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SUMMER
SKILLS
SPORTS — B
EVENTS INSIDE — A7
128TH YEAR | ISSUE NO. 58
Oregon Coast
Humane
Society board
members resign
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
Controversy has resurfaced at the Ore-
gon Coast Humane Society (OCHS), less
than 90 days after the Oregon Department
of Justice recommended a new board of di-
rectors be elected by members to oversee
and guide the organization’s activities.
To kill or not to kill is the question that
seems to be at the heart of the latest tumult
at the shelter, with OCHS members, vol-
unteers and community members reacting
dramatically this week to the euthanization
of two older, unwell dogs.
The action has ignited a slew of emails
and telephone calls to current board mem-
bers and the media, voicing concern that
the “no-kill” policies of the OCHS have
been violated. Attempts to explain the de-
cision to euthanize the two animals, which
were in extreme physical distress, have not
quelled the furor surrounding the event.
As a result, Jack Hannigan, who was
elected to the board in April and had ac-
cepted the role of board president, submit-
ted his resignation to the board, effective
July 18.
“I believe that membership voted for
each board member with the expectation
that we would follow the long-held mission
of operating a no-kill shelter,” Hannigan
wrote in his resignation letter. “Watching
members of this board attempt to slowly
change the mission to a ‘Limited Intake
Shelter’ causes me and should cause every
member great concern. This board is risk-
ing future gifts and endowments, as well as
putting existing sources of funding at risk
of being pulled.”
Dolly Brock, who was elected to the
OCHS board in April, also submitted her
resignation late Thursday, citing the con-
fusion surrounding the No-Kill Policy cur-
rently in effect at OCHS.
Shauna Robbers has since been voted
into the role of board president by the re-
maining board members. While she said
she is sorry to see Hannigan leave, she also
said the policy that is at the heart of the
latest controversy at the shelter will remain
in place.
“I don’t think there is a no-kill contro-
versy,” said Robbers. “Just because a hand-
ful of people are saying so does not make
it true. The mission statement and goals
of OCHS remain the same as they always
were, as do the Animal Welfare Committee
(AWC) Policies and Procedures 2015.”
Robbers explained that the board is cur-
rently working on a revision to those pol-
icies, along with the by-laws, which will
be posted on the OCHS website once the
changes are adopted.
Concierge healthcare
comes to Siuslaw region
Siuslaw School
District loses Title
IV Block Grant
Dr. John Egar & Melinda Gitnes, ANP-BC, open new clinics
Twilight After School
Programs denied funding
By Jared Andersen
Siuslaw News
“The priority is making it eas-
ier for people to get healthcare,”
Melinda Gitnes said. “It’s about
access. Not only access, but
somebody who will listen and
work with you. I’ve had patients
come who’ve had health issues,
but because the clinics were so
busy in town, they felt like they
weren’t getting heard.”
Gitnes is a nurse practitioner
who, along with her assistant
Lisa Douda, runs Northwest
Reflections, located just south
of Florence in Glenada. For
a monthly membership fee,
Gitnes will do checkups, physi-
cal exams, wellness visits, order
lab work, write prescriptions
and give referrals to specialists.
“I also do in-home care,” she
added. “I have two or three folks
who, for whatever reason, don’t
want to come out of their home,
but they still need medication
and a primary care physician, so
I go to their home for no addi-
tional charge.”
There are a few procedures
that Gitnes cannot do, like sur-
INSIDE
B5
A3
A4
A2
Dr. John Egar
Melinda Gitnes, ANP-BC
gical procedures.
“But I’m not interested in
doing them anyway,” she said.
“If someone is above the level
of care that I feel comfortable
doing, like open wounds, I’m
referring them. If they need or-
thopedics, I’m referring them. It
would be best if they see a spe-
cialist.”
Northwest Reflections is what
is known as a concierge clinic,
also known as direct pay. These
clinics don’t have many of the
major capabilities that a hospi-
tal would have, instead focusing
on primary care, and they don’t
work with insurance companies.
