SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2018 | 7A
DONATIONS from page 1A
“A friend of mine told me,
‘You know, we should really get
donations down there,’” Fritz
said. “I was like, ‘Okay!’ Put a
post on Facebook, and away it
went.”
Thus far, Fritz stated she has
received 40 black bags of cloth-
ing, “a couple bags of shoes,
some blankets and towels, plus
three bags of toiletries.”
Florence Food Share has also
donated 500 pounds of soup for
the venture.
“We’re trying to keep clothes
and shoes down to a dull roar,
so we’re not accepting those
anymore,” she said. “We’re still
looking for blankets, coats,
socks. Any kind of food prod-
uct people want to send along.
Toiletries, diapers, that’s what
we really need now. If peo-
ple want to send down toys
for Christmas gifts for kids
who have lost everything, that
would be great too.”
Donations will be accept-
ed until Tuesday afternoon, at
which time Fritz, her husband
Mike and daughter Shannon
will pack their trailer and head
out early Wednesday so “people
can have a good Turkey Day.”
Cash donations will also be
accepted, and any help with
the gas money would be greatly
Join us
Saturday
November 24th
Operation Christmas Child
gift collection continues
appreciated, as the Fritz family
expects to drive around 9 miles
per gallon.
Fritz and her family are also
donating all of the proceeds
they make from their business,
Hillbilly Jams, Jellies & More,
which has a booth at the Picc-
A-Dilly Flea Market in Eugene,
located at the fairgrounds.
“We don’t really have the
time on our hands, but we
made the time,” Fritz said. “I’m
just thankful we’re able to do it
and the community is coming
together.”
Drop off locations are at
Frank’s Place in Mapleton, lo-
cated at 10788 Highway 126,
or in Florence at the Florence
RV and Automotive, located at
4390 Highway 101.
Donations will be accepted
until noon on Tuesday, Nov.
20.
Fritz thanked the communi-
ty for coming together in this
way.
“Anything helps,” she said.
10am to 3pm
GYM MASCOT from page 1A
for Small Business Saturday.
Lots of new winter
inventory to make
your home warm
and cozy!
Refreshments!
1745 W. 15th St. Suite B, Florence, OR. 97439 • 5 4 1 . 9 9 9 . 4 4 3 4
DONATE NOW!
Submitted concepts up for
consideration included a burly
sailor, an anchor, a warship and
the letter “M” accompanied by
a slogan.
Although the Oct. 3 school
board meeting was expected
to reveal the board’s final vote,
there were concerns that a full
inventory of local opinion had
not been accounted for. This
prompted the board to expand
the voting process to the entire
community.
“Anyone can cast their vote
for the design they would pre-
fer to see in the center of the
Mapleton High School gym
floor,” the school district said
in a press release. “Everyone
should get an equal vote.”
With the choices pared down
to either keeping the original
logo or an “M” accompanied
by the slogan “Home of the
Sailors,” the board committed
to upholding whichever design
the community favored.
Giving the vote to the com-
munity was a decision made in
light of an influx of opinions,
both in person and in writ-
ing. While the initial question
of Salty’s future was framed as
an opportunity for a modern,
equitable upgrade, the subtext
of gender inclusivity spurred
some public comments.
“We have always been Sail-
ors! It is a sad country when
gender is a problem with a
school mascot,” read one com-
ment on the district’s website.
Debates on discriminatory
18th ANNUAL ‘TREE OF GIVING’
Begins Monday, Nov. 26th
Maximize your donation by donating
to Cars for a Cause by Dec. 31st.
We accept cars, trucks, RVs, boats
& motorcycles CALL NOW!
Stop by for a coff ee or hot chocolate and cookies.
Select an ornament from the tree representing
gift requests for specifi c necessities by a high school student
in our community. Return gift s to us by Dec. 19,
to be distributed before Christmas break.
ccb#55030
1780 Kingwood St. • 541-997-8526
•Helps those in need in Lane County
• Charitable donation
•We do all the paperwork
Florence Evangelical Church,
1318 Rhododendron Drive,
is once again the area col-
lection point for Operation
Christmas Child, the world’s
largest Christmas project of
its kind.
Florence residents, fami-
lies, churches and groups can
help spread joy to millions of
children around the world by
filling shoeboxes as Christmas
gifts for them. The gifts can in-
clude school supplies, clothing
and toys for children ages 2 to
14.
