COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2019 | 5A
Local musicians to celebrate Axe & Fiddle ‘Axe-a-Versary’ Friday
In late 2006, a warm
glow and the sounds of
music began pulling peo-
ple out of the chill autumn
air and into a beautifully
restored historic building
on Main Street in Cottage
Grove.
Opening in November
of that year, the Burk-
holder Woods Building
— which included the Axe
& Fiddle Pub and Music
Club, together with the
adjacent Backstage Bak-
ery and Kalapuya Books
— gave a different kind
of crowd a place to get to-
gether, share stories and
make plans. For many
of the area’s musically
minded, the talk natural-
ly turned to tunes. As a
result, several local bands
and other artistic collab-
orations can trace their
beginnings to these early
days downtown.
“It had a galvanizing
quality,” said Cottage
Grove singer, songwriter
and guitarist Chris Forak-
er, whose own group, Gui-
tar Recovery Project, was
formed back then from a
need to replace an instru-
ment stolen from his car
outside the pub. “I didn’t
feel like there was a place
for me as a new transplant,
and it gave a lot of people
a chance to get together.”
This Friday, Nov. 22, be-
ginning at 7 p.m., Cottage
Grove locals and visitors
will again gather at the
Axe & Fiddle — this time
to celebrate the pub’s lucky
13th anniversary. Forak-
er’s new group, Alaskan
Wolverine, will be part of
a locals-heavy lineup that
also includes Sequel and
Cottage Grove’s Flies with
Honey. Local “character”
Cletus the Puppet will
serve as emcee.
Over those 13 years, the
Axe & Fiddle has hosted
countless acts, from locals
participating in an open
mic for the first time to
world-class bands stop-
ping in on their way to a
bigger city.
For Foraker and others,
the availability of a perfor-
mance space downtown
only accelerated the de-
velopment of their own
musical projects and iden-
tities, along with a friend-
ly audience to perform
music for.
“Is there a special qual-
ity to this place that in-
spires people to engage,
to play music together?”
Foraker asked. “Personal-
ly, I really enjoy the com-
munity that I live in. Part
of enjoying it is wanting to
make things that increase
the joy of being here.
“Music is one of those
things we do outside of the
need to make a living. We
do it for the connection
with people, to celebrate
that we’re alive — and ex-
periencing this fascinating
universe together here in
this town.”
The event is free and
open to the public, begin-
ning at 7 p.m.
Pet Tips
‘n’ Tales
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
A baby... Squ-itten?
Cottage Grove Christian School to host bazaar at Armory
Thirteen students from
grades 1 through 7 cur-
rently attend Cottage
Grove Christian School,
which is now in its fourth
year in a shared class-
room at Cottage Grove
Seventh-day
Adventist
Church at 820 S. 10th St.
Dianna Mohr, who
heads the program along
with a group of expe-
rienced assistants, also
coordinates having stu-
dents put on programs for
churches, nursing homes,
meetings and events in
the area.
Students at CGCS,
which is accredited and
part of a large Christian
school system, learn prac-
tical living skills and par-
ticipate in a mentorship
program that pairs an
adult with each child for
cross-generational social
and practical skills educa-
tion.
In keeping with those
goals, the Home and
School Association is
hosting a Christmas Ben-
efit Bazaar at the Cottage
Grove Armory on Sunday,
Dec. 1, from 10 a.m. to 5
p.m.
There will be a silent
auction that ends after the
students sing at 3 p.m. The
auction will provide for
student financial aid and
for other school needs.
“We would be delighted
to have donations for our
silent auction,” said Home
and School President Beth
Boram. “We are thankful
to the many businesses
in town that have already
given gift cards, vouch-
ers and other items. We
appreciate all of the com-
munity support that has
helped us function as a
nonprofit charity to help
young people be success-
ful.”
Vendors and donors
interested in finding out
how to participate in the
upcoming bazaar can Bo-
ram at 541-942-9500 for
information.
Elkton hosting holiday Wreath-making workshop
Art & Wine Weekend to be held at ECEC Dec. 7
The upcoming Elkton
Art & Wine Weekend will
take place Nov. 29, 30 and
Dec. 1.
The event is a great
way to kick off the holi-
day season with tours of
wineries and artist stu-
dios, artisan craft booths,
lodging specials at Big K
Resorts and Elkton RV
Park, and specials at area
shops and restaurants.
Pick up a passport and
map at the Elkton Com-
munity Education Cen-
ter.
For more information,
visit www.elktonbutter-
flies.com or call 541-584-
2692.
On Saturday, Dec. 7,
the community is invited
to participate in holiday
wreath making from 9
a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Elk-
ton Community Educa-
tion Center, 15850 High-
way 38 in Elkton.
The $20 workshop fee
includes materials for one
wreath, including a bow.
Children under age 12
accompanied by an adult
can participate for $5 for
each additional wreath.
Participants
must
RSVP by calling 541-584-
2692 or emailing Info@
elktonbutterflies.com.
Bring gloves and prun-
ers. Refreshments will be
provided.
LORANE NEWS
Contributed by
Lil Thompson
for The Sentinel
• Once again, there was
a wonderful turn out for
the annual Thanksgiving
dinner for the commu-
nity at the Grange hosted
by the Lorane Christian
Church.
Special thanks to all
who came.
