4A • June 26, 2015 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com
Side Rail JON RAHL
Room for improvement when it comes to customer service
Five years ago, as I was
getting settled with my new
job and situated in Seaside,
the mantra was that the sum-
mer season begins on July 4.
And I believe for many, that
sentiment still holds strong.
School is out, the weather is
phenomenal and we have a
plethora of events that bring
droves of people to town.
Yet on the heels of record
visitation over the past 12
months, it’s safe to say that
we are more of a year-round
destination than we’ve ever
been before. Regardless of
where you sit on that spec-
trum, when do you look at
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to improve?
For many, the answer to
that question is probably,
“Always, it’s a constant
process.” The training, the
coaching, encouragement
and analyzing are things
many business owners do
on a daily or weekly ba-
sis. Quite honestly, when
it comes to customer ser-
vice, my opinion is that you
should always be looking at
ways to be better. But there’s
also that window of oppor-
tunity that tends to make
sense, and around here that
window seems to be the lull
(if we can still call it that)
between May and July 4
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to slow down a bit.
With that thought pro-
cess in play, the City of
Seaside Visitors Bureau
held its second annual cus-
tomer service and secret
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two weeks of May. We
learned a thing or two the
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determined to provide an
even better analysis the
second time. From the be-
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ginning, we wanted this to
be business driven. Our aim
was not to surprise busi-
nesses or ridicule them.
The goal from day one
has been to offer feedback
about the customer expe-
rience for business owners
who are interested to know
how their customer service
rates. With ten volunteers
in last year’s crop, we saw
a jump to 15 for 2015 and
actually had very little sim-
ilarity in participants.
So how do we look as a
community? First, a quick
description of our system:
Last year we analyzed six
categories (store appear-
ance, greeting, staff at-
tention, staff appearance,
the selling process and the
time it took to complete a
transaction). This year we
added product knowledge,
whether our unpaid secret
shopper would recommend
the business, and if the
business did anything to el-
evate the experience for the
shopper.
Overall, we actually
improved our customer
service rating from 86 per-
cent to 89 percent by using
a scale of one to ten for all
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Astoria. I’m not very good un-
der those conditions because
of all the walking. I’m also
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prices so it’s mostly just a tour.
I did get some caramel corn
and Judy bought me some ya-
kisoba noodles. It was good
but saltless. There were lots
of dogs on hand. A least three
Great Danes and two little Chi-
huahua pups stood out. One of
the Danes looked more like a
horse. Lots of other pooches
gave no trouble.
Several of our friends
lately have been hospitalized
with dehydration. Evidently
they forgot the admonition
to drink six to eight glasses
of water every day. In warm-
er weather when we exercise
more and meals are more
irregular, it behooves us to
remember to drink — H2O
or juice — that is. It’s real-
ly important for electrolyte
balance and optimum good
health. What would we do
if we lived in Africa where
people have been dropping
from 120-degree tempera-
tures and water is scarce?
Drink! Drink!
I had another long walk
the other day. My legs were
hurting and I had to hesitate
from time to time. A guy
drove by and stopped to tell
me, “You need to pick up the
speed a little.” In my usual
through the doors? Go look
right now!
A 600-word column can-
not do this topic justice, but
it will hopefully provide
guidance for the customer
service experience in Sea-
side. Close to a million peo-
ple visit Seaside every year
and we owe it them, our
employers, and each other
to help foster the best expe-
rience possible. Let’s please
remember that as we launch
into what promises to be a
fantastic summer in Seaside.
Have a thought or a
question about tourism in
Seaside, or maybe an idea
for a future column? Drop
me an email at jon@sea-
sideor.com. Jon Rahl is the
director of tourism for the
Seaside Visitors Bureau
and assistant general man-
ager of the Seaside Civic &
Convention Center.
Rotary honors Seaside
Fire and Rescue Team
Reminiscing about the
good old days in Seaside
Why doesn’t the person
who owns the little train on
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remove it so someone else
can use the space? I see lit-
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clasped in the fence, look
longingly at the little choo
choo and wish they could
take a ride. They used to have
Gayway Park. Now there are
the carousel, bumper cars
and a Bucket on the Beach.
Whoopee!
There hasn’t been any
movement at the renovation
of the Beacon Hotel, either.
What has been done looks
good, but please, let it go on.
I know there are other
opinions. I’ll always believe
old Seaside was a lot more
fun.
