Volunteer clean-up
at P.O. is appreciated
To the Editor:
As the postmaster of the
Vernonia Post Office, I would
like to give a public thank you
to the wonderful volunteers
who worked so hard around the
post office during Vernonia
Pride Day. I realize most resi
dents do not know the Postal
Service is mandated by Con
gress to lease buildings in
towns the size of Vernonia. The
owner of our building is a physi
cian in the mid-west and, unfor
tunately, we have been in litiga
tion with him over maintenance
to the building for quite a while.
Again, I would like to give a
special thank you to Enid Par-
row, Dan Murphy, Mike Sykes,
Tony Hyde, Scott Rethwill, Ray
Pelster,
Kathleen
Griffin,
Rachael Sykes, Erin Gehrke,
Jessie Roberts and Austin
East. If I have missed anyone,
please forgive me.
I feel very privileged to have
a job that has allowed me to be
part of such a great community.
Sally Phillips, Postmaster
Vernonia Post Office
Competition is the
basis of capitalism
To the Editor:
I am writing in response to
the letter by Marie Due in the
April 18 issue of The Indepen
dent. Her letter was in re
sponse to a letter in the April 4
issue written by Lisa Edgar.
Lisa was commenting on the
lack of support for local, and
especially downtown, busi
nesses. She commented that
people will go to a competitor,
and then wonder why a local
business fails. When taken in
the context of the entire letter,
this comment refers to competi
tors outside Vernonia. I believe
that Marie may have missed
this point. In her letter, she ba
sically attacked Lisa for adding
a tropical fish section to her
store, Creatures.
As both Creatures and
Marie’s Tropical Fish are local
businesses, neither would fall
into the category of out of town
competition referred to by Lisa.
Competition in town is a sign of
a healthy, growing business
environment. Competition in
business is the basis for capi
talism, which is, by definition,
the American Way. If Lisa were
to pull the fish from her store,
as Marie asked in her letter,
then we should also ask one of
the gas stations to close, and
one of the markets to close,
and one of the hardware stores
to close. We should also ask
that, from this point, no one be
allowed to open a business if
one that is similar already ex
ists. As a former business own
er myself, I can tell you now
that none of these things will
happen. If Marie is concerned
about competition, then she
needs to adjust her business so
that it meets a need or possibly
specializes in an area of the
market that other local busi
nesses don’t.
My intent here is not to at
tack or put down Marie. I be
Between tbe Bookends
By Ann Krutsinger, Library Assistant
Banks Public Library
Interested folks are invited to join our May
program, “A Taste of Calligraphy," taught by
Colleen Cavin. The workshop will be held Satur
day, May 4th from 11a.m. to 2:00 p.m.. If inter
ested, please call the library to secure your spot.
This workshop is funded by the RACC, NEA,
and WCCLS.
This is the library’s fifth year in our beautiful
building. Please help celebrate the anniversary
by attending our programs scheduled Saturday,
June 1st. We will host a workshop on bookbind
ing, taught by Colleen Cavin, from 11 a.m. to :00
p.m. In the evening, please come and enjoy a
free concert performed by the Quartette Bar
bette. This saxophone group plays an eclectic
variety of music — from jazz and ragtime to folk,
classical, popular and klezmer styles. These pro
grams are funded by the RACC, NEA, and WC
CLS.
Saturday, May 11th is recycling day spon
sored by the Friends of the Banks Library at the
lieve that she simply misunder
stood Lisa’s statement about
competition. Lisa did not speci
fy out of town competitors,
however, this was the tone of
her entire letter. I hope my criti
cisms will be viewed as con
structive.
Keith Shaw
Vernonia
Vernonia Shines by
volunteers’ efforts
To the Editor:
Vernonia Pride and SOLV
would like to extend a HUGE
thank you to everyone who
helped this year’s Make Ver
nonia Shine day. We had won
derful weather, which certainly
helped, and roughly 140 or
more volunteers that day (I
heard rumors of people work
ing, who did not sign up, and
were not counted. Thanks for
your help, too, but please sign
up and come join us for lunch.
We miss your faces.)
You just have to look around
town and cannot miss the won
derful job you did.
Just an interesting tidbit: On
page 79, in the history book,
Vernonia: A Pocket in the
Woods, there are comments
about civic pride. The women
of Vernonia organized the city’s
first “Clean Up Day” on April 25,
1922. It notes that schools
were closed and businesses
closed for a few hours to clean
up. The city helped and prison
ers were even taken out of jail
to help beautify the town. It
says that “Clean Up Day” be-
■■
Swatco Service Yard between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
If you miss this date and are looking for the
mixed paper recycle bins that were near to Main
Street in the parking lot of Dayspring Christian
Fellowship, you will find they have been moved.