• Marissa will have
the annual Angel Trees
out at the Lorane Family
Store and the Crow HS
gym. Plus there will be
food boxes up in all or-
ganizations to help those
6-day
weather forecast
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
54° | 31°
55° | 33°
Sunny
Sunny
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
54° | 36°
49° | 37°
Partly Cloudy
Rain
MONDAY
TUESDAY
47° | 37°
Rain
48° | 36°
Rain
Prepare more than a policy
to plan in event of disaster.
We can develop your business’ emergency plan.
Call today (541) 942-0555.
PayneWest.com/Cottage-Grove
families less fortunate
than others.
If you know if some-
one in need of assistance
or you, yourself, needs
help in the Lorane/ Crow
area, contact Marissa
Cooper.
Or if you can help get
an Angel from the tree to
help a child have a better
Christmas.
• Congratulations to
all the Fall Sports teams
for a great season.
• Just a reminder to all
interested in the 1995
Mustang at the high
school; drawing for win-
ner is noon on Nov. 25.
Contact Mr. Bloom in
Shop class or the high
school office for more
information.
• Conferences at Crow
M/HS School are Tues-
day, Nov. 26, from 4 to
8 p.m. and Wednesday,
Nov. 27 from 8 a.m. to
noon.
Transmissions Plus &
AUTOMOTIVE
SPECIALTIES
PRACTICING THE ART OF TRANSMISSION REPAIR SERVICE SINCE 1991
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
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
Emme, a purr-eviously homeless tabby has “Pay(ed) it For-
ward” by fostering a baby squirrel, Rocky, the Squ-itten!
(photo by Jim Watkins)
J
im and his wife, Karen, started The Accidental Cat-
tery, well... accidently.
“When we realized we couldn’t save every cat in
the world,” said Karen, “we began saving those in our
corner of it by providing vaccinations, emergency care
and preventing future feral cat litters through TNR
(trap/neuter/release). Before retiring, we had rescued
and helped hundreds of cats.”
One rescue, Emme, had been “adopted” by a woman
who witnessed the starving, pregnant cat begging door-
to-door at her apartment complex. Disregarding the
“No Pets” rule, the woman hid the expectant mom in
her apartment allowing Emme to safely give birth to her
litter.
Days later, the woman saw a baby squirrel fall from a
tree. Unable to return it to the tree, she gave it to Emme
who judiciously welcomed the squirrel, grooming and
caring for it like one of her kittens. When he’d wander
away from his ‘siblings’, Emme would lovingly reach
over and gently pull him back to her. When the wom-
an’s apartment was scheduled for an inspection, she took
Emme and her “babies” to a veterinary clinic. The clinic
knew of Jim and Karen’s rescue group so they phoned
them. Jim and Karen brought the furry family home,
having no idea that their act of kindness would bring
them international fame!
“We named the little grey squirrel ‘Rocky,’ after the
flying squirrel in the animated ‘The Rocky & Bullwin-
kle Show’ television series,” said Jim. “The oddest thing
about Rocky is that he purred when we held him and
rubbed his head. Curiously, I looked up purring on
Wikipedia and discovered that rabbits, squirrels, guinea
pigs, tapirs, ring-tailed lemurs, elephants, raccoons and
gorillas also purr.”
Initially, Emme’s family was corralled in a dog kennel,
until Rocky crawled out and up their walls. So, they were
moved to the screened back porch, where Rocky enthu-
siastically and safely crawled up and down screens and
brick walls.
“From Emme’s expression, it was obvious that she was
unaccustomed to having a kitten able to perform this
marvelous feat,” laughed Jim. “Soon, Rocky found ways
to wiggle out of the screens to climb trees, so I fixed all
the holes in the rafter area. He chattered his disapproval
at me, and it wasn’t long before his natural instincts led
him to chew his way out to freedom.”
At five months of age, Rocky left to sow his wild oats,
despite the steady supply of food and nuts that were put
out for him. Poor Emme sat on our porch pining for her
“squ-itten” baby. When Rocky occasionally returned for
a visit, Emme was thrilled to see him, rushing over and
reaching out her paw to pull him to her. Seeing “mor-
tal enemies” displaying love for each other was moving,
said Jim. “We learned a lot about love from Emme and
Rocky.”
Whatever happened to gentle Emme?
“After her kittens were weaned and she was spayed,
her kindness was “Pay(ed) Forward” by a loving a family
who adopted and cares for her as she did Rocky,” said
Jim.
Whether Rocky considers himself a former kitten or
“squi-tten” remains a mystery. Their story has gone viral
into homes and hearts via the internet.
“I was surprised at the response to Rocky’s CNN news
report,” admits Jim, “It’s been seen 12 million times on
YouTube.”
View them on CNN at www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-
HT1nAX46dM&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Information on Jim’s series of “Emme and Rocky”
children’s books: AccidentalCattery@att.net
TIPS:
“As a child I had two red fox pups who ate with our
dogs,” said Jim. “But at seven months the foxes reverted
to their true nature and became aggressive. I also had
two cuddly bobcat kittens, but it did not take long before
they were too dangerous to have around. The goal with
wild animals should always remain to release them to
follow their instincts and live their lives naturally. Often,
fostered wild animals’ kidneys suffer because they are
not fed what their bodies need, resulting in shorter, un-
healthy lives.” Jim urges animal lovers to adopt cats and
dogs from rescue groups, “They have amazing, lovable
pets available.”
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
