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Hood River News, Wednesday, April 15, 2015
ROOTS
A nd B ranches
By MAIJA YASUI
The competition of spirit
C
ompetition among kids has its pros and
cons.
As parents and coaches it is our re-
sponsibility to help keep the intensity
of competition in check for our kids
and provide them with
life’s larger lessons. Some
of the old adages I
learned as a child still
ring true: “It is not
whether you win or lose,
but how you play the
game.” If there is a win-
ner, your opponent is a
loser by its very defini-
tion. With good coaches
our kids learn how to be
winners in every situa-
tion, regardless of the
final score.
My children had some great coaches who
were highly competitive but still kept their eye
on that larger prize. My oldest son, Corey, was
an all-state football player under the tutelage of
coaches Burton and Drew. Don’t get me wrong,
those coaches love to win, but they were just as
passionate about their teams being good sports,
never feeling like losers if they have given their
best. A memory I hold dear is when their cham-
pionship football team awarded their team “as-
sistant” the most improved player award. This
young man had struggled with developmental
disabilities throughout his life but was an inte-
gral part of the team.
Blossom Craft and Quilt show happens
April 18-19 at county Fairgrounds
Blossom Craft Show and
the Blossom Fest Quilt Show
take place April 18-19, from
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Hood
River County Fairgrounds in
Odell. Admission and park-
ing are free.
Artists, craftspeople, and
vendors from around the
Northwest will be on hand
offering wonderful arts and
crafts, plants, garden art,
handcrafted home furnish-
ings and decorations, photos,
dried flowers, gourmet food
products, rhododendrons
and azaleas, jewelry, beads,
clothing, and much more.
Taste award-winning wines
and a
w i d e
variety
Blossom Time
of food.
Events continue
Odell
this weekend and
Garden
go through April
C l u b
holds
26. See Panorama
its an-
special section for
n u a l
full details.
plant
s a l e
Satur-
day at
the Craft Show. Hood River
Valley High School FFA will
be there offering a variety of
plants for sale from their
greenhouse both days. Plants
grown by professional grow-
ers will be for sale through-
out the event, too. Along with
garden art, decorations, and
more, the show is a “must”
for those who love a beauti-
ful yard or who want to get a
jump on their spring garden-
ing.
The Sunday edition of the
Blossom Craft Show features
the Gorge Strings perform-
ing during the afternoon.
The Columbia Gorge Fruit
Growers will be offering
tasty Hood River pears fresh
from controlled atmosphere
storage for sale.
The Special Olympics or-
ganization will there with a
fundraiser to support their
important work.
The annual Blossom Fest
Quilt Show and Sale will be
in the Floral Building at the
fairgrounds. More than 100
beautiful handmade quilts
will be on display, with many
of them for sale. This show
and sale is a favorite of quilt-
lovers from around the
Northwest.
Follow the signs to the
Hood River County Fair-
grounds, located at the inter-
section of Wy’east and Sum-
mit Roads, south of Hood
River, near Odell.
■
Daughter Kim has judged every softball coach
on their ability to find something great in each
and every young girl who loves to play softball, re-
gardless of their talent, a lesson learned from one
of Little League’s greatest softball coaches, Hugh
Hinman.
Now my grandchildren are taking centerfield
in a variety of athletic and artistic endeavors.
Last weekend we watched Auni play on Fred Tru-
jillo’s team, a hodgepodge of tweens and teens
who just love to play softball. As the girls have
gotten older, the level of competition has in-
creased, which unfortunately provides more op-
portunities for kids to feel like losers. Like all
grandparents, our eyes were on our granddaugh-
ter Aunika. We felt pride in her accomplishments,
some nice hits and great catches and throws
which allowed her to leave the field with her head
held high in spite of some really lopsided scores.
What happened to the five-run mercy rule? Fortu-
nately the opposing coach instituted it to help
keep the teams enthused. And when one girl was
injured we were allowed to bring in her little sis-
ter from the bleachers to play the final game of
the day. After the game, Coach Trujillo congratu-
lated each of the girls on their individual and
team accomplishments, keeping their spirits
high.
