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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, June 11, 2014
The Illinois Valley High School Class of 2014 received its
diplomas last week. When we purchased the paper, I started on
the same day that this class began its freshman year.
The first IVHS graduation I covered was the Class of
2011. I felt a special connection with that group and this year’s
class.
The Class of 2014, like each of the groups I’ve seen here,
has done well academically. But, I spend most of my time look-
ing at all of these youngsters through a camera.
I remember Amanda Brooks as a freshman playing soc-
cer and she reminded me of my daughter. Amanda was fast on
the soccer pitch, scary fast. It’s been fun to watch her play for
the past four years. I also enjoyed watching Lander Nordol,
Soloman Zook and Shelby Mason play soccer, my favorite
sport. While working for the paper, I was also able to see Brian
Bemis become an Eagle Scout, the highest honor any Scout can
receive.
As the chosen teacher to address the Class of 2014,
Ryan Lathan did a great job of mentioning many of the other
graduates. As with any commencement, many of the speeches
revolved around happiness and perseverance. The themes had
to do with looking back fondly at years spent at IVHS, while
reaching towards the future.
Life in the
Valley
of Riches
By DAN MANCUSO,
Publisher
One thing for me that was noticeably absent in the
speeches, so I will pass it on to the Class of 2014. Question ev-
erything. Ask why and how when confronted with new things.
I am not referring to when your parents ask you to take out the
garbage; you know how to do that and why. What I am refer-
ring to is when someone tells you something, ask them why
or how. Not to avoid doing a task, but to learn. Life is a giant
classroom. I learn something new nearly every day because I
ask a lot of questions.
One of the grads made a comment at the ceremony that
went something along the lines of, “If these are the best days of
our lives, I am concerned for the future.” My response to that
is, you ain’t seen nothing yet! Life starts now, so work hard and
enjoy it. Happiness is a choice and it takes hard work and drive
to achieve true happiness.
The last little piece of “wisdom” I will leave you with is
this: The older you get, the less stupid your parents were.
Thank you for picking up this weeks paper, enjoy! ~ djm
Letters to the Editor
Illinois Valley News welcomes Letters to the
Editor.
Please e-mail them to
dan@illinois-valley-news.com
POLICY ON LETTERS:
‘Illinois Valley News’ encourages letters to the
editor provided they are legible and not libelous
or scurrilous. All letters must be signed, including
name, 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. Letters are used at the discretion of the
publisher.
***
(Editor’s Note: Views and commentary, includ-
ing statements made as fact are strictly those of
the letter writers)
Thanks for a great event.
For those of you who attended the Moon
Tree Run and Firefighter Fair on Saturday
- you know what a great event it was. For
those of you who missed it, I hope you have a
chance to see it next year! The list of those to
thank is long, and the first name on the list is
Roger Brandt. Roger has had a “build it and
they will come” vision for the airport for many
years. He knew that if you could plan and
advertise an event that appealed to pilots and
the general public - they would be there. And
this year proved his vision to be true.
We were at the airport on Friday night
setting up our booth, and had a delicious
burger dinner courtesy of the IV Lions Club.
Imagine our surprise to see 6-8 airplanes
parked along the runway, and an even big-
ger surprise to find out that the pilots flew
down from Portland! They flew in for dinner,
camped at the airport and then stayed for the
festivities on Saturday.
As for the fun on Saturday - again, huge
kudos to Roger for being the master mind,
cheerleader, organizer, email blaster, and all
around go-to guy for the events for the day.
Healthy U and the IVFD volunteer fire crew
did an incredible job assisting to make the
day entertaining and satisfying. There were a
number of organizations who tabled with their
information. Incredibly, the planes seemed
to be coming and going all day long. Many
pilots from Grants Pass flew over for breakfast
and/or lunch. They were more than happy to
tour the public, explaining about their planes
and the fun of flying. There was probably an
official count, and we are not aware of those
numbers. By our estimation, there were at
least 30 airplanes and 2 helicopters that came
for the day.
A huge thank you to ALL who did their
part to plan, organize and successfully deliver
an event that allowed the Illinois Valley to
shine. It was a lot of fun, and we are looking
forward to next year’s event!
Cheryl and Harry Johnson,
O’Brien
See you next year
I just wanted to take a moment to say
thanks to all the dedicated volunteers and
organizers of the Third Annual Moon Tree Run
- Firefighter Fair and Fly-In at the IV Airport
Saturday. This note is going out to the whole
Josephine County aviation community as well
as the County Commissioners and media. Of
course, a big thanks go out to all who showed
up for the fun.
