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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 11, 2002)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, September 11, 2002 Page 2 Through our nearly 38 years of being in the throes of marital blessed bliss, my wife, Jan, always has attracted a certain amount of attention. She has a knack for it. And since last week, she has drawn even more stares than usual. To answer the most prevalent question in the eyes of the stare-ees: No, I did not smack her on the head. I am not a wife beater. What happened was that she was outside, near a bench that was on its right side. Suddenly a shot rang out. No, scratch that. Suddenly she heard noises involving a motor vehicle and an animal. As she cares for all helpless crea- tures, including El Jefe, she reacted. Unfortunately, her reaction to respond resulted in a mi- nor sort of calamity for her. That darn bench reached out and tripped her as she spun toward the street. That wasn’t enough though. That vicious bench not only tripped her, but when she completed her graceful dive to the deck, the bench extended part of itself so that Jan’s right eyebrow area made extreme and prejudiced contact. An immediate gusher of hard-earned plasma resulted. To make this long story a trifle shorter, she ended up having five stitches and a tetanus shot. Ouch. It hurt me to watch, as I’ve been so amused in the past that I was kept in stitches for some time. At this point, slightly more than a week past the Incident of the Bench, she (my wife) is doing well. She removed the stitches herself, being an independent kind of cuss (but ex- tremely loveable). And she has a colorful “black eye.” I mean, she’s got a palette of red, purple, green and yellow that could quality for modern art. Thank God that she didn’t injure herself worse. Actually though, a couple days after Suture City, she mentioned that she felt as through she’d been a motor vehicle crash. I pointed out, in a nice way, that indeed she had experienced what it is like to be smacked violently by immovable objects while moving forward against them. Something like that. Since the Fall of her own making, Jan has been saying that she looks like a biker babe. Then she adds, “But you ought to see the other guy.” And she’s kind of hoping for a distinctive scar. P.S. Beware of treacherous benches. Tuesday - Saturday 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. Closed Sunday & Monday 592-3228 355 Caves Hwy. Serving dinner only Illinois Valley News An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523 Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523 Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820 Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330 Volume 65, No. 25 STAFF: Virginia Gilliam, Cindy Newton, Sherri Hopper, Chris Robertson and Becky Loudon Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association DEADLINES: News, Classified Ads NOON MONDAYS POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ welcomes letters to the editor provided they are of general interest, in good taste, legible and not libelous. All letters must be signed, using complete name, and contain the writer’s address and telephone number. The latter need not be published, but will be used to verify authenticity. The ‘News’ reserves the right to edit letters. One letter per person per month. Letters are used at the discretion of the publisher. Unpublished letters are neither acknowledged nor returned. A prepaid charge may be levied if a letter is inordinately long in the editor's opinion. SUBSCRIPTION RATES One year in Josephine County - $20.80 One year in Jackson and Douglas Counties - $24.40 One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state -$28 POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523 Editor’s Note: Views ex- pressed in letters to the editor are strictly those of the letter-writers. * * * We no longer will accept single-spaced hand- written letters. Typed, double-spaced letters are acceptable for considera- tion. Hand-written letters that are double-spaced and highly legible also can be considered for publication.) Dedicated employees From Robbie Hanson Salem If not for a small group of dedicated individuals, the Illi- nois Valley Community Re- sponse Team (IVCRT) could not have operated the conces- sions at Oregon Caves Na- tional Monument this past summer. These employees made my job enjoyable and a lot easier. I was contacted by IVCRT in May, and declined all other job opportunities. Within the first week of June I was moved into my room and ready to live at the Chateau for the entire summer. It is a location where I could assist my hometown, work in a place that I love, and do what I enjoy. Despite obstacles all dur- ing summer, the employees remained dedication. Regard- less whether a broken pipe, being short-handed, having broken equipment, or even a nearby forest fire, the employ- ees showed me day-in and day-out the importance of dedication. There were staff members who willingly worked from 8 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; who would make the curvy trip down the hill; and without complaining return to work less than eight hours later. There were em- ployees who worked more than two consecutive weeks without a day off, and never complained. Employees were cross- trained so that they could cover if a co-worker got sick. When I would thank everyone for going way above and be- yond the call of duty, they would respond with a smile, and say that they did it for the guests and to help me out. It was evident that I was working with an amazing group of individuals. During the past several years I have had the opportu- nity to manage several differ- ent groups. However, the em- ployees of IVCRT were dif- ferent because they were not IVHS Activities Calendar Brought to you by the folks at 592-3556 Cave Jct . 