Friday, November 19, 2021 | Seaside Signal | SeasideSignal.com • A5
GUEST COLUMN
Developing a teamwork perspective
TUNNEL ECHOES
LIANNE THOMPSON
D
id you ever play organized
team sports? Play a game of
pick-up basketball or soft-
ball? Play cards with a partner? It’s
fun to play; it’s fun to win; it’s even
fun sometimes to lose.
Eff ort expended to reach a
goal, a set of rules, other peo-
ple sharing the experience: it’s a
source of human connection that
can bring us physical, mental, and
emotional stimulation that feels
pretty darn good.
What makes it fun? Being
active and engaged with other
people gets our physical juices
going, but our hearts and minds
need connection, too. That’s part
of what’s so depressing and infu-
riating about COVID: we can’t be
together in the same way. Zoom
is better than a poke in the eye
with a sharp stick, but it’s a weak
cuppa joe compared to the robust
interactions we prefer.
Some of us prefer commu-
nity volunteering as our form of
team sport. We advocate for peo-
ple or causes we believe in, with
the idea that our time, eff ort, or
money will make a diff erence in
our neighborhood, our city, our
county, our country, or our world.
Somebody once called out the
rewards of volunteering as being
accomplishment, affi liation, and
acknowledgment. That means
doing good work with good peo-
ple and feeling recognized for it.
What about politics? We’re
getting into the political season
focused on the 2022 May primary
and general elections. Politics
will be more and more on almost
everyone’s mind, because we’ll be
fl ooded with paid advertising, let-
ters to the editor, talk radio, TV
debates, public forums, and on
and on.
And then what? After the elec-
tion, what’s left? “Smokin’ ash”
in the phrase from an old song?
Maybe. It depends on how we
play the game of politics. Not
to make light of it, but it can be
talked about in that way to off er
some possible relief.
We can do our politics as a kind
of friendly competition to con-
sider diff erent points of view in
a way that maintains good rela-
tionships. We can actually like
somebody with a diff erent point
of view or set of beliefs. We can
actually enjoy learning something
and maybe shift or broaden our
perspective.
Or we can play our activism
and politics as a form of warfare
or blood sport. We can berate,
intimidate, sneer, mock, try to
annihilate anybody who’s not
quite up to snuff in matching our
own set of beliefs.
Friendly competition warms
my heart. The resulting biochem-
icals bring joy. Blood sport forms
of political debate? That’s like eat-
ing poison. Anger provides both
fuel and armor. I don’t have to care
if somebody likes me or not. I’m
fueled by my antagonism to discon-
nect from them and look for peo-
ple who believe as I do. Righteous
indignation is more than a notion,
but the emotional hangover from a
fi t of anger sits heavy in the belly
for most of us.
Team sport, in politics or pickup
games or community engagement,
feels better in the long run. Better
blood pressure, for one thing. Other
health benefi ts accrue, too. Mostly,
we’re hard-wired to be pack ani-
mals. We’re hard-wired to be
cooperative.
The nourishing joy of living eth-
ically, being our highest and best
self? Can’t beat it with a stick. Play
nice. You’ll be happier longer, I’m
pretty sure.
Lianne Thompson is Clatsop
County commissioner for District 5.
GUEST COLUMN
In emergency services, dollars spent can equate to lives saved
GUEST COLUMN
BILL GRAFFIUS
A
s a property owner in
Gearhart, I wish to
respond to Jack Zimmer-
man’s guest column titled, “Res-
idents will support a modest and
sensible fi rehouse project” (The
Astorian, Oct. 12).
I served as a volunteer fi re-
fi ghter in Arizona in the 1980s
and 1990s and have experience as
a training offi cer, captain and act-
ing chief.
I also sold fi re and rescue appa-
ratus, tools, appliances and per-
sonal protective gear to Arizona
municipalities, rural fi re districts,
industrial facilities and Native
American reservations. I worked
with fi re chiefs and board mem-
bers, gaining direct insight into
governmental and business plan-
ning and budgeting processes and
the demands of delivering safe,
eff ective emergency services.
I may understand a little bit
more about what it takes to pro-
vide fi re and emergency medical
service than the typical citizen.
