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DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2016
144TH YEAR, NO. 122
ONE DOLLAR
Prominent attorney Hal Snow dies at 75
Remembered for loyalty to friends, family and community
By ERICK BENGEL
The Daily Astorian
Harold “Hal” Snow, Warrenton’s city
attorney who died Thursday in Portland
at 75, was known for his exemplary legal
mind, generosity of spirit and dedication
to his community.
The cause of death was not immedi-
ately available.
Snow and his wife, Jeanyse, were
partners in Snow & Snow, a law fi rm on
Commercial Street that traces back to the
1960s. Snow also served as the city attor-
ney of Astoria from 1986 to 2010.
“Hal was a real dean of the legal com-
munity in Astoria,” Clatsop County Dis-
trict Attorney Josh Marquis said. “He and
his wife, Jeanyse, were real giants in the
Clatsop County bar.
“And were particularly helpful to me
when I was appointed back in 1994 at a
very turbulent time in the history of the
state bar. He is going to be dearly missed
by everybody.”
Blair Henningsgaard, Astoria’s city
attorney, said Snow’s passing “certainly
leaves a huge hole in the legal commu-
nity here.”
See SNOW, Page 7A
Hal Snow
STEADY AS A ROCK
WARR STEPS DOWN AFTER 12 YEARS ON THE CITY COUNCIL
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
A photograph of Don Larson and his
wife, Lois, sits on display during the fu-
neral of Don Larson, the former Seaside
mayor, on Friday at North Coast Family
Fellowship in Seaside.
A ‘legacy
of civility’
Hundreds turn out to
honor former mayor
By R.J. MARX
The Daily Astorian
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Astoria City Councilor Russ Warr smiles for a portrait outside City Hall on Thursday. Warr, who chose not to run for re-election,
will finish his third term at the end of the year . He has represented the east side with a gruff sensibility for three terms.
P
By DERRICK DePLEDGE
The Daily Astorian
olitically, there are few easier votes than to ban
smoking at city parks.
Even smokers cringe at the thought of light-
ing up near children on a playground or a fam-
ily enjoying a picnic. But when the Astoria City Coun-
cil approved a smoking ban last year, Councilor Russ
Warr voted “no.” “I have a real, basic problem deep in
my heart when people ban things that are legal to do just
because they don’t like them,” he explained.
There were few downsides in Astoria to fi ghting the
Oregon LNG project in Warrenton.
Public opinion had long turned against the $6 billion
terminal and pipeline by the time the City Council heard
a symbolic resolution last year. But Warr was again the
lone vote in opposition, mindful of Astoria’s relation-
ship with city commissioners across Youngs Bay. “We’re
going to need them for a long, long time,” he counseled.
“And when we act in our own interests, we don’t want
people objecting to what we’re doing.”
A dozen years
For the past 12 years, Warr, 74, has been a pragmatic,
See WARR, Page 7A
The Daily Astorian/File Photo
Don Webb, third from left, receives a plaque and recognition as the official
Watchdog of the Astoria City Council after enduring an April Fools´ prank
in 2011. Front row from left, former Astoria City Manager Paul Benoit, for-
mer City Councilor Peter Roscoe, resident Don Webb, Mayor Willis Van Du-
sen, Karen Mellin; back row, City Attorney Blair Henningsgaard, and City
Councilor Russ Warr, whose final meeting on the council is tonight.
SEASIDE — A man of faith and a playful
spirit is the way friends and family members
described former Seaside Mayor Don Larson
at his memorial service at North Coast Fam-
ily Fellowship. The Friday service saw an
outpouring of remembrance for the man who
has guided Seaside’s civic affairs as mayor
since 2002.
“If there was one person I know I wish
everyone I know could meet, it would have
been him,” Larson’s granddaughter Kirsten
Riedel described her grandfather. “He cared
about people so much. His playful spirit
came from a place of love for life and curi-
osity and desire to get to know other people,
and to learn about the good things in life and
the gifts of grace from our Lord.”
Jay Barber, who replaced Larson as
mayor this month, pointed to Larson’s “leg-
acy of civility,” his love for the city of Sea-
side and his openness to all citizens. Sea-
side’s city workers, police and fi refi ghters
and law enforcement throughout the county
rose in memory of the former mayor.
Speaker after speaker described a man of
faith who stressed the model of volunteerism,
in city government, in the church and with
neighbors. As the city’s fl ags hung at half-
staff, Larson’s son Duane Larson recalled
how the family came to the Oregon Coast on
camping trips every year before settling here
permanently upon his retirement as a civil-
ian employee for the Oregon National Guard
and U.S. Army Reserve.
Pastor Larry Rydman shared Larson’s reac-
tion to his cancer diagnosis and the special role
See LARSON, Page 7A
Volunteer fi ghts fi res for the ‘love of it’
Cannon Beach
fi refi ghter gives
back to town
C
ANNON BEACH —
When the historic Oswald
West log cabin burned in 1991
due to an act of arson, JoAnne
Cremer was one of the fi re-
fi ghters on the scene battling
the blaze for hours.
It was one of the most mem-
orable moments in Cremer’s
32 years as a Cannon Beach
volunteer fi refi ghter.
“It was the night of my
birthday,” she said. “We were
there until late in the evening
or early morning. It was the
hottest fi re I have ever fought
in my life because of the logs
… We all worked really hard
that night.”
Cremer was recently fea-
tured as Cannon Beach Fire
and Rescue fi refi ghter of the
month, recognized for her
longtime commitment and for
being “probably the most posi-
tive person with one of the best
smiles.”
Cremer decided to join the
fi re district after living in Can-
non Beach for several years
and getting to know local
fi refi ghters.
“I just decided it was a way
I could give back to the com-
munity,” she said.
Cremer said the “love of
it” motivates her to continue
fi refi ghting.
“This is like my other job
— my unpaid job,” she said.
“Once you get into an orga-
nization like this and become
so close with everybody, it’s
like having a second family.
For some of us, it’s our fi rst
Lyra Fontaine/The Daily Astorian
See CREMER, Page 5A
JoAnne Cremer has been a volunteer firefighter with Can-
non Beach Fire and Rescue for 32 years.