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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2017
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see page A5.
CGSENTINEL.COM
COMMUNITY
Community Sharing out of food
It's been six months
in
the making but now,
cmay@cgsentinel.com
Community Sharing is
nervous. This according
to director Mike Fleck who reports the food pan-
try is out of food.
"It takes a lot to make me panic," Fleck said
Monday night. "I've never seen the shelves so
empty."
Community Sharing--a non profi t that helps
low income individuals fi nd services like housing
and provides food boxes for those experiencing
food insecurity--is based in Cottage Grove and is
now asking the community for help.
"Anything the community can give whether it's
a can or box of something or bulk items that we
can re-package," Fleck said.
By Caitlyn May
The organization has partnerships around the
county and state to stock its pantries. Community
Sharing receives food from Food for Lane Coun-
ty, a county food pantry that distributes to local
entities, Feeding America and a chain of grocery
stores. According to Fleck, that giving has not
stopped.
"It seems like we're getting the same amount
of food," he said of the organizations that feed his
shelves. "That's what they're telling us.
So, what is causing the shortage?
"I think it's a little of a lot of things," Fleck said,
noting the changes to SNAPS--the food stamp
program. "Food insecurity has increased and
maybe that's responsible," he said.
The shortage is not new, but it is growing and
with the holidays coming, it may only get worse.
Community Sharing offers holiday meal boxes
for families that would normally do without.
"We have seen a shortage for probably six
months," he said. "But Billy (San Miguel) came
to me yesterday and said, 'There's no food left.'"
Fleck said.
The organization gave out nearly 900 boxes of
food last month. This month, if the shelves don't
fi ll, that number may change.
"We are required to guarantee three to fi ve days
of food in the box. As an organization, we try to
do fi ve to seven days. But we may have to start
curtailing the amount of food we put in the box-
es," Fleck said.
The announcement comes just weeks after the
release of the latest homeless stats. Lane County
was home to the third largest population of home-
less individuals considered to be unsheltered and
the second in regards to homeless veterans. Lane
County was second only to Multnomah County,
which houses Portland, when it comes to home-
less veterans.
Community Sharing offers an option for those
hungry in the community but Fleck is concerned
over the immediate future.
"If anyone has anything, we will take it," he
said. "They can drop it off at Community Shar-
ing or if they have a lot, we will come get it,"
he said, noting the organization's gratitude for its
food partners.
Community Sharing is located at 1440 Birch
Ave. in Cottage Grove. To donate, please drop
off items at the above location or contact Fleck at
(541) 942-2176.
EDUCATION
CITY
Tiny
houses
get
$100k
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
Cottage Village Coalition
(CVC) is up against a mon-
strous task: raise $800,000
to construct 13 tiny homes
known as Cottage Village be-
fore the end of 2018 while
staging a public relations cam-
paign aimed at worried neigh-
bors and a wary community.
On Thursday, September 17,
the load got a little lighter.
“We got $100,000,” CVC
board member Bruce Kelsh
reported.
Please see TINY HOUSE PG. A10
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
EDUCATION
SLSD teacher Sarah Parsons visits future kindergartener Lydia at her home in Cottage Grove prior to the start of school.
Knock, knock: teachers go door-to-door
By Zach Silva
After a simple knock on the front door, there was a shriek of
excitement and a joyful pitter patter of footsteps from inside
the home. After a brief struggle opening the door, fi ve year-
old Lydia peered around the door with a wide smile and quickly ran away giggling
in her brightly striped dress. Today was the day she had been waiting for: home visit
day.
Waiting on the front step in front of the now open door stood Harrison Elementary
kindergarten teacher Sarah Parsons, with a basket of “goodies” in hand, and educa-
tion assistant Kathy Putman.
The pair were there as part of Harrison’s home visit program. Before the school
year starts the kindergarten teachers at Harrison visit the homes of each of their stu-
dents to create a bond with the student and their family that starts before the fi rst day
of school. In this 20 minute visit, the goal is to form a relationship with the family and
ease any anxious or nervous feelings going into the upcoming school year.
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
By accomplishing those goals, the hope is then to then use this relationship to have
a relationship throughout the school year with this family and to fi ght against chronic
absenteeism at the kindergarten level. According to recent school year data from the
Oregon Department of Education, 22 percent of kindergarten students in South Lane
School District were considered chronically absent meaning they missed over 10
percent of the school year.
While there is no magical solution to fi xing all of these issues in one fell swoop,
home visits are an attempt at creating a foundation for student success.
“A lot of parents will ask why you do [home visits]. What I have been telling fami-
lies is that it really makes your child feel special. We are coming to see them. We are
coming to their environment, that’s how important they are to us,” says kindergarten
teacher Stephanie Black.
“It opens up communication, it builds those relationships right off the bat. And you
are in a one on one setting where they can ask you questions that they may not get to
Please see KINDER PG. A3
Douglas library group to send tax levy to ballot
In November of 2016, Douglas County residents were told
the
county was running out of options to fund the library sys-
cmay@cgsentinel.com
tem. They were told that it was possible libraries in Drain,
Yoncalla, Roseburg and throughout the county would shut
their doors and cease their services. They were told there was a ballot measure--44
cents per $1,000 assessed value-- aimed at creating a tax district to fund the library.
On November 4, ballot measure proponents and the county were told, "No thank
By Caitlyn May
you," by the voters and saw the libraries close their doors one after the other. The last
one, Roseburg, slamming its door in June of this year.
A little over a year after the initial ballot measure was voted down, Friends of the
Mildred Whipple Library are hoping to generate a different outcome with a slightly
different tactic.
"We want to create the North Douglas Library District to fund the library in Drain,"
Valarie Johns said. Johns is a member of the Friends of the Mildred Whipple Library
Please see DRAIN PG. A9
GOVERNMENT
CG City Council
Yoncalla woman wins Gov-
ernor's award. PAGE A11
City Council address
roads, budget. PAGE A6
INDEX
COMMUNITY
Woman of the year
Calendar ...................................... B11
Channel Guide ............................... B5
Classifieds ...................................... B7
Obituaries ...................................... A2
Opinion ......................................... A4
Sports ............................................ B1
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P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424
Corner of Sixth and Whiteaker, Cottage Grove
_______________
VOLUME 129 • NUMBER 60
CGHS
heads
back to
class
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
After weeks of empty class-
rooms and the dog days of
summer, South Lane students
are back.
September 6 marked the fi rst
day back for sixth and ninth
graders while the "rest of hu-
manity," as Cottage Grove
High School (CGHS) Principal
Mike Ingman called it, joined
them on Thursday.
It was the fi rst day for Ing-
man as well who was installed
at CGHS as the interim prin-
cipal last year after former
Please see SCHOOL PG. A9