Wednesday March 21,1979
Vernonia Freedom — Page 7
Bates continued
about.
I think we are lacking in our technical
courses, the shop area, very lacking, and I
think more time and energy should be
spent in th a t area. Some of the children
need the technical training th a t aren’t
college material.
Do you think we need to expand in any
adcademic areas, with programs such as
debate or other activities ?
Yes, we need to go back to them, we did
have them, when I graduated we had
speech teams, junior plays, senior plays,
drama clubs, they have no activities in the
school now. We had a journalism club a
photography club, FFA, FTA.
That activity is good for them it gives
the kids something to do and is teaching
them something, they need th a t activity,
it makes the kids hate to get out of school.
The night we graduated we all cried.
These kids now can’t wait to get out of
school, they hate th a t school, and th a t is
sad, th at breaks my heart.
Do you think the reason we don't have
these program s now is because o f
economics or other. . .
Interests!
Do you think we can accomplish some
o f these things without going beyond the
present inflation rate in our budget?
Yes, like I said before it’s ‘interests’. I
don t know why but everybody seems to
have gotten so far away from the interest
of the kids, but it seems like they have. In
a small town the kids are very important,
and th at s why we have all choosen to live
in a small town, is th at we hope our
children are able to get a good education.
Do you have any ideas as to what the
School Board will do to g et parent
involvement?
I wonder if we do get organizations
back such as Sally is doing with the
Junior Class play now. This might get the
parents back out, because we ju st used to
have everybody out. There was
som ething going on a t th e school
everynight, the parents were out the kids
were out. And I think the school board
needs to be interested in what is going on
inside the school, not ju st the buildings,
lawns or shrubs. They need to be checking
not ju st taking the administrators word
but checking.
I know it can’t be done overnight, it’s
going to take a little hard work.
Edible berries
Blame the brown leaves and droopy
condition of many ground covers on the
icy winter weather, says Chip Bubl,
Columbia County Extension agent.
Chances are most of them will revive
this spring or summer so don’t be in a
hurry to remove them.
Some careful pruning of the bushy
types of ground cover will stimulate
spring growth and hasten recovery. ;St
John’s-wort, also known as A aron’s
beard, can be mowed with a lawn mower,
provided the blade is raised as high as it
will go.
English ivy doesn’t need any pruning,
but an application of nitrogen fertilizer
will stimulate spring growth. W ait until
¡summer to pick out the dead leaves,
advises Bubl.
K innikinnitk, or bearberry, may
experience some dieback. I t does not need
pruning. Brown, dead spots on leaves
may be an indication of leaf spot. A n
application of a com mon garden
fungicide, such as a copper spray, may
improve the ground cover’s look. Then
fertilize with nitrogen.
Blueberries can do double duty in the
home landscape as producers of edible
berries and as ornamental shrubs.
“ Blueberries have attractive flowers in
the spring and then finish the season with
a spectacular display of autumn foliage,’’
says Chip Bubl, C olum bia County
Extension agent.
Blueberries will do well in nearly any
part of the yard where a four to five foot
ornamental shrub is desired. They are
similar in growth habit and culture to
rhododendrons and azaleas. They are
shallow rooted, prefer an acid soil
condition and cannot withstand drought
conditions.
Blueberries do best when mulched to
control weeds and conserve water. Three
or four blueberry plants usually produce
enough for most families.
Young plants usually need several
years of growth to reach productive age
and size.
-
Plants should be set at least four feet
apart to give room for normal growth and
allow air circulation for disease
prevention. Set them at the same depth as
grown in the nursery.
' Before planting, apply one pint of a 10-
10-10 fertilizer per 100 square feet of area
to be planted. To ensure, adequate
drainage, plant them in a mixture of
about one-third peat moss and two-thirds
soil. Mulch the plants with two inches of
ground bark or sawdust, and gradually
increase the mulch depth to six inches
over a period of years.
Bloodmobile in S t. Helens
Fire Dept Secretary needed
Spring Gardening
by Charles Bubl
County Extension agent
Freeze damage
Bud A tkin s continued from front
No, I don’t think so I think we have had
some pretty successful people go through
our schools. I could name two who have
made state office.
Who's that?
Holly Holcomb, who Was head of State
Police and Lee Rodgers brother, can’t \
remember his name, who was head of the
State Forestry for years.
D o you think the school is up to parr
with what it was w henthese guys went
through?
Well, I think we were pretty well on the
basic form of education in those days,
they new how to read and write.
Do you think we have lost some o f that?
I think we have, yes, but I think we are
getting it back in the last couple of years.
Do you th in k there is room for
improvement o f personel on the School
Board?
I don’t know of any handycap th at we
have on the present board, but I think it is
important th at we have good people on
the School Board. I don’t think we should
have a self interest group, we should have
good solid citizens th at are looking for the
welfare of the whole school system.
In regards to that, I find the City
Council, the Planning Commission and
the School Boards, people who have a self
interest when they run for some of these
positions. I ’ve always been against that.
Do you have any particular problem you
see in the school?
