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

WET BEGINNING--Our work week is starting off with a mix of clouds and rain and then some sun breaks and some heavy downpours in between; ugh! We woke up to the low 40s and barely got up to the mid-50s, so this is definitely not swimsuit weather just yet. As summer begins, the forecast is looking to be a bit drier, so we will see how that goes, as around here, the forecast can change in the blink of an eye!

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from June 22-28 are Lance Britt, Danny Helms, Travis Gibson, Mary Baldwin, Don Speranza, Cliff Garrison, Larry Horman, Joel Moore, Scott Tomlinson, James Anderson, Jonathan Hauff, Kay Holland, Logan LaBerge, Nicci Bergseng, Natalie Thomas, Natalie Vossen, Carol Ross, Nick Hummel, Kris Bergseng, Bruce Datchler, McKenna Spieth McIntosh and Katie Nollan Sechler.

Those celebrating anniversaries this coming week are Randy and Susan Kuhn, Mr. and Mrs. Larry Hendrickson, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Brett Freeman, Dan and Barb Lloyd, Dean and Judy Snyder and Mark and Rhonda Pedersen. May you all have wonderful days to celebrate your special occasions.

THURSDAY MORNING--Just another quick reminder to head to the Skamokawa Grange Hall at 18 Fairgrounds Road, this morning from 10 to noon, where there will be a community breakfast held as usual and of course, donations are deeply appreciated in order to keep this going.

PIGYS IS HERE--This is the big weekend on Puget Island where folks will be out in full force as they shop for those bargains from June 23-25. While the first couple of days looks to be dry, it could be a bit wet on Sunday, so plan accordingly. As always, please respect the “no early shoppers” request and please don’t block the mail boxes. Please drive with extra care as there is bound to be a lot of extra traffic for those three days. Most of all, happy shopping! May you find just what you’re looking for!

Don’t forget to stop by the Puget Island Fire Hall and help support the auxiliary group there and shop a bit, as they do so much good for our community. If you’d like to donate to them, you can send a check to WFD #1 – P.O. Box 627, Cathlamet, WA 98612.

NORSE HALL--According to Jan Silvestri, the president of our local Sons of Norway group, there will be pulled pork sandwiches available to all you weary shoppers who might just need a little lunch to pick you up in between your shopping. I heard there will be a Norwegian treat available for purchase as well, so stop by the Norse Hall at 444 SR 409 and enjoy a cup of coffee and a nice lunch and help support the Sons of Norway lodge! Have questions? Call Jan at 360-431-1705.

SYMPATHIES--I got a call from former classmate, Sandy Firkus Quigley and she told me of the passing of her partner and another classmate, Doug Wright. Doug had been battling cancer and had been unwell for quite some time and he left this painful world on April 25; may he now rest in peace. At his request, no services were held. The Class of 1967 sends their deepest sympathies to Sandy and all of Doug's family and friends.

PRESCHOOL PRE-REGISTRATION--Do you have a child that is between 3 and 4 ( by Aug. 31) and you’d like to enroll them into preschool for the next 2023-24 school year? Now is the time to do that as St. James Family Center is currently accepting applications, with their priority given to 4-year olds. If you want to enroll your child, you probably should see to that as soon as possible. You can call 360-795-8612 for all the information you will need.

CONCERT TIME--It seems there were several folks we knew that traveled up the freeway to Seattle to attend the big country-western concert at the Lumen Field in Seattle, featuring the legendary George Strait, along with Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town this past Saturday. It was time to sing along with Chris to “Tennessee Whiskey,” which is one of my faves, while our Sheriff Mark Howie and wife, Deb, was loving George's song, “Weight of the Badge.” Not too far away from them it seems, were seated more locals, as David and Connie Shrum and Barbara Brewster were also there. Ed Stevens was enjoying an early Father’s Day birthday gift from his wife, Barb and they had a blast as well. After seeing all the video clips of the show, I can see why there were so many smiling faces, as that was just a terrific line up; glad you all had such a great time!

