Polk County Voices Polk County Itemizer-Observer • August 12, 2015 4A How to Contact Officials LETTERS TO THE EDITOR haps briefly mention the kids and their season were met with no response. So, to Brody Cain, Jared Coxen, Cole Dunaway, Lan- den Gardener, Colby John- son, Michael Lafferty, John- ny Latte, Ian Pendley, Brody Roberts, Drake Robertson, and Reese Wallace: Great job boys and congratula- tions on an excellent and exciting season. Support nursery in this time of need Over the years I’ve watched the growth of one of Dallas’s finest nurseries, Daryll’s. He has toiled to create an environment of beauty. Unfortunately, his business has succumbed to the Oregon drought. He has generously con- tributed to the community. While at the nursery, I heard a woman say, “You’ve done so much for Master Garden- ers; we have brought you containers of water.” Anoth- er gentleman stated he was looking for a truck or large container for water. To see the concern by individuals to save his business was overwhelming. Daryll’s variety of plants is amazing; one never needs to worry about quality. At his business he’s always available for questions and suggestions. His employees are informed and show an interest in their work. His display at Art in the Park was, yes, a work of art. Daryll stated, “I’ve never seen anything like this; my recourse is to have my fall sale two months early and hope we can come back next year. I appreciate everyone’s concern.” The members of our community should support Daryll in this difficult time. Judee Ward Dallas Efforts of all made Polk Fair success Now that the 2015 Polk County Fair is one for the history books, we would like to take the time to thank the community for your sup- port for 4-H. Thanks to the parents and leaders for helping young people gain knowl- edge and skills and reach their goals. We greatly appreciate our many award donors. It helps us honor our out- standing winners ranging from fair premium money to college scholarships. It’s so exciting to watch the smiles and elation as kids earn their first blue ribbon or trophy. The Polk County Live- stock Association is tremen- dously helpful as the spon- Gordon Dunaway Dallas Changes to fair prove successful sor of our Market Auction program. Their organization and management makes it possible for youth to recoup much of the cost of raising their market animal proj- ects. The auction wouldn’t be successful without the buyers. Profits from auction will pay feed bills, invest in schools clothes and sup- plies, or school fees and col- lege tuition, going right back into the local econo- my. Thanks to the fair board and management for the terrific job organizing the details. The superintendents do an outstanding job or- ganizing the barns, classes and judging. It takes hun- dreds of hours of prepara- tion to carry out the fair. I would like to shout out to our rabbit superinten- dent, leaders, members and parents for your coopera- tion with the changes in the rabbit show due to an out- break of Myxomatosis. You’re awesome. Bravo to our teen super- intendents. Seeing the growth in our older youth as they help in the 4-H Fair Of- fice makes you believe in the future of our country. It truly takes a village, and Polk County 4-H is thankful to be part of your village. You have contributed great- ly to the many exciting and positive experiences for our 4-H participants. Thanks for your part in helping shape the leaders of tomorrow. Suzi Busler and the Polk County 4-H staff: Judi Peters, Pam Scharf and Carla Cudmore Dallas Dallas JBO team earns recognition This summer a group of boys that made up the 13- to 14-year old Senior Na- tional Baseball team here in Dallas was not only success- ful on the field, but also rep- resented our community and their families at the highest level. The boys came together in April and quickly estab- lished themselves as a league favorite. Through excellent coach- ing and a lot of hard work, they became a team that was not only successful in terms of wins and losses, but also a group of kids you loved to watch and root for. The team ended the regu- lar season tied for first place in their division and earned a berth in the JBO Senior National District Tourna- ment held right here in Dal- las in mid-July. Despite having to play seven games in three days, the kids were able to take second place and earn a spot in the Senior National State Championship Tour- nament held in Corvallis July 16-19. Fighting the fatigue from having played seven games just a few days prior, the boys played hard and fin- ished 2-2 in the state tour- nament. The strong showing in the championship tournament capped a fun, exciting, and successful season. Despite finishing tied for first place in their division, hosting and finishing in sec- ond place in the district tournament, and playing very well in the state tour- nament, the boys never got a mention from their local newspaper. Requests made to the Itemizer-Observer to per- I would like to thank everyone who turned out for the 2015 Polk County Fair. This year there was an in- crease in exhibits from our community in the open class area as well as an in- crease in our 4-H programs. The Polk County fair is a once a year opportunity for everyone to show off their talents, gather with friends and family, and celebrate all that is great about Polk County. This year proved to be a great celebration. I also want to personally thank the Polk County Fair staff. They all work extreme- ly hard to make sure that the fair is enjoyable for the exhibitors, the vendors and the attendees. There were a lot of changes this year, and it showed in the success. Again thank you everyone for attending and support- ing such a wonderful event. If by chance you missed it, make sure you mark your calendars for opening day of the 2016 Polk County Fair Aug. 4. Anna Scharf Perrydale WANT TO WRITE A LETTER? Letters to the editor are lim- ited to 300 words. Longer letters will be edited. Each writer is restricted to one letter per 30-day period. Letters that are libelous, ob- scene or in bad taste will not be printed. Attacks by name on businesses or individuals