The INDEPENDENT, March 19, 2009 Palomar to talk at UNWC meeting John Cassady, environmen- tal and land manager for the proposed Palomar Gas Trans- mission project, will speak at the Upper Nehalem Watershed Council (UNWC) meeting on March 26, at 7:00 p.m. The meeting will be open to the public and will be held at the Mist-Birkenfeld Fire Station, 12525 Hwy. 202, Mist. Cassady will talk about the purpose and need for Palomar, natural gas demand in the Pa- cific Northwest, waterbody crossing methods and bed- and-bank restoration. The pro- posal to build this gas line through parts of Columbia County into Washington Coun- ty is currently being considered by federal and state regulators. For more information, con- tact Maggie Peyton of UNWC at 503-429-0869 or by email to info@nehalem.org. Open auditions call for “Oliver!” ShoeString Community Players has announced open auditions for the Summer 2009 production of Oliver! The play will run July 16-18 and 23-25. This production is presented by special arrangement with Tams-Witmark Music Library, Inc. It is directed by Caleb S. Thurston, who has directed five children’s musicals with River City Children’s Theater and is currently studying theatre arts at George Fox University. “I am excited to bring Oliver! to our community,” said director Thurston. “Oliver! is a well known and well loved musical that presents us with a unique opportunity to have children and families participate together.” Open auditions for adults and youth ages 8 and up will be held at the St. Helens High School Olmscheid Auditorium as follows: Friday, April 3, 6-9:00 p.m. for ages 15 and over only. The sessions are closed. Saturday, April 4, 9:00 a.m. to Noon for ages 8 to 14 in open sessions. Saturday, April 4, 6-9:00 p.m. for ages 15 and over only, closed sessions. Children must be accompa- nied by a parent or guardian who must remain at the audi- tion site at all times. No child may be left unaccompanied. More information about the show can be found at the ShoeString Community Players web site at http://www.sscpmu- sicals.com. To secure an audi- tion slot and receive audition materials, contact director Thurston at olivermusical09 @gmail.com Bits & Bites By Jacqueline Ramsay D i d you call t h e phone number on your February Ve r i z o n state- ment to STOP all those un- wanted “bleep” messages? I did, the month is up so I’ll see how they get around it now. But one “pay your debt” said “press 2”, I did and it actually talked back to me saying my 10-digit number had been removed – we’ll see… How smart is a dog? Shad- Center members and $14 for non-members. To sign up, or for more infor- mation, call Karen at 503-429- 9112. P.E.O. flowers help scholarships The local chapter of P.E.O. held election and installation of officers for 2009-2010 at their March meeting. New officers are as follows: President Janet Parker, Vice President Carolyn Keasey, Recording Secretary Coni Hodgson, Treasurer Ilene Grady, Chaplain Claudine East, Guard Allison McLeod, Corre- sponding Secretary Pat Wheel- er, and Historian Nancy Burch. P.E.O. is an international or- ganization which takes pride in providing educational opportu- nities to women in their com- munities. The local chapter is currently taking orders for spring and summer flowers with all pro- ceeds being used to help pro- vide scholarships for women. Contact any member listed here or Mary Tolonen at Vernonia True Value to order flowers. ow proved to me she can think, hear and smell this past week. I’m in total awe and wonder of her. While walking the lake last week she found a “dead” some- thing in the brush and, of course, she rolled in it. Said I to her at the time, “You know what happens now (bath).” When we got home I just washed off her neck for the time being (it was late evening and I was too tired to wrestle her in the tub). Two days later, evening, I thought she wanted out – no – she sat looking at me. Said I, “What do you want?” She got up, walked into the bathroom and jumped in the tub. I guess she stunk too bad for herself to stand it. Beat this one if you can. She is not fond of water. It is Spring. How can I tell? By the number of notices of friends and acquaintances passing away – my family tree just lost another branch. It makes one ask, “Am I taking good care of me,” and are all my ducks in a row for those I’ll leave behind? Did you go to the Library Book Sale? I did. Did not find what I was looking for but bought three books and they tossed in a head cold. I’ve been in bed barking like a seal since March 8 – drinking hot broths, reading, sleeping, barking, barking, barking and watching T.V. when I quit chilling. It’s all in my head. Yes, it is. No fever. Life goes on… 50 Years Ago This Month The March 19, 1959, issue of the Vernonia Eagle included the following news story on the front page: Vernonia’s first Town and Country day, sponsored last Satur- day by the Chamber of Commerce was voted a huge success and well worth the effort by the committees that had expended much time and effort in arranging the affair. The auction held in the the af- ternoon with Chris Christiansen of Hillsboro as auctioneer netted $103.89. The smorgasbord drew about Still time to take Safe Driving class Meet the author There is still time to sign up for the AARP Safe Driving Class at the Vernonia Senior Center on March 30 and 31, at 12:45 p.m. The cost is $12 for Page 9 There will be a book signing, and discussion at the Vernonia Library on Saturday, March 21, at 2:00 p.m. Barbara Scot and Eileen O’Keeffe McVicker, authors of Child of Steens Mountain will discuss the book about McVicker’s experiences grow- ing up in a sheepherder family on the flanks of Steens Moun- tain. This is no admission charge to this event. State Farm ® Providing Insurance and Financial Services Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710 Bunny Girt, Agent 1229 N. Adair PO Box 543 Cornelius, OR 97113-0543 Bus 503-357-3131 Fax 503-357-9667 bunny.girt.b71g@statefarm.com 200 people and caused the com- mittee to run out of food. The fact that many people were undecided and that only about 50 advance tickets were purchased gave the committee no indication of the wonderful turn-out there was. The dance was well attended and drew a number of former resi- dents as did the dinner which gave opportunity for seeing a lot of friends while here. Prizes awarded at the drawing were a portable TV set which when to Claude Shaw, an electric blanket drawn by Tom Bateman and an electric fry pan which went to Calvin Davis of Forest Grove. Total take for the event was $805.99 and expenses for orches- tra, prizes, printing and other items amounted to $422.96, leaving a profit of $383.03 for the Chamber of Commerce. Due to the success of the event and the popular expression of de- sire for another one, indications are that another will be planned for later this year. To sum it all up, Guy Thomas, president of the Vernonia chamber of commerce said Monday, “Town and Country Day was a success because of the many people who pitched in.” Thomas went on to say that not only those who worked on the pro- gram but those who attended the auction, smorgasbord and dance helped to make the affair a suc- cess. Please see page 21 VERNONIA INN Enjoy a quiet weekend with us. FULL SIZE, IN ROOM HOT TUBS Queen Beds • Private Bath • Separate Entrance Cable TV • Phones • Handicapped Access • Commercial Rates FOR RESERVATIONS CALL 1-800-354-9494 / 503-429-4006 Gift Certificates Available 900 MADISON AVE., VERNONIA, OR 97064 Just one block off scenic Nehalem River Hwy. (Oregon 47)