Sports & recreation
Cottage Grove Sentinel
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
South Lane County Sports and Recreation
Oregon Special
Olympics
suspend
Summer Games
Section B
Contact Sports, 942-3325 or e-mail zsilva@cgsentinel.com
Finding the thrill of the flight
Financial issues lead
to suspension of
annual event
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
Citing financial issues,
Special Olympics Oregon
(SOOR) announced last
Monday that its annual Sum-
mer Games have been sus-
pended.
The event that brings to-
gether children and adults
living with intellectual dis-
abilities was scheduled for
July 14 and 15. Last year,
around 1,500 athletes from
around the state compet-
ed in the Summer Games
at Oregon State University
including eight individuals
from Cottage Grove. It was
unclear how many Cottage
Grove participants would
compete this year but the
group has 15 members that
participate in bocce and 13
in track and field.
“…it is sad to hear but I
understand and support it.
Most people think that ev-
erything is donated to Spe-
cial Olympics, but it is quite
the opposite,” wrote Cottage
Grove Special Olympics Co-
ordinator Carmen Dowell in
an email.
“We have to rent trans-
portation, feed our athletes,
purchase uniforms and make
sure we have enough volun-
teers. As Local Program Co-
ordinator, I am a volunteer
myself and it’s a big task to
take on. Special Olympics is
not ending,” she added.
In a video posted to Face-
book on Monday, SOOR
CEO Britt Carlson, who
came into that role on June
1, discussed that the deci-
sion was based on a finan-
cial shortfall from last year
mixed with a lack of funds
available to pay for other ser-
vices.
“Today I need to share
with you that we’re suspend-
ing our 2018 state games
competitions and focusing
our efforts on the local and
school-based
programs,”
Carlson said at the start of
the video. “It’s important to
share it with you, our loyal
supporters and our athletes
first. I know it is a difficult
decision to hear. However,
it is very important for us as
it positions us for long-term
success and growth.”
According to the Portland
Business Journal the organi-
zation lost $325,000 in reve-
nue based on the most up to
date data from 2016.
“We have searched for
every possible scenario that
paints a better picture, but
this is where we are,” Oase
went on to say in the press
release.
After hearing “frustration
and disappointment” after
the announcement, Oase is-
sued another press release on
Thursday reiterating the ne-
cessity of the decision.
“The impact of this deci-
sion affects our entire Spe-
cial Olympics Oregon fami-
ly; however, suspending the
2018 Games was financially
necessary to maintain local
training and competitions
while working to rebuild our
events over time,” read the
release.
It went on to discuss
SOOR’s work moving for-
ward including working on
new fundraising ideas.
Additionally, the Law En-
forcement Torch Run that
works to raise money for
awareness of SOOR will still
be taking place in July.
Nathan Boehringer, 12, climbs into Kent Koester’s plane at Saturday's Wings and Wheels event at the Oregon Aviation Historical Society.
Fifth annual Wings and
Wheels brings in vintage
vehicles
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
While some just saw a shiny old red
car, others saw the pristine makeup of a
1929 Ford Model A. Or maybe they were
drawn by the baby blue 1936 Ford Coupe
that sat just down the line. Or maybe it
was the orange and blue Aeronca 65-TC
Tandem Trainer plane from 1940 that
caught their eye.
These vintage vehicles brought en-
thusiasts and novices together last Sat-
urday as they were proudly displayed at
the Oregon Aviation Historical Society’s
fifth annual Wings and Wheels event.
The event showcases vintage planes, cars,
motorcycles, bikes and, as the event de-
scription notes, “things that go.” This
year featured over 25 airplanes and 55
cars which surpassed the number at last
year’s event. According to a Facebook
post from OAHS, it raised nearly $3,000
for their organization.
“We really just kind of wanted to tie
last year because we did really well last
year. And the community has just come
out in full force. We’ve nearly doubled
our airplane count which is incredible
because those are the hardest things to
get,” said OAHS Executive Director Cas-
sandra Barrong.
In her second year working with this
organization, Barrong has specifically
fallen in love with the world of aviation
and being able to share it with the com-
munity.
