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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 16, 2004)
The INDEPENDENT, September 16, 2004 Letters From page 17 mies rumbling because they didn’t get to eat, tears because the adult at home yelled at them, yawns because no one got them to bed at a decent hour, or domestic violence kept them up all night. No one at home cared enough to spend a few extra minutes to be sure their child had a good start to the day. When a driver has to wait while a child scrambles to find homework, has to tie their shoes when they get on the bus or help them with their jackets, it holds up everyone …including you, the impatient driver stuck behind the bus. Older children also need to have a decent breakfast, and have their backpacks and lunch pails ready a few minutes prior to the bus arriving. Just as with adults, when a child starts off the day hungry, or wolfs down an inadequate breakfast and rushes madly out the door, there is a stress load already weighing them down. Drivers, leave adequate room between you and the back of the school bus! DON’T TAILGATE THE BUS! Just like trucks, if you can’t see us in your side mirror, we can’t see you. Buses have rear view mir- rors, but drivers depend on side mirrors since back and side windows often fog up. Climbing on our rear ends isn’t going to make us speed up. In fact, it will cause us to SLOW DOWN. Why? This little item is in the drivers manual for a rea- son. If you are so close that you would hit us if we had to stop suddenly, we’ll make sure you are going at an even slow- er speed. Then if you rear-end the bus, the impact will be less. School buses follow the same routes, on the same days, at the same times, give or take a few minutes. If you al- ways end up behind a bus, leave earlier, or leave later. It’s not the bus’s fault you get stuck behind it every day. And please DO NOT even consider speed- ing around that bus just to save you 2 or 3 minutes. Is your agenda more important than the safety of a child? Worth the risk of injuring or killing a child? Or a head-on collision with someone in the other lane? No one else will think so, especial- ly the family of the child you might kill. The next time you are stuck Page 21 Obituary behind a school bus, instead of fretting and fuming, give thanks that, although our schools are overcrowded and underfunded, we have schools. We are blessed to live in a country which not only has schools, but also has a system that allows ALL children to attend school, city or rural, even providing transportation. So give the the kids a break, give the bus driv- ers a break. Change your atti- tude, back off a few yards, watch out for them and help keep them safe. Thank you, Cat Ross Former school bus driver, current sub bus driver, Vernonia School District Seven reasons for supporting Ekstrom To the Editor: It was, indeed a pleasure, to see in the paper that Bob Ek- strom was running for the office of county commissioner. I have known Bob and his lovely wife Vicki for many years. First, I would say this for Bob and Vicki, they have raised a fine outstanding family, one to be proud of. Second, Bob is a successful businessman. This takes brains, our county surely needs some. Thirdly, Bob is an honest man, these are hard to come by in these days, believe me. Fourth, Bob is a man of high moral convictions, one who practices what he preaches. Fifth, Bob is a humble man who thinks and prays upon each serious issue that comes before him. Sixth, Bob is a man of in- tegrity, he stands for right re- gardless of the cost. Seventh, Bob is a man of high moral values, who stands for what is right and the consti- tution as it was written by our founding fathers. In other words, my friends, we could never find a better man than Bob Ekstrom for county commissioner, or Presi- dent of the United States of America for that matter. Let one and all who stands for decency get behind this outstanding man. Thank you, Juneious F. Harty Scappoose BEECHER F. MASON Beecher F. Mason, 79, Portland, died September 8, 2004. A funeral was held September 13 in Lincoln Memorial Funeral Home. Mr. Mason was born June 10, 1925, in Madisonville, Tennessee. He moved to Timber in 1950 and to Portland in 1959. In 1948, he married Villa Wear. He was a bus driver for Greyhound. Survivors include his wife, two sons, Roger and Stan; three daughters, Sharon Johnson, Darlene Mihaljcic and Rhonda Criado; 15 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren. MAY KATE NIKOLAUS May Kate Nikolaus, 81, Hillsboro, died September 4, 2004. A funeral service was held September 10 at the First Christian Church in Forest Grove, with Rev. Spencer King officiating. Pri- vate burial took place in Union Point Cemetery in Banks. Mrs. Nikolaus was born October 27, 1922, in Ghost Pine Creek, Alberta, Canada, to James