22 May 2015
Remembering those who died in service
Memorial Day may be the traditional start to the summer vacation season, but it’s also a time to remember the service men and women who have given their lives in the line of duty.
In Reedsport there will be a parade, memorial service and patriotic concert on Sunday. In Florence, veterans groups are coming together Monday for a pair of ceremonies.
Paul Gargis – “We start out with a flag ceremony inside the Elks at nine o’clock. Then we move on to the Veteran’s Park down on Bay Street and we have a flag ceremony at 11 o’clock. There will be a speaker and we’ll do the traditional wreath laying in the river with the coast guard.”
VFW Commander Paul Gargis said there will be ample seating at the park. Anyone wishing to bring wreathes for laying on the water can do so. The wreathes must be completely biodegradable.
Police saturation patrols
For the second weekend in a row there will be an expanded and more visible patrol presence on area highways. The Oregon State Police will be out in force, along with deputy sheriffs, city and tribal police today through late Monday.
They are hoping to crack down on traffic violators, especially those who may be driving impaired. They’ll also be making sure drivers and passengers are properly buckled up.
Children will be of special concern. According to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, child car seats dramatically decreases the risk of death and serious injuries.
NHTSA (NITT-suh) also says Oregon leads the nation in reported seat belt usage with 98-percent of Oregonians saying they always buckle up.
STEP fundraiser wraps up Monday
The only fund-raiser of the year for the local Salmon Trout Enhancement Program is set for this weekend at Three Rivers Casino and Resort. Local STEP members will be selling drawing tickets for prizes that include fishing gear, guided trips, gift certificates and more.
Becky Goehring (GO-ring) said they’ll be at Three Rivers Saturday and Sunday from ten until five… then again beginning at ten Monday. The drawings will begin at noon that day.
STEP is a local non-profit group that works to restore fisheries in the Siuslaw River Basin. They’ve been at it for 25 years.
Their main project, the winter steelhead broodstock program, collects spawning steelhead in the winter, collecting a quarter-million eggs and sending them to the Willamette hatchery in Oakridge. Last month the group, along with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, returned about 80-thousand steelhead smolt to Whittaker and Green Creeks on the upper Siuslaw River.
Trail safety focus of Wednesday meeting
The recent closure… and subsequent reopening… of a popular running trail at Honeyman State Park has prompted considerable discussions about safety of people using the trails.
Park management closed a trail that connected park facilities on the east side of Highway 101 with the west side earlier this year.
They did it with little notice and changed their stated reasons for doing so more than once. The closure… and the confusion about just why… prompted an outcry from runners who routinely use the trail.
One concern coming out of the controversy: the safety of trail users having to cross Highway 101.
Even though the trail has been reopened, park officials say they will not maintain it; and they are still concerned about the highway crossing.
There will be a meeting Wednesday evening, 5:30 PM at Siuslaw Public Library hosted by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to discuss not only the particular trail in question, but the entire trail system at Honeyman.
