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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2012)
ANIMAL ADVISORY PANEL TO BE AXED? More changes may be afoot for the local animal wel- fare services scene. After city and county funding cuts led to the jettisoning of the Lane County Animal Ser- vices (LCAS) program in favor of Greenhill Humane Society running the shelter and splitting up the welfare offi cers by city and county in July of this year, questions abound as to whether or not the LCAS Advisory Com- mittee may be next on the chopping block. The board-appointed LCAS Advisory Committee of citizen experts was created in 2008 as a part of the Save Adoptable and Treatable Animals mandate passed by the Lane County Board of Commissioners, which required transparency for all LCAS activities. But according to committee appointee Molly Sargent, the board is letting the committee wither, with just four of its seats currently fi lled. “The LCAS Advisory Committee is a voice for this community to speak up for their homeless animals. Dis- banding this committee would show just how little Lane County commissioners care about their animal shelter and the homeless animals it cares for,” Sargent says. “It is as if the county wants the LCAS advisory committee to die a slow death by attrition.” After the vote that ultimately resulted in contracting with Greenhill for the shelter work, including euthanasia, formerly performed by LCAS, County Commissioner Rob Handy made a motion to retain commissioner over- sight of the contract with Greenhill and to keep the ad- visory committee engaged. That motion went down 3-2 just like the original vote to defund LCAS, with Com- missioners Jay Bozievich, Sid Leiken and Faye Stewart creating the necessary majority for the decisions. Handy says that the board will likely vote whether or not to dis- band the committee before the end of the year. “We still have a need for citizen oversight and a role for the animal welfare advocates who care so much about this program; all those things are not happening right now,” says Handy of the current situation. But Cary Li- eberman, Greenhill director and former co-chair of the LCAS Advisory Committee, says that Greenhill already Two Eugene businesses, Cousin Jack’s Pasty Company and Vanilla Jill’s, have teamed up to create “Jack & Jill’s Courtyard” located on 3rd and Blair across from the back of Ninkasi in the Whiteaker. We hear it’s a great food destination with meat and vegetable pasties available from Cousin Jack’s cart and frozen yogurt, ice cream, vegan treats, soups, salads and more available at Vanilla Jill’s. Bigfoot Beverages is the name of the new business that now combines Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. in the region plus Northwest Vending and Northwest Coffee Service. Co-presidents are Andy Moore and Eric Forrest, and Jay Zink is heading up sales and marketing. Bigfoot is expanding to distribute hand-crafted beers from Hop Valley Brewing of Springfield and Crazy Mountain Brewery of Vail Valley, Colo. Bigfoot is promoting the McKenzie Cider and Craft Beer Festival happening from 5 to 11 pm Friday, Nov. 2, and from noon to 11 pm Saturday, Nov. 3, at the Willamalane Center, 235 S. 32nd St. in Springfield. We hear this is the first brewfest to feature both local beer and local cider. It’s a benefit for Belly Full, feeding Springfield’s hungry children. $15 admission. See mccbf.com Learn to brew your own beer from 11 am to 4 pm Saturday, Nov. 3, at Oakshire Brewing, 1055 Madera St. in Eugene. Members of the Cascade Brewers Society will demonstrate and explain the process for both beginners and advanced brewers. Oakshire was founded in 2006 by brothers Jeff and Chris Althouse. See oakbrew.com has a board of directors made up of community volun- teers and experts as well as committees with citizen vol- unteers providing advice and oversight to its activities. As for the advisory committee, Lieberman says, “I could see it evolving; I don’t see the benefi t of keeping it in the form that it was … where people want to keep the [advisory] committee, it’s really a duplication of what we already have. Between the animal care committee, between the board, between the marketing committee, this would be adding a public committee to oversee a non-profi t’s activities … so I don’t necessarily see the continuation of the committee in that form.” Lieberman adds that the developments of late have been a natural progression as LCAS transitioned over the years from an animal control role, to a more shelter- focused one, creating the appropriate context for Green- hill to take over, he says. “This is a normal evolution … overall, this is the direction we’re seeing around the country, and I think it’s a positive change for this com- munity.” But local animal advocates remain concerned that the loss of the committee means the loss of citizen input into the area’s efforts to go no-kill and how the county and city handle diffi cult-to-place animals, euthanasia, treat- ment of older and ill animals and other animal welfare issues. — Shelley Deadmond ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY AT THE UO As evidenced by the infamous anti-Islam video that attracted a whirlwind of attention after it was alleged to have been linked to the Benghazi embassy riots in Sep- tember, religion continues to remain a touchy subject these days. For Saba Mahmood, a professor of anthro- pology at UC-Berkeley, it’s a topic that she hopes to understand more clearly through her studies of religious