Page 6
North Douglas Herald
December 2024
Community Pages
OHCS Invests $5 Million to Help Homeless
Youth in Rural Oregon
Salem OR — Oregon Housing and
Community Services (OHCS) is investing
$5 million to combat rural homelessness
through the Youth Emergency Housing
Assistance Program (YEHA). The $5
million will be disbursed to five different
organizations in Coos, Klamath, Lincoln,
Douglas, and Josephine Counties that
help youth and their families who are
experiencing homelessness or at risk of
becoming homeless.
“We are committed to ensuring
every young person in Oregon has a safe
place to call home,” said OHCS Executive
Director Andrea Bell. “By investing in real
solutions to address youth homelessness,
we aim to bridge the funding and service
gaps that rural communities often face.
This investment will help create sustainable
pathways to housing stability and increase
opportunities for our youth to thrive.”
The YEHA project team analyzed
data from both Oregon’s Emergency
Homelessness Response and the
Department of Education to identify which
communities had the highest rate of youth
experiencing homelessness to ensure these
funds make the biggest possible impact.
The YEHA project team chose the Coos
County Office of Homelessness Response,
Integral Youth Services in Klamath
County, the Lincoln County Housing
Authority, Family Faith and Relationship
Advocates (FARA) in Douglas County,
and the Maslow Project in Josephine
County to receive funding.
“This funding will empower us to
expand our outreach, enhance our support
services, and build sustainable solutions for
the unique challenges faced by our Josephine
County community,” said Maslow Project
Founder and Executive Director Mary
Ferrell. “It’s a vital step toward ensuring
that youth and families in our county can
access safe and stable housing. We know
that when stabilized, youth are far more
likely to finish high school, improve their
long-term outcomes, and end the cycle of
homelessness.”
YEHA aims to provide housing-
focused services to school-age children and
their families to enhance family stability
and school success. The organizations in
these counties will establish and promote
intentional collaboration between schools
and housing providers to extend a reliable
family support network and optimize the
funding’s impact. These resources will help
cover expenses such as rent, utilities, work
and educational support, moving costs,
transportation, furniture, household goods,
and more.
OHCS is Oregon’s housing finance
agency. The state agency provides financial
and program support to create and preserve
opportunities for quality, affordable housing
for Oregonians of low and moderate
income. OHCS administers programs
that provide housing stabilization. OHCS
delivers these programs primarily through
grants, contracts, and loan agreements
with local partners and community-based
providers. For more information, please
visit: oregon.gov/ohcs.
sometimes difficult, decisions like this
one. The closure and eventual sale of
the park will free up capital and staff
resources that will be used elsewhere
in the park system to address deferred
maintenance needs, add new amenities,
and provide an overall improved
experience for its users.”
The county parks department
has claimed they have plans to sell the
property before the end of the year, while
county leaders say they regret letting
the facility go, a private owner could
reopen and help the affordable housing
situation in the area by converting it to a
mobile home park or long-term RV park.
Proceeds from the sale would be matched
with previously approved grant funding
and reinvested into Charles V. Stanton
Park and Whistlers Bend County Park
was their position stated at the time.
Passcreek Park consists of 2 tax lots,
which is on record of being purchased by
Douglas County in 1962 for` $10,000 and
$16.000. This has been verified by the
Counties paperwork but is no additional
or corroborating documentation and
there has been some contention that the
record is incorrect and various sources
claim the properety was donated to
the County expressly for public park
services. Additional investigation into
these allegations would seem prudent.
The only details of the early years
of the park are the anecdotal memories
of those who were familiar with it. But,
beginning in 2015 the county included
the Park as it developed it’s Masterplan,
which, after public input was approved by
the county Commissioners in December
2016. It was very controversial, as it
sacrificed many of the parks throughout
the County due to the claim of lack
New Exhibit “Quilts & Christmas”
Open at the Douglas County Museum
Story by Scooter Brown
Roseburg, OR -- Douglas County Commissioners,
in conjunction with staff at the Douglas County
Museum of History and Natural History are pleased
to announce that a new limited time exhibit at the
Douglas County Museum festively titled “Quilts
& Christmas,” is now open and encourage all our
citizens, young and old alike to visit. The exhibition
will feature quilts, Christmas ornaments and toys
from the museum’s extensive collection. The
temporary exhibit is slated to run through February
2025.
The “quilt” portion of the exhibit will showcase a
diverse collection of hand-stitched family quilts,
each with its own unique story and craftsmanship.
These quilts date back to the mid-1800s, with several
having traveled along the Oregon Trail, a testament
to their role in preserving warmth and comfort
during one of the most significant migrations in
American history. The “stars of the show” are four
crazy quilts from the 1890’s to early 1900’s. The
exhibit will also highlight a stunning contrast with
a modern “Graffiti” quilt from 2002, blending
traditional quilting techniques with contemporary
artistic expression. Hand-stitched quilts represent
a rich legacy of ingenuity and provide interesting
historical documentation from the earliest days
of our country to the present. These quilts, often
passed down through generations, not only serve as
functional items but also carry the stories and culture
of the people who made them. In the earliest days
of our country, quilts were essential for warmth,
using available materials, often scraps of fabric, to
create something both practical and beautiful. As
an art form, quilting evolved significantly over time.
Early American quilts were typically made with
simple designs, sometimes in traditional patterns
like “Log Cabin” or “Nine-Patch,” reflecting the
practical needs of pioneer life. In contrast, modern
hand stitched quilts may showcase intricate designs,
personalized embroidery, and a broader array of
materials. Each quilt tells a story—whether it’s the
history of a particular family, a cultural expression,
or an artist’s personal narrative. These quilts can
also serve as historical documentation, reflecting the
socioeconomic conditions of their time, the evolution
of textile production, and the influence of changing
fashion trends. Today, both quilt makers and the
public find inspiration in quilts, whether for their
craftsmanship, their use of color, or their historical
significance. Museums, exhibitions, and quilting
communities continue to preserve and celebrate this
form of artistic expression, ensuring that it remains an
important part of our cultural heritage.
