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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 17, 2007)
Page 2 Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, October 17, 2007 Like a lot of guys, I enjoy watching “old movies.” That is, movies that sometimes not only are old, but are those I have viewed several times. And like many men, I have no problem watching a movie from any point in its plot. Or its lack of plot. It’s a guy thing. This reminds me (note the illogic) of the Barry Manilow song, Everything Is Beautiful (in its own way). Making this statement allows me to view ridiculous films with bad acting and horrible storylines because I can see loveliness despite ugliness. And I can even eat popcorn while doing that. Heck, I even find beauty in cars including the 1958 Oldsmobile. For those who do not recall its style, it looked like a child’s idea of how to haphazardly apply chrome onto a shoe- box. I mean, that is an unattractive car. But it’s so hideous that people like me can see magnificence in its repulsiveness. Get the idea? Even wooden acting, and fights that are about as realistic as that Lionel toy train crash in The Greatest Show On Earth have an attraction. For some of us. Which brings us to some dreadful movies I’ve watched of late. In one, a car with an automatic transmission is being used to chase another vehicle down a winding, mountain road. The guy in the chase car keeps shifting. Why? Who knows; maybe because the director thought it added to the action. And at one point, the driver smashes his car’s right-front fender against the other vehicle. But a few seconds later, the smashed fender is miraculously restored. Weird. Once I saw a Western in which a man was shot dead. He was lying on the ground in a scene. But when the camera pulled back for a longer view that included a bunch of horses stampeding toward the fort, the dead man arose and got out of the way. A miracle if I ever saw one. And there are the films in which characters are introduced as part of the plot, but then they disappear. Without explana- tion. Or their dialog refers to something that’s a mystery to the viewer, although it seems apparent that we’re somehow sup- posed to know. One of my favorite movie mishaps though is when a char- acter’s clothing mysteriously changes. In like the same scene. A character wearing a long-sleeve shirt will walk into a room and greet another person; then when we’re supposedly seeing the first person a few seconds after the greeting, they’re wear- ing a short-sleeve shirt. Talk about a quick-change artist. I know that some out there likely are wondering why some of us get a kick out of such stuff. Hey, it’s just a guy thing. And I’ll thank you to pass the popcorn. Concrete Remodel New Construction 592-4753 CCB 174891 Helping Children Who Have Been Exposed to Batterers The Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance is pleased to offer our community “Helping Children Who Have Been Exposed to Batterers.” This 16 week program is designed for parents, grandparents, foster parents or anyone interested in helping children who have been exposed to domestic violence. At the end of 16 weeks participants will receive a certificate of completion. Classes are always free, however pre- registration is required. Classes begin October 22 and will be from 10:30 a.m. to noon and will be held at the Illinois Valley Resource Center, 535 E. River Street, Cave Junction. To sign up or for additional information please call Susie, the Women’s Advocate at 592-2515. Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance - More Than a Safe Place (Editor’s Note: Views and commentary, including state- ments made as fact, are strictly those of the letter-writers.) * * * Typed, double-spaced let- ters written solely to this news- paper are considered for publi- cation. Hand-written letters that are double-spaced and legible also can be considered. ‘Thank you’ submissions are not accepted as letters. Top officer discourses on law enforcement options From Sheriff Gil Gilbertson Josephine County During my campaign for sheriff, among the com- mitments I made to the peo- ple of Josephine County was to seek alternative sources of funding and to provide the best public safety envi- ronment possible with the funding available. Many of our citizens have expressed their dissat- isfaction with the property tax solutions proposed to date. Practically speaking, there may not be a one-shot solution to our financial problems, but weaving to- gether several different solu- tions could provide substan- tial benefits. One of the first steps I took in this regard was the formation of a Sheriff’s Ad- visory Council (SAC) com- prised of well-qualified vol- unteers with many years of combined service to Jose- phine County to help iden- tify and develop ideas. I have asked this council to look beyond funding the sheriff’s office to consider- ing solutions for the county- wide issues. Some of the more promising ideas are: *New construction asset buy-in. This proposal would assess all new dwelling units built in Josephine County to proportionately match the investment in existing com- munity assets such as