Polk County Itemizer-Observer • July 8, 2015 5A
Polk County News
Beating the Summer Heat
Heat:
No end
in sight
to dry
stretch
Continued from 1A
He just began harvesting
tall fescue, the earliest in the
season Quiring can remem-
ber. Other crops, peas and
wheat will be ready early,
too.
Quiring said this season
gives him mixed emotions.
“You’re glad to get it done
early, but when there’s not
much out there, it’s kind of
depressing,” he said.
Nicole Anderson, who
works with commercial
farmers through Oregon
State University Extension
Service, said she’s seeing the
same pattern throughout the
region. Harvests look to be
two weeks ahead of sched-
ule. Yields are 20 to 30 per-
cent lower on dryland farms
as opposed to irrigated.
“Irrigation will certainly
pay this year,” she said.
Area vineyards would ap-
preciate a little rain in the
next few months, too.
Bruce Sonnen, vineyard
manager for Van Duzer Vine-
yards, said the season start-
ed well as far as rainfall was
concerned, then it dried out.
The storm in early June was
helpful in that it mitigated a
mostly dry May and June.
Sonnen said an inch of
rain in July and August
would be ideal, but all is not
lost if that doesn’t happen.
He said it would be reminis-
cent of 2012, which was a
good year for dark, flavorful
reds.
He said that is the result
of “stressed” vines producing
smaller berries, which ele-
vates the grape skin-to-juice
ratio in the wine.
“Stressed vines make the
best wines,” he said.
Hot, dry weather still has
its risks though. Warm
evenings create a more
agreeable environment for
powdery mildew.
“Our biggest concern as
growers in the valley is fire
danger,” Sonnen said.
If fire season is especially
intense this year, the smoke
in the air could “taint” the
grapes to the point it can be
tasted in the fruit.
Locally, it’s been so far, so
good on the fire front. Since
the countywide burn ban
was called on June 16, fire-
fighters in Dallas have yet to
respond to any major fires.
Dallas Fire & EMS spokes-
woman April Welsh said
crews have been called to as-
sist on calls for other agen-
cies, but nothing that has
gotten too far out of hand.
Even over July Fourth
weekend, it was fairly quiet.
“People were being really
responsible with fireworks,”
Welsh said. “People are tak-
ing it pretty seriously.”
If this is to remain a quiet
fire season, people need to
remain vigilant. Welsh cau-
tioned people to properly
dispose of cigarette butts
and use caution when work-
ing outdoors and barbecu-
ing.
“Keep a fire extinguisher
or garden hose around when
doing work outside, even
mowing … dry grass can
catch fire,” Welsh said.
Fundraiser honors
Randy Whittaker
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer
Two Junior Master Gardeners campers prepare for a refreshing blast of cool water
on the last day of the three-day camp July 1. In addition to water games, they
learned about insects, plants, forestry, pollination, germination and eating healthy.
DALLAS — Polk County
Jail staff will mark the an-
niversary of losing Sgt.
Randy Whittaker by doing
something that would
make him proud.
Whittaker, who worked at
the Polk County Jail for 15
years, was killed in a car ac-
cident July 18, 2014. His col-
leagues couldn’t let the date
pass without doing some-
thing to celebrate who
Whittaker was, said jail em-
ployee Jody Germond.
The department will hold
a barbecue in his honor July
17, raising money for the
Correctional Peace Officer
Foundation, which provid-
ed support to Whittaker’s
family after his death. Also,
Polk County employees will
hold a pet supply drive
through the month of July.
Germond said Whittaker
had many pets and loved
animals, giving donations
every Christmas to shelters.
“That was just his thing,”
Germond said. “He was a
huge pet person and it just
seemed like the right thing
to do. He would be proud
of us doing it.”
The barbecue will be in
the jail parking lot from 11
a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 17.
Hamburgers and hot dogs
with all the sides and fixings
will be on the menu for $5
per person. People also can
contribute to the pet supply
drive that day. Those who
drop off pet supplies will be
entered into a drawing for
door prizes.
For more information:
503-623-9251.
Work: Variety of opportunities at fair
Looking for
Work?
What: Polk County
Job Fair.
When: 11 a.m. to 7
p.m. July 15.
Where: Central
High School’s cafete-
ria, 1530 Monmouth
St., Independence.
Of note: More than
100 jobs will be avail-
able at the job fair.
Employers will be
ready to hire, so par-
ticipants should be
ready to be hired.
Bring a resume — or
the information need-
ed to put on together
with WorkSource Ore-
gon representa-
tives — and dress the
part.
For more informa-
tion: inciteworks.org.
Continued from 1A
“We can sit down and do
a mock interview, give a cri-
tique about what to do bet-
ter,” Gibson said.
Be ready to interview, she
said. Bring a resume and
dress appropriately.
In today’s Internet world,
most companies require on-
line applications. While rep-
resentatives from Work-
Dallas Downtown Association
invites all to celebrate the
Renaissance of the Blue Garden
with Bob Collins at
Pressed Coffee & Wine Bar
Thursday, July 16 at 7:00 pm
788 Main Street, Dallas
Email: dallasdowntownassociation@outlook.com
www.dallasdowntownassociation.com
Recycle this newspaper.
Dallas Lions Club’s 7th Annual
Start at Levens St. Bridge - Finish at Main St. Bridge
Saturday
July 25 • 2:30pm
Tickets
$
2
PER
DUCK
1st Prize: $100 Cash
Sponsors include:
• Priority Plumbing
• The Car Doctor
• Grand Ronde Tribes
• King’s Pumping
All proceeds for service projects. • Dallas Animal Clinic
#7
Tickets are available at Wal-Mart all Sundays in July, and
at Postal Connections, Dallas on weekdays.
Music in the Park
Main St. Park • Monmouth
Every Wednesday through August 26 ~ 6:30pm
MUSIC, FOOD, BEER & WINE GARDEN
Look for
Music in the Park
Series on Face-
book for more in-
formation about
this year’s artists.
Performing Tonight
July 8
Hwy 99 West
(Country)
FREE AND OPEN
TO THE PUBLIC
Bring
your chairs
and blankets and
we’ll see you in
the park!
Solution on Page 9A
Source Oregon will be on
hand to help fill those out,
one unique thing about a
job fair is the old-fashioned
face time.
“That’s the beauty of having
a job fair,” Gibson said. “To
meet the human resources
person and look them in the
eye, that’s priceless. You don’t
get that very often.”
With all the help and op-
For More Information Contact:
Mark Fancey 503-751-0147
portunities in one place,
Irvine said people should be
able to find help looking for
work.
“People should walk out
of there, if not a job in hand,
a very solid, ‘show up on this
day at this time for a final in-
terview’ sort of thing,” he
said.
ATTENTION
Students & Teachers
Dallas High Class of 1970
45th Class Reunion
Festivities Schedule
Fri., July 24th 2015 6:00-9:00 pm.
Meet at Abby’s Pizza in North Dallas for an evening of fun &
getting reacquainted. Food & drinks are on your own.
Sat., July 25th, 2015 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Parade in downtown Dallas 5:00 pm til ?
Dinner: Hawaiian Theme. Come dressed for the occasion.
DJ, dancing, video presentation and more.
$45 person, $80 couple (advanced reservations needed),
Evy Kristensen 503-816-9009 for tickets & info.
Sun., July 26, 2015 7:00 am - 11:00 am
Breakfast in the Park (on your own)
Potluck Family Picnic 1:00 pm Dallas Park, Brandvold Kitchen,
near footbridge.