issues in Egypt. On Nov. 2, Mahmood will visit the UO and discuss her research in honor of the university’s Department of Comparative Literature, which turns 50 this year. Cur- Songs From the Garden is a new floral design studio at 346 7th St. in the historic Catching House in downtown Springfield. The business offers floral designs for weddings, events and everyday occasions locally and includes a wire service for worldwide delivery. Phone number is 726-3418 and websites are songsfromthegarden.com and flowerseugenoregon.com Mayor Kitty Piercy proclaimed Oct. 24 as “Food Day” in Eugene, as part of a nationwide day of celebration and a “movement toward more healthy, affordable and sustainable food.” An event was held at the Broadway Commerce Center downtown and included Lynne Fessenden from the Willamette Food & Farm Coalition, Kari Westlund from Travel Lane County, Sara Mizejewski from Lane County, William Ellis from the city of Eugene and Robin Scott from Lane Workforce Partnership. Pearl Buck Center will celebrate 60 years of providing services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities at its annual meeting at 11:30 am Wednesday, Nov. 14, at the center, 3690 W. 1st Ave. in Eugene. The celebration will continue with an open house from 4 to 6 pm that afternoon at the center. Job prospects are “very good” for physical therapist assistants (PTAs), according to LCC, which began its PTA program in 2008 and last week hosted the Oregon Physical Therapist Licensing Board on campus. Last November the PTA program earned accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education. ACTIVIST LERT • Opportunity Village Eugene is looking for warehouse space to store building materials and “construct pieces of tiny houses to be assembled on the site when we get one.” Email Finn Po at finnpo@ efn.org • Theologian Gary Dorrien will speak on economic democracy as an alternative to global capitalism at 11:50 am Friday, Nov. 2, at the First United Methodist Church, 1376 Olive St. Hosted by City Club of Eugene and cosponsored by Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, the Lane Institute of Faith and Education, and Wayne Morse Law Center for Law and Politics. Tickets are available at First Christian or Central Presbyterian in Eugene or at www.laneinstitute.org • Labor groups and postal workers are planning a major rally and picketing Saturday, Nov. 3, at the Gateway Processing Center on Postal Way in Springfield, a postal facility threatened with closure in 2014. Picketing will begin at noon, the rally will be at 12:30 pm, followed by speakers at 1 pm. Invited speakers include Sen. Jeff Merkley, Rep. Peter DeFazio, Secretary of State Kate Brown and Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian. Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy will emcee. Organizers are expecting 500 to 1,000 people to join the rally, and will be collecting ballots for those who would like them hand-delivered. See essn.weebly.com for more information. • The next Occupy Inter-Faith meeting will be at 1:30 pm Sunday, Nov. 4, at the Unitarian Church, 13th & Chambers. Fergus McLean will speak on the Occupy Eugene Foreclosures Committee and Sue Sierralupe from Occupy Medical will talk about the Occupy Medical tent which has been open every Sunday since last winter. • Jim Baker is retiring from the Oregon Wild Board of Directors after nearly 40 years of involvement, and a celebration is planned for noon to 3 pm Sunday, Nov. 4, at Mt. Pisgah Arboretum. Call 344-0675 or see oregonwild.org • The monthly Conversations On the Forest series will continue at 6 pm Monday, Nov. 5, at Cozmic, on “What’s the Deal with Gov. Kitzhaber’s Timber Panel?” Kitzhaber has appointed a 14-person advisory panel in response to the proposed timber trust. Guest presenter will be Doug Heiken of Oregon Wild, along with Commissioner Rob Handy, forester Roy Keene and Kevin Matthews. Email rob@robhandy.com • A free election night party Nov. 6 will be at the Willamalane Center, 250 S. 32nd St. in Springfield, in cooperation with the Lane County Elections Office, beginning at 7 pm. All statewide and county election results will be announced immediately as results are released. Large-screen televisions located throughout the facility will be tuned in to local, statewide and national election night news coverage. Food and beverages catered by a local restaurant will be available for purchase. The countywide gathering was held previously at the Fairgrounds. • An EWEB public hearing on proposed 2013 rate hikes will be at 7:30 pm Tuesday, Nov. 6, at the EWEB Board Room. A final public hearing and vote is scheduled for Dec. 4. More information and written testimony can be made by email through the EWEB website. • Health Care for All-Eugene meets at 7 pm Wednesday, Nov. 7, at EWEB to talk about the results of the election. To get on the mailing list, email ruthduemler@comcast.net • A post-election briefing and discussion about what’s next is planned for 7 to 9 pm Thursday, Nov. 8, at Washington Park Community Center, 2025 Washington St. in Eugene. Speakers will include Mayor Kitty Piercy, Dan HoSang and Sharon Gary-Smith. Sponsored by the McKenzie River Gathering Foundation. To RSVP or for more information, email sheryl@mrgfoundation.org or call (503) 289-1517. • UO psychology professor Paul Slovic, Ph.D. will speak on “What Motivates People to Help Others in Need?” at 6 pm Thursday, Nov. 8, at the Eugene Public Library downtown. Free. Call 682-5450 for more information. eugeneweekly.com • November 1, 2012 9
