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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (July 3, 2008)
The INDEPENDENT, July 3, 2008 Page 3 Letters Vernonia PD thanks Lions for great help To The Editor: The Vernonia Police Depart- ment would like to officially thank the Lions Club of Vernon- ia for their continued dedication to the Vernonia Police Depart- ment K9 unit. As many of you know, the former K9 unit was used for rescue and transporta- tion efforts in the December Flood of 2007. That vehicle had to be replaced and was de- clared a total loss by the City’s insurance. The insurance mon- ey was used to replace the ve- Ike Says… From page 2 will also require that a large number of harvested animals’ teeth be taken for age analysis, which most likely will mean that hunters will be required to turn in teeth. SAK will also need a fair number of antlerless deer be taken for an accurate un- derstanding of what is going on with the antlerless component of the herd. This, quite frankly, will not be welcome news in what is viewed by many as an already suppressed deer herd in our local region. While the proposed Black- tailed Deer Plan is a step in the right direction by ODF&W, it will succeed only if it is fully funded, if the appropriate data gaps and questions are accu- rately answered, and if sports- people support the funding and believe in the results. That can be accomplished only by hav- ing a full and open partnership with the sport hunters in Ore- gon, something I don’t think I see in the plan. ODF&W could create this support and trust by forming a 10-member commit- tee – selected by the sports- men of the state – that would review and oversee ODF&W’s Blacktailed Deer Plan as it moves forward. Sportsmen could support the plan by pushing for an additional fee for research to ensure that the plan could be conducted cor- rectly. ODF&W is currently pushing for a fairly steep fee in- crease; let’s put some of the money toward this plan. Izaak Walton League, Nehalem Valley Chapter meets monthly on the 3rd Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Call 503-428-7193 for location. hicle with a 2000 Ford Expedi- tion from the City of Portland. The Vernonia Lions Club spearheaded a fund raising ef- fort to outfit the replacement vehicle with a K9 platform. The Lions Club pulled out all the stops to, once again, show their dedication to this valuable as- set to the City of Vernonia and surrounding area. Not only did the Vernonia Lions Club con- tribute, but they were able to solicit funds from regional clubs and organizations. Within two weeks the Lions Club had raised the $2,500 needed to outfit the vehicle with a K9 plat- form that protects the dog from injuries, but also allows the ve- hicle to be more efficient by al- lowing prisoner transport as well. Previously, prisoners were transported in the front seat of the vehicle, which was not safe for the officer. Without the Lions Club step- ping up again and enhancing the safety of our K9, Krueger, I don’t believe our program would be in the position it is in today. It is important that the Li- ons be recognized for their dedication. We would like to personally thank Larry and Gail Snethen, George Tice, and es- pecially Pat, for heading up this effort. Because of the Vernonia Li- ons Club, Lions Club Interna- tional and the continued sup- port of our community, our pro- gram continues to be very ef- fective in suppressing street drugs and crimes. Sgt. Mike Kay Vernonia Police Department State money not being used on priority needs To The Editor: The failure of the republi- cans in Congress and Presi- dent Bush to approve a contin- uance of the O&C revenue which has traditionally come to many rural Oregon counties will soon result in large scale lay- offs of county employees, and perhaps the slippage of some Oregon counties into bankrupt- cy. Here in Columbia County we are slated to lose $1.9 mil- lion per year starting July 1st. According to the Oregonian this is approximately 23% of the Columbia County’s general fund budget. This will involve the loss of somewhere be- tween 10% and 23% of county employee positions, including sheriffs and many others. This Where to Find Them U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (Democrat-OR) 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 585 Portland OR 97232 Phone: 503-326-7525 230 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg., Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-5244 Website: http://wyden.senate. gov U.S. Senator Gordon Smith (Republican-OR) One World Trade Center 121 SW Salmon St., Suite 1250 Portland, OR 