Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current, July 19, 2017, Image 4

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Polk County itemizer observer., July 19, 2017, Page 4A, Image 4

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Newspaper Page TextPolk County Voices Polk County Itemizer-Observer • July 19, 2017 4A How to Contact Officials EDITORIALS Eclipse to provide chance to show off We’ve been writing a lot about the Great American Eclipse, with more stories to come each week until Aug. 23. We’ve learned a lot about the phenomenon, what to ex- pect, and what the worst-case scenarios could be. A lot of people will come to Polk County, with estimates ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. Things such as weather and smoke from wildfires will play a part in how many come for the big event on Aug. 21. If everything goes well, we will still very likely see a lot of traffic and people in our community who don’t usually come to rural Polk County. Some people are already dreading it — preferring to stock up and preparing to bunker down for the week. Oth- ers are excited for the opportunity. The cities are opening up parks for out-of-towners to camp, and landowners are doing the same. For cities and the chambers, the point of planning these events isn’t so much to make money for themselves, but to provide quality entertainment and events for visitors. If people have fun while in our area, they will spend more money here, boosting the local economy by supporting local businesses. They’ll eat in our restaurants, and drink at our watering holes and coffee shops. They’ll pick up trinkets and souvenirs at our shops. When they leave — if we show them a good time — they may go online and continue to support our local businesses. Maybe they’ll consider moving here and opening up their own business, providing jobs and tax dollars. The idea isn’t to collect $300 a night for camping at one of our public parks — honestly, those costs will likely pay for cleanup, but wouldn’t really help the general fund — but to showcase all the great things we love about our county and towns to people who would otherwise never put Polk County on their bucket list of must-see destina- tions. Go ahead and be prepared for a week or so, as though we were expecting a hurricane unlike we’ve seen in Polk County, but, unlike in a hurricane, be ready to enjoy the party that comes with it. Smile at strangers. Take time to give them directions or suggestions of what to do and see in our town. Be patient with each other, tourists, traffic, law enforcement and first responders. If we all plan and work together, maybe that week will go off without a hitch and we can all enjoy it safe- ly. It’s only going to be for a week, and it’s not going to hap- pen again in Polk County for more than 100 years. PUBLIC AGENDA Public Agenda is a listing of upcoming meetings for gov- ernmental 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 email (ionews@polkio.com). — WednesdAy, July 19 • Monmouth Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Volunteer Hall, 144 Warren St. S., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, ﬁrst ﬂoor conference room, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. ThursdAy, July 20 • Monmouth Arts and Culture Commission — 7 p.m., Vol- unteer Hall, 144 Warren St. S., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. • Independence Parks and recreation Board — 6 p.m., In- dependence Civic Center, third ﬂoor, 555 S. Main St., Independ- ence. 503-838-1212. MondAy, July 24 • Independence library Board — 4 p.m., Independence Public Library, 175 Monmouth St., Independence. 503-838-1212. • dallas school Board — 6:30 p.m., Dallas School District of- ﬁce, 111 SW Ash St., Dallas. 503-623-5594. TuesdAy, July 25 • Independence City Council — 7:30 a.m., Independence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St., Independence. 503-838-1212. • Monmouth senior Advisory Board — 1 p.m., Monmouth Senior Center, 180 Warren St. S., Monmouth. 503-838-0725. • Polk County Board of Commission work session — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, BOC oﬃce, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. WednesdAy, July 26 • Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk County Courthouse, ﬁrst ﬂoor conference room, 850 Main St., Dallas. 503-623-8173. 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 THE DOCTOR IS IN T he Mid-Willamette Valley sits right in the path of this Au- gust’s total solar eclipse and offers a once in a lifetime ex- perience. But don’t let a few care- less minutes of viewing this spectacle leave you with a lifetime of regret. — SOLAR FILTER GLASSES Gazing directly at the sun can seriously damage your eyes. The only safe way to look at the sun or eclipse is with special solar filters. Solar filter glasses are 100,000 times darker than normal sunglasses, so don’t be surprised if you can’t see the house across the street. Five manufacturers to date have NASA-certified solar filter glasses or viewers that meet the ISO 12312-2, the international standard for safe direct viewing of an eclipse, for such products: Rainbow Symphony, Ameri- can Paper Optics, Thousand Oaks Optical, TSE 17 and Baader Planetarium. Filters should be inspect- ed for scratches or damage and thrown out if damaged. Only use eclipse glasses when you are viewing the sun during an eclipse. They are not made for full sun in- tensity. Viewing the eclipse with filtered optical devices can be fun too, but seek profes- sional advice from an as- tronomer. Never view the sun through an unfiltered cam- era, binoculars, telescope or other optical device. Doing so can cause imme- diate and