"Hey, it's Barbie Girl!"

            Coffenberry Middle School (the school that Jenna currently attends) starts each morning with a meeting.  To make it fun and entertaining, they often call for volunteers to perform skits or lip sinking songs or what have you. Two weeks ago, Jenna and her friend Annett performed "Barbie Girl" Just last week, I drove her to the school to pay a lunch fee.   Someone recognized her as we got out of the car.  "Hey, it's Barbie Girl!" 

            I find it ironic that Jenna hadn't played with Barbies that often - they were just too girly.  There is very little about Jenna that seems girly - and yet she takes it as a compliment when someone calls her Barbie Girl.

            Jenna is not afraid to be herself.

            When Jenna met Elena on the bus last year, I was so excited.  We both thought since they both took the same bus that perhaps a friendship would form.  Not really.

            Turns out Elena is a target for bullies,  and though Jenna has tried to console Elena and assist her with self-esteem, Elena refuses to listen.  So why would she listen to those that bully her?

            Those who have tried to bully Jenna become frustrated as  she doesn't allow words to bother her.  She usually turns words or snide remarks around and says, "Why thank you." Or else she'll agree, which actually irks the bully.

            Jenna is definitely her own person.  I think that's awesome.

Middle School Workout

Jenna's school is made of several buildings.  The other day when we received our voter's "pamphlet" we also received a card for a separate measure - a district bond.  I had not known until then how old some of the buildings are.

Her sixth-period class is in a building that was built in 1930.  Her 2nd and 5th-period classes are in a building that was built in 1935 with annex (that may be where she meets) built in 1948.  The main building was built in 1947 and the elementary school (not included in her schedule) was built in 1949.  The oldest building (not on her schedule either) was built in 1927.  It looks it.

Roland made a fuss over why this bill or measure wasn't presented 30 or 40 years ago.  Maybe it was.  We weren't here so we don't know.

Meanwhile, Jenna walks from building to building.  And you are seeing it accurately.  It is all uphill.  The colored broken lines represent Jenna's footprints throughout the day.  

The Right to Vote

Yesterday was the last day to register to vote - at least for this upcoming election.  

We received the "Voter's Pamphlet" although I don't know why they call it that.  It's more like a book - a thin text book with lots and lots of words.  It is our first time voting in Oregon.  Our  "pamphlet' included a page

 If you are a US citizen, live in Oregon, and are 18 years old and have registered to vote

You have the right to vote . .

. . . even if you are homeless

. . . even if you have been convicted of a felony but have been released from custody, even if you are on probation or parole.

. . . even if you have a guardian and even if you need help reading or filling out your ballot

. . . or cast your ballet if you are in line by 8pm on Election Day

. . . to know if you are registered to vote

. . . to choose whether or not you want to register as a member of political party

. . . to use signature stamp or other mark but first you have to fill out a form NO ONE CAN SIGHN IT FOR YOU

. . . to ask for help from elections staff or from a friend  or family member.  There are some people who cannot help you vote . . .

. . . to a secret vote.  You don't have to tell anyone how you voted.

. . . to get a "provisional ballet", even if you are told you are not registered to vote.

. . . to get a new ballot if you make a mistake.

. . . to vote for the person you want.  You can write in someone else's name if you don't like the choices on your ballot.

 . . . to vote yes or no on any issue on your ballot

. . .  to leave some choices blank on your ballot.  The choices you mark will still count.

. . . use a voting system for all Federal Elections that make it equally possible for people with disabilities to vote privately and independently.

. . . to know if your ballot was accepted for counting

. . . to file a complaint if you think your voting rights have been denied.

I thought my brother had posted about the trauma we faced the last time my mom voted, but haven't  found it.  Perhaps I had seen it on his facebook account.

He had taken her to a pre-voting or something.  I had gone with them just for support, but had already voted by mail.  I think Corey voted by mail also, but my was still registered to vote at the walk-in polls.  She had her paper with the information on how she was hoping to vote - but her dementia was really bad that day and I suspect she had forgotten what she was even doing there.  I remember that it took her a long time, and she was frustrated.

The Unmagical History Tour

Ever since we moved to Myrtle Creek, I had been looking online for any history of the town or library.  It hadn't occurred to me that the library would have its own scrapbook - one that I'd love to copy and share.  Let me just start with the introductions on the display case - excluding the pictures that I don't have.

