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

LITTLE MOISTURE--While some folks didn't see any rain as this week began, it was definitely wet in the early hours of Sunday and Monday mornings in West Valley. Luckily it dried up fairly quickly on Sunday and while it was a little breezy, it was fairly decent so a lot of that last minute outside work could still be done. On Monday it was much cooler and cloudier with some rain in the morning, dry most of the day but quite wet by early evening. With this week's weather predicted to be in the 60s with some more showers, I'm thinking it will be safe to say that the AC will more than likely not be needed.

GETTING READY-- It's hard to believe that our summer is over and we've got to start planning for heavy rains, possible flooding and maybe even record snowfalls. It is time to think about what you can do to better prepare yourself for these next few months; better to be prepared than get stuck without the necessary things to see you through an emergency situation. SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from September 9-15 are Carla Keilwitz, Ed Johnson, Kay Buennagel, Conner Parker, Roger Reed, Richard Bigler, Rex Gilbertsen, Miya Kerstetter, Jacob Hoven, Jean Heagy who is celebrating her 90th this year, Debbie McCauley Chamberlain and Naomi Pedersen. Those celebrating anniversaries this week are John Jr. and Jesse Hoven, Quin and Christeena Bassi, Mr. and Mrs. Karl Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Grant Johnson, Jimmie and Adelaine Durrah and Scott and Jen Pedersen. Here's to all of you having the best possible celebrations.

THIS IS IT--Yes, this is the weekend of the annual Friends of Skamokawa Wine Tasting and Auction event at the Skamokawa Grange Hall this Saturday. The fun begins at 7 p.m. and lasts until 10 p.m. Remember, it is an "adults only" event. If you haven't gotten your tickets yet, you can buy them at the door, they are $15. We hope you'll come and have a good time and get ready to put in those bids, as it's a great way to support the Redmen Hall, as well as have a wonderful evening with your friends and neighbors. If you've never been before, it's not a "stuffy" event; it's for everyone and you'll be glad you showed up and gave it a try. Don't forget that there's going to be some tasty eats as well, so sip some wine, eat some cheese and other scrumptious hors d'oeuvres.

ALSO FOS DOINGS--It's going to be a busy day for the Friends of Skamokawa as earlier in the day on Saturday, there will be a reception for the River City Strippers, a group of quilters based in Wahkiakum County, so we hope you come up to meet them between 1 and 3 p.m. and share some cookies and coffee. There are 40 members of the group now, which began with just 11 members just 10 years ago, so they've really grown. Come and see their fabulous works and with some of them for sale, you might even be going home with one of their lovely "works of art." This exhibit will be at the hall until October 24 on the second floor of Redmen Hall in the River Life Interpretive Center.

THIS FRIDAY--The Mule Varsity team will be heading to the Morton/White Pass high school to play their second game of the season this Friday night, while the JV team will be playing them at home on Monday. The Warriors play Pe Ell at home tonight (Thursday), at 6 p.m. The Warrior volleyball team will be in Adna on Monday, while the Mule Varsity volleyball team will be playing in Winlock on September 14. Go teams!

GREAT GAME--When the Ballard Beavers met the Sammamish football team last Thursday night in Seattle, the mood was uncertain, and this grandma was a bit more than worried, as last year during the first game of the season, grandson Blake Sechler wound up in the emergency room with broken ribs! However, this time when the phone rang, son Pete told me that the new team captain, Blake, had just run 50 yards for one touchdown and then another, to help the Beavers pull a win out over the other team.

LAMONT MANSION--Little did I know when I went on my little quest for information about the J. Lamont Mansion that used to sit right on the spot across from the Skamokawa Town Center, where the highway is now located, that I would get so lucky in being able to speak to an heir of the mansion builder herself: Jackie Kalani. Jackie was in town visiting with Jan Caliman. We had a nice chat over the phone. Jackie has many stories to tell and has pictures to send to me, so when I get some of those from her, I'll be sure to share them with you. I can hardly wait to get some of her family details from her, but I do know one thing: The windows in the house where the Charles Parkers once lived and now owned by Oliver Vandenberghe, are the windows that came out of the Lamont Mansion. I also got a call from Jimmie Lou Cleveland and I plan on meeting with her and seeing her old photo of the Lamont Mansion as well.When I have more information, the story will continue.

SAD TIME--This past week has been a very sad time in our area and folks here are just reeling with two sudden deaths of men that many of us knew and were so well liked. On Friday we learned of the death of a young man whose family saw tragedy strike last year at Christmas time and now once again, a terrible accident has taken the life of 51 year old Jerrold Florek. There are no words that can express the sadness that everyone is experiencing right now with Jerrold's passing and we can only offer our sincerest sympathies to the entire family for their loss of this very nice young man.

The following day, East Valley residents lost a terrific guy and friend and neighbor in Jim Rainey, who leaves behind three sons as well as grandchildren, his sisters and many other members of his family. To us, Jim was a guy who helped you out when you needed it and jumped right in there and did things for you without even being asked; he was the first to help us mow fields when Bill was dealing with his ankle injury, and he didn't think twice about it. His smiling face lit up a room and we have shared many great stories and good times with Jim. We are sad to lose this man who we visited just last Friday; by Saturday morning he was gone, so it reminds us that tomorrow is not promised to us and we should cherish each day. Our deepest sympathies go to all of Jim's family members during this very sad time. A gathering in his memory will be held at the Grays River Grange on September 18. His family lived in Grays River for many years and he will be laid to rest there at the Grays River Cemetery.

ALSO SAD--This weekend marks the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack on New York City, the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, as well as the plane that went down in Pennsylvania, and we hope you'll join the nation in raising our flag that day in the memory of all those that were lost that terrible morning and the horrible aftermath that followed. Do you remember where you were or what you were doing when those planes hit? For me, I can remember it quite clearly as it was a rare moment of "sleeping in" as Bill had a water conference to attend in Portland and we had gotten up extra early so he could get on the road at a decent time. With Bill off early, I opted to crawl back to bed and catch some extra winks after a sleepless night and was awakened by the phone ringing; it was my son Pete from Seattle, commenting on what was happening and the first I'd heard about it. I ran to the television and watched in horror along with the rest of the country as the towers came down and there was mass destruction everywhere. For days that's all we saw, heard and read about, and it seemed that the shock and sadness was overwhelming at times. Lest we forget, this can happen again. While some say we should forgive and forget, I find this insulting to the memories of the thousands of innocent people who died that day. While we cannot live in anger and fear, we must still be diligent and mindful of how others view us and we should not be naive in our ways of dealing with those who feel no remorse in blowing up thousands of innocent people and ruining the lives of thousands of others forever.