I live and pay taxes here. No,
I don’t want to see my prop-
erty taxes climb again because I
am literally one of those seniors
living on a fi xed income. A tax
increase for a $13 million fi re-
house bond measure will be a
hardship to me.
Zimmerman argues that the
community does not “want, need
or understand” the facility being
proposed. He clearly doesn’t want
it. Fine. I also think it’s clear he
doesn’t understand it or the needs
it addresses.
I’ve read the FAQs on the
city’s website and in my informed
opinion, Gearhart is only ask-
ing for what the fi re department
needs to competently fulfi ll their
mission.
Zimmerman claims the facility
would be “opulent,” “expensive”
and “massive.”
There is nothing opulent nor
massive about the proposal. That’s
pure hyperbole.
Expensive? Well, what isn’t
these days? But the econom-
ics of why everything costs so
much is a diff erent topic. Citizens
need to keep in mind that costs
will only go up with time. Delay
costs money. And when it comes
R.J. Marx/The Astorian
Gearhart wants to replace the aging
fi rehouse off Pacifi c Way.
to infrastructure, underbuilding
costs far more in the long run than
overbuilding.
A fi re department needs to have
the facilities and means to conduct
training within their own depart-
ment within their own service
area. It’s how you build teamwork
and increase both classroom and
hands-on training frequency. The
fi re department is only proposing
to build enough offi ce and class-
room space to meet their current
needs.
The training goal for volun-
teers to meet the standards of the
fi refi ghting profession seems to
be a point of contention with Zim-
merman. That doesn’t mean the
fi re department expects taxpay-
ers to pay for all their personnel
to go pro. It means that they want
their members to be trained to the
established standards of the fi re
service.
Zimmerman also opposes
water rescue equipment and train-
ing, saying we have the U.S.
Coast Guard for that.
The entire western border of
the city is the Pacifi c Ocean with
popular beaches that attract locals
and visitors alike. Shoreline ocean
water rescue is something that
needs to be done immediately,
before the victim is swept out to
sea and before hypothermia can
do its damage. Time is critical.
A properly trained and equipped
crew from the fi re department can
respond signifi cantly faster than
the Coast Guard and will make
a lifesaving diff erence for many
of these calls. Not to mention the
Coast Guard could be tied up else-
where and unable to immediately
respond.
Zimmerman apparently thinks
of Gearhart as a small village,
not a city, and he believes the fi re
department’s call volume is low
enough that we can simply call
on Medix or Seaside or the Coast
Guard if something happens.
I live just off Pacifi c Way. I
hear how often this department
goes out and it is plenty busy.
Mutual aid is great, but it is not
meant to be the fi rst response.
More importantly, Gearhart is a
growing city and the fi re depart-
ment needs to grow with it.
Keeping infrastructure up to
date is expensive. Failing to keep
your infrastructure up to date is
deadly, as is failing to plan ade-
quately to accommodate growth.
In emergency services, dollars
spent or not spent can literally
equate to lives saved or not saved.
In closing, look at the expen-
sive school campus sitting high
out of the tsunami inundation
zone in Seaside. Before it was
even completed it was already
inadequate to the current needs of
the school district. I hope Gear-
hart doesn’t make that same mis-
take out of some misbegotten
eff ort to maintain a false austerity.
In the long run, that would be
far, far more costly in both money
and possible lives lost than what
the city has modestly proposed.
Bill Graffi us has lived in Gear-
hart since 1998.
BRIEFS
Tina Payel, women hotelier
of the year, and Masudur
Khan of Seaside Lodging LLC,
at the Oregon Restaurant &
Lodging Association Chair’s
Getaway.
ORLA hosts
‘Getaway’ on
North Coast
The Oregon Restau-
rant & Lodging Association
Chair’s Getaway gathered
hospitality industry lead-
ership and supporters from
throughout the state early
this month.
The getaway included an
overnight stay at SaltLine
Hotel in Seaside, plus recep-
tion and chef’s gourmet din-
ner at McMenamins Gear-
hart Hotel.
During the event both
current and past chairs
exchanged ideas and goals to
further develop and expand
the association’s initiatives.
Oregon Restaurant &
Lodging Association is the
leading business associa-
tion for the foodservice and
lodging industry in Oregon.
