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

I hope everyone’s Fourth of July was as wonderful as ours was. We had about 36 people here (even though we were missing half of our kids and grandkids this year) and 13 dogs, and would you believe it, no dog fights. The little ones fell asleep early so the fireworks were postponed until Saturday night, which was just as well as I had to rescue my daughter and son-in-law after they suffered a breakdown in Ridgefield. We didn’t get back until about 10 p.m. that night.

There was lots of food (which I didn’t have to prepare), a little rally racing, swimming, floating down the river on rafts, barbecue, evenings around the fire pit and in general, a great time. There is nothing like family, the sound of little ones giggling, good food and we were even fortunate enough to have a couple of kegs of beer brewed by our kids from Smith Rock Brewing Company in Redmond, Oregon. Good stuff too, I might add. Now it’s time to get back to a more normal routine.

News from Naselle:

Humanities Washington's traveling exhibit “Hope in Hard Times: Washington During the Great Depression” explores the struggles and triumphs of everyday Americans during the 1930s, comparing the adversities of the 1930s with those faced today.

The overall theme of hope woven throughout the exhibition reminds viewers that they, too, can find their own opportunities for creating change and learn from the past to impact their present.

Hope in Hard Times will visit eight communities during 2013-14, appearing for 12 weeks at each location. It is curated by the Washington State Historical Society and based on a larger exhibit of the same name that appeared at the Washington State History Museum in 2012.

The exhibition will be on display at the Appelo Archives Center from July 14 through October 5. An opening reception will be held at the center in Naselle on July 14 from 5 to 7 p.m. There will be refreshments served and a dedication of the Naselle first grade Class of 2013 Quilt at 6 p.m. The community is encouraged to attend this special event.

Other news from the Westend:

There are less than two weeks to go until the second annual Community Potluck Picnic in conjunction this year with a special 75th Birthday Bash for the old Rosburg School Building, now known as the Grays River Valley Center at Johnson Park. The date is Sunday, July 21. Bring a salad or a dessert to share and the JP Advisory Board will be providing barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers for everyone.

It will be a family friendly day with games, donkey cart rides, a ball game or two (with our nice new, safer backstop at the ball diamond), and the entire building will be open for your pleasure, including the library. See how much we have grown in the past year.

Also on hand will be members of the Sheriff’s office, EMS volunteers, Search and Rescue personnel as well as fire department personnel and equipment. However, the most important attendees for this fun day will be you and your family, so come on up and enjoy a real community picnic.

If you have stories to tell about the school building, or about your years as a student, teacher, parent, employee or visitor we would love to hear from you. We hope to turn this event into something of a historical data collection for the GRVC and a special area will be set aside for that purpose. We would also like copies of old photos or schoolwork to share with the community in the future.

Tickets are on sale now for the beautiful handmade quilt on display in the Grays River Valley Library, which will be raffled off at the second annual Oktoberfest on October 12 at the Grays River Valley Center. Tickets are available for $1 in the Grays River Valley Library or from Johnson Park Board members. If you have questions, please call 465-2960.

There are new later hours posted for the Rosburg Store, along with all the new food items available to their customers. They will be open on Monday through Thursday until 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday until 9 p.m. and on Sunday until 6 p.m.

New to their menu of goodies are fresh made burgers, now accompanying soups and pizza. For more information or to place an order, please call 465-2223. Norm is also making bread and I have to say that his whole wheat is pretty tasty as well as reasonably priced.

The Rosburg Wednesday Senior Lunch Bunch meets each week at the Rosburg Hall for a nutritious home cooked meal prepared and served by Pat Potter and her volunteer crew. Lunch is served at noon.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays the Rosburg Senior Community Lunches are sponsored by CAP and are served at the same location. Menus for the coming week include: July 11 -teriyaki chicken, pan fried noodles, Asian cole slaw and peach cobbler; July 16-pork chow mein, brown rice, stir-fry veggies, Mandarin oranges and strawberry shortcake; and July 18-chicken and dumplings, broccoli spears, spinach salad and apricot bars.

Happy birthday to Dan Edmondson, Cliff Weimer, Kay Weimer, Ross Badger, Whitney Maddux, Timothy Bates, Stephanie Wise, Seth Cooper, Maya Zeller, Blake Dunham, Kelsi Nelson, Eric Hendrickson, Joel Fitts, Kenneth Tyyska, Terry Tarabochia, Douglas Larson, Susan Gradt, Lorraine Haataia, Courtney Peters, John W. Wirkkala, Bob Haataia, Amanda Haataia, Dakota Thompson, Bryan Torppa and Lori Gollersrud. Here’s hoping today is a perfect day for you.

Happy Anniversary to Tom and Sue Gradt, Lamar and Bekah Wirkkala and Pete and Barbara Torppa. I wish you many more celebrations together.

Our youngest son, Carl is home for the summer to take care of some much-needed upkeep and maintenance on the property, and he celebrated his 26th birthday on Wednesday. It is so good to have kids that are willing to help out, especially in circumstances like ours. Thank you, Carl and all your siblings as well. We love you and appreciate you.

During the week of July 22, you should receive a survey prepared by the Wahkiakum County Department of Emergency Management (DEM) in an effort to collect vital information from community members which will be utilized by DEM in the event of an emergency situation. The mailer will also contain information to educate the public on the availability of the Wahkiakum County Information Line, and also educate the community on resources available such as the Emergency Community Notification System.

You can complete the survey by waiting for the mailed copy, download and print one out, or complete it online. The web address is http://www.co.wahkiakum.wa.us/DEM.html. As an added incentive, each survey will be entered into a drawing to receive a free emergency NOAA weather radio.

Enjoy all this nice weather we are having, but remember to keep yourself and your pets safe from overheating.