The INDEPENDENT, July 5, 2012
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
313 Hart Senate Ofc. Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3753
E-Mail: http://merkley.senate.
gov/contact
WebSite: http://merkley.senate.
gov
U.S. Representative Suzanne
Bonamici, (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://bonamici.house.
gov
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
Time to innovate for
affordable energy
To the Editor:
Open letter to Marc Farmer:
Marc, I get it. You are in a sys-
temic Catch-22: damned if you
do and damned if you don’t.
The realities are: WOEC is ge-
ographically stretched over
1,224 square miles through
millions of trees and rough ter-
rain; the power-load is domi-
nated by residential users; it
has few, and dwindling com-
mercial users; and no signifi-
cant percentage of industrial
use. There are long-term de-
ferred major repair issues, a
huge recession, inflation, rising
operational costs, declining
revenues (people are leaving);
compliance-forced office relo-
cation and a single-sourced
wholesale power supplier un-
der Federal control. The situa-
tion is like ingesting pure
habañera hot sauce by the ta-
blespoon full. Not only you, but
your staff, employees, friends,
neighbors and all the cus-
tomers are faced with the pain.
And there are those who simply
cannot afford WOEC power
and are locked out. Everyone is
upset and they are looking at
you, the general manager
…and your new building
(which, per square foot in cost
is a technical value but not less
expensive than a lower cost in-
dustrial grade clear span con-
struction. But that is done with;
it’s here).
You have said there is noth-
ing that you (and your Board?)
can do outside of your 10-year
plan and wage freezes, be-
cause of the iron grip, and na-
ture of, WOEC’s service area,
customer base, wholesale sup-
plier and the economy. Yet, you
must do something. What?
Punt! Look outside the 9 dots!
(1) Go back to the concept
of being a “co-operative”, and
not a pyramidal, profit-focused,
CEO-led business model. Co-
ops utilize member ownership,
an expanded, active board of
directors who set policy for you
to follow, as their co-op manag-
er, in order to achieve maxi-
mum member and employee
benefit, rather than seeking to
deal with volatile investment
risk, lowest labor cost, lowest
supply cost and highest, re-
tained earnings and dividends
(Our co-op has dividends.
Where are they?). The two
concepts, co-op vs private prof-
it structure, are diametrically
opposed, especially when con-
cerned with public utilities.
WOEC needs to operate as a
co-operative, not as a private
business enterprise.
(2) Next, work with, not
against the BPA; they are look-
ing “down the road”, as Ger-
many and the Netherlands
have very successfully demon-
strated with alternative and
soon-to-be dominant energy
strategies. Otherwise, WOEC
will simply go out of business
because of avoidable, heritage
(old time) costs and independ-
ent former-customers who will
have their own, home-based
energy systems (exclude ex-
panded natural gas develop-
ments which require invasive
secret ingredients, highly toxic
fracking).
(3) Pro-actively embrace
lobbying for and developing al-
ternative renewable energy in
all its manifestations, including
fish-safe micro hydro (we have
an abundance of adequate, un-
dammed water flow even in
summer).
(4) Put solar and wind tur-
bines on your HQ roofs.
(5) Explore banking relation-
ships that work with WOEC
Ike Says…
From page 2
understand or care about is the
steady decline in
older hunters, who are simply
giving up hunting or moving
their hunting out of state to bet-
ter areas. To top this off, non-
resident hunters are finally fig-
uring out that Oregon is not the
best place to spend their hard-
earned money. It is becoming
apparent that non-resident
hunters are spending their
points on lesser hunts, then not
applying anymore. This will im-
pact the ODF&W budget more
than a resident hunter dropping
out, due to the substantially
higher fees that non-residents
pay. I will give you one guess
as to who they will ask to make
up the difference.