severe retinal burns. Those seeking all the de- tails can find them on the About the author Dr. Scott Stice performs eye procedures, including cataract surgery, at West Valley Hospital on the fourth Monday of each month in the afternoon. Dr. Stice graduated from Wake Forest University in North Carolina in 1988 and completed his medical doctorate and in- ternal medicine internship at the Medical University of South Carolina. His residen- cy and associateship followed at the Uni- versity of Iowa, Department of Ophthal- mology and Visual Science. He joined Eye Care Physicians & Surgeons in 2000 and is an active member of the Salem medical community serving previously as president of the Marion Polk Medical Society. He spends his extracurricular time coaching youth sports, assisting local scouting programs and traveling with his wife and sons. For an appointment with Dr. Stice, call 503-585-2022, or fax a physician referral to 503-566-3734. American Astronomical Soci- ety website or in this docu- ment, titled “How to View the 2017 Solar Eclipse Safely.” — EYE DAMAGE The main concern over improper viewing of the sun is solar retinopathy, better known as “eclipse blind- ness,” when high intensity, visible light causes retinal burns. The retina is a light-sensi- tive tissue situated in the rear of the eye. When sun- light is focused toward the retina, its cells can burn, re- sulting in poor vision. You can go blind if you look straight at the sun. The sun’s harmful radia- tion can lead to permanent damage to the retina even after a second of sun gazing. A few moments of unfil- tered sun gazing can lead to painless damage to the reti- nal photoreceptors and ther- mal burns that may not be vi- sually apparent until several hours after the damage is done. If you think you’ve dam- aged your eyes, contact a local ophthalmologist and schedule an appointment as soon as possible. While there is no specific therapy for eclipse blind- ness, an ophthalmologist may have treatment that could help relieve some symptoms, depending on the severity. Again, the only way to prevent eclipse blindness is through preparation and use of sun filters. — DON’T FORGET Remember that children and young adults are at the greatest risk for sustaining eye injury during eclipse viewing, but they also have the most to gain in this in- credible natural phenome- non. This event could begin a lifetime of science adventure so help them acquire the op- portunity and assistance needed in order to view the eclipse safely. And have fun out there. 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 WANT TO WRITE A LETTER? Letters to the editor are lim- ited to 300 words. Longer letters will be edited. Election-related letters of all types are limited to 100 words. Writers are limited to one elec- tion-related letter per election season. Election letters from writers outside of Polk County are not accepted. 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. The Itemizer-Observer does not guarantee the accuracy of facts presented by letter writers; dissenters are welcome to re- spond. Letter writers who dis- agree with other published letter writers should maintain a civil discourse and address the subject, not the author. Letters, like all editorial mate- rial submitted to the newspa- per, 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; street ad- dresses and telephone numbers are used for veriﬁcation pur- poses only. Letters must be submitted from individuals, not organiza- tions, and must be original sub- missions to the I-O, not copies of letters sent to other media. 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. sen. Jeﬀ Merkley (dem.) 313 Hart SOB Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Fax: 202-228-3997 Salem oﬃce: 161 High St. SE, Suite 250, 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. 142, No. 29 (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 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: Polk County — One Year $35 Other Oregon Counties — One Year $40 Outside of Oregon — One Year $45 neWsrooM Emily Mentzer ..............Editor/Monmouth/Independence Reporter ....ementzer@polkio.com Lukas Eggen..................Sports Editor......................................................................leggen@polkio.com Jolene Guzman............Dallas/Falls City/Polk County Reporter ................jguzman@polkio.com Stephanie Blair.............General Assignment Reporter........................................sblair@polkio.com dIsPlAy AdVerTIsInG Heidi Leppin .................Display Advertising Manager ....................................hleppin@polkio.com Rachel Best ....................Display Advertising.............................................................rbest@polkio.com Karen Sanks...................Client Services ...................................................................ksanks@polkio.com ClAssIFIed lIne AdVerTIsInG Dawn Ohren.....................................................................................................................ioads@polkio.com ProduCTIon Kathy Huggins ..............................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com The Polk County Itemizer-Observer assumes no ﬁnancial responsibility for errors in advertise- Karyn Pressel .................................................................................................................iosales@polkio.com ments. It will, however, reprint without charge for the portion of an advertisement Web: www.polkio.com Phone: 503-623-2373 Fax: 503-623-2395 which is in error if the Itemizer-Observer is at fault. PosTMAsTer: send address changes to: Polk County Itemizer-observer, P.o. Box 108, dallas, oregon 97338