The Kentucky Derby and
The Preakness were both
great to watch. I had plans to
take in the Belmont Stakes
for a day at the races. Darn!
My TV was on the wrong
station and by the time I’d
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Pharoah had already won
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a half lengths. They had a
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few seconds. I’d hoped for
the total race, but NBC was
so jealous of its ownership.
On the 24th, I went with my
niece Judy and her husband
Mike to the Sunday Market in
previously mentioned cat-
egories. Our greeting took
a hit, decreasing from 98
percent to 89 percent, but
participants improved dra-
matically with the selling
and care they provided to
the shopper, increasing
from 78 percent to 89 per-
cent. Five our businesses
graded out with an A+ (99-
100 percent), four received
an A grade (90-98 percent),
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Unfortunately, while there
were no C grades, two din-
ing participants received
D ratings. Their biggest
downfalls: the greeting,
selling and care, and time
of transaction.
We also learned that
our shoppers felt our par-
ticipating businesses could
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impression. How does it
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sweet way, I told him, “Look
out or I’ll hit you with my
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ly get home.
I called Dooger’s on June
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downtown. They weren’t.
If ever we would honor our
fallen heroes, it should cer-
tainly be D-Day. So many
of our young men probably
knew they’d never wake up
on June 7 after Omaha Beach
and yet they went bravely
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to save our country and our
world. Though we owe them
so much, many get short shrift
from our government.
Laugh lines:
Children in the back seat
cause accidents. Or is it
“accidents in the back seat
cause children?”
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Chris Dugan, Pastor Rob Sachs, Doug Barker, Lisa Telamentez, Dave Rankin, Evan Ed-
wards, Katie Bulleset, Chief Joey Daniels and Seaside Rotary member Russ Vandenberg.
Seaside Rotary’s Russ Vandenberg presented the Seaside Fire and Rescue Team with
the award for high ethical standards for a business or organization at the Seaside Rota-
ry meeting on Thursday, June 4, at the Shilo Inn oceanfront location.
Library to host monthly trivia night July 9
On Thursday, July
9, at 6 p.m. the Seaside
Public Library will host
its monthly Team Trivia
Tournament. Teams can
consist of one person or
have as many as six peo-
ple.
Trivia nights are in-
formal, fun, competitions
where teams battle to
see who has the greatest
knowledge of all matters
trivial. General questions
will be asked by our triv-
ia host and the winners
are the team which, at the
end of the night, has cor-
rectly answered the most
questions. Prizes will be
awarded, but the main
prize is knowing you have
the smartest trivia team in
Clatsop County.
Seaside Public Library
is located at 1131 Broad-
way, across from the
youth center and swim-
ming pool. For more in-
formation on this event
or other library activities
call (503) 738-6742 or
visit www.seasidelibrary.
org and at www.face-
book.com/seasidepubli-
clibrary
Obituaries
Mary Louise Browning
Aug. 23, 1925 — June 17, 2015
Mary Louise Browning,
89, passed away June 17,
2015, in Portland. Mary
was born Aug. 23, 1925,
at Emmanuel Hospital, to
Guy A. and Marie J. Ran-
dles. She graduated from
Jefferson High School in
June 1943.
Mary worked for the
Maritime
Commission
during World War II. She
held various secretarial
positions until she joined
the Oregon Bank. After 12
years, she retired as assis-
tant branch manager due to
illness.
In 1979, she moved to
Cannon Beach. Despite
medical challenges, she
volunteered at the Chamber
of Commerce, was a mem-
Mary Louise Browning
ber of the Seaside Hospital
Auxiliary, Seaside Ladies
of the Elks BPOE 168, and
enjoyed the Cannon Beach
Literary Club. Mary was a
longtime member of the As-
toria Country Club, where
she spent many happy hours
at the bridge table.
She was a beautiful
woman and a loving moth-
er to her surviving children:
Diane L. Verger and her
husband Jim of Coos Bay,
David W. Burton of North-
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ton of Portland and Damon
P. Burton of Portland.
She was preceded in
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Dudley W. Burton; and her
second husband, Everett H.
Browning.
There will be a private
interment at Mount Cal-
vary Catholic Cemetery in
Portland. Arrangements are
under the direction of Pegg,
Paxson and Springer Funer-
al Chapel in Beaverton, Ore.
Mary Elizabeth Cotter
Dec. 18, 1923 — March 13, 2015
Mary Elizabeth Cot-
ter, 92, of Seaside, passed
away March 13, 2015. She
was born Dec. 18, 1923,
in Bandon, Ore., to parents
Thomas Harrison Scott and
Laurabelle (Chamberlain)
Scott.