Izaak Walton League,
Nehalem Valley Chapter
meets monthly on the 3rd
Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Call
503-429-7193 for location.
customers on alternative ener-
gy packages, rebates, tax in-
centives and reverse metering;
(6) Hire tree crews locally
(we have an abundance of
skilled forest talent and crew
chiefs).
(7) Clear tree cuts on power-
line easements to the max and
sell saw-quality logs and chip
trees to the mills, corded fire-
wood to both residential and
commercial users (like hotels,
B&Bs, restaurants) then com-
post the vast quantity of excess
chips (in your clear cut strips)
for sale to commercial nurs-
eries, who, by the way, at the
right price, will lease your
cleared line paths for nursery
stock production. This will get
employment and cash flow mo-
mentum going for the member-
ship, none of which will flow out
and away to outside investors.
We, out in the yonder, can help
lobby the State, Feds and pri-
vate businesses to participate
with us.
And one last thing, no trips
to Washington D.C., et al, to
communicate with our repre-
sentatives…they can be dealt
with here in Oregon for a lot
less money.
So there it is, outside the 9
dots. Lead, don’t plead. No ex-
planations needed. I wish you,
and all of us, good sailing.
Jack Phillips
Vernonia
Thanks for the great
2012 All Night Party
To the Editor:
The VHS Class of 2012 All
Night Party Committee would
like to thank the sponsors,
donors and chaperones for
your support of the June 2
event. 51 seniors attended and
all reported having a good time.
The all-night graduation party
is a drug and alcohol free event
sponsored by the Vernonia
Prevention Coalition. It is or-
ganized each year by parents,
host families and guardians of
high school seniors.
The sponsors were Vernon-
ia Prevention Coalition and
DeAnna Pearl, VHS Class of
2012, Curl’s Transportation
and Shelley Cota, and the Ver-
nonia Christian Church.
The chaperones were Scott
Rethwill, Aaron Miller, Christina
Morgan, Torie Fallau, DeAnna
Pearl, Lisa Edgar, LeeAnne
Krause, Darby Dooley, Mary
Ann Shaw, Jennifer Butcher,
Kelley Murphy-Shaw, and Bet-
sy Miller.
Donors were Scott, Marla
and Janet Rethwill, Aaron and
Betsy Miller, Vernonia Florist –
Ben and Lisa Edgar, Keith and
Kelley Shaw, Jon and Kinnell
Steward, Cristi Tungwenuk,
Randall Harvey, Amber Bozaid,
KaptansKraft, Rainbow Lanes,
Bullwinkle’s Family Fun Center,
Vernonia Sentry Market, Bridge
Street Mini Mart, Black Bear
Coffee Shop, Napa Auto Parts,
Vernonia Golf Course, and
Blue House Café.
Thank you again,
Betsy Miller
2012 VHS All-night grad
party committee
Grateful to Genny’s
Vernonia home folks
To the Editor:
The family of Genny Fisher
would like to thank the commu-
nity of Vernonia for all the car-
ing support given to us during
our time of loss.
We would also like to thank
all the friends, co-workers and
residents for the kindness and
respect you have shown for
Genny over the years.
During the last few months
of Genny’s time with us, she
would often say to us “I just
want to go back to Vernonia, I
want to go Home.”
So now she is, home in the
community that she so deeply
loved. Her favorite quote was “I
Love Vernonia”. She was so
proud of her community. So…
Should you be walking down
the sidewalk and happen to
see some litter, think of Genny
and toss it in the beautiful
garbage cans that line the com-
munity. I am sure you will feel
that beautiful smile she had
saying “Thank you for helping
keep Vernonia beautiful”.
In Thanks and Gratitude,
Dale, sister Lois, brother
Bob, Gary, Christy, Larry,
Robby and families
Please see page 18
Policy on Letters
The INDEPENDENT will
not publish letters with per-
sonal attacks on private citi-
zens. Preference will be giv-
en to brief letters, 300 words
or less.
All letters must be signed
and include a verifiable ad-
dress or phone number.