They rely on monthly sub-
scription fees to cover medical
costs. Because of that pay struc-
ture, they are able to spend more
time working with the patient
directly, which in turn, creates
better outcomes for care.
“Each patient is allotted an
hour-long visit,” Gitnes ex-
plained. “They have time to
come in, sit down, get comfort-
able. We get to know each other,
and it’s not just, ‘Oh, my knee is
hurting, just give me a pill.’ Your
knee is hurting, why? Do you
have stairs in your house?”
See CLINICS page 8A
CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS
PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS
The Florence Democratic Club opened a new office
Thursday evening at the Munsel Creek Plaza, 4969
Highway 101. The club will provide meeting and cam-
paign space for Democratic candidates, including
District Nine State Rep. Caddy McKeown, who was on
hand for the event. Maureen Miltenberger, a candi-
date for the Florence City Council, welcomed area
Democrats to the opening of the group’s new office
and introduced McKeown. McKeown spoke briefly
about her support for the Siuslaw School District
bond levy effort, her background as an educator and
the uphill battle she faces in the November election.
See OCHS page 6A
Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Community. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sideshow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B
This Week on the Coast. . . . . A6
Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2
THIS WEEK ’ S
TODAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
68 51
71 54
75 55
72 54
WEATHER
Full Forecast, A3
Jim Hoberg is a Florence native, and has been working in Real Estate
since 1989. He has served as a Principal Broker for 29 years. He has
obtained several designations that require continuing education, which
keeps him on the cutting edge of the industry and he is constantly looking
for ways to expand his areas of expertise. Jim enjoys helping people fi nd
solutions to their real estate needs and discovering why Florence is such
a great place to live.
JIM HOBERG
Broker/Owner
FLORENCE, OREGON
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
The Siuslaw School District received some
unwelcome news this month from the feder-
al government and the Department of Edu-
cation. Funding through the Title IV Block
Grant, which
By Mark Brennan
the district has
Siuslaw News
used for the
past 10 years
to support the
Twilight After School Programs, has been
denied for the 2018 school year.
Siuslaw School District Superintendent
Andy Grzeskowiak said the rejection was
unexpected and will have a profound impact
on the ability of the district to offer any
meaningful afterschool program, including
tutorial assistance to at-risk students and
additional classes that focus on STEAM
education (science, technology, engineering,
arts and math).
“The denial of the grant was a surprise to
all of us in the district,” Grzeskowiak said.
“We have run a successful program and
partnered with other community groups
over the years to meet not only the legal
components but also the spirit of the pro-
gram — providing services for students that
need extra academic assistance or regular
homework assistance, so they can make the
most of their time at home with family in
the evenings.”
The loss of funding for programs that
seemed to meet the requirements of the
grant will mean that the district’s plan for
after school activities in the fall will have to
change. While there is time before the fall
term begins to piece together some type of
support, more than likely the prospects for a
full slate of activities is slim.
“In short, the program will be phased
out,” Grzeskowiak said. “The timing of
this announcement is poor, so instead of
pulling the rug out from under students and
families in the fall we are looking at ways to
continue a reduced program for at least one
year. Typically, these grants applications are
processed a year out before the closure of
the previous grant.”
Siuslaw School District Special Programs
Coordinator Lisa Utz was tasked with
writing and submitting the grant proposal
for consideration, as she has been for several
years. Other attempts had been successful,
so she was disappointed that this year’s
application was not awarded funding.
“Out of 43 applications, 24 were funded.
Siuslaw was in good company with the other
19 sites that did not receive funds. We were
notified in early July, which does not give us
much time to regroup,” Utz said.
Grzeskowiak added, “Many of the grants
that were funded are in larger, metropolitan
areas where families have multiple other op-
tions for afterschool programs and resources.”
See FUNDING page 5A
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