The INDEPENDENT, December 4, 2003
Page 3
Letters
Music program loses
in budget decisions
To the Editor:
As a student at Vernonia
High School, I have a few com-
plaints regarding the focus of
the school’s attention.
For the past few years, I
have been in band and I
planned to attend college,
hopefully through a music
scholarship. I have invested a
lot of time into the music pro-
gram and have gotten a lot out
of it, too.
This year, due to budget
cuts, our highly qualified music
instructor left and the school
district hired a new instructor.
The new teacher is fresh out of
college and doesn’t have the
depth of knowledge and experi-
ence the former instructor had.
Half the band quit because of
that, but I’m sticking with it be-
cause I really want to go to col-
lege.
I realize sports build charac-
ter and discipline, but so does
the music program. It deserves
the same attention and some-
where close to the same budg-
et. For the sake of every former
and potential music student,
please take these comments
seriously.
Chris Richardson
Vernonia
An ugly side shown
of some VHS teens
To the Editor:
On November 19, Vernonia
High School held an assembly
to honor the students who
raised their GPA. At the end of
the assembly our English and
Leadership teacher Mrs. Dick-
ens asked for a moment of si-
lence to honor the young man
from Vernonia who died in a
helicopter crash in Iraq. The ac-
tions of some of my fellow stu-
dents during that assembly
were appalling, to not only my-
self but to many others as well.
During the honoring of the dead
solider there was laughing,
talking, comments such as “I
didn’t know him why should I
care?” And, “Proud to be an an-
archist” was sung in place of
“Proud to be an American.”
I would like to take this time
to tell those students who
showed so much disrespect
that it is because of that dead
solider they have the right to be
disrespectful, and to sing there
own versions of “Proud to be an
American.” I personally know
some students who spit on and
disgrace the flag, and I want
them to know they have that
right because of what that
solider and many others like
him have sacrificed. I know that
our country isn’t perfect, that
the government has its faults,
Between the Bookends
By Ann Krutsinger, Library Assistant
Banks Public Library
Banks Public Library will
be closed for the Christmas
holiday from Wednesday,
December 24, through Fri-
day, December 26. We will
reopen on Saturday, De-
cember 27, from 11 a.m. to
5:00 p.m., as usual. Library
hours will be 11 a.m. to
5:00 p.m. on Wednesday,
December 31 (New Year's Eve.). The library will
be closed on New Year’s Day, but will reopen Fri-
day, January 2 with regular hours, 11a.m. to 5:00
p.m.
Boxes of glossy books are arriving daily for
the Friends of the Banks Library Holiday Book
Fest. Come shop in a relaxed, stress-free envi-
ronment and help benefit the programs spon-
sored by the Friends. The Holiday Book Fest will
be held on Thursday, December 4, from 3:00 -
7:00 p.m.
During the busy holiday season it always
seems like I spend far more time than usual in
the car, driving to procure the necessary items
for Thanksgiving or Christmas – presents, food,
etc. While fighting traffic, or just hitting the road
for a long day of errands, I’ve found that instead
of listening to music or news, I can “read” a book
by checking out a book on either tape or CD from
the library! Now that I have gotten used to actu-
ally having to listen to the tape (as opposed to
blocking out the commercials on the radio), I re-
ally love having someone read me a story. It is
very soothing. Now I look for excuses to get into
the car so I can find out what happens next in my
book!
I just finished The Secret Life of Bees by Sue
Monk Kidd. I just loved the story, a tale about a
young woman in the South who had lost her
mother in a terrible way…but I won’t give away
the story. As the tale unfolds, the girl finds out the
truth about who her mother really was, and finds
a new “family” of sorts to love her. The best part
about listening to the CD as opposed to reading
it, is that the narrator, Jenna Lamia, uses South-
ern accents that enhanced my internal vision of
the story.
Now I am listening to the second book in Lar-
ry McMurtry’s newest trilogy, “The Berrybender”
trilogy, called The Wandering Hill. The first book
tells the story of the Berrybender family, a
wealthy English family whose father has decided
that they should experience the American West.
The Berrybenders start out traveling up the Mis-
souri River. Book two opens where book one left
off. The oldest daughter, Tasmine, has married a
mountain man they call the Sinkiller, and now
she is about to give birth to his child. The Berry-
benders left the boat because winter has frozen
the river. They later find out that everyone left on
the boat has been killed. This is a classic tale
about the clash of the civilized world and the nat-
ural world. Tasmine can read and speak Latin
better than her mountain man husband, Jim
Snow, but she can’t kill dinner or skin it either.
