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Page 2 The INDEPENDENT, Aug. 26,1992
^.INDEPENDENT
i
Serving the upper Nehalqm River valley. Published
monthly on the last W ednesday of each month, by
Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 1206 State Avenue,
Vernonia, OR 97064, as a free newspaper. All material
protected under U.S. Copyright laws. Editors and
Publishers, Dirk & Noni Andersen, (503) 429-9410.
Cost is one element
in sensible planning
West Oregon Electric directors have decided to
spend a weekend engaged in some serious planning;
a laudable decision. It certainly is time for action of
that sort, especially if they make policy decisions that
clearly guide the direction of the co-op so they do not
have to be engaged in day-to-day operations — that
is why managers are hired.
In the past year or so, Manager David Seuss has
made decisions to eliminate some expenses WOEC
had carried for a long time — a free public meeting
room, free lunch at the annual meeting, monetary
support for community programs, etc. — and the
board approved those decisions. It's too bad they are
now going to reverse an economically sensible trend.
The board should hold a weekend planning ses
sion, but there is no reason to hold it at a motel in
Portland or anywhere else. There is no conflict in us
ing the meeting room at WOEC during a weekend.
The staff doesn't need it then and the public doesn't
use it at all. It's available without a nightly fee. If con
sultants are brought in, as is currently planned, bring
them to Vernonia; it's cheaper to pay a car rental fee
than motel rooms, mileage and other expenses for
seven board members and five staff members. As far
as meals are concerned, there are some very good
caterers in Vernonia who could easily handle that
task.
WOEC board members receive very little reim
bursement for a difficult job, but they were aware of
that when they ran for the board. Directors' positions
are considered voluntary. As candidates, most of
them expressed concerns about the co-op's rates and
the need to reduce unnecessary expenses. This de
cision flies in the face of those expressed concerns.
Planning is needed, yes. Motels, meals and
mileage for twelve people, plus substantial overtime
pay for some of them, are not requisites for good
planning.
Vernonia industrial park?
It's really not impossible
Discussions are underway regarding development
of a small industrial park near the Vernonia Airport.
Many people on the state, county and local levels are
working hard in an attempt to make it happen.
This type of facility is desperately needed in the
Vernonia area, but there is no fairy godmother who
can wave a wand and make it happen instantly.
Nevertheless, it's good to see so many people
working together in an attempt to help development in
the Vernonia area. This is the sort of coooperation
that is needed to help bring Vernonia out of the eco
nomic doldrums.
By Nancy Burch
Vernonia City Librarian
For a librarian, choosing new books has to
be one of the most enjoyable parts of the job.
Because authors seem to write in phases,
there are periods when nothing new and
exciting is available and other times it's "Wow, I
want it all!" This past month has been a "Wow"
month, with many newly published books on
the bookstore shelves.
Novels by Lilian Jackson Braun, Barbara
Michaels, Len Deighton, John Saul, Fannie
Flagg, Anne Rivers Siddons, Lawrence San
ders, Phyllis Whitney, Sandra Brown, and
John Grisham are some of the new books now
available in the local library.
The tale of a young woman's search for the
truth about her mother’s mysterious death and
her own past is woven in The Ebony Swan, by
Phyllis Whitney. This is a typical example of
Ms. W hitney's writing style—combining ro
mance with suspense and compelling the
reader’s attention to the very end.
Barbara Michaels also combines mystery and
romance, but adds the element of the unex
plained in her novels. Her newest, Vanish
With the Rose, has Diana Reed, posing as a
landscape architect trained in the specialty of
"old roses", determined to uncover a dark and
personal secret— one that may have started
and may end in murder. As the dead past
intrudes on the present, Diana is haunted with
eerie visions, strange music and the scent of
roses and she is forced to confront these
deadly forces. Ms. Michaels always has the
Seeking Bigfoot info
To the Editor:
As director of the Western
Bigfoot Society, I have heard
of re p o rts of B ig fo o t, or
Sasquatch, from Rainier, For
est G rove, St. H elens and
down to the outskirts of Port
land. I would like to know if
there have been sightings in
the Vernonia or other areas,
or if som eone has saved
news clippings. If you have
any information, please con
tact me at 8622 N. Lombard,
Portland, OR 97203.
