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

Beautiful weekend with lots of hugs from grandkids, Emmett who is now two and his baby brother, Wyatt who is four months. Thank you, Shane and Delena for the baby fix. It was wonderful. It was good to see youngest son Carl as well. Also I must apologize to Shane for saying he was only 25 years old when he was 26. Old age memory setting in, I guess. In a few more years he would have thanked me for that mistake.

News from Naselle:

It’s a busy week at Naselle-Grays River Valley School. The sports calendar is as follows: Thursday-home track meet at 3:30 p.m., baseball and fast pitch also in Naselle at 4 p.m. with Ocosta; Monday - fast pitch with Seaside in Naselle at 4 p.m .; Tuesday-baseball and fast pitch at North Beach at 4 p.m .; Wednesday-middle school track meet at North Beach at 3:30 p.m. Go Comets!

Remember also that this is the weekend for the latest Naselle drama production of Alice in Wonderland. You have a choice of evenings or even a matinee performance to choose from. The first performance will take place on Friday at 7 p.m., then on Saturday at 7 p.m. and again on Sunday at 3 p.m. Bring the family and enjoy the efforts of this hardworking group. Tickets will be available at the door.

If you can’t make it this weekend then you still have a chance to see the play and show your appreciation for all the work these folks have put in to these performances. The play will go on again on May 5 and 6 at 7 p.m.

This month, Naselle Elementary School celebrated Earth Day. All the children in grades K-5 participated in the Earth Day Groceries Project, which brought our school and community together. Okie's Select Market in Naselle donated grocery bags to the school for the children to decorate with an Earth Day theme. This turned into a contest as one bag from each grade was chosen as the best from each class and those bags were displayed at the store with the other bags used for their customers. The class winners were Kaylee Langston, Bella Colombo, Jason Harman, Emma Colombo, Ethan Lindstrom, and Aaron Todd. It’s quite a treat to get a bag of groceries that has been decorated by our own kids at the Naselle school. The community owes a big thank you to Okie’s, the school and especially to the kids for working so well together. Happy Earth Day!

One other big “do not miss” event is here this weekend also. The annual Salad Luncheon will be held at the Naselle Lutheran Church (308 Old Knappton Road) on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for a donation of only $7 and is sponsored by the Priscilla Circle group. Benefits from the sale will support the church’s mission work.

In addition to the luncheon you can get started on a garden with the many plants available for sale in the plant sale. Also available are yummy baked goods, crafts, handmade quilts and much more, all available for a good cause. Hopefully the weather will be as nice as it was last weekend.

Other news from the Westend:

I understand that the chicken dinner at the Rosburg Hall last weekend was a big success, but I guess it shouldn’t be a surprise. With all the wonderful food prepared with so much care by such a wonderful group of ladies (you know who you are) and served by the wonderful volunteers, it’s no wonder the meal is always so well attended and enjoyed. It just goes to show that the community appreciates what the Rosburg Hall and the Rosburg Community Club stands for and does for our community. A huge thank you to everyone who makes dinners and events like this one such a success and benefit to everyone.

I’m sure many of you have seen and signed the dredging petition that can be found at the Rosburg Store, put there by the members of the Wahkiakum County Marine Resources Committee (MRC) to show community support for dredging the mouth of tributaries of the Columbia River including the Grays River and Skamokawa Creek.

The MRC committee and members of the board of Port District #2, has scheduled a meeting to be held at the Skamokawa Grange Hall on May 2 at 6 p.m. Last week’s Eagle incorrectly gave the date as May 9. Anyone interested in attending is welcome. Let’s let them know how important this issue is to all of us.

The idea of dredging the silt from the tributaries is not a new one to any of us, and it has come up on several occasions. One of the main supporters of this idea has been the Grays River Habitat Enhancement District and there are some draft plans for the mouth of the Grays River if it can be dredged, that would make it self cleaning once the initial dredging was done. In the past, the Corps of Engineers has done some silt clearing but for many years now they say there is no money. This could be the beginning of an ongoing dialog and possible solution to a huge problem which could benefit many. Let’s get as much support as we can for this idea. Hope to see you at the meeting.

The Grays River Habitat Enhancement District meets on the second Wednesday of each month in the Grays River Grange Hall at 6 p.m. The dredging issue will be added to next month’s agenda, on May 9, for further discussion. Please join them with your comments and suggestions.

Is your garden ready to be planted after the few gorgeous days we had over the weekend? Do you need a few flowering plants to fill in your beds? The Grays River Valley Center at Johnson Park (old Rosburg School) is holding a plant sale on May 19. There will be a soup, bread and beverage lunch available as well. Baked goods can also be purchased. The book sale mentioned in last week's column may not be ready and will have to be done at a later date. Stay tuned for more info. This event will raise funds for the ongoing expenses being incurred at the Center, such as utilities and supplies.

