COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2019 | 5A
FRC to host
game night
Saturday
Pet Tips
‘n’ Tales
Yoncalla Library celebrates another
successful season of summer reading
Local tech business
FCR is hosting “Board
Games and Fun at De-
light” this Saturday,
Aug. 17, from 2 to 6:30
p.m.
There will be a va-
riety of board games
during the event, as
well as providing infor-
mation about tech jobs
in the area for those in-
terested.
There will be three
raffles to win a $50 De-
light gift certificate, and
there will also be snacks
and drinks provided.
FCR, a growing local
business that provides
customer support and
technical solutions for
different types of com-
panies and industries, is
currently hiring at mul-
tiple sites across Ore-
gon including Veneta.
For more informa-
tion, please check out
www.gofcr.com.
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
Kitty ‘GPS’
COURTESY PHOTO
Yoncalla Elementary School principal Don Hakala attends the summer
reading program to work with area students.
C
ommunity members, Yoncalla
Elementary School and parents
gathered last Wednesday to rec-
ognize the end to another successful
season of summer reading.
Children ages 2-12 gathered weekly
to connect with friends, participate in
engaging art, science and movement
activities — and celebrate reading.
Thirty-five Yoncalla children par-
ticipated this year, an increase from
22 last year, combining for 185 hours
of reading this year. Don Hakala, the
new Yoncalla Elementary Principal,
participated in the annual tradition of
a water balloon fight. During the pro-
gram, children earn water balloons by
logging their summer reading minutes.
On the last day of programming, each
child is given a bag of water balloons to
launch at adults. This year, more than
300 water balloons were thrown at li-
brary staff and volunteers, parents and
school staff.
Yoncalla Early Works, Yoncalla
School District and Yoncalla Library
continue to partner to ensure all chil-
dren and families in Yoncalla have
opportunities to read — both at home
and in the community. Over 100 books
were distributed during the summer
reading program this year.
LCC-Cottage Grove to host memory care seminars
Whether you are in the
position of caregiver or
simply care for someone
who is experiencing mem-
ory loss, there are many
questions and finding an-
swers is not always easy.
This popular series of-
fered by Lane Community
College in Cottage Grove
has been running for over a
year and provides informa-
tion and support.
Led by instructor Kerrie
Wilke of Coast Fork Nurs-
ing Center, in collaboration
with the Alzheimer’s Asso-
ciation, each session pro-
vides useful information
and allows for open discus-
sion.
Topics vary, but include
information on different
types of memory loss, phys-
iological aspects (what’s
happening in the brain to
cause memory loss), man-
agement strategies, current
research on prevention and
treatments, ways to advo-
cate for your loved ones and
local resources.
911 E. Main
Cottage Grove
541.649.1188
Open 24 Hrs.
LOWEST PRICES ON BEER,
CIGARETTE, ICEE’S AND MILKSHAKES
&
12 pk. Only $ 15.99
6-day
weather forecast
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
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Sunny
Sunny
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
78° | 57°
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Partly Cloudy
Ratly Cloudy
MONDAY
TUESDAY
Participants also gain
skills in self-care and stress
management. This is a great
opportunity to learn and
engage with others going
through similar struggles.
Designed for caregiv-
ers and adult children of
parents with memory loss,
these seminars have also
proven helpful for individ-
uals concerned about their
own forgetfulness.
Learn if the memory
loss you’re experiencing is
normal or if you should be
more concerned.
These seminars are of-
fered at no cost, and take
place at Lane Communi-
ty College, Cottage Grove
Center, 1275 South River
Road.
Upcoming seminars are
scheduled on Tuesday, Aug
20, and Tuesday, Sept. 10.
Both classes are from 6
to 8 p.m. This is an ongo-
ing series. Additional dates
can be found in the Cottage
Grove LCC Class Schedule
each term.
LORANE NEWS
Contributed by
Lil Thompson
for The Sentinel
• A delightful day with
comfortable temperatures
brought numerous people
out to enjoy the Lorane
Volunteer Fire Depart-
ment Ice Cream Social and
all the other activities. The
pies or cake and ice cream
were delicious, music was
very enjoyable and chil-
dren of all ages had lots of
fun on the water events. In
the day, a small number of
community members and
several others who former-
ly lived in Lorane shared a
delicious meal at the Lo-
rane Community Potluck.
