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

NICE WEEKEND--You'll probably be reading this after some rainy days, but boy, last weekend sure was nice! The cold mornings weren't so great but those sunny afternoons made for the perfect time to till gardens and mow lawns and get out and do some yard work, so that was great. While Monday saw some rain, it also came with a few sun breaks, so that cheered folks up, and considering we may have a week of drippy weather, we'll take all the sun breaks we can get!

NOT GOOD--Unfortunately, with all that sunny, warm weather, a whole lot of folks thought it would be a great time to go to the beach and so, given the advice to "stay home" recommendation by health officials due to the coronavirus, it was shocking to see people wall to wall everywhere! I mean, walking on the beach with your "other half" is one thing, but masses of people coming to play volleyball on the beach or to party, is just crazy! These small coastal towns, where services and resources are limited, certainly cannot handle having large amounts of people come in from all over the place and possibly spreading a virus to its unsuspecting citizens. Sadly, because of the "masses," all beach access points got closed down as did the hotels and vacation places, so that influx of people really messed up things for a lot of people and businesses along our Washington and Oregon coastlines.

PENALITIES COMING?--With some people refusing to use common sense and are doing whatever they want with wanton abandon, is it time to start handing out major fines to people who totally disregard the current guidelines? With the new "Stay Home/Stay Healthy" order put out by our governor Monday evening, it is possible to be charged with a violation of this order if we do not comply. How and what that entails, we don't really know. But if we do truly need to go out for groceries or medicines, we need to remind ourselves that we need to maintain that six foot "self-distancing" recomendation and make as few trips as possible.

In sharp contrast to our policies here, I have family in Germany and they have a zero tolerance policy which does not allow a group to consist of over two people and they can be fined up to 25,000 euros. A euro equals $1.08 in our currency, so that's a lot of money! Needless to say, I think they'll get the needed results of their "do not congregate" policy. In France, it's a three day jail stay if you break their restrictions, so, before it comes to that here, let's hope we can learn to stay at home and do our part to stop the spread of this virus.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from March 26-April 1 are Aaliyah Montgomery, Leif Carroll, Mike Carroll, Linda McClain, Vance Miller Jr., JoAnn Prestegard, Mary Dominique, Jason Wallin Jr., Juanita Rodahl, Karl Johnson Jr., Caleb Kersinger, Alicia Cooper, George Trott, Crystal Davis, Spring Doiron, Jaxton Holland, Erin Parker, Judy Bates, Sandi Cik, Phil Rolf, Ronald Rust, 67'er Melvin Brown and Dawn Pedersen Macchione.

Those celebrating an anniversary are Mr. and Mrs. Brian McClain, Rodney and Patty Ingersol and Scott and Deanna Ahrndt. Enjoy your special days!

PRAYERS REQUESTED--As of this Monday night, prayers were being requested for Greydon Luce, who was in a four wheeler accident and had to be life-flighted to Randall Hospital in Portland. We certainly hope this young man recovers from his injuries and is back home soon. In the meantime, prayers said!

REMEMBERING--Due to this virus, the services for Mike Balch have been postponed indefinitely, so we were so sorry all these restrictions come at a time when many, many friends, neighbors, family members and fellow officers would have ordinarily been able to come together and say good-bye. Our many virtual hugs go out to Darlene and their son at this very sad time.

I also failed to mention the passing of Mike Mouliot who died March 8 and I was very sorry to hear that news. Those of you who knew Mike, also knew of his generosity towards multiple fundraising events that have been held around our area over many years. However, many of you may not have known that it was often Mike that had donated those gorgeous jewelry items that groups like the Wahkiakum Fair Board or Deep River Post #111 gave away as raffle items. I was the lucky recipient of one of those items years ago, and I certainly appreciated his willingness to do that for these important fundraisers. My sympathies go out to his wife, Jo and his son Michael and the rest of Mike's family.

