The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

DAMP—It was pretty dreary out there with steady drizzle as this week began. Sunday was a good day to stay inside! It was foggy here Monday morning but at least we had some dry time and even a peek at sunshine. With winter closing in on us, I’m thankful for any days that it's not freezing, snowing, or flooding.

SPECIAL DAYS-- Those celebrating birthdays this week are Tom Bosch, Paul Stewart, Melainie Quigley, Angel Hall, John Lindsey, Erik Anderson, Riley Brown, Joyce Cothren, Sandy Bergseng, Dennis Emery, Tracie Souvenir, Abby Buennagel, Ruth Linquist, Lori Miller, Kristen Souvenir, Jerry Knowles, Jimmie Lou Cleveland, Markeese Hoven, Barbara Moore Johnson and 67'ers Elaine Munson Rolf and Sharon Stout Servis. Happy Birthday, everyone!

Happy Anniversary wishes go out to Mr. and Mrs. Brian Havens and Roger and Jo Reed this week. Enjoy your special days!

BUSY TIME AGAIN-- This the last weekend Redmen Hall will be open featuring their Come Home for the Holidays theme, as they'll be closing after that for their winter break. With so many of our local artisans and authors showcasing their work at the hall, it's a handy place to find it all under one roof in order to buy a unique gift for the special people in your life. The hall is open on Thursday through Sunday from noon to four p.m.

Also on Sunday, don't forget to attend the fundraiser for Mike Phelps in the J.A. Wendt multipurpose room. The event begins at noon and lasts until three p.m. They will be serving sirloin tips over noodles with a salad, roll and cookies along with beverages. Please come for a nice meal out and to help Mike and his family get through this trying time.

LOTS OF PRAYERS-- Without naming each name, there are a good many folks out there who are dealing with horrific health problems right now, and their families are asking that we keep them in our thoughts and prayers as they go through chemotherapy and radiation and various surgeries. We hope you'll think of them with love and compassion in the weeks ahead.

I'll also be thinking of the family of former Puget Island resident Nadine Aldinger, who passed away on December 1, and the family of Morris Deaton, who passed away in November. His sister is Jimmie Lou Cleveland, someone we all know. My sincerest sympathies to one and all.

BASKETBALL TIME-- The Mules are playing an away game tonight (Thursday) at Morton/White Pass, so it's good luck to them on the road! If you can't travel to see them, head to the gym on Tuesday to watch them play Onalaska. That will be the last boys home game in December.

The Lady Mules will be playing three away games in a row: against Morton-White pass on Friday, against South Bend on Monday, and against Onalaska on Wednesday. Go Mules!

Also, the Mules wrestlers are hosting the Down River Challenge tournament this Saturday. Here’s to our Mule wrestlers - may they be victorious!

GREAT TIME-- I've been feeling a little low on Christmas spirit lately, but when the Skamokawa Grange Hall filled up with kids and grownups this past Saturday, it came right back and put a smile on my face. Songs were sung, Santa showed up to take pictures with all the little ones, and all the work involved felt well worth it! Everyone just seemed to have a wonderful time!

We had so many people show up that we actually ran out of food. That's the first time that's happened! The spaghetti was cooked by locals Ginger Schmitz and Jake with Jessica Fletcher overseeing the whole food making process. The bread was made by the Speranzas. Duncan Cruikshank, Heidi Heywood, Jon Peterson, Brenda Van Kanegan and Janet Bryan were kitchen staff once again this year. Kathleen Morgain staffed the coffee and juice station, while Ursala Petralia passed out the cake and cookies. We got a surprise visit from the Viktor Goldinov family who brought all their kids to come and sing for us. I thoroughly love listening to them sing and appreciated them performing for us. The whole place sang along with Sunrise Fletcher after Santa Claus had made an appearance thanks to Chuck Nadgwick. The kids enjoyed their treat bags that they received thanks to various Grange members, Cathlamet Pharmacy and Mary Gustafson. The Christmas tree was donated by Ed Stornetta. Ed Stevens and his family hung the Christmas lights around the fairgrounds and the Grange. New to our workforce this year was Christeena Bassi, who did a wonderful job at selling tickets for the gift basket, footstool and other prizes that we gave away at the end of the evening.

The winner of the big basket was Kathy Madison from Kelso, who bought her ticket when she was camping at Vista Park and decided to pay a visit to the Methodist Church Bazaar. Kathy has ties to the area, as her grandparents lived in the house that sits by the Oasis Tavern many years ago. Maybe some of you remember the Berg family, who also had family members out in East Valley? It was neat to hear her retell some of her memories from when she was here as a child.

Special thanks go to the Cathlamet IGA Market for donating a gift card, Norrie Wise for donating a Christmas tree, Treasure Collupy for donating handblown glass, Skamokawa Creek Enterprises for donating a wooden spatula and thanks to the various grange members for their gift basket donations.

Shirley Tubandt of Cathlamet was the winner of the footstool made by John Gustafson. Other prizewinners were Lee Tischer, Cheryl Nelson, Dawn Wika, Janet Bryan, Alex and Katie Vegvary, Michelle Collupy and Bob Miller.

FOOTBALL BANQUET-- The Mule football banquet was held this past Sunday night and as expected, Lars Blix was named Most Valuable Player. He was also nominated for an All Star game. Coach Hansen said the competition is tremendously stiff, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed that he gets selected. Steven Doumit was awarded the Inspirational Trophy and also the Wes Thacker Memorial trophy. This grandma was very proud of the plaque, football trophy and certificates that grandson Austin Good received. I can hardly believe this little boy is now taller than his dad and will be a senior next year!

GRANGE-- This past Monday evening the Skamokawa Grange members gathered together to share a potluck meal and exchange gifts. The group got some great laughs as the gifts were taken from one or the other in our annual "I can take it" game, but in the end, I think we were all happy with what we wound up with. Our next meeting will be January 14, with a potluck meal at 6:30 p.m. and the regular meeting at seven p.m. You are all welcome to attend.

DUCK INN DINNER-- If you don't have any place to go on Christmas or you're tired of cooking, why not come to the Duck Inn for dinner on Christmas Day? They'll be serving dinner from four to eight p.m. that evening. Call 795-6055 for reservations.

CHRISTMAS STARS-- If you are able, grab a star from the green cardboard trees that are placed in various businesses. Janelle Kerstetter is in charge of the program. If you have any questions, then contact her at the Sheriff's Office. I hope you can help a child in need by taking a star and getting them what they'd like to have for Christmas this year.