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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2016)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL July 6, 2016 New BMD Coordinator no stranger to festival Cindy Weeldreyer calls fi nding enough volunteers BMD's biggest obstacle BY JON STINNETT The Cottage Grove Sentinel C indy Weeldreyer recalls the exact moment she fell in love with the Bohemia Min- ing Days festival and the com- munity that hosts it each year. Back in July of 1980, a big- city girl from New Orleans visited Cottage Grove with her brand-new boyfriend, Ralph Weeldreyer. During a ride on the Ferris wheel, it all clicked into place. “This was when BMD was held out by the fi re station where Hayden Homes is now,” she said. “We were at the top of the Ferris wheel looking north, and I was just taken in by this little festival in a small rural town. I fell in love, but I had no idea at the time that this is where I would spend the rest of my life.” The Weeldreyers would mar- ry in 1982; the next year, they settled in Cottage Grove, and Cindy began working with lo- cal youth ministry and, by ex- tension, BMD’s Grand Miner’s Parade, in 1985. Following her stint as a Lane County Commis- sioner, Weeldreyer began volun- teering regularly for then Fes- tival Coordinator Sharon Jean in 2001; in 2012 she joined the BMD board of directors. After last year’s festival, which again featured a turnover in BMD leadership following the departure of Nancy Glines, Weeldreyer threw her hat (per- haps literally; headwear is one of her trademarks) into the ring to serve as the new festival co- ordinator. “I told everybody that I was tired of having directors leave, that even if they could only pay me $1, I would do this,” she said. Now, Weeldreyer said she will work to return the stability the festival enjoyed during Jean’s decade-plus at the helm. “If BMD was a bus, Sha- ron was the driver for all those years,” Weeldreyer said. “I sat behind her, watching her make the stops. Now, I’m in the driv- er’s seat and taking on all of the administrative duties on top of everything else. It’s a challenge that I am rising to.” With regard to attendance in 2015, Weeldreyer said BMD is coming off “another wonder- ful year,” and the plan for this Bohemia Mining Days countdown: Especially looking for indi- viduals and couples to staff Coiner Park info/welcome booths Thursday-Sunday, Treasure Hunt Checkpoints Friday-Sunday and help with Bohemia City set-up (Tuesday-Thursday) and tear down (Sunday/Monday) The 57th Annual Bohemia Mining Days festival is two weekends away. We have an- other jam-packed four days planned. Here are ways to get involved now to ensure another successful event: BMD Carnival Discount All- day Ride Bracelets Available at CG & Creswell Bi-Mart and The Book- mine for $22 each through Thursday, July 14 at 2 p.m. Help support festival opera- tions and save $5 off regular price. Save even more on Thursday’s “BOGO Buddy Day” Buy one discount ticket, present it at the carni- val ticket booth and receive a second all-day bracelet for free. (Buy early with limited number of advanced tickets available) photo by Jon Stinnett BMD needs volunteers, parade entries and a few more vendors. Applications available in three ways: Pick up at Community Center/Library & City Hall, KNND and Sentinel offi ces Download from www.bohe- miaminingdays.org (under Join-In Menu). Call Cindy at the BMD Offi ce 541-942-5064 and request one (For convenience, completed applications may be dropped off at KNND (thru mail slot in bottom of front door if locked) Cindy Weeldreyer has been involved with Bohemia Min- ing Days since the 1980s and has been volunteering with the festival for over a decade. year’s festival, which runs July 14-17 and pays homage to elec- tricity with the theme “All that Glitters is not Gold,” is to in- clude more cultural offerings. The southwest corner of Coiner Park is now dedicated to such offerings including the popular Heritage Stage, which will host living history exhibits includ- ing blacksmith and fur trapping demonstrations. The festival is “a little under” where organizers may like it, budget-wise, according to Weel- dreyer, though she said BMD is “on good footing” in spite of a shoestring budget and recent fi - nancial woes. The biggest chal- lenge, she said, always concerns fi nding enough volunteers to run an event largely dependent upon their help. “We’d like to fi nd enough people to put it on so that our fi ve board members aren’t crazy busy and can enjoy the festival,” she said. Volunteer opportunities are spelled out on the festival’s website, bohemiaminingdays. org. There, those interested can print out an application that can be mailed back or turned into the offi ce of KNND 1400 AM. A volunteer orientation is scheduled for Wednesday, July 6 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Cot- tage Grove Community Center, though Weeldreyer said that volunteers are still welcome af- ter the orientation is held. WANTED: Slabtown vs. Lemati 2015 Feud Winners Last year’s Feud paperwork is MIA and there are three kids to honor in the Satur- day morning parade. Please call the BMD Offi ce with the names and contact info for the Slabtown and Le- mati Mayors and the Lemati Sheriff. Volunteer Orientation Meet- ing - Wednesday, July 6 from 6-7:30 p.m. Shepherd Room, CG Com- munity Center Council worksession talks fl ood fi ght Music showcase brings jams to Bohemia Park Effects of federal lawsuit still unclear J oey Santavicca, General Manager of 432 Produc- tions, described the fi rst annual People's Pick Music Showcase, held Friday and Saturday at Bohemia Park, as a successful grassroots production. The event aimed to offer a new model for funding music performances lo- cally, Santavicca said, and it benefi ted the Cottage Grove Music Association. Santavicca said cooperation from the City, Cottage Grove Police and Bohemia Park offi cials was exemplary throughout the weekend. Tommy Makinson of the CGMA said the group hopes to use the "resources available" locally, such as the Bohemia Park amphitheater, as a stable source of funding for mu- sic education programs and local arts education in local. The CGMA plans to host three events in partnership with 432 Productions next year with that goal in mind. 3A BY JON STINNETT The Cottage Grove Sentinel Cottage Grove. The Planning Department presented details of its pro- posed code changes to the City Council during a worksession on Monday, June 27, a work- session that also dealt with a controversial biological opinion following a lawsuit involving the Federal Emergency Man- agement Association (FEMA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries division. O ffi cials with the City of Cottage Grove’s Plan- ning Department say the chang- es they have proposed for city codes that deal with develop- ment in the fl oodplain do not go far enough to address changes in the way fl oodplain develop- ment is managed nationally. They add that it’s too early to tell how those changes might play out at the federal level and how those changes may affect photo by Jon Stinnett Elena Leona of Elena Leona Project belts a tune during the band's Saturday afternoon set. Please see FLOOD, Page 11A IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BOHEMIA MINING DAYS W/ T-SHIRT 5k JULY 15 Th 9 PM $ 20/ $ 30 • • FRIDAY • TWILIGHT RUN after 7/11 $25/$37 A twilight run or walk through lovely Cottage Grove. Our guided fitness workouts and classes help you get stronger, improve balance, and increase flexibility, all in just 30 minutes. START & FINISH WASHINGTON & 6TH, COTTAGE GROVE, OR. Close to awesome places for food and drinks! REGISTRATION INCLUDES DRINK TICKET FOR BREWSTATION AND GLOW STICK FUN! Join today for $ 10 * Live y your most incredible life with Curves. Liv 1133 1133 Main Street Main Street Cottage Grove, OR Cottage Grove, OR 541-942-9580 541-942-9580 GOLD DASH 500 M • SAT, JULY 16 TH Start on 14th & Main • • FREE! 9:30 AM • PRIZES! 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