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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 1981)
6 SANDY (Ore ) POST T h u n ., Jan IS. m i (Sac 1) The Sandy Post Von Broschier, Publisher Caroline DuH Office M anager M ark Floyd. Editor Dan Dillon. News Editor Editorial & Opinion SUHS Able & Gifted will survive The Post erred last week in suggesting that Sandy High School’s accelerated program for able and gifted students faced financial cutbacks in the district’s proposed budget. Actually, the district is proposing an increase from $6.200 local funding to $14.338 or one-sixth staff member to one-half staff member in terms of special personnel for the program That may sound like a generous increase in local funding, but many parents and students feel the program should grow bigger faster with a full-time instructor specially assigned to the accelerated academics program What especially cram ps their growth — and the d is tric t’s pocketbook — is the high school's loss of initial federal funding The program now lives or dies on local transfusions, and conscientious adm inistrators and budget com m ittee m em bers apparently diagnose present temperature of taxpaying patrons as critical. Hence, Sandy High’s proposed budget for July 1. 1981 to June 30. 1982 is only 18 percent higher than the current budget or $4.6 million versus $3.9 million In the case of 27 advanced students in Able and Gifted, the loss of outside funding certainly hurts. The program started two years ago with a $9.342 federal grant, and last year enjoyed a $14.000 grant This year, however, federal funding was cut to $4.313. The district’s general fund added $6.200 in local funds In addition to two periods per day when the 27 accelerated students meet together as a class, there are 36 classes on campus that provide them with advanced instruction in language a rts, m ath, science, social sciences, art and other humanities. The question whether to sustain the program with $14,000 in funding next year or infuse it with more capital clearly is a question of economics. U nfortunately for program advocates, this may be a sustenance budget in a make-do economic year. The budget committee, however, meets again Jan. 15 and probably will m eet again before budget completion, tentatively set for Jan. 26. Presumably the public will have some input on budget priorities (VB) Boosters give teens just rewards A new booster club at Sandy High School is doing a lot to improve youth and community relations by recognizing the achievements and character of local teens. A recognition banquet Jan 28 at Sandy High will provide a showcase for all the good examples of outstanding youth the 30- m em ber booster club has uncovered in its first two months. The boosters have invited students and parents of nominated students to share in an awards banquet, with former Trailblazer T ern Dishmger featured speaker. All nominated students will receive certificates of merit, while a few will receive plaques as outstanding athlete and outstanding student of the month. Until recently, the only public honor showed to Sandy High s finest was a photo of the month's top athlete on display at the school and occasional mention of a Sandy student by Gresham Elks as East County’s top student of the month. The Sandy High Boosters Club seeks to change all that by taking the fanfare into the streets. The banquet list of 80 nom inees suggests they've found a lot to be proud of at the local high school, and the standouts a re n ’t all athletes, either Students who excel in academics, dram a, band and other activities will be honored, too, as well they should. The boosters plan another recognition banquet to honor more students in May, as they hope to make the awards banquet semi annual. The supportive club also seeks to help the high school with tutoring services and chaperone services Soon they’ll sport windbreakers as symbol of their school support We applaud their example and commend their efforts to improve the image of Sandy’s youth in the community. After all, most Sandy youth are pretty special people. (VB) Chamber move to hire pro timely The Sandy Area Chamber of Commerce is raising dues slightly to afford a new part-time executive secretary, and we think that's a worthy expense overall After all, E stacada and Hoodland chambers already have p art-tim e paid cham ber professionals, and Sandy certainly now has a lot going on, with its Mountain F estival, C hristm as p ro m o tio n s . in d u s tria l development, planned commercial grow th, tourist potential and political bason Just in the last y ear, the chamber has grown Now there are more than 100 members, overflow crowds at weekly meetings and a downtown chamber office with re g u la r hours — thanks to volunteer efforts by a group of “chamber maids.” The Estacada Timber Festival draws fewer visitors than Sandy's Mountain Festival, yet realizes more financial income for self- sufficiency — thanks in part to professional management by a paid part-time chamber manager Sandy as a community has a lot going for it, and a paid part-time chamber professional would help this community reach its potential. We salute Bob Kallen and the chamber board for taking this giant step forw ard in the community’s behalf — even if dues have to go up a bit to pay the way. (VB) Here’s chance to be editor for day One approach to publishing a community-responsive newspaper is to act as though the readers own the new spaper, with the staff serving as caretakers of the public interest. We like to think this way at the Sandy Post, and our faith is reaffirmed every time a reader plops down 20 cents to buy our latest effort. Consequently we want to know how you feel about our newspaper and what things vou might want added in our weekly mix of news After all, we do it all for you. So please take just a few minutes to fill out the readership survey on pages 4 and 5 of this section Then return it to us by mail or in person at 17270 SE Bluff near the high school We’ll even reward you with a gift for your effort But. morevoer, it’s in your self interest to tell us how to run the Sandy Post. It s your community newspaper. 