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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 2, 2015)
RICKREALL CHRISTMAS PAGEANT Volume 140, Issue 48 JENNIFER TRESS DIVING Page 7A INTO COACHING Page 10A www.Polkio.com 75¢ December 2, 2015 IN YOUR TOWN DIVERSITY DALLAS Dallas H igh’s ad- vanced theater class ready to become a “story machine”. »Page 14A FALLS CITY Falls City city council votes to apply for a grant to help cover the cost of a new water master plan. Acceptance more common than not GRAPHIC BY KATHY HUGGINS/ITEMIZER-OBSERVER By Jolene Guzman, Lukas Eggen and Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer POLK COUNTY — The population of Polk County could hardly be character- ized as diverse. According to the U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Five- year American Community Survey, the city of Dallas is approximately 93 percent white; Monmouth is 85 per- cent; Independence is 82 percent; and Falls City’s population is 90 percent white. But does that mean Polk County communities are in- tolerant of people of other races, cultures and sexual orientations? Aside from isolated inci- dents of discrimination, largely the answer might be no. There’s evidence that atti- tudes are shifting to more acceptance, but there’s still room for improvement. Dallas and the KKK For Dallas, and to a lesser extent, Falls City, some of that work may be in over- coming a persistent reputa- tion of racism or intolerance of outsiders. Dallas can’t seem to shake the ghosts of the Klu Klux Klan, which made it presence felt in Dallas — and many other communi- ties in Oregon — in the 2009-2013 Monmouth population 2009-2013 Dallas population TOTAL POPULATION: 9,687 White: 8,201 Black or African American: 61 American Indian & Alaska Native: 136 Asian: 299 Native Hawaiian & Other Paciic Islander: 0 Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 1,468 Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Five-Year American Community Survey TOTAL POPULATION: 14,689 White: 13,680 Black or African American: 17 American Indian & Alaska Native: 140 Asian: 102 Native Hawaiian & Other Paciic Islander: 72 Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 618 Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Five-Year American Community Survey 2009-2013 Falls City population 2009-2013 Independence population TOTAL POPULATION: 1,015 White: 916 Black or African American: 0 American Indian & Alaska Native: 30 Asian: 0 Native Hawaiian & Other Paciic Islander: 0 Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 24 Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Five-Year American Community Survey TOTAL POPULATION: 8,608 White: 7,039 Black or African American: 55 American Indian & Alaska Native: 67 Asian: 101 Native Hawaiian & Other Paciic Islander: 0 Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 3,219 Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Five-Year American Community Survey early 1920s. Stories have been told of secretive meetings, secret tunnels beneath the town that al- lowed members of the Klan to attend those gatherings undetected, and a long-ru- mored — and long-lost — list of Dallas residents who were members. Probably the most com- mon of those stories told is the Dallas High School’s mascot, the Dragon, was named after “grand drag- ons,” what the Klan called its leaders. Sue Rohde, a local area historian, and 1965 graduate of DHS, doesn’t believe that is true and that the stories only began circulating decades after the Klan fell from influence. “It’s amusing to me be- cause I grew up here and I didn’t really hear much about it,” Rohde said. “I never, ever heard that the mascot was named after the grand dragon. The first time I heard all this stuff was when my daughter moved to town and, her first week or two on the job in Dallas was all these sto- ries about the Dragons and the KKK.” That was 12 years ago, long after Klansman were part of parades in Dallas and other communities in the 1920s. While she doesn’t believe it’s true, Rohde thinks be- cause the rumor is so com- mon, Dallas will be stuck with the story forever. “I think it’s probably here to stay,” Rohde said. “I con- sider it as an urban legend.” That said, Rohde said looking back in the years she grew up in Dallas, while nothing specific was said, she believes there were somewhat wide-spread in- tolerant attitudes. She sees that changing. “I always got the feeling that there were groups of people who felt this way, but it was never spoken,” Rohde »Page 3A INDEPENDENCE Independence Civic Center is ready to get people in the holiday spirit with Christmas Movie Series in both English and Spanish. »Page 3A MONMOUTH Author brings ro- mance to alpaca farm in new book. »Page 13A SPORTS Tony Ollif inds his calling in coaching Dal- las’ wrestling team. said. “I think a lot of the basic ideas that we were raised with are still there, even though, in this day and age, kids are making more and more decisions and are more inquisitive than we ever were.” Skin-deep diferences The halls of schools in Polk County are a reflec- tion of the community, where you aren’t likely to find many minority stu- dents — a fact not lost on students. To Rohde’s point, though, high school students don’t seem overly concerned about race. See DIVERSITY, Page 5A »Page 10A EDUCATION Local agencies learn valuable lessons through active shooter drill. »Pages 14A POWER OUTAGE Paciic Power re - sponded to an outage that afected 2,243 cus- tomers in Dallas and Falls City on Tuesday. Showell ‘does everything’ in Independence By Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer INDEPENDENCE — Dori Showell exemplifies the spir- it of giving each day, whether it is through saying yes to helping a project or friend, or sharing a bright smile and hug. Showell, 45, has a person- al story of triumph, but her accolades stretch beyond herself as she’s touched the heart of Independence. “She does everything,” said Cynthia Jaramillo, of the Independence Elks Lodge. “With Dori, you can ask her to help and she’s all for it, right away. She doesn’t even THE NEXT 7 DAYS PLANNING FOR YOUR WEEK question it.” Showell’s journey to vol- unteering started with building the Independence Dog Park in 2011. While suffering from se- vere depression caused by multiple sclerosis, Showell said she started out as a bit- ter, angry person. “I realized there was an- other person who I needed to find,” she said. “I started to meet new people, make new friends, smile more, laugh more.” Her love for her four- legged friends overcame her bitterness as she dove into helping raise money to build an off-leash dog park. “I’ve always wanted a dog park,” she said. “Dogs are amazing. I always said if I won the lottery, I was going to build a dog park and sup- ply the whole police depart- ment with canines.” Showell didn’t win the lot- tery, but the city of Inde- pendence did when she took those first steps to being involved. “This is one of those sto- ries of someone who got in- volved with one thing, and is now pretty much involved with everything,” said Shawn Irvine, Independence eco- nomic development director. Showell is on the Parks and Recreation Board, the Independence Budget Com- mittee, and the Hop and Her- itage Festival Commission. She also is a member of the Central Lions Club and of the Independence Elks, helping with Santa Train and food baskets. As she got more involved, her health — mentally and physically — improved. She still has bad days, but said she won’t stop. “I’m afraid if I stop, I’ll slide down a road I don’t want to go down,” Showell said. Her favorite activity right now is volunteering with Monmouth Independence YMCA, which suits director Natascha Cronin just fine. “Her personal story is one of triumph anyway, over- coming the illnesses, for her to work through that and help the community is really impressive,” Cronin said. “Honestly, she’s one of those people who, if I’m in a pickle for the Y or personally, I know I can call her and she will help me. She’s like that with everyone she knows.” It’s valuable to have those kinds of people in the com- munity, Cronin added. Showell is a big believer that a lot can be done col- lectively with minimal ef- fort individually. “Her attitude is always so positive,” said Robin Puc- cetti, Independence library manager. “It makes it really fun to work with her. She never dwells in any of the negative, how things might not work out right. She al- ways has that positive out- look on things, which makes her delightful to work with.” See HEART, Page 5A wed thu fri sat sun mon tue Put your vocabulary skills to the test and have fun at Scrabble with Betty at the In- dependence Public Library. 1 p.m. Free. If you’re feeling stressed, Coloring Night for Adults at Dallas Public Library may be able to help you relax. 5 p.m. Free. Need help getting in the holiday spirit? Western Oregon’s Holiday Tree Light- ing includes a pa- rade and more. 6 p.m. Free. Santa Claus is com- ing to town — or at least to the Inde- pendence Cinema thanks to the Santa Train. 1 to 3 p.m. Free. The Festival Carolers kicks of Trinity Lutheran Church’s December Concert Series. Cookies will be served afterward. 6:30 p.m. Free. Musicians of all skill levels are invited to come play with the Willamette Valley New Horizons Or- chestra at CHS. 6:30 p.m. $25. Have a little holi- day-themed fun with Reindeer games and crafts at the Independence Public Library. 4 p.m. Free. Rain Hi: 49 Lo: 42 Rain Hi: 50 Lo: 40 Mostly Cloudy Hi: 49 Lo: 40 Showers Hi: 50 Lo: 42 Rain Hi: 49 Lo: 42 Rain Hi: 50 Lo: 46 Showers Hi: 57 Lo: 47