From the distribution sites,
boxes are flown to countries
around the world, and then
delivered to communities by
trucks — and even donkeys,
camels or canoes.
This year’s National Collec-
tion Week is Monday, Nov. 12,
to Monday, Nov. 19.
Florence project coordina-
tors hope to collect at least 500
shoebox gifts this year. Collec-
tion hours at Florence Evan-
gelical Church are Monday
through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2
p.m. Plus, Wednesday, Nov. 14,
from 5 to 8 p.m., and Monday,
Nov. 19, from 8 to 10 a.m.
Donations to help with post-
age are also appreciated. For
questions about dropping off
shoeboxes or putting them to-
gether, call the church at 541-
997-2523.
Operation Christmas Child
has been an annual project of
Samaritan’s Purse since 1993.
The project has delivered
gift-filled shoeboxes to more
than 124 million children, in
more than 150 countries and
territories.
For information, visit www.
samaritanspurse.org/occ.
mascots are nothing new. Na-
tionwide, controversy about
using Native American names
and imagery has been going on
for years. Oregon itself passed a
law in 2012 prohibiting Oregon
public schools from using Na-
tive American names, symbols
or images as school mascots. At
least 15 Oregon high schools
were affected by the ruling,
which gave schools until July 1,
2017, to comply.
Outside the Native American
controversy, other high schools
have opted to change their
mascots in the face of public
pressure: South Eugene High
School changed their name
from “Axemen” to “Axe” after
a heated debate on gender bias;
South Albany High School
dropped the name “Rebels” in
response to the 2017 Charlot-
tesville, Va. riots; and Frank-
lin High School in Portland
removed their Quaker mascot
amid complaints it violated the
separation of church and state.
Mapleton’s Salty, however,
has not received such public
condemnation.
“In all of the feedback, we got
very little or none that strong-
ly felt they weren’t represented
because of Salty,” said Burruss.
“It didn’t end up being an is-
sue, which was interesting and
good to hear.”
Community concerns were
relatively mild compared to
more contentious mascot de-
bates. Still, Burruss emphasized
her and other board members’
commitments to stewarding a
district that is representative of
community values.
“We really are trying to be
conscientious and represent
our student body — past, pres-
ent and future,” she said.
Also resting on the board
members’ minds was the issue
of fiscal responsibility.
In a non-binding recom-
mendation from the Oregon
School Board Association, le-
gal counsel stated, “A mascot
should not discriminate in any
way or have the effect of favor-
ing one protected class over
another (the protected class
could be race, gender, religion,
disability, etc.).”
A current estimate to resur-
face the gym floor puts the bill
at $26,795. Should non-dis-
crimination laws be passed
which prohibit Salty, this num-
ber could rise.
“We want people to under-
stand that that is a real possi-
bility,” said Burruss. “We went
ahead and made the decision
to put Salty back on there un-
derstanding that that may hap-
pen.”
Despite the possibility of fu-
ture state law changes, Salty’s
place in Mapleton’s community
has been solidified by a pro-
cess which allowed the public a
brief evaluation of their identi-
ty and values.
“If people were very offended
by it, that would have played a
larger role in the conversation,”
said Burruss. “The majority of
people were supportive of leav-
ing Salty in the middle of the
gym, so that’s what we’re going
to do.”
Christmas
Gift List
Toys • Books
Clothing
Houseware
Furniture
Gift Certifi cates
St. Vincent DePaul’s
2315 Hwy 101 541-997-8460
Open Daily
St. Vincent de Paul
2315 Hwy. 101 • Florence • 541-997-8460
We are your
gift giving
headquarters
PeaceHealth
Peace Harbor Volunteers
Gift Shop
PORT HOLE
PUBLISHING
179 Laurel Street, Suite D
FLORENCE
LET US PUBLISH
YOUR BOOK
PORT HOLE BOOKS
77567 Hwy. 101 • GARDINER
Open
Monday - Friday 10am-4pm
541-997-8412
PeaceHealth Peace Harbor Volunteers
NEW-USED-RARE!
WE HAVE IT ALL!
Best-Selling Author, Ellen Traylor, Owner/Publisher
541-999-5725
Sotheby’s, eBay Master Dealer
and Appraiser for Discovery.com
portholebooks.com • portholepublications.com