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CGSENTINEL.COM 3 Est. 1889 WEDNESDAY EDITION | MAY 8, 2019 | $1.00 S entinel C ottage G rove VOL. 131, NO. 19 S ERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF C OTTAGE G ROVE , D ORENA , D RAIN , E LKTON AND Y ONCALLA Your Local News Delivered Your Way: In Print. Online. On the Go! PERSONAL | COMMERCIAL BENEFITS | SURETY Living history coming to The Grove By Cindy Weeldreyer Special to The Sentinel (541) 942-0555 PayneWest.com/Cottage-Grove WEATHER Partly cloudy with a high of 78 and a low tonight of 52. Full forecast on A5 COMMUNITY Surrounded by children and steeped in 19th century history, Karen Rainsong is a happy and fulfilled woman. Beginning this month, she continues her lifelong dream of offering workshops and summer camps focused on pioneer living from Singing Creek Educational Center’s new home in the historic Dr. Snapp House at 360 South River Road. Rainsong is the founder and volunteer executive di- rector of the Singing Creek Educational Center (SCEC), a nonprofit organization she created in 2015. She is an artist and educator who grew up in Southern Cali- fornia and moved to Oregon 27 years ago to raise her fam- ily in “a smaller town with a strong and creative commu- nity vibe.” thing unique.” Her fascination with the culture of the Old West led to a surprising genea- logical discovery that she and Opal Whitely share a common ancestor: Daniel Boone. To honor her kinship with Opal, she named her nonprofit after Opal’s childhood diary, “The Singing Creek Where the Willows Grow,” first pub- lished in the 1920s. She said she is delighted to now have her organization located in Opal’s home- town. The mission of SCEC is to inspire children and families toward an appre- CINDY WHEELDRYER/FOR THE SENTINEL Summer workshops and camps will be offered this ciation of local history summer by Singing Creek Educational Center, through hands-on learn- ing. Its interactive history offering hand-on history experiences. programs include school field trips, classes, pioneer “I’ve always loved kids and community for living histo- summer camps and nature,” Rainsong said. “I ry programs for kids and I See HISTORY 11A saw there was a need in the knew we could offer some- Cottage Theatre to undergo dramatic transformation Memorial bench for local icon is installed. A3 SPORTS — B Warriors continue winning ways. B1 • RECORDS Obituaries Police Log Grad News A2 • LORANE NEWS A5 • CLASSIFIEDS Listings and public notices B7-B9 By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com Cottage Theatre has closed its doors for the summer as extensive construction is set to expand the building and refurbish the house. “It’s going to look and feel very different,” said the the- ater’s executive director Su- san Goes. “The colors will be different; the sound of the space will be different.” Dubbed “ACT III,” the re- modeling will improve and increase seating, upgrade technical abilities and rede- sign the lobby for improved flow. One of the most nota- ble changes in the theater’s house will be the seating ar- rangements. Currently, about 150 seats wrap 180 degrees around the stage, most of them installed when the building was built in 1998 — and even then, these were bought used from a church in Portland. With age, some of them have become prone to squeak and distract from performances. “And we’re spending a lot more time than we’re enjoy- ing replacing broken bolts and things that go wrong with the seats,” Goes said. DAMIEN SHERWOOD/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL Among the changes will be a new seating arrangment for theater goers a better, deeper view of the stage from any seat in the house. “So we knew that these seats were really approaching the end of their useful life span.” In choosing replacements, Cottage Theatre invited members of the communi- ty to try nominee seats and vote for their favorites. The new seats were picked for their comfort and one-size- fits-all appeal. With new seats also comes a new view of the stage. Since 1998, the theater has gradu- ally seen the production of more large-scale musicals. “So this idea of wrapping around 180 degrees doesn’t really make sense with our current repertoire,” said Goes. “When you have a big set on stage, it’s just really difficult