469-7545 Brookings/ Harbor 471-RIVR THURSDAY, SEPT. 12 Girls volleyball at North Valley 5:45 to 6:30 p.m. Boys soccer at North Valley 4 p.m. FRIDAY, SEPT. 13 Varsity football at Gold Beach - 7 p.m. SATURDAY, SEPT. 14 Girls soccer vs. St. Mary’s Here - 10 a.m. Boys soccer at Mazama - Noon Varsity football vs. Hidden Valley - Here 1 p.m. TUESDAY, SEPT. 17 Volleyball at Lakeview 5:45/6:30 p.m. Boys soccer vs. Hidden Valley - Here, 4 p.m. School Board meeting at Wolf Creek - 7 p.m. WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 18 Assembly - ‘Making High School Count’ - Freshman only - 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. dedicated to their employer, but they had a love for the Chateau, and were dedicated to each every guest, as well as each other. I recently made my diffi- cult decision as manager. For various reasons, I resigned. Much thought and many tears backed up my decision. I knew that I was leaving many great employees, whom I now considered friends, and who were now as close as family. I also was leaving a place that I have come to love dur- ing the past three years. The Oregon Caves Chateau is by far my favorite place in which I have had the opportunity to work. I am confident that I will return in the future with a different concessionaire. The employees gave me one more surprise, just when I thought that they couldn’t. When I submitted my resigna- tion, six employees resigned with me. I was amazed to see how dedicated they truly are. I know that I could not have done the tasks set before me if not for the dedication of the other employees. Above all, I am certain that IVCRT would not have been as successful if not for those dedicated employees. As a manager, I could not have asked for better employ- ees. I appreciate the backing and sincere concern of those who were supportive. (Editor’s Note: Lynn Boucher, of Cave Junction Cares, is leading an effort to provide homemade cookies and other items to Biscuit Fire personnel at the Lake Selmac Fire Camp. The fol- lowing was offered for this column). does care. Please pass along a big thank you to all your members -- their thoughtful- ness is greatly appreciated. Walt Freeman help From Martha Hodges Cave Junction We have so much to be grateful for in this valley. How glad we are that the fire was stopped before it caused much damage to human habi- tations. How glad we are that so many people responded and helped -- the firefighters, the ones who housed our animals, the ones who served food and gave such kind care. I have one more person I appreciate for his role. Be- cause of him, the fire crews were able to access the fires out in O’Brien much quicker than they possibly could have without his assistance. Be- cause of him, the folks of O’Brien and the areas farther to the east, like Takilma, were kept safe. I wonder how many peo- ple realize that Walt Free- man’s roads, created for min- ing, were used by the fire crews. They had immediate access. New roads did not have to be built to get the peo- ple in to do their jobs. The fire lines went in much faster be- cause of Freeman’s roads. I can say, “Thank God” that those roads were in place. They helped protect many of our people. Fire opportunities From George Fence Selma It’s unusual that I feel called upon to respond to arti- cles or letters to the editor printed in our newspaper. However, the paid political perspective, “Wildland Ar- son,” printed two weeks ago obliges me to comment. I sub- mit this both as a resident, as well as an IVCRT member. Speaking as a resident and one who is genuinely con- cerned about our region’s fu- ture has caused me to “get involved” in local affairs with the aim being to contribute to and support the efforts of lo- cally inspired remedies to our cause of discontent. It’s my belief that we are capable of bridging the errors and prejudice of the past (call it social change or cultural maturity) and that most people want to share in the real joy of building a stronger, smarter, more prosperous and more caring community. To accom- plish this, false assumptions need to be debunked; and even hostilities between fac- tions reconciled. The divisive elements within weaken our ability to overcome the forces pressur- ing us from without and will prevent us from taking advan- tage of the post-(Florence) Biscuit Fire opportunities. The question of who is right and who is wrong is of- ten no more than rhetoric when used to advance one side over the other. But using conspiracy theories to dis- credit and alienate one group from another is inflammatory and destructive to the spirit of community. I personally find this unacceptable. One community organiza- tion (IVCRT) has attempted to create a positive space for those who would work to- gether, listen together, and Continued on page 3 ‘Biscuiteers’ appreci- ate cookies From Mike Morcom, incident commander Blue Mountain Inter- agency Fire Team Grants Pass Dear Cave Junction Cares: Just a quick note to let you know how much the Blue Mountain Interagency Team appreciated the homemade cookies, postcards and stamped envelopes you do- nated to our firefighters while we were assigned to Zone 1 of the Biscuit Fire. The cookies were a huge hit, and the postcards and stamped envelopes were very useful. It is obvious, from the many “Thank You” signs along the travel ways, and your organization’s generos- ity, that Cave Junction really The Meidinger Concrete Construction Serving the Valley since 1974 Licensed - Bonded - Insured Specializing in all types of Concrete and Masonry New - Foundations - Walks - Drives - Patios Mobile Home Runners and Foundations Bridges and Abutments - Slabs - Large or Small Exposed Aggregate - Retaining Walls and Basements Stamped & Colored Concrete Phone 592-4485 Mike Meidinger License #93173 Kerby Transfer Station is open Saturdays: 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Hours: Mondays - Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. For more information phone (800) 922-1025