97204 Phone: 503-326-3386 Fax: 503-326-2900 404 Russell Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3753 Website: http://gsmith.senate. gov U.S. Representative David Wu (Democrat-01) 620 SW Main, Suite 606 Portland, OR 97205 Phone: 503-326-2901 Fax: 503-326-5066 2338 Rayburn Building Washington, DC 20515 Phone: 202-225-0855 Fax: 202-225-9497 Website: http://house.gov/wu Senator Betsy Johnson (Democrat-16) PO Box R, Scappoose, OR 97056 Phone: 503-543-4046 900 Court St. NE, S-314 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1716 E-mail: sen.betsyjohnson@ state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/johnson Representative Brad Witt (Democrat-31) 21740 Lindberg Road, Clatskanie, OR 97016 Phone: 503-728-4664 900 Court St. NE, H-277 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1431 E-mail: rep.bradwitt@state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/witt Representative Deborah Boone (Democrat-32) PO Box 926 Cannon Beach, OR 97110 Phone: 503-717-9182 900 Court St. NE, H-375 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-986-1432 E-mail: rep.deborahboone@ state.or.us Website: http//www.leg.state.or. us/boone is a disaster both for the em- ployees and their families as well as the rest of us who ben- efit from the services those em- ployees perform. The state’s response to all this is that it’s too bad, but the state has no money to help these counties. Yet at the same time this slaughter is going on at the county level, the state is plan- ning to give, free for nothing, public funds amounting to $6.3 million to a worldwide, billion dollar railroad conglomerate, so they can put in new rails on their private railroad track run- ning along highway 30 in Co- lumbia County. I put it to you that this is a suicidal use of public funds which ought to go instead to the counties to pre- vent large scale unemployment and loss of services. If you agree you might want to give your state reps a call. Yours truly, Michael F. Sheehan Scappoose Cornelius event was successful and fun To The Editor: What a perfect, sunny day Saturday, June 21,was for the First Annual Celebrate Cor- nelius Community Festival. All that attended proclaimed the party a success. All age groups enjoyed the thrill of the mon- strous inflated slide, courtesy of local Grand Rental Station, to the chills of the water balloon toss manned by Sky’s The Lim- it volunteers. Mayor Bill Bash tried his hand at the hula-hoop competi- tion but the Mayor’s daughter was pretty sure the Cornelius Firemen were a little better at it. The cupcakes supplied by Grande Foods made the cake walk a hit with everyone. Cor- nelius Fire and Police Depart- ments provided excellent tips on summer safety and interest- ing vehicle tours. Sports Look’s sumptuous dogs and lemonade created classic summertime atmos- phere. Melodies wafted from the Karaoke machine and squeals of achievement at the coin toss. Boys and Girls Club staff performed creative face painting, and enthusiasm poured from the Cornelius Li- brary, from set up to tear down. Every part of the celebration was fun filled. The additional contributions from local businesses including Basco Burgers, Cedar Canyon, Cornelius Boosters and K’s Gas and Mini Mart assisted in raising over $300 for the Boys and Girls Club Satellite pro- grams in Cornelius. Though the festival was promoted as a fundraiser, the true success of the event was bringing together the Cornelius Community in a positive way. Murphy’s Furni- ture thanks all who participated and looks forward to making next year’s celebration even bigger and better. Kathleen Murphy Cornelius Policy on Letters The INDEPENDENT will not publish letters that include per- sonal attacks on private citizens. Because of space limitations, preference will be given to brief letters, 300 words or less. All letters must be signed and include a verifiable address or phone number. Opinion, continued a new bill to offset county payments with funds from oil lease fees lost by three votes. Oddly, Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) loudly opposed the new bill because of the source of offset funds, although he joined DeFazio in a letter (Jan. 18, 2008) to Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, urging him to bring the bill to a vote and noting that the House had approved using that source four times previously. Apparently Walden will try a new bill with offsetting funds from alternative energy tax credits. Of course, these were intended to fund increased research on al- ternative energy and reduce the need for oil. This is a sad commentary on national priorities.
