COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL May 20, 2015
7A
COMMUNITY BRIEFS
Co-Gro Radio
Theater
A “Fancy” Cat
her sweet spirit reminds me of the depth of
love that I have for her! I treasure our pre-
cious years together.”
“
My stepdaughter, Jackie, has a gift for
fi nding animals in need,” said Diane.
“But what happened in 1999 on a hot day in
her Arizona backyard, was even a surprise
for Jackie!
As for any stray, she had being feeding
a matted, long-furred, skittish, starving
cat that had arrived at her front door. Two
months later, the cat meowed at Jackie to
follow her to the backyard shed, where
Jackie found an instant family of fi ve kit-
tens! She was not sure if the young mother
was showing off her pretty babies or asking
for help. Either way, Jackie scooped the kit-
tens up and welcomed the homeless family
into her home.
Had the year-old cat’s pet parents neglect-
ed spaying her and her resulting heat driven
her to escape their home, run away with a
young ne’er-do-well, only to be left home-
less for the next 63 days of the kittens’ ges-
tation? Or had she, a little fur-princess, not
listened to her human parents, and run away
with the love of her life, who jilted her and
left her to mother their offspring by herself?
Either way, it was a sad tale for the young
family. It was fortunate that the helpless cat
had found a safe manger to deliver and care
for her alley kittens.
Jackie fostered the young family and for
weeks tried locating their original pet par-
ents. When no one claimed the cat I was
introduced to them and it was love at fi rst
sight, and still is. I adopted the mother and
one of her kittens. Because the cat looks
like the white Fancy Feast kitty I named her
Miss Fancy and the kitten became Smokie.
I have always had cats, but Fancy is the
sweetest-loveliest cat to the point of be-
ing angelic. We are happy to have her and
Smokie as purr-mament fi xtures in our
home.
It was not until nine years later that I
learned that Fancy was a pure bred! In 2008,
I attended a convention and randomly sat
beside two ladies: Mary Ellen from Oregon
and her friend, Atira, from Seattle. Our
conversation turned to cats. I had three by
then, Atira three and Mary Ellen had four
famous swimming cats. We shared our cats’
cell phone photos and I was surprised to dis-
cover...we all had Silver Persians! Atira had
one, Mary Ellen had four and apparently I
had one too! Our cats all look alike! We al-
most fell out of our uncomfortable chairs!
What are the odds of sitting down, at ran-
dom, in a crowded convention and everyone
has the same rare breed of Persian!?
TIPS
courtesy photo
Diane cradles her “fancy” house
ornament!
Finding Fancy the way Jackie did was like
discovering a rare gem in your backyard!
Fancy is an aristo-cat with refi ned dignity.
She is affectionate and like any Princess —
a little demanding. She is highly intelligent
and conversational. When something needs
attention she fi nds me, and meow-talks for
me to go and change the litter that isn’t clean
enough, or the drinking water; or she needs
something else. Every day she ‘expects’ a
clean bowl of water — day-old water is not
to her liking! I used to think she was a fussy
feline until I realized that all of us purr-fur
fresh water.
Miss Fancy’s movements and manner-
isms are elegant, graceful and regal. She has
a talent for fi nding aesthetic settings and
posing with effortless beauty. She adorns
our home like a signature house accessory
or a piece of jewelry. I often stop what I
am doing and just stare at her ‘purr-fection’
as she quietly sits or sleeps. Her beauty is
breathtaking, and the only thing that brings
my meditating mind back to reality is when
she blinks or a whisker twitches.
I love when she meows to be picked up
and cuddled even though she is a tad bossy.
Sometimes when I’m in a rush, getting
ready to go out, she pushes open the bath-
room door, wanders in, and loudly meows
demanding that I pick her up. When I look
down at her and mimic her cat-chat, she re-
sponds with an adorable little squeak. Could
she paws-ibly be trying to share make-up
tips? Her large green eyes and brick red
nose look like a make-up artist profession-
ally drew black eye liner around them.
Thank you for asking me to share Miss
Fancy’s story with your readers. Sharing
“One of the challenges of Persian parent-
ship,” admits Diane, “is keeping them well
groomed and mat-free. I discovered, just
like with people, that a poor diet makes for
a poor quality of hair/fur. So I’ve changed
Fancy’s food to human grade quality for
a silkier coat. For trimming her hairballs,
I use special scissors that are blunt and
curved at the tip so as not to clip her skin. In
the winter, when her fur is extra long, I trim
her stomach and underarm fur to ½ inch so
it won’t tangle. She likes to look and feel
good, just like us. She takes pride in the
way her fur and skin feels. And so do I.”