The entire Rough n Ready parking lot
was full by 9 a.m., and we had over thirty
aircraft fly in for the event. The firefighter’s
did a wonderful job with the pancake break-
fast and sold out at 300 breakfasts served, and
then they started serving hamburgers and hot
dogs. The gatekeepers counted over 400 visi-
tors to the event, and of course we had about
100 volunteers and exhibitors there doing all
the work. Healthy U and the Smokejumpers
put on a great 10K race which had at least
50 runners from what I could tell from my
limited perspective out on the flight line. Scott
Taylor did an excellent job communicating
via radio with incoming pilots and getting
them parked safely, and the pilots themselves
did an outstanding job of visually separating,
communicating and generally flying in a safe,
professional manner. The Rogue Valley Flyers
RC Club had a GREAT selection of aircraft on
display, and it’s a real shame that the wind did
not cooperate with us Saturday to allow them
to fly. Hopefully they found the event to be
worthwhile despite the wind.
I’ve attached a couple photos I managed
to take during a few relatively quiet moments.
I know there must be a bunch of great pictures
out there taken by many of you, and if you’d
like to share them, please feel free to send
them to me and I’ll see they get put up on our
website and I’ll send a link out to all.
Thanks for a great event and we hope
to see twice as many people come out for the
next one!
Larry Graves
Manager, Josephine County Airports
Obituaries
Vicki Lee Jones passed away at her home on Friday
May 30th 2014.
Vicki worked for the school district for 25 years. Many
knew her from Selma Elementary, and when they closed Vicki
became the computer teacher for Evergreen Elementary. While
still substituting at Lorna Byrne, Illinois Valley High School, and
other schools in the district. When Vicki retired from the school
district she went to work helping her mother Dodie Vandermark,
at her non-profit food bank, The IV Open Door.
She worked there until she was diagnosed with Parkin-
son’s disease, and simply couldn’t do it anymore. Shortly after
her mother passed away and she was forced to close the Open
Door.
Although her mobility decreased daily, needing more help
from others it didn’t stop her from putting everyone else first. She
was an amazing woman with a heart of gold. She loved bringing
smiles to those around her, and would have gone out of her way
to help anyone in need.
She is survived by her husband Stanley Jones.
Her children, Jennifer & Bill Veldman, Dean & Heather
Jones, and Katherine Jones & Gary Lewis.
Her Grandchildren, Zach Grey, Natasha & Jeffrey Barnes,
Anthony & Ishta Spangler, Matt Grey, Jordan & Summer Jones,
and Trevor Jones. And her great grandchildren Aliyah Murphy,
Mikayah Murphy, Sierra Jones, and Unborn Baby Spangler. And
her brother Sam Vandermark.
A loving wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother,
sister, and friend. You loved unconditionally and will be missed
more than words can say.
The family would like to give a special thanks to Mark
Miller, who visited a few months before, which left Vicki with
this glow, and talking non-stop of her memories at Selma School.
Thank you Mark, you brought back a smile and memories we
haven’t seen or heard about in a while.
There will be a memorial for Vicki, Saturday, June 14, 2014
at 11:30 a.m. at The Baptist Church in Selma for anyone who
would like to attend.
I llInoIs V alley F uneral D Irectors
www.since1928Hull.com
Save June The
Date
13
ArtWalk will be held at various
locations downtown Cave Junction.
Second Friday ArtWalk is spon-
sored by Illinois River Valley Arts
Council, a not-for-profit 501c3 orga-
nization dedicated to providing arts
education and arts experiences. For
more information, visit www.irvac.
com. ArtWalk information is avail-
able at cjartwalk@gmail.com or
541-226-6458.
June 16
Precious Dirt is proud to feature
the acclaimed documentary Unac-
ceptable Levels.
Examining the results of the
chemical revolution of the 1940s
through the eyes of affable filmmaker
Ed Brown, a father seeking to under-
stand the world in which he and his
wife are raising their children. To cre-
ate this debut documentary, one man
and his camera traveled extensively
Illinois
Valley
News
Published weekly by
W.H. Alltheway, LLC
Daniel J. Mancuso, Publisher
to find and interview top minds in
the fields of science, advocacy, and
law. Weaving their testimonies into a
compelling narrative, Brown presents
us with the story of how the chemi-
cal revolution brought us to where we
are, and of where, if we’re not vigi-
lant, it may take us.
