’ll also have some tools to lend for the event. We’ll have refreshments and a fun project for young ones when they are ready for a different focus. Signs will direct participants where to sign in, get a volunteer pass, meet crew leaders, and pick an area to work in. After this event, there will be more work parties to continue clearing and managing the invasive species in the park. We will also need more volunteer adult crew leaders. We will provide the training, so leave your contact information with us at this event for future dates to work or be a leader. Your help is vital to keep our county park enjoyable for all! As we move toward the end of the year, think about getting a yearly pass to Jackson County parks. The cost of the pass supports maintaining and upgrading parks, including Cantrall Buckley. If you buy in December, you’ll get a discount on the 2022 pass. T h e Pa rk En h a n c e m e n t Te a m wishes you a safe and happy fall at Cantrall Buckley. Janis Mohr-Tipton, Chair Park Enhancement Team for A Greater Applegate janis.agapark@gmail.com 541-846-7501 Come visit! Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Beer and wine on tap or to go. Family-run Open 7 am - 7 pm Weds - Sat and 7 am - 3 pm Sun. Closed Mon and Tues. 181 Upper Applegate Road Jacksonville, OR 97530 541-702-2662 All good things must come to an end, as the saying goes, and after 11 years the time has come for me to step down as district ranger for the Siskiyou Mountains Ranger District of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. I have called southern Oregon my home for most of my adult life, and moving on was a difficult decision for me. It has been an honor and a privilege to be a part of the greater Applegate community and to come to understand the vision developed by landowners, grassroots organizations, and academia following the Applegate Adaptive Management Area Donna Mickley is now the forest supervisor for the designation in the Northwest Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Forest Plan. I’m excited we were able to complete the Upper Applegate Watershed Restoration planning process, to the best job I’ve ever had, I want to which will allow us to implement some acknowledge that it is a gift to have important restoration work across engaged community members, and I the landscape. Engaging the public thank you for your involvement. James Courtright has been selected early helped us understand what you value from your public lands. We were as the acting district ranger until a able to incorporate a variety of local permanent selection is made. James knowledge and develop partnerships comes to us from the Shasta-Trinity that aided in expanding our workforce, National Forest where he works as the generating funding opportunities, and deputy forest fire management officer. truly embracing a shared stewardship of He brings with him a depth of knowledge in fire/fuels management and in public land. As for what’s next for me, I’ve been partnerships with state, local, tribal, and selected as the new forest supervisor for the community stakeholders. Until we meet again, I wish you the best! Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Donna Mickley, Forest Supervisor Area. I look forward to the opportunities Columbia River Gorge for collaboration that lie ahead in another National Scenic Area remarkably outstanding place in the great US Forest Service state of Oregon. As I bid my farewell D. -- �POTRACK KITCHEN EMPORIUM· EST 199e ) i\_ 140 W California St - Jacksonville Open Daily 10:30 am-Spm