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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 2006)
The INDEPENDENT, December 21, 2006 Page 5 Business Notes Couple bring teamwork to local church Wayne and Maureene Marr Wayne and Maureene Marr arrived in Vernonia recently to serve as pastors to the congre- gation at the Assembly of God Church. Technically, Wayne Marr is the pastor, but Maureene Marr, who also has considerable ex- perience in church music and education programs, will serve along with her husband. Wayne and Maureene were friends in elementary school in Chicago Heights, Illinois, but went separate ways as adults. Wayne attended North Cen- tral University in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he earned a degree in theology. His first church was in Brainerd, Minn., in 1954. He subsequently served at Assembly of God churches in North Dakota, Southern Califor- nia, Arizona and, most recently, Glenn’s Ferry, Idaho. Conference set on woody biomass opportunities Opportunities for conversion of woody biomass from thin- ning overly dense forests, into green electric energy, biofuels and other bioproducts will be explored January 3 in a day- long conference at the World Forestry Center in Portland. Designed to inform policy makers and stakeholders, the conference precedes the annu- al Oregon Business Summit, January 4, in Portland, where conversion of forest biomass will also be on the agenda. “The time is right for Oregon to explore the environmental, social and economic “triple win” offered by woody biomass from Oregon’s overstocked federal forests,” said Allyn Ford, CEO of Roseburg Forest Products and a director of the Oregon Business Council. Conversion of woody bio- mass by thinning Oregon’s overstocked forests poses a unique opportunity to address three challenging needs: • Restoring Oregon’s forest health and wildlife habitat and reducing the risk of severe fire. • Helping meet the state’s goal for renewable energy • Providing jobs and revital- izing rural economies The conference will explore findings of a new woody bio- mass study commissioned by the Oregon Forest Resources Institute (OFRI) along with oth- er biomass-related work. OFRI is co-sponsoring the conference with the Oregon Business Council, The Nature Conservancy, the Oregon For- est Industries Council, the American Forest Resources Council and the Oregon Forest Biomass Working Group. Dr. Jim Bowyer, biomass consultant and professor emer- itus of the Department of Bio- based Products at the Universi- ty of Minnesota, will kick off the conference with an overview of bioenergy and biofuels. Bowyer was part of the study team spearheaded by Mason, Bruce & Girard, Inc., a Port- land-based natural resource consulting firm. Energy and forestry experts from Pacific Energy Systems, Inc., a Port- land energy consulting firm and Oregon State University’s col- leges of forestry and agriculture also participated in the study. (The study can be ordered through the OFRI website www.oregonforests.org.) Registration is required for the conference, which is free and open to the public. It runs from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the World Forestry Center’s Miller Hall. The conference agenda, registration form and additional details are posted on the OFRI website at www.ore- gonforests.org. Kline gives lesson in budgeting From page 4 fixed assets (ie., land or build- ings), he explained, so even ending up with a negative equi- ty can be misleading because there may have been an in- crease in fixed assets by pur- chasing land or other assets, so cash flow can be affected without the net change in over- all equity being affected as negatively as it may appear. Kline used made-up dollar figures for the Learning Center as an example of the right side (liabilities) of the balance sheet being negatively impacted while the left side (assets) gained value from the Learning Center. “I wasn’t involved in the decision or building of the Learning Center, but I think Vernonia is an awful lot better off due to this expenditure,” Kline said. He went on to say, “We want to spend dollars on services and expenditures that do good for the community and are consistent with our goals.” Please see page 22 He also married; he and his late wife had three children, all of whom are now adults. He was widowed five years ago. Maureene moved to South- ern California, where she studied music, theology and Christian education at Life Pacific Col- lege, a Four Square college in San Di- mas, and earned an AA degree at Los Angeles City College. Music was both a profes- sion and a hobby for Mau- reene. She taught music for 13 years at Life Pacific Con- servatory, was pianist at Ange- les Temple, and gave private music lessons. She moved to Portland and attended Portland State Univer- sity, where she studied – mu- sic, of course, but returned to California when her aging parents needed help. She started attending the Lancaster As- sembly of God while living with her sister in Ante- lope Valley. Wayne and Maureene met again, in California; they have been married for three years. They both wanted to come to Oregon and were happy to answer the call to Vernonia.
