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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 18, 2000)
Page 16 The INDEPENDENT, October 18, 2000 M on Letters From page 15 gines blocked the way, and again, we were stopped. It took a few minutes to get rid of the accursed and cursing cab by and to realize that it was my house that was on fire. There I was in the crowd, with my suit cases, and w ith lite ra lly no place to go. A sym pathetic neighbor brought me a chair and I sat on the sidewalk in the midst of the total chaos and clouds of smoke. That was only the first of a series of difficulties that would seem exaggerated in a novel. I won’t go into them all, and I do thank my lucky stars that my floor (I rent) was left inhabit able in spite of boarded up w indow s and “ em ergency" electricity that made by com puter go haywire and burned out my toaster completely. Af ter eight months, the house is finally being repaired, very, very slo w ly - it seem s San Francisco has such a shortage of contractors, not to mention the tightest housing market in the country, that they can only work evenings and weekends. At least that’s what my land lord says, and I am too e x hausted to argue, since I acted as his agent and interpreter with the insurance and every body else th ro u g h o u t this time. In spite of e ve ryth in g , I have worked steadily on my book, Pulling up Stakes: A Pi o n e e r’s Guide to S ta rtin g Over at Sixty. The formal pro posal is now at the W riters’ Market in Maui, hoping to be no ticed by a sym p a th e tic agent or editor. With priorities being my health, not good, and my vehicle, which has been in the shop since July, you can easily believe it has taken me these eight months to process the chaos and to write about it. I ta lk often in my book about the risks of startin g over, the courage it requires to let go of all we’ve already won and strike out for the un known, having packed light. But courage doesn’t just apply to ris k -ta k in g in the ou te r world; it applies also to the bravery one needs to face one’s own weaknesses. To me “the dark night of the soul” represents those times when we seem to be stripped of ev erything, when what hope re m ains is c lin g in g w ith the dregs to the in sid e of our glass. The last eight months have forced me to face my grief, anger and frustration in full m easure, and, if anything, have made even firmer my re solve to move eventually to that beautiful valley where people take the time for hu man relationships, where I felt at home and welcome, even as a stranger. For now, life has intervened and forced me to put those plans on hold, but I’ll continue to subscribe to The INDEPENDENT to keep my dream alive. With many thanks for the kindness you all showed me and hoping to see you again soon. Carol Sawyer San Francisco, California Likes C o rs ig lia ’s track record To the Editor: I support Joe Corsiglia for county commissioner. He has a proven track record for lis tening to the public, making a decision and then following up on it. It d o e s n ’t m atter whether it is a big or shall is sue; he’ll go to bat for it. Joe was the o n ly city cou ncil member to vote for the sup port saving the historic black walnut tree in St. Helens, and agreed that voters should be involved and approve annexa tions (instead of the city coun cil making them). When there was a controversy to change existing street names, Joe lis tened and supported public wishes. Joe is his own man and d o e s n ’t belong to any “good old boy” groups. He will have some good ideas and ways to support and finance our county parks, giving them the attention they deserve. C om m issioner Hyde has never had his priorities in the right place! While subsidizing big b u sin e ss and what he considers to be “family wage” jobs ($10 per hour), he’s com pletely forgotten the public he serves and our quality of life that we so desperately need. In my o p in io n , Joe C o r siglia won’t be running around the whole country spending our tax d o lla rs. He w ill be here, in Columbia County, lis tening to and caring for the needs of the citizens. Thelma Bonar Warren Editor’s Note: Joe Corsiglia is a candidate for Position #1 on the board of commissioners; Tony Hyde is seeking re-election to Position #3. They are not oppo nents. C olum bia County Parks need support To the Editor: Like most property owners, my husband and I try to pro tect our investment by periodi