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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (July 3, 2019)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, JULY 3, 2019 | 5A Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales Betty Kaiser’s Chatter Box: Longtime Grover shares July 4th memories Betty Kaiser “Thus may the 4th of July, that glorious and ever memorable day, be celebrated through America, by the sons of freedom, from age to age till time shall be no more.” —The Virginia Gazette T omorrow is the Fourth of July. Are you ready to cele- brate? Well, the Colonists certainly were after signing the Declaration of Indepen- dence from Great Britain in 1776. But first, they had to get hostility out of the way. King George III bore the brunt of their actions. Newspapers of the time describe how the military tore down a statue of the King in the Bowling Green section of Manhattan and later melted it into bullets. In Philadelphia, the King’s coat of arms was used as bonfire kindling. The citizens of Savannah, Ga., burned the king in effi- gy and held a mock funeral to put him away forever. The following year, the Virginia Gazette, dated July 5, 1777, described a more civilized celebration: “Armed ships and galleys were drawn up before the city, dressed with the co- lours of the U.S and began the celebration by a dis- charge of 13 cannon from each of them. The day was closed with the ringing of bells and at night there was a grand exhibition of fire- works, which began and ended with 13 rockets on the commons, illuminating the city.” This year, we will cele- brate 243 years of the sign- ing of the Declaration of Independence. In many ways, our cele- bration hasn’t changed very much. For most of us, it will be a day off work, family re- unions, parades, backyard barbecues and lots of fire- works. In 2007, I wrote a column in which I asked readers to share their childhood memories of July 4 cele- brations. The response was not overwhelming. In fact, I only received two emails. One was from Marcia Al- len, now 96, whom I con- sider to be the queen of Cottage Grove history. Marcia has been my go- to-person for 20 years as a reporter and columnist. She has also been a driv- ing force, along with many others, to preserve and celebrate the history and heritage of Cottage Grove’s people, buildings and cul- ture. (The Marcia E. Allen Historical Research Library is named in her honor. Got questions? Stop and see them at 308 S. 10th St.) Here are Marcia’s child- hood recollections of cele- brating the Fourth of July in the mid-1930s: “I have several memories of my childhood and how I celebrated the 4th of July. My folks were always very patriotic, and displayed a very large flag hung on the Dignifi ed Pet Cremations Cremation options for our Faithful Friends. clothesline in the big front porch, where clothes dried in the wind in wintertime. Every store downtown had bunting draped under roofs and windows, businesses were closed for the day. “We began at the Cot- tage Grove Armory, with a speaker and a high school student reciting the Get- tysburg address. The Civ- il War veterans were al- ways proudly in uniform and honored as the oldest group. Seems like there were still about 8-10 who were able to come. Kelly Field is named for a home- town boy lost in WWI, and the Calvin Funk Post of the American Legion is also named for a CG boy lost in action. “The Armory was built early in the 1930’s because Cottage Grove was noted for its group of National Guardsmen who were crack shots with their rifles. They needed a place to practice inside so as to be ready for competition when they re- ported annually to ‘Camp Lewis’ in Washington to camp and compete with all others in the Northwest. (see the story of the Ar- mory in the “Golden Was the Past II,” page 65). “There was usually a pa- rade because veterans from the Civil War were still alive and the first World War had been over about ten years, and patriotic fever was high. “The way I remember CG parades used to be with the High School Band al- ways involved as well as the CG Band of men — most of whom were WWI vets and businessmen. The parade led to the bridge, and on to the Fir Grove cemetery — to honor the dead after the service. “Sometimes, our family went by car over to Siuslaw Falls, down past Lorane, to the west and had a picnic with friends from the Ma- sonic lodge or others from the business community. A special treat of the day was the food — always water- melon and fried chicken — not usually enjoyed at other times. “Sometimes Dad drove Mother and I to Florence, where his uncle and aunt and some of their grown children lived. We drove down the twisty two-lane highway along the Umpqua river to Glenada and board- ed a ferry to cross over to Florence. The big bridge over the bay was not built until 1936, so travel over any river near the ocean was all done by ferries. The first Rhododendron Parade was done on boats along where Old Town Florence is today. “There were never any children my age to play with, but I usually had a package or two of fire- crackers and a punk to light them and had a good time in the sand dune behind the house. “One time I lit a fire- cracker that burned its fuse and didn’t go off. When I picked it up, it did go off and burned my fingers very painfully. I was about nine years old and had started taking piano lessons that constituted an hour’s prac- tice every day. Needless to say, the practice sessions were on hold for about a week! “May we never forget the ‘good ole days’ and what our country stands for!” Thank you, Marcia, and God bless the U.S.A. Contact Betty Kaiser’s Chatterbox at 942-1317 or email bchatty@bettykaiser. com LORANE NEWS Cremation Services • Urns • Keepsakes • Paw Prints 123 S. 7th St. Cottage Grove 541.942.0185 smithlundmills.com 6-day weather forecast THURSDAY FRIDAY 83° | 53° 84° | 53° Sunny Sunny • A reminder to all Lo- rane Grangers: Members meet on the