4 A
❘
SATURDAY EDITION
❘ APRIL 29, 2017
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
Siuslaw News
Opinion
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
❘ 541-902-3520 ❘
NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
The First Amendment
C
ongress shall make no law respecting an estab-
lishment of religion or prohibiting the free exer-
cise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of
the press, or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.
VIEW FROM UPRIVER
Appreciating the fruit of hard work
W ESLEY V OTH
For the Siuslaw News
A
ctually, I am not upriver of Florence at
the moment, but on an 8,000-mile, 10-
week trek cross country with Susie in a
19-foot camper van. Now mostly retired, we
want to take the opportunity to see things and
places we have only read about on the road to
see our children, some friends and other family.
Thanks to the internet and the Siuslaw News
being even more accessible online, I can still
read the paper. My plan is to comment on what
I see around me like usual, but in addition to
reading this paper, will peruse whatever news-
papers I can find in the locales we pass through.
We left on tax day, heading south on 101
through increasing rain. Somewhere south of
Sixes it began to be apparent that this was a real
storm, and Highway 101 might not be the best
route. By the time we got to Crescent City,
Calif., we learned from the visitor’s center that
the highway south of us was closed indefinitely
— and the only ultimate route south was to
return north via Highway 199 to Grants Pass,
then down by I-5. Neither of us had ever been
down the Redwood Highway, as 199 is known,
and even though it meant returning to Oregon,
the drive through the redwoods and along the
Smith River was worth it to see how the water
remained intensely blue even on a stormy day.
We woke up in Weed, having spent the night
in the rest stop there, and skies began to clear as
the growing light revealed all but the top of
snowy Shasta. By the time we reached Redding,
the sun had risen and the skies were clear. Every
reservoir full and river high, in places fields
were flooded and looked like bays. Eventually,
we were able to get off I-5 to 99 and then to a
route more our pace, C-43.
Orchards and other forms of labor intensive
agriculture like vineyards are in my DNA, and it
was wonderful to see so many, both well-estab-
lished and more recently planted: avocadoes,
nuts, olives, peaches and plums and citrus.
The Reedley Exponent had editorials (and
zero letters to the editor despite invitations) on
highway taxes and conditions, an April 19
shooting spree in nearby Fresno, and articles
about farm labor. But the many political signs
were mostly about water allocation and money
for storage capacity rather than high speed rail.
On much of our trip to date, there have been
more trucks than cars on the road, and the many
rail cars mostly carrying containers to be trans-
ferred to trucks.
And then we entered the freeway system that
defines Los Angeles. What a metaphor for our
current political times; just trying stay in a con-
sistent center lane is impossible as they appear
and disappear constantly, making the lane
you’re in suddenly the far right or the far left.
While staying with friends in Venice Beach
who live part of the year in Mapleton, we saw
their lovely gardens at their peak, with abundant
honeybees and hummingbird moths noising
about the blossoms. We walked along the canals
where I spotted a juvenile halibut about 20 inch-
es in length cruising through the shallow water.
We took the metro with our friends into the city
to participate in the Earth Day March for
Science. What a witty and mixed crowd of thou-
sands. There were people of all ages, gender,
ethnic background and ways of identifying
themselves.
Poignant signs abounded: “Supporting sci-
ence supports everyone’s future;” “Science of
the people, by the people, for the people —
Don’t tamper with the People’s science;”
“Support America? How about make American
science great again?” And “I’m with her” with
an arrow pointing to a planet earth.
But the sign that struck me the most, espe-
cially in light of massive proposed budget cuts
to the National Institute of Health, was:
“Got polio? No? Me neither, thanks to sci-
ence.”
The massive investments we used to make in
our public universities, such as the land grant
universities in every state, and the teaching of
math and science in our schools — investments
that paid off for so many years — seem to be
valued most by the people flocking from other
parts of the world wanting to learn. Some of the
people who wind up on the wrong side of our
immigration laws are those who come to this
country as students and find out that the science
and health degrees they earn make them more
qualified for jobs in those fields than U.S. citi-
zens who didn’t, for whatever reason.
A couple of nights ago, we stayed in Joshua
Tree National Park. With a $10 Senior Pass pur-
chased recently at Cape Perpetua, it was free
admission to the park and half off of the $15
camping fee. What a wonderful time to be in the
desert there; everything was blooming, from the
Joshua Trees, yucca and agave, to the juniper,
many types of cactus and flowers both great and
small.
I was particularly taken by the red-orange
Desert Mariposa Lily with its black throat, and
the ocotillo or candle tree with its 10- to 30-foot
tall spires tipped with red “flames.”
Next, we’ll turn the tables on successive chil-
dren, with us showing up on their doorsteps —
laundry in hand.
LETTERS
S UPPORT FOR S WINNEY
My candidate pick for Port Commissioner
will be Dave Swinney. He and his wife Michelle
have been business owners in Old Town
Florence for many years. They also own what I
feel is the most beautiful boat in our little boat
basin; a tug.
His maritime law knowledge is vast and he
has sailed the world. He’s a responsible person
and has developed his own ideas for port
improvement projects.
I also believe he will help to bring harmony
and progress to all port matters. I don’t believe
L ETTERS TO THE
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any other candidate has observed the port area,
wetlands and wildlife reserves as intensively as
David Swinney.
Wende Jarman
Florence
T IPLER IS SECOND TO NONE
I moved to Florence in 1986 and, having
been a volunteer firefighter in another town,
knew the importance of having volunteers in the
local fire department. I joined right away. He
was already an active member and made it
immediately obvious how serious he was about
the welfare of the department, as well as the
training and safety of its active members and
volunteers.
