Polk County Itemizer-Observer • September 23, 2015 13A
Polk County News/Education
Prepared: Being ready will help all No new taxes for
Dallas builders
Continued from Page 1A
But a short text message
or a call to a friend or rela-
tive outside the damage
zone could get through.
That person could relay
messages about the status
and whereabouts of family
members.
Townsend said when it
comes to talking with chil-
dren about those plans,
being clear and truthful is
best.
“We have to be honest
with our kids,” said. “There
is this pervasive piece of ‘I
don’t want to scare them.’
You are just creating victims
(when you do that).”
School board makes no decision to
move forward on starting excise tax
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
Building your kit
Stocking food and sup-
plies for three months for
each family member —
Townsend’s minimum rec-
ommendation — sounds in-
timidating.
It’s a big task that will re-
quire commitment and
planning, but it can be done.
Polk County CERT has a
“stocking schedule” avail-
able that would have you
there in one year, putting
away a little bit at a time.
“The cheapest way to
make a food supply is make
it yourself. If you don’t know
how to can, you should take
a class,” Townsend said. “It is
so easy to put away food in
our fertile little valley.”
The recommended
amount of water per person,
per day is one gallon.
That would be difficult to
store for a long period of
time, so you may have to get
creative.
If the electricity is out, you
could use the water in the
water heater in your home.
Filtration systems, from
large containers to individ-
ual straws, are available at
outdoor supply stores and
could prove to be a better
long-term option, Townsend
said.
Bryan Jobe and Pat Pip-
pin, of Fifty1Fifty3 Tactical
in Monmouth, which carries
an inventory of survival gear,
said when people consider
emergency supplies they
need to think about the fol-
lowing: medications, water,
food, something to light a
fire, a small amount of extra
gasoline, copies of impor-
tant documents, cash, cloth-
ing, shelter from the ele-
ments, and a weather radio.
Don’t forget about storing
food and supplies for your
pets, too.
“People need to consider
that their house may not be
livable,” Pippin said. “But
don’t overthink it. Keep it
simple. Think about it as
going camping outside. Put
everything in a tote in the
garage where you can grab it
and go.”
Pippen said consider
stocking food that could be a
source of comfort — not in
the homemade mac ’n’
cheese kind of way — but
JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer
Pat Pippin points out solar chargers for electronics, available at Fifty1Fifty3 Tactical
supply shop in Monmouth. The shop sells a variety of items for an emergency kit.
Learn more
• Polk County CERT
will be launching its fall
training class on Oct. 3.
The class focuses on
preparing citizens to be
ready for and assist dur-
ing emergencies of all
types. Anyone wishing
to sign-up for the course
should contact Kimber
Tow n s e n d
at:
KTownsend@polkcoun-
tycert.org.
• For tips on creating
emergency plans for all
types of disasters, go to
“Be Ready Dallas” on
Facebook.
• Polk County’s Emer-
gency Management
page has several pre-
paredness handouts to
help get you started.
They can be found at
www.co.polk.or.us/sher-
iff/em/emergency-man-
agement.
• American Red Cross:
www.redcross.org/pre-
pare/location/home -
family.
• www.ready.gov.
something familiar in a
stressful situation.
There is no harm in stor-
ing something you like to
eat.
“You should stock things
that you would normally eat,
not just what is cheap,” Jobe
said. “It’s (the disaster is) al-
ready going to be a shock to
your system.”
For example, Jobe, a cof-
fee drinker, recommended
putting some instant coffee
in the supply.
The pair could list numer-
ous items that would be use-
ful in an emergency kit, but
said people don’t have to
spend hundreds of dollars.
“You are never going to
get everything you want,”
Jobe said. “Just try to get to a
comfort level.”
Pippin said organization
What should be in your
emergency kit?
• Food: Ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits, vegetables and
a can opener; protein or fruit bars; dry cereal or granola;
peanut butter, dried fruit, nuts; crackers, canned juices, non-
perishable pasteurized milk; high energy foods; vitamins,
food for infants; comfort/stress foods and pet food.
• Following a disaster, there may be power outages that
could last for several days. Stock canned foods, dry mixes
and other staples that do not require refrigeration, cooking,
water or special preparation. Be sure to include a manual
can opener and eating utensils.
• Water: You should store at least one gallon of water per
person for three days. A normally active person needs about
three quarters of a gallon of fluid daily, from water and other
beverages. However, individual needs vary, depending on
age, health, physical condition, activity, diet and climate.
• Supplies: Battery-powered or hand crank radio and
NOAA weather radio and extra batteries for both; flashlight
with extra batteries; first aid kit; whistle to signal for help;
dust mask to filter contaminated air; plastic sheeting and
duct tape to keep a shelter in place; moist towelettes,
garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation;
wrench or pliers to turn off utilities; manual can opener for
food; local maps; cell phone with chargers, inverter or solar
charger.
• Personal: Medications, toothpaste, toothbrush, toilet
paper and other personal needs should not be overlooked.
Also, consider a deck of cards, well-loved book or some
other kind of small, no-electricity-needed form of entertain-
ment.
Source: www.ready.gov/kit.
of those resources is critical,
as well.
“When the earthquake
hits, that’s not the time to go
running through the house,”
he said, suggesting that fam-
ilies keep designated storage
areas in their homes for
emergency supplies.
