The Columbia press., September 30, 2022, Image 1

The
Columbia
Press
Celebrating
our
100th year
• 1922-2022
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503-861-3331
September 30, 2022
Vol. 6, Issue 39
Students to build public recreation project Seniors, disabled
By Cindy Yingst
The Columbia Press
Warrenton Middle School students will
design and build a public outdoor activity
space that includes walking trails, a bike
path, and a disc golf course with interpre-
tive signs that share regional history.
Pacific Power announced this week that
its foundation is donating $9,500 to the
campus for the student learning experience
as well as a STEM summer camp in which
students will work with robots, drones and
remotely operated underwater vehicles.
It’s the fifth Pacific Power grant that
WMS Principal Josh Jannusch has won
for the district during the past two years.
Others have gone to the high school’s
STEM (science, technology, engineering
and math) and CTE (career-technical edu-
cation) programs, which included the pur-
chase of welding equipment.
“They have been really generous with
us,” Jannusch said of Pacific Power Foun-
Cindy Yingst/The Columbia Press
dation.
Air
National
Guardsman
Marcus
Helenius
throws
a disc for his dog, Mar-
Jannusch’s idea was to let the students
got, Wednesday on a Warrenton Middle School field that’s planned for a
get some use of the entire 58-acre site that
hiking, biking and disc golf area.
includes the middle school. Eventually,
the Warrenton-Hammond School District’s high
school and grade school will be built there as well.
“Our STEM class will be an integral part of this,”
he said. “The hope is that all classes will have some
impact.”
Math students will get a chance to apply their
classroom lessons to real-world experiences. Sci-
ence students will learn about construction tech-
niques. Art classes will be involved in the design.
English students will choose and write information
Approximate area for
Jannusch
for the interpretive signs. History students will
trails and disc golf
gather the regional history. Even students in an
elective class on podcasting will get a chance to report on the project.
“I’ve pretty much named every subject we have, but that’s kind of
the idea,” Jannusch said. “We’re using a multidisciplinary approach
to this, which is education-ese for using all the different skills – En-
glish, math, art – to tie everything together and show that these sub-
jects are applicable outside of school.”
It answers the question for students who ask why they need to
know how to conjugate a verb or solve a math equation. STEM and
See ‘Grant’ on Page 5
more vulnerable
in disasters
The Columbia Press and news services
Older adults, people with disabili-
ties, and those on fixed incomes are
especially vulnerable during disas-
ters.
“From a house fire to major earth-
quakes, taking simple steps to be
prepared can be the difference be-
tween survival and recovery from a
disaster,” said Ed Flick, director of
the Oregon Department of Human
Services’ Office of Resilience and
Emergency Management.
TV and print news are filled with
stories about those who weren’t
able to prepare for emergencies or
evacuate. Many of the faces are old-
er, disabled or poor.
“We aim to change that as soon as
possible,” Flick said.
September is preparedness month
throughout the nation. Most are
being told to be “two-weeks” pre-
pared. But in Clatsop County, resi-
dents should be prepared to care for
themselves for six weeks.
Emergency responders won’t be as
available during a mass casualty sit-
uation, said LeAnn Ivers, co-chair
of the Disability Emergency Man-
agement Advisory Council. She’s
also hard of hearing and experienc-
ing vision loss.
“We all need to prepare as if no
one is coming to rescue us,” Ivers
said. “We can take control by cre-
ating our own plan and how we re-
spond to disasters.”
Ivers recommends these tips for
older adults and people with dis-
abilities, although many are rele-
vant to everyone:
• If you have access and function-
See ‘Disaster’ on Page 4