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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 6, 2009)
The INDEPENDENT, August 6, 2009 Where to Find Them U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (Dem) 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Suite 585 Portland OR 97232 Phone: 503-326-7525 223 Dirksen Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510-0001 Phone: 202-224-5244 E-Mail: http://wyden.senate.gov/ contact Website: http://wyden.senate. gov U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (Dem.) One World Trade Center 121 SW Salmon St., Suite 1250 Portland, OR 97204 Phone: 503-326-3386 107 Russell Senate Ofc. Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-3753 E-Mail: senator@merkley.sen ate. gov WebSite: http://merkley.senate. gov U.S. Representative David Wu (Dem) OR District 1 620 SW Main, Suite 606 Portland, OR 97205 Phone: 503-326-2901 2338 Rayburn House Ofc. Bldg. Washington, DC 20515 Phone: 202-225-0855 Website: http://house.gov/wu Senator Betsy Johnson (Dem) Senate District 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 (Dem) House District. 31 21740 Lindberg Road, Clatskanie, OR 97016 Phone: 503-728-4664 900 Court St. NE, H-373 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 (Dem) House District 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 Page 3 Letters Community will fail without our schools To the Editor: What would Vernonia look like without its schools? Families would move out, and as a result property values would go down. There would be no sporting events, which are such popular entertainment events for our community. Due to lack of population, the health clinic would close, and our mar- ket would likely be gone, along with other local businesses we depend on every day. We can have a beautiful new school that would attract new families to our community. Of course, grant providers need to see community participation in projects before they dispense any money. That is why it is so important to pass our school bond measure – we need that grant money! We realize that times are tough right now for everyone, but we can tighten our belts and do what’s right to keep our beautiful community alive and vital. We urge everyone to attend the Town Hall meetings to ask questions and learn more about the plans for new schools, and the school bond we must pass. A Town Hall meeting is planned for some- time in August, please watch for the date. The Vernonia Health Center Board is committed to providing health care to our unique com- munity. Passing the school bond issue is vital to that com- mitment. Let’s work together to keep what we are blessed to have. Vernonia Health Center Board of Directors Carolyn Keasey, Chairman Barbara Ervin Marie Krahn Darlene McLeod Wendy Sears Debbie Snook Robert Wagner A great summer with local Midget Baseball To the Editor: How’s Your Summer Been? Well ours has been great! We have had the great pleasure of watching the Vernonia Logger Midget Baseball team all sum- mer long. What a thrill it’s been to watch these 10 year-old ath- letes show us their stuff! They have so much skill and knowl- edge at this young age about the game due to the coaching provided by coaches Morrison, Butcher, Tolonen and Cieloha. The much improved team was undefeated in their league this season which in turn sent them to the “Midget National State Tournament” in Eugene where they finished 4th out of the 12 teams playing. Pretty great for a little town like Vernonia! Thank you to all of our boys for such a fun and skillful sea- son! The team was: Trask Zook (#70), Jake Patton (#20), Clay Sullivan (#10), Jarod Shaw (#24), Hayden Elton Cieloha (#14), Tristan Adams (#16), Baily Morrison (#2), Jacob Butcher (#1), Jason Foutch (#27), Brett Elliot (#9), Chase Tolonen (#22), and Daniel Fletcher (#18). Special thanks to #14 for making us proud and showing good sportsmanship (and not losing any teeth inside 3rd). An Oregon Perspective By Senator Jeff Merkley Lowering Health Care Costs and Providing Choice At the beginning of July, I held town hall meetings in Umatilla, Polk, Clacka- mas, Linn, Marion, and Multnomah Counties. At each meeting, the most prominent issue of concern was health care. People of all walks of life are paying dramati- cally more for health care than they used to. These high costs are hurting our families and our small businesses. Last year, we spent 17 per- cent of our gross domestic product on health care; in the last nine years, costs have doubled for the average family. In May, Oregon’s largest insurer announced that the average small busi- ness premium was going up 14.7 percent – on top of a 26 percent increase last year. Health care costs are an increasing drag on our econo- my and the pocketbooks of working families. In my role on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, I’ve been working with my colleagues on a plan for health care reform that will lower costs, provide consumers with more choices, and increase competition. The change would work like this: Americans who are happy with their current health plan can keep it. But if you don’t like your plan and you want to look at other options, we’re going to make sure you have a choice of quality, afford- able health plans. This will lower costs and it will also force insurance companies to provide better services to their customers. One of those options will be a community health insurance plan offered by the federal gov- ernment. This public option will be an additional choice to increase competition, lower prices, and keep insurance companies honest, so families won’t be entirely at the mercy of the insurance companies. Most Oregonians I’ve talked to – and about three-quarters of Americans according to the polls – like the idea of having a choice of what type of plan they want rather than having the federal government make that decision for them. Over the next few months, we’ll be engaging in a nationwide discussion about the direction of health care in our country. We’ll have before us a choice between a system that gets more and more expensive every year, leaves middle class families one pink slip from losing their health cov- erage, and makes our businesses less competi- tive, or an improved model that increases health care options, expands care, and lowers costs. I don’t think we can afford to do nothing. We have a once in a generation opportunity to remake our health care system for the better. I in- vite you to contact my office and talk to your friends and family about your opinion because we can only enact real change if you make your voices heard. Keep up the good work, next season will be here before you know it! GO LOGGERS! Larry & Shelley Elton Vernonia Help is needed to get man on transplant list To the Editor: My name is Darrold Mushatt and I grew up here in Vernonia. I graduated from Vernonia High School and then worked differ- ent jobs before joining the Army where I served for five years. My wife, Teresa, and I are the parents of two boys and two daughters and we live here in Vernonia. We are in need of your support and assistance. I am 32 years old and have always worked hard. In April of 2007, I started feeling sick. One day I would feel fine and the next I would have no energy and feel sick to my stomach. Tests were done here at the Vernonia Medical Clinic and af- ter taking what seemed to be all of my blood, Dr. Gilmore broke the bad news that my kidneys had failed and she already had a room set up for me at Provi- dence Hospital in Portland. My world immediately turned up- side down and inside out. Three surgeries and five days later, catheters were placed in my thigh, chest, and wrist for kidney dialysis. Going back to work was difficult at best as I worked swing shift and would have to coordinate two-hour trips for dialysis. I would go in for dialysis from 6:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., then be at work at 3:00 p.m. which made for extremely long days. It was proving to be too costly financially and physically, so my doctor suggested doing dialysis at home. This required another surgery to install a catheter in my abdomen. This worked out well as I could re- See Letters, page 16 Policy on Letters The INDEPENDENT will not publish letters that in- clude personal 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 ad- dress or phone number.