The bins have been placed away from the street,
onto the City of Banks’ gravel parking lot, next to
the paved library parking lot. Proceeds from the
bins now benefit the library. The hauler accepts
mixed paper (including old paperback books,
magazines and newspapers) but not cardboard.
Library patrons with Internet access at home
or work can browse the library resources by
clicking on www.WILInet.wccls.lib.or.us. Materi
als can be reserved electronically.
Banks Public Library: 111 Market Street.
Hours: Tues., Wed., Thurs., 11 a.m. - 7 p.m,;
Frl. and Sat. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Preschool Story Time: Wednesdays, 10:15
a,m., when school is in session,
Phone: <503 ) 324-1382
«1®
Internet: www.WILInet.wccls.lib.or.uS.
«—
M
M
...
came a tradition in Vernonia. I
guess this is true, although it
would be my guess that some
years went by without this year
ly event. (If you would like to
purchase Vernonia: A Pocket
in the Woods, they are on sale
at Vernonia Sentry Market for
$16.00.)
THANKS TO ALL who
helped on Saturday. It was nice
to see your smiling faces and
nice to see all of the kids who
showed up because you do
make a difference and you are
the future of this town.
If anyone is interested in
joining Vernonia Pride we are
always looking for new mem
bers (we currently have a sec
retary position open). I know
that when I moved to this town,
in 1994, I met so many more
people when I joined Vernonia
Pride and it has been wonder
ful. Thanks to all of you who
help our organization because,
in helping Vernonia Pride, you
are really helping Vernonia.
Donna Webb
Vernonia Pride
Emerald
Forest,
Chinook
Winds Casino, Columbia Vil
lage, Cookies by Design,
Curves for Women, Earth ‘n’
Sun, El Tapatio Restaurant,
Bob Hemmerling, Ida’s Wreath
Shop, Joy Creek Nursery, Key
Title, Teresa and John Knight^
Liefeld's Jewelry, Mossbarg-
er’s, Pat and Bob Nelson, Nel
son’s Nursery and Gifts, Ore
gon Trail Lanes, Portland Trail
Blazers, Rainier Eagles #4022
Auxiliary, St. Helens Book
Shop, St. Helens Golf Course,
Scappoose Business and Tax,
Scappoose Fitness Center,
Semling’s Pharmacy, Sunshine
Pizza, Gary and Roxy Templin,
Tony’s Shoes, Judi Weigandt,
Shena Wheeler, Wicker Won
ders, Wild Star Design and Re
pair, and Weird Harold’s Cus
tom Iron.
We also want to thank our
wonderful sponsors: Betsy
Johnson, Boise-Cascade, Chi
nook Winds Casino and Con
vention Center, Liefeld’s Jewel
ry, St. Helens Auto Center,
Tony’s Shoes, Karen and
Leonard Punch.
Debra and Dick Jacobus do
Thanks for helping nated
the use of the Time and
Women’s Center
Again Ballroom, and Dockside
Steak and Pasta Express Lane
Espresso donated their ser
To the Editor:
vices
to the Café Boogie.
Columbia County Women’s
Thank you, each and every
Resource Center, its board,
one
of you, as well as all the
volunteers and staff, would like
to thank the community for wonderful people who came
making the 3rd Annual Café out to dance, eat and enjoy
Boogie a success. Our center Café Boogie. Our apologies if
could not exist without support we have overlooked anyone.
from our neighbors, friends, Your contribution was appreci
businesses, artists and each ated.
We look forward to having
and every concerned person in
even
more fun next year!
Columbia County.
Our special thanks go to the
Sincerely,
following: Bathing Bungalow,
Karin
B.
Kaczmarek
Bertucci’s Chocolates, Best
Program Coordinator
Western Oak Meadows Inn,
Columbia County
Blue Moon Gifts, Christopher
Women’s Resource Center
Burkett, Cindy Bremmer, Camp
City seeks marketing theme
Following a marketing as
sessment of Vernonia, under
the auspices of the Oregon
Downtown Development As
sociation (ODDA), an active
group of volunteers is working
as a committee with the City
to develop a marketing plan.
One of the steps in that
process is to adopt a theme.
The theme should describe
Vernonia in a few easily re
membered words. Tillamook’s
theme, for instance, is “Land
of Cheese, Trees and Ocean
Breeze." Pendleton is called
the “Round-up City” and Wald
port describes itself as “Where
the Forest Meets the Sea.”
All ideas may be submitted
and will be considered. Sug
gestions may be dropped off
at city hall, or call marketing
committee member Donna
Webb at 503-429-5201. The
deadline is Friday, May 3.
Suggestions will be presented
to the city council for ap
proval.
The theme that is chosen
will be adopted as the official
city motto. The final decision
will be the responsibility of the
city council.