A5
THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2022
OBITUARIES
Rod Nichols
Mark Dennis Valdez
Warrenton
Oct. 6, 1952 — April 25, 2022
Fox Island, Washington
Jan. 18, 1953 — Jan. 13, 2022
In loving memory: One of my
two best friends died recently.
When I say best friends, I mean
someone who would do anything
for you, no questions asked.
Someone who will tell you the
truth, even when it would be eas-
ier and more comfortable not to.
Someone who always has time for
you, who shares their joy and pain
and secrets.
Those people are rare, and
because they’re rare, they are pre-
cious. To have two such people in
my life is largesse beyond anything
I would ever have imagined possi-
ble. Now one of them is gone.
At 69 years old, Rod Nichols
died way too soon. If I was a phil-
osophical sort, I would say that
whenever we take our leave, we’re
right on time. I am decidedly not
that sort. I am heartbroken, and not
a little ticked off .
I admit there could have been
no time ever that I would be gra-
cious about losing Rod. He was
quietly, steadfastly good. He was
patient and generous, scary smart
and wickedly funny.
He was always game. And he
was kind. Abidingly kind. It takes
fortitude and eff ort, and so very
much heart, to be consistently kind.
Rod is the only person in my expe-
rience who managed it.
I met Rod in 1993, when we
were both neck deep in the restau-
rant biz. Over the years we shared
our experiences of countless kitch-
ens, where we did everything from
washing the dishes to mopping the
fl oors at the end of shift. Rod often
cooked. I did the world a favor, and
kept to the front of the house, well
away from the stove.
We struggled to balance the
books, keep good help and make
a buck. Rod succeeded for far lon-
ger than the expected lifespan of a
restaurant. He owned and worked
at Vista Sea Cafe on Broadway in
Seaside for 19 years, employing
legions of Seaside kids along the
way.
Rod was an artist by nature and
by training. I loved his stories of
leaving art school and moving to
Paris to paint; of his friends and
adventures there. In 2019, I trav-
eled to Europe with both of my
best friends, Norma Hernandez and
join
us
for
Rod. Seeing Barcelona and Bilbao
and Bordeaux through Rod’s eyes
was a revelation.
Art museums were a whole
other thing when we went with
Rod. He would wander off to fol-
low the muse that only he could
hear. Norma and I would follow the
map from room to room, and inev-
itably fi nd the bar where we would
absorb the culture around us with
the benefi t of a cold beverage.
Eventually Rod would fi nd us
and, over a cocktail, tell us about
things he saw. He saw them the
way the artists must have hoped
they would be seen.
Over many dinners, over many
years, Rod and I shared stories
and tried to justify our common
weaknesses. Among them, count-
less dogs that needed rescuing, the
tendency to volunteer until spare
time was only a concept and mar-
riages that went south (three each).
I fi nally got the marriage thing right
on the fourth try. Rod didn’t live
long enough to even the score.
I am not a crier. I have lost grand-
parents, parents, a beloved aunt and
a brother, shedding very few tears
in the process. My heart’s compass
always swings toward thankful-
ness. Thankfulness that I had them
in my life. That is a very big thing,
that having someone exceptional in
your life thing. It leaves little room
for tears.
My beloved husband, Tom, and
I have inherited Rod’s dog, “Spud.”
All 15 years and 14 pounds of him.
He is virtually deaf. He has only
two teeth cruelly placed upper
right and lower left. He has arthri-
tis, takes pills with every meal and
is an austere judge of character.
For some reason, he likes me. It’s
probably the home-cooked doggie
dinners.
Whatever the reason, I love this
little dog of Rod’s. I talk to him
relentlessly, never caring that he
can’t hear me. I talk to him about
Rod, and he rewards me with a
fi erce loyalty that won’t allow him
to be more than a foot from my
side.
I haven’t cried for the loss of
Rod Nichols. I’m just too grateful
to be maudlin. But, I will absolutely
cry when Spud dies. Rod knew this
about me. — Merianne Myers
Longtime Astorian Mark Den-
nis Valdez passed away Jan. 13,
2022, while living with family on
Fox Island in Washington state.