Sympathies are also extended to Cindy Lloyd, who just lost her father. Cindy is the wife of a fellow classmate and Puget Islander, Greg. Unfortuantely,Cindy has had a very rough time this past year as she not only lost her father, but she lost her mother last year and she also lost her support dog; just so sad. Cindy is one of those angels that knits caps/hats for those that lose their hair during cancer treatments and she has donated hundreds of them. She uses only the softest kind of yarn, so as not to irritate their sensitive skin. She has many patterns, styles and many colors and they are all just so special, so we feel extra bad for this special lady that has had to deal with so many losses in such a short time.

SAD TIMES--I was so sorry to see a post on Facebook which said, "Good morning and goodbye. I love you all." That was the last post that we got from our friend and local raccoon lover, "Skamokawa Rick," AKA Richard Lee Foster. We were saddened to hear of his passing on Monday morning, but given his health issues and subsequent pain and suffering, we respect his wish to "just go" and leave all this misery behind. For those that didn't know him, Rick was a character who could be seen with a raccoon draped over his shoulder now and then, which of course, made him pretty unique around these parts. When he was healthy, he loved to scout the beaches and other areas with his metal detector where he found many treasures which he enjoyed sharing with us on Facebook. His artistry was not to be questioned as his many clocks and cribbage boards from myrtlewood were super nice and of course, one of his favorites, and mine, was the one that featured his raccoon; totally awesome! Rick was quite knowledgable about the history of the area and enjoyed sharing what he knew about various places. Sadly, not long ago, Rick was diagnosed with cancer and more than one tumor and had to have some surgery to remove one, but they could not do the other. He knew his days were numbered but he kept up the best fight he could with the time he had left and went right back to work on another cribbage board with a "Bigfoot" on it for a special friend, so I'm sure that will be treasured for a long, long time. To all of Rick's family, which includes Fosters and Wikas and many more, we want to send you our most heartfelt sympathies.

CLOSED--In case you hadn't heard, Port District #2 has closed the camping areas of their properties and closed the restrooms at them as well, this includes Skamokawa Vista Park. Plus, if you are still traveling between Cathlamet and Longview, be sure to be aware of that as I know that the County Line Park can be a lifesaver "potty break" spot for some, but that option is now unavailable. As more and more of these areas are closed, it makes staying home with all of our in-home facilities, sound much more inviting!

TOO LONG--The list of changes going on in our community is so long that it's actually impossible to list them all, as some businesses that were open are now closed and changes are happening daily in their hours of operation or how they provide services to us. If a restaurant business is able to serve "to go" orders, it may still be open but it might be operating on a limited menu or daily operating hours may be shortened. As always, when in doubt, give them a call and find out for sure. If you're on Facebook, it's a good place to find out the latest as well, as this newspaper has a page on there and many businesses do too. You can also check out the Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce internet site or FB page for the latest info on local things.

Also, if you were planning on going to any event listed on the chamber calendar where crowds of people would have gathered, then most likely, it's canceled; again, call if in doubt.

NEXT YEAR--I will tell you that the fundraiser for Dollars for Scholars "Mule Power FONDO," that was scheduled for May 31, has already been cancelled and is being set up for next year. This event, which involved several bike rides around different places in our area, is now scheduled for June 6, 2021, and if interested, you can contact Lee Tischer for information.

SAYING OUR PRAYERS--I just learned that some dear friends of ours have family members in the Seattle area that have come down with COVID-19. That family has children and they and their best friends, all have it, and are currently quarantined. Naturally, we hope that they will all come through this with no loss of life as they fortunately fall into the younger category, but nevertheless we worry about them.

Another friend has a grandson who has it, so for everyone that doesn't seem to be taking this seriously, let me tell you, there are a lot of folks who are frantically hoping and praying that their loved ones are going to pull through this illness unscathed.

IN THE MEANTIME--I hope we can take this time to reflect just how much we have taken for granted over the years. Times are hard and harder for some, so let's show some compassion, kindness and understanding as none of those things cost you a dime but are priceless to those who are on the receiving end of them.

That being said, my neighbor, Amy Hone and a group of ladies have come together to make masks for those that need them the most, and others are feeding the truckers and helping them out with snack bags, etc., so we know there are good people doing good works out there; keep it up! And thank you so much.