COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL September 7, 2016
11A
C ANDIDATES
Continued from page 10A
helped residents and business
owners come to a greater con-
sensus with the downtown Eco-
nomic and Business Improve-
ment District on the design and
construction of All-America
City Square. He served on the
Cottage Grove Budget Commit-
tee in 2010 and served as board
president of Another Way En-
terprises, a nonprofi t supporting
many local projects and com-
munity organizations.
Ivan believes government
often fails to legitimately rep-
resent citizens and effectively
meet their needs. He is running
for City Council with a com-
mitment to total transparency,
greater input from the public
and unwavering support for the
health, prosperity and economic
strength of our community, our
Cottage Grove. For more infor-
mation, visit www.facebook.
com/ivansdelsol.
Ward II
candidates
Merlyn Adams
State University in Chico. The
subject of her Master’s thesis
was “Cultural Trauma and the
Rise of Terrorism in Post-Colo-
nial Societies”.
Adams is self-employed as an
antique picker, a lifetime hobby
that has evolved into a major
source of income. She works
with local stores Roger’s Fine
Antiques and Dierdre Holder’s
Timeless Treasures, among oth-
ers.
She moved to Cottage Grove
eight years ago and has recent-
ly purchased and is restoring a
1922 Victorian house that once
belonged to City Councilor
Betty Horvath, one of the few
women who has served on the
City Council here.
She serves on the Board of
Directors for The Healing Ma-
trix and Cottage Grove Glean-
ers.
She loves Cottage Grove and
greatly appreciates the warm
and friendly atmosphere. She
enjoys writing grants and would
like to help Cottage Grove work
to improve our roads and side-
walks; Adams is also very inter-
ested in improvements for all of
our municipal parks.
written response
Rodney Cimburke
Merlyn Adams, 35, is a candi-
date for Ward 2 on the Cottage
Grove City Council. She has
graduated
with a JD
from the Uni-
versity of Or-
egon School
of
Law.
Prior to that,
she received
a Masters Degree in political
science and a Bachelor’s degree
in philosophy from California
Interview response
Cimburke has lived in Cot-
tage Grove with his family for
10 years, or as he put it, “long
enough not
to be con-
sidered an
outsider” to
local affairs.
“I
just
want to get
involved
and to help
people realize that they can do
a lot to change things, that they
can affect local governance,” he
said of his candidacy.
Cimburke said he supports
the upcoming ballot measure
to raise Cottage Grove’s gas
tax because one of the biggest
complaints about living here is
the deterioration of local streets.
He also supports the prospective
three percent tax on recreational
marijuana purchases, and he said
he’s hoping to work with Coun-
cilor Slay and others to start a
Neighborhood Watch type group
that could help curb the recent
spate of property crimes here.
“People are getting angry, and
they may feel like they don’t
have a lot of power in the com-
munity,” he said. “I think a le-
gitimate Neighborhood Watch
is a good place to start.”
Cimburke records meeting
minutes on behalf of the Lane
Council of Governments, which
he said offers an inside look at
the workings of government.
“I’ve been to meetings of oth-
er city councils, school boards
and EWEB,” he said. “I think
it’s part of what has inspired
me. I want to get involved with
actual governance, with doing
something instead of talking
about ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if this
happened?’”
Bob Ehler
Interview response
Ehler said he “feels pretty
good” at the outset of his third
attempt at securing a City Coun-
cil seat. Ehler said he seeks to
serve his town as a representa-
tive of its low-income residents.
“I live on disability, so I un-
derstand that there are people
s t r u g -
gling,” he
said.
“I
know what
it’s like to
try to get by
and survive
with taxes
and rates as
high as they are.”
Ehler said that “keeping in
touch with the little guy” in-
cludes working on behalf of
Cottage Grove’s Pay it Forward
group, where he often repairs
bicycles that are later donated to
those who need them.
The proposed tax on recre-
ational marijuana in Cottage
Grove is a “good thing,” said
Ehler.
“If you’re going to do some-
thing like that, you have to be
willing to pay for it,” he said.
“I smoke cigarettes, so I under-
stand how that works.”
Ehler said he supports bol-
stering Cottage Grove’s police
force and helping to make po-
lice more available to the public.
He said he’ll also work to bring
more living-wage manufactur-
ing jobs to town.
Henry Lancaster
Interview response
Lancast-
er said that
he’s
al-
ready spent
the early
part of his
candidacy
“ wo r k i n g
toward connecting with people”
including the leaders of several
local businesses.
“It’s been very enlightening,”
he said. “It’s given me a lot
more information about what
they do and offered a variety of
what this town has to offer, and
I’m planning to do a lot more of
them (visits).”
One message he’s heard over
and over is how “kind of ridicu-
lous” Cottage Grove’s water
bills are, cost-wise, in addition
to frustration over rashes of re-
cent break-ins and burglaries.
Lancaster advocates the use
of the local currency known as
Cottage Grove Scrip, which he
said helps “put money back in
the people’s pocket” and “helps
keep this community knit to-
gether.” He said that his experi-
ence attending council meetings
as the representative of the Youth
Advisory Council has given him
inside knowledge of the current
Council and how city govern-
ment works.
“I’ve got fi rsthand experience,
and I can be ready to do the job
on Day One,” he said.
Lancaster also said he thinks
Cottage Grove should work to
retain the “good nature” of its
citizens that has earned the ac-
claim of visitors, and he said he
plans to work to give Cottage
Grove’s citizens more opportu-
nities to vote on important is-
sues.
Grant Gording, BC-HIS
Jenna Buetow
Board Certifi ed in
Hearing Instrument Sciences
Hearing Consultant
Ward IV
candidate
Amy Slay
Interview response
Slay, who was appointed to
the Ward IV seat last year, said
she wishes more people would
bring their
concerns to
her as their
representa-
tive.
“I’m hop-
ing to bring
more faces
into city government and try-
ing to make myself available,”
she said. Slay was recently part
of an effort to start a Neighbor-
hood Watch-style group in Cot-
tage Grove in response to recent
property crimes, though she said
the effort will need more citizen
involvement to be successful.
“I think people genuinely
care, I just wish they would
commit to being a volunteer,”
she said.
A Weyerhaeuser employee,
Slay described herself as “just a
real person” and not a politician
or business owner.
“I live and work and raise my
family here, so I want Cottage
Grove to be the best place it can
be,” she said.
FREE Hearing Screenings
FREE Hearing Aid Checks & Cleanings
Just call to schedule an appointment!
Grant's Hearing Centers
1498 E. Main St., CG
www.grantshearing.com
541-942-8444
Trick or Treat on Main Street
Monday, October 31, 2016
If you are a business and want to set
up a booth downtown and be a part
of the festivities, contact Travis at the
chamber offi ce (541) 942-2411.
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Brooks Dame
Donated
bone marrow
to stranger.
SACRIFICE
Pass It On
www.forbetterlife.org