“I want it to be a welcome place for ev-
erybody. And you’re going to have a good
time when you show up and it’s going to
be family friendly. You’re going to learn
something while you’re here and you’re
going to have a great time,” she said.
That aspect of learning has especially
resonated with Barrong, who gave a pre-
sentation at the event in order to make
sure stories are told including those of
Tex Rankin, a storied pilot and flight in-
structor who lived in Oregon in the first
half of the 20th century, and other im-
pactful Oregon aviators. But while it was
an event celebrating the past, the present
was not to be overlooked.
Twelve-year-old Nathan Boehringer,
who came with his grandmother to see
cars (“I don’t like flying,” he said), got a
first-hand look at planes when he stum-
bled across Kent Koester’s 1946 Globe
Swift.
The plane that stands out with its or-
ange trim and University of Tennessee
influenced checkered paint on the tail,
has belonged to Koester, 74, since 1971.
As he helped the young Boehringer into
the cockpit and let him hit a variety of
buttons to adjust the wings, Koester
couldn’t help but think of his own history
with planes.
“When I was like maybe the age of that
kid that was here, I found this big steam-
er trunk in the basement. So I of course
opened it up,” said Koester.
The trunk belonged to his father who
served in World War II and in it, aside
from love letters that the Koester quick-
ly pushed aside, there was a uniform
that included a helmet and goggles from
PHOTOS BY ZACH SILVA/CG SENTINEL
WWII and some soon-to-be influential
texts.
“There were all these instruction man-
uals that they used in World War II to
teach the pilots and they were written like
comic books because they were trying to
teach these guys fast,” he said. “And they
were great, they were as good as anything
I’d ever seen. And so by the age of like 13
or 14 I had read every one. I'd read pri-
mary training, basic, intermediate train-
WINGS AND WHEELS see B3
A 1963 Chevy II Nova was on display on Saturday.
Dorena Reservoir ready for recreation
Advisory at Dorena Reservoir lifted
after algae clears up
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
PHOTO BY CG SENTINEL
Dorena Reservoir has been deemed safe for swimming and
recreation activities.
Athletes of
the Week
On Friday afternoon, Oregon Health Authori-
ty (OHA) issued a press release announcing that
the advisory for Dorena Reservoir that was issued
earlier this month due to algae blooms, had been
lifted.
“Water monitoring has confirmed that the level
of cyanotoxins (harmful algae toxins) in the res-
ervoir are below recreational guideline values for
human exposure,” said OHA in the release. “How-
ever, OHA officials advise recreational visitors to
always be alert to signs of a cyanobacteria (harm-
ful algae) blooms in all Oregon waters, because
blooms can develop and disappear throughout
the season.”
OHA went on to urge individuals to “avoid rec-
reating in areas where the water is foamy, scum-
my, thick like paint, pea-green, blue-green or
brownish red in color, if a thick mat of blue-green
This week’s athletes of
the week are the third
through eighth graders
that attended CGHS
basketball camp during
the week. For more
pictures from camp, see
B2.
algae is visible in the water, or bright green cells
are suspended in the water column. If you observe
these signs in the water you are encouraged to
avoid activities that cause you to swallow water or
inhale droplets, such as swimming or high-speed
water activities.”
A previous press release from OHA had iden-
tified a heightened presence of cyanotoxins, or
blue-green algae, that could be harmful for hu-
mans and animals. Swimming and high-speed
water activities were to be avoided.
Earlier this month, a drinking water advisory
in Salem because of the high levels of cyanotoxins
in the water. The drinking water in Cottage Grove
was not impacted. At a May city council meeting,
City Manager Richard Meyers informed the board
that the city would be testing the Row River treat-
ment facility every week. Meyers informed the
board that this was not the first time the toxin was
found in the reservoir.
For more information about recreational ad-
visories, OHA advises individuals to contact the
Oregon Public Health line at 1-877-290-6767.
A camp-
er passes
through the
defense and
to a team-
mate during
a game on
Wednesday.
PHOTO BY ZACH SILVA/
CG SENTINEL