Airlines Canine Secret!
http://www.youtube.com/embed/NK-T_
t166TY?feature=player_embedded
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Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assis-
tance Program. (541) 942-2789
The Opal Center for Arts and
Education presents Co-Gro Ra-
dio Theater on Saturday, May
23 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5. For
over a year, Co-Gro radio has
offered an irreverent look at
small town life in Oregon, pair-
ing music, comedy and on-stage
antics.
OSU graduates
Oregon State University will
hold its 146th commencement
on Saturday, June 13, beginning
at 10:30 a.m. in Reser Stadium.
Local students graduating this
June from Oregon State in-
clude:
From Cottage Grove: Erik
B. Brill, Bachelor of Science,
Mechanical Engineering; Chris-
topher W. Chambers, Doctor of
Philosophy, Computer Science;
Dustin M. DeGeorge, Honors
Bachelor of Science, Summa
Cum Laude, Ecological Engi-
neering; Jensyn C. Short, Bach-
elor of Science, Exercise and
Sport Science; Sara M. Singer,
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Magna
Cum Laude, Graphic Design;
Corbett D. Stewart, Bachelor
of Science, Construction Engi-
neering Management; Lisa A.
Wagner, Doctor of Philosophy,
Environmental Science.
From Creswell: Josie A. Hub-
bard, Bachelor of Science, Pub-
lic Health, Bachelor of Science,
Agricultural Sciences; Chelsea
P. Karcher, Bachelor of Science,
Psychology; Stacey L. Marple,
Master of Education, Adult
Education; McKenzie T. Tritt,
Bachelor of Science, Magna
Cum Laude, Environmental
Sciences.
Bruyneel
recognized
Brian Bruyneel of Cottage
Grove was among 200 students
recognized at the University of
Jamestown's 109th Commence-
ment ceremony on Saturday,
May 9 at the Jamestown Civic
Center. December 2014, May
2015, and Summer 2015 gradu-
ates were recognized and par-
ticipated in the ceremony. The
University of Jamestown was es-
tablished in 1883 and is ranked
as a top tier regional school in
US News and World Report and
a top Midwestern school in The
Princeton Review.
Fern Hill open
house
Fern Hill Nursery announces
a special open house on Sunday,
May 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The nursery propagates its own
plants from the land at Fern Hill
Botanical Sanctuary. The nurs-
ery is located at 78703 Echo
Hollow Lane, Cottage Grove.
River cleanup
The Willamette Water Ouzels and
Coast Fork Willamette Watershed
Council invite the public to become a
dipper and fl oat to collect trash along
the Row and Coast Fork Willamette
Rivers from Row River Nature Park,
to Lynx Hollow Park, a distance of
around six miles. This will be on Sat-
urday, May 30 beginning at 9 a.m. The
group hopes to have fun, see some lo-
cal wildlife, and maybe help to reduce
the Cost Folk Willamette River's con-
tribution to the Great Pacifi c Gyre. Ex-
perienced boaters with their own boat
are preferred and are asked to RSVP to
Doug Garletts at 541-315-1604.
BOND COMMITTEE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
South Lane County Fire & Rescue is looking for
interested Fire District residents to serve on a Capital
Equipment Bond Committee. Committee members
will work with Fire District staff in analyzing Fire
District needs, then prepare a recommendation to the
Fire Board. Anyone interested should submit a letter
of interest that includes a brief description of their
background and why they believe they should be
appointed to the Bond Committee. Letters of interest
must be at the district offi ce at 233 E. Harrison in
Cottage Grove no later than 5:00 pm May29th, 2015.
BOND COMMITTEE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
ALLIGATOR
AUCTION
ONE DAY ONLY
Saturday, May 30th
11am-4pm
Complete Item List Available at
KNND or at www.knnd.com
SEE SELECT ITEMS AT KNND
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OVER $4,000 DOLLARS
WORTH OF ITEMS!
All items purchased
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Stay
In Control
on Memorial Day
As we look forward to an extended holiday weekend, our area
merchants encourage you to celebrate responsibly – for your own
safety and the safety of our entire community. According to National
Highway Traffi c Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics, Memorial
Day weekend ranks second only to New Years in percentage of alcohol-
related traffi c deaths. Whether you’re driving a car or a boat, it’s
important to remember that alcohol impairs your judgement and
slows reaction time. You can help prevent drunk driving tragedies this
holiday weekend and year-round by staying sober behind the wheel
and keeping friends from drinking and driving.
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