for those people in those far side seats to see all of it.” To address this, the project will bring seating in about 15 degrees on each side, en- abling a deeper view of each production for all audience members. “In the new arrangement, we’ll be able to have an actor at the back wall and See THEATRE 7A FOLLOW US FOR THE LATEST NEWS : /CGS ENTINEL @CGS ENTINEL CGS ENTINEL . COM Cascade Chorus to croon for Carousel Project By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com 541- 942-3325 ph • 541-942-3328 fax P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424 With several years sep- arating its last local per- formance, the barbershop performance group Cascade Chorus is returning to Cot- tage Grove on Sunday, May 19, to perform at the Calva- ry Chapel as part of a fund- raising effort for the Cottage Grove Carousel project. “Barbershop harmony is very unique,” said Bob Mar- tindale, lead section leader of the chorus. “There are things required in arranging to make it ‘barbershop har- mony.’” The group performs reg- ularly in Eugene and other Oregon cities, seeking to preserve the musical insti- tutions of a cappella and four-part harmonies while delivering entertainment Emerald Valley Armory, LLC Handguns • Long Rifles Concealed Carry Classes Tues. - Sat. 10-6 147 E. Oregon Ave. Creswell, OR 97426 541-895-2666 and charitable services to communities. It was through the Cot- tage Theatre that Martin- dale joined the barbershop chorus in 2000. As a stand- in for barbershop singers in the production of “The Mu- sic Man,” Martindale caught the attention of the Cascade Chorus. “One of the guys came to me and said, ‘Do you sing with anybody?’” Martindale recalled. “I said, ‘not really.’ He said, ‘You do now. You’re coming with us.’” Cascade Chorus rep- resents a division of the larg- er Barbershop Harmony So- ciety which covers swathes of the United States and Canada. Oregon’s local divi- sion was established in 1946 and has seen past member- ship at times number more See CHORUS 7A May 2019 Special Election overview By Damien Sherwood dsherwood@cgsentinel.com With ballots mailed and offi cial drop sites opened for Lane County voters as of May 2, the county’s 2019 Special Election has en- tered full swing. Most ballots and voter pamphlets should be re- ceived by today for those who made the April 30 cut-off for voter registra- tion. For residents of Cottage Grove and the surround- ing areas in Lane Coun- ty, the following is a brief breakdown of ballot items of interest. In the week preceding Election Day, Th e Sentinel will provide a deeper dive into the South Lane School District race and Lane County mea- sures 20-299 and 20-300. South Lane School District #45J3 Of four seats available on the South Lane School District board of directors, three are running unop- posed. Incumbents Tam- my Hodgkinson and Jerry Settelmeyer are running for positions 1 and 6, re- spectively. Merlene Martin, who currently holds the third unopposed seat, an- nounced last year that she was not going to run for re-election; she was elected to the board in 2011. For that position, Dustin Bengtson will be running unopposed. Bengtson’s candidate fi ling form notes that he currently works as a federal employee for the U.S. Army Corps of En- gineers. A graduate from the University of Iowa, he holds a Bachelor of Arts in communications. Th e remaining seat be- ing contested this year is position 7. Incumbent Gary Mort has held the position since 2015. Mort, who has a doctorate degree in chemistry from the Uni- versity of California-Davis, is a faculty instructor in the science department at Lane Community College. Challenging the seat is Demian Schwartz, a for- mer school administrator with a Master of Arts in education from Goddard College. Schwartz lists ex- perience with several local non-profi t boards in her fi ling. “I believe strongly in civ- ic responsibility and com- munity service,” Schwartz states in the voters’ pam- phlet. “As an educator my primary work is with chil- dren and families; this is the population I feel See ELECTION 9A Michele Monroe, LCSW Counseling Services 541-255-8822 • 1450 Birch Ave • Cottage Grove, OR 97424 • Individual and Family Counseling • Insurance and Sliding Scale • Accepting New Clients • Weekend and Weekday Appointments Available