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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 2021)
SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2021 | 7A BOARDS from page 1A “Certainly, it is illegal to use public funds, includ- ing the LifeMed funds for political or PAC (political action committee) expens- es anticipated and advocat- ed by the Turell Group in the amounts of $20,350, or $36,350 or $46,350,” Farn- sworth stated. “In order to avoid personal liability, you will want to make sure that you do your own fundrais- ing of private funds. Per- haps you will be willing to donate to the levy renewal campaign using your own funds or funds from the union.” At the July meeting, WLAD directors voted to go with option 1, which will pay Turell Group $20,350 for community engage- ment, media interaction, social media, photography and print advertisements to secure the WLAD levy renewal and, later, to “work toward the future merger of the fire department and EMS.” There was no direct re- sponse to these public com- ments, although later in the meeting WLAD Director Jon Murphey did point out that all financial decisions made by the WLFEA board, and the boards of both SFVR and WLAD, were vetted by legal advisors and all current practices were allowed and legal. The meeting continued with a brief financial re- port from Office Manager Dina McClure, the first of the new fiscal year, showing WLFEA’s expenses for July were $119,219. Next, Operations Chief Matt House gave a brief re- port to recap the increasing number of calls from an av- erage of approximately 325 a month last year, to the 442 calls WLAD responded to last month. He and Fire/EMS Chief Michael Schick both men- tioned that July was the busiest month ever for call outs and the trend seems to be increasing. This rise in emergency calls comes at a time when there are some employees of WLAD on leave for an extended period of time, for different reasons, which is presenting some challeng- es, according to Schick. “It’s interesting because this comes at a time, right now, when we really are having a struggle with some staffing issues on the am- bulance side,” he said. “Our minimal staffing is OK; it’s We are open and ready to assist you! these surge events where we have had to rely on the fire department. And it’s worked out really well. Matt has done a fantastic job of mixing and moving people where he needs them to be.” The chief also asked the WLFEA directors to con- sider approving the next step in the intergovernmen- tal agreement (IGA) which exists between SVFR and WLAD, the integration of the operational functions of the two entities. “This was anticipated when the IGA was ap- proved, which went into effect in October 2019. The first step was to move administration to the au- thority and the second step would be to move oper- ations,” Schick said. “We think that makes sense and we would like the board to approve that — where we would move all operations people, both from fire and ambulance under the au- thority. We’ve done that with the admin folks, so we know what to do and how to do it.” In response, WLAD Di- rector Mike Webb, one of the longest tenured direc- tors of either board, sug- gested a workshop might be in order to bring new direc- tors up to date on the histo- ry of the IGA, its intent and where the process is at this point in the timeline. This suggestion was em- braced by all attendees, and Schick agreed to set up a meeting to share all IGA-related information with directors and to an- swer any questions which they might have. Schick also asked for and received the authority to es- tablish incentive scales for firefighter and paramedics. This was done in the hope that the financial incentives would lead to greater levels of professional certification among employees of both districts. One final update provid- ed by Schick came at the end of the meeting. “We’ve just been noti- fied by the state that there is a vaccine mandate for all health care providers — and that includes para- medics, firefighters and EMTs — which goes into effect Oct. 18,” he said. “We are 100% vaccinated on the ambulance side, which is fantastic. We are a little bit low on the firefighter side, so we are working with those individuals. We don’t want to lose anybody and we are hopeful that every- body will go through with the vaccination. But if they don’t, the state has been very clear about what the consequences are: there is a $500 per day, per violation fine.” Schick said. The next WLFEA meet- ing is scheduled for Sept. 23 at 6 p.m. For more informa- tion, visit www.wlfea.org. DENTURE SERVICES INC. Local pit-fired ceramics studio hosts Labor Day Sale On Friday, Sept. 3, and Saturday, Sept. 4, lo- cal ceramic artist Mike Schwartz will once again host his annual sale at his Mudmusic Studio. This will be an outdoor sale, rain or shine, so that social distancing may be maintained. Since the weather may be uncertain, the sale will be set up at the front of his garage just behind the overhead door, so that both his visitors and ceramic art will be protected from the weath- er if necessary. The artwork will be his unique signature pit-fired ceramic pieces. As the term implies, pit firing is an ancient process in which the pieces are not fired in a kiln, but rather in an open fire. No glaz- es are used; the dramatic colors achieved are due to the interaction of fire and smoke working on salts and metals applied to the ceramics. The pieces themselves are thrown by Schwartz on his potter’s wheel, so each is a one-of-a-kind work of art. A psychiatrist in his prior professional life, Schwartz moved to Flor- ence in 1995 and learned to become a potter to ful- fill his view of retirement. “It’s all about reinven- tion — and retirement should not be spent just sitting around,” he said. Currently, Schwartz’s work can be seen in five Oregon coast galleries, from Gardiner to Astoria. Locally, his work may be seen at the River Gallery on Bay Street year-round. Preview his art at www. mudmusicstudio.com. The two-day sale will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Mudmusic Stu- dio is located at 04899 Heceta Beach Road, 1.3 miles from Highway 101. For more information, call 541-997-1012. Buying or Selling? I can help. LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED Open 4 days a week! Here to serve your denture needs: Dentures Partial Dentures Immediate Dentures Implant Dentures Relines & Repairs Same Day Johnston Motor Company Since 1939 2150 Hwy. 101 • Florence (541) 997-3475 • 1-800-348-3475 Monday-Thursday 10am - 2 pm William Foster LD Sherry, Offi ce Manager “As a denture wearer myself, I can answer your questions and address your denture concerns.” ~ William Foster, LD Financing: Citi Health Card 12 Month no Interest 524 Laurel St. 541-997-6054 Hailey Miles Broker, SRS, PSA 541 999-9555 4104 Munsel Creek Dr – Income producing prop- erty! Two separate homes! Main 3 bdrm, 2 bath, 2340 sqft home, remodeled with accessibility in mind. Newer, secondary home offers an addition- al 1,676 sqft with 2 bdrms and 1.5 baths. Abun- dant parking and a stunning garden. $945,500. #3186-21117076 1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200 FLORENCE’S 13TH ANNUAL CAR SHOW FRIDAY / SEPTEMBER 10, 2021 12:00 PM TO 6:00 PM TOP HOT RODS & CLASSIC CARS TO SHINE Port of Siuslaw Parking Lot - 1st and Nopal Historic Old Town Florence Pre-show Stand-around, Registration & Check-in *Particpants roll in to pck up registration packets and glam bags. SATURDAY / SEPTEMBER 11, 2021 7:00 AM Participant Gate Opens - Enter only at the bridge on Bay St. *Have your registration card available, or park outside and check-in or register at stage area 9:00 AM TO 4:00 PM • Car Show • Cool Music • Raffl e Tickets for Sale - Winner pulled every half hour • 50/50 Raffl e rodsnrhodies.org 4:00 PM • Merchant Awards, People’s Choice & Best of Show Presentation *Vote for Best of Show or People’s Choice - Turn in ballot by 3pm 4:15 PM • Cruise in Historic Old Town Florence, cool sights, awesome sounds! *Low and slow is the goal.