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SATURDAY EDITION
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❘ JULY 15, 2017 ❘ $1.00
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INSIDE — A5
SPORTS — B
127TH YEAR ❘ ISSUE NO. 56
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
New reporter
joins Siuslaw
News
To end the cycle of cancer
FLORENCE, OREGON
Newspaper welcomes
Florence resident Jared
Anderson
Siuslaw News
S
See
Man identified
in Mapleton
carjacking
attempts
Lane County sheriffs
arrest Chad Randolph
Miller on July 13
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
iuslaw News has announced the
hiring of Jared Anderson as its
new community reporter.
Siuslaw
News
Editor Ned
Hickson
said, “Jared
is a great fit
for the
dynamics
of our news
team. He
brings
NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS strong writ-
ing skills
Jared Anderson
and the
ability to convey information in a way
that is interesting and informative. His
ability to connect with people and the
trending issues that affect our commu-
nity are elements in his reporting that I
know will benefit our newspaper and its
readers.”
Anderson, 39, unofficially joined the
newsroom in May as he created content
and conducted video interviews for
TheSiuslawNews.com.
Now, his primary focus will be to
write stories and take photos that
inform readers about community-based
events, organizations and individuals
who impact Florence and Mapleton,
CRIME
B Y N ED H ICKSON
Siuslaw News
PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS
C
yclists participating in the
Texas 4000 roll into Sandland
Adventures on Friday, July
14, just 42 days after depart-
ing Austin, Texas. Every year, riders in
the 4000 travel from Austin to
Anchorage, Alaska, taking a stop in
Florence to ride the dunes and replenish
with a feast held at St. Andrew’s
Episcopal Church. The program is used
to offer hope, encouragement and
fundraising for the fight against cancer.
The 4000, made up of graduate and
undergraduate students from the
University of Texas at Austin, has raised over $7 million since the program’s inception
in 2003. Read more about this journey in the July 19 edition of Siuslaw News.
Lane honors Florence employee
LCC gives recognition award to Administrative Specialist Beth Habian
REPORTER 7A
MAPLETON — Thursday morning,
37-year-old Chad Randolph Miller
threatened several Mapleton residents in
an apparent attempt to obtain a car
before being arrested by Lane County
Sheriffs around noon that day.
Jesse Johnson, owner of Caffeination
Station, was talking with Florence resi-
dent and Mapleton High School teacher
Aaron Longo when Miller approached
them asking for Longo’s car.
“He said he was a special agent who
had a son being held by pedophiles and
needed a car to go get him,” said
Johnson. “He had a heavy alcohol smell
and was talking a mile a minute, which
made me believe he may have been on
meth or something.
“His skin was pockmarked and he
didn’t look healthy.”
At that point, Johnson suggested to
Miller that he contact the police if his
son was in danger, and gave Miller a
phone to call 911.
“He dialed the number, talked for a
minute then hung up the phone,” said
Johnson. “It was pretty obvious he did-
n’t really complete the call.”
See
B Y J ARED A NDERSON
ARREST 6A
Siuslaw News
Florence Mayor
announces Coast
Guard City
designation
B Y C HANTELLE M EYER
Siuslaw News
Florence Mayor Joe Henry con-
firmed Monday that he had received
official verbal approval of Florence’s
application to become a Coast Guard
City.
“This distinguished award came
after a long application process and a
lot of hard work,” Henry said.
U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Public
Affairs Officer Deborah Heldt Cordone
was instrumental in getting written tes-
timonies, compiling photographs and
working with local media as she com-
pleted the Coast Guard City application
on behalf of the community.
“According to the admiral, our appli-
cation package was one of the best that
has been submitted and we feel fortu-
nate to have been selected,” Henry
said.
“We are especially thankful for the
people and their families at Coast
Guard Station Siuslaw for what they do
for our community. Not only do they
keep our river and the adjoining miles
of coastline safe for boaters, they are an
integral part of our community and
contribute greatly to what makes
Florence Oregon's premier Coastal
Community.”
INSIDE
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Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Community . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CITY 7A
B5
A3
A4
A2
Dunes City
‘streams’ council
B
eth Habian had no plans to
make the Lane Community
College (LCC) Florence
Center tick. Just four years ago,
she was an administrative support
specialist in the front office, taking
phone calls one day a week.
Now the head administrative
specialist for the campus, Habian
was awarded the LCC Employee
Recognition Program award, the
highest honor the college gives
administrative employees.
In a packed room at the
Florence campus last Thursday,
Habian was given her certificate
surrounded by faculty, staff, main
campus administrators, students
and friends.
Habian was humble about the
recognition, simply stating, “It’s
nice that somebody from Florence
could be recognized.”
To the recollection of Russ
Pierson, dean of the Florence
Center, no administrator had ever
been officially recognized by the
main campus before.
In Pierson’s mind, it couldn’t
have happened to a better employ-
ee.
“She’s awesome,” Pierson said.
“I sometimes describe her as the
real power behind the throne and
I’m just an ugly figure-head in the
community. She has a great capac-
ity for administrative excellence.”
The award is culled from the
325 administrative employees who
work in campuses across the LCC
system. Coworkers nominate indi-
viduals for the award, which the
dean of each campus certifies.
Side Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B
This Week on the Coast . . . . A8
Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2
THIS WEEK ’ S
Dunes City begins
Internet live streaming
city council meetings
B Y J ARED A NDERSON
Siuslaw News
JARED ANDERSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
LCC Florence Administrative Specialist Elizabeth Habian is hon-
ored in a special, surprise ceremony Thursday.
Habian’s responsibilities at the
Habian’s education and knowl-
campus are vast. From employee edge goes well beyond her time at
issues, financial considerations for the campus, according to her sister
classes, community outreach, sup- and interim administrative support
porting the dean, solving complex specialist at LCC, Cindy
administrative issues, catering Swoboda.
meetings and an innumerable
“In the family we always call
amount of other tasks, many LCC her a walking dictionary because
Florence employees feel Habian is she knows everything. Every
responsible for making the campus evening, when Jeopardy comes on,
a success.
she knows all the answers. And the
Reading from comments about weirdest answers, too. They’ll just
Habian the staff had provided, pop out of her head,” Swoboda
Pierson said, “She is the go-to per- said.
son for all kinds of questions. She
Habian has called Florence
goes beyond in all she does. I can home since 2000.
tell you that the Florence campus
Originally from Sacramento and
would not be the same without her, the Bay area, she found housing in
and I believe she should be recog- California to be too expensive.
nized for the fantastic work that
she does.”
See RECOGNITION 7A
TODAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
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WEATHER
Full Forecast, A3
Dunes City Council will now be
holding all meetings in local coffee
shops. Simultaneously, councilors will
be speaking at grocery stores, restau-
rants, cars, homes and Woahink Creek.
“The city council meetings are now
streaming live on our website,”
announced Dunes City Administrative
Assistant Rapunzel Oberholtzer at the
July 13 council meeting.
Dunes City is the region’s first local
city council to live-stream meetings.
“We’re
main-stream
now!”
Oberholtzer joked while making the
announcement.
“I think it’s exciting,” said Dunes
City Administrator Jamie Mills. “It’s
an opportunity for greater transparen-
cy. The citizens will be able to watch
the meetings in progress, and if they
see something they want to comment
on, they can dash down here and take
part.”
Before the live streaming, citizens
only had three options to watch the
meetings: Attending, watching on
cable channel 191 or viewing prere-
corded meetings on the city’s website.
Each option had its own limitations.
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STREAMING 6A