He is a leader and has been involved in just
about every function in the department, from
leadership, training, daily operations, the design
and purchasing of equipment, and more.
His endless hours given of his free time to the
department demonstrates his dedication and
devotion to Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue.
For 31 years, I have witnessed that he is
absolutely second to none.
In my opinion, there is no one more qualified
to be on the SVFR Board than Marvin Tipler.
Greg Saindon
Florence
F OR M EYER , D UMAN AND B UCKWALD
As president of the Port of Siuslaw Board of
Commissioners, I have decided not to run again
because of health concerns. I will be voting for
Bill Meyer for Port of Siuslaw Commissioner
Position 5 and incumbent Board commissioners
Terry Duman and Mike Buckwald.
Meyer has a background of public service as
a board member for the Three Rivers School
District in the Grants Pass Area. He and his wife
have lived here in Florence for the past 10
years.
He understands how an effective board is
supposed to operate and has no preconceived
agenda — I believe he just wants the Port of
Siuslaw to be the best it can be and has the skill
set to help guide the port in achieving that goal.
Duman is a commercial construction contrac-
tor and a commercial fisherman. He brings a
wealth of experience to the Port board. He is
very knowledgeable in the operation of the port
and I feel he wants to see an active and busy
port.
Buckwald has brought his accounting experi-
ence to the aid of the port staff. With his help,
the port staff can easily track profits and
expenses and present them to the commission
As president of The Port Commission, a
Florence Rotarian and president of the Florence
Salmon Trout Enhancement Program (STEP), I
will be supporting Terry Duman for Port of
Siuslaw Commissioner position 1, Mike
Buckwald for Port of Siuslaw Commissioner
position 3, and Bill Meyer for Port of Siuslaw
Commissioner Position 5.
Ron Caputo
Florence
F ARNSWORTH AND G REEN WILL
ENSURE PROGRESS
We would like to share our concerns about
the future of the Siuslaw Valley Fire and Rescue
District with our voters and taxpayers. Two of
us are current members of the Board of
Directors, but are not running for re-election
(John Scott and Lori Gates). Two of us previ-
ously served as members of the Board of
Directors (Cindy Spinner and Rob Ward). We
care deeply about the service and quality of our
fire department.
Elections matter and votes matter. We do not
want to see the events of the past repeated. We
believe that Crystal Farnsworth and Ron Green
are the only suitable candidates running for the
Board of Directors. We do not believe that the
opposing candidates would support the initia-
tives now in place that have created the positive
direction in which the district is moving.
They have not reached out to Chief Jim
Langborg or to the current Board of Directors to
engage in the preparation necessary for making
leadership decisions.
Chief Langborg was hired by our board to
raise the level of training and expertise in the
fire department. Nothing is more important to
our community than a well-trained, fully staffed
and motivated group of professionals and vol-
unteers.
The Chief has done the job we hired him to
do. Along with improved training opportunities
and expectations, the he has developed a strate-
gic plan, bringing into the planning process
major stakeholders including community lead-
ers and firefighters. This form of comprehen-
sive strategic planning was initiated by Chief
Langborg, working with the Board of Directors.
The Chief has developed our Capital Budget
and has organized his staff to take on the admin-
istrative responsibilities of the Western Lane
Ambulance District.
This partnership will result in cost savings,
operational improvements and a heightened
level of service to the community. Through the
use of grant money, the Chief has staffed a full-
time recruiter and a full-time trainer for volun-
teers. The results have been dramatic. We now
have close to 50 firefighters and volunteers, a
very high number for our District.
In addition, we have just learned that we have
been awarded a grant in the amount of $760,000
for seismic improvements to our fire stations.
As voters and taxpayers, we all want and
expect the best first responder operation possi-
ble. Our lives could depend on it.
For this reason, we urge support for Crystal
Farnsworth and Ron Green to ensure that the
fire and ambulance departments continue for-
ward with the great progress already underway.
John Scott, President of SVFR Board;
Lori Gates, SVFR board member;
Rob Ward, past SVFR board member;
Cindy Spinner, past SVFR board member
A LLOWING DOGS COULD
HELP PARK SAFETY
Regarding the ongoing concerns of alcohol
and drug use at Miller Park, a positive step in
providing additional watchful eyes on these
activities could easily be brought about by
allowing residents to walk their dogs in the
park.
There are many dog owners in Florence who
would love to be able to be in our city parks
with their dogs, which would result in increased
social interactions with all users of the park, in
addition to more awareness of all activity with-
in the park.
This seems to me to be an easily implement-
ed step in the right direction.
Barbara Holler
Florence
G REAT PROGRAM TO
ENGAGE STUDENTS
The Western Lane Community Foundation
could not have found a better recipient to fund
than Siuslaw Elementary School teacher Gina
Halpin’s fourth-grade class.
As a retired elementary and middle school
educator, I read with appreciation of the
inspired program in which her students delved
into Lewis and Clark’s famous expedition
(Siuslaw News, April 26).
Great teaching demands hard work and care-
ful planning to keep kids engaged and excited
about learning. We hear so many complaints
and woes about public education that it was
most heartening to read of the obvious passion
Halpin has for teaching and her students.
Hats off to WLCF, Siuslaw Elementary
teacher Gina Halpin, and of course, the fourth-
graders for their enthusiasm, diligence and suc-
cess with this project.
I’m sure there are other examples of this
quality education at our schools. The faculty
and administration deserve our unfailing sup-
port.
Judith Preisler
Florence
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