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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (June 5, 2019)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5, 2019 | 7A Latham from A1 of Cottage Grove itself, which became incorporat- ed in 1887. Established by Henry Small, Latham first opened its doors in 1853, though it was then called Small School and located just east of what is now Sweet Lane and Highway 99. As the decades ticked by, changes came to the school as it adopted the Latham name and, at one point, had relocated to land now inhabited by Weyerhauser. In 1941, the school made its final move to its current location and, the next year, four smaller districts were consolidated into Latham. F or the hour-long open house, the halls and rooms of the school were filled with people running their fingers along child- hood memories, flipping through class pictures and greeting old friends. Brothers Dennis and Leslie Chapman, former Latham students, returned to the school for the event. “When I started here there were just four class- rooms,” said Dennis, who attended Latham from 1944 to 1952. “You went two years in the same room with the same teacher — No kindergarten, no Head Start, just boom, straight in.” Leslie went to Latham from 1955 to 1963. “Mostly what I remem- ber about the cafeteria was loving the food,” he said. Another former Latham student, Nancy Russell, said “I remember those cooks because they made these really beautiful din- ner rolls and cinnamon rolls and maple bars to die for.” Leslie agreed. “The cinnamon rolls were the best,” he said. “Made from scratch in that basement.” Russell lost herself in the memory for a moment. “You could smell it when you walked in,” she said. “It was just … We knew. You hit that front door, open them up and it was like, you knew you were having cinnamon rolls or maple bars that day.” For many, part of Latham’s appeal has always been the intimate atmo- sphere made possible by small class sizes — some- thing which can be lost in schools with unbalanced teacher-to-student ratios. “It’s a dying culture, the whole culture of communi- ty,” said Leslie. “We’re such a mobile society and every- body’s focusing on their [phones].” Dennis remembered growing up with a core group of children. “There were six of us that went through first grade all the way through high school,” he said. “Our fami- lies all knew each other.” The Chapmans’ father even taught at Latham briefly, though they admit he didn’t last long due to the changing environment of education. “When we ‘Spock’ kids came along, he had a lit- tle trouble dealing with it,” Leslie said, referring to the famed pediatrician Benja- min Spock. “Teaching and education changed. The school hasn’t changed that much.” Dennis backed up the point. “Mrs. Saunders — my first- and second-grade teacher — went to school with our dad,” he recalled. “She said, ‘Dennis, you know I have your parents’ permission to spank you,’ and I knew they did. So, I was a pretty good student for the next eight years.” While memories of by- gone eras abounded, it was often the unchanging charm of the school that struck many attendees Fri- day night. “I hate to see it go,” Den- nis said. Though many there that night reiterated Dennis’ sentiment, the possibility of the school’s closure has been present on the minds of school staff and board members for some time as budget cuts have gradually chopped away at resources over the decades. Enroll- ment has also taken a dras- tic downward turn. “Three or four or five years ago it was up in the 130s,” said Garrett Brid- gens, communications co- ordinator with the school district. “Now it’s in the 80s. So, it’s been declining.” In addition, an estimat- ed $775,000 would have had to come out of the de- ferred maintenance budget to keep the school afloat and cover everything from windows to a new boiler to electrical upgrades. In giving the school a proper farewell, Bridgens and the event’s planning committee made up 350 stampable passports for everyone who entered the school Friday night. On each page of the passport, attendees were invited to visit various parts of the school where one could Worship Directory COTTAGE GROVE: 6th & Gibbs Church of Christ 195 N. 6th St. • 541-942-3822 10:00am Christian Education: Pre-K through 5th www.6thandgibbs.com First Presbyterian Church 3rd and Adams St 541-942-4479 Rev.: Karen Hill Worship: 10:00am Sunday School: 