By Cambria Roth
VALERIE MARTINSON, Silverton
Profession: Human Resource Manager
Volunteer: YMCA, Historic Landmarks Commission, St. Paul’s Catholic Church and her children’s schools.
Family: Husband, Jamie; children, Grant, 15; Kirk, 11; Clay, 10
Hobbies: Cooking, gardening
Last Book Read: Five Quarters of the Orange by JoAnn Harris
How would you describe your town? “It is a very active community and so fun and caring that there is always something happening for the care of others.”
Why did you choose to live here? “We loved Portland but my husband received a job in Salem and the commute got old. We knew we would need more room for the boys and came to Silverton one day and just loved it. We found a great old house that we fell in love with and just knew it was home.
PETE WALL, Mt. Angel
Profession: Mt. Angel’s Interim City Administrator
Hobbies: Golf, traveling
Last sporting event attended: Boston Red Sox versus the Seattle Mariners in June. (Red Sox fan)
How would you describe your town? “It is a very friendly little town with a close knit community. All in all it’s a great place to live and there are many volunteers.”
Why did you choose to live here? “I chose to live here so that I could be closer to my kids and my family. I lived in Mt. Angel and then moved to Toronto and moved back so I could be closer to my kids.”
FRED GEORGE, Silverton
Age: 37
Profession: Silverton High School Girl’s Soccer Coach
Family: Wife, Tracy, daughters Mia and Ella, age 7.
Hobbies: Swimming, camping, boating and of course, soccer.
Last sporting events attended: Waterfront Tournament, Blazers basketball game.
Describe your town? Silverton has a unique culture all its
own. It’s definitely one of those things that you have to experience to understand. But even visitors, who take the time to walk down Water Street and explore the downtown shops will get an idea of who we truly are. Silverton has all of the attractions of small town America; everyone knows pretty much everyone else, a profound sense of community and who we are, and finally a willingness on behalf of a large part of the community to get involved and help each other.
Why did you choose to live here? When the girls were born, we knew it was time to move back to Silverton. Silverton is such a great community that we knew it was pointless for us to try to find “Silverton” somewhere else. So, we moved back. The schools and the people of Silverton were our greatest draw to live here.
JOE SUPPA, Scotts Mills
Age: 60 Profession: Woodcarver
Family: Wife, Carol; daughters: Stephanie, 34; Tiffany, 27; Josie, 25
Hobbies: Landscaping, golf
Last carving: His entire driveway has woodcarvings, most recently fairies on one of the trees.
Describe your town? “Scotts Mills is very scenic and diversified. Having three children, my wife and I were pulled into the tight -knit community that Scotts Mills provides.”
Why did you choose to live here? “When I was a foster child there was a picnic when I was in eighth grade that my family brought me to in the Scotts Mills Park. It was then that I realized what a beautiful place this really is. I lived many places before we decided to make our home here after I came back and saw the Abbey and just knew I wanted to be here. The school is great, we have great relationships with the teachers and it is just a great place.”