The Advisory Board is looking into more fund raising ideas for the upcoming months. Several of the board members and volunteers held an impromptu get together earlier this week by enjoying a spaghetti dinner with salad and French bread using sauce made by Penny Gregory’s dad from Tacoma. It was great, and to top off the evening, we watched an old black and white Hitchcock movie called “Foreign Correspondent.” Thanks, Penny, for a great meal and a fun, successful dry run for a fund raiser.

The Grays River Valley Library/Community Computer Center is in a bit of disarray at the moment and may be closed for a few days for some reorganization with new shelving and rearrangement of materials to make more room. Please call 465-2310 to make sure it is open. We are sorry for any inconvenience. A huge thank you to Randy and Mona Collver, Judy Durrah, Steve and Linda Ramsay, Del Fredrickson and everyone else that has had a hand in moving stuff around and rebuilding to make this upgrade happen. The paperback books located in the hallway are also being rearranged with more shelving as well, for your enjoyment. Check out the beautiful rug in the children’s section donated by Randy and Mona. Another big thank you to them.

If you have been following my column on the progress of the exterior beautification of the old Rosburg School building, you can now see a nearly finished project, thanks to Wahkiakum County Commissioners. They hired H&K Construction to remove the old damaged siding on the building and replace it. That has been done, and a mighty fine job too. Now a very personable gentleman is giving the building a nice new coat of paint. Mark Hendrickson, who is the owner of Hendrickson Painting has been in the business for 26 years and certainly takes pride in his work.

Are you on Medicare? Do you have questions about Medicare? Here is an opportunity to get those questions answered, right here on the west end. There will be representatives from Southwest Washington Agency on Aging and Disabilities, SHIBA and Social Security available on May 16 from noon to 1 p.m. at the Rosburg Hall. For more information please call 360- 577-4929 or e-mail lakelso@dshs.wa.gov.

Mother’s Day will be here before we know it, and I have a great idea for an early treat for Mom. The Pioneer Community Association and Stockhouse's Farm is sponsoring a Jazz, Boogie and Deja Blues Concert featuring Scott Cossu, pianist on May 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Pioneer Community Church. Advance tickets are available at the Bank of the Pacific for $12 or at the door for $15. Sounds like a great evening of music.

Memorial Day celebrations will be taking place soon and here in our little corner of Wahkiakum County we have a very special way of recognizing and honoring our past, present and future veterans, who have given, are giving and will give their all for our freedoms. The American Legion Deep River Post #111 will host their annual pancake breakfast on Saturday, May 26 from 8-11:30 a.m. All you can eat pancakes, and ham or sausage with eggs the way you want them, coffee, juice and milk. All this for $5 for adults and $3 for 12 years and under. Proceeds go to support local veterans and youth groups.

It’s still early for a couple of upcoming events, but deadlines will be here before you know it with early registrations. The 28th annual Great White Tail Run will be held on May 19 beginning at 10 a.m. Registration on the day of the run begins at 8:30 a.m. at the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge in Skamokawa. Pre-registration is recommended to ensure a prompt start.

Registration pamphlets are available at many locations throughout the county and also Naselle. For more information call 360 465-2275 or 360 795-3278. Proceeds from this event will benefit the Wahkiakum County based 4-H programs.

As the school year winds down our students are looking for funds to go on to college. Wahkiakum Dollars For Scholars Foundation and the Naselle-Grays River Valley Education Association are looking to help out many of those hard working students with scholarships raised by a very important annual event. This year the fun filled family event will take place at the Wahkiakum County Fairgrounds in Skamokawa on June 2. You guessed it, it’s the 12th Annual Derby Dollars For Scholars Scholarship Barbeque and Sturgeon Derby. Last year’s Derby raised over $22,000 for local students. For more information please call Pat Kerli at 360 795-8605 or pick up one of the brochures at local businesses around the county.

The Wednesday Senior Lunch Bunch that meets at Rosburg Hall will enjoy Pat Potter’s special taco soup with all the trimmings and dessert on May 2 and then on the 9th they will feast on baked chicken, spuds, baked beans, hot rolls and dessert.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays seniors can also sit down for a nutritious meal that is sponsored by CAP at the same location. On Thursday (today) they will be treated to roast pork with peach mango chutney, creamed kale and berry cobbler.

Happy Birthday this week to Gerry Clifford, Renee Smith, Tari Zimmerman, Chuck Torppa, Brittany Heaton, Lori Dearmore, Bonnie Busse, Bonnie Linquist, Faith Penttila, Mark Tienhaara, Mayce McCullough, Bob Liabraaten, Ramona Smith, Amanda Sprotti, Doug Nikolas, Matthew Wood, Alicia Wood, Kristi Ray, Aaron Varila, Glenn Miller, Jeanette Grimberg and Just Thomas. Wishing you a wonderful, special day.

Happy Anniversary wishes go out to Kaycee and Spencer Headley, Rod and Cecile Smith, and Dale and Barbara Rose. Wishing you many more happy years together.

A special Happy Birthday to my good friend and neighbor, Beverly Wallace on this, a milestone birthday. Wishing you many beautiful days in your garden, and lots of special times with family and friends in the coming years. Thank you for sharing your love of art and gardening with the community.