COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL May 18, 2016
B EYOND THE G ROVE
News from Lane County and CG's neighbors
Something wickedly
wonderful this way came
— and left much too soon
BY NED HICKSON
News Media Corporation
BRIEFS FROM BEYOND
Family Safety Fair
PeaceHealth announces that
it will host its Family Safety
Fair on Saturday, May 21 from
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Willama-
lane Center for Sports and
Recreation, 250 S. 32nd St. in
Springfi eld.
The event includes a Kohl’s
car seat clinic, bike helmet fi t-
ting/giveaway, distracted driv-
ing game, teddy bear fi rst aid
clinic, swim safety station, free
home safety items such as fur-
niture straps and more.
Butterfl y Run
Signups are open for the
Elkton Community Education
Center (ECEC) annual Elkton
Butterfl y Run on Saturday, June
18. The event features a family
friendly 5K fun run/walk with
bursts of color along the sce-
nic route. There will be a free
quarter-mile supervised loop
run through the ECEC grounds
for kids 10 years or under. The
2016 Butterfl y Run is produced
in memory of the run founder,
John Bradley, and held at the
ECEC site, 15850 Highway 38
West, Elkton.
Participants are encouraged
to wear eye protection.
On
line registration is available at
the ECEC website www.elk-
tonbutterfl ies.com .
Master Preservers
class at ECEC
On Sunday, May 22 from 1-
3:30pm, the Master Food Pre-
servers will host a workshop
at ECEC, 15850 Highway 38,
Elkton, with information about
food preservation practices and
equipment. Participants will
learn tips and tricks so they can
enjoy eating locally produced
foods year round. The class
costs $15 and is limited in size.
Reservation forms are available
at ECEC or the OSU Extension
Service. For information, con-
tact ECEC at 541 584-2692 or
info@elktonbutterfl ies.com.
I
Yoncalla Parks
and Rec meeting
N. Douglas
budget meeting
A public meeting of the
Yoncalla Parks and Recreation
District will be held on Tues-
day, June 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the
Yoncalla Community Center,
400 Main Street in Yoncalla to
discuss the budget for the fi scal
year beginning July 1, 2016,
as approved by the Yoncalla
Parks & Recreation District
Budget Committee. A copy of
the budget may be inspected
or obtained at Yoncalla Parks
& Recreation District (offi ce),
166 Halo Trail Road between
the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.
A Budget Meeting for North
Douglas High School is sched-
uled for Wednesday, May 25
at 6 p.m. at the High School
library.
“56 Pontiac” in
Drain
The Drain Civic Center, lo-
cated at 205 West A Street, will
present the music of ’56 Pon-
tiac on Friday, May 20 from
7-9 p.m.
Admission is $5 per person.
This event calendar is for
meetings, cultural events, etc.
for Drain, Yoncalla or Elkton.
Deadline for calendar is at
least two weeks prior to event.
(Any kind of Sales event,
i.e. garage sales, estate sales,
plant sales, etc., must go in
classifi eds.)
Email to legals@cgsentinel.
com or call 541-942-3325.
$ PUUBHF ( SPWF
4 FOUJOFM
Our Community Newspaper
since 1889
Subscribe
and $AVE
LORANE COUNTRY NEWS
BY LIL THOMPSON
For the Sentinel
Several exciting and inter-
esting events are planned this
week and next in the school
district: On Wednesday, May
18, is the second drama per-
formance of the comedy “I
Wish…A Fairy’s Fairytale” at
7 p.m. in the Crow Middle/High
School cafetorium. Tickets are
$5 for adults and $3 for chil-
dren, but those who bring in a
canned food or non-perishable
food item will have $2 taken off
their cost. Food goes to Food
2016
for Lane County, and all money
goes into the Drama Program.
On Thursday, May 19, the CAL
School Board meets in Apple-
gate Elementary at 7 p.m. fol-
lowing the executive session.
Hopefully, by now, most of you
know about the 10-year Devel-
oping Master Plan for the dis-
trict buildings to bring student
security and safety while updat-
ing and repairing area schools.
Those interested may go to the
district website and fi ll out the
survey. There will also be time
for questions at the school board
meeting
On Friday, May 20, Minidoka,
a Japanese swing band, will per-
form in the gym at Crow Mid-
dle/High School from 1-2 p.m.
Rural Art Center is responsible
as a part of the “Artist in Resi-
dence” program. The students
have been studying about Japa-
nese internment camps. Des-
serts will be served following
the program at 2 p.m. and the
band will be available for a meet
and greet in the Cafetorium.
Those who were unable to at-
tend the Kindergarten Round-up
last week can call the CAL Dis-
trict offi ce, 541-935-2100 with
Cottage Theatre
presents
information about their kinder.
Children must turn fi ve by Sept.
1, 2016 for the 2016-17 school
year.
The track and fi eld 2A state
meet is this week, May 19 and
20 at Hayward Field. There will
be no school on Monday, May
30 for Memorial Day. School
is winding down and seniors are
preparing for graduation, which
is scheduled for June 10. On
June 3, the time capsule bur-
ied by the class of 1967 will be
opened at 6 p.m.
Calling all weavers...sev-
eral people want to start a
guild meeting in the Cottage
Grove area twice a month for
all levels from beginners to ad-
vanced. Lifelong weaver Pat
Olivier wants to pass on her
knowledge. Those
interested
can call Marilyn at 541-942-
6073 or Julie or Sami at the Yarn
Shop on Main Street in Cottage
Grove at 541-942-6924.
