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Spay and neuter clinic set for feral cats
Health Notes
ByAudeen Wagner
Providence Health Systems
offers financial assistance
Providence Health Systems (PHS) in
Oregon is committed to providing health
service to all people, regardless of ability to
pay. PHS recognizes that medical bills are
often unexpected and difficult to pay, and if
paying your Providence bill creates a finan
cial hardship, you may apply for financial
assistance. If qualified, part or all of your
Providence bill will be subsidized, or you may be approved for an
interest-free extended payment plan. Before applying you must
have done everything possible ro qualify for private, state or fed
eral programs for which you might be eligible.
The staff at Providence Family Medicine-Vernonia is committed
to serve the health needs of the community. There are now ex
tended hours - to 7:00 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays; the
doors of the clinic remain open during the lunch hour; and a new
provider will be seeing patients starting in mid-October, which will
result in a third extended-hour day each week. Two new staff
members have joined the Vernonia team, and a new clinic man
ager will be added in mid-October, as well.
All of these changes point toward a new focus and determina
tion to welcome and encourage patients in the Vernonia area to
acquire and access their health needs locally.
The clinic plans an “Open House” in the near future to introduce
all the new faces in the clinic and to provide information about
their services, with special emphasis on the Financial Assistance
Program. Personnel will perform free blood pressure checks at
the Open House, and some treats will be provided. Watch for
more information about the Open House this fall.
Patients should feel free to contact the clinic with questions,
concerns, or to schedule an appointment with one of the
providers. “I think the public will be pleased with our changes,”
said Clinic Manager Michael Moore. “We would like to emphasize
that we are not an ‘urgent care’ facility, but rather a Family Medi
cine Clinic, with scheduled appointment hours. I state this due to
the num ber of folks that become somewhat frustrated when they
drop into the clinic requesting a ‘now’ or ‘same day’ appointment,
and we are unable to accommodate their need because our
provider’s schedule is full for that day. I should also clarify that I’m
not speaking of emergencies here— we will always see and eval
uate emergencies— I’m only speaking to health problems that can
wait a day or two to be handled. The best practice is to always call
and speak to one of our staff.”
St. Helens Animal Control,
Columbia Humane Society and
the Feral Cat Coalition of Ore
gon will hold a feral cat
spay/neuter clinic in Columbia
County on Sunday, October 27.
R eservations are necessary
and the location of the clinic (in
St. Helens) will be disclosed
when reservations are con
firmed. Humane live traps will
be available for loan as the clin
ic draws nearer.
Feral cats are cats that have
been abandoned or lost, as
well as the offspring of these
cats. The clinic is open to peo
ple who care for and feed feral
cats in their yard, their barn, or
who manage feral cat colonies.
Only feral cats with caregivers
to feed and care for them are
treated.
A cat averages two litters
each year and can reproduce
as young as five months. One
unaltered female and all of her
offspring can produce more
than 250,000 kittens in seven
years. During its seven year ex
istence, FCCO has spayed or
neutered more than 10,000
cats in Oregon. The sponsoring
groups urge everyone who
owns cats or feeds stray cats to
have them spayed or neutered
to prevent overpopulation.
The Feral Cat Coalition is
partially funded by private do
nations. A minimal charge of
$20 per cat is required at the
clinics. Donations to “sponsor a
spay” are tax deductible;
checks to the Feral Cat Coali
tion of Oregon may be sent to
Jan Meador, P .O .B o x 511,
Scappoose, OR 97056.
For more information, or to
volunteer, call Lorilyn Donovan
at 503-543-7155.
To make a reservation for
the spay/neuter clinic, call Offi
cer Laura Snyder at 503-397-
3333.
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This “American Girl” quilt
was one of several remark
ably intricate quilts that were
on display only (not for sale)
at St. Mary’s annual quilt fair
in September.
Anyone who has not visited
the quilt fair should plan on
doing so next year.
Mammogram schedule:
The next Mammovan trip to Vernonia is October 23. Call the
clinic at 503-429-9191 to make an appointment.
Northwest Landscapes featured at Pacific gallery
“N orthw est
Landscapes,
Town and Country” a display of
acrylic and mixed media on pa
per, by T.D. (Terry) Brown, will
be featured in Pacific Universi
ty ’s second Kathrin Cawein
Gallery exhibit of the 2002-
2003 series. The show runs
from October 1 through 29.
“The works in this show rep
resent places from my past,
saturated with color,” said
Brown, who owns T. D. Brown
Fine Arts Gallery and Studio in
Hillsboro.
“These are prints painted on
glass, transferred to paper,
painted and, in some cases, col
ored with pencil and oil sticks.”
Gallery hours are Monday
through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m ., Saturdays from
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., or by
appointment. Admission is free.
Special at S p i r a l z
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HOT, ICED & BLENDED DRINKS & TEA
PASTRIES • MUFFINS • COOKIES • BAGELS
SANDWICHES • SALADS • SOUPS • CHILI • CHILI DOGS
6' SUBS • DELITRAYS AVAILABLE BY SPECIAL ORDER
T he B est C offee & S andwiches from P ortland to the C oast !
See Angie for $ 2 .0 0 D is c o u n t
on haircuts during October, 2002.
Watch fo r
on Color & Perm
712 Bridge Street ▼ Vernonia
503 / 429-8484
( OcioberSpeciai:
Buy One Get One Free!
Juice Tanning Lotion
Tanning byAppt. or Walk-in
Nails by Appointment
Gift Shop Items are Ini!
Mon 5a-1p *Tu-F 5a-4p • Sa 7a-4p • Su 8a-2p • Deli opens 1 la
854 BRIDGE ST., VERNONIA • 503-429-9011