A nonprofi t trade organiza-
tion, the association advo-
cates for over 10,000 food-
service locations and more
than 2,000 lodging estab-
lishments in Oregon.
Human services
advisory grants
available
The Clatsop County
Human Services Advisory
Council will distribute grants
to local social and human
services agencies that assist
people in need. The purpose
of this funding is to provide
an investment in community
programs that target those
most in need.
This year there is $30,000
total available in funding.
Grant requests no greater
than $5,000 will be eligible
for funding; preference is
given to programs that pro-
vide services to all county
residents and serve the larg-
est need.
Eligibility requirements
can be found at the county’s
website. Applications must
be submitted via email to
humanservices@co.clatsop.
or.us no later than 5 p.m. on
Jan. 28.
Seaside students
collect food
for families
Seaside High School
ASB is hosting a food drive
to help feed local families in
conjunction with the South
County Food Bank.
Beginning
Saturday,
Nov. 20, Seaside High
School ASB members will
be accepting non-perish-
able food donations. Drive-
through times are Saturday,
9 to 10 a.m. and 5 to 6 p.m.
Seaside High ASB mem-
bers will be on the high-
way side of the old Sea-
side High School, in front
of the gym, waiting to col-
lect contributions. Pull up
to the collection site where
an ASB member will collect
the donations and as a thank
you, donors will receive a
Seaside sticker. Proper social
distancing protocols will be
in place. Wear a mask and
limit contact. The students
will also be collecting dona-
tions; make checks payable
to Seaside ASB.
Job Corps service
project addresses
homelessness
Tongue Point Job Corps
Center is embarking on
a new service project to
reduce homelessness in the
community by collecting
coats, blankets, socks, hats
and food for Filling Empty
Bellies.
This is the last of four
service projects that Tongue
Point is spearheading this
year in celebration of Man-
agement & Training Corpo-
ration’s 40th anniversary.
Community
members
wishing to support this eff ort
may contact Amanda Lamb
at 503-338-4954 or Adam
Darrington at 503-338-5058.
Gearhart shares
the warmth
Real
estate
brokers
throughout Oregon and
southwest Washington are
gearing up for Winder-
mere Real Estate’s annual
Share the Warmth campaign.
Through Friday, Dec. 17,
Windermere brokers will be
collecting winter necessities
for community members in
need.
In the Gearhart area, the
donations will benefi t the
First Baptist Church, War-
renton; Lutheran Commu-
nity Services NW’s Hope
House; and the Astoria Res-
cue Mission. The organiza-
tions are specifi cally asking
for coats, blankets, sweaters,
sweatshirts, hats and gloves.
Those who want to help
can stop by participating
Windermere offi ces to drop
off donations. The Wind-
ermere offi ce in Gearhart
— located at 588 Pacifi c
Way — is open daily from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Seaside KOA
Resort wins award
at convention
Kampgrounds of Amer-
ica, the world’s largest fam-
ily of family-friendly, open-
to-the-public campgrounds,
announced that the Asto-
ria/Warrenton/Seaside KOA
Resort Campground earned
the 2022 KOA President’s
Award. This award was pre-
sented Tuesday at at KOA’s
annual convention in Baton
Rouge, Louisiana.
The KOA President’s
Award is presented to those
campgrounds meeting excep-
tional quality standards and
who receive high customer ser-
vice scores from their camp-
ing guests. KOA surveys hun-
dreds of thousands of campers
each year regarding their KOA
camping experience.
KOA is celebrating its 59th
anniversary in 2021. To fi nd out
more about this KOA, any of the
other 525 KOAs in the U.S. or
Canada, visit www.KOA.com.
Lance Wagner
The 2019 Parade of Lights.
Parade and tree-lighting in Seaside
Seaside Signal
Join the Seaside Chamber of Commerce for
the annual Parade of Lights and Community Tree
Lighting, sponsored by: Pacifi c Power, on Friday,
Nov. 26, at 7 p.m. The downtown parade strolls by
with festive lights, costumes and displays! After
the parade, listen in as we announce the winners of
the parade categories: mayor’s choice, best walk-
ing group, best commercial motorized vehicle, best
noncommercial motorized vehicle and best walk-
ing/motorized combination.
The Community Tree lighting follows at 8 p.m.