August 5, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 5A
Schools ind lead in water
Astoria, Seaside ind
trouble spots as early test
results return
By Edward Stratton
EO Media Group
Several water taps have
been switched off in Astoria
and Seaside as lead-testing re-
sults for local school districts
start to trickle in.
Superintendent
Craig
Hoppes of the Astoria School
District said two fountains at
Astoria High School tested
at 17 and 74 parts of lead per
billion, respectively, and were
shut off.
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency recom-
mends schools collect 250
milliliter irst-draw samples
of stagnant water from outlets
used for consumption, taking
them out of service if the lead
level exceeds 20 parts per bil-
lion. The trigger for treatment
in a public water system is 15
parts per billion.
The school district, which
tested at several spots in each
school, shut off all other
fountains at the high school
as a precaution while it runs
additional tests to deter-
mine whether
tures past the
on-campus
service connec-
plumbing
or
tion,” Hoppes
water coming
wrote, encour-
into the school
aging
water
is the issue.
customers to
“Astoria
use newer ix-
School District
Craig
Sheila
tures and lead-
and the city are
Hoppes
Roley
free plumbing.
dedicated
to
Seaside
eliminating lead ‘We tested almost 40 Superintendent
from drinking
Sheila Roley said
diferent locations the school district
water, but it’s
not
uncom-
in the schools, and has identiied two
mon for small
locations with el-
found only two
amounts to be
evated lead levels.
found due to
“We tested al-
that had levels
leaching from
most 40 different
that exceeded’
service lines,
locations in the
benchmarks.
parts, and it-
schools, and only
tings,” Hoppes
found two that
Sheila Roley
wrote in a letter
had levels that
sent to parents Seaside school district superintendent exceeded” bench-
and guardians
marks,
Roley
July 25. “These trace amounts said. She added that both were
of lead rarely if ever cause in the teens of parts per billion.
acute illnesses. Only with pro-
One was the hose in a boil-
longed exposure can lead bio- er room that does not provide
accumulate in the body and drinking water, Roley said,
cause health issues.”
while the other was a sink in
In the letter, Hoppes said the concession stand at Sea-
tests at 30 spots around the side High School primarily
city last year showed clean used for cleaning. She said the
drinking water below the EPA school district has also shut
threshold for treatment.
down other sinks approach-
“While the city provides ing the threshold of 20 parts
water that is lead-free, it can- per billion and is performing
not control the pipes and ix- additional tests to determine
the cause of high lead concen-
trations.
Crowded labs
In addition to inding the
source of the pollution, the
problem is getting timely re-
sults back. The discovery of
high lead volumes in two Port-
land schools, along with the
public relations disaster that
followed, spurred many dis-
tricts throughout the state to
start testing this spring. Gov.
Kate Brown and other state
leaders have called for yearly
reports on lead and other tox-
ins from every school district.
Astoria and other Clatsop
County districts started test-
ing in June. Only in the past
week did Astoria and Seaside
School District receive their
results back from a lab.
Oficials from both War-
renton-Hammond and Knappa
said their school districts are
still waiting for results.
Jewell School, which pro-
vides its own water, is one of
the few districts in the state
that was already required to
test for lead with the Oregon
Health Authority. Results
from previous years show the
district’s water quality at or
below the benchmark of 0.015
milligrams of lead per liter.
Learn calligraphy, improve drawing skills
August brings opportunities
for artists of all ages to stir their
creative juices at Trail’s End
Art Association. Youth ages
8 to 18 will ind delights and
challenges as they work with
experienced calligrapher Re-
becca Read in “Lettering Fun.”
The workshop meets 9 a.m.
to noon Aug. 8 to 11, and is
designed for all levels of hand-
writing and calligraphy ability.
Participants will learn how
to use an edged calligraphy pen
and improve handwriting. They
will learn to make eye-catching
signs for upcoming projects.
They will also make Weather-
grams, a calligraphy project that
combines lettering, poetry and
nature. Cost is $110 for mem-
bers and $135 for nonmembers
with materials provided.
