Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 2017)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL JANUARY 4, 2017 3A Community raises thousands for new mammography machine BY CAITLYN MAY The Cottage Grove Sentinel When the hospital in Cottage Grove received its digital mam- mography machine in 2006, it would be two years before any other facility in Lane County would see the same upgrade in technology. But nine years later, the company that manufactured the machine put the hospital on notice: there would be no further service or parts offered for their prized machine. "We have a digital mammography machine. It was a campaign that the foundation did. It was a huge deal in Cottage Grove to have this machine," said Jessica Baker,foundation specialist for the Cot- tage Grove Community Medical Center Foundation. "Effective 2017, that machine is no longer servicable. They will no longer to come in and do maintenance and parts will no longer be available," she said. In order to continue offering services that utilized the machine, the hospital would have to purchase a new 3-D model. The solution was anything but simple: raise $400,000. Soon. While the digital machine was utilized for preventative screen- ings and not necessarily late detection, the community would be left with no option for local screenings if the machine stopped work- ing. "The campaign started because we realized we need to get the next machine, which is 3D before this machine breaks. We need to do this," Baker said. Other factors contributed to the decision to replace the machine rather than rely on services in Eugene; including the small town sentiments of Cottage Grove. “That’s the thing,” Baker said. “If there’s something you already don’t want to do, it’s easy to make the excuse not to drive to Eugene and then people go without those screenings.” Baker went into overdrive, working with community leaders and local nonprofi ts to explore potential sources of funds. A consolida- tion of costs brought the needed total down to $377,000 and Peace- Health shouldered the cost for a new CT scanner, leaving the Foun- dation to focus on the mammography machine. "We started talking to community partners and donors. It was pretty much my two years here being spent talking to organizations, Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis, just getting the word out," Baker said. "The auxillary, the volunteers here at the hopsital donated $10,000," Baker said. She also noted that caregivers had the option of donating through payroll deductions. "It was everywhere, money was coming from everywhere. You had money coming from all dif- ferent places." Over $70,000 was raised locally with Baker explaining that sev- eral $10,000 donations came in from residents and organizations that requested their identities remain undisclosed. Once the community had raised half of the funds, Baker looked towards a top-off grant to fi nish the project. “It was nerve wrecking,” said Heather Quaas-Annsa before joining the team, the largest grant she had ever written was for $12,000. “This was six fi gures and my fi rst major grant.” A letter of inquiry was sent in March followed by the fi nal grant application in May. A site visit was performed in August and ac- cording to Baker, one question that continued to be raised was why the residents of Cottage Grove couldn’t drive to Eugene for care. “They kept asking why people couldn’t drive 20 minutes down the road but that’s part of why people live in Cottage Grove,” Baker said. “There’s a reason they live here. They don’t want to deal with the parking and all of that. It’s important that we had this service in our community.” The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust awarded up to $137,000 on November 17, clearing the way for the new machine to arrive in February or March of this year. The old machine will be traded in as part of the new purchase. “It was a lot of work,” Baker said. “But not as much as I thought it would be because people really came forward with donations. This community is amazing.” A digitial mammography machine was state-of-the-art in 2006 but after it became obsolete, a mad fundraising effort began to fund a new machine. Ideas for a waste-free holiday clean-up Tips from Lane County Electronic devices have be- come a big part of holiday gift giving. Each new advance in technology, however, brings with it an ever increasing amount of hazardous elec- tronic waste. Recycling and reusing electronics saves the energy used in mining and process- ing of raw materials, con- serves natural resources, and reduces environmental degradation, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. According to the U.S. Envi- ronmental Protection Agency (EPA), for every one mil- lion cell phones we recycle, 35,000 pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold and 33 pounds of pal- ladium can be recovered. Donating unwanted elec- tronics not only helps to pro- tect the environment, it can also provide technical job skills and ensure access to contemporary technological tools for others, regardless of income. Locally, residents can recycle electronics at Next- Step Recycling in Eugene – and residential drop-off is free! NextStep staff and trainees will refurbish it and safely remove your data and personal information before giving it to people who other- wise wouldn’t have access to technology. If they can’t fi x it, they will recycle it for you by working with Oregon Depart- ment of Environmental Qual- ity approved processors. NextStep’s Donation and Training Center is located near the corner of West 10th Ave and Garfi eld Street in Eugene. Donations are ac- cepted Monday through Sat- urday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. To fi nd out more about the items NextStep accepts, visit http://nextsteprecycling. org/residential-recycling or call 541-686-2366. The EPA also provides a list of companies that offer electronic recycling options. The list can be viewed at https://www.epa.gov/recycle/ electronics-donation-and-re- cycling. Waste-Free Holidays Campaign Lane County Master Re- cyclers invite community members to celebrate the season of giving by reducing, reusing, and recycling waste that is typically generated at the holidays. The Waste- Free Holidays Campaign highlights several fun, low- cost and simple waste pre- vention strategies families can use from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day – or any time of year! Visit www. lanecounty.org/lessisbest to view tips and resources to help create a truly enjoyable season. New items are add- ed throughout the season so check back periodically for inspiration and announce- ments of waste-free events in our area. Lane County Master Recycler Program Master Recyclers bridge the gap between awareness and action by motivating people to reduce solid waste at home, work and play. Lane County Master Recycler volunteers pro- vide more than 3,000 hours of waste prevention education to residents, businesses and events each year. Visit www.lanecoun- ty.org/masterrecyclers to learn more. ore We Fetch You M yo ur door! …and deliver it all to Dr. Benjamin R. Th ornton, DDS, MS Our new Creswell Satellite Offi ce is now open and running in full force. To bring convenience to our patients traveling from outside of Eugene, once a month our team will be serving the Creswell community in their town to help broaden our reach and expand our services to surrounding neighborhoods. Give us a call to see if this may be the better option for you! We are in Creswell on the fi rst Th ursday of each month 8 am to 5 pm Creswell Offi ce 195 Melton Rd. Creswell, OR 97426 Please Call 541- 686- 1732 Get FREE e-edition access with your subscription! Our e-edition gives you full online access to all of the valuable features included in our print edition, plus bonus weekly deals and shoppelocal.biz. Local Events, Entertainment & Special Off ers Local News Weekly Coupon Savings Restaurant & Dining Coupons Th emed Special Sections Local Jobs & Classifi ed Listings Local Real Estate Local Sports Reporting Games, Puzzles & TV 541.942.3325 Subscribe Today with our most fetching off er yet! Weekly Delivery, Only $29.00 a year New Subscribers only Your satisfaction is guaranteed. Cancel anytime! Plus, Subscribe by phone by January 11, 2017, and your First Month is FREE! Cottage Grove Sentinel 116 N. 6th St. • PO Box 35 • Cottage Grove, OR 97424 www.cgsentinel.com • 541-942-3325