The umpires were supportive as well, encour-
aging struggling pitchers when they were “off ” or
catchers when they took a few too many pitches
in the gut. He even ran out to first base to high-
five Auni when she made a spectacular catch. Per-
haps he was just bored, but I believe he wanted to
keep the love of playing the game in all of the
girl’s hearts.
■
Who would think that the Oregon Battle of
the Books state championship would be more
competitive than baseball? In spite of a rotten
cold that has been sapping my strength this last
week, I headed down to Chemeketa Community
College in Salem to watch Kendra and Aunika, Ji-
mena, Nick and super dedicated alternate Ethan
go head to head with other regional champions
from across the state. Wy’east Middle School
sailed through the first two rounds, showing good
sportsmanship, camaraderie and understanding
in spite of their nerves. As they moved through
the Sweet 16 rounds into the ultimate eight, they
continued to support one another. I firmly believe
that if they hadn’t faced the future state champi-
onship team Fern Ridge in that round, they would
have gone on to face them in the finals. It was a
great competition, leaving no losers in the room.
They were matched perfectly, answering question
after question, wowing the judges and parents
alike. They kept their cool and played their hearts
out.
Kendra and Auni will move on to their roles in
“Shrek,” with Kendra center stage as Fiona as
well as directing and helping choreograph the
dancers. Auni will stay behind the scenes, focus-
ing on the sound and lights. Katie will perform in
the Hood River Valley High School Choir spring
concert. Cooper will play in his first Minors base-
ball game this Monday, which promises to test the
patience of Coach Sal Rivera, but who I am sure
will rise to the occasion. And son Corey will con-
tinue to inspire his twins and their seven-year-old
classmates to enjoy running and throwing catch-
ing and hitting, regardless of their understand-
ing of the game.
■
Exhausted after a weekend of coughing and
cheering, I curled up on the couch on Sunday
and watched the end of the Masters Golf tourna-
ment. There was quite the media hype about the
super talented 21 year old Jordan Spieth and his
role in bringing back the mania around golf that
Tiger Woods had once provided. The young man
didn’t appear to buy into all the hype, just play-
ing quietly and determinedly throughout the af-
ternoon winning handily. For me, the previous
day’s event when Jack Nicklaus, the Golden Bear
of golf, predicted he would make a hole in one
and then did exactly that was truly the most ex-
citing. It wasn’t about the competition and win-
ning or losing, it was how he could still play the
game at the age of 75.
B irths
Kayla Adkins
A daughter, Kayla Joy Ad-
kins, was born March 31,
2015, to Michael Lee and
Jennifer D. Adkins. She
weighed 5 pounds, 14 ounces
and measured 19 and one
quarter inches. She joins a
brother, Hunter John B. Ad-
kins, 2. Grandparents are
Kayla H. Johnson and the
late John B. Johnson of
Hood River, Suzanne Adkins
of San Marcos, Calif., and
C.D. Adkins of Oceanside,
Calif. Great grandparents
are Joyleen Hobson and the
late Alton Hobson of
Pocatello, Idaho.
Submitted photo
Mike and Patty Schend on their wedding day.
Schends celebrate 40th
Patty and Mike Schend
of Hood River celebrate
their 40th wedding an-
niversary on April 19.
Patty, an retired grade
school teacher, and Mike,
retired Director of Com-
munity Education, were
married on April 19, 1975,
in Wahpeton, N.D., where
they lived before moving
to the Gorge in 1980.
Their children are Jes-
sica “J.J.” and Kirk Whit-
ney, Bend, and Sammy
Schend, Portland. They
have one grandchild.
Mike and Patty are ac-
tive members of St.
Mary’s Catholic Church.
Mike’s involvement in
the community has only
slowed down slightly
since retirement as he is
still actively involved vol-
unteering for various
community org aniza-
tions and activities.
In their free time Mike
and Patty enjoy spending
time with their grand-
son, Elliot, getting to-
gether with friends and
traveling around the
world both together and
with their good friends,
Chuck and Becky Bugge
and Forrest and Karen
Bell.
Stephen Curley and Tracy Ramsey
Ramsey, Curley to
wed this summer
Tracy Ramsey of The
Dalles and Stephen “Squrl”
Curley of Underwood have
announced their engage-
ment. They will be married
on August 29, 2015, in Under-
wood.
