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Siuslaw News
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NEWS &
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Siuslaw News • 148 Maple Street • Old Town Florence or call 541-997-3441
INSIDE
Discarded box becomes a
treasure for Pioneer Museum
Dunes City
considers
projects for
COVID relief
funding
VOL. 131, NO. 78
S EPT . 29, 2021
F LORENCE , O REGON
WEATHER
Cloudy with
a high of 65 and a
low of 55.
Full forecast on A3
COMMUNITY
Rotarians seek to
‘SOLVE’ beach litter
INSIDE — A3
SPORTS
Winning weekend
for Siuslaw sports
INSIDE — B
RECORDS
Obituaries &
emergency
response logs
Inside — A2
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
D
eposited with the
day’s trash and placed
at the curb was a wooden
box containing old photo-
graphs and letters.
By chance, passer-by and Siu-
slaw Pioneer Museum volunteer
Annie Schmidt recognized the
items might perhaps be of special
value to someone, and inquired
about the box. Receiving permis-
sion, the box was taken to the mu-
seum, where volunteers quickly
realized some photos appeared to
date as far back as 1880. Siuslaw
Genealogy Society members and
museum volunteers Pat Rongey
and Sharon Waite began doing
research in hopes of contacting a
family member who would wel-
come the items.
After a full day of inspecting
the numerous pictures and doc-
CLASSIFIEDS
Listings and public
notices
Inside — B6
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uments, several names and birth
dates were revealed. With that
information, and utilizing her re-
search experience, Rongey located
a family tree on Ancestry.com.
Emails were sent to several fam-
ily members, but it seemed no one
had an interest in the photos or
letters.
Two weeks passed, and with
their hopes dwindling, an email
arrived from an excited Laura in
California, who was elated to learn
of the box and yes, anxious to take
possession of its contents. By
week’s end, she received the items.
From the photos she recognized
family members and she conclud-
ed the items were probably from
her grandmother’s sister’s fami-
ly, then passed down to a family
member.
Laura reported she “spent hours
going through” the items, calling
them “good stuff I can share.”
Congratulations to the Siuslaw
Pioneer Museum volunteers for
their efforts in returning the fami-
ly items home.
A treasure comes in many
forms; recognizing it, is what
makes it a gift.
The Siuslaw Pioneer Museum,
278 Maple St., can be reached at
541-997-7884 and www.siuslaw
pioneermuseum.com.
Financial reporting Boards gather for September meeting
WLFEA honors life, years of service of two women
component of
American Families
Plan causes concerns
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
By Chantelle Meyer
Siuslaw News
SIDE SHOW
Activities and
comics every
Saturday
Inside — B5
The Dunes City Council met
on Sept. 22 in person, with all
councilors socially distanced. The
meeting was also available to view
via online streaming during the
event.
City Administrator Jamie
Mills led the council through the
evening’s agenda, which includ-
ed discussions on the budgetary
priorities for federal COVID relief
payments and possible computer
and internet upgrades for Dunes
City Hall.
The meeting began with an-
nouncements, including an update
on the new Spectrum Pacific West
offerings for area residents, the be-
ginning of the Siuslaw Bridge up-
grade which will continue through
the end of October and the passing
of former Councilor Jerry Curran,
who oversaw the Water Quality
Testing Group on Woahink Lake.
Mills requested direction on
which projects currently underway
in Dunes City might be most bene-
fited from the COVID relief funds.
She also asked for suggestions on
new projects which would meet
See DUNES page 7A
S IUSLAW N EWS
2 S ECTIONS | 20 P AGES
C OPYRIGHT 2021
This month, Oregon Pacific Bank
(OPB) and other independent banks
sent out a consumer alert to inform
patrons about an upcoming law
that could change the information
collected by banks and the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS).
Under “Improve Compliance” un-
der U.S. President Joe Biden’s Amer-
ican Families Plan is a section called
“Introduce Comprehensive Finan-
cial Account Reporting to Improve
Tax Compliance.”
“Requiring comprehensive in-
formation reporting on the inflows
and outflows of financial accounts
will increase the visibility of gross
receipts and deductible expenses
to the IRS. Increased visibility of
business income will enhance the
effectiveness of IRS enforcement
measures and encourage voluntary
compliance,” stated the general ex-
planation.
The proposal would create a
comprehensive financial account
See PLAN page 5A
The September meeting of the
Western Lane Fire and EMS Au-
thority (WLFEA), a joint group
formed of select members from
the board of directors from Siu-
slaw Valley Fire and Rescue and
Western Lane Ambulance District,
began with the recognition of the
tragic death of Sarah Susman, a
part-time employee with the am-
bulance district.
Susman was killed in a traffic
accident last week on Highway 126
on her way to Florence.
Operations Chief Matt House
spoke about his colleague.
“Sarah was a truly amazing
young lady. She was very talented
beyond her years, compassionate
and had impeccable provider skills
for her patients. Sarah was dedicat-
ed to her profession as a Fire/EMS
and demonstrated this in all as-
pects of her life, volunteering with
Lowell Fire District, working part
time with the Mid-Valley Ambu-
lance and working part time with
Western Lane Ambulance,” House
said. “She was also recently hired
on at RiverBend as an ER Tech.
The underlying motivation for this
was her overwhelming drive aspir-
ing to be a physician.
“All of our personnel have won-
derful stories of working alongside
Sarah and all of our personnel are
hurting from the loss of amazing
person with unbelievable potential.
She was an example of integrity
and professionalism our district
strives for.”
House than asked that all board
members join in a moment of si-
lence for their friend and co-work-
er.
There were two members of the
public who commented during
the meeting, R. Pilcher and former
WLAD Board Director Larry Farn-
sworth, who both expressed their
sadness at Susman’s passing and
their best wishes for her co-work-
ers.
See WLFEA page 7A
Scientific Safety Review Workgroup recommends Pfizer-
BioNTech Vaccine booster shot after six months
On Sept. 24, the Western States
Scientific Safety Review Work-
group completed its review of
the federal process and has rec-
ommended a booster dose of the
Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at least
six months after their primary
vaccination series for people older
than 65 and people at higher risk
for severe illness from COVID-19.
The Workgroup provided its con-
firmation to the governors of
California, Nevada, Oregon and
Washington.
“COVID-19 vaccines are safe
and effective, and vaccination
continues to be our path out of
this pandemic,” stated Oregon
Gov. Kate Brown. “Seniors who
have received the Pfizer vaccine,
as well as Oregonians who have
underlying health conditions,
live in long-term care facilities,
or who are at higher risk due to
Understanding Medicare Plans
ns
Enroll
En
roll in the right Medicare plan for your need
needs.
ds.
occupational or institutional set-
ting will now be able to receive
the additional layer of protection
provided by a booster shot. Every-
one eligible who wants a booster
will get one, and I’m committed
to ensuring our most vulnerable
Oregonians are protected from
COVID-19, including those who
are at higher risk due to systemic
health and social inequities.
See BOOST page 5A
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