and Maude James Quance. She was raised in Canada. In 1949, she married Gordon Niko- laus. They made their home in several communities in Canada and the United States, including Banks and Hillsboro. She was preceded in death by a brother, Fredrick. Survivors include her husband; one son, James of Banks; one daughter, Karen Schmidlin of Banks; one brother, Charles of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; two sisters, Minnie Dean of Missoula, Montana, and Clarice Christie of Three Hills, Alberta, Canada; four grandchil- dren; nieces and nephews. Remembrances are suggested to the American Heart Association, 1425 NE Irving, Suite 100, Portland, OR 97232-4201. Duyck and VanDeHey Funeral Home of Forest Grove was in charge of arrangements. LARA DENIKE PEDDICORD Lara Denike Peddicord, 29, Knoxville, Tennessee, died July 23, 2004. A celebration of life was held September 11 at The Grand Lodge in Forest Grove. Mrs. Peddicord was born October 22, 1974, in Portland, to Peter T. and Frances E. Denike. She was raised in "A Trusted Name in Funeral Service" Manning and graduated from Banks High School in 1992. She earned a B.A. degree in Spanish in 2003 at Ap- palachian State University in Boone, N.C. In 2004, she married Brian Peddi- cord. They made their home in Knoxville. She had worked as a teacher’s assistant for Washington Count Head Start and in the Banks School District. She was preceded in death by her father. Survivors include her husband; her mother; and a brother, David T. Denike of Grants Pass. Remembrances are suggested to the American Cancer Society, 0330 SW Curry St., Portland, OR 97201. HELEN L. PEMBLE Helen L. Pemble, 77, formerly of Vernonia, died September 11, 2004. A memorial service will be held Septem- ber 18 at 11:00 a.m. in Portland Memo- rial Funeral Home. Mrs. Pemble was born May 4, 1927, in Vernonia. Her maiden name was Fowler. She graduated from Vernonia High School. In 1946, she married Weston Pem- ble. She was a plant scheduler for Tek- tronix for 18 years. Survivors include her husband; a son, R. Scott; a daughter, Candice Pemble-Belkin; three grandchildren. Remembrances are suggested to Washington County Hospice. MAX EDGAR SNIDER, JR. Max Edgar Snider, Jr., 76, Portland, died September 1, 2004. A service was held September 8 at Willamette Nation- al Cemetery. Mr. Snider was born May 12, 1928, in Vernonia and was raised in Portland. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Adak, Alaska during World War II. In 1948, he married Helen B. Ful- gham. He was a truck driver for Zeller- bach Paper for 39 years. Angel Memorials Granite Markers Second Generation Family Owned & Operated JEFFREY & DEBRA ROSE-HOYT TINA ROSE-REYNOLDS JANE SCHNEIDER, ROSS MATHEWS HECTOR DE LOS SANTOS Attendant: RAY PELSTER 2308 Pacific Av. Frst Grv....357-2161 741 Madison Av. Vern.........429-6611 E-mail: Fuitenrosehoyt@aol.com SIDNEY E. WITBECK Sidney E. Witbeck, 80, Cornelius, died August 31, 2004. Private crema- tion has taken place. Mr. Witbeck was born October 6, 1923, in Severance, Colorado. He was raised in Colorado and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He moved to Cornelius in 1948 and worked as a PGE lineman. From the early 1950s until 1971, he owned and operated the Laurel Acres Store and Service Station in Hillsboro. In 1988, he married Alice White. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Nettie “Cec” Witbeck. Survivors include his wife; three step-daughters, Kathy Wolfe of Ver- nonia, Adriene Gardner of Portland, and Belinda Spegel of Nehalem; nine grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; nieces and nephews. W ESTSIDE C REMATION & B URIAL S ERVICE , I NC . Direct Cremation $ 575. Immediate Burial $ 775. Plus Cemetery Charges 24 Hr. Service Honoring all pre-planned funeral arrangements Serving Hillsboro Columbia and & Serving Washington Counties All of Washington County 9456 NW Roy Rd., Forest Grove 503-640-9045 Direct Cremation $ 475 Privately owned Not a funeral home or cemetery Personal home visits at no extra charge Prices start at $320 including design and lettering Tualatin Valley Funeral Alternatives Wendy Sears 503-429-1523 Fuiten, Rose & Hoyt Funeral Home Survivors include his wife; one daughter, Linda Ferguson; a sister, Faye; three grandchildren; four great- grandchildren. Remembrances are suggested to the House of Dreams cat shelter in Portland. Crown was in charge of arrange- ments. ~ There are Options ~ 241 West Main St., Hillsboro 503-693-7965 D & V uyck anDeHey FUNERAL HOME Our family providing your family with respectful professional service. Offering full service burial and cremation. Owners & Operators Aaron & Elizabeth “VanDeHey” Duyck Serving Washington County & North Columbia Serving Forest Grove, Hillsboro, Cornelius, Plains, County Banks & Gaston 9456 NW Roy Rd.• Forest Grove • 503-357-8749