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Canine cop: Drug-detecting dog joins Stayton PD

By Mary Owen

Stayton Police have recently added a four-footed member to their team.

The department has ordered a drug detection canine from Pacific Coast K-9 in Custer, Wash., and the next step is to start training the dog this month.

“Having a drug detection canine will be a valuable resource for our community,” said Officer Paul Eves, who will be handling the dog. “The canine will help reduce the cost to taxpayers by locating drugs within minutes that can take several officers up to an hour or more to find, if at all.”

Mailbox / Food Box: Postal carriers collect food donations May 11

By Mary Owen

When mail carriers stop at mailboxes on Saturday, May 11, they are hoping to find more than outgoing letters and bills.

They hope they will be a bag of nonperishable canned food, box and other items placed by the mailbox.

Stayton Public Library Foundation welcomes new board members

Deana Freres, Josh Hardage and Chad Seegmiller, all of Stayton, recently joined the Stayton Public Library Foundation board.

Freres serves on the Board of Directors for Family Building Blocks and also volunteers with The Boys and Girls Aid Society of Oregon. Hardage, a project manager for the State of Oregon, was the principal organizer of April’s Santiam Canyon Father/Daughter Ball, a fundraiser for the foundation. Seegmiller is a personal banker for Key Bank in Stayton, and will serve on the foundation’s marketing committee.

NORPAC change: Corporate office moving to Salem

By Mary Owen

NORPAC’s corporate headquarters are moving from Stayton to Salem to consolidate existing corporate functions in Salem with its sales and marketing functions, now in Lake Oswego.

“We anticipate that having all of the corporate staff in one location will improve communications and expedite decision-making, along with synchronizing functions such as order entry and inventory, which currently take place at separate locations,” said Chuck Palmquist, vice-president of sales and services for NORPAC Foods, Inc., a cooperative owned by 240 family farmers in the Willamette Valley.

Building a life: Craft, cabinetry, community all figure into 40 years in business

Jean and Bill Deeter of Lyons

By Mary Owen

Bill Deeter often jokes that he makes a lot of sawdust and tries to sell what’s left over.

“Growing up, I was always building something,” said the Lyons man, who has been a cabinetmaker since moving to Oregon in early 1973. “In high school and college, I worked in a machine shop that did both metal and woodworking.”

After college, Deeter held several jobs, including head instructor at Jack LaLanne’s Health Club in Torrance, Calif.

“One of my tasks was to keep Chuck Norris from recruiting for his martial arts gym down the street,” Deeter said.

New track debuts, plus baseball and softball updates

By James Day

May 10 will be a big day for the Regis High School track and field program. The Rams will host an 18-team invitational meet starting at 3:30 p.m. while debuting their new $300,000 track and field upgrade.

The project received support from countless sources, according to veteran coach Mike Bauer, who cited area businesses, students at Regis and St. Mary Grade School and proceeds from the annual Regis auction.

“The uniqueness of this venture is the broad-based support the project received from so many elements of our community,” Bauer said. “It is a testimony to the generosity of people and their interest in providing a resource that can be used by all.”

Serving with purpose: Highway cleanup group’s beautification project

When it comes to giving back to their community, Mill City Lions Club members have taken it to a whole new level.

Catch some fun: Fishing Derby offers prizes, raises money for fireworks

Detroit Lake

By Mary Owen

“Fish on!” is the cry to be heard at Detroit Lake’s 31st annual Fishing Derby, held May 17-19 at the popular North Santiam Canyon lake.

“We expect a record turn out this year,” said Dean O’Donnell, president of the Detroit Lake Recreation Area Business Association, event host. “We’ve ordered nice weather, but we can’t guarantee it.”

The event will take place 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, May 17 and Saturday, May 18, and 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, May 19. Sign-ups are at the Detroit City Hall. DLRABA’s Fishing Derby draws thousands of participants each year.

Destination Detroit: Foundation, bikeway to promote scenic area

By Mary Owen

Two projects are in the works to benefit the Detroit area: a scenic bikeway and a new nonprofit organization.

“The Detroit Lake Foundation will be a nonprofit that will benefit the greater Detroit/Idanha community,” said Bob Franz, with the Detroit Lake Recreation Area Business Association.

“The foundation will be able to accept charitable donations as well as grants. By working through the foundation, the hope is that it will attract enough funds to enable us to go forward with lots of much-needed community improvements and be beneficial to future plans and growth of our community,” he said.

Free concert: Songs of harmony

The Santiam Canyon Chorus presented a December holiday concert.

The songs will vary from a Hawaiian chant to a Kenyan folk song to classics and familiar pieces like It’s a Small World and What a Wonderful World but they’ll all share a common theme – peace, and people throughout the world getting along.

On Saturday, May 11, 7 p.m. the 22-member Santiam Canyon Community Chorus and the 20-member Santiam High School Chorus, both directed by Jo Ann Hebing, will present a joint concert, Peace and Harmony.  The event at Santiam High School, 265 SW Evergreen St., Mill City, is free and open to the public.