MUSIC FEST--Speaking of music festivals, we’ll have the “Smoke on the Water Music Fest” this fall, Sept. 1-3 at the Wahkiakum County Fairgrounds. We hope everyone will attend this very first, 3-day Country Music Festival. There will be a great line-up of talent, like Canaan Smith, who has the hit song “Love You Like That” and Rodney Atkins who has six number one singles and others like Katie Wade, Jessie Leigh, Kitty Mae, Aaron Crawford, the Sam Leyde Band, the Brewer’s Grad Band, the Nash Brothers and more, so let’s pack Skamokawa and show folks we can put on a big music fest in our little town. It’s going to be awesome! You can check out the Facebook page or you can go to the website to buy tickets now: http://www.smokeonthewatermusicfest.com. You can also leave a message at the fairgrounds at 360-795-3480 and they can get back to you.

AWAY THEY GO--This has also been a time for many local fishermen to head up north and of course, this is always a time of angst for all those left behind in hopes that their loved ones have a safe, as well as profitable season. It’s also a time where “sticker shock” comes in as the prices of everything in Alaska are almost always double or more than down here, so when planning on a stay in Alaska, you’d best be bringing a thick wallet or a high line of credit! I can remember having to pay $5 for milk back in the 60s, so some things haven’t changed! Anyway, we will be thinking of all our local fishermen as this season begins as many of us have dealt with the reality of lost boats and the loss of life first hand, and we hope we won’t have to do that this year.

NICE REMEMBERANCE--Last Wednesday was Flag Day and it was also the 116th birthday of the late Julia Butler Hansen, which was all celebrated by a gathering at her home and at the Cathlamet Pioneer Center, with a raising of the flag as well as a presentation by the author of the book he wrote about Julia, Mr. John C. Hughes. His book is entitled, “Julia Butler Hansen - A trailblazing Washington politician.” And that she was. I was pleased that my son, Pete Sechler was able to come down from Seattle to meet Mr. Hughes, who just so happened to have mentioned Pete in the book, so that was pretty special and gave us a good opportunity to have our books signed by Mr. Hughes. I hope you will read his book and realize how very bold she was for the times, and how she broke lots of barriers for us women in the political world, when it wasn’t in fashion to do so. Without Julia, we would have no bridge from Cathlamet to Puget Island, nor the Astoria bridge and I think we can all relate to how vital these bridges are to us today. While we may not always think alike, or agree on things, I do wish we had more politicians that could work across party lines and work together to get things done; which Julia did masterfully. I doubt anybody will tie her record of running for office 42 times and winning all 42 elections!

FATHER’S DAY--Father’s Day was this past Sunday and many folks were dealing with the fact that they no longer had a father to take out to lunch or dinner or some other treat, but for those that did, it seemed there were plenty of smiling faces on the dads who were treated extra special that day. It’s too bad that they didn’t get to enjoy as nice of a day as we Moms did back in May.

REUNIONS--There will be a Mace family reunion on July 6-8 at Skamokawa Vista Park, so here’s a reminder to all of you family members to show up and enjoy your time together as you have smores to eat, fishing adventures to take and a potluck feast enjoy! I can hardly wait to hear from Sherrolin Mace Powell and see how it all went.

Many class reunions will take place this year, and I hope you’ve been able to contact the leaders in your respective classes about your various plans. I know the Class of 1963 will meet July 15 at the Skamokawa Resort's conference room at 5 p.m. If you have any questions, contact Julie McKagan 360-459-8810 or Gary Emery 360-849-9067.

The Class of 1973 will meet at the same place on Sept. 9. You can contact Cheryl Parker or Becky Thacker for more info. The Class of 1967 will meet July 15 at the home of Dale Jacobson at 1:30, and you can contact me for more info if needed.

FAREWELL--This past weekend was very busy with various events going on, and one of those was gathering to remember Rick Nelson at the St. James Family Center on Saturday afternoon. The crowd filled the room and it was a fitting tribute to a man who had done so much for our community and was so loved by his family. A message of love and kindness to all was conveyed.