Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 2017)
SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ YEAR IN REVIEW ❚ 2016 SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 2017 3 SNAPSHOTS PHOTOS BY SIUSLAW NEWS STAFF OCTOBER (cont.) Celebrating 20 years of the Florence Events Center Florence, OR CCB#195304 Dancing with Sea Lions came to a close on Oct. 8 as the Florence Events Center auc- tioned off the last of the 7-1/2- foot artist-created sea lions and burned its mortgage, all as part Hoberg’s Complete Auto Repair www.hobergsautorepair.com 345 Hwy. 101 541-997-2413 of its 20th anniversary celebra- tion. Two Florence mayors and other dignitaries spoke during the event. “We’re celebrating 20 years because we survived 20 years. We’re very proud of that,” said Florence Events Center (FEC) Director Kevin Rhodes. “It’s a pleasure to be an employee of the City of Florence and to work for such a wonderful facility.” Florence Mayor Joe Henry said, “I can’t tell you how proud I am of the FEC — not only Kevin Rhodes and the staff for 20 years, but also Jennifer Connor and the Dancing with Sea Lions proj- ect. We’re here celebrating both of these events.” Appreciation dinner honors Coast Guard In honor of its sustained relationship with U.S. Coast Guard Station Siuslaw River for the past 99 years, the City of Florence is soon to apply for the prestigious Coast Guard City designation. The proposal was made ear- lier this year, and at the time, an appreciation dinner was one of the ways suggested to honor the Florence area’s only active- duty military unit in town. Florence Mayor Joe Henry spearheaded the effort and the Oregon Coast Military Museum agreed to host Florence’s first Coast Guard Appreciation Dinner. Over 250 guests attended. FRAA celebrates first anniversary in Old Town Kevin McMullen 3rd Generation Owner hobergsautorepair@gmail.com Serving Your Auto Needs Since 1945 Had so much FUN picking the football teams this year !!! Florence Regional Arts Alliance celebrated the one- year anniversary of the opening of its Old Town Arts Center on Oct. 28. FRAA Director Harlen Springer said, “We currently have 120 members and spon- sors. We have exceeded expec- tations on a number of levels, including membership and sponsorship.” NOVEMBER Chief Tipler retires after 35 years Siuslaw Valley Fire and Congratulations to all the other sponsors A special publication of the Siuslaw News Rescue Operations Chief Marvin Tipler hung up his hel- met this week after 35 years with the Florence-area fire department. He officially retired Aug. 1, but contracted to remain until a replacement operations chief was hired. Jim Dickerson, of Netarts, Ore., joined the fire station in November. Tipler, 53, said, “My goal is to make the transition as smooth as possible and do whatever the district needs to be successful in the future ... I’m going to volunteer throughout the community.” He also plans to run for the board in its next election. Florence experiences dramatic rise in HIV, flu Lane County Public Health Services (LCPHS) discovered five new cases of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in Florence in October, a dramatic rise over historic averages. Officials worried over high levels of 3 preventa- ble diseases in Florence area. LCPHS worked with PeaceHealth Peace Harbor Medical Center and the HIV Alliance in Eugene to establish local testing for HIV. Flu and syphilis cases were also on the rise. Florence selects new economic development catalysts The City in Motion contin- ues its momentum with the hiring of Jesse Dolin, of Yachats, as the City of Florence’s first economic development catalyst to bring talent and jobs to the area. Regional Accelerator and Innovation Network (RAIN) also announced the hiring of David Youngentob as the new coastal venture catalyst for western Lane County and Lincoln County. Boys and Girls Club Drum Corps “The Tsunami” performs The Boys and Girls club of Western Lane County celebrat- ed the success of its fledgling Drum Corps. The corps is a recent addition to the club’s E DITOR N ED H ICKSON G ENERAL M ANAGER J ENNA B ARTLETT programs — added to offer alternatives from more tradi- tional sports-oriented activi- ties, according to Teen Center Director Tracy Aaron. The Corps’ first official per- formance was this year’s Florence Veteran’s Day Parade, where the members won best youth group. DECEMBER Community comes together in wake of student’s death More than 150 people gath- ered in the Mapleton High School gym for a special memorial service in memory of Brandon Kimble, a Mapleton freshman who tragi- cally took his own life the morning of Dec. 1. Mapleton School District Superintendent Jodi O’Mara said, “We care about every one of you. It’s what makes us ‘Mapleton strong.’” Pearl Harbor vet remembers day Alan Tait was 18 years old when, in the early morning hours of Dec. 7, 1941, the day he had been training for began with the sound of Japanese planes on the horizon near Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Now living in Florence, Tait, 93, recalled the moment he realized that the noise he was hearing was not a training mission. “All of a sudden I see the smoke and all of those planes,” he said. “After that, it was pandemonium.” Tait was stationed at a base on the bay and not on a ship, so his view of the battle was unobstructed. FEC comes full circle Blues musician Curtis Salgado returned to Florence to play the final performance of 2016 at the Florence Events Center. The blues show wrapped up a year-long cele- bration of the event center’s 20th anniversary. Salgado first played Florence in 1996, during the opening year of the events center. F EATURES E DITOR C HANTELLE M EYER P RODUCTION R ON A NNIS J ODY P ATTISON DIRECTOR A DVERTISING S USAN G UTIERREZ J EANNA P ETERSEN DIRECTOR Copyright 2017 • Siuslaw News & Central Coast Publishing • No part of this publication may be duplicated without permission
