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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (June 9, 2004)
R&R at ‘first year’ By CHRISTINA HILL Correspondent Illinois Valley is framed by a seemingly endless quantity of trees. To most, a shortage of timber would appear highly unlikely, but it’s exactly what caused Rough & Ready Lumber Co. to close for a few months last year. ‘We hope to continue to be part of the community for a long time.’ - Link Phillippi - The family owned business, which is known for being a superior cutting mill, specializes in quality -- not quantity. Most of the cuts are made especially for doors and windows. This June marks the one-year anniversary that the mill has been reopened after having to close last March due to the lack of timber sales. “About 80 percent of the valley is owned by the federal government,” said Jennifer Phillippi, Rough & Ready co-manager. “It’s kind of tough because it has all this land, but is not providing harvest sales,” she said. “Whenever the government tries to sell it, it gets protested.” Jennifer and her hus- band, Lincoln, better known as “Link,” took over management of the mill last year. Her father, Lew Krauss, is one of the co-owners of the mill, and family ties run deep. “My grandparents started the mill in 1922,” said Jennifer, “I’ve been working here since I was 7.” After decades of being family owned and oper- ated, the mill was put up for sale last year. The de- clining timber availability had taken its toll. The busi- ness was never sold, but it did receive an offer that the principals couldn’t turn down. “The timber supply issue was a problem, and we didn’t see how we could overcome it,” said Jennifer. “So we decided to try and sell the com- pany. One of the compa- nies that we thought might be interested in buying it came to us and said, ‘We’ll give you a log supply con- tract’,” said Jennifer, “so now we have a three-year contract for logs.” After some very tense months, the mill was fi- nally up and running again. “There were a lot of months when these guys didn’t know if they’d have a job or what the future would hold,” Jennifer said. “At one time we had 225 employees, and now we’re down to 80, but everyone landed on their feet. They either came back or were given a severance pack- age.” The severance pack- age, which Rough & Ready received as part of a private grant, gave those who found themselves without a job two years of paid college retraining education, health benefits and much more. “The log supply,” said “Link,” “is always a chal- lenge. It always has been and always will be. “The crew here is a great bunch of people. We all have to adapt and be ready for the challenges that lie ahead. “We’ve been part of this community for a long time, and we hope to keep it that way,” he concluded. R&R Biscuit salvage logging comment on page 10 IVHS CLASS OF 2004 FUTURE BOUND - Under a sunny sky on Thursday, June 3, 79 seniors graduated from Illinois Valley High School in a 75-minute outdoor ceremony. Salutatorians Alice Weber and Kelsi Snook (left photo) urged fellow graduates to take life by the horns, and to be kind and helpful. Valedictorian Tess Anawalt told her classmates that ‘it’s not what you take that counts, but what you give.’ Music was pro- vided by a combined IVHS and Lorna Byrne Middle School band directed by T. Lund. Guest speaker, re- tired IVHS teacher Wayne Dudley, emphasized that the class is comprised of ‘a nice group of kids, great to be around.’ Guest speaker was teacher Steve Morgan, who shared many fond memories of the past year. Noncompetitive kids’ fishing at Selmac Sunday Free Family Fishing Day will be held at Lake Selmac on Sunday, June 13, replacing the Kids Fishing Derby, and will not be a competition. The lake will be stocked prior to the event, which is scheduled to run from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Check-in will be in front of the picnic area near the ranger’s house on Reeves Creek Road. Families are urged by Josephine County Parks Dept. to come to Lake Sel- mac and “experience healthy family recreation.” Fishing rods and reels will be provided to youth who do not have their own. Several fishermen’s groups will provide assistance to those in need. It should be under- stood, said the parks de- partment, that this event is not a competition. There will be no meas- uring of fish, and no prizes. The Free Family Fish- ing Day is a joint effort with the U.S. Forest Ser- vice, Oregon Fish & Wild- life Dept., Selma Commu- nity Center, All-Sports, Northwest Steelheaders Association Rogue Valley Chapter, and Josephine County Parks “all working together to offer a family, fun-filled day.” Valley group urges respect by all about Biscuit (From left) ‘Link’ Phillippi, Lew Krauss, Jennifer Phil- lippi and Joe Krauss of R&R at celebration last week. Fire season under way by ODF Open burning of debris outdoors became prohib- ited as of Friday, June 4 with the start of fire sea- son, said Oregon Dept. of Forestry. Burn barrels can be allowed with specific re- strictions. For information, phone Illinois Valley Fire District’s information line, 592-1121. By MICHELLE BINKER Staff Writer The nation’s largest and most costly wildfire of 2002 has generated a veri- table firestorm of contro- versy and concern for Illi- nois Valley residents. Community leaders feel that the much- anticipated release of the U.S. Forest Service’s Final Environmental Impact Statement on the Biscuit Fire burn area might rekin- dle the furor. A group of eight busi- ness and community lead- ers representing a broad spectrum of views on the planned salvage harvest and recovery effort met Monday, May 26 to dis- cuss the potential effects of imminent protest activity. The result of their dia- logue was to craft and is- sue a welcoming statement to any who engage in dis- course on the Biscuit Fire in the coming months. The statement reads: “To those visiting our community because of the Forest Service’s proposed actions on the Biscuit burn area: “Welcome to our com- munity. While we respect your right to express your views on the Biscuit Fire final Environmental Im- pact Statement and Re- cords of Decision, we urge you to do so peacefully and in a way that respects the property and all the people of the Illinois Val- ley. “We lived through the Biscuit and we will be here once you have returned home. “Although we don’t always agree on natural resource issues, we are learning as a community to disagree respectfully and to find solutions we can support. Loggers, mill workers, forest service staff, environmentalists and concerned citizens are all neighbors; each repre- sent pieces of the patch- work quilt that is the fabric of our community. “Do express yourself while you are here, but please do not interrupt the d i a l o gu e d e v e l o p i n g among us—in fact, you might even want to listen in.” The group is com- prised of U.S. Forest Ser- vice District Ranger Pam Bode; Ron Phillips, Illinois Valley Community Re- sponse Team (IVCRT) executive director; Rough & Ready Lumber Co. part- owners “Link” and Jenni- fer Phillippi; Don Smith, executive director of the Siskiyou Regional Educa- tion Project; Jim Nolan, People for the USA com- mittee chairman; Jim Frick, a broker with Cen- tury 21 Harris & Taylor; and Bob Rodriguez, owner and editor of “Illinois Val- ley News.” Valley residents are encouraged to help by add- ing their names to the statement by contacting IVCRT at (541) 592-4400 or ivcrt@ivcrt.org. The Forestry Action Committee will host an opportunity for community dialogue on the proposed expansions to the Kalmiopsis Wilderness area. The public meeting will be held Thursday, June 10, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Illinois Valley High School cafetorium. Don’t forget! The deadline for the ‘I.V. News’ special Father’s Day section and the annual ‘Valley Visitor’ is Friday, June 11. For more information phone 592-2541