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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (March 11, 2016)
March 11, 2016 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com • 5A For Cannon Beach’s John Fraser, art was life itself His pranks were legend throughout Cannon Beach J ohn Fraser called himself a Dada artist. But for John, his art was life itself. He rebelled against rules and cre- ated minor moments of chaos in his community of Cannon Beach. In ef- fect, he colored outside the lines. John died at home Feb. 25, fol- lowing a battle with cancer that ranged over 15 years. He was 73. A community gathering in his honor is planned from 4 to 6 p.m. April 20 in the Coaster Theatre Play- house, 108 N. Hemlock St. John moved to Cannon Beach in 1975, after living in Spain and Lon- don. He was already well known as a tavern musician in Portland. Calling himself the “Juan Man Band,” John played several instruments at once — an organ keyboard with one foot, a high-hat drum with his other foot and, with his hands, a guitar, along with a bo[ containing À utes and re- corders. “He was a hot act,” said John’s wife, Lisa. “He was one guy, and he could sound like an entire band. “When I was 18, I sneaked into a bar to hear this amazing musician. He could do the solo from ‘Peter and the Wolf’ and go right into a blues song where everyone would hit the dance À oor. “He played 28 different instru- ments, and he played them well,” she added. He often took his act to the streets of Cannon Beach, where, as a mime, he entertained children and their par- IMPRESSIONS NANCY McCARTHY ents by playing his music and twist- ing balloons into animals for them. He worked at Osburn’s Grocery and also lived above the store. Like many Cannon Beach artists in the 1970s, John also held other odd jobs: a fry cook at a local restaurant, bar- tender at the Rathskeller and at Bill’s Tavern. He also was a “beach À yer” for D.K. Smith, owner of the Once Upon a Breeze kite shop. It was his job to À y kites on the beach to entice customers. “John liked to say he worked his way up to owner,” Lisa said. John bought the shop in 1982. But John was known in Cannon Beach as much more than a local business operator. He was on the City Council, Planning Commission, Design Review Board and commu- nity policing team. He helped to or- ganize the Cannon Beach Preschool and Children’s Center; the original center was housed in the same build- ing as the kite shop on Spruce Street. John loved living in Cannon Beach, Lisa said. “He took it so, so seriously. He tried to maintain the community so people could enjoy it, whether they were living here or visiting here.” While he took his civic involve- ment seriously, John also earnestly followed his whimsy. Known for years as the upmost April Fools’ Day prankster, John once bought many keys, had them engraved with words that said, “Back door, US Bank,” then distrib- uted them all over town. He wanted to see how many ¿ nders would re- turn the keys to the bank and how many would keep them. “And the bank didn’t even have a back door,” Lisa said. The bank also came into the spot- light when John put up À iers around town announcing that the bank had a “special” event. For every dollar bill with four or more “ones”in its serial number, the bank would replace it with a $100 bill. “The bank manager at the Astoria branch called John and asked him to take down the À iers,” Lisa recalled. “John refused.” A crosswalk on Hemlock just south of Bruce’s Candy Kitchen also became the focus of another prank when the police put a pedestal in the street warning drivers to watch for pedestrians. On the pedestal’s À at top, John would place objects, then sit back and see what people would do with them. One object included a landline telephone. “My favorite was when a cop came into the (kite) shop with a giant box fan and asked, ‘Is John here?,’” Lisa said. “What better place than a crosswalk in town to study people.” And then there was the time John nailed cooked turkey bacon strips to telephone poles. “He delighted in watching people do a double-take when they saw that bacon,” Lisa said. Most of the time she was as taken off guard as anyone else at his antics. “I was constantly surprised at every turn. I never knew what was coming next,” she said. John threw “surprise” birthday parties for himself at Bill’s Tav- SUBMITTED PHOTO/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE John Fraser “smokes” a pickle in front of the “pickle store” he staged next door to the kite shop he owned. Although the store appeared to be a real operation with a sign that said, “Back in 5 minutes,” it