Polk County News
2A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • March 8, 2017
Emporium evolves from bazaar to full-scale business
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
Check it out
DALLAS — The idea went
from a weekend holiday
bazaar to a month-long hol-
iday market to a full-scale
business in a matter of
months.
Kim Brehm’s plan for
Main Street Emporium of
Dallas is taking shape after
opening on Feb. 1.
“This is exactly what I en-
visioned,” Brehm said.
“There are still things that I
wanted to add. … I still want
to do coffee and tea so cus-
tomers can relax.”
The downstairs of the for-
mer J.C. Penney building on
Main Street is packed, and
Brehm said she’s moving
clothing on consignment
upstairs to make room for
more vendors.
As of Saturday, 46 vendors
and people with items on
consignment have products
at the emporium — and that
number seems to grow by
the week. Most vendors are
local, but Brehm carries the
wares of people from as far
away as Vancouver, Wash.,
and Eugene.
Brehm said she wants to
What: Main Street Em-
porium of Dallas.
Where: 939 Main St.,
Dallas.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays,
Fridays and Saturdays; 11
a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday;
and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sun-
day. Closed Mondays.
Contact: 360-903-6158
or https://www.face-
book.com/mainstreetem-
poriumofdallas/.
keep prices low, and her
vendors seems to have the
same goal.
She said a jewelry vendor
from Beaverton has made a
line uniquely designed —
and priced — for the Dallas
community.
“She actually looked up
Dallas, Oregon, found out
about are little community
… and personally made
stuff that is cost-effective
for this town, including Dal-
l a s Dra g o n s ( p i e c e s ) ,”
Brehm said.
Jewelry is just one of the
many items you can find at
the emporium.
JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer
The Main Street Emporium began as a bazaar but will now be a full-scale business.
Browsing the salesfloor,
you will see fresh bread,
local honey, clothing, hand-
crafted soaps and lotions,
furniture and housewares —
most of it one of a kind.
She recommends cus-
tomers look at what is on
the clothing racks when they
stop by.
“I think a lot of people
don’t realize we’ve got some
great clothes, and they’re
very affordable,” she said.
You can even get portrait
photos taken by Desired Ef-
fects Photography.
Classes on card making
w i t h i n s t r u c t o r Je e n a
Huntzinger have already
begun at the store, and
courses in essential oils and
metal stamping are being
scheduled.
Brehm said her first weeks
have been busy, and she
hopes to bring even more
people through the doors.
She’s happy to revitalize a
storefront in downtown Dal-
las and plans to work with
LaVonne Wilson, whose hus-
band, Bob, managed the
store when it was a J.C. Pen-
ney, to recognize the build-
ing’s history.
“I’m giving it the life it de-
serves. I want to keep it
looking historic,” Brehm
said. “I’m going to work with
her (Wilson) and get copies
of her pictures and do like a
little memorial.”
Already Brehm and the
owners of Just Stuff and
Some Things, both located
on Main Street, are cooper-
ating. That’s the kind of for-
ward-moving energy Brehm
wants to take over the
downtown.
“That what I want to see
… the businesses working
together for the communi-
ty,” she said.
Del: Fredericks was dedicated to fire department
PHOTO COURTESY OF BOLLMAN FUNERAL HOME/ Itemizer-Observer
Delbert Fredericks volunteered for more than six decades.
Newly Remodeled!
Open Daily
at 7 am!
Continued from Page 1A
“Apparently only his doc-
tors listened to what Del-
bert was told, because he
didn’t,” Gabliks said.
He and his dog would
walk to incidents in town
— or if it was too far to
walk, he would drive.
“It was often that he
would be there before the
duty officer,” he said. “He
never really slowed down.”
His version of “slowing
down” was overseeing his
“pop machine empire,”
three soda machines at the
fire station, city hall and
city shops that helped raise
money for the volunteer
department.
Gabliks said Fredricks
gave a detailed report on
the money raised through
the pop machines each
January at the department’s
annual business meeting.
“This was the equivalent
of the Dallas Fire Depart-
ment Dow Jones report,”
Gabliks said. “It was truly a
much-awaited event, and
Delbert took a lot of time to
do that.”
Gabliks said Fredricks
could be a little cantanker-
ous with his comments and
questions during monthly
business meetings, but he
cared for his fellow fire-
f i g h t e r s. T h a t s h ow e d
through what Gabliks be-
lieved is the other purpose
behind “Del’s pop shop” at
the fire station.
“Delbert realized that if
we had a pop after a call,
we could discuss the inci-
Polk County Museum presents...
Saturday
March 18
1:30 pm - 4 pm
Family
Day!
Welcome one and all to an afternoon
of fun-filled experiences!
Take a Step Back in Time
...to the era of pioneers.
New Menu Items
Fresh
Foods
• Live demonstrations by a wheelwright,
lacemakers, weavers and more
• Flint making, butter making
• Art projects for children
• Civil war reenactments
• Refreshments served
Sponsored, in part, by the Polk Co. Cultural Coalition
We want to show Polk County our appreciation
for their support throughout the year!
560 Pacific Hwy, Rickreall 503-623-5261
http://polkcountyhistoricalsociety.org
dent we just returned from,
check on each other and
make sure everyone was
OK,” Gabliks said.
Fredricks was famous for
another attribute — his
ability to remember every-
thing.
“He had the greatest
memory of any one I have
ever met,” Bollman said.
He put those memories
into the fire department
newsletter, “Just Ram-
bling.” It wasn’t just one
page, but many, ever y
month packed with new
events and department his-
tory.
Fredricks’ dedication to
the fire department may be
what most remember him
for — he was among the
first class inducted into the
d e p a r t m e n t ’s Wa l l o f
Honor — but he was no
less a family man.
“To us, his girls, he was
dad. Not many were in this
group — just three. It’s an
exclusive club,” said daugh-
ter Colleen Pinner. “Our
growing up was simple, but
rich in many ways.”
She said he kept a base-
ball in his glove box that he
would pull out every so
often when she was
younger.
“ We w o u l d t o s s i t
around, and we would just
talk,” she said. “A couple of
years ago, he opened his
glove box, pulled out that
ball and asked if I knew
what it was. He had been
carrying it around all these
years.”
Before the final bell rang
Saturday marking the end
of Fredricks’ service, Gab-
liks expressed appreciation
for the department’s vol-
unteer extraordinaire’s
family.
“I thank Agnes and Del-
bert’s family for sharing
him with us,” he said.
4th Annual
Survivor Dinner & Celebration
Karaoke • Live Music • Pool • Darts
hosted by Eola Hills Winery
Presented by Relay For Life of Polk County & Team Perrydale
Saturday, April 1, 2017
•
•
•
•
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Cocktails
We
deliver!
186 SW Court St, Dallas • 503-831-1168
at Eola Hills Wine Cellars
501 S. Pacific Highway 99W Rickreall
5:30 ~ Doors open, Meet & Mingle
6:15 to 8:00 ~ Dinner & Entertainment
Every survivor and guest will be our guests of honor at this wonderful event.
Please join us for an evening of food, fun and festivities.
To RSVP your name and the name of one guest,
contact Jen Levesque at 503.837.0118 or jenniferlevesque01@gmail.com
RSVPs are encouraged by March 20, but are not required.
The opportunity to register for Relay For Life will be available.
Relay For Life ~ June 3-4, 2017 • Dallas High School, Dallas
www.relayforlife.org/polkcountyor