I think we are getting on the right
track, but I think our money is going to
get tighter each year and we are going to
have to prioritize our programs, make
sure th at our basics are there first then
thè extracuricular comes later.
Do you think, with inflation, we will
have to cut back on some things?
We might, I don’t know, I wouldn’t be
qualified at this point to say. One thing, I
don’t know if it’s in line with this
question, I bet there is not one person in
twenty that can read a budget, not the
school the city or any. I think th at would
be one of the biggest projects, to present a
budget so a person can understand it. I
don’t know if you p erso n aly have
problems reading a budget, but take the
city budget, can you decifer all th e . . .
, With a little help.
There are confussing little contingencys
hidden in this place and that.
You would like to see the budget
presented in a way that it would be
informative to the people?
Yes, I ’m not accusing anyone of doing
it. I know we never tried to manipulate it
in my 14 years with thè city, but it is
confusing.
I f the issue o f zoning the District comes
up will you be in favor o f that?
I wouldn’t be adverse to that. I think
people should be equally represented. I
think we could ju st about control the lives
of t h e . people in Mist, thè people in
Vernonia could now, if it weren’t for the
gentelmans agreement.
Do you feel the academic programs in
the school are up to parr, do we have
enough such activities?
I ’m not really informed enough. I would
have to wait until I got to the meetings
and go through it. I t would be easy to be
against everything unless you knew the
details. I can see some of our kids come
out of here who go a long way, maybe we
could make it easier for some of the
others, but we have had some pretty
successful people come through our
system.
I would like to get the basics in the
grade school.
What about thè sports program?
We might have to put our sports on a
priority, with this inflation if it continues.
I would hate to say I ’m against football or
basketball, but we might have to curtail
some of the travel, not only this school
but all of the schools, with the gas
rationing problem we might have to face.
Do you think there is more room for
change in the sports program such as
intermurals ect. ?
I would like to see more kids participate
in sports. You see its a pretty limited
number of kids who can participate in
football or basketball. I t ju st takes the
very best and it leaves a lot of kids with
nothing. But this gas rationing might be a
blessing in disguise, we might be able to
have more teams made up. (intermural)
Do you have any other area o f interest
with the schools?
We have let our grade school dò in the
past, (facility) but I don’t know how they
have come along with th at recently. We
ju st let the grade school go for a long
time, they were bound they were going to
build a new school. Structurally I think
this school is pretty sound, it ju st needs
maintenance.
You would be interested in seeing what
we can do with what money we have,
approach?
Yes, we should make sure what we want
before we delve into something that
might be clear out of our reach, because
we have a near no growth situation for one
thing. And with the gas rationing that
may stabalize us even more yet.
There is one comment about the
livability of Vernonia. There is a sign on
the back of a truck, the truck is still in
this town. The business man who moved
into town years ago, never seen anything
printed about it, put the sign on the back
of his truck. I t says, ‘it is a privilege and a
pleasure to live in Vernonia.’ I ’ve always
felt th at way and I think a lot of people
do.
Seafood program to be given
The Red Cross bloodmobile will be in St.
Helens at the F irst United Methodist
Church, 560 Columbia Blvd, Next Wed.
March 28. Donor hours are 3-7 pm. You
can sign up at the Sew Simple shop in
Vernonia now through the weekend.
CETA is accepting applications for Sec.
for the Vernonia Fire Dept. Applicants
m ust apply at Unemployment Office in
St. Helens within the next four days (by
this Weedend the 23rd).
J A Y N E ’S D E L IG H T S
IS EXPANDING! ! !
ALL CHILDREN DESERVE A CHANCE
Wc will now be serving:
Broasted Chicken (to Go!)
Tacos
Burritos
8^
value of seafood.
Did you know there are 240 species of
These topics and more will be presented
fish and shellfish on the market today?
at an Extension program, “ Food from the
Because of this wide variety, you can
usually find good buys of fresh, frozen s Sea” on Thursday, March 29, 1979 at 10
a.m. and a repeat at 7 p.m. The program
and canned fish all year round.
will be held at the Extension Service
“ For Columbia County residents,
seafood can be ah even greater bargain,’’ Conference room, Courthouse, St. Helens.
Vi Shepard, home economist for the
says Doris Moore, Columbia County
Oregon O tter Trawl Commission, will also
Extension Agent. “ It*is readily available
demonstrate the proper techniques of
and easily accessible from the Columbia
filleting a fish.
River, so you can catch your own.”
The program is free but pre-registration
Whether you buy your fish or catch
is required. Participation is limited to 40.
your own, there are certain tips th at you
To register, call 397-3462.
should knoW ^about selection, cost,
storage, preparation and the nutritive
j
Enchiladas
Fountain!!
Plus our regular line of
DELICIOUS CAKES AND DONUTS
Do you know of any children with physicaf, mental or emotional problems who are
not reeieving educational services? No matter what their problem or its severity, they
are entitled to an education. It’s tire law.
Help us find children with handicaps who are not receiving educational services.
For more information, call toll-free:
1-800-249-7727
Or send this coupon to:
Child Find
Box 12546
Portland, Ore. 97212
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