Humble Beginnings

The first library in Myrtle Creek was established in 1912 in a two room, unheated cabin by a group of local citizens that staged a parade and fair to collect enough books.  The monthly rent for the location was $5.00.  Patrons war charged $1.00 a year to use the library.  It was run solely by volunteers, which were hard to get because the place was unheated, and operated by donations.  Sadly, it was eventually closed because all the members of the group responsible for the library moved out of town.

New Beginnings

In 1950, the Girl Scout library in the basement of a local church became open to the public.  It was a very populate venture and due to the need for more space, the library was moved that same year to the second floor of [what was then] City Hall.  However, this location was not up to code and the Fire Marshall had to shut it down for safety reasons.  The library was moved to a much smaller location that did not fit its needs.  Our community still wanted their library system and the City stepped in to provide it.

The Library and the City

In 1952, the City of Myrtle Creek contracted a new police station that included space for the library our community needed.  While the library eventually outgrew that space, that cooperation has since been continued and the City is still dedicated to providing a safe and accommodating space for the library.

When the old city hall was demolished in 1958, the new plans [were made.  The library was located where public city council meetings are now conducted] The library remained in that space for eighteen years.  

Joining the Douglas County Library System

In 1955, the Douglas County Library System was founded with the Roseburg Library as the headquarters.  Cities were contacted about a cooperative effort to create a county wide library system.  Myrtle Creek already had an established library with an active library board and they were concerned about new leadership hindering the wonderful thing the library was doing.  The state librarian at the time, Eleanor Stephens, wrote to the library board stressing the importance of cooperation to maintain a strong library system. [Though Myrtle Creek had done well on their own, it] was pointed out how much more efficiently things could be accomplished with the support of a county library.

Sixty years ago, in 1956, the Myrtle Creek Public Library became the Myrtle Creek Branch of Douglas County Library Systems

Your Library's Current Home

Forty years ago, in the summer of 1976, the city of Myrtle Creek completed the construction of our current building. [Our librarian at that time was Wilma Gore who] retired in 1977.  The City of Myrtle Creek has continued to assist, recently helping the library replace the carpeting and will soon install a new outdoor book drop.

I'd gone to the library last week to meet with one of the board members to go through my binder and hopefully get a bit more insight to my new position.  Because of my management class and recent post, I had asked about our vision statement, which she didn't know.  She didn't think we even had a mission statement; that I had found in the binder and thus she wanted to look at it.  Meanwhile I googled the subject and found this from two years ago:

Mission: Douglas County Libraries is a passionate advocate for literacy and lifelong learning.

Vision: Through engagement, education and entertainment, Douglas County Libraries transforms lives and builds community.

I edited my discussion post to include the vision and mission statements and added this:
Our goals right now are to save the library.

She reminisced a bit about growing up in Myrtle Creek, what it was like then and how so much has been lost over the years.  She remembered seeing more traffic.  Before Mill site park, there was actually a grist mill.  The park includes a brief history, though I don't recall a fire being mentioned.  I think she said whatever remained of the building burned down in the late '70s.    This is what I learned about Myrtle Creek during my research:

oldest known photo of Myrtle Creek

Settlers first came to the valley in 1837 and by the 1850s' farmlands and homesteads were esablished in the area. The Myrtle Creek area was originally settled in 1851 and the town was established in 1865. The town's name is derived from groves of Myrtle trees found in the vicinity along the banks of North Myrtle, South Myrtle and Myrtle creeks. Oregon Myrtlewood is a broadleaf evergreen native to Southwestern Oregon and Northwestern California and rarely found anywhere else.

Timber was as important to the area during the last century as it remains today.  By the 1870s there were two mills in the Myrtle Creek area.  The planning mill that was attached to the grist mill and a sawmill, up North Myrtle Creek, which could produce about 5,000 board feet per day. 

Milling has been a major part of the City of Myrtle Creek’s economy.  Lazarus Wright constructed a grist mill at the edge of town (adjacent to the creek) that had a capacity of 45 barrels of flour a day.  A planning mill was attached to the grist mill.  An electrical generator was incorporated into this facility prior to 1912.  It was renamed the Myrtle Creek Water, Lighting and Milling Company.  