Read is a popular artist on
the North Coast who enjoys
working with youth of all ages.
She is a calligrapher and print-
maker who also teaches at Clat-
sop Community College.
Meanwhile, adults who
want to begin or to improve
their drawing ability have the
chance to do that with Rhonda
Grudenic in “Learning to See.”
From Aug. 15 to 19, begin-
ners will meet from 10 a.m. to
noon all ive mornings, and
intermediate/advanced par-
ticipants will meet each after-
noon from 1 to 4 p.m. Cost
for beginners is $120 and for
intermediate/advanced $150.
Materials are provided, and
participants are encouraged to
bring their own favorite draw-
ing materials as well.
The focus for the morning
group will be to explore how to
evaluate and simplify what one
sees in order to translate the
image to paper. The afternoon
group’s focus is on recognizing
the quality in a subject that cap-
tures one’s attention and trans-
lating that quality onto paper.
Details and registration is
available online at trailsendart.
org or by sending an email to
trailart2010@hotmail.com. Di-
rect questions to 503-717-9458.
Both workshops meet at Trail’s
End Art Association, located at
656 A St.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Adults can improve their
drawing ability in a work-
shop that runs Aug. 15 to 19.
OBITUARIES
Mary Ramona Larson
Bonnie (Roberts) Oathes
March 9, 1924 — July 23, 2016
Nov. 29, 1941 — July 23, 2016
Mary (Lewis) Larson died
July 23, 2016, at Providence
Seaside Hospital, at 92 years
old.
She was born March 9,
1924, in Burbank, California,
to Edward and Mary Lew-
is. When she was a child, the
family moved to Longview,
Washington, where they owned
a grocery store. She attended
Longview Grade School, but
later quit school early to work
in her parents’ store.
She had three brothers,
Robert Francis and David, all
World War II veterans. Mary
built warships in Longview and
Bremerton, Washington, where
she met Julius Larson, her hus-
band. After the war, they moved
to Clatskanie, Oregon, and had
two children, Starla and Halvin.
Then they moved to Asto-
ria, where Julius was a Youngs
River bridge tender. In 1974,
Mary, Julius and Halvin moved
to Seaside, where Julius passed
away in 1976. Mary helped
with Halvin’s business after
1976, and worked at various
service jobs, including at the
Seaside Senior Center, where
she received a commendation
for excellence.
Mary Larson
Halvin passed away in
2010, and Mary moved back to
Astoria in 2012, where she was
a member of Bethany Lutheran
Church. Her hobbies included
gardening, sewing and bird-
watching. She enjoyed taking
small trips.
She is survived by her
daughter, Starla Galant of Asto-
ria, Oregon; a niece, Janet Lew-
is of Anacortes, Washington;
and a cousin, Jesse Ridenour of
Longview, Washington.
A memorial service was
held at Bethany Lutheran
Church on Sunday, July 31.
Memorial contributions may be
made to the church.
DEATHS
Bonnie Susan Oathes,
74, passed away peacefully
surrounded by her family in
Astoria, Oregon.
She was born and raised
in San Antonio, Texas, where
she met and married her hus-
band of 52 years, Donald.
Bonnie moved to Astoria
in 1980, upon her husband’s
retirement from the Coast
Guard. She was a librarian
at Astor Library and Astoria
High School, a licensed his-
torical researcher alongside
her business partner John
Goodenberger, and a long
time columnist/creator of
“Water Under the Bridge”
for The Daily Astorian.
She was an avid reader
and loved to travel. She orga-
nized many memorable fam-
ily road trips, including ones
To alert beachgoers of potential dangers, preventative
signs are posted by lifeguards throughout their daily
patrol along Seaside beaches.
Young male, 13,
drowns in ocean
waters off Seaside
A young man died and
another was rescued the af-
ternoon of July 21 after Sea-
side Lifeguards witnessed
the two struggling in the wa-
ter and in need of assistance.
