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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (May 30, 2018)
THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM | SIUSLAWNEWS | WEDNESDAY EDITION | MAY 30, 2018 | $1.00 @ SIUSLAWNEWS Last Resort Players presents A Nice Family Gathering BY PHIL OLSON F ORE ! K IDS G OLF T OURNAMENT – SPORTS Directed by Jody Kaplan Friday, Saturday: June 8,9, & 15,16 - 7:00 pm Sunday Matinees: June 10 & 17 - 2:00 pm Florence Events Center • Tickets $18 541-997-1994 • eventcenter.org A Nice Family Gathering is presented by special arranment with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. 128TH YEAR | ISSUE NO. 43 RIDE ALONG FLORENCE, OREGON SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 M EMORIAL M ONDAY School Resource Officer follows the trail of underage substance abuse Scammers try to trick victims into giving info, money By Jared Anderson Siuslaw News Florence Police Officer Brandon Bailey stood in Flor- ence Events Center, watching Siuslaw High School prom goers adorned in carefully prepared gowns and mostly well pressed suits dance and socialize the night away. It was a Saturday night in April, and Bailey, who is also the Siuslaw School District’s school resource officer, was there in an effort organized by Healthy Directions, an area prevention and health promotion coalition that was formed through Lane County Public Health. The goal of the coalition, and of Bailey’s involvement the night of the prom, was to help curb teen substance abuse. There were 15 officers taking part in the effort that night, representing a whole host of departments including Lane County Sheriff ’s Office and Oregon State Police. Each orga- nization had their own patrols for the evening. Some were searching the outer parts of the Siuslaw region, like North Fork Road. Others were focusing on the roads. For Bailey, and his partner for the evening, Robert Merry- man, the actual prom and their ensuing parties were the focus. The Siuslaw News was invited to ride along with Bailey as he looked to ensure youth safety for the night, something that local police will again be doing in the coming weeks as the school year comes to a close. Along the way, Bailey talked about the challenges facing youth today, what it means to be a resource officer, the role of po- lice in a community, and what it takes to find a wild house party in the late hours of the Siuslaw. Phone scams continue to target area residents By Jared Anderson Siuslaw News “For love of country they accepted death, and thus resolved all doubts, and made immortal their patriotism and their virtue.” President James A. Garfield May 30, 1868 — Arlington National Cemetery M emorial Day is a day for remembrance of those who have died in service to the U.S. In the Siuslaw region, Memorial Day services were held at the Pioneer Sunset Cemetery and at the Veteran’s Memorial Park on Monday, May 28. These local events joined with national ceremonies honoring America’s fallen heroes. The American Legion, Francis M. Yost Post 59 of Florence and Florence Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 3232 coordinat- ed ceremonies honoring veterans who made the ulti- mate sacrifice defending America. Recognition ceremonies began at 7 a.m. at Pioneer Sunset Cemetery with the raising of the flag to half- staff. See MEMORIAL page 8A By Mark Brennan Siuslaw News PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN AND NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS ‘We’re not trying to make a huge scene’ “When you turn it on, you just blow,” Bailey said, holding a breathalyzer. Every youth coming to the prom had to take the test to gain access to the event. The Publishers Clearing House scam is again hitting the Siuslaw region and the nation this May as multiple reports of the phone scam have been reported. The scheme starts with a tele- phone call. Scammers then tell unsuspecting victims that they had just won millions of dollars’ worth of prizes — and Publish- ers Clearing House will soon be coming to the victim’s house with the famed “big check,” accompa- nied by smiling representatives holding multi-colored balloons. But there’s a catch. To get that cash prize, the victim is required to pay an upfront fee to cover the associated taxes. The victim sends the money to the scammer, but the “big check” and balloons never show up. All that is left is a depleted bank account on the victim’s end. In a 2016 report created by Pindrop Security, 86.2 million calls per month in the U.S. are phone scams. $744 million to scammers in the U.S., according to a 2016 Consumer Reports study. As to who is getting scammed through the phone, the majori- ty of victims are not the often cited “retiree,” but people in their 20s and early 30s. That age cohort is six times more likely to give out credit card information and almost twice as likely to divulge their Social Security number. Scammers get victim’s infor- mation a variety of ways, from stealing mail to buying the in- formation from black markets. Some stick with a phone book and a silent phone call. In this scenario, the scammers aren’t targeting businesses, but individuals. They initially make test calls, the purpose of which is not to gain personal information, but to test if the potential victim is vulnerable to an attack. The calls are short in dura- tion, usually a minute or less. The caller, which is actually a “robocall” computer program, says nothing. INSIDE See RIDE ALONG page 6A Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Community. . . . . . . . . . . . . Kid Scoop . . . . . . . . . . . . . Library Tidings . . . . . . . . . . . B6 A3 B5 A5 See SCAM page 8A Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2 THIS WEEK ’ S TODAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 59 48 59 46 60 50 62 49 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 Service Calls our Specialty Free Quotes Licensed Bonded Insured Offi ce (541) 997-6977 Offi ce here (541) 997-6977 (541) “We’re when (541) you need us!” 997-6977 999-0896 “We’re here when you need us!” P.O. Box 31,000 Serving the Florence Community for 38 years! P.O. Box 31,000 • Florence, OR 97439 S IUSLAW N EWS 2 S ECTIONS | 16 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2018 “We’re here when you need us!”