Fire hall gets grant: Federal stimulus funds move start date to June

March 2010 Posted in News | Comments Off

By Mary Owen A federal grant has lit a fire under the Gates Fire Hall project, upping its start date to June. “I’m excited to have this boost in our capital fundraising campaign,” said Fire Chief Gary Swanson with the Gates Rural ...

Superintendent chosen: Andy Gardner will replace Dr. Jack Adams

March 2010 Posted in News, School | Comments Off

By Mary Owen Andy Gardner has great expectations for Stayton and Sublimity schools. “All five schools want greater contact in the community,” said Gardner, principal at Stayton Intermediate/Middle School. “We want to be great places for kids, where they learn not just ...

Discuss decorum: Councilor urges policies to keep meetings civil

March 2010 Posted in News | Comments Off

By Mary Owen Inaccuracies in Stayton City Council minutes have been corrected, but the allegedly disrespectful delivery of the message has led to two motions on council communication policy. Councilor Don Walters drafted the motions after Councilor James Loftus publicly criticized city ...

Fees waived: City acts to attract businesses to town

March 2010 Posted in Community, News | Comments Off

By Mary Owen Sublimity city officials voted Feb. 8 to waive all system development charges for the rest of the year. At an earlier council meeting, Sublimity City Councilor Gary Rychard introduced the idea as a means of drawing interest from business ...

A mobile mission: Trailers help with post-disaster communications

March 2010 Posted in Business | Comments Off

By Mary Owen When the earth shook in Haiti, Bob Collier knew he had been right in creating a solution to communicating in emergencies. “It’s a great feeling to be helping people in their time of need,” said Collier, a retired electrician ...

Teaching with heart: Instructor shares her love of dance

March 2010 Posted in Arts, Culture & History | Comments Off

By Mary Owen Tara Manning teaches with her whole heart. “I love my little dancers!” said the co-owner of Steppin’ Up Jazz Dance, a dance program for children 3 to 18 years of age. Manning herself has been taking dance lessons since she ...

Exploring careers: ASPIRE matches high school students to mentors

March 2010 Posted in School | Comments Off

By Mary Owen When Regis High School councilor Mike Bauer signed on with the Oregon Student Assistance Commission’s mentoring program three years ago, he had no inkling of its potential outreach. In 2007, Regis was the 83rd Oregon high school – and ...

New fund adds to Regis scholarship opportunities

March 2010 Posted in School | Comments Off

By Mary Owen A new tuition assistance fund at Regis High School will add to existing scholarship coffers, ensuring interested students have an opportunity to attend the private Catholic school. “The Blessed Mother Mary Fund will be applied to qualified recipients to ...

Madeline’s Adventures: Stayton, my Stayton – Those vacancies are really opportunities

March 2010 Posted in Columnists & Opinion | Comments Off

By Madeline Lau I still remember when I found out that my family had been part of Stayton since the very beginning of the town’s existence. One beautiful summer day I was having lunch with my friend, Olivia, at the Gardner ...

A Grin at the End: To me, DIY is a four-letter word

March 2010 Posted in Columnists & Opinion | Comments Off

By Carl Sampson As if I needed another reminder of my inadequacies, a recent trip to the hardware store provided a whole new shopping basket full. My wife and I have been fixing up the mansion lately — anyone want to buy ...