actually wasn’t a store at all, and no one ever appeared to open it. ern with special themes; designed bumper stickers during the Lewis and Clark Exposition that said “Dogs: Pets or Food? Let’s ask Lewis and Clark”; placed jars of mayonnaise in a crosswalk on Cinqo de Mayo; and arranged to have his dedicated credit card line at his shop (436-BOMB) be- come a “confessional” for people to call and record their darkest secrets. One of his best-known creations during the late pre-Facebook 1990s was a website called Cannon Beach Weather.com, where could people check out the “weather station” (a stick that followed the sun) via a webcam in John’s backyard and write about the goings-on in Cannon Beach. As the website administrator who oversaw the messages, John called himself “God.” While adults only laughed and shook their heads at John’s latest project, children loved him, espe- cially when he drove his van through town and threw out small plastic an- imals for them to catch. “He had a huge box of toys,” Lisa said. “He was like the pied piper. It took forever for him to get home.” And when he drove, it was usu- ally in a car decorated with ¿ gurines he had glued to the sides and hood — plastic lizards, iguanas, nuns, doll heads — and a lawn chair on the roof. On one of his cars, he glued a clip on the front and put a $1 bill in it, with the sign, “Take Me.” In 2001, John was ¿ rst diagnosed with prostate cancer, and he success- fully fought it off. In 2005, howev- er, the cancer returned. In 2013, the community held a fundraiser to help him pay for his medication. But for several years, his illness didn’t deter John from playing his harmonica with other local mu- sicians during burger night every Monday at the American Legion. “He continued to play music un- til he couldn’t do it anymore,” Lisa said. Savor Cannon Beach festival off ers chance to sample wines, cheese ive hundred ¿ fty wines to taste over three days? Count me in! The Savor Northwest Wine Awards were held in Cannon Beach recently and I was lucky enough to be one of the judges. The event is run by Cannon Beach resident, Gary Hayes, and his incredible staff of vol- unteers. The judging in a wine com- petition isn’t necessarily thrilling to watch. Each judge swirls, sniffs, sips and spits, over and over and over. The three-judge panel then discusses the wine and works together to reach an agreement on each entry. Is the wine deserving of a medal, and if so, is that medal gold, silver or bronze? This discussion period is my favorite portion of the event. As this is only the third wine com- petition I’ve judged, I’m a relative new comer. I offered my thoughts on the wine, but what I really enjoyed hearing is what the other judges F UNCORKED RAMBLINGS STEVE SINKLER thought about the wine. This year, I had the honor to judge with Gordy Venneri, the owner of Walla Walla Vintners and April Reddout, the wine program manager at Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center in Rich- land, Washington. Because the three of us were coming from such diverse backgrounds, we regularly disagreed on the medal level of the wine. In those instances, I would tend to de- fer to my more highly experienced panel mates. Of course, I took the opportunity to submit Puf¿ n wines into this local competition. I don’t know the ¿ nal outcomes of any of the wine judging as the results hav- en’t yet been published, but I can tell you the Puf¿ n wines did very well in the competition. We’ll come back to that in a future column. Savor Cannon Beach is up next, taking place day through March 13. This four-day event has become one of the best attended multi-day wine festivals in Oregon. New this year is the Friday Night Wine, Art and Cheese walk. I love that this new ac- tivity includes cheese! Cheese is so hot right now and the Paci¿ c North- west has some incredible family owned creameries. Provisions 124 is going to showcase cheddar and gouda cheese from Jacobs Cream- ery, from Chehalis, Washington. Un- fortunately, the cheesemaker, Lisa Jacobs, won’t be attending. She’s a one-woman creamery and the cows need to be attended to. We have in- vited Ridge¿ eld, Washington artist Maureen O’Reilly and her husband (and photographer) Chris Biedelman to display their work at our store. If you have visited Provisions 124 be- fore, we have a Maureen O’Reillly watercolor painting next to our front door. It’s a painting of Maryann and me walking on the beach with our two dogs, Ringo and Basia. As our sweet dog, Basia, is no longer with us the painting is a beautiful daily re- minder of how much she loved play- ing on the beach. Savor Cannon Beach’s