“Unacceptable Levels is a
hugely important film… Sadly, most
Americans are misinformed or not in-
formed at all about how many toxic
chemicals we are being exposed to 24
hours a day. These toxins are making
us sick and quite simply our lives are
being threatened. We need to stand
up and speak out. We must demand
a healthy environment for ourselves
and for our children. Unacceptable
Levels poignantly reveals how chem-
icals have invaded our lives.” - Mariel
Hemingway Actress, Author, Healthy
Living Advocate.
6:00 to 6:30 ~ Coffee / Social
— Film begins at 7:00 p.m. - Film
POSTMASTER: Please send
address changes to P.O. Box 1370,
Cave Junction OR 97523
Illinois Valley News is published at
221 S. Redwood Hwy.,
Cave Junction, OR 97523
Telephone (541) 592-2541
FAX (541) 592-4330
Since 1937 periodicals postage
paid at Cave Junction OR 97523
P.O. Box 1370 USPS 258-820
541-592-4110
For more listings go to www.ivcalendar.org
Run time: 76 minutes
Free Admission / Donations
Welcome~ Coffee/Tea & Goodies
provided. @The Illinois Valley Se-
nior Center, 520 E River St, Cave
Junction, OR 97523 (East off Hwy
199 onto E. River Street, .5 miles up
on the left) Plenty of parking avail-
able www.PreciousDirt.org --- 541-
597- 4809
June 19
Illinois Valley Golf Associa-
tion’s Junior Golf Program starts
Thursday, June 19 and runs for the
next consecutive five Thursdays.
There are four weeks of lessons, a
tournament on July 17, and an awards
banquet on July 24. The age divi-
sions and times are as follows: AGES
5 – 7: - 9:00 – 10:30, AGES 8 – 10 -
10:30 – 12:00, AGES 11– 15 - 12:00
– 1:30. The cost is $2.00, which cov-
ers the whole six weeks, if the child
was not involved in the junior golf
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
One year in Josephine
County - $30.50
One year in Jackson and
Douglas counties - $32.50
One year in all other
Oregon counties and
out-of-state - $39.00
Illinois Valley News does not refund subscriptions.
Remainder of subscription will be donated to the
charity of your choice.
program last year. If the child was
involved, this year is free. We can
also use more volunteer instructors.
Please call the Pro Shop at 541-592-
3151 to sign up or volunteer.
Caves Avenue. Questions? Give us a
holler at 541-592-3896. Saddle up,
grab your boots, and come on over
for a stompin’ good time! Yee-haw!
Saddle Ridge Ranch! A place where
kids can ask questions and discover
the answers found in God’s Word.
June 21 – 23
Hope Mountain Barter Faire,
3833 Holland Loop, Cave Junction.
Dome School benefit. Camping, arts,
crafts, music, drumming, food ven-
dors, workshops. Adults $15 / day.
541-592-4458
June 23-27
Howdy Partners!
Community Bible Church is
celebrating with VBS, so we are
rounding up all our favorite cow-
pokes age 4 through grade 6. Y’all
come on over for the hoedown,
y’hear? Roundup is at the CBC corral
June 23-27 from 9:00-12:00 at 113 S.
June 28
Call for Artists! Two new art
shows are slated for June and July.
The C.J. Lions Club Car “Show &
Shine” slated for June 28 is expand-
ing to include artist’s booths. The fee
is $25 and booths may be shared.
The Rusk Ranch Nature Center
will offer a free Nature & Art Festi-
val, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, July
20. There will be a juried Fantasy
Recycled fashion show among other
events, vendor booth space is $20.
For further information, call 541-
592-4444.
News - Dan Mancuso
dan@illinois-valley-news.com
Circulation - Kimberly Potter
office@illinois-valley-news.com
Advertising / Composition
Dan Mancuso
dan@illinois-valley-news.com
Mailroom - Millie Watkins
Office Manager-Laura Mancuso
office@illinois-valley-news.com
July 20
DEADLINES:
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Display Ads, Announce-
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POLICY ON LETTERS:
‘Illinois Valley News’ encour-
ages letters to the editor pro-
vided they are legible and not
libelous or scurrilous. All let-
ters must be signed, including
name, 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.
Letters are used at the discre-
tion of the publisher.