The grist mill depicted in this mural was built along Myrtle Creek in the early 1850s. It was originally run by a man named Lazarus Wright and was a landmark as it was the only grist mill in the south county area. It was later converted to hydro-electric plant. The grist mill changed ownership a number of times, including John Hall, founder of Myrtle Creek. He bought from Wright (c.1863) and later had town surveyed & platted (ca.1868). Other owners of the mill included Hans Weaver, Henry Adams, F. M. Gabbert and Willis Kramer.

The grist mill was torn down prior to 1930 by the Oregon State Highway Commission to make way for a new bridge across Myrtle Creek as part of the Pacific Hwy improvement project.
The mural was painted in 1997 by local artist Susan Comerford, who still has an art studio in Roseburg, Oregon. The mural is located in Myrtle Creek’s Millsite Park, and is painted on the old sawmill bunker building (aka power house) for the Fir Manufacturing and March Logging Company. The sawmill was built in 1944 to help feed the demands of a nation at war, and supplied the lumber to build the decks of aircraft carriers. Another of the mill’s claims to fame is that it supplied the lumber for building the handrails for Madison Square Gardens in New York.

Eventually the sawmill closed and was abandoned. Then a fire destroyed the wooden mill buildings, almost taking the downtown area of Myrtle Creek with it. After the fire, the city acquired ownership of the land to build a city park under the condition that the land never be used for a profit making business. The bunker building was a very plain building and was almost torn down until the City was approached to have a mural painted on it. The building is now used by the Myrtle Creek Parks Department.


– Mural and historical information provided by Carolyn Shields, Myrtle Creek City Recorder and Maureen Butler, Myrtle Creek Historical Society
Photo by Gary Halvorson, Senior Archivist, Oregon State Archives

I've taken and posted several pictures of Mill Site park in Myrtle Creek. Ed Cadman had taken several pictures that were posted to this site:   

 This giant saw blade, from the old sawmill here, is preserved as part of the park.

Ed Cadman   http://www.smalltownoregon.com/08umpquavalleys/myrtlecreek.html

This is the grindstone and plaque

Karen Rivera      November 2015

Ed Cadman   http://www.smalltownoregon.com/08umpquavalleys/myrtlecreek.html

This plaque tells the story of how the Horse Creek covered bridge arrived in Myrtle Creek.

John Trax / Alamy Stock Photo

  Horse Creek Covered Bridge, spanning Myrtle Creek adjacent to Millsite Park, was built in 1930 and is currently used as a pedestrian bridge. This bridge originally spanned Horse Creek in Lane County but was removed in 1987. The bridge's wooden timbers were given to the City of Cottage Grove for salvage. Cottage Grove used some of the timbers and the remaining lumber was donated to the City of Myrtle Creek in the spring of 1990. 

 

Ed Cadman   http://www.smalltownoregon.com/08umpquavalleys/myrtlecreek.html

Karen Rivera        November 2015

 

Myrtle Creek is well known for its old bridges.  The Neal Lane covered bridge across the South Myrtle Creek in one of the six in Douglas County.  In addition to Horse Creek Covered Bridge is the Neal Lane Bridge, which I have also photographed and posted.

From the 1950's: Myrtle Creek itself flooded every year. Ed Cadman had sent a picture depicting the flood  just south of the Dairy Queen where the main highway went into town. You can find more of his pictures here.  This is the only picture I could retrieve from the internet.

 

I pulled my sources from the following websites:

 

Historical Sites Downtown Myrtle Creek

https://pocketsights.com/tours/tour/Myrtle-Creek-Historical-Sites-Downtown-Myrtle-Creek-501

Myrtle Creek - Tri City Area Chamber of Commerce   http://www.myrtlecreekchamber.com/touristinfo.html

The City of Myrtle Creek      http://www.cityofmyrtlecreek.com/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC=%7B7310598F-D7C0-48D7-A7F8-BE0A06062102%7D

Myrtle Creek Historical Society

http://www.myrtlecreekhistory.com/p/membership.html

At Least She Supports the Arts

           

            Roland has two daughters, age 22 and 20.  When they were younger, Frances liked to draw and paint - mostly paint, but she learned a variety of artistic methods.  Pamprin was very theatrical.  She enjoyed singing and performing.  Both were skilled at what they enjoyed.

            Their biological mother had enrolled each in various classes according to their interests. Pamprin had performed in the Salt Lake  children's choir.  Her mother also drove her to several auditions for commercials. Frances had entered several of her paintings into contests.  One she had painted of Adam and Eve.  It hung on our wall for a few weeks before she took it down to enter in another contest.  We never saw it again.