Saturday Wine Walk is the highlight of the event. With over 50 wineries in town showcasing their wines, there is no excuse for a wine lover not to get their ¿ ll. The weather during the last two Wine Walks has been less than optimal! Rainy and windy weather may get the tasters soggy, but it de¿ - nitely doesn’t dampen their spirits. I am proud to say that for the ¿ rst time ever, we will be pouring a selection of Puf¿ n wines this year in Provi- sions 124. The Wine Shack will be hosting Sean Driggers and Pudding River Wine Cellars from Salem. Local chef Jonathan Hoffman gets in on the action during Savor Cannon Beach weekend with his SA- VORy Cannon Beach experience. On Friday night, Chef Jonathan hosts a SAVORy Wine Experience, pairing a variety of appetizers with wines from small Oregon wineries. On Saturday morning, try the SAVORy Bub- ble Brunch, which includes a build your own wafÀ e bar and bottomless bubbly. On Saturday evening, Chef Jonathan offers his SAVORy Wine Dinner which includes a six-course dinner, paired with assorted wines. With so many wine and food events coming up in Cannon Beach, locals and visitors alike are sure to ¿ nd new favorites. Have fun, but re- member to sample the wines in mod- eration. OBITUARIES Treva Mae Haskell Nov. 26, 1932 — March 1, 2016 On March 1, 2016, Treva Mae Haskell of Cannon Beach passed away peacefully after a long bat- tle with cancer. Treva is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Sue and Mark Truax of Gearhart; son and daughter-in-law, David and Leslie Haskell of Astoria; granddaughters and grandsons- in-law, Kelli and Brian Taylor of Cannon Beach, Toni and Justin Bennett of Gearhart and Shelby and Justin Gagnon of Portland; grandson, Kyle Truax of Sea- side; granddaughter, Bailey Has- kell of Astoria; and great-grand- children, Lilli and Aubrie Taylor and Derrick, Ellie and Braxton Bennett. Treva was preceded in death by her mother and father, Cecile and Hollis Harp, and her husband, Bruce Haskell. Treva Mae Haskell was born Nov. 26, 1932. in Win¿ eld, Kansas, to Cecile and Hollis Harp. She spent her childhood playing with her cousins on the family’s oil lease, playing in the local pond, and learning how to sew. Treva often reÀ ected back on growing up in the Great De- pression, remembering that she never knew her family was poor because everyone else was, too. At an early age, she had a deep desire to travel, but her parents were homebodies. She would joke that she was switched at birth, and must have been born to gypsies, because she wanted to see the world so much. She loved school and learn- ing. She graduated from Win- ¿ eld High School in 1950, and attended one year at a business school, studying secretarial du- ties. It was after a year of college that Treva began her adventures, when she moved to Seattle, Washington, with a girlfriend. She was employed at an insur- ance of¿ ce, and loved exploring Treva Mae Haskell the big city. It was at work one day when she met the love of her life, Bruce Haskell, while having lunch in his family’s restaurant in the same building as her of¿ ce. Treva and Bruce married Sept. 14, 1956. They resided in West Seattle, enjoyed boat racing, and had a lot of fun together. In 1960, Treva gave birth to their ¿ rst child, Susan. Looking for a change of pace, the fam- ily of three moved to Cannon Beach. They began a new ad- venture in hotel ownership when they purchased the Surfview Hotel with Dorothy and Gordon McRae. During this time, Treva and Bruce welcomed their sec- ond child, David. Treva enjoyed meeting the guests who stayed at the hotel, but shortly realized that hotel ownership wasn’t for them. So, Bruce and she searched for their next adventure. At this time in Cannon Beach, Krutchkies Candy Store and The Driftwood restaurant were for sale. Bruce had worked in the restaurant business for many years and wanted to do some- thing new, so they bought the candy store! The doors to Bruce’s Candy Kitchen opened April 1, 1963. This is where Treva would spend the next several decades creating homemade confections, thousands of sweet memories, and building a family business that would become an institution in Cannon Beach. When not working at the fam- ily business, Treva and Bruce en- joyed bowling, going to movies, socializing with friends and visit- ing their favorite establishments around town, The Whaler and Driftwood, for music and good times. Treva enjoyed working hard and playing hard, too! In 1982, Treva lost the love of her life; her husband Bruce passed away from cancer. Dev- astated but not deterred, she kept the family business going with the help of her children