The independent., August 10, 1994, Page 2, Image 2

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The INDEPENDENT, August 10,1994
«.INDEPENDENT
Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published
twice monthly on the second and fourth Wednesdays of
each month, by Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 1206
S tate A venue, V ernonia, OR 97064, as a fre e
new spaper. E ditors and P ublishers, Dirk & Noni
Andersen, (603) 429-9410.
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It was the right way
to show our pride
T here w as a lot of com pany in Vernonia last week­
end, but th e streets w ere clean, the sidewalks were
sw ept and the flow ers w ere fresh. Vernonia has never
lo o k e d so g o o d — and p ro b a b ly n e ve r fe lt so good
about its appearance.
V ernonia Pride has started som ething, som ething
good, and it w on’t be easy to derail the movement. At
first, it w as sim ply a m atter of w aking people up to
h o w nice th e tow n could look, then getting them to
start w orking on it.
Then an earnest drive to raise enough m oney for a
co m m unity center started taking off. People are buy­
ing bricks th a t w ill show th e ir nam es as donors to ­
w ard a co m m un ity center. The Cycle Oregon com m it­
tee has approved a donation of $10,000 tow ard the
com m unity center and other fund raisers are sched­
uled. There is already enough m oney to put up a fair
m atch fo r grant funds.
W ith th e w ork o f o th e r people, restoration of the
Shay locom otive is now well underway; grants have
been s e c u re d a n d d re a m s of an o p e ra tin g engine
with a track no longer seem so distant.
T h e e x c ite m e n t h as re a c h e d m a n y m e rc h a n ts ;
som e have applied fresh coats of paint and several
have installed w indow boxes for flowers. The colorful
flo w e rs are delightful now, but don’t forget that w in­
dow boxes can also be put to im aginative uses during
th e C hristm as season.
M an y p e o p le have e xp re sse d co nsid erab le plea­
sure o ver articles in the Jam boree tabloid that high­
lighted a fe w of th e a rtists in th e com m unity. Som e
are now talking about a spring festival of the arts, with
categories fo r arts, crafts, music, dram a and more.
S u ch a fe s tiv a l w o u ld n ’t h u rt Ja m b o re e at all; it
w ould o n ly rem ind people that Vernonia is an active
co m m u n ity because o f th e people w ho live here. It
w ould m ake the town and its celebrations even more
attractive.
Yes, th is is an exciting tim e; even m ore exciting,
though, are the m ultitudes of possibilities that tom or­
row has in store.
O n ce th e re is a com m unity center, what potential
w ill that provide? There can be activities for all ages,
ranging from athletics to crafts to great books sem i­
nars— th e possibilities are, literally, endless.
W hen C ycle O regon cam e to Vernonia tw o years
a g o and challenged us to m ake dinner and breakfast
fo r m ore th an 2 ,0 0 0 people, w e m et the challenge.
T h e people w ho could do the job were already here,
furtherm ore, they w ere w illing to do it, even when it
m eant getting up at 4 a.m. in order to serve breakfast.
T he people w ho can m eet challenges are still here
and others are com ing here because, in addition to
liking the natural beauty of the Nehalem Valley, they
like the spirit of the people and the community.
S ure, w e have o u r n aysa yers, e ve ry co m m u n ity
has. W e also have a long w ay to go. But as long as
w e keep striving, as long as we retain the spirit, as
long as w e keep try in g to m ake our dream s com e
true , w e ca n tru ly say, “G e ttin g th e re w as h alf the
fun.”
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After the MS 150-mile bike ride, July 30-31, riders enjoyed massages, a refreshing squirt of
water and a barbecue in Hawkins Park. The event was sponsored by the Oregon Chapter of
the Multiple Sclerosis Society.
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