10:00am fpcgrove.com Calvary Baptist Church 77873 S 6th St • 541-942-4290 Pastor: Riley Hendricks Sunday School: 9:45am Worship: 11:00am The Journey: Sunday 5:00pm Praying Thru Life: Wednesday 6:00pm Hope Fellowship United Pentecostal Church 100 S. Gateway Blvd. 541-942-2061 Pastor: Dave Bragg Worship: 11:00am Sunday Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday www.hopefellowshipupc.com “FINDING HOPE IN YOUR LIFE” Church of Christ 420 Monroe St • 541-942-8565 Sunday Service: 10:30am Cottage Grove Bible Church 1200 East Quincy Avenue 541-942-4771 Pastor:Bob Singer Worship 11am Sunday School:9:45am AWANA age 3-8th Grade, Wednesdays Sept-May, 6:30pm www.cgbible.org Cottage Grove Faith Center 33761 Row River Rd. 541-942-4851 Lead Pastor: Kevin Pruett www.cg4.tv Full Childrenʼs Ministry available Services: 9:00am & 10:45am Delight Valley Church of Christ 33087 Saginaw Rd. East 541-942-7711 • Pastor: Bob Friend Two Services: 9am - Classic in the Chapel 10:30am - Contemporary in the Auditorium First Baptist Church 301 S. 6th st • 541-942-8242 Pastor: David Chhangte Sunday School 9:30am Worship Service 11:00am Youth Wednesday 6:30pm cgfi rstbaptist.com S entinel ollowing the open house, the gymnasium filled with attendees to lis- ten to reflections and cele- brations of the legacy of a school with a century and a half of influence on the lives of families in the area. Anne Fisk, principal at Latham School, hosted the ceremonies. “Over the past five years, I’ve had the opportunity to meet many of you, meet many of your children, your grandchildren and it’s just been an awesome opportunity that I’ve been very blessed to have,” she said. Current students of the school took the stage to sing songs written by Latham students in the 1990s and a slideshow of the school’s history was presented by Bridgens. Mayor Jeff Gowing, a student at Latham from 1968 to 1974, spoke to the crowd. “Forty-five years ago, when I left here, I didn’t think I would be coming back and talking as the mayor, but here I am,” he said. “This is one of the first stages I think I ever stood on.” Gowing recalled fond memories of basketball games in the gym and bi- cycle races on the last day St. Andrews Episcopal Church 1301 W. Main • 541-767-9050 Rev. Lawrence Crumb “Church with the fl ags.” Worship: Sunday 10:30am All Welcome parents working together to provide a safe, whole- some setting for multi-gen- erations of students,” Da- vis said. “My parents took great joy in working with children of parents who had attended here.” His parents saw the school as a center for not just education, but building community, he said. “It was the meeting site that helped provide iden- tity to the area,” explained Davis. “Mom and Dad would agree when I say that Latham community was a beloved extension of our family. We are grateful to be part of Latham’s en- during legacy.” After students sang a fi- nal song, Davis rang the iconic Latham school bell one last time. Throughout the event, questions about the even- tual fate of Latham School proliferated the halls, though board members and school staff had no de- finitive answers. “That’s a great question. We’ve been getting that a lot tonight,” Bridgens said. “That’s obviously going to be a school board deci- sion. … The board will go through a process to figure out what they want to do with this building.” Though no timeline on that process could be giv- en, plans have been made to move Latham educators currently employed at the school to other schools in the district next fall. It was also acknowledged that any decisions on what will be done with Latham will carry the weight of the school’s legacy with it. “There’s definitely a rich history. You can see that from the turnout tonight and seeing everyone here,” said Bridgens. (More photos are avail- able on the Cottage Grove Sentinel Facebook page and will appear in next week’s print edition.) Cottage Grove 200 Gateway Blvd. Cottage Grove, OR 97424 4 (541) 942-5400 Mon. - Sat. 8am - 9pm Sun. 9am - 8pm Ed & Kori Sowa Independent Owner-Operators Seventh-day Adventist Church 820 South 10th Street 541-942-5213 Pastor: Kevin Miller Bible Study: Saturday, 9:15 am Worship Service: Saturday, 10:40 Mid-week Service: Wednesday, 1:00 CRESWELL: Creswell Presbyterian Church 75 S 4th S • 541-895-3419 Rev. Seth Wheeler Adult Sunday School 9:15am Sunday Worship Service 10:30 am website www.creswellpres.org facebook.com/CottageGroveGroceryOutlet