Mark your calendars: Af-
ter discussion and a vote
of those attending, next
year’s potluck will still be
the second weekend in Au-
gust —on Saturday at noon
(Saturday potluck at noon
and Fire Department Ice
Cream Social on Sunday,
1-5 p.m. next year.)
• This Thursday, Aug.
15, is the regular monthly
meeting of the Crow-Ap-
plegate-Lorane
School
Board at 7 p.m. at Apple-
gate Elementary. Executive
session is prior to the open
meeting.
• It’s just over two weeks
before school resumes for
the 2019-20 school year.
School supply lists are out
in most stores, or check
out the district website.
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DUSTIN TULLAR & RUSS OWENS
541-942-8022 • COTTAGE GROVE
Forty years ago, a young Shirley and her beloved
cat, Mintara, were led into an unexplained adven-
ture by angels ... or was it Kitty GPS (Guaranteed
Pussycat Safety)?
S
hirley left California with her belongings and her
kitty, Mintara Aleisha, stashed in her small VW
Bug to start a new chapter of their lives at college in
Eugene, Ore. They never anticipated the adventure
that they would soon find themselves in, barreling
towards an unexplained miracle.
They left Orange County at 4 a.m. and, as they
drove north, the afternoon became unbearably hot.
Her car did not have the luxury of an air condition-
er. Being creative, Shirley placed a cloth on a cold
container of water on the floor for her cat’s comfort.
Mintara eagerly spread out on the cooler and was
happily napping while Shirley headed for her friend’s
home in Sacramento, where she’d planned to spend
the night.
Everything was going well until a few blocks from
her friend’s home. She slowed the car to read address-
es and, as she rolled down the window, her adventure
began. The cat had no intention of spending another
minute in their hot car. Mintara was tired of the trip,
so she jumped up onto the back of Shirley’s car seat
and leaped out the window!
In a panic, Shirley stopped the car but her precious
kitty had already vanished from sight.
“To my left, there was a neighborhood with lots of
trees. On the other side, there was a four-acre field,
large enough to build a small housing development,”
recalled Shirley. “No trees or hiding places. I didn’t
see her on the field, so I searched the neighborhood
by foot. When I couldn’t find her, it seemed like an
impossible situation.”
Disheartened, she drove to her friend’s place at the
opposite edge of the field — quite a distance, on a
busy street. When she arrived, Shirley frantically told
her friend the story. He suggested she wait in his pa-
tio while he phoned neighbors to help them search.
“To our absolute surprise and complete amaze-
ment, peacefully napping on a soft outdoor couch in
the shade was Mintara, appearing unconcerned and
at home,” said Shirley. “You might think this was a
place she had been to before. But no! She had nev-
er been out of California, and certainly not to my
friend’s home. Somehow, she knew — or the Angels
led her to his backyard. She was literally waiting for
me! It was as if she had known where she was going
all along.”
After that experience, needless to say, Shirley didn’t
want to take another chance of losing her cat. She
made her a little blue harness to match her eyes and
attached a leash. When they arrived in Eugene, Shir-
ley rented a cottage near the university with a fenced
yard and tall shade trees where her kitty loved to
romp.
“Every day, I’d put on her leash and we’d take a walk
to the Pioneer Cemetery and around the University,”
Shirley said. “I never knew another person to teach
a cat to walk with them on a leash, until I read Mary
Ellen’s story about how her cats loved to walk outside
on their leashes. Her article brought back fun memo-
ries of my college days with Mintara.”
TIPS:
• Veterinarian clinics accept donations for stray/
injured or elderly clients’ pets. You can contribute to
their pet emergency funds or neuter/spay programs.
• Are you a member of the C.O.L. club? When you
have a sleeping Cat On your Lap, it becomes other
family member’s responsibility to run errands, so you
won’t disturb the cat. Or do you choose a different
outfit to wear when your cat is sleeping on your fa-
vorite clothes so you don’t disturb them?
Have you built your pets a “catio,” unique toys or
scratching posts that other readers’ pets would love?
Tell us how you spoil the pet which spoils you with
their love.
Share your fur-avorite pet memory or adventure at
angelscribe@msn.com. Visit Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on
Facebook at/www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales
Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assistance Program.
541-942-2789
