Tag: Marissa McNutt Cooper

Sweet Lorane Community News – November 17, 2016

November 17, 2016Newspaper Columns, , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Fern Ridge Review
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
November 17, 2016
By Pat Edwards

Aloha! As you’re reading this, Jim and I and 15 members of our family are in Hawaii. Most of us will be cruising the islands, but since our newest great-granddaughter, Hayden, is too young to join us on the ship, the Furlong branch of our family will be exploring Kauai until our ship docks there on our last two nights of the cruise. Our whole immediate family, except for our youngest daughter Kelly, who was not able to join us, will spend Thanksgiving Day together at a luau. Talk about blessings! We’ll have plenty to be thankful for this year.

While I’m gone, long time Lorane resident, Marissa McNutt-Cooper, will be providing you with the community news. Thank you, Marissa! With your help and our special friends and neighbors making sure that our house and store are taken care of while we are gone, we plan to have some fun and relax in the sunshine. I’ll give you an update when we return. ~ Pat Edwards

From Marissa McNutt Cooper:

Hey all! As Pat said, I am going to be filling in for her while her family is away on vacation. I will be honest, I have never written a newspaper column before, but I will try my very best to get you all the Sweet Lorane Community News for the next few weeks. That being said, let’s get to it…

I want to start first by saying a huge THANK YOU to all who live in the Crow-Applegate-Lorane School District that voted to pass the 20-264 Bond Measure for Safety and Facility upgrades for the elementary and high school campuses! Our District is in dire need of facility improvements and thanks to the voters in our district, that can now happen! As a parent of a first grader at Applegate Elementary, I want to personally say thank you and I am looking forward to seeing the district’s plans for the schools come to fruition.

The whole community of Lorane would like to express our deepest condolences to the family of long-time Lorane resident Jack Gleason, who passed away Monday, November 14th. We are so very sorry for your loss and your family is in all of our thoughts. I have not received information about his service, though I will make sure to include any information I get into next week’s column.

It is that time of year again, we are getting ready for our annual Angel Trees. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the trees, they are Christmas trees located at the Lorane Family Store and Crow High School gymnasium with felt angel ornaments that have a suggestion of a gift for a child in our community whose family is in need of assistance this holiday season. The Angel trees are for any family in need of assistance with children age birth to 18 who live in Lorane or Crow or attend a C-A-L school. Children do not have to be of school age or attend Crow-Applegate-Lorane, just live in our community and or attend school here. How you can help is by picking an Angel ornament off the tree, purchasing a new gift, then returning it unwrapped with the Angel ornament to the tree in Lorane or to the Crow High School office.

The holiday helper forms recently went out with the Weekly Buzz to all children attending C-A-L schools, so be on the lookout for them in your children’s backpacks. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance this year, please return the form to the school’s office if your children attend C-A-L or contact me, Marissa at 541-517-6608. Please know that all information received is completely confidential and that the angels on the trees do not include names.

Here are some upcoming dates to mark on your calendars:

Parents night out, hosted by the Lorane Theta Rho #94 will be December 9 from 4:30-10:00 p.m at the Lorane Rebekah Hall. They will be providing free childcare so that you can go Christmas shopping, have a night out or a quiet evening at home. Please contact Tara Wiggle at 541-935-5245 with any questions.

The