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
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