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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 2006)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, September 13, 2006 (Continued from page 2) CITIZEN PATROL CALL - Volunteers are sought by the Cave Junction Citizen Patrol, which will hold an open meeting Thursday, Sept. 14 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the county building. It’s hoped that a sheriff’s officer from the Neighborhood Watch program will attend. See the ad else- where in this issue. MEANWHILE ... - A gathering of the Cave Junction Security Council, open to anyone for input, will be held Monday, Sept. 18. The informal session, during which pri- orities for law enforcement in city limits are reviewed, will begin at 6:30 p.m. in CJ City Hall, across from Home Val- ley Bank and the DMV office on Lister Street. DIVERSION AUTHORIZED - In our Aug. 9 issue, we ran a couple photos from the East Fork of Illinois River, just downstream of its confluence with Althouse Creek. The rock-and-gravel dam shown was brought to our attention by a citizen who thought it might be illegal. As stated Aug. 9, Barlow Sand & Gravel is not involved. It has been learned, thanks to Susan Chapp. of Forestry Action Committee, through Kevin O’Brien of I.V. Soil & Water Conservation District (IVSWCD), that the structure is an authorized point of diversion, apparently for the former Martin Dairy. OSP and the Oregon Division of State Lands also were to have looked at the situation, and possibly the Oregon Dept. of Environmental Quality, but information was not available on their findings. However, the diversion is authorized, lay- ing to rest concerns about illegality, said IVSWCD. TEEN WORKERS - Teen-aged workers still are avail- able for work during weekends and after school classes. Ar- rangements can be made with Illinois Valley Family Coali- tion at 592-6139. There’s an ad with more information else- where in this issue. BUS RUMOR BOGUS - There was a rumor last week about a school bus driver who supposedly drove a load of Evergreen Elementary School students to Grants Pass and quit, leaving the kids in the bus. “Completely inaccurate,” said Evergreen Principal David Valenzuela. “A driver did quit, but no students were left alone or driven to Grants Pass, and they all got home safely.” RCC PROGRAMS - Real estate and insurance agent courses are offered by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) operated by Rogue Community College at 214 S.W. Fourth St. in Grants Pass. “Real Estate Test Prepa- ration” and continuing education, approved by the Oregon Real Estate Agency, will begin Oct. 2. “Insurance Agent” continuing education is available at roguecc.webce.com. Pre-registration is required by noon two working days be- fore the class to avoid cancellation. Enrollment is limited. Register on-line at roguecc.edu/bcwd or at any RCC regis- tration site, or phone SBDC at 956-7494 for telephone pre- registration and further information. SOLDIER HONORED - All flags at Oregon public institutions were flown at half-staff Saturday, Sept. 9, in memory of U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Richard J. Henkes II, of Portland, by order of Gov. Kulongoski. Henkes died Sept. 3 during a combat operation in Iraq. “Sgt. Henkes represents the best that Oregon and our country has to offer,” said Kulongoski. “He was a man with strong convic- tion to his state, his country and his family and friends. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Sgt. Henkes’ family as we remember him and the rest of the men and women who have unselfishly lost their lives.” ‘DRUM FOR PEACE’ - Saturday, Sept. 16 at 4 p.m. (Oregon time) a “Drum For Peace/Drum the Troops Home” happening will occur, with others worldwide drumming simultaneously in their time zones. The one-hour occasion likely will involve at least 50,000 drummers. Themes in- clude, “Drum for the children and the future children/Let’s all put the heartbeat of love back into our Earth.” No drum? Use a bucket or a 55-gallon barrel. (P.S./Anyone in the val- ley who will participate is asked to contact the “Noose” at 592-2541 or use newsroom1@frontiernet.net). ‘CRIKEY!’ - Among those lamenting the accidental Sept. 4 death by stingray of Steve “Crocodile Hunter” Irwin is Craig Wagner, trainer and owner at Great Cats World Park in Cave Junction. “We were friends,” said Wagner, “and he was planning a visit to Cave Junction next year to put on a show here.” Working around dangerous, wild crea- tures means “you just never know,” said Wagner. NOTEPAD - For those wondering, the groundwork under way along Hwy. 199 between Downtown CJ and Laurel Pines Golf Course is for a 240-acre project including a 60-acre expansion of the course, plus a 10-acre RV resort and approximately 300 new homes by Manor Communities Development, of Lodi, Calif. ... An “Unlock the Library” campaign kickoff was held Tuesday, Sept. 12 at the Jose- phine County main library in Grants Pass by supporters of the library district proposal on the Nov. 7 ballot. A 3-foot long, bright-red lock-and-bolt cutter was used to demon- strate the need for library doors to be open additional days and hours to serve the community … Abuser characteris- tics will be covered during free training for volunteers, part- ners and other interested community members Friday, Sept. 29. For information about attending, phone Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance at 592-5332 … Adult seed-spittin’ winners from the watermelon event during the I.V. Lions Labor Day Festival were Shawn Carmody (26-6) and Clyde Ashinhurst (27-4) … “Blackwood Legacy,” a Tennessee- based Gospel group, will perform at Community Bible Church in CJ on Sunday, Aug. 24 at 6 p.m. ... By the way: The “Noose” Website (illinois-valley-news.com) has some great links, besides lots of good valley stuff … Bumper stickers: *My husband and I divorced over religious differ- ences. He thought he was God, and I didn’t. *I used to have a handle on life, but it broke. *You’re just jealous because the voices only talk to me. *My dog can lick anyone. *Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder. LAST WORDS - Choose to be optimistic, it feels better. (Dali Lama) dom and our freedom of speech one bit at a time. As soon as the liberal judges win one case against Christianity they keep press- ing the issue, step-by-step, picking apart the 1st Amend- ment, robbing us of our free- dom of speech and the free- dom to express our Christian faith. Yes, Christian persecu- tion of the Dark Ages is still alive and well in America, but as yet it hasn’t led to the death penalty as now prac- ticed in Islamic countries. Fourth write-in claims ‘choice, not an echo’ From Paul Grad Cave Junction Given the dismal choice the public faces in electing our next county commis- sioner, a choice between two branches of collectivism, I feel it my duty to place my name before the voters of Josephine County as a write- in candidate for this office. I offer myself for those tired of the philosophy of collectivism, which tells the people they aren’t bright enough to manage their own money and must have a county manager (and his pen- sion and benefit package) added to the weight of county bureaucracy. And I’m here for those tired of commis- sioners collecting salaries far in excess of the average American’s annual income. I will use a libertarian, conservationist, free-market capitalist approach to issues, instead of the collectivism of the mainstream parties. Our most pressing needs in the county are these: a 24- hour manned police station in Cave Junction, and a 24-hour presence of multiple deputies in the area between Selma and the border; bus service, either daily or tri-weekly, for our residents living between CJ and the border; and low- cost spay and basic-shots services for cats and dogs (the fee set at one-hour minimum wage for each.) I am for providing a soup kitchen serving healthy food for the homeless and consider it more important than even more bloated benefit pack- ages for county bureaucrats. I think that unconfined pit bulls and second-hand tobacco smoke should be controlled substances instead of medi- cally useful plants. I think that the sheriff’s office should use the jail kitchen to prepare meals in- stead of paying a caterer, and save money by substituting beans for meat. Finally, I believe that a commissioner should show his dedication to the public by earning only minimum-wage with no benefits, and be re- quired to punch in and out, as many of our hard-working county residents must do. All funds saved by paying me minimum-wage with no benefits (roughly $70,000 per year) would be returned to the taxpayer as a property-tax rebate. The only way to reverse the financial catastrophe to- ward which collectivism is driving us is to vote for a free-market capitalist renais- sance. About those duckies; & helping high schools From Giff Gates Past president Grants Pass Rotary Club It feels like Duck Season opened early this year. People have been taking pot shots at the fourth annual Duck Race during the past few months. It appears that all the criticisms are based on misinformation. As last year’s Grants Pass Rotary president, I hope I can pro- vide a bit of history on the race and clear the air. We need a positive climate to be able to run this charitable event successfully. The Duck Race was a vision of local Rotarian, Bill Thorp, going back to the ‘90s. During 2002, several things came together to help start our Grants Pass Duck Race. One was Rotary’s 100th birthday. Each club was asked to do a centennial pro- ject. We felt a park in the Fruitdale area would be an asset to our community. Local Rotarian, Charlie Morrison, graciously donated the land, and a project was born. Hundreds of thousands of dollars would be required, and it just so happened that the Duck Race concept was a good fit. For the past three years, the proceeds were do- nated to the completion of Morrison Park. The park funding was finished in 2005, leaving the Rotary clubs of Grants Pass without a Duck Race proceeds recipient. This was new ground for our three Rotary clubs. How does one go about identifying a worthy cause? I felt that each of the three clubs should present viable projects and then try to reach consensus. One project seemed to have a strong Rotary connection: The Grants Pass High School track renovation. Our GP Rotary Club has hosted