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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2004)
Progress for Kerby H 2 O seen By SHANE WELSH Staff Writer Kerby Water District wants to go with the flow. And $2,500 will help the district finish an Envi- ronmental Assessment (EA) which would allow construction of a new wa- ter line to begin as soon as funding has met final ap- proval by U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA). Board members met Thursday evening, April 15 in the RCC Kerby Belt Bldg. to discuss progress regarding construction of a proposed pipeline that would give residents of Kerby access to city of Cave Junction water. John Plute, board president, later that eve- ning received a $15,000 technical assistance grant from USDA Rural Utili- ties. Grant funds will be used to finish the EA and complete required prelimi- nary engineering. The initial EA didn’t meet approval by USDA because three required en- vironmental agencies, the Legislative Commission on Indian Services, Na- tional Marine Fisheries Service, and the Oregon Dept. of Agriculture, had- n’t been contacted and in- cluded in the assessment. The two Kerby Water District board members present Thursday night voted unanimously to ap- prove $2,500 of the grant funding to be used to pay Popadoplus, the Portland firm who began the initial assessment, to complete the final EA. Once the assessment is completed, it will be sent to Mona Ellison of USDA for final approval, which should be complete by June 29, said Plute. (Related photo on page 7) Adopt-a-Mom help solicited by CJ center Many new moms will celebrate their first Mother’s Day this spring on Sunday, May 9. This year, the Preg- nancy Center of the Illinois Valley is requesting some special help for Mother’s Day and is asking people to “adopt a mom” during April and May. Adopting a mom in- volves praying for the adoptee daily, or sending an extra donation or gift that will help the mother specifically. The gift item could be for her baby, funds for diapers and wipes, a Bible, or another creative idea. Those wishing to par- ticipate in this short-term effort can phone 592-6058. Spring Recycle Round-Up will be held Saturday, April 24 from 9-2 at I.V. Visitor Center (See ad on page 3) De Spellman & ‘Cowboy’ READY FOR RESCUE - Members of the Josephine County Search and Rescue (SAR) Mountain Rescue Unit underwent arduous training recently in the Shan Creek area and at Hellgate Overlook. The unit will serve as a support team for the American Medical Re- sponse Reach and Treat Team (RATT). Cave Junction resident Ruth Highbarger (left) of the county team, and John Mann (above) of the Portland RATT participate in water rescue skills training. Photo immediately below shows Annetta Cooper, leader of the Mountain Rescue Unit, and Jim McNutt of JoCo SAR working with a Stokes basket for removing injured persons. In bottom photo Mari Kynsi and Doug Walker, both of JoCo SAR, prepare lines for reaching, retrieving and rescuing in- jured or stranded persons. JoCo SAR recently added 20 new members for its efforts. (Photos by Jim McNutt and Michael Gibbs) Prevention aide hired by I.V. Fire De Spellman, a volun- teer firefighter with Illinois Valley Fire District (IVFSD), has been hired as the first fire prevention coordinator in the district’s 50-year history. Spellman, who was 2002 Firefighter of the Year, has been a volunteer for nearly four years. The stipend position is part of the new Illinois Valley Fire Plan, said Fire Marshal Jerry Shafer. “She will be organiz- ing community input into the fire planning process, as well as continuing to provide excellent fire pre- vention education, for which she is known,” said Schaeffer. Spellman most re- cently was a fire technician for the valley’s Forestry Action Committee, provid- ing education and outreach to residents on defensible space and fire safety, the fire marshal added. IVFD, he said, is coor- dinating development of the I.V. Fire Plan with the Josephine County Inte- grated Fire Plan. “The plan’s purpose is to identify community pri- orities for reducing the risks of wildfire in Illinois Valley,” said Schaeffer. A kick-off community meeting will be held on May 19 in the Josephine County Bldg. in Cave Junction. The meeting, said Schaeffer, will be to introduce residents to the fire plan and the process that will be undertaken to identify the community’s priorities for wildfire haz- ard reduction. “A series of commu- nity meetings will be held throughout the valley dur- ing June, July and August to elicit participation in identifying areas of fire concern, and projects to reduce fire risks,” said Schaeffer. I.V.’s Fire Plan is be- ing coordinated by Tracy Katelman, a consulting forester from ForEver- Green in Eureka, Calif. She wrote the Lower Mat- tole Fire Plan, said Schaeffer, for an area in Humboldt County, Calif. Schaeffer noted that the plan has been used “as a national model in terms of the level of community participation in developing prioritized fire hazard re- duction projects.”