COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • OCTOBER 17, 2018 •
New dispatcher has old ties to Cottage Grove
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
Becky Erbes lives in Creswell
but Cottage Grove is her home.
And now, she’s back.
Erbes joins fi ve other new
faces at the Cottage Grove Po-
lice Department has part of a
hiring spring that took place
earlier this year.
“We feel fortunate to have
hired all of these individuals,
who we believe will represent
and serve our community in a
positive and professional man-
ner,” said Cottage Grove Police
Chief Scott Shepherd. “We be-
lieve all of these new employ-
ees will be good for our town
and the community.”
And while Erbes may be a
part of a fl ood of new hires,
she’s anything but new to
CGPD.
“My dad retired from here
about two years ago aft er 26
years,” she said. Ken Erbes
was also a dispatcher and his
daughter says she remembers
nights bringing him dinner at
the station.
“He liked the night shift
more and so we’d sit with him
for a while,” she said. “He liked
it, I guess because the phones
offi cer and the now
Captain
Conrad
Gagner who is still
with CGPD.
“I worked in re-
cords part time and
because it was part
time, I ended up
moving to Spring-
fi eld PD which is a
diff erent beast,” she
said.
Not long aft er,
Erbes began raising
a family and now
with her children
all in their teens,
she’s returned to
the beginning.
CAITLYN MAY/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
“When I walked
in, I was home,”
Cottage Grove Police dispatcher Becky
she said.
Erbes comes from a long line of law en-
Erbes will at-
forcement-related careers in her family.
tend the state's
were quiet and fewer people
basic telecommu-
came in.”
nications and emergency med-
It’s something he passed ical dispatch later this month
down to his daughter who says to make her stay in Cottage
the night shift is also her favor- Grove offi cial. She joins new
ite because, “Th e phones are hire Gabriela Iboa Pierce, who
quiet and fewer people come will take Erbes preferred night
in.”
shift on the dispatch desk.
Erbes started her career as
“She was hired in May of
a dispatcher in Cottage Grove this year,” Shepherd said. “She
in the ‘90s alongside Shepherd, is a recent graduate of the De-
who at the time was a street partment of Public Safety and
Michili Monroi, LCSW
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Th e new dispatchers are
joined by two new offi cers;
Wendie Jackson and Harry
Sullivan. Jackson was previ-
ously a dispatcher for the Lane
County Sheriff ’s Department
and told the Cottage Grove
City Council that she wanted
to see what the other side of
the job was and so opted to be-
come a reserve offi cer and was
hired full-time on Sept. 10.
According to Shepherd,
Jackson has previous ties to
CGPD, “In fact,” he said, “she
was hired to replaced Ken Er-
bes when he retired.”
Sullivan tested for the posi-
tion of police offi cer in March
and was hired in September.
“He was inspired to become a
police offi cer by several family
members in law enforcement,”
Shepherd said. “He felt com-
pelled to be a contributor to a
safe community and chose our
department over the others he
was testing with.”
Nate Bryce rounds out the
latest wave of new hires as a re-
serve offi cer aft er he spent fi ve
years with the Eugene Police
Department as a patrol offi cer.
Cottage Grove Garden Club to
host Gardening Forum Nov. 6
Many people have ques-
tions about gardening,
whether they are new to
gardening or have been
gardening for decades.
At the aem time, garden-
ers have answers and expe-
riences to share.
On Tuesday, Nov. 6, the
Cottage Grove Garden
Club will be hosting a Gar-
dening Forum. Th e Garden
Club encourages anyone
with questions to attend.
Th is will be a round-table
discussion where attendees
will be answering eachoth-
er’s gardening questions.
Th is gardening forum is
perfect for people new to
gardening or new to the
Cottage Grove area. It is
also perfect for seasoned
gardeners who have more
specifi c questions.
Th e Cottage Grove Gar-
den Club’s informal busi-
ness meeting begins at 6
p.m. and the gardening fo-
rum runs from 7 to 8 p.m.
All guests and visitors
welcome, light refresh-
ments provided.