            When I first started blogging, I hadn't mentioned the true identities of Roland's ex or his two oldest girls - or any of us really.  There have been so many complications with the ex that my mentioning their names would have probably just complicated things further.  We have wanted to stay in touch, but evidently, the feeling is not mutual.  That doesn't mean that we've forgotten them or don't think about them.

            They had moved from Utah to Hawaii three years before I started my blog. They must have moved to Kansas (or maybe Missouri) just shortly after we had moved to West Valley.  Through Google and referring links, I have discovered that Pamprin has won awards playing Kala in the musical of Tarzan and now performs as an Alto in a church choir.  Unlike me, who have joined the church choir solely for body count, Pamprin really does have a nice voice (or I assume she sings even better than the last time I heard her) Frances is a student at the Kansas City Art Institute.  It's nice to know that they were able to pursue their dreams.  I hope that they continue and can use their talents to their benefit.  

            Still would be nice if we could learn these things from them.  I hope that one day they will have the desire to reach out to their dad or brothers or even Jenna - who really doesn't know them, but knows of them.

FLOORED AGAIN part 2

The assignment for last week in my management class was on the Associations with Decision Making Process.  Our topic: Panera Bread.  I did some research and was able to put my thoughts together by Wednesday afternoon.  It is the earliest I have ever turned in an assignment for that class.  It was graded right away and I had received full credit.  Nice.

This week we don't have a written assignment.  Our discussion post is on Strategic Planning: Mission, Vision, and Goal Statements.  It needs to be 250 words and of course references.  The topic: the public library.  Are you kidding me?  That just happens to be where my passion lies right now.  Words and thoughts poured out of me. Initially, there were over 600 words.  I kept cutting it down.  This morning my post looked something like this (grey words were not posted to my discussion but kept for this blog)

                "In an article found in the Local*, Margaret Jakubcin (2007) gives ten reasons why we need local libraries - even if we have never even been there as a patron.  I agree wholeheartedly as the library does benefit so many individuals in the community.  

          "This has been a really hard class for me as  I don't have much passion for business.  I moved from a small metropolis of over a million people in 110.4 square miles to a rural area of about 107,00 people living in a stretched out area of over 5,100 miles.  Our city has a volunteer fire department, volunteer mayor, volunteer board members, and volunteers who run a second-hand store (where there is no employment).  There are not a lot of job opportunities here and I'm fine with it.  I have never had the desire to work for a prestigious company or become the CEO of anything.  I have worked for chain employment companies, but have just felt lost in the system and don't care for it.  

          "In order to get the most benefit from this class, I've had to view our education from a different angle; to find the values that apply to my own personal life and to the community in which I am currently living and trying to serve.  I know SWOT and decision making are already applied within the democracy of our existence.  We have some great leaders in this community, but the communication between cities and span of control seems to lack among all the cities as a whole with certain issues. They seemed to do well as a county library system, but evidently, that was not always the case.

          "When my family first moved to Douglas County, it seemed a hard adjustment for us to go from libraries being open from 40-56 hours a week to just 12-24.   From my understanding, the libraries in the county (where I currently reside) had all run independently at one time, but now they function in one system similar to the one that we left whereas we can place a hold on an item in another city and have it delivered to us rather than having to drive to each library to find it.  However, with each passing year, hours have been cut because the system has been threatened with a lack of funding.

          "There are ten libraries in our county and all are in jeopardy of closing.  The mission statement is to promote library awareness and save our libraries by increasing taxes.  This would cost taxpayers roughly 44 cents a day, or 5.50 a month or 66 dollars a year.  Just recently, I agreed to be on the board of our local library.  We don't know what the outcome will be on November 8th.  If the bill doesn't pass, the libraries will close and so our vision statement has been based on speculation about what will happen if the library does close or what improvements can be made if the bill does pass.  I know that by using statements for Vision, Mission and Values, we can organize the future of our community (Gottlieb, 2007)"

 *I found the initial reference in my binder of information for board members; original site (from where it was printed) no longer exists but have since come across the website The Literary Pursuit.

 

 This is my last week for the module.  Thus this morning I had to take a survey on my instructor and the course itself.  Next week I will start a new class - I'm guessing in College Algebra but don't actually know at this point. Overall,  this online schooling thing has been a productive journey.