cally repainting our buildings, putting fresh gravel on our drive to p re ve n t ruts from forming, keeping fences in re pair to keep our animals in and oth ers o u t...th e usual chores that property owners do. As Columbia County resi dents, we also have an own ership in county holdings such as the Parks system. Measure 5-67 will allow us to m a in ta in ou r parks and keep them open for use by the public, who are the own ers. 780 acres of parks, with more than a m illion dollars w orth of b u ild in g s , boat ram ps, restroom s, homes, full-hook up RV sites, playing fields, baseball and soccer fields, are at risk of being ne glected, or closed if this levy does not pass. Parks are not funded by local taxes. Every a v a ila b le asse t has been used thus far, to keep parks in operation. Those limited as sets have been exhausted and thus we are asking the residents of Columbia County to vote YES on Measure 5-67 and protect our valuable in vestment in parks, and keep them available to our resi dents, their families and visi tors. Glenda Williams Clatskanie Scott Burge is my choice, he cares To the Editor: I wanted to take a moment and tell everyone why I hope that you will elect Scott Burge our next county commission er. As a recent graduate of Scappoose High School and freshman at the University of Portland I had the opportunity to get to know Scott while working at Columbia Espres so Company inside Fred Mey er. He would come in for his coffee and w e ’d ta lk often about issues that faced Scap poose and Columbia County. He alw ays seem ed kn o w l edgeable and sincere in his discussion of the issues. He seemed to be very passionate about serving the people of our county in a positive way that would make everyone in the county proud. Scott a l ways seemed to look at things op tim istically and regularly encouraged me to be involved in politics and to learn the is sues. He was always nice and polite to me and that is the kind of person I want repre se n tin g me as my county com m issioner. Because of that when I get my ballot I’m going to vote for Scott Burge for County Commissioner and hope you will all do the same. Sincerely, Raeann Spaulding Portland VRFPD says thanks for business support To the Editor: The Vernonia Rural Fire Protection District would like to thank the following busi nesses for their support of the N a tion al Fire P revention Agency, which provides our fire district with fire prevention materials: N orth w e st N atural Gas Co., Weller & Sons Trucking, Gwin & Sons Logging, Allied Logging Company, Inc., Ad hesive Packaging Systems, Inc., Buckner Land Salvage, Inc., Bridge Street Mini Mart, M e y e r’s Auto Body, L.J. C h risto p h e rse n T rucking, Mike Pihl Logging Co., Inc., Providence Health System, RSG Forest Products, Triple S S e rvice , V ernonia Inn, Holce Logging Company, Inc., L. Jepson & Son, LLC, Read Builders, Inc., Vernonia Pack aging & S hipping S ervice, Skidmore & Son, Creative Im pulse, Natal Shake & Ridge, Vernonia C ountry Kitchen, Vernonia Hardware, Vernonia Realty & Insurance, Vernonia W estern A u to -T ru e Value, Gardner Farm & Home Sup ply, G lo ria ’s S par Tree Restaurant, Mist Store. Fire Chief Paul Epier VRFPD Your voice is heard when you speak from the ballot box, so please Register and Vote L o o k in g F o r A T ax D e d u c t io n ? D onate Y our V ehicle !! O DP accepts donations of vehicles. Your donation may qualify you fo r a tax deduction. Proceeds directly support quality education and awareness programs about the critical need fo r organ and tissue donation. Oregon Donor Program Please call for more information. (503) 494-7888 1-800-452-1369 AS YOUR COMMISSIONER I WILL WORK HARD TO: ’ Make County government more accessible to ALL of its residents. ' Increase child care options ’ Improve transportation options for commuters and seniors ’ Provide ethical & courageous leadership VOTE SHAWNA SYKES COLUMBIA COUNTY COMMISSIONER #3 G ranny ’ s C rafts & G ift I tems Why shop out of town when we have all your gift needs and Christmas decorations? Plenty of new items in stock Prices Reduced on selected items. Order your Personalized Christmas Sacks and have them hand-painted by Susan! NOW OPEN: M onday thru Friday 10-5, Sundays 12-4 In th e Bridge Street Mall 902 Bridge St., Vernonia • (503) 704-6983 When people in the Nehalem Valley need a service, they look in The INDEPENDENT Service Directory — Don’t miss their business!