a premier track meet at GP High School for more than 50 years. Upgrading this facility seemed to fit well. It benefited people of all ages and it is open to the public 24/7. I have to compliment the wisdom of the Rotary clubs’ boards at that moment in time. They saw a political nightmare in assisting GP high schools and ignoring the needs at our other two public GP high schools. We imme- diately contacted the adminis- trators/boosters clubs at Hid- den Valley and North Valley. We offered the two schools the same deal as GP High. If the schools had a booster club with nonprofit status, a project leader/liaison to communicate with our club, and an organized project to enhance a recreational fa- cility at the school, we would match dollar-for-dollar their fund-raising efforts. This could be matched: for in-kind labor, outside grants or their own cash fund-raisers. We had offered GP High a match of up to $100,000. The same figure was offered North Valley and Hidden Valley. This threw a little wrench in our plans, as we had hoped to raise $100,000 in this year’s race and then turn our focus to health or academics or some other area of need. We now had a poten- tial of matching $300,000; which is more than we could raise in a single Duck Race. Our plan will be to ex- tend the offer next year if the nine-member Rotarian steer- ing committee approves re- newing our offer to the schools. Again, I have to compli- ment Rotarians who once again wanted to make sure we didn’t leave out Illinois Valley High School since it is, of course, a Three Rivers high school as well. This was a little different situation than our GP schools, but no doubt we could make it work. I contacted a Cave Junction Rotarian and asked him to drum up some busi- ness sponsors and volunteers while I worked with the ad- ministration/booster club at IVHS. My contact resulted in enthusiasm for the offer of matching funds, but the real- ity seemed to be that this year would be premature. The IVHS Booster Club was close to nonexistent: There was no consensus on what athletic project might be ready to move forward. And finally, with the economics in the valley, the matching funds concept seemed a bit unlikely. Our Cave Junction Rotarian at the same time wasn’t able to drum up new business or volunteer support. I’m hoping we can renew our offer in 2006/07 so that IVHS can have time to prepare next year. I did phone IVHS last week to see if there wasn’t some matching fund project we could help with. Good news, there is a small fund that had been set aside to re- place the P.A. system in the IVHS gym, which we can match. Fred Ball, owner of Bi- Rite Auto Parts in Cave Junc- tion, has generously offered Page 3 to be a Duck Adoption Center to supplement Home Valley Bank and Sterling Bank’s efforts in Cave Junction. I hope this helps to clear up any misconceptions. All four high schools, GPHS, HVHS, NVHS and IVHS, were given the opportunity to participate in the matching fund program; and the three Grants Pass schools who signed on all have the same equal opportunity to receive our funds. It’s a fun event for a wor- thy cause. People can help us make this year’s Duck Race a success by obtaining either an Adopt a Duck entry, a Pair, a Family Pack or a Super Quack Pack before the big race on Saturday, Sept. 23. About 911 plus other aspects that pain her From Sue Lily Cave Junction The Reign of the Oblivi- ous has been using 9/11 as leverage to enlarge its indus- trial pump, while hanging out America’s underwear for all the world to see. It’s a humiliating time. I am so disappointed, heavier, and cut my hair. I grew up near New York City, where my father worked and my niece does now. My heart burst in sorrow and pride for “my” people who stood so straight and did what was needed during that horrible crisis, and they are still suffering without the resources that were promised, and we still don’t know what really happened. Perverted by those terri- fying experiences and forced out of our American dreams into a world webbed with grudges and pain, we are mis- led by a “remarkably incuri- ous” president who managed to distort normal governance so completely that we’ve been shocked and shaken completely off our paradigm. My heart in shards: wis- dom is despised by this presi- dent; his administration delib- erately inflames and disregards the will of the people, the rules of law, language, ethics, fun- damental religious values; has ignored warnings of the im- pending Al Queda at- (Continued on page 4) Family Fixin’s - Veggie Style Concerned about HEART ATTACKS? Want to know some delicious ways to lower your cholesterol? Want to look good and feel better? Then plan to attend the Health & Cooking Class Every Monday in October at 6:30 p.m. at the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 265 Old Stage Road, Cave Junction Hear Health Professionals address these Topics of Interest • Weight Loss • Diabetes • Heart Disease • Osteoporosis • Stress Check out these features • Sample tasty dishes at every class • $10 per person • See food prep demos • $15 with spouse • Learn easy health tips • $20 family of five So come on over Monday, October 2 and discover how you can be… Healthy by Choice Not by Chance!