3. o W na «*. C u ä Letters to the editori Evolution, Bigfoot draw mail watcher m ight offer some a m arvel as the human brain explanation. An account of or the exquisite structure of a my experience is contained hummingbird could come in Peter Byrnes book that about by chance mutation A recent issue of the Post explores reported s ig h tin g and blind forces of the en included an article about of the Sasquatch, or Bigfoot. vironment stagger the mind t e a c h in g s c ie n tific The world around us fa irly But nowhere have I ever creationism as well as the shouts evidence of design hinted that there was any evolution theory in our and planning 2. The fossil connection between my schools record of plants and animals discovery and the existence of the legendary monster, Many years ago I was shows an abundance of specim ens and am azing nor do I hold to such a theory almost expelled from a high variety, but fails to present that there is. school science class for the intermediate forms, the d a rin g to question the H ow ever, since the gradual changes required by evolution theory and ever unexplained mystery had its the evolution theory and the since I have had a keen in origin in Alder Creek canyon, terest in that aspect of step by step progression to I hope that some reader may higher forms postulated by science offer a comment ghe theory. 3. The evolution A companion and I were Though it is questionable theory fails against the hunting along Alder Creek from a purely rational and general rule that things left canyon. We left Alder Creek scientific view, the evolution to themselves do not go from Road and made our way theory managed to acquire chaos to order, nor from across an area once logged an a lm o st sacrosanct simple to complex which that off and later ravaged by a standing among teachers theory requires Our com fo re st fire in 1926 A and te x t w rite rs u n til mon observation is that machette would have been recently. things and creatures tend to useful, as we groped our way Now Ph.D .s w ith im get old, fa ll apart, decay, or through a tangle of un peccable scientific standings fa ll into disorder when left to derbrush and second growth are prepared to show very themselves alders Obviously no one had vital weaknesses of the A classroom atmosphere of gone this way since the theory and the strong free inquiry and freedom of passage of tim e had erased evidence that we live in a choice in accepting either the scar upon the hillside theory seems a reasonable created world. with heavy undergrowth and solution. No harm then would Most science texts in past young trees. be done to the students with years have treated evolution Suddenly, we discovered a belief in a creator and none theory not really as theory , strange mound of earth of those holding the more but as fact — not to be which rose to a height of m aterialistic view of the questioned and not subject to about 4 feet. It resembled a evolution theory c r itic a l a nalysis. Those huge gopher hole. But such a Obviously such a neutral asking fo r s c ie n tific creature could not exist. The class atm osphere w ould creationism to be taught in mysterious mound of earth please parents who them our schools as well as the covered an area ap selves believe in a created evolution theory are content proxim ately 50 square feet world and who may have met to let the chips of reason and The mound was of recent the intolerant attitude I met inquiry fa ll as they may origin, for no scrap of as a student in high school Students then would feel vegetation had taken root in and university free to search for truth and Peter Sulzbach the soil. accept whichever had the Sandy We climbed up on the best case in the opinion of the mound, while our boots sand student For many years to the ankles in the moist, schools have presented the ch im e d soil which might be evolution theory as beyond compared to a garden lately debate and thus have done worked by a rototiller violence to those students For many years I have who believe in a creator I did observe that around been intrigued with a still the perimeter of the mound unsolved mystery that has A few of the m ain was a narrow border of been explored by geological arguments for the creation upturned vegetation, about 4 societies and the press with theory are these: 1. The inches wide — as though hopes that some reader or mathematical odds that such Teach creation Bigfoot here? could be accomplished in a some upheaval from below had created this oddity far relatively short period of off any beaten path in the time, from those that are as fu tu re wilderness No ferns had needed been crushed in the area, no development occurs anil was there any indication that which can be financed by anyone had lately been f is system development charges or long term City levies. way. Just as important is that