Seaside Fire & Rescue
along with the U.S. Coast
Guard responded to the
scene shortly after it was
reported at about 3:30 p.m.
to assist with the rescue.
Carter Moore, 14, of Kings-
ton, Oklahoma was pulled
from the water, while the
other male, Conner Moore,
age 13, of Tulsa, Oklahoma
was located from the air by
the U.S. Coast Guard and
brought to shore by emer-
gency personnel. Both were
transported to Providence
Seaside Hospital, where
Conner Moore was pro-
nounced dead. Carter Moore
was life-lighted to a Port-
land area hospital Thursday
evening and released the fol-
lowing morning.
The two cousins were
traveling with other family
members from out-of-state
and in Seaside for a family
reunion.
Seaside oficials remind
the public, especially during
the busy summer months,
that the ocean waters can
present many dangers. Use
extreme caution, use the
buddy system and avoid
swimming in areas that have
been recognized to be prone
to rip currents.
Fire & Rescue was as-
sisted by the United States
Coast Guard, Medix and the
Seaside Police Department.
BUSINESS
DIRECTORY
F LOORING
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Window Treatments, Fabric, Designer Wallpaper, Visit Our
Counter Tops, All Flooring and Miele Vacuums
Outlet!
Bonnie Oathes
with herself and beloved
grandson, Kyle.
She is survived by her
adoring husband Donald;
son, Eric; daughter, Kirsten;
grandson, Kyle; sister, Nan-
cy; brother, Noble; and many
friends and associates.
2311 N. Roosevelt Dr., Seaside, OR 97138 • 503-738-5729
rlfl ooring @ yahoo.com • www.RandallLeesFlooring.com
Randall Lee’s Flooring Outlet • 3579 Hwy 101 Gearhart • 503-738-6756
Warehouse pricing • Open to the Public • Hundreds of instock rolls & remnants • In House Binding
L ANDSCAPING
Laurelwood Compost • Mulch • Planting MacMix
Soil Amendments
YARD DEBRIS DROP-OFF
(no Scotch Broom)
SEASIDE AMERICAN LEGION
503-717-1454
34154 HIGHWAY 26
SEASIDE, OR
BBQ RibFest
(St. Louis style ribs)
Served with sweet corn-on-cob, baked beans & cornbread!
ONLY $10 • Bud Light - 2 per pint
Saturday, August 6 th
Laurelwood Farm
$
2 PM TILL GONE
Duane A. Plyter
This is an outside event under the Big Tent!
June 28, 2016
Early evening on stage free music by:
PLYTER, Duane A., 76, of Milton-Freewater, formerly of
Astoria and Warrenton, died at home. At his request, there is no
service. Munselle-Rhodes Funeral Home of Milton-Freewater
is in charge of the arrangements.
Honky Tonk Union
1315 Broadway in Seaside
C ONSTRUCTION
B OB M C E WAN C ONSTRUCTION , INC .
E XCAVATION • U NDERGROUND U TIITIES
R OAD W ORK • F ILL M ATERIAL
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OWNED AND OPERATED BY
M IKE AND C ELINE M C E WAN
503-738-3569
34154 Hwy 26, Seaside, OR
P.O. Box 2845, Gearhart, OR
Obituary Policy
The Seaside Signal publishes paid obit-
uaries. The deadline for all obituaries is 9
a.m. the business day prior.
Death notices and upcoming services
will be published at no charge. Notices
must be submitted by 9 a.m. the day of
publication.
Obituaries and notices may be sub-
mitted online at www.dailyastorian.
com/forms/obits, by email at ewilson@
dailyastorian.com, placed via the funeral
home or in person at The Daily Astorian
oice, 949 Exchange St. in Astoria. For
more information, call 503-325-3211,
ext. 257.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
S ERVING THE P ACIFIC N ORTHWEST S INCE 1956 • CC48302
102.3 fm
the Classic Rock Station
BUSINESS
DIRECTORY