The Rebekahs are having a
workday at the Oddfellows’
Cemetery this Saturday, May 21
at 9 a.m. to prepare the grounds
for Memorial Day. Participants
are asked to bring the usual
work tools.
9A
t’s a strange juxtaposition
I fi nd myself, watching
the arrival of the carnival in
our small town each year and
seeing the excitement in the
eyes of our children. But as the
rides are hammered together
late into the evening, I am re-
minded of the night 15 years
ago when my best friend called
to tell me he was coming back
home to Oregon — because he
was dying.
He was 30 years old.
In September of 1995, I
received a letter from my
mother. Included with it was
something she’d cut out of the
local paper, something written
by a young man who, that July,
had become the new sports re-
porter for our newspaper back
home. As I unfolded the three-
column rectangle of newsprint,
a smiling face appeared below
the wide brim of an Austra-
lian-style hat.
The face was kind. Genuine.
And in the eyes was a vibrancy
and glean that transcended the
black and white newspaper
page.
Long before I actually met
Jason F. Jensen, I somehow
knew that his eyes were blue.
That he walked with his hands
in his pockets. That he pre-
ferred hiking boots over Ree-
boks. And that his wit was
sharp, but never cruel.
As I read the last para-
graph of my mother’s letter,
she closed with a mixture of
whimsy and intuition:
I hope you can meet each
other some day; I know the
two of you would be great
friends.
I then sat down to read
“Breathe easy, young man,”
Jason’s fi rst column for the
Siuslaw News, and was imme-
diately taken by the descrip-
tion of his escape from the San
Bernardino Valley — a 15 mph
getaway in his “violent-yel-
low” VW van that marked his
return to Oregon after a year of
living in the “coffee-colored
haze” of southern California.
In his writing was a mixture
of truth and vulnerability laced
with subtle humor — qualities
that were a direct refl ection of
his natural disposition as both
explorer and astute observer of
life.
By the following afternoon,
the column had been laminat-
ed and posted on our refrigera-
tor door.
Three years later, we arrived
back in Florence with our pos-
sessions, our plans to settle
down, our new jobs and our
refrigerator — column still in
place. It wasn’t until months
later, while visiting some
friends, that a lanky fi gure de-
scended the stairs into the liv-
ing room, hands in his pockets.
He had hiking boots on, and
his blue eyes greeted us long
before the words could leave
his mouth. As he pulled his
wide-brimmed hat into place,
I blurted, “You’re the guy on
my refrigerator!”
One might say that from
those words, our friendship
began.
But, I’d have to disagree; in
actuality, it started long before
that. Long before my mother
decided to clip that fi rst col-
umn from the newspaper.
Long before he sat in this very
newsroom and wrote a story
about returning home that re-
mains on our refrigerator to
this day. I believe that true
friendship begins long before
a handshake or shared laugh.
It’s something set into motion
and meant as a gift for staying
on pace with your life.
Make the right decisions
and remain true to yourself,
and you will fi nd the gift of
true friendship.
Based on that belief, I’d
have to say that returning to
Florence was the best decision
I ever made. Jason became
one of my truest friends, clos-
est confi dants, and the godfa-
ther to my son (And yes, Ja-
son could do a mean Marlon
Brando).
If friendship is the metro-
nome of life, I’d have to say
Jason’s was paced with ab-
solute precision — a notion
made evident by the ever-wid-
ening circle of friends he made
in his 30 years of life.
When it all comes down to
it, love is the only real measure
of success. It’s the only thing
worth taking with you, and the
most lasting gift you can leave
behind.
Jason, should you ever ques-
tion your measure of success
in this life, take a look at our
refrigerator door —
And breathe easy, young
man.
(Ned is a syndicated colum-
nist with News Media Corpo-
ration. His book, Humor at the
Speed of Life, is available on-
line at Port Hole Publications,
Amazon Books and Barnes &
Noble. Write to him at ned-
hickson@icloud.com)
Another dental visit?
Turns out, you have better things to do with
your time.
June 10, 11, 12* • 16, 17, 18, 19* • 23, 24, 25, 26*
*matinee
A zany modern day farce inspired by Moliere; a fun-filled ride full of
slapstick, ridiculous chase scenes, disgruntled waiters, and misbehaving
sausages. Warning: your belly might just ache from laughing so hard!
We know your time is valuable. That's why we've invested in CEREC
technology that allows for a faster experience when you need crowns,
fillings or veneers. With CEREC, there's usually no need for a temporary
By Frank Dunlop and Jim Dale
sponsored by:
and return visit. Everything is done in one visit, in about an hour -
leaving more time for whatever is important to you.
Directed by George Comstock
Implants · Teeth Whitening · New State-of-the-Art Building
Tickets available online, by phone, or at the door one hour before performance
Dr. Brent Bitner, DDS
Thursday−Saturday 8:00 pm; Sunday 2:30 pm. $20 Adult, $15 Youth (age 6−18)
350 Washington, Cottage Grove
(behind Better Bodies)
www.cottagetheatre.org • 541-942-8001 • 700 Village Drive • Cottage Grove
942-7934
CEREC® is a registered trademark of Sirona Dental Systems.