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Illinois Valley News
Wednesday, April 5, 2017, 1 Section, Volume LXXX No. 2
Lack of deputies
cause delay in
medical care
$1.00
Published weekly for the residents of the Illinois Valley
Fiddling around
By Dan Mancuso
IVN Staff
Cave Junction is set to lose its contract with
Josephine County for law enforcement (LE) services
May 31. The loss of rural patrols means there could be
tragic consequences due to the impact on the response
from fire and emergency personnel.
The Illinois Valley Fire District (IVFD) will not
approach any scene that includes shootings, accidental
or not, drug overdoses, domestic situations “basically
anything violent,” said IVFD Chief Dennis Hoke.
“Without LE on scene we cannot approach.
Meaning critical minutes will pass that possibly have a
negative impact on the outcome of the medical care,”
Hoke continued.
Hoke along with American Medical Response
(AMR) does not have the ability to protect their paid and
volunteer responders. “We won’t go into a scene where
our people could get assaulted,” said Hoke.
Hoke went on to describe two deaths that could
have been avoided, “We have two documented situations
where people have died because of the delay in law
enforcement, chances are they could have been treated
properly in an operating room.”
As for drug overdoses, Hoke explained that
sometimes people that have overdosed get angry “when
they come out of a high because we treated them; they
paid for a high and we brought them back.”
According to a press release from the Josephine
County Sheriff’s Office, employee layoff notifications
were being sent out by the county’s human resource
department with an effective date of May 31, 2017.
Cave Junction Mayor Daniel Dalegowski is
concerned about the layoffs’ impact on the city “Yea, we
won’t have any [law enforcement]. The city will be in the
position where we have some type of security that is less
effective than what you would want to have.”
According to Dalegowski the city has been working
on this since the possibility of this came up at the end
of last year. Dalegowski said that talks with Grants Pass
Dept. of Public Safety were moving slow.
SEE LEVY ON A-8
(Photo by Dan Mancuso, Illinois Valley News)
Evergreen Elementary second-graders learn to fiddle with the help of Kelly Thibodeaux Monday, April
3. The week of training will culminate with a concert Friday, April 7, at the school.
I.V. Emergency Prepare Fair
planning for your safety
By Laura Mancuso
IVN Staff
Soil and Water
has full plate of
projects slated
Jason McMillen
IVN Contributing Writer
The Illinois Valley Soil and Water Conservation
District (IVSWCD) and the National Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS) have found and
determined that four local projects are eligible for
emergency watershed protection (EWP) funding
from the federal government. Two of the projects
involve drive-over bridges in Selma while another
project involves a vineyard in Cave Junction whose
stream is threatening irrigation equipment as well
as utilities because of erosion. One of the bridges
has already collapsed as a result of its stream
undercutting the bank and the other, which hasn’t
failed yet, needs assistance as soon as possible
so that it too doesn’t collapse. Both bridges will
eventually need to be replaced or repaired. The
fourth project involves a road in Cave Junction that
is being undercut by a stream and is also threatening
to collapse.
Unfortunately, EWP funding can only be used
for preventative maintenance so the IVSWCD will
do their best to make sure that erosion will not be the
fate of any replaced or repaired infrastructure twice.
“The NRCS is going to put the budget together
and figure out how much each project is going to
cost based on the photos they took,” Tracey Brandt,
conservation technician, said. Brandt continued by
explaining that the NRCS is responsible for giving
the green light as to whether a project is eligible or
not. “They’re going to submit that by the end of next
week,” and Brandt added, “Then it’s the waiting
game to hear if it gets approved or not by Congress.”
Brandt estimated that it will take between one and
three months to hear back from Congress whether or
not the funding has been granted.
SEE SOIL ON A-10
“The best time to prepare for an emergency is
when there isn’t one. And remember, survival favors
the prepared!” replied Sue Williams, coordinator of the
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) when
asked why residents should attend the Illinois Valley
Emergency Prepare Fair that will be held Saturday, April
15 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at Illinois Valley High School
(IVHS).
This special event is sponsored by the Illinois Valley
Community Development Organization (IVcanDo), Illinois
Valley Fire Department (IVFD), CERT and the city of Cave
Junction.
“With our recent ‘snow-mageddon’ event fresh
in everyone’s minds, I would encourage anyone who
experienced any kind of disruption to their comfort zone
stop by this fair to learn about what they can do to be better
prepared the next time our valley gets hit,” said Williams.
The Prepare Fair will be free admission and a host to
a variety of booths, presentations and kids’ activities including
the IVFD Engine and Safety House and CERT’s “Ready-Set-
Go” evacuation system. Participants will be able to take away
free emergency supplies and planning tools.
Tanner Smith, principal at IVHS has been instrumental in
planning for the Prepare Fair, “I jumped on board and offered
the High School as a meeting place and then a venue to host
the actual fair. This is a great platform to help our community
prepare for emergency situations and hardships like the massive
snowfall we had this winter.”
When asked what the layout will look like, Smith said,
“The exhibits will be arranged in the commons area with tables
around the outside of the room and the presentations will take
place in classrooms. We will have concessions serving food and
drinks as well.”
The event coordinator, Cave Junction City Councilor Jean
Ann Miles is encouraging families to participate in this event
so that “it will bring them together for a discussion about what
to do as a family during an emergency. It is important to have a
plan in place.”
SEE FAIR ON A-10
Mental health to combat rising suicide rate
Jason McMillen
IVN Contributing Writer
According to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) study entitled, “Suicide rates
for Females and Males by Race
and Ethnicity” the age-adjusted
suicide rate in the United States
stood 24 percent higher in 2014 than
in 1999 with no signs of letting up
in subsequent years. In addition,
the CDC has also published in the
“FastStats” section of their website
that suicide has recently become
the second leading cause of death in
people aged 15-19.
In the face of statistics like
these, the nonprofit corporation
called Options for Southern Oregon
is hosting a Youth Mental First Aid
event in Grants Pass April 12 from
8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event will
cost $25, as cash or check only that
will include a lunch.
Registration may be submitted
via email attamaral@optionsonline.org
or by calling 541-244-3138. Although
attendee’s can register at any time it is
highly encouraged to RSVP beforehand
because they need to know how much
food to make.
Options for Southern Oregon has
been based in Grants Pass since 1981 and
serves as the Community Mental Health
Program for Josephine County while
also providing additional services such
as the Integrated Primary Medical Care
program to people of all ages.
“The idea is to train people in the
community to be able to respond to
somebody who is having some sort of
mental health challenge until someone
more professional gets there,” Tina
Amaral, therapist, summarized. As
part of a nationwide outreach agenda
Mental Health First Aid wishes to
spread awareness about mental health
conditions. According to Amaral,
even Michelle Obama had at one time
participated in the growth of the program.
“A big piece is being able to assess
for safety,” Amaral concluded, “It’s
mostly about listening and trying to get
the person who’s having some struggles
to be able to be either safe where they
are or help them get to some place that
can help them be safe.” The organization
has coined the acronym ALGEE (Assess
for risk of suicide or harm, Listen
nonjudgmentally, Give reassurance and
information, Encourage appropriate
professional help, Encourage self-
help and other support) to help people
memorize the key points of mental first
aid.
Amaral and Angela Watton, the
suicide prevention coordinator at Options
for Southern Oregon, will be teaming up
to teach the class.
Although this event focuses on
youth mental first aid there is also a
separate class for administering mental
health first aid to adults.
Scholarships are available for those
who are in need of education but cannot
afford the program. Call Amaral at 541-
244-3138 to inquire about eligibility.