PRESORTED STANDARD
U.S. Postage Paid
Vernonia, OR 97064
Permit No. 37
Vol. 27, No. 17
THE
FREE
INDEPENDENT
The Voice
Voice of
of the Upper Nehalem River
The
River Valley
Valley for
for Over
Over 25
27 years
years
September 5, 2012
New school in Vernonia
opens with much fanfare
The first day of school for Vernonia students, on September 4, started out with an assembly
in the commons area of the new school. See related article on this page.
Speeches started off the August 21 Grand Opening ceremonies for the new Vernonia school.
U. S. Senator Jeff Merkley is shown speaking while looking on, left to right, are State Sena-
tor Betsy Johnson, Representative Alyssa Kenny-Guyer, Oregon Senate President Peter
Courtney, Representative Suzanne Bonamici, Norm Smith from the Ford Family Foundation,
Representative Debbie Boone, Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown, Superintendent Dr.
Ken Cox, Columbia County Commissioner Tony Hyde, Oregon Solutions Co-convener Tom
Kelly, and Oregon Chief Education Officer Rudy Crew. Unseen behind the podium are U.S.
Senator Ron Wyden and former Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski. See article this page.
New services available for veterans
Community Action Team is
pleased to announce an impor-
tant new program for veterans
and their families. CAT is one
of two recipients in Oregon of a
2012 Supportive Services for
Veteran’s Families grant from
the Department of Veteran’s Af-
fairs. The award will provide
housing assistance and sup-
portive services to 80 veterans
See Veterans on page 14
The much anticipated open-
ing of the new Vernonia school
took place on August 21, with
many Vernonians and their
children in attendance.
The celebration started with
tours for visiting “notable
guests”. Everyone then assem-
bled outside in front of a podi-
um. Student Samantha Wal-
lace led the crowd in the
Pledge of Allegiance before the
speeches began.
Speakers started with Su-
perintendent Dr. Ken Cox, who
said, “It’s my pleasure to serve
as the Master of Ceremonies
today. There’s a lot of people
who thought this would never
happen. One person said, ‘This
is just a dream’. Behold the
dream.” After the applause,
Cox went on to thank current
and former school board mem-
bers, and the dedicated teach-
ers and staff “who stuck with
us.”
There were speeches by
U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and
Jeff Merkley, U.S. Representa-
tive Suzanne Bonamici, Ore-
gon Chief Education Officer
Rudy Crew, former Oregon
Governor Ted Kulongoski, Co-
lumbia County Commissioner
and Vernonia resident Tony
Hyde, Tom Kelly of Neil Kelly
Company (and Oregon Solu-
tions Team co-convener along
with Hyde), State Senator Bet-
sy Johnson, and Norm Smith,
President and CEO of the Ford
Family Foundation.
Others offering brief com-
ments were Oregon Senate
President Peter Courtney, Sec-
retary of State Kate Smith,
State Representative Deborah
Boone, State Representative
Alyssa Keny-Guyer and, after
lunch, State Representative
Brad Witt.
When it was State Senator
Betsy Johnson’s turn to speak,
after former speakers noted the
key role she played, her first
tearful words were, “So much
for not crying.” She received a
standing ovation at that point,
acknowledging the fact that, as
with so many others, she put
tremendous energy into help-
ing get the school built. John-
son went on to say, “Vernonia,
you never gave up. Thank
you.”
Former Governor Ted Kulon-
goski added, “I cannot tell you
how proud I am to be an Ore-
gonian because of the commu-
nity. You are what Oregon is all
about.”
Cox had the final words,
saying, “As Superintendent of
Vernonia School District, I ded-
icate this building to future edu-
cation, I dedicate it to the com-
munity of Vernonia. I dedicate it
as a place of safety, and it rep-
resents the future of all of us.”
At that point, the speakers
moved behind the ribbon and
each cut the ribbon. Then stu-
dents and faculty, many in
green t-shirts, led the way into
the newly dedicated school
building for tours, both guided
and self-guided.
At noon, lunch was provided
and speeches were given from
the new stage in the commons
area (also the lunchroom), in-
cluding comments by State
Representative Brad Witt.
The day continued with self-
guided tours before a commu-
nity open house at 5:30 p.m.
for those who couldn’t attend
the earlier festivities.
The new school, with
135,000 square feet, can
house 1,000 students from
kindergarten through grade 12,
with room for future expansion.
It sits high on O-A Hill at the
end of Missouri Avenue. It has
been built with sustainable con-
struction methods and energy-
saving design to such an extent
that the district is applying for
LEED platinum certification.
Vernonia School District res-
idents voted for a $13 million
bond to start the construction
and the district hired Metropoli-
tan Group to raise the other
$27 million needed for the $40
See Vernonia on page 5