Mary was married to Ar-
nold Max Eaker and had a
son, Tom Eaker, who died
in 1988. Surviving are her
grandsons, Danny and Tra-
cy Eaker, and granddaugh-
ter, Brenda Brady, and their
families.
She later married Emery
Louis Cotter, who died in
Mary Cotter
1994. By that marriage she
had a son, John Cotter. A
grandson, Mitchell Cotter,
died in 2005. Also surviv-
ing is a granddaughter, Me-
linda Cotter (Cook), and her
family.
Mary is also survived
by three nieces, Ruth Pratt,
Carolyn Ketchum, and Rose
Mentzer and their families.
Mary lived primarily in
Bandon, Walton, and Sea-
side, Ore. She loved mush-
room hunting, gardening,
her Airedales, and Southern
gospel music.
She will be greatly
missed by her family and
friends.
Jean Maunula Reed Moore
June 27, 1920 ‚ June 14, 2015
Jean Maunula Reed Moore
was born in Astoria, Ore., on
June 27, 1920, to Elmer and
Anna Bruce Maunula. She
passed away on June 14,
2015, in Lakeview, Ore.
She attended school in As-
toria and was crowned Queen
of the Astoria Regatta in
1937. Jean graduated valedic-
torian of her high school class
in 1938. She attended Oregon
State College for two years
before returning to Astoria.
She was employed by the
Lower Columbia Creamery
until her marriage to Robert
Wilkinson Reed in September
1941. Jean was a busy farm
wife while lovingly raising
six children. The Reed home,
on Clatsop Plains, was a bus-
tling hub of activities. The
dinner table was always
crowded with immediate
family, friends of the children
and hungry bachelors.
After the children were
raised, Jean was employed
as a bookkeeper for Lou-
ma CPA and Crown-Zeller-
bach. While working at
Crown Zellerbach, Jean met,
and later married, Dan C.
Moore of Seaside, Ore.
Jean’s retirement years
were spent collecting but-
ton hooks, Hull pottery,
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and antique furniture. Jean
enjoyed making cross-stitch
samplers for her family. She
enjoyed playing Skip-Bo on
a daily basis with family
and friends.
When playing cards with
Jean, you needed to bring
your “A” game. She always
completed the daily cross-
word puzzles in ink. She knew
her answers were correct. The
Oregon Coast, razor clam
dinners, warm weather, and
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were among Jean’s favorites.
Jean is survived by her son,
William Reed (Madeleine) of
Warrenton, Ore; daughters,
Judy Wiswall (Richard) of
Pasco, Wash., Sally Maxwell
(Larry) of Lakeview, Ore.,
Andrea Flynn (Dennis) of
Lakeview, Ore., and Caro-
lyn O’Leary (Jerry) of Pais-
ley, Ore; stepdaughter, Chris
Waugh (Bruce) of Otter Rock,
Ore.; sister, Margy Smith of
Astoria, Ore.; and special
family friend, Cathy Coleman
(Steve) of Molalla, Ore. Jean
also leaves her 18 grandchil-
dren, great-grandchildren and
nieces and nephews, with
whom she was close.
Jean was preceded in
death by her parents; hus-
bands; infant son, Bruce;
daughter, Rebecca Reed Kie-
ly; stepdaughter, Janet Diaz;
and sister, Lois Robben.
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family suggests that dona-
tions be made to the Pio-
neer Presbyterian Church on
Clatsop Plains, 33324 Patriot
Way, Warrenton, OR 97146,
or a charity of your choice.
A celebration of life will
be held with immediate
family.
Deaths
Debra Lynn Decker, June 17, 2015 — DECKER, Debra Lynn, 58, of Seaside, died
in Seaside. Caldwell’s Funeral & Cremation Arrangement Center in Seaside is in charge
of the arrangements.
The Seaside Signal pub-
lishes paid obituaries. The
obituary can include a small
SKRWRDQGIRUYHWHUDQVDÀDJ
symbol at no charge. The
deadline for all obituaries is
OBITUARY POLICY
9 a.m. the business day prior.
Obituaries and notices
may be submitted online
at www.dailyastorian.com/
obituaryform, by email at
ewilson@dailyastorian.com,
placed via the funeral home
or in person at The Daily As-
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St. in Astoria. For more in-
formation, cal 503-325-3211,
ext. 257.