SAVE 40-70% ON GROCERIES. BEAUTIFUL, HUH? Heraej=bbkn`]^haHqtqnu Assisted Living and Memory Care Apartments Our beautiful community is designed for those who need assistance or have memory impairments. You can be assured that you or your loved one will receive the best in care along with compassionate personal attention from our well trained staff. Call or stop by for more information and a personal tour! We are available 7 days a week! 1500 Village Dr., Cottage Grove, OR 97424 T 541-767-0080 www.MiddlefieldOaks.com Dentistry is our profession, people are our focus. Birch Avenue Dental Dentistry is our profession, people are our focus. Birch Avenue Dental 1325 Birch Ave. 541-942-2471 • General Dentistry • Implants Our Worship Directory is a weekly feature in this newspaper. If your congregation would like to be a part of this directory, contact us today! C ottage G rove F of school. “There’s so many memo- ries of this school. I really hate to see it go away,” he said. “It’s going to be such a sad thing to see this place go, but I know it’s inevita- ble and we’ll move on.” Next, Tom Davis, son of influential past Latham principal Cal Davis, re- flected on the deep con- nection his family had with the school. “Thank you very much- for gathering today to reminisce about our com- munity and say goodbye to a little piece of us,” Da- vis said. “My parents, Cal and Doris Davis, loved the Latham and London com- munities. They treasured the people and treasured the schools.” Davis spoke of his fa- ther beginning his 33-year career at Latham in 1952 teaching eighth grade, driving the school bus and helping the janitor while his mother substi- tute-taught there. Later, his sister would teach first grade at Latham, where her daughters also went, and his brother would hold his wedding reception in that very gym- nasium. Davis walked to the back of the stage to point at a basketball jersey hanging on the wall. “This No. 1, I wore in 1960,” he said. “Our family has many, many fond memories.” Davis listed efforts by his father to make children’s enrollment at Latham worth remembering. “He built a glass bird- house outside his office window so all the kids could come in and watch the birds nest. … He wired a sound system in this gym so that the kids could square dance for P.E. class. He built an electric scoreboard that included an eagle that he had hand- carved,” he said. “This school was a deep effort of many teachers and St. Philip Benizi, Creswell 552 Holbrook Lane Sunday 8:30 AM Living Faith Assembly 467 S. 10th St. • 541-942-2612 Trinity Lutheran Church Worship Services Sundays: 9a & 11a 6th & Quincy • 541-942-2373 Youth Worship Sundays: 11a (all Pastor: James L. Markus ages welcome) Sunday School & Adult Education Mondays: 5:30p (6th-12th grades) 9:15am Sunday Worship 10:30 am Non-Denominational Comm. Kitchen Free Meal Tue & Thur Church of Christ 5:00pm TLC Groups 1041 Pennoyer Ave tlccg.com 541-942-8928 Preacher: Tony Martin United Methodist Church Sunday Bible Study:10:00am 334 Washington • 541-942-3033 Sunday Worship:10:50am & 5:30pm Pastor:Lura Kidner-Miesen www.pennoyeravecoc.com Worship: 10:30am umcgrove.org Old Time Gospel Fellowship 103 S. 5th St. • 541-942-4999 “VICTORY” Country Church Pastor: Jim Edwards 913 S. 6th Street • 541-942-5913 Sunday Service: 10:00am Pastor: Barbara Dockery Join in Traditional Christian Worship Worship Service: 10:00am Message: “WE BELIEVE IN Our Lady of Perpetual Help MIRACLES” and St. Philip Benizi Catholic Churches 1025. N. 19th St. 541-942-3420 Father John J. Boyle Holy Mass: Saturday Vigil – 5:30 PM Sunday – 10:30 PM For weekday and Holy Day of Obligation schedule see website OLPHCG.net Confession: 4 PM to 5 PM Saturdays or by appointment engage the school one last time by flipping through old pictures, getting a photo taken, signing one’s name on the main hallway wall or adding favorite memories to an online col- lection. “We wanted this night be a night where people could come and reflect and have an opportunity to walk through the building one more time,” Bridgens said. “It’s bitter-sweet, so we tried to strike the right balance of this being a cele- bration … it’s a celebration of all the amazing people who made up this school over the years.” 541-942-3325 116 N. 6th Street Cottage Grove, OR • Sedation • Financing 1325 Birch Ave. Cottage Grove birchavenuedental.com 541-942-2471 Tammy L. McClung DDS • Park W. McClung DDS