This discovery was made the city has a plan with 30 years ago, and I am still searching for a solution to predetermined goals. This w ill mean future savings in the mystery At the present moment, I have heard no lim ited tax payer funds The article mentioned that salient comment other than there must be a logical ex improvements were needed to facilitate industrial and planation. commercial development, As a result of a published fire protection and fire article I once wrote upon this sprinkler systems. subject, an interested author 1 would like to point out who has a book in our public that water for fire protection library offered to fly his and water for fire sprinkler private plane from Vermont, systems are one and the land at the Sandy airport and same thing. The city has a then fly over the area certain obligation to provide “ There must be other such strange mounds," he com water for fire protection. Sprinkler systems reduce mented But obviously he the amount erf water that is was unaw are th a t the needed for fire protection for Cascade w ilderness is individual buildings. If there covered w ith dense are enough buildings with vegetation, and observation from the a ir would be im sprinkler systems installed in a given area — say the possible. Perhaps some reader of Sandy Industrial Park — the water requirements for the the Sandy Post m ig h t respond by reporting a entire area can be reduced. Sprinkler systems not only comparable discovery in the wilderness, or offer some mean better fire protection, but lower costs to the public explanation Keith Soesbe in terms of reduced public water supply facilities 3419 NE «7 Place Bob Rathke Portland, OR 97220 Attend hearing Sprinklers help The City of Sandy is to be complimented for its most recent a cco m p lish m e n t, completion of a water system master plan Both long and short-term requirements were iden tified, along w ith practical solutions and alternatives to meet these needs I was especially pleased that the plan separated im provements that could be made using city crews and As a member of the budget committee of the Sandy Elementary School D istrict, I would like to invite all to come to our budget board meeting 7:30 p.m. Jan. 21 in the Cedar Ridge Library . If you would like to know how your tax money is used and express your ideas, come to the meeting The budget process works better w ith m ore citize n in volvement and awareness Ann Marie Amstad The Innocent Bystander: How do you handle a man with flu? I have the flu I am not saying this, for God's sake, because I want your sympathy. I am simply stating an obvious fact so that you won’t get too close and catch it yourself Isn't that just like me9 Always thinking of others even when I ’m at death's . . Oh, not that I feel bad, mind you. In fact, when I stagger out to the kitchen in my rumpled bathrobe, unshaven, bleary-eyed, coughing and gasping for air, and my dear wife, Glynda, inquires how I ’m feeling. I invariably reply, “Fine, just fm e.’’ "D o n ’t you feel any pain?" she asks solicitously "O n ly when I breathe," I respond m anfully Then I ’ ll cough rackingly and dab my lips with a handkerchief in order to examine it for blood flecks Not yet9 I ’ ll be darned As you can probably tell, I am a living example — albeit, a barely living example — of The Brave Flu V ictim There are many ways to have the flu And as the odds arc quite good that you'll have it yourself this season, you may wish to give the m atter some advance thought, I strongly recommend facing the virus with incredible courage We Brave F lu V ictim s would never adm it to our loved ones how much we are suffering But woe betide them if they don’t find out' This, of course, requires a delicate blend of stoicism and dram atics One of my better techniques is to totter out of bed toward the medicine cabinet for cough syrup "L e t me get it for you," says Glynda. "N o, no," I say " I can do it myself I just feel a trifle weak, that's a ll." At this point, if I ’ m lucky, I ’ll crumple to the floor, crying, "D o n ’t get close to me! I ’m sure I can probably craw l back to bed on my own ” We Brave Flu V ictim s are not so egocentric as to desire sympathy A ll we want is our richly deserved adm iration for being the gallant Christian m artyrs that we are I f you want sympathy, try being a Sweetly Suffering Flu V ictim This requires re tirin g to bed wearing a permanent weak smile and ex pressing effusive thanks for the hot water bottles and freshly squeezed orange juice this gets you U nfor tunately, this technique requires a great deal of energy and I ’m much too exhausted from the flu to go through a charade like that A perfectly viable alternative is to be a Grouchy Flu V ictim Merely snarl things like, "Y ou mean there isn’t a single damned Kleenex in the house'" This has two advantages: (1) You can vent your ire without fear of retribution for, after all. you're sick and (2) your loved ones w ill leave you alone to die in peace. Lastly, there are The Hibernating Flu V ictim s These are poor misguided souls who simply retire to their rooms with a quart of warm ginger ale and a box of soda crackers only to emerge 46 hours later completely cured But what on earth’s the point of having the flu if it doesn’t earn you any fear, sympathy or adm iration9 Well, I hope I have been of some small help in making your fo rth coming bout with the flu more rewarding and enjoyable A ll I ask in return, if I should survive the night, is that you don’t tell me about it.
