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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 14, 2018)
THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM | SIUSLAWNEWS | WEDNESDAY EDITION | NOVEMBER 14, 2018 | $1.00 @ SIUSLAWNEWS ON THE MAT SPORTS — B 128TH YEAR | ISSUE NO. 91 FLORENCE, OREGON SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890 FLORENCE VETERANS DAY PARADE 2018 Hometown advantage S NYAH PHOTO BY NEPTUNE/INRAGE ENTERTAINMENT Rising artist chooses Florence as location for music video This Saturday, Florence will be the main location for a music video produced by InRage Entertain- ment, based out of By Chantelle Meyer Los Angeles. For the Siuslaw News Vollmar family, it made sense to pick a place central to 14-year-old Nyah’s upbringing and rising talents in singing, acting and even dance. The party isn’t limited to the young performer, either. All of the Florence community is invited to sign up online and show up at 10 a.m. to be included. “I’ve recently written a song, and we really want to shoot this music video in Florence,” Nyah told the Florence City Council on Nov. 5. “We want to showcase this, because this is my home and I really, really love it.” Along with her father Scott, Nyah spoke to the councilors about including them, city staff and the public in the upcoming video shoot. Nyah is frank for a teenager, carrying some of the signature dry humor of those born in Generation Y. See MUSIC VIDEO page 11A PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS unshine and large crowds were the order of the day for Sunday’s annual Veteran’s Day Parade. Thousands of spectators lined the sidewalks on First and Bay Streets in Historic Old Town Florence as retired and active veterans, local first responders and U.S. Coast Guard troops passed by to applause and cheers from community members in crowds. In addition, American Foreign Legion Post No. 50, Elks Lodge No. 1858, Florence Chapter of Disabled American Veterans and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3232 attended a recognition ceremony at the Elks Lodge preceding their participation in parade. See more photos on A12. Education week recognizes school faculty, staff By Mark Brennan Siuslaw News American Education Week, Nov. 12 to 16, is a nationwide an- nual observance that highlights the importance and dedication of teachers and staff to the edu- cation process. Throughout the week, the Siuslaw School District will be recognizing the work done by these dedicated individuals by giving small tokens of apprecia- tion to faculty and staff through- out the week. The National Education As- sociation (NEA) was one of the creators and original sponsors of the almost century-old recogni- tion effort, first meeting with the American Legion in 1919 to ad- dress illiteracy among veterans of World War I. In its initial resolution, drafted in 1921, the NEA called for: “An educational week ... observed in all communities annually for the purpose of informing the pub- lic of the accomplishments and needs of the public schools and to secure the cooperation and support of the public in meeting those needs.” U.S. President Donald Trump released a proclamation last week in expectation of this week’s ob- servance, highlighting the impor- tance of a good education for all Americans. According to the official proc- lamation released by the White House, American Education Week is about highlighting the com- mitment to ensuring all Ameri- cans have access to an affordable, high-quality education, as well as recognizing the hard work of the nation’s parents, guardians, teach- ers and school leaders to ensure every child is prepared to join to- day’s growing workforce. See EDUCATION page 7A In memoriam of Florence’s exploding whale Groups commemorate 48th anniversary of Florence’s most famous public spectacle By Jared Anderson Siuslaw News INSIDE “Hazel, you got all the whale parts?” James Spangler asked Hazel Raia Monday as they were getting ready to reenact the famed “Exploding Whale” incident which occurred on Nov. 12, 1970, on a beach just south of Florence. The whale parts were a mix- ture of kids and adults, dressed in black plastic bags and hand drawn pictures of various or- gans: A heart, lungs, a liver, a blowhole and a complex diges- tive track. “Where’s the eye?” Raia asked. The eye was a big white disk, an “x” representing a dead eye- ball. It was held up prominently Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Community. . . . . . . . . . . . . Kid Scoop . . . . . . . . . . . . . Library Tidings . . . . . . . . . . . B6 A3 B5 A5 ploded by a single firework. as the group huddled togeth- Bloody whale blubber (rep- er on the sand just outside resented by flaming Chee- of Driftwood Shores Resort tos) rained down on unsus- and Conference Center, pecting Barbie dolls. creating the semblance of a The video, made by local large, beached whale. Mul- artist Jo Beaudreau and her tiple white boxes marked fiancé Dan Okonski was “TNT” were nestled along- produced to help sell “I Love side the makeshift marine Florence” shirts and sweat- mammal. ers designed by local artist “Do you want to do quick Ed Gunderson as a fundrais- practice?” Someone yelled, er for local young artists. and a countdown start- The three of them showed ed: Five, four, three, two, up to the larger reenact- one. The whale parts yelled ment by Driftwood, howev- “Boom!” as they flung them- er the two projects were not selves across the beach, planned in tandem. In fact, laughing. SIUSLAW NEWS FILE PHOTO neither group knew the oth- “That was the best blown- whale reenactment on Mon- hours before, a video had been er existed until they began up whale I’ve seen all day,” day, the 48th anniversary of released online of the incident, promoting their events. Spangler said. “It was such a great idea that It wasn’t the only blown-up Florence’s exploding whale. Just with a small whale replica ex- Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2 This is your time to see if you can find lower premiums and extra benefits. Look at all your Medicare health plan choices for 2019, including prescription drug plans as well as Medicare Advantage plans. Plans change every year, call for an appointment with Mike Streets to review your options. Many carriers represented. THIS WEEK ’ S TODAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 62 48 54 46 52 43 50 38 WEATHER Full Forecast, A3 obviously there’s a groundswell in the area,” Gunderson said about the interest in celebrat- ing the often-derided decision to explode an 8-ton beached sperm whale with half-a-ton of dynamite. In the process, Gun- derson, along with the organiz- ers of the Monday night event, spoke about the history of the exploding whale, how it has be- come a national phenomenon, and the importance of celebrat- ing (and capitalizing on) some of the quirkier aspects of the Siuslaw region that many locals tend to forget about. “In two years, it will be the 50th anniversary, and we’re go- ing to do it right,” Gunderson said. See WHALE page 9A S IUSLAW N EWS 2 S ECTIONS | 24 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2018 Coverage for all the things you care for ... For 2019, new plans and an additional carrier in Lane County to choose from. For help to navigate the Marketplace, find out if you qualify for a subsidy or cost-sharing options, call for an appointment with Mike. You won’t pay more if you use an agent to help. Call 541-997-8574 1234 Rhododendron Drive / PO Box 7000 Florence, OR 97439 Phone 541-997-8574