roads, fairgrounds, parks, bridges, buildings and equipment that existing residents have already funded. The ability of existing residents to remain in their homes would not be threat- ened, as their existing homes could be grand- fathered in. *Two separate tax dis- tricts for law enforcement. This would copy a system already implemented in Deschutes County by creat- ing tax districts. District One, would include every- one in the county, which would fund the lawfully mandated services to the community (i.e. jail, civil, court security, search and rescue). The second district would provide all “other” current services; including Illinois Valley News www.illinois-valley-news.com An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and published by Robert R. (AKA Bob or El Jefe), Editor and Jan Rodriguez 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 Email: newsroom1@frontiernet.net or newsdesk@illinois-valley-news.com Volume 70, No. 31 Staff: Michelle Binker, Zina Booth, Josiah Dean, Jennifer Newsted Millie Watkins, and Tina Grow Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association DEADLINES: News, Classified & Display Ads, Announcements & Letters 5 P.M. THURSDAYS (Classified ads & uncomplicated display ads can be accepted until Noon, Fridays with an additional charge.) 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. Generally, one letter per person per month at publishers’ discretion. Letters are used at the discretion of the publishers. Unpublished letters are neither acknowledged nor returned. A prepaid charge may be levied if a letter is inordinately long in the publishers’ opinion. POLICY ON “HERE, THERE & EVERYWHERE,” DISPLAY & CLASSIFIED ADS & NOTICES: All submissions must be hand delivered, faxed or e-mailed to us for publication. Submissions must be resubmitted weekly if the item is to run more than one week. SUBSCRIPTION RATES One year in Josephine County - $22.80 One year in Jackson and Douglas counties - $26.40 One year in all other Oregon counties and out-of-state - $36 POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction OR 97523 Cave Junction Wednesday, Oct. 17 Cold with showers High--54 Low--37 Thursday, Oct. 18 Lots of clouds then rain High--55, Low--40. Friday, Oct. 19 Cloudy, windy and rain later High--63, Low--36 Saturday, Oct. 20 Rainy and cold High--56, Low--37 Sunday, Oct. 21 More drizzles then clearing at night High--62, Low--38 Monday, Oct. 22 Some sun, more clearing High--69, Low--49 Tuesday, Oct. 23 Warming and sunny High--77, Low--47 911 response, patrol, investi- gations, records, etc. Only the residents directly bene- fiting from those services (everyone outside the city of Grants Pass) pay for district two. We are currently devel- oping this proposal. *Insurance industry program funding. I have initiated discussions with several companies providing home owner and vehicle coverage in our market to review with them how in- creased patrol presence might benefit them by re- ducing their claims losses; and provide an elevated level of safety to our com- munity. So far, they have been receptive to the idea with more discussion on the horizon. *Deductible contribu- tions to public safety trust funds. The sheriff’s office currently has several line item “Trust Fund” accounts, similar to a nonprofit 501(c) (3) -- where tax-deductible donations can be made di- rectly to funding the sher- iff’s office obligations. Since this type of account is legally insulated from the county, public confidence concerning how, and for what, the money is spent is dramatically enhanced. *Justice of the Peace (JP) System. Such a system would take over administra- tion of minor civil matters arising in Josephine County such as traffic or parking tickets, code violations, etc. This would retain the related fine revenue that currently goes to the State of Oregon. By jointly occupying current building space owned by the county, and by staffing the JP position from the many well-qualified local retirees, the accompanying costs re- main low. These alternatives ad- dress the problem in a vari- ety of ways. Some charge county residents for services that directly benefit them. Others charge new arrivals for incremental demands placed on our community services purely by their join- ing the community. I don’t expect any of these alone to solve our problems, and I don’t expect a free lunch to last. Perhaps others have some ideas as good, or better that these. Ideas sent to jocosher- iff@co.josephine.or.us will be forwarded to the Sheriff’s Advisory Council, which is open to any viable proposal and will appreciate contribu- tions and creativity. It continues to be my honor and privilege to serve the people of Josephine County in these difficult times. Youth sports programs make couple happy From Christi Alvarez Cave Junction “Coach Cricket” is how some people know me, al- though most probably will recall me as Christi Alvarez (Raymond). My husband, Following are the high-and- low temperatures, and rainfall, recorded in O’Brien by Cheryl & Harry Johnson. *Fri., Oct. 5: 57 - 36 *Sat., Oct. 6: 65 - 33 *Sun., Oct. 7: 71 - 36 *Mon., Oct. 8: 72 - 41 *Tue., Oct. 9: 62 - 43 0.55 *Wed., Oct. 10: 57 - 42 0.39 *Thurs., Oct. 11: 