By Dixon Bledsoe
Too many people to thank, so little time. My column is about people who do good things in the community and deserve a thank you.
The Homer Davenport Community Festival is over and there are a lot of people to thank. The Silverton Rotary stepped up when things went awry. The Silver Falls YMCA took over the parade and it was wonderful. Thank you to those who serve or have served on the festival board. “Homer” is uniquely Silverton. It will survive and it needs to. Well done, all.
Roth’s has been a benevolent and community-minded business for nearly 50 years. We all know the tan man in the green bowtie and what Orville Roth has meant to this community. But let’s give some kudos, too, to his trusty sidekick Darin Rybloom who manages the Silverton store. Need something for Mark Twain’s Senior Breakfast? Darin is all over it. One more “shopping spree” for charity? Darin puts up a starting gate, wears a referee’s shirt, and plays the theme to “Rocky” as the winner races through the aisles. Full of fun, all business when business calls and just a genuinely good guy. Thank you, Darin, for all you do.
Nothing but good wishes for all the businesses who are hit up constantly in a never-ending stream of requests for funds from every club, nonprofit, cute kid hawking cookies and every type of fundraiser imaginable, almost all with noble causes. You can’t fault the people asking for a gift basket here, a gift certificate there. Each request is made by someone giving up his or her Saturday to help a Little League team with new equipment, a school group to go to Washington D.C., or collect food for those less fortunate. But let’s give our heartfelt gratitude to those who give. Those who have the guts to run a business in a terrible economy and the heart to give to others when they can. Thank you to the businesses and individuals who give so much to so many, and to those who must say “no” but do so graciously. You are all one of many good reasons to “Choose Silverton.”
Thank you Jordan Prince for keeping a cool head when a 16-year-old head and 6’5″ teenage boy’s frame ran through a plate glass door. Getting him calm, getting to the ER, that was cool. And thanks to the young man’s Young Life group for their prayers, love and support.
Thank you Rayann Alger and Erin Marcellais for raising $2,500 for SACA at the Homer Davenport Community Festival. Erin, 12, is a rock star. Rayann is a fundraising and couponing-for-SACA wunderkind. Thank you both.
To the Silverton City Council, AKA Silverton Urban Renewal Agency – thank you for the energy, lively discussion and hours taken away from your leisure and family time to serve us. It is never an easy job and is often thankless. Please learn from the past year – the good, the bad and the ugly. Thank you, Silverton city staff. This past year has been grueling on you. We have water, sewer, careful planning and a solid infrastructure because of you. Shoot for continuous improvement. Keep up the morale and keep up the good work.
A very big thanks to those folks smart enough to walk away from a petition asking for a recall of four city councilors – all good people – simply for doing the job we elected them to do. To the misguided few – We are all in this together. Do you think this negativity is going to attract a quality city manager? Actually, have you really thought this through or does it just appear to be good fodder for a reality show?
Patti Battin recently passed away. What an incredible artist, spirit and person. She leaves a legacy of art, a passion for this hamlet we call home and a gaping hole in the heart of the art community she loved. Whether working in oil or charcoal, her medium was life. Thank you, Patti.
Thank you to our local farmers. Take a drive around town and you’ll see magnificent flower fields plus a lot of hard working people growing crops that help feed our nation. Support local farmers by going to Silverton Farmers’ Market on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or stop by one of the many farm stands outside of town.