Mark moved to Astoria from
Oakland, California, where he
started his welding career at
Bumble Bee Seafoods. Mark then
moved on to teaching at Tongue
Point Job Corps Center as a weld-
ing instructor.
The connection with the U.S.
Coast Guard and the buoy main-
tenance program made Mark a
perfect fi t to become superin-
tendent at Ogilvie Co. Inc., and
leading Ogilvie in winning the
nationwide buoy contract man-
ufacturing buoys to go coast to
coast.
Mark Valdez
Mark thrived in this industry
before moving to California and
starting his own steel fabrication
company. Being bought out by
his partner he had taken on, Mark
then retired, and moved around
the West Coast from San Diego
up to Seattle, along with adven-
turing to live in Mexico.
Mark is survived by fi ve
daughters and 11 grandchildren,
all of whom reside in the Pacifi c
Northwest, which is what drew
him back in his fi nal days. Mark
enjoyed being around his fam-
ily, the ocean and most of all, his
vehicles.
Mark was also a Vietnam War
veteran with the Marine Corps.
He proudly lived by his sworn
oath throughout his life.
Please come and join his fam-
ily and friends for a fi nal military
salute, along with a celebration
of his life, on Saturday at 2 p.m.,
in Shelter C at Coff enbury Lake,
inside Fort Stevens State Park.
All are welcome.
Hospital: Introduces planned expansion
Continued from Page A1
The event far exceeded the
fundraising goal of $250,000,
Kujala said. He thanked the vol-
unteers from the hospital and the
community who helped run the
event.
A ttendees were introduced to
a future plan to expand the Asto-
ria hospital .
“While the current hospi-
tal has been well-maintained, it
lacks expandability and is vulner-
able to earthquakes, tremors or
tsunamis,” Erik Thorsen, Colum-
bia Memorial’s CEO, said in a
statement . “We need a new, resil-
ient health care facility that will
endure and help the community
thrive for the next 50 years.”
The entirety of the funds from
the event will go toward the proj-
ect, Kujala said. The hospital is
not disclosing details about the
expansion at this time.
“It’s just the planning stages,
so we don’t really have any detail
about what that’s going to look
like. But this is kind of the start
of looking to the next chapter of
Columbia Memorial Hospital,”
said Kujala, who also serves as
chairman of the Clatsop County
Board of Commissioners . “We’ll
probably have more to share
toward the end of the year or 2023
in regards to the foundation and
how we fi t into any future plans.”
Gill: Mental health should be the focus going forward
Continued from Page A1
innovation offi cer, took on the
role of interim director in 2017
before being appointed to the
position by Gov. Kate Brown the
next year .
Gill pointed to the challenges
teachers and staff faced through-
out the pandemic, saying that the
transition to distance learning
turned “every single teacher in
Oregon into a fi rst-year teacher.”
The director also made note
of the work to limit virus cases
to prevent overburdening the
region’s health care system.
“I put educators right next to
our health care workers as the
true heroes of this pandemic, at
least in the state of Oregon,” he
said.
Looking ahead, Gill said
Oregon has developed a strong
framework for success, but added
there is still substantial work to
be done.
“I know that we’re continu-
ing to work on what needs to
happen next for our students and
the mental health impacts for our
students and their families and
for educators as well,” he said,
noting that mental health should
be the focus going forward.
As racial diversity increases
in public schools in Oregon, Gill
said, a more equitable approach
needs to be taken to serve
minority communities while also
maintaining educational rigor
and high expectations.