53 - 43 0.06 Following are the high-and- low temperatures, and rainfall, recorded in Cave Junction at Natural Designs Farm. *Fri., Oct. 5: 58 - 35 *Sat., Oct. 6: 65 - 31 *Sun., Oct. 7: 73 - 33 *Mon., Oct. 8: 74 - 41 0.01 *Tue., Oct. 9: 64 - 38 0.48 *Wed., Oct. 10: 60 - 40 0.27 *Thurs., Oct. 11: 54 - 41 0.06 Dane, and I are fairly active parents. We enjoy the fact that we are able to be so involved with our children and their activities, especially sports. For the past four years we have coached whatever sport our children choose. We have coached base- ball, from coach pitch to majors, and helped some with wrestling. Until this year my husband coached Pop Warner and high school football, and I have coached Pop Warner cheerleading. I have 23 of “my boys” on my team, a Boys & Girls Club tackle football pro- gram. I have four awesome coaches: Billy Culbertson, Nathan Smith, Erik Kovis and, most recently, Tony Hess. Our team is awesome. It will play its last game on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 11 a.m. on the IVHS football field. We hope lots of peo- ple will come watch. Thanksgiving, Christmas free meals help needed From Lynn Boucher, Cave Junction Cares coordinator This is written to de- scribe the Cave Junction Cares Program. The “Program” started in 1989, when it was very clear that the Illinois Valley had a large number of homeless and needy residents. Approximately six peo- ple at that time decided to feed these people on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. It was arranged that the pavilion at Jubilee Park would be the perfect place to achieve this. The first year we fed approximately 50 people. Since that first year, it has escalated. With the help of more volunteers and gener- ous donations, the Cave Junction Cares Program now feeds approximately 300 to 350 people each Thanksgiving Day and Christmas morning. With the generous do- nations, we have been able to expand the Christmas breakfast to include two Santas, one who delivers breakfast and new toys to the needy that cannot get to the park (this includes the elderly and disabled that are homebound). The other Santa sits on the stage sur- rounded by beautiful new donated toys and distributes them to every child. It is such a blessing to see a child receive a new toy and a stuffed animal (we want all the children to have something to “hug”). Some of these children have never seen Santa Claus or received a new toy. We have been fortunate during the past few years to even get new do- nated bicycles. Unfortu- nately, not enough for every child, but the bikes are given to those who truly needed them. The breakfast consists of all-you-can-eat pancakes, cooked-to-order eggs, ham and Taylor’s sausage patties, and gravy with homemade biscuits. There is plenty of hot coffee, milk and orange juice. Our Thanksgiving din- ner consists of a complete home-cooked dinner of tur- key, ham, candied yams, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetables, and rolls and butter. Hot coffee, milk, punch and pies are also available. This is an all- you-can-eat meal. We encourage our vol- unteers to serve these people and then join them and make them feel comfortable and wanted. It is a joy to see that the volunteers are en- joying the event even more than the people they serve. Donations and volun- teers are always needed. Those who wish more infor- mation can contact me at 592-6855 or 592-3594. We appreciate all our supporters and helpers, and wish a God Bless on all of them. Those making a dona- tion by check should make the check payable to: Cave Junction Cares c/o Lynn Boucher-Johnson. Thirty-seven years of observing valley From Ellis Couron Cave Junction When I came here all of those years ago this valley was a quiet place where the country folks looked after each other, and mostly there was no trouble. Trouble of any kind was settled by those who lived here; and law enforce- ment, such as it was, was rarely seen. Later people started buying property and moving in. Illegal plants of one kind or another began growing in the forests, fences went up, “No Trespassing” signs sprouted like weeds -- and then trouble started big time. When the local residents tried to control what was going on, the sheriff (from Grants Pass) sided with those living in shacks and around the forest saying they had a right to manage their property or any part of the forest around them in any way they saw fit. Then the logging indus- try, that had been the main support of those who lived here, was almost totally shut down by those who came here from LaLa Land claim- ing to know more about the forest and spotted owls and the like than anyone else. Nearly every week I read long letters in the local pa- per about how determined they are to save us all from ourselves. (Continued on page 3) 20% OFF ALL MEALS “Where eating right means as much to us as it does to you” Della’s Restaurant 1802 NW 6th St. (across from Motel 6 in Grants Pass) Present coupon for discount Offer expires 11/30/07 Serving the Illinois Valley since 1979 Auto Home Business Life Health Motorcycles Bonds Boats 592-2176 Representing: S a fe co Met-Life Pr ogr e ssive AIG Viking Dairyland or 800-500-5635
