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

  HALF NICE--I think Saturday took a lot of us by surprise, as we'd heard there was just a chance of a shower. Well, beings it rained a good deal of Friday night and almost all of Saturday, it was not a picnic pleaser by any means. It was great to see the sun return on Sunday though.

The rains did not seem to slow down the traffic on SR 4, as clam season and fishing season were in full swing. With tides just right the beaches were full and the boats were thick at the Cathlamet marina and elsewhere.

  SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from April 22-28 are Max Schmitz, Mathew Miller, Cleave Hedman, Onya Whittle, Steven Doumit, Eric Bergseng, Marie Allen, Ora Eaton, Susan Kuhn turns the big "5-0", Mike Snow, Sunrise Fletcher, Kent Martin, Kelly McClain, Debbie McClain, Anita Hoven, Carol Danker, Stan Woody Jr., Shawn Woods, Jennifer Emery, Max Scudder, and 67'ers Greg Lloyd's special day is today and Dennis Haven's is on Tuesday. Happy Birthday wishes to one and all!

Happy Anniversary wishes this week go to Kent and Irene Martin, Mike and Penny Paulsen, and Robert and Melody Blain celebrate anniversary #13 next Monday. Enjoy your special days everybody!

  ENJOYED CELEBRATION--The family of Mickey and Jeanne Paulsen gathered on April 10 to help them celebrate their 50th anniversary, which was April 14. The big homecoming was complete with a big family dinner and a whole lot of picture taking! Attending were Mike and Penny Paulsen, Michael and Chelsea Paulsen, Nichole and Josh - Liv and Tru Most, Laureen Paulsen, Michelle Catt, Ryden, Hayden and Keigan Romines and JD, Judy, Hannah and Reilly Gaffney from Issaquah. Jeannie said it was one of the most wonderful days they have ever spent with the family sharing lots of love, laughter and wonderful memories. Belated 50th anniversary wishes to them as while their birthdays made it on the community calendar, their anniversary did not. Glad you had such a wonderful day!

  NEW ANNIVERSARY--James Patterson married Cassandra Davie April 17, so we have a new couple to add to our anniversary list. We offer our heartiest congratulations to the newlyweds.

  Unfortunately for the groom's family, part of the evening was spent in the emergency room of the hospital when one of the younger children took a tumble, hit their head on a church pew and wound up needing some stitches--ouch! While many of us don't remember the day we got our various scars growing up, I'm sure this one will be hard to forget!

  TIME TO SET UP--Tomorrow, Friday, at 7 p.m., is the time for all singers, actors and other talented folks to show up at the Skamokawa Grange Hall. The next Follies musical revue has a script/plan/show ready to put into action. Director Adele Swift and musical director Sunrise Fletcher want you to be a part of this next great production. Adele makes it easy to join in the fun as you set your own practice sessions and it's only the last couple of weeks before the show that need a little more of your time. We hope you'll take part in this fun show and important fund raiser for the Skamokawa Grange Hall. The Barbershop Quartet is already practicing and a few of us regulars are singing in the shower as we ready ourselves for this upcoming event. We want everyone to come together this Friday evening so we can sort out the rest of the action. Mark the last weekend in June on your calendar.

  MEETING COMING UP--All Skamokawa Grangers are reminded that their next meeting is April 26 at 7 p.m., and with many things to discuss, we hope everyone will try to attend. Time is flying by and not only do we have the Follies coming up, but we've got the grange contests on May 8 and the fair in August!

  REDMEN HALL EXHIBITS--Currently the Friends of Skamokawa have an exhibit at the River Life Interpretive Center at Redmen Hall called "The Importance of Folk Art" until May 9. You can see some of our local people and their crafts in this display, so we hope you'll get a chance to check it out. The next exhibit will be held from May 15-July 11 and will feature paintings and dialogue by Rachael Wolford's work, "Columbia River Reflections." More exhibits are planned for the rest of the year, so take advantage of these "at home" exhibits. We have photographers, authors, painters and crafts of all kinds from many creative people.

Pam Emery and Bernadette Goodroe have been revamping the downstairs book and gift shop, so there is a new look about the lower floor. Pull up to the upper parking lot and walk down the paved pathway into the shop and have a look around. If it's been awhile, you'll enjoy the new look.

  FOS is always looking for new members, so why not join today? It's just $35 a year, or if you have a family, you can be a Family Friend for $70, or a Friend for Life at $700. They are also looking for a few good volunteers to join their staff of docents.These folks learn about the area and then spread the word to the tourists passing through, and with such a great place to view the area from and the great panels upstairs to look at, it's really a fun job. If you're interested in doing that or you just need some general information, call 795-3007. The hall is open Thursday through Sunday from noon to four.

  NEED TREES?--The Wahkiakum County Fair currently has Douglas Fir Trees for sale at just $25 a bag with 120 trees to a bag. The money from this sale is being put in a fund for the entertainment at the fair, so hopefully we can see some great acts at the 102nd fair in August. This can only happen with your help. Please call the office at 795-3480 and make arrangements to get your trees. You can also make a donation and earmark it for "entertainment only." Our fair is only as good as we, our community, make it, so enter those posters, pictures, quilts, baked goods, etc., and get your kids entering things too. They'll love getting that money and we'll enjoy seeing the walls of every building filled with all the works of our great fair supporters!

  MOVIE WRAP-UP--The Skamokawa Grangers and the Wahkiakum WSU Extension showed a free movie April 17. We held the first one in January during the winter hours when it was dark and gloomy and there wasn't much to do, and we had a great turn out. Unfortunately, with fishing season, clam tides, the beach calling, and these longer daylight hours, we had a very light group of folks at the showing of the movie, "King Corn." It's too bad, as this was a very interesting and informative movie. It was a great insight into our food chain, but it's really quite sad to see that the big corn growers today are not growing what we would call a nutritious product anymore, but rather a starch which is turned into a sweetener, which is not exactly a health benefit. After watching this movie, it was easy to see why obesity and diabetes are running amok in our country today. For those of us who arrived early, we got an extra treat, as Troy Davis sat down at the piano and tickled the ivories for us, a very talented young man.Thanks for the bonus entertainment Troy!