The “Christmas” portion of the exhibit will display a
curated selection of antique and noteworthy Christmas
ornaments and toys from the museum’s extensive
collection. Visitors will be transported through
time with delicate glass ornaments, handcrafted
decorations, and vintage toys that capture the holiday
spirit of past eras. These cherished items, some dating
back to the early 20th century, offer a glimpse into
the traditions and joys of Christmas celebrations
through the years, showcasing the evolution of festive
decor and the sentimental value placed on holiday
treasures. The exhibit will also showcase a selection
of the 6,000 handmade ornaments created for the 2002
U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree. In addition, the exhibit
will feature photographs capturing the journey of the
tree, commemorating the year when Douglas County
was chosen to provide the annual Christmas tree to the
White House in Washington, D.C. This significant
event in our history will be beautifully illustrated,
offering visitors a glimpse into the pride and tradition
behind this remarkable contribution to the nation’s
holiday celebrations.
For more than 50 years, curators of the Douglas
County Museum have been collecting, preserving
and exhibiting natural and cultural history items.
Historically our local communities have relied on
the mining, fishing, farming, transportation and
timber harvesting to thrive in Douglas County. Our
museum links the connections between natural
resources and these industries in their exhibits and
cultural events to make history come to life. From
the snowcapped peak of Mt. Thielsen nestled in the
Cascades Mountain Range, through the Umpqua
River Valley, to the Coastal Mountain Range to the
crashing surf of the Pacific Ocean at Winchester
Bay, Douglas County traverses an amazingly wide
range of elevations and environments. It is Douglas
County’s ecological diversity that is showcased in
Oregon’s largest natural history exhibition – “The
Land of the Umpqua’s”.
The Douglas County Museum of History and Natural
History is located at 123 Museum Drive in Roseburg,
Oregon (conveniently located off I-5 Exit 123 and
adjacent to the Douglas County Fairgrounds). It is
open seven days a week from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.
It can take 1-3 hours to tour the museum depending
on your pace. The Lavola Bakken Research Library
is open Tuesday through Saturday 1:00 pm – 4:30
pm. Admission is free for members, ages 0-4 are
free, students 5-17 are $2.00, adults are $8.00, seniors
and veterans are $5.00. The “Museum Mercantile,”
the museum gift shop, offers the area’s leading source
of books on Douglas County’s natural and cultural
history, as well as a wide range of Oregon souvenirs
and other great gift items including educational and
historic toys.
Yoncalla Beautification
Anticipates Good Year
Mary Ellen Laswell, chairman of
theYoncalla Beautification Committee,
announced at its November meeting that
it has received a donation of $3,000 from
the VanLoon Foundation. This amount
brings a total of $3,700 to be applied
toward a matching fund donation of
$5,000 made by an anonymous donor.
If additional donations totaling $1,300
are received by the end of 2024, the
committee will have $10,000 to spend
on Yoncalla improvement projects. A
total of 15 possible projects scheduled for
2025 were discussed and prioritized at the
meeting.
A current project sponsored by YBC
is assisting local businesses and residents
in placing strings of red and green
Christmas lights throughout town during
the holiday season. Other projects chosen
as priorities for 2025 include: updating
the civic sign on Eagle Valley Road, town
cleanup day, increasing the number of
hanging flower baskets throughout town,
giving welcome kits to new residents,
sidewalk maintenance, and replacing
wornout U.S. flags that are displayed
during holidays. Funds for these projects
depend on tax deductible donations made
out and sent before the end of 2024 to
the Yoncalla Beautification Project,
Doris Bartlett, treasurer, P.O. Box 936,
Yoncalla, OR 97499.
Yoncalla area citizens are invited
and encouraged to join YBC to contribute
ideas for keeping our town a comfortable
place to live. Meetings are held the fourth
Thursday each month beginning at 6 p.m,
at the Community Center. There will not
be a December meeting; the next meeting
will be January 23.
Are You Interested in
Home Delivery?
North Douglas Herald Newspaper
Carriers coming Soon
North Douglas Herald is pleased
to announce a new home delivery option
coming soon. We are first rolling out in the
communities of Drain, Elkton and Yoncalla,
in town for now, with rural delivery coming
at a later date. The Herald will remain free
with a $2 delivery fee, paid directly to the
news carrier monthly. Newspapers will
arrive at your home or place of business the
following day from delivery by the printer
and will be the earliest editions available.
Delivery subscribers can contact newscarr
iers@ndherald.com, mail to Newscarriers,
ND Herald, PO Box 581, Drain OR 97435,
or through your neighborhood newscarrier.
If you are interested in becoming
a newscarrier and are at least 14 years old
(parental permission required for those
under 18), reliable and currently live in
Drain, Elkton or Yoncalla and can operate
a neighborhood timely delivery service
please contact us for more information.
For those of you outside of those 3
communities, we are still planning on setting
up home delivery in all of our coverage
areas. We are looking for interested home
delivery recipients as well as those who are
interested in a home business of newspaper
deliveries. Currently, the North Douglas
Herald is working on home delivery in
the following communities; Roseburg,
Sutherlin, Oakland, Cottage Grove,
Reedsport, Florence, Eugene, Springfield,
Juntion City, Brownsville and Albany.
Contact carrier@ndherald.com or mail to
Newscarriers, ND Herald, PO Box 581,
Drain OR 97435.