Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (June 17, 2020)
E BR AT I N G 1 3 RS 2020 JUNETEENTH Freedom Day EA CEL SN S SIU WEDNESDAY EDITION | JUNE 17, 2020 | $1.00 THESIUSLAWNEWS.COM W 1890 AW NE L S 0 Y Friday, June 19 P ROTESTS Gradual reopening of counties slows as Gov. Brown ‘presses pause’ SILENT OBSERVANCE F By Mark Brennan Siuslaw News l lorence lo o re r e n nc c e ob o observed s se e r rv erv v ed d F Flag la ag Da Day a y o n Sunday on S un unda day da y w wi with i th ith h a d display i s pl ispl is p lay ay y o of f star spangled banners all across town and no formal events. Due to governmental restric- tions, many gatherings have been canceled or postponed, with Flag Day joining other holidays in being observed privately rather than publicly. On June 12, U.S. President Donald Trump stated in a proclamation, “For more than 200 years, the Stars and Stripes has represented liberty, justice, and the rule of law. Recently, as our nation has come together to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, our flag has been a reminder of the courage, tenacity and loyalty that define the in- domitable American spirit.” tainment options. This unprecedented expansion of live streamed events, often avail- able for later viewing, presents ev- eryone with the chance to enjoy world class performances, lectures from renowned educators and how-to classes from some of the world’s great artists. There are hundreds of online exercise classes available on You- Tube, which has become an even more essential media platform As of June 16, Lane County reported 88 positive test results for individuals infected with the novel coronavirus COVID-19, with 3 of those individuals dying from the disease. Of those, 79 individu- als have recovered and 8 of those with confirmed cases are resting at home. The relatively small number of cases reported in Lane County are the results of 2,370 COVID-19 tests conducted last week, which brings the total number of tests given to 12,051 since the beginning of February. Lane County is currently in Phase II of the state’s reopening plan, with any future changes delayed by at least one week and potentially longer. While the county has seen a very small increase in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 10 days, other counties in the state have reported troubling increases in infections increases. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown held a press conference on Monday to an- nounce a slowing of the reopening process, which has most counties in the midst of Phase II reopening protocols. “The noticeable increase in COVID-19 infections in Oregon over the past week is cause for concern. In order to ensure that the virus is not spreading too quickly, I am putting all county applications for further reopening on hold for seven days. This is essentially a statewide ‘yellow light.’ It is time to press pause for one week before any further reopening,” Brown said. See STREAMING page 8A See PAUSE page 7A MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS Pandemic prompts streaming surge as people turn to online resources By Mark Brennan Siuslaw News The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many changes in the ways Americans conduct their lives and these changes differ both from state to state and region to region. One thing that has been a loss in the lives of nearly everyone in the country is the elimination of live entertainment, youth sports leagues, education and group gath- erings. The cessation of professional and collegiate sports, music, and theatrical performances, retail shopping, dining out, weddings and church services, fraternal or- ganizations and going to the mov- ies, has been national in scope. The closures have devastated the Amer- ican economy and injured the psy- che of a people whose sense of self and country is based on freedom, justice and individual choice, The unexpected positive out- come of all this seemingly bad news is a major expansion of free online learning, exercise and enter- ‘Our goal is to get kids here’ By Jared Anderson Siuslaw News NEWS & VIEWS THAT DEFINE OUR COMMUNITY VOL. 130, NO. 48 F LORENCE , O REGON WEATHER Mostly sunny with a high of 66 and a low tonight of 49. Full forecast on A3 COMMUNITY Pioneer Museum to reopen for July 4 INSIDE — A3 SPORTS City names park INSIDE — SPORTS RECORDS Boys and Girls Club prepares to reopen June 22 so they can answer health screening questions, as well as fill out contact tracing information. When BGCWLC first began no- tifying parents of the requirements, there was “lots of feedback that they’re not really happy with the re- “Our goal is to get them here, see how they are mentally, and see how they can transition through the difficult time.” — Lisa Crater, Boys and Girls Clubs of Western Lane County Resource Development Manager Children will not be able to gather in large groups, but instead be placed in cohorts of 10 that will not be able to interact with other cohorts. Deep cleaning will be a norm, with the club closing an hour early every day to ensure staff has time to disinfect the area. Guardians will be required to drop off children, regardless of age, Siuslaw News strictions,” Trent said. “We’re calling our parents right now to help them understand — this guidance comes directly out of the governor’s office.” Summer clubs like BGCWLC will act as a testing ground for the new guidelines, many of which will be implemented in school districts statewide come the fall. However, it won’t be an apples to apples compar- ison. Emergency childcare centers will have stricter regulations, from the sizes of cohorts they are allowed to what symptoms children will be al- lowed. They will also be at a disad- vantage due to differences in staffing and available space, which will limit how many children can be served at one time. Complicating the issue further is funding. While BGCWLC received a sizable grant from PeaceHealth for $25,000, money is “still tight,” Trent said, for the club as donations have slowed and annual fundraisers have been either cancelled or put into doubt because of the shutdowns. Despite the setbacks and regula- tions, BGCWLC will still be provid- ing most of the regular activities for children, including Money Matters, Smart Girls, the gardening club and sports activities. And they will be striving to ensure the regulations are as nonintrusive as possible. Obituaries & response logs Inside — A2 NEW: TV GUIDE Inside — B3-B4 KIDS CORNER Activities for kids Inside — B5 CLASSIFIEDS Listings and notices Inside — B6 FOLLOW US FOR THE LATEST NEWS : /S IUSLAW N EWS @S IUSLAW N EWS T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM See CLUB page 6A S IUSLAW N EWS 2 S ECTIONS | 16 P AGES C OPYRIGHT 2020 The Boys and Girls Clubs of West- ern Lane County (BGCWLC) will be opening its doors on Monday, June 22, after being authorized to reopen as an emergency childcare center. “We’re tickled pink we can have the kids back. We’re excited, we miss them,” BGCWLC director Chuck Trent said. “We love these kids.” However, he stressed that when the doors will reopen, things will be different. “Everything is going to be so heavily regulated. That’s to protect the kids, the families and also our employees,” Trent said. The guidelines for reopening come from a joint task force from the governor’s office, made up of representatives from the Office of Child Care, the Oregon Health Au- thority (OHA) and the Department of Education (ODE). The guidelines include strict physical distancing measures, re- quiring all students to stay six feet apart from each other. Health screenings will see the club turning away children for a variety of symptoms, from fever to nausea to rash. CONTINUE Help support your neighbors in need who have been unemployed due to the Covid-19 shutdown. Send your kind contribution to: Christmas in June, P.O. Box 1041, Florence, Oregon 97439 Questions? Call Sam Spayd @ 541-991-6139 This ad sponsored by AeroLegends Biplane Rides