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SATURDAY EDITION | APRIL 3, 2021 | $1.00
THESIUSLAWNEWS.COM
During this turbulent and
uncertain time, we are
humbled by the compassion
and generosity of our
community. Throughout the
COVID-19 crisis, the steadfast
support from you, our
neighbors has lifted our spirits
and buoyed our strength so we could keep going.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,
Kurt, Mercedes and Mike
Where good friends & great food come together!
1285 Bay Street • Old Town Florence • (541) 902-8338 • 1285restobar.com
Siuslaw News
Siuslaw News
NEWS &
VIEWS THAT
DEFINE OUR
COMMUNITY
VOL. 131, NO. 27
A PRIL 3, 2021
F LORENCE , O REGON
WEATHER
Shining for 127 years
O
n March 30, the iconic Heceta Lighthouse
celebrated its 127th birthday, acknowl-
edging the date the first beam from its
powerful Fresnel Lens lit the cape on March 30,
1894. Since then, the lighthouse has been help-
ing seagoers navigate the treacherous cape
named for Don Bruno de Heceta in 1775, who
identified the landmark while he was embarked
on a secrete voyage for the Queen of Spain.
While there is no birthday party this year, tours
of the Light Keeper’s home are available
Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The B&B is also open. For more information or
to make a tour reservation, visit www.
hecetalighthouse.com.
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
The City of Florence has for years
worked to establish overall service
levels and additional lifestyle ame-
nities which are then detailed in an
official workplan for the city. The
city workplan is a template used to
formalize the goals, expectations
and aspirations of area residents as it
relates to municipal services, expen-
ditures and staffing.
The City Council, elected to rep-
resent the voters in those efforts, is
heavily involved in the creation and
implementation of the workplan.
City staff then utilize the plan for
direction in their department’s re-
sponsibilities and performance ex-
pectations.
See EMAC page 5A
Cloudy with
a high of 57 and
a low of 43.
Full forecast on A3
COMMUNITY
Governor expands
COVID-19 vaccine
eligibility
Child Abuse
Prevention Month
INSIDE — A3
NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
LIFESTYLE
FEMA housing arrives in Gardiner
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
Winning week for
Siuslaw Sports
INSIDE — B
RECORDS
Obituaries &
emergency
response logs
Inside — A2
SIDE SHOW
Activities and
comics every
Saturday
Inside — B4
CLASSIFIEDS
Listings and public
notices
Inside — B5
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LATEST NEWS :
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T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM
EMAC meeting
cancelled after
failing to reach
quorum
The 2020 Oregon wildfire season
was one of the most destructive
and disruptive on record. Fifteen
counties in Oregon had wildfires
which destroyed more than 1,000
homes or sustained loss of life.
Lane County, along with Linn
County, was the site of the Holiday
Fire which destroyed 173,393 acres
and 768 structures.
Overall, there were 11 deaths
attributed to last year’s wild-
MARK BRENNAN LAST/SIUSLAW NEWS
Over the past weeks, the Federal Emergency Management Agency
has brought portable housing units to the former International Paper
site in Gardiner to house families displaced by the 2020 wildfires.
fires, which burned more than stroyed thousands of homes.
a million acres of land and de-
See FEMA page 7A
SALEM—In a Friday press brief-
ing with the Oregon Health Au-
thority (OHA), Gov. Kate Brown
announced Oregon is expanding
COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to in-
clude not only Group 7, frontline
workers, but all family members
of frontline workers. She also an-
nounced that Oregon is expanding
its criteria of underlying health con-
ditions to match the CDC’s extend-
ed list.
“As we move into the days and
weeks ahead, we will continue to
deploy a vaccine strategy that is
centered on prioritizing our most
vulnerable, and ensuring access to
the vaccine for everyone. To do this,
we need to move in a manner that is
both fast and fair,” said Brown.
See VACCINE page 7A
Siuslaw School District responds to death of student
District Care Team shows ‘we’re here, we’re available and we’re ready to help’
S IUSLAW N EWS
2 S ECTIONS | 16 P AGES
C OPYRIGHT 2021
need to do.”
in the process,” Grzeskowiak said. members.
The district has processes in place “And since we are so small, the
“It’s a carefully worded email
in its crisis handbook to address preparations are district wide.”
to all staff to let them know what
This week, Siuslaw News was no- the death of a student or faculty
Once an incident occurs, Grz- is officially known and stay away
tified about a student’s death by sui- member, as well as other communi- eskowiak is the point person for all from the speculation. We then call
cide at Siuslaw School District.
their attention to it over the
Further details regarding the
PA system,” Harklerode said.
It’s really important to note, especially going through this year “The primary reason for that,
death and student’s identity are
not being made public at this of COVID, there are a lot of people hurting out there. It’s import- especially in distance learning,
time.
ant — for students, parents or anyone with concerns — to bring is we didn’t want kids coming
On Thursday, 10 members them to someone that can act on it. The more we talk about those on to the computer who had
of the school district’s Care
information informing class-
things, we don’t let them go unnoticed or unidentified. It is critical mates and informing teachers;
Team gathered to talk about
the schools’ response to trag- that we’re talking to them that we’re helping to support people in we wanted them to be ready to
edy and what resources are our community across the board.”
steer a conversation should it
available.
— Siuslaw High School Principal Garth Gerot need to happen.”
“There are a bunch of things
The administrators then be-
that we set up and look out for
gin to consider who might be
with students with the immediate ty tragedies. It also has many steps information. He verifies the event affected by the tragic incident.
and long-term ripple effects from before an incident occurs to address before alerting the building admin-
“We look through and see
something like this,” said Siuslaw mental health and other factors. The istrators, followed by staff.
how this impacts not just
Superintendent Andy Grzeskowiak. Care Team addressed both of those
According to Siuslaw Elementary the building, but across all
“We know our roles, we know them this week.
Principal Mike Harklerode, Grz- grade levels,” Grzeskowiak said.
very well, and we all do what we
“Each person plays a unique role eskowiak sends an alert to all staff
See RESPONSE page 6A
By Chantelle Meyer
Siuslaw News
SIUSLAW PUBLIC LIBRARY
BROWSING
IS BACK!
STARTING THURSDAY, APRIL 1
No appointment needed.
Florence: Monday-Thursday 11 AM - 2 PM
Friday 11 AM - 6 PM
Patrons of all ages welcome.
Mapleton: Thursdays 12-5 PM.
Walk-ins with limited capacity;
no public computers.
Masks required.
541-997-3132
WWW.SIUSLAWLIBRARY.ORG