Th e forum will be held
at the First Presbyterian
Church, 216 South Th ird
St. (at the corner of Th ird
and Adams streets).
Enter off the garden on
Adams Street.
5A
Pet tips
‘N’ tales
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
French doors and Persian cats
O
ur two Silver Persian cats, Myster E. and Whyspurr,
are 16-years-old. You would think by now that the
siblings couldn’t outsmart each other.
Th ere is a set of windowed French doors leading from the cat
room into the main part of our home. Th e cats’ water and food
are in there along with their litter box, a tall scratching post to
observe birds at the outside feeder and enough cat toys to open
a pet store.
For the last year, Whyspurr has been playing a prank on
Myster E. and he has yet to catch onto it. When he goes to use
the litter box, she paws-itions herself behind the French doors,
crouched down peeking through the glass at him — waiting.
Aft er he uses the kitty washroom, he walks back into the
house. Whyspurr, who’s waited patiently the entire time,
springs out at him. Her action leads them to spin around the
house chasing each other like kittens.
Do cats get Alzheimer’s? Myster E. is either walking into his
sister’s trap knowingly to join a game of chase, or he is honestly
forgetting to look?
Every day, we stand and watch Myster E. as he jumps out of
the litter box. We think: Today is the day he is going to look for
her! Nope! Th en, as he causally strolls back into the house, he
is once again not aware of her, and he defi nitely never thinks to
look through the glass panes for his trickster sister.
Meanwhile, she wiggles her furry little rear end in anticipa-
tion of her approaching “prey” then jumps out at her brother.
Every time, he acts stunned as she rushes him. He jumps in the
air, totally surprised, and the chase is on.
One thing is for sure, they still feel young enough to "hunt"
and exercise together and we are grateful for every day with our
beautiful fur babies ... errr, furry seniors.
We are learning several things by observing cats; every fam-
ily has a comedian, even if it is the cat. Plus, unlike Myster E.,
we keep our eyes open for the obvious.
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Mary Ellen “Angel Scribe’s” senior kittens, Whyspurr and
Myster E., still play pranks on each other.
TIPS:
“Many senior pet owners do not realize that pets like humans
lose their eyesight with age,” said Janetta Overholser, president
of the Humane Society of Cottage Grove. “Even though I know
this, last August I saw one of my elderly outside cats staggering.
I went to her and discovered that cataracts had grown over both
eyes. Apparently, she could no longer fi nd any of the bowls of
water I leave out for the animals. She was hot and dehydrated,
so there was an immediate trip to the vet clinic.”
Please do not dump young, elderly or any animals. Th e re-
sults are pain, suff ering and heartbreak because the pet’s star-
vation is a slow, cruel death. Please bring your unwanted pets
to a shelter so they can be rehomed.
Tricks to keep alert blind pets to where they are in your
home/yard through touch, smell and sound.
• Place a doggie gate in the hallway to paw-vent blind animals
from wandering outside.
• Diff erent thicknesses of throw rugs.
• Table top water fountains.
• Textured fl ooring, tiles, indoor carpeting, rubber mats.
• Solar/wind chimes.
• Diff erent scented candle/herb sachets in each room.
• Don’t move fur-niture or leave objects on the fl oor.
EVENT:
KNND and the Humane Society of Cottage Grove's fund
raiser will be Saturday, Oct. 20, from 6 to 9 p.m., at the First
Presbyterian Church, 216 S. Th ird St. Entertainers are David
“Elvis” Lomond, Cowboy Cadillac, Dallas McCord, Cameron
Reiten, and Julie Nedele.
“People in the United States spend millions of dollars on Hal-
loween costumes for their pets each year. I wonder how many
fewer animals would be euthanized if that money were in-stead
donated to animal shelters,” Mark Cuppola.
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541-942-8022 • COTTAGE GROVE
Share your fun, amazing or crazing pet tips and tales at an-
gelscribe@msn.com or Follow Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales. Adopt loving pets online at
www.PetFinder.com. For spay or neutering, call the Humane So-
ciety at 541-942-2789.