“I think these two years have
shown us what we’re capable
of, that we can create opportu-
nity to see more people work-
ing together and communicating
together,” he said.
open interviews
SATURDAY, MAY 14TH
10AM-4PM
350 MARINE DR., ASTORIA
Leading with Energy,
Engagement and Empathy
SEVENDAY FORECAST FOR ASTORIA
TODAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
REGIONAL FORECAST
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
Seattle
52 41
Rain tapering
off
55 48
58 50
A couple of
showers
Rain and drizzle
59 47
Cloudy
57 45
56 43
55 45
Cloudy, showers
Sunny intervals Partly sunny
around
Aberdeen
Olympia
52/42
51/40
Wenatchee
Tacoma
Moses
Lake
52/38
ALMANAC
UNDER THE SKY
TODAY'S TIDES
Astoria through Tuesday
Tonight’s Sky: Hercules climbs
the eastern sky this evening.
Astoria / Port Docks
Temperatures
High/low ................................ 56/37
Normal high/low .................. 60/45
Record high .................. 86 in 1941
Record low .................... 34 in 1967
Precipitation
Tuesday ................................... 0.01”
Month to date ........................ 2.40”
Normal month to date ......... 1.27”
Year to date .......................... 34.90”
Normal year to date ........... 32.74”
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
Time
11:10 a.m. 6.4 5:20 a.m.
11:34 p.m. 7.8 5:21 p.m.
Cape Disappointment
10:47 a.m. 6.3 4:43 a.m.
11:11 p.m. 7.8 4:37 p.m.
Source: Jim Todd, OMSI
Hammond
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today .................. 5:47 a.m.
Sunset tonight ............... 8:38 p.m.
Moonrise today ............. 4:37 p.m.
Moonset today ............... 4:22 a.m.
Full
Last
New
First
11:00 a.m. 6.7 5:01 a.m.
11:24 p.m. 8.1 4:57 p.m.
Warrenton
11:05 a.m. 6.8 5:04 a.m.
11:29 p.m. 8.2 5:05 p.m.
Knappa
11:47 a.m. 6.7 6:21 a.m.
none
6:22 p.m.
Depoe Bay
May 15 May 22 May 30 June 7
10:02 a.m. 6.2 4:09 a.m.
10:25 p.m. 7.8 4:02 p.m.
1.6
1.1
1.8
1.3
1.7
1.2
1.7
1.2
1.4
1.0
1.6
1.1
City
Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Denver
Honolulu
Houston
Los Angeles
Miami
New York City
Phoenix
San Francisco
Wash., DC
Today
Hi/Lo/W
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
79/62/s
66/55/pc
86/65/pc
94/71/pc
71/44/s
85/73/s
93/70/s
80/61/s
84/71/t
72/58/pc
89/63/s
63/51/pc
69/60/pc
75/62/c
69/62/pc
86/65/s
93/73/pc
78/46/s
84/72/s
94/73/pc
87/61/s
87/74/sh
71/60/sh
96/69/s
69/53/s
71/62/sh
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy,
c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms,
r-rain, sf-snow fl urries, sn-snow, i-ice.
61/42
Hermiston
The Dalles 64/43
Enterprise
Pendleton 54/33
59/38
60/41
La Grande
56/34
54/40
NATIONAL CITIES
High (ft.) Time Low (ft.)
54/35
Kennewick Walla Walla
59/40 Lewiston
66/45
52/39
Salem
Pullman
59/33
Longview
52/41 Portland
54/43
54/35
Yakima 62/39
50/36
Astoria
Spokane
58/39
Corvallis
53/36
Albany
53/37
John Day
Eugene
Bend
54/39
56/32
53/36
Ontario
65/44
Caldwell
Burns
54/33
63/44
Medford
57/46
Klamath Falls
52/34
City
Baker City
Brookings
Ilwaco
Newberg
Newport
Today
Hi/Lo/W
56/35/sh
52/47/r
52/43/r
54/37/r
51/40/r
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
57/42/pc
53/52/r
54/47/sh
57/47/sh
53/49/sh
City
North Bend
Roseburg
Seaside
Springfi eld
Vancouver
Today
Hi/Lo/W
53/42/r
55/43/r
53/40/r
55/40/r
54/41/r
Fri.
Hi/Lo/W
57/53/r
61/52/r
55/48/c
60/51/r
57/49/sh