And horses find refuge at Strawberry Mountain Mus-
tangs Rescue and Rehab (strawberrymountainmustangs.
com or 541-784-5522) in Douglas County, giving rescue
horses a second chance at a happy life.
And fewer puppies and kitties will need homes if we
spay and neuter them! Willamette Animal Guild (wagwag.
org or 541-345-3566) provides with high-volume, low-cost
spay/neuter services, and Stop Pet Over Population To-
day, aka SPOT (spotspayneuter.org or 541-607-4900), helps
folks out with financial assistance. — Camilla Mortensen
SOME OF OREGON HORSE RESCUE’S EQUINES
P HOTO BY BOB K EEF ER
ARTS AND
CULTURE
While women play an essential role in the organizations
boots on the ground work, Arkin says they still face chal-
lenges in Salem due to a double standard in treatment from
some in the capital. Arkin says that she feels as though she
and other female advocacy organizers are often talked over
or turned a deaf ear. But, she says, “I keep telling myself
if you don’t stand up and show up then you’re not contrib-
uting.”
You can make your contribution by calling 541-465-
8860 or visiting beyondtoxics.org. — Carl Segerstrom
Since 2015, Willamette Riverkeeper’s River Guard-
ians program has engaged hundreds of volunteers in clean-
up and monitoring efforts along the main stem of the Wil-
lamette in Eugene-Springfield, removing tens of thousands
of pounds of trash from the confluence of the Coast and
Middle forks to the Beltline bridge.
Willamette Riverkeeper is a nonprofit dedicated to the
protection and restoration of the Willamette River. The
group advocates for water quality, abundant natural habitat
and maintaining a river safe for fishing and recreation.
“Trash and debris forms along the banks and on islands
of the Willamette River due to a combination of recre-
ational users, abandoned camps and illegal dumping,” says
Michelle Emmons, South Valley Advocate. “Participating
in River Guardians offers volunteers a different perspec-
tive on the river. People experience wildlife in ways they
wouldn’t otherwise, and the dynamic of the river itself as a
living, breathing organism, always changing.”
Water is life. If you care about healthy food systems,
not to mention good beer and coffee, become an active
member of Willamette Riverkeeper by volunteering with
River Guardians every second “Trashy Tuesday” of the
month for a river cleanup. You can also adopt a stretch of
urban waterfront to monitor by foot, bike or boat, or learn
how to spot and report invasive aquatic weeds.
Short on time? Donations make a difference. Give back
to your river today — after all, everyone lives downstream
somewhere. To give or volunteer, go to willametteriver-
keeper.org.
Another water-loving nonprofit to add to your list is
McKenzie River Trust at mckenzieriver.org. — Carrie
Mizejewski
There might be a Christmas tree shortage this year, but
that’s something we can recover from — the trees grow a
foot a year, so we’ll soon have our Yuletide cheer.
Our ancient forests, however, take centuries to grow,
and we love the groups who fight to keep them standing.
The folks at Cascadia Wildlands (cascwild.org or 541-
434-1463) are striving to keep big trees upright and wolves
howling across Oregon.
Executive director Josh Laughlin tells us: “Our beauti-
ful Cascadia bioregion and the planet as we know it hangs
in balance with all that Trump and his Big Industry cronies
throw at us. Cascadia Wildlands has doubled down on our
efforts to beat back the barrage, and strength in numbers
will win the day. Together, we are a force to be reckoned
with!”
Also on the forest frontlines when it comes to saving big
trees is Oregon Wild (oregonwild.org or 541-344-0675).
Don’t have money to donate? You can volunteer to
plant trees with Friends of Trees (friendsoftrees.org).
Their trees planted around town combat climate change.
Call 541-632-3683 for more info.
Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (elaw.org or
541 687-8454) fights to save the planet by providing boots
on the ground as well as legal and technical support for
people countries around the world. Their reach is world-
wide, but their U.S. office is here in Eugene. — Camilla
Mortensen
ANIMALS
David and Jane Kelly, founders of the nonprofit Or-
egon Horse Rescue, announced this month they plan to
close down the five-year-old organization in March if they
can’t raise more money in donations — and find more peo-
ple to adopt horses.
