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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 3, 2009)
Page 2 The INDEPENDENT, December 3, 2009 The INDEPENDENT Published on the first and third Thursdays of each month by The Independent, LLC, 725 Bridge St., Vernonia, OR 97064. Phone/Fax: 503-429-9410. Publisher Clark McGaugh, clark@the-independent.net Editor Rebecca McGaugh, rebecca@the-independent.net Mentor Noni Andersen Printed on recycled paper with vegetable based dyes Opinion Musings on music issues On November 20, a granite bench was installed at Vernonia Lake in memory of Robert Isted. By Novem- ber 24, there were chips in the back of the bench. We can’t imagine that anyone who knew Mr. Isted would have done such a thing. For those who didn’t know Mr. Isted, he was a much-loved music teacher at Vernonia schools for many years. He even used his own money to buy musical supplies, including instruments, so that all could enjoy the benefits of some musical training. Personally, we always feel the spirit of the Christmas season arrives when we go to the Vernonia schools holiday programs to hear and enjoy the kids making music. Unfortunately, this is the first year in memory that there won’t be a program at Washington Grade School. And the reason given was that Bonnie Holce, the elementary music teacher, had to be let go due to budget cuts last spring. Holce said, “I was really sad that the program is no longer,” then she added, “I couldn’t ask for a better community to work for. Every- body is just the best. My heart is here and always will be. I thank the community for supporting the program and all the work we’ve done.” We have an excellent middle/high school band pro- gram (thank you, Mr. Izzett). The band has even played in the Portland Macy’s Parade the last two years, quite an honor. We wonder, though, how long the program can excel without the elementary music “feeder” pro- gram. It will be very difficult to get great, quality band musicians without the experience and musical founda- tion that Holce and Isted provided. Many studies show that kids who participate in mu- sic programs have improved spatial-temporal skills, en- hanced academic performance, and better social skills. In a 2001 College Entrance Examination Board study, students with coursework or experience in music per- formance scored 57 points higher on the verbal section of the SAT and 41 points higher on the math; those who participated in music appreciation scored 63 and 44 points higher, respectively, than students with no arts participation. A 1999 UCLA Graduate School of Educa- tion study showed that gains from music were as great or greater for students of low socioeconomic status as for privileged students. Hopefully, the elementary music program and Bon- nie Holce will both be back soon. Vernonia School Board: Please find the funding for this very important program. Thank you, Bonnie, for the 24 years of music and dedication! Ike Says… By Dale Webb, member Nehalem Valley Chapter, Izaak Walton League Elk season is over for me for another year and, yes, I was successful again! The season start- ed for me on Thursday, two days before the sea- son officially opens, no, I wasn’t poaching. Spend- ing two days scouting, be- fore the season, is always a part of the hunt for me, and like a lot of years, I never saw a bull during those days scouting. I mainly look for tracks and don’t want to push any animals around. Opening day was guaranteed to be wet, just like the previous two days when I had been scouting. Oh well, I stayed nice and warm and dry in my hunting clothes. I spent most of the first day chasing ghosts, I thought for sure I had seen a bull from far away the day before, but I’ll be danged if I could find him. The second day wasn’t much better, but the rain had died off and I knew the tracks would soon start appearing and then the chase would be on. Day three I was back at it just before daylight, pushing my mountain bike up the hill. The evening before, my hunting partner had seen a lone elk in a small clear-cut from across the canyon. We hadn’t had time to chase that elk then, but I was soon carefully checking it out in the morning. The fog was semi-thick and I was trying to be careful not to leave a bull standing out in the open. Suddenly I looked up the road ahead of me and saw a very large elk standing right on the edge of the road I was walking up. The rifle came to my shoulder and a quick look showed a very large cow elk. With that excite- ment over, I made my way back to my bike, which I had parked down the road, and started my push up to the top of the hill and a couple of good looking clear-cuts. The fog had pretty well lifted when I rode up to the first good vantage point that overlooked a clear-cut with older reprod in it. I pulled my rifle out of it’s bike rack and walked about three steps when my eyes saw a blonde body on the oppos- ing hillside through the gap in the small trees on my side. I silently stepped back and pulled my shooting sticks from my pack. I eased up to the gap in the trees and viewed not one, but two bulls grazing on the opposite hillside, 275 yards away. I knew they were bulls just by their coat color, but I didn’t know if they were legal bulls, a big difference. The Saddle Mt. unit requires 3pt. or better for bull elk, so I tried to find just how much antler these two bulls had. Soon, I found myself shaking badly from the prospect of get- ting a longer range shot at a bull elk. Finally I had to lay my binoculars on my shooting sticks to calm the shakes. I determined the smaller bodied bull was legal; he looked to be a rag horn 4-5 pt. The bigger bull had his head behind a tree and I had to wait for him to walk out into the open. Finally, he did just that and I could make out nice ivory tips dancing against the straw col- Please see page 3