The twists and turns in McMurtry’s plots are end-
less – people quite often are walking along one
minute and dead the next, with no warning.
There is danger in every step. But the serious-
ness of living and traveling with a baby in the
wilderness is balanced by colorful conversation
and lively imaginings by the many characters
that come and go along their path, to where, we
aren’t yet sure. McMurtry lets us see into the
minds of many of his characters, not just Tas-
mine or Jim Snow.
Banks Public Library: 111 Market Street.
Hours: Tues., Wed., Thurs., 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.;
Fri. and Sat. 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Preschool Story Time: Wednesdays, 10:15
a.m., through July.
Phone: (503 ) 324-1382
Internet: www.WILInet.wccls.lib.or.us.
to browse library resources or to
reserve materials electronically.
and some believe that our
troops should be brought
home. But, the solders are not
fighting for the government
alone; they are fighting for their
fellow Americans and their fam-
ily and friends as well.
At that assembly I saw an
ugly side of several of my
peers. A man who day after day
put his life on the line for our
freedom and was from our town
died! Several people at that as-
sembly knew the fallen solider
and were devastated to hear
and see the way people react-
ed while his memory was being
honored, and at times like this I
am embarrassed for my gener-
ation. What type of people are
being raised today where they
can sit there and be so disre-
spectful? My generation needs
to take a look at themselves
and ask if they want to be re-
membered as the spoiled gen-
eration that dishonored their
fallen countrymen and this
country? Let that display of dis-
respect be the exception not
the example of which we follow.
I personally would like to
thank the solders of our coun-
try, for their service, sacrifice,
and dedication.
Sincerely,
Larinda Botchie
Sophomore
Vernonia High School
Road to “Nowhere”
is new park entrance
To the Editor:
Boy, was I surprised to see
this month's (Nov. 20, 2003)
cartoon in The Independent! I
would hope that is not the im-
age all Vernonia area residents
have of the new developments
along the highway just south of
Tophill.
In reality, this is just the first
step for the entrance for the up-
coming new State Park to be
located on 1600 acres from
Buxton to Tophill east of High-
way 47. The reason it leads to
“nowhere” is that ODOT and
the Oregon State Parks &
Recreation Department are not
the same and must each do
their jobs to complete the proj-
ect. Further developments for
the new park (Hares Canyon
State Park) will be forthcoming
as funds set aside by the
State’s budget process and
Federal monies earmarked for
this project are made available.
People should get used to
the fact that when the entrance
is finally open, passing on that
stretch will become a thing of
the past! This is due to the new
“escape” lane that will be
marked on the northbound
(east) side of the highway, and
the left turn lane that will be
marked in the southbound lane
(center of the highway). A new
sign telling us all of the new
park and it’s companion Banks-
Vernonia Linear Trail will be
seen soon near this entry.
I have been involved with
the public information meetings
on this project for the past two
years and helped to pick the
name for the park. If anyone
knows more about the park’s
namesake I would appreciate
hearing from you. I believe the
canyon and the creek to be
named for William Davenport
Hare.
For more information on this
project contact Kathy Schutt
(Planning Manager OPRD) at
<Kathy.Schutt@state.or.us> or
Dennis Wiley (Area Manager
OPRD), <Dennis.Wiley@state.
or.us>.
Greg Kintz
Vernonia
Responsible public
behavior is needed
To the Editor:
It has become increasingly
clear to many of us that our
elected public officials need to
understand when they make
statements to the public they
should indicate whether it is
their own opinion or represen-
tative of the body to which they
belong. Examples of late have
come from our Scappoose city
Council, County Board of Com-
missioners, or Port of St. He-
lens to name a few.
I believe it would behoove all
of our public elected bodies to
have a policy in place which
states it is certainly permissible
to make public your own posi-
tion on issues BUT if it is your
own opinion you need to say
so. In other words, when the
public hears or reads an elect-
ed official’ opinion there should
be a disclaimer if what has
been said is NOT the stance of
the public body.
In Scappoose, we have had
a city councilor who has written
letters to the editor regarding
what someone else has said
about city council actions. I
never saw a disclaimer in his
letters indicating he was repre-
senting his own opinion on the
issue being discussed. Another
example is a member of the
Port of St. Helens. Again there
Please see page 17