third Thurs- day in July, so the next meeting is July 18 at 7 p.m. We’ll be finishing our ideas for the Lane County Fair booth. • The community is in- vited to enjoy the 16th annual Crow Car Show on July 13. All-day events for everyone include a free breakfast and the Kid Zone, which offers fun activities for all kids. The show already has a large number of custom cars registered. Volunteers are still need- ed. Anyone interested in volunteering or seeking more information about the car show can call Ma- rissa at 541-517-6608. Vol- unteers get a free car show T-shirt and lunch from their choice of conces- sions. This is the biggest fundraiser by the Crow Booster Club for the local school district students. Come out, have an incred- ible day and help Lorane and Crow area students. Transmissions Plus & AUTOMOTIVE SPECIALTIES PRACTICING THE ART OF TRANSMISSION REPAIR SERVICE SINCE 1991 SATURDAY SUNDAY 84° | 53° 82° | 54° Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy MONDAY TUESDAY 85° | 56° 92° | 61° Partly Cloudy When you need insurance, you need people too. Call today (541) 942-0555. PayneWest.com/Cottage-Grove Sunny Manual & Automatic Transmission Repair Tune ups 30-60-90K Services Brakes, belts, hoses and cooling system services Muffl ers & Custom Exhaust All makes and models. MAINTAINING YOUR VEHICLE AFFORDABLY By Mary Ellen “Angel Scribe” Th e ‘Cat Catfe’ You have to be an early bird to meet the Cat Catfe’s new arrivals. Mary Ellen (above) had the purr-leasure of meeting Taz, who was soon adopted. S ome things you just can’t make up. The owner/op- purr-ator of Vancouver, Canada’s paw-pular tourist attraction, the cat cafe, CATFE, is Michelle FUR- bacher. Yes! FUR is in her name! Her idea to open a Cat Cafe “freaked out” her parents because she had never had a business of her own and had only babysat a few friends’ cats. Then by chance she learned about Cat Cafes in Japan and thought, “Why not?” Her decision has paid off in paws-itive ways. In the three years since her store opened, Michelle has placed 643 homeless cats into their fur-ever homes and four more are going home this weekend. The store has 200 visitors on weekends and a slow day has 70 visitors. No wonder you have to make a reservation online at www.catfe.ca. Why should you spend $10 an hour petting cats? The answer is obvious to cat lovers, especially those whose landlords don’t allow cats; you get your cat fix here! Imagine surrounding yourself with other like-mind- ed animal lovers, in a relaxing environment, with your fur-vorite espresso, a cat cookie (Meow-caron) and 12 different cats a week. Once a week, the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) shelter deliv- ers new foster cats to the Catfe to replace the ones that were adopted. It is a purr-fect partnership. These are special kitties! Visitors socialize with them and adopt according to their purrs-onalities. The felines mix well with other free roving cats. Once adopted, the cats adapt easily to new siblings, and sleep all night. Some adopters even return for a second kitty because they know they are adopting amazing rescues. The available adoptees are “fixed,” vaccinated, micro- chipped, dewormed and treated for fleas. The shop clos- es daily from 2 to 3 p.m. because CAT Union requires an uninterrupted siesta for their cat naps. They can sleep in one of the 50 cat shelves or enter the purrr-ivate room through a cat door to get away from admirers. As you know, cats do what they want: sometimes play, sometimes they are cat-atonic and all asleep at the same time. They are typically cat-unpredictable, so you nev- er know what your experience will be. The entrance fee helps pay fur the three helpful staff and rent because adoption fees go to the SPCA shelter. You can sit with a furry friend: a cup of coffee/espres- so, cookie-cat treats, cat cupcakes and cookies shaped like cat heads. I was thrilled to find meow-chandise; Catfe mugs, fuzzy kitty socks for humans, toys for cats and t-shirts that read, “I am not a crazy. My cat had me tested. He said I am fine.” For us cat lovers, this friendly store is purr-adise! “It’s been said that you should ‘do what you love and then it won’t feel like a job,’” said Michelle. “The CAT- FE is the purr-fect job! The staff falls in love with every cat and some are hard to adopt out, but we know we are helping them. There are always many others in need of homes. We are surrounded by wonderful caring custom- ers who love coming into the store. It is heartwarming watching felines find their fur-ever homes, meeting their parents, and then hearing happy endings. Occasionally, a customer arrives stressed or in a bad mood,” said Mi- chelle, “Then a few minutes later, I look over at them pet- ting a cat and smiling. It’s a thrill watching them trans- form. One customer who recently moved to town said, ‘I am lonely and come here because it feels like home.’ “People say that pets choose us. Often when a new cat arrives, within its first hour, some fresh visitors sit down and the cat leaps up onto their table, and rubs against their faces, choosing to adopt them,” Michelle said. “Ob- viously, cats think this is a People-Cafe not a Cat Cafe for them to pick out their very own perfect family.” TIPS: Visiting a cat cafe was on my bucket list. Know- ing I could not visit one of the 40 in Japan and that the Catfe at Unit #2035, International Village Mall, 88 West Pender St., Vancouver Canada made it pawsible, was a thrill! I did not even mind leaving with multi-colored cat souvenir fur on my clothes. WE LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN WE WORK IN “WE MAKE SHIFT HAPPEN!” www.automotivespecialties.biz DUSTIN TULLAR & RUSS OWENS 541-942-8022 • COTTAGE GROVE Share your fur-avorite pet memory or adventure at angelscribe@msn.com. Visit Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Face- book at/www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assistance Program. 541-942-2789