and ded- icated employee, Paulette Picard. Treva worked until her retire- ment in the early 1990s, when she slowly stepped out of her role in the family business and passed the candy reigns to the next gen- eration. On April 1, 2016, Bruce’s Candy Kitchen will celebrate 53 years in business, the decades of success are owed to Treva’s hard work and determination. On April 1, 2013, she proudly joined her family and community at the candy store’s 50th anniversary, that will go down in history as one of the best parties in Cannon Beach! “I am not the same having seen the moon shine from the other side of the world.” — Mary Ann Rodmacher. As a young child growing up in Kansas, Treva dreamed of traveling the world, seeing new places and learning new things — this dream became reality. With her children, husband and friends, she traveled to Hawaii, Disne- yland, Washington and Kansas, but later in life is when her real adventures began. In 1984, she made her ¿ rst voyage out of the country to China. After this trip she was of¿ cially “bit by the travel bug” and in her lifetime visited over 15 countries on four continents. Treva had a great time … Everywhere! Throughout her life, Treva was involved in many philan- thropic groups and activities. In her children’s youth, she was a proud member of the Cannon Beach PTO Rally Girls and SHS boosters. Later in life, she held positions on the Cannon Beach Chamber Board, Cannon Beach First District Board, and support- ed a variety of local events. Treva had a great passion and talent for sewing, knitting and cross-stitching. She also enjoyed reading mystery novels, attend- ing the local theatre and being a committed, loyal friend to many Cannon Beach natives, such as Sally Steidel, with whom she’d sip coffee, grab lunch or continue to build to her passport. In lieu of À owers, the family asks that you support one of these causes deep to Treva’s heart: SMART reading program and/or the Clatsop County Animal Shel- ter. In support of SMART, please send memorial gifts to SMART, 101 S.W. Market St., Portland OR 97201, writing “In memory of Treva Haskell/Clatsop County SMART” in the memo section of check; or to the Clatsop County Animal Shelter, 1315 S.E. 19th St., Warrenton, OR 97146. A celebration of her adven- turous life was held Wednesday, March 9, with a service at Sea- side Episcopal Church, 503 N. Holladay Drive, Seaside, Ore- gon, followed by a reception at the Driftwood Restaurant at 179 N. Hemlock St., Cannon Beach, OR 97110. Hughes-Ransom Mortuary & Crematory in Seaside is in charge of arrangements. Visit www. hughes-ransom.com to share memories and sign the guest book. Robert Donald Neikes, M.D. May 20, 1917 — Feb. 28, 2016 Robert was born in Portland, Oregon, to Her- man and Martha Neikes. He married Elizabeth Judd in 1951, and they had ¿ ve children. In 1976, he married Betty Jane Quinn. Robert attended Reed College and Oregon State College (now OSU). In 1943, he graduated from the College of Medicine at Creighton University in Nebraska. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps on the hospital ship USAHS Charles A. Stafford. Rob- ert moved to Astoria, Or- egon, in 1948, where he practiced medicine at the Doctor’s Clinic and Asto- ria Clinic. As president of the As- tor Library Construction Committee, he was instru- mental in establishing the Astor Library, dedicated in October of 1967. His additional civic designa- tions included serving as president of the Clatsop County Medical Society, the Civic and Communi- ty Concert Associations, and the Library Board of Trustees. He received the Astoria Junior Chamber of Commerce Distin- guished Service Award in 1968. He delighted in read- ing, classical music, opera, À y ¿ shing, and the outdoors, especially spending time at his farm Robert Neikes, M.D. in Jewel. In his later years, Robert volunteered at the Clatsop County Historical Society and as a tutor in Oregon’s SMART Read- ing Program (Start Mak- ing a Reader Today). Robert is survived by his children, Martha (Gunther) Romanov, Da- vid Neikes, Tom (Joom) Neikes, Jim (Jackie) Neikes and Carrie Neikes; stepson, Peter (Anna) Quinn; six grandchildren; and one great-grand- daughter. He is preceded in death by his wife, Betty Jane; stepdaughter, Chris Quinn-Brintnall; siblings, Elsa Young, Fred Neikes and Art Neikes; and dear friend Florence Jacobson. Please join his family to celebrate “Dr. Bob’s” life on Saturday, March 12, at 2 p.m. at the Barbey Maritime Center. In lieu of À owers, con- tributions may be made to the Astor Library, Clatsop County Historical Soci- ety, or SMART Reading program, on behalf of Robert Neikes.