OHR’s 70-acre facility west of Eugene currently provides
a home for about 40 horses, some of which are elderly or
blind or have medical conditions that require ongoing care.
In the facility’s best year, David Kelly says, donations
have covered only 10 percent of the facility’s operating
cost, which totals about $133,000 each year. “We can no
longer continue to run the horse rescue without dramatical-
ly increased public donations,” he says.
For more information about donating or adopting, see
oregonhorserescue.org. — Bob Keefer
Eugene is littered (haha, get it?) with dog rescues, which
says a lot about this area’s commitment to caring for ani-
mals. Rescues such as Northwest Dog Project (northwest-
dogproject.org) and Luvable Dog Rescue (luvabledogres-
cue.org) are great places to find an adoptable dog to love.
Not just a dog lover? Consider a donation to Greenhill
Humane Society (green-hill.org or 541-689-1503) and 1st
Avenue Shelter (541-844-1777), both of which serve the
Lane County community. Donations go to helping care for
all sorts of adoptable critters, from dogs and kitty cats to
guinea pigs and rabbits.
Cats in particular find succor with Cat Rescue and
Adoption Network (CRAN), formerly West Coast Dog
and Cat, (catrescues.org). If birds are your thing, then
some of your avian friends get support and rehabilitation at
Cascades Raptor Center (eraptors.org or 541-485-1320).
The very best way to support the arts
here or anywhere is to show up.
Get yourself tickets to a concert —
and take some friends who’ve never gone.
Buy a painting at a local gallery. Go hear a rock
band you’ve never listened to. Do your holiday shopping
at a local art or craft fair. Take part!
That said, some arts institutions are never going to
break even, no matter what. We don’t mean the symphony
and opera and ballet, even though they all rely heavily on
donations to pay for their productions. We’re talking about
arts organizations that exist to serve the unserved, from the
homeless to the alter-abled.
This year we’d like to focus attention on one group in
particular: The Oregon Supported Learning Program’s
Arts & Culture Program, which teaches year-round art
classes for people of all abilities and then exhibits their
work alongside that of community artists at its Lincoln
Gallery, 309 W. 4th Avenue, suite 100.
The program serves about 500 clients a year, says Jamie
Walsh, its director for the past four years. The program’s
$150,000 annual budget comes almost entirely from grants
and donations, though it makes some money — in the form
of a traditional 50-percent commission — when the public
buys art exhibited in its gallery.
“Any money that comes in goes toward buying supplies
for the artists, paying for instructors and covering the costs
of exhibitions,” she says.
Walsh was drawn to this work because she loves the art
made by the program’s clients. “The kind of art I like is just
a little not traditional,” she says.
More info at artsandcultureeugene.org. — Bob Keefer
Video may have killed the radio star, but community ra-
dio isn’t dead. Local radio station KEPW 97.3 FM needs
your help.
Jana Thrift, volunteer station manager for KEPW, says
the project started four years ago when Eugene Peace-
Works took advantage of permits released to nonprofits to
make low power FM stations. “Eugene PeaceWorks has
been seriously involved in making an impact through me-
dia for years,” Thrift says. “They felt like they were not
successfully getting heard.”
As of February 2017, anyone within a 20-mile radius of
Eugene can hear what KEPW is doing. With an eye, an ear
and a mission on emphasizing community radio, KEPW
brings in local musicians and hosts nine local programs
with 24 more local shows on the table being preparing to
go on air in the future, Thrift says.
“Community radio has been used as a tool for network-
ing and creating community for a long period of time,” she
says. “Before the internet was around and with all the crazy
things going on with the internet it may be a crucial piece
of our future to be able to have that resource.”
Basic operating costs for the station are a minimum of
$1,100 a month. KEPW is trying to raise $14,000 to cover
base operating costs for 2018 with some change to spare.
If you are interested in making a one-time donation or sub-
scribing you can visit sheltered-forest-9957.herokuapp.
com.
Really love public radio? Don’t forget about local NPR
affiliate KLCC 89.7 at klcc.org. — Max Thornberry
eugeneweekly.com • December 21, 2017
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