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INSIDE — A3
SPORTS — B
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
FLORENCE, OREGON
TO THE RESCUE
Festival
steps ‘out of
the woods’
U.S. Coast Guard Station Siuslaw River
assisted a boater Tuesday around 9:30 a.m.
during its normal training time and bar
report on the river. According to BMC
Executive Petty Officer Ben Snider, it was an
opportune time for the crew to continue its
training. BM Petty Officer 2nd Class Klaus
Eisbrenner said, “We received a radio trans-
mission that the boat broke down. We asked
if they needed assistance, they agreed, and
we rigged up a tow line to pull them to the
docks in Old Town.” Afterward, the day’s
training and activities continued as usual.
Winter Music Festival leaves
emphasis on folk behind
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
Siuslaw News
F
riends of the Florence Events Center
(FEC) committee is making changes to
the two-day January concert formerly
called Winter Folk Festival.
“It’s always been Winter Folk Fest,” said
Rachel Pearson, chairwoman of the Friends
committee that is planning the new Winter
Music Festival.
Ten musicians, singers and ensembles will
fill the FEC with music on Saturday, Jan. 16,
and Sunday, Jan. 17.
The folk-focused festival began in the
early 2000s, when a Mapleton-based band
called The Singing Loggers put on a concert.
“It started with homegrown talent,”
Pearson said.
Since then, the festival has featured head-
liners popular in the folk music scene.
This year, however, the committee decided
to change the name to Winter Music Festival.
“There has been a change in leadership,”
Pearson said. “The people who remained
said, ‘We need to reboot and refresh.’ Our
reboot is reflected in the artists. The only tra-
ditional folk artist we have is Bob Haworth.
Everybody else is newer, younger, more
rocky, with more variety.”
Some performers will still be familiar, such
as the duo Pretty Gritty, who played at this
year’s folk fest, and Cabin Fever NW, who
played in Florence in 2011.
Also, up-and-comer singer and Siuslaw
High School graduate Billy Jones will be
opening the music festival on Jan. 16.
Singer-songwriter Molly Hardin is another
local artist who will perform during the festi-
val.
Most recently, she sang at Backstreet
Gallery during September’s Rods ’n’ Rhodies
in Old Town.
“We’re changing the decade of music that
we’re going to listen to,” Pearson said. “This
needs to be a centerpiece of January.”
Other updates will include changing the
“look” of the marketing of festival.
“We didn’t want to change every last thing
and not have people recognize it, though,”
Pearson said. “We’re keeping our iconic
‘woodblock’ style logo. We just want to come
out of the woods a little bit.”
See
MUSIC 7A
DEBORAH HELDT CORDONE
BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB GROWS STRONGER
Interim director shares progress, needs and vision for expanded club programs
B Y J ACK D AVIS
Siuslaw News
This past January, many in
Florence expected the local Boys
and Girls Club chapter to be noth-
ing but a sad memory by now.
Financial woes forced the club’s
Teen Center to close in December
2014. The director was let go in
February and the club had an
unimaginable $120,000 in short-
term debt.
But the board was not willing to
go quietly into that good night.
Their tenacious spirit, sweat equity
and financial commitments began
to slowly turn the tide of despair.
Their attitude and hard work was
an inspiration to local community
members, businesses and organiza-
tions who banded together to com-
JACK DAVIS/SIUSLAW NEWS
Newly remodeled Boys and Girls Club of Western Lane County
Teen Center at 1601 15th St. buzzes with after-school activities.
The center offers homework help and constructive programs
to bolster student academic interests.
pletely remodel the Teen Center.
Today, the Boys and Girls Club
of Western Lane County continues
to wrestle with financial problems,
but the numbers appear more rea-
sonable.
According to interim administra-
tive director Chuck Trent, the club
has paid down more than $65,000
of debt, has reopened the Teen
Center and is currently working
with an estimated 250 Florence-
area students, ages 6 to 18.
The club’s six fall sports pro-
grams have 185 students enrolled.
The elementary after-school pro-
gram has 40 students and the Teen
Center program sees an average of
25 middle and high school students
each day.
When it rained,
they poured
INSIDE
Light drizzles and cool temper-
atures didn’t stop the approxi-
mately 450 people who attended
the first ever Beachcomber Brew
Fest last Saturday.
Beachcomber Pub in Old Town
brought in 40 beers and ales on
tap for attendees to try. Guests
could spend time in the beer gar-
den on Maple Street or sit inside
Births . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Library Tidings . . . . . . . . . . .
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the pub to watch sports and listen
to the jukebox. Beachcomber also
gave away mini tasting glasses
with the $5 admission.
In all, the event raised about
$2,000 for the Beachcomber
Community Scholarship Fund.
“The response was incredible,”
said event organizer and
Beachcomber owner Scott Waiss.
“People really enjoyed them-
selves. We expect next year to be
even better.”
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PHOTOS BY CHANTELLE MEYER/SIUSLAW NEWS
Siuslaw News
CLUB 7A
More than
40 beers
and ales
were on
tap during
Saturday’s
Brew Fest.
Brew Fest attracts hundreds to Old Town
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
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