Ray Crowe, Director
Western Bigfoot Society,
Portland
Information available
To the Editor:
You've heard the saying,
"put a lid on it?" Well, that's
exactly what a group of Ver-
nonians are seeking to do!
R ather than tryin g to s u p
press information, however,
th is group is attem pting to
gather and then release it.
The area of Vernonia be
tw ee n N orth and E S treet
from the base of OA Hill to
Rock Creek is experiencing
grownd water drainage prob-
llems. Not only does this re
sult in soggy law ns w hich
can't be mowed until June,
but it also presents potential
h e alth (i.e . h e p a titis ) and
safety (i.e. visibly moved gas
lines) dangers.
Those of us living within
the above d e scrib e d area
recognize that the City of Ver
nonia does not have the fi
nancial resources to correct
this problem. However, we
have received strong encour
ability to make the reader experience the
supernatural right along with the characters in
her books and this is no exception.
A Time to Kill, by John Grisham, also deserves
a special mention. This is the first novel written
by Grisham— before The Firm and The Pelican
Brief. It was begun in 1984, with the author
just three years out of law school and was
finally published in 1989, but few copies were
sold until The Firm was published and became
a best seller in 1991. The author says there is
a lot of autobiography in the book and that he
believes he would act and do much the same
as his character, Jake Brigance, in similar
circumstances. After the life of a ten-year-old
girl is shattered by two drunken and re
morseless young men, the mostly white town
reacts with shock and horror until her black
father takes justice into his own hands. Then,
Brigance, the young defense attorney,
struggles to save both his client's life and his
own as violence spreads throughout the
county, while the entire nation watches and
waits for the verdict.
Mystery, romance, supernatural, comedy,
action-adventure........? (A nice selection of
non-fiction is available too) Check out your
local library.
Library Hours: Monday and Friday 1-5
p.m., Wednesday. 9 a.m.-5 p.m .,
Saturday, 1 0 a.tn.-2 p.m. Preschool Story
Time is every Wednesday from 10:30*11
. a>m, f e r
S • : Y »♦» < W l S
agement that funds may be
available in higher govern
ment levels.
Through the leadership of
DeeVeere Hershey and Mary
Miller the State Street Local
Improvement District (L.I.D.)
has begun. This group re
cently mailed survey forms to
the households within the de
scribed area, they w ill use
the results to ascertain the di
mensions of the affected re
gion. With assistance from
Dave Dickens and Bill Eagle,
a plan will be form ulated to
seek access to state and/or
federal grants or loans.
So, what else is needed?
Beside the survey, the L.I.D.
group needs people. Atten
dance at the public meetings,
thus far, has been 3-7 people.
The area described is over
130 hom es. O bviously, to
reach the goal of a district for
mation, the group will require
more people.
Perhaps if you live in this
area, you were not aware of
the pre vio us m eeting tim e
and place. The next meeting
is Monday, Aug. 31, in the
Evangelical Bible Church at
7:30 p..m. Dave Dickens and
Bill Eagle are scheduled to be
there. Come and help us "put
a L .I.D ." on th is d ra in a g e
problem.
See you there.
Sandy Welch
Member, State Street
L.I.D.
Vernonia
Bus lights explained
To the Editor:
School is starting soon so I
thought I would try to help ev
eryone understand the lights
on the [school] bus.
Like your car, school buses
have turn signals in the mid
dle, and they mean we are
going to turn a comer or pull
off the road. That means you
do not have to stop.
At the top of each bus is
the student safety light sys
tem. These are designed so
we can safely load and un-
bad students:
1. Yellow lights signal cau
tion because the bus is get
ting ready to stop. You may
go through if it is safe to do
so.
2. Red lights mean you
m ust s to p and rem ain
stopped until the red lights
are turned off, so students
m ay get on o r o ff th e bus
safely.
Thank you,
Jo Ann Beamish
School Bus Driver
Vernonia
Thanks for the help
To the Editor:
Thank you, Vernonia, foi
all the help and cooperation
during the Jamboree.
Thank you to all the volun
teers who provided the work
to the fun.
Thank you, Terry, for all
y o u r le vity, g u id an ce and
calmness.
God Bless!
Carol Senn
Vernonia
Thanks to sponsors
To the Editor:
As organizers of the third
annual Vernonia Friendship
Ja m b o re e Tennis T ou rn a
ment, we would like to say a
Please see page 12