Talking and planning with
neighbors is always a good
idea, Jobe said.
Pippin added storing up
extra to help others who are
not as prepared is some-
thing to keep in mind, too.
“Hungry people do crazy
things,” he said.
It’s a sobering thought,
but certainly possible that
people would panic if nor-
mal society — including
basic services — is disrupted
for an extended amount of
time, Townsend added.
“Anyone who sees what
happens in the aftermath of
a major incident knows that
looting and rioting happen,”
Townsend said. “That is
going to happen and fami-
lies should be prepared to
defend themselves and what
they have.”
Are you ready? Did we
miss something? Send us a
letter to the editor with more
tips for those wanting to get
started preparing for the Big
One — or any other emer-
gency.
DALLAS — The Dallas
School Board ended its dis-
cussion about charging a
construction excise tax
without a vote on Sept. 14.
Similar to systems devel-
opment fees used to ex-
pand infrastructure —
streets, water and sewer
systems and parks — the
fee could only be used to
acquire land or help pay for
improvements or new
school construction.
In 2007, the Oregon State
Legislature passed a law al-
lowing school boards to
charge the tax, which
would become part of the
permit fees on new resi-
dential or commercial con-
struction.
The topic has been on
the board’s agenda since
May. This is the second
time the board has consid-
ered using the tax.
If the district had imple-
mented the tax in 2007, it
would have received about
$430,000 since.
That is not enough
money to convince some
board members to support
the proposal, with a main
concern of placing the bur-
den of paying the fee on
new home builders.
Board member Mike
Blanchard also believes ap-
proving the fee would hurt
the district’s chances of
passing a more lucrative
tax levy in the future.
“It’s not enough to do
anything substantial over
the next several years,” he
said. “It’s really not, com-
pared to what our bonding
capability is. We are six or
seven years away from put-
ting together a proposal for
the community.
“Looking at this last elec-
tion that turned on 200 or
250 votes, it wasn’t that
many votes,” he continued,
referring the $17 million
maintenance levy passed
in November 2014. “The re-
ward doesn’t justify the
risks.”
Board Chairwoman Lu
Ann Meyer disagreed.
She said her support of
the tax wasn’t intended to
single out a certain group
of people — new home
builders — but to give the
district another option to
pay for rising costs.
The funds collected from
the tax would allow the dis-
trict to budget money in
other areas, she said.
“There’s an opportunity
for us to have some in-
creased funding for our
school district. As much as
I want to be sensitive, I
know that my priority is
what can we do for the stu-
dents?” she said.
“If we have revenue that
we can bring into the dis-
trict to cover, whether it’s
additional costs or main-
taining programs, I think
we should do it,” she noted.
“And I don’t think we
should feel guilty about it
when I get a two-page re-
port that shows all the
other districts in Oregon
that are doing it.”
After several minutes of
discussion, no one made a
motion to take a vote on
the tax.
Pertussis case at Dallas schools
DALLAS — Polk County Public Health identified two cases of
pertussis, or whooping cough, one at Whitworth Elementary
School and another at Oakdale Heights Elementary School on
Thursday.
Letters warning parents were sent home with students and
posted on the Dallas School District’s website and Facebook
page Thursday afternoon.
Pertussis is a highly contagious and potentially serious bac-
terial infection spread by coughing and sneezing. The illness
begins with relatively mild cold-like symptoms turning into a
severe cough, which can cause gagging or vomiting, within a
few weeks.
The letter can be found at: http://www.dallas.k12.or.us/#!per-
tussis-whooping-cough/c1uue.
For more information about symptoms, treatment and pre-
vention, call your doctor, Polk County Public Health, 503-623-
8175 or the Dallas School District nurse, 503-623-8351.
For more school notes, see Page 9A
Calvary Chapel Dallas
Service
Jubilee
Any season or occasion of rejoicing or festivity unto the Lord!
Last Sunday Evening of Each Month • 6:30 to 7:30 pm
628 SE Jefferson Street, Dallas
Dallas Booster Club Auction
Mark your calendar for Saturday, October 3rd at 6PM
Nesmith Readiness Center • Tickets are $25.00 each
Donations and Gift Cards of any amount needed
for a new section of the Auction.
Don’t Miss this Main Fundraiser of the Year!
Come enjoy old time hymns and blue grass music.
Bring your musical instrument and join in.
Songs you love to sing! Prayer & Testimonies
P.S. Hand clapping and loud singing is encouraged!
A short message from God’s Word • Dallas community is invited.
If you have a donation or wish to purchase tickets call 503-881-0594
Most of the funding for DHS Athletics is provided by Boosters. Here are just a few...
Baseball Mound Turf
New Chairs
Weight Room Equipment
Basketball Hoops Softball Scoreboards
Solution on Page 3A
What?
8th Annual Silent Auction
$20 ticket includes authentic Asian dinner and
non-alcoholic beverages. No host wine/beer available.
When? Saturday, Oct. 10th at 6:00 pm
Where? Eola Hills Wine Cellars
501 S Pacific Highway 99W, Rickreall, Oregon
Why?
Join us for an evening of fun
and fellowship in support of
the Bambinos ministry!
For additional information: Beth 503•508•6043