The bride-to-be graduated
from The Dalles High School
in 1980 and works at River-
side Restaurant, Best West-
ern Plus Hood River Inn. The
future g room g raduated
from high school in Westch-
ester, Pa., in 1976 and is a
Blues radio host, Blues
music promoter and real es-
tate agent.
Honor attendant will be
Terrie Barnhouse, longtime
friend of the bride, and best
man will be Guy Russel
Johnson, Jr., longtime best
friend of the groom.
Housing needs tour comes to The Dalles
Oregon Housing and Com-
munity Services (OHCS) is
seeking community input on
how to address housing
needs in Oregon, and is com-
ing to the Gorge as part of
the process.
OHCS is developing a fed-
erally required Consolidated
Plan, a five year look at how
to address housing needs in
Oregon. The Consolidated
Plan is the strategic look at
how to address the housing
needs and invest in services
that support persons experi-
encing homelessness. The
agency needs community
input and advice to deter-
mine how we can do better in
serving Oregonians with the
lowest incomes.
“OHCS is committed to the
idea that all Oregonians have
the opportunity to pursue
prosperity and live free from
poverty,” said Margaret Van
Vliet, OHCS Director, “We
are eager to hear from people
across Oregon to learn more
about the local housing con-
ditions, and gathering input
about our priorities for the
next five years.”
People throughout the
state are struggling to pay
rent, and home ownership is
out of reach for many. In
most communities in Ore-
gon, a minimum wage earn-
er must work over 70 hours a
week to pay for a two bed-
room apartment and still
have money left over for food
and other basic necessities.
■
To hear about the chal-
lenges facing the residents of
Oregon, OHCS is hosting
several public events in com-
munities across the state.
Screenings of American
Winter followed by a commu-
nity discussion will be the fo-
rums in Tillamook, Klamath
Falls and The Dalles.
The Gorge event will be
April 17, 6 p.m. at Mid-Co-
lumbia Senior Center, 1112 W
9th St., The Dalles.
Folklorist speaks April 21 at Hood River Library
Learn about folklife and
some of the people in your
community who practice tra-
ditional crafts and skills. The
Oregon Folklife Network
presents Folklife in your
community by folklorist
Nancy Nusz at the Hood
River Library on Tuesday,
April 21, 6 p.m.
The presentation is free
and open to the public. For
more information, please
contact the Hood River Coun-
ty Library District at 541-386-
2535,
info@hoodriver
library.org, or visit their
website at hoodriverli-
brary.org.
A veteran folklorist, Nusz
was previously the Director
of the Oregon Folklife Pro-
gram, which was part of the
Oregon Historical Society
until 2009. She is known for
her stellar fieldwork, public
programming, exhibits, and
curriculum development.
done some contract work for
UNESCO in Paris, France,
and is very excited to be
meeting old friends and in-
terviewing new ones in Ore-
gon’s Columbia River Gorge
region.
Funded by the National
Endowment for the Arts of
the Oregon Folklife Network.
Submitted photo
JUAN ANTONIO MARTINEZ of
Hood River County, playing tra-
ditional music, one example of
folk life Nancy Nusz will discuss
at the Hood River Library event
on April 21.
Since leaving the Oregon
Folklife Program, she has
Moving means we need
to sell this old beauty
Honduran Mahogany $300
Provides great dish and linen storage
Call 541-490-7529
or email mdogotch@gmail.com
Apr. 18th
Jan.
5 pm
1pm 7th
or · 6pm
The Oregon Folklife Net-
work is administered by the
University of Oregon and is
supported in part by grants
from the Oregon Cultural
Trust, Oregon Arts Commis-
sion, Oregon Historical Soci-
ety, and the National Endow-
ment for the Arts.
CONCEAL CARRY
CONCEALED
CARRY
PERMIT CLASS
CLASS
PERMIT
Oregon
Oregon-
Utah
- (valid 35-states)
Washington-Utah
April 28 • 1 pm & 6 pm
Best Western: Red
1419
W Main
Ground
McMinnville
Lion:
2535 St.,
NE Battle
Cumulus
Ave
Utah/OR/WA: $80.00 or Oregon only: $45
The Dalles Civic Auditorium
OR / Utah: (Valid in WA) $80
or Oregon only: $45
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