Sweet Lorane Community News, August 13, 2020

Fern Ridge Review
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
August 13, 2020
By Pat Edwards

The Crow-Applegate-Lorane School District met on Thursday, August 6 and made some decisions about the upcoming school year. According to the report on their website at https://www.cal.k12.or.us/o/cal/news:

“Students in kindergarten and grades 1-3 at Applegate Elementary School will begin full time, in-person classes on September 14, 2020. Students in grades 4-12 will start distance learning classes on that same date.

“…Crow-Applegate-Lorane’s startup timeline delays classes by one week to allow school staff to meet with every K-12 student and family in parent-teacher-conference style meetings.
“Teachers with students in grades 4-12 will offer students and families a chance to meet, checkout textbooks and/or Chromebooks, and discuss ways to help kids adapt to the elevated rigor of Comprehensive Distance Learning.

“Teachers with students in kindergarten through grade 3 will co-teach small groups of students in person, alternating with a designated classified staff member. These “stable cohorts” of students will reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure and simplify contact tracing should an exposure of the coronavirus be reported.

“Parents of K-3 children will have an opportunity to meet with their teachers and support staff to ask questions and review the process for arrival/dismissal, screening for symptoms, cleaning and sanitizing high-touch surfaces, meals and recess, and the delivery of instruction.”

Last week, I announced the birth of another little great-grandson, Hudson Ross Haxby. This week, I need to tell you about two very important people in my life who passed on the same day. Life, indeed, seems to be an unending circle.

One of our good friends, Marilyn Wenger Cooper, quietly slipped away on the evening of Saturday, August 8. She worked on and off for Jim and me at the Lorane Family Store for almost 40 years. She absolutely loved being part of our LFS family and she made many friends while there. Her health began failing a few years ago, but she fought to remain at the store for as long as she physically could. When she realized that she no longer was able to handle the work, she made the decision to quit, but it about broke her heart. Saying goodbye to her the day before she passed was extremely hard for Jim and me, but it was time and she was at peace. Rest in peace, Marilyn. We love you so.

A few days ago, I learned that I had lost another good friend on Friday, August 7… the day I was saying goodbye to Marilyn. Michael J. “Hoss” Barker was a good friend that I had lost track of during the pandemic. I later found out that he had been battling a rare form of leukemia for the past year. Hoss, as he liked being called, was a wonderful comboy/logger poet who brightened the pages of our Groundwaters magazine for many years. I worked with him on publishing his last book, My Time in Paradise, that he produced in 2014. It chronicled the six years he spent as the caretaker for Paradise Lodge in the wild and scenic Rogue River wilderness that he loved so very much. I helped him republish his other three books of poetry through the years of our friendship, as well. I send my condolences to Kris Barker, Hoss’ wife, and Eric, his remaining son after losing another son, Lucas, last November. You will be missed by so many, Hoss, but your poetry and words will live on.

The area granges are limiting their activities due to the coronavirus, but be sure to support them in any way you can. The Lorane Grange has begun meeting again while practicing social distancing and masks. They continue to welcome new members and their next meeting will be on Thursday, September 3 at 7:00 p.m. They have decided to postpone the return of their monthly dinner and bingo nights through September, or at least until the coronavirus restrictions have been eased.

The Creswell Grange has asked me to let people know that they are needing donations of clean canning jars, both quarts and pints, that they plan to fill with soup and bean soup kits to distribute free throughout the community to those in need this winter. In addition, both the Creswell and Crow Granges are collecting empty pill bottles which they will include in a program to benefit Third World countries. If you have anything to donate, please call Dottie at 541-895-2155 to arrange drop-off or pick-up.

The Crow Grange is collecting trial-size toiletries (shampoo, toothpaste, soaps, deodorant, lotion, etc.), to put in ziploc bags to hand out when and where needed. They are also collecting paperback books to send to military troops overseas. The Crow Grange is also planning to start up their twice-a-month bingo games as soon as they can work out logistics under COVID-19 guidelines. Contact Connie Suing for more info at 541-556-2609.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Rogue Awakening

Holed up in a cabin on the banks of the Rogue,
I wrote verse and I pondered and I sighed.
I was ambling through canyons rugged and steep,
As deep into the wilds I plied.

I could feel the stare of someone not there,
As wearily onward I trod.
‘Twas adventure I sought, but instead what I got,
Was a glimpse of the wonders of God.

Oh Lord what a sight, in the summer’s twilight,
Watching the bats try to chase down the stars.
Those planes are so rude, how dare they intrude,
I wish they’d all fly off to Mars.

I never would care, to bring grief to a bear,
That never did nothin’ to me.
They rumble and tumble, then fumble and stumble,
In a race to the top of the honey tree.

Up high in the skies, what a treat for sore eyes,
Like puppets on angels’ strings,
Bald eagles soar, above the din and the roar,
Waving at all with their wings.

Held captive I stare, through the river’s bright glare,
At the salmon coursing below.
The wonders won’t cease, and offer a peace,
That only one humbled may know.

Through oak groves galore, madrones by the score,
Through fir stands tall and great.
She’s carved canyon walls, like cathedral halls,
Through miles of real estate.

Further I trekked, yet onward I pressed,
Crazed for the next mountain’s crest.
Through silver gray snags, over mossy-backed crags,
Undaunted, I harried my quest.

Razor backed mountains, too many for countin’,
Leap skyward and stand in defiance.
I’m so far from home, and I’m so all alone,
As the solitude shattered the silence.

Then once she’s got ya, she’s always got ya,
She’ll lure you, you’ll rant and you’ll rave.
Was this happenstance, my river romance?
Who knows, but we’re kin ‘till the grave.

~ Michael J. “Hoss” Barker