will not be printed. Letters to the editor that are obvious promotions for a busi- ness, products or services will not be printed. Letter writers who disagree with other published letter writ- ers should maintain a civil dis- course and address the subject, not the author. Letters, like all editorial mate- rial submitted to the newspaper, are edited for length, grammar and content. Letters must include the au- thor’s name, address and tele- phone number. This includes letters submitted via the I-O’s website. Names and cities of res- idence are published. Letters must be submitted from indi- viduals, not organizations, and must be original submissions to the I-O. Letters of thanks to busi- nesses, individuals and organi- zations are limited to 10 names. The deadline for letters to the editor is 10 a.m. Monday. Let- ters submitted may not be re- tractable after this deadline. — Reach us at: Mail: Editor, Polk County Itemizer-Observer, P.O. Box 108, Dallas, OR 97338. Fax: 503-623-2395. Email: ionews@polkio.com. Office: 147 SE Court St., Dallas. GOVERNOR Gov. Kate Brown (Dem.) 160 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-378-4582 Email: via website, http://governor.oregon.gov/ — STATE LEGISLATORS Sen. Arnie Roblan (District 5, Democrat) S-417 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1705 sen.arnieroblan@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/roblan Sen. Jackie Winters (District 10, Republican) S-301 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1710 sen.jackiewinters@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/winters Sen. Brian Boquist (District 12, Republican) S-305 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1712 sen.brianboquist@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/boquist Rep. David Gomberg (District 10, Democrat) H-471 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1410 rep.davidgomberg@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg Rep. Paul Evans (District 20, Democrat) H-281 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1420 rep.paulevans@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/evans Rep. Mike Nearman (District 23, Republican) H-378 State Capitol 900 Court St. NE Salem, OR 97301 503-986-1423 rep.mikenearman@state.or.us www.oregonlegislature.gov/nearman — U.S. CONGRESS Sen. Ron Wyden (Dem.) 221 Dirksen SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-5244 Fax: 202-228-2717 Salem office: 707 13th St. SE, Suite 285, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-589-4555 Email: via website, www.wyden.senate.gov PUBLIC AGENDA Public Agenda is a listing of upcoming meetings for governmental and nongovernmental agencies in Polk County. To submit a meeting, send it at least two weeks before the actual meeting date to the Itemizer-Observer via fax (503-623-2395) or email (ionews@polkio.com). WEDNESDAY, AUG. 12 • Monmouth Library Advisory Board — 7 a.m., Monmouth Public Library meeting room, 168 S. Ecols St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Monmouth Park and Recreation Board — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. THURSDAY, AUG. 13 • Polk County Fire District No. 1 Board — 6 p.m., Central Station 90, 1800 Monmouth St., Inde- pendence. 503-838-1510. • Polk County Fair Board — 8 a.m., Arts and Crafts Building at the Polk County Fairgrounds & Event Center, , 520 S. Pacific Highway (99W), Rickreall. 503-623-3048. • Falls City City Council — 7:30 p.m., Falls City Community Center, 320 N. Main St., Falls City. 503- 787-3631. MONDAY, AUG. 17 • Independence Historic Preservation Commission — 4 p.m., Independence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St., Independence. 503-838-1212. • MINET Board of Directors retreat work session — 7:30 a.m., Henry Hill Educational Support Center, 750 S. Fifth St., Independence. 503-580-8525. TUESDAY, AUG. 18 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Monmouth City Council — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503-838-0722. WEDNESDAY, AUG. 19 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. • Monmouth Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., Monmouth. 503- 838-0722. Sen. Jeff Merkley (Dem.) 313 Hart SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Fax: 202-228-3997 Salem office: 495 State St. SE, Suite 330, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-362-8102 Email: via website, www.merkley.senate.gov Rep. Kurt Schrader (Dem.) 108 Cannon HOB Washington, D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-5711 Fax: 202-225-5699 Salem office: 544 Ferry St. SE, Suite 2, Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-588-9100 Fax: 503-588-5517 Email: via website, www.schrader.house.gov — POLK COUNTY Board of Commissioners 850 Main St. Dallas, OR 97338 Phone: 503-623-8173 www.co.polk.or.us — CITIES Dallas 187 SE Court St. Dallas, OR 97338 503-623-2338 www.ci.dallas.or.us Falls City 299 Mill St. Falls City, OR 97344 503-787-3631 www.fallscityoregon.gov Independence 555 S. Main St. Independence, OR 97351 503-838-1212 www.ci.independence.or.us Monmouth 151 W. Main St. Monmouth, OR 97361 503-838-0722 www.ci.monmouth.or.us HOW TO REACH US Vol. 140, No. 32 (USPS) - 437-380) The official newspaper of Polk County • Serving Polk County families since 1875 Winner of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 General Excellence Awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Periodicals postage paid at Dallas, OR, Independence, OR and Monmouth, OR. Published weekly at 147 SE Court Street Dallas, Oregon 97338 Phone: 503-623-2373 Fax: 503-623-2395 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Polk County — One Year $27 Other Oregon Counties — One Year $33 Outside of Oregon — One Year $38 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Polk County Itemizer-Observer, P.O. Box 108, Dallas, Oregon 97338 The Polk County Itemizer-Observer assumes no financial responsibility for errors in adver- tisements. It will, however, reprint without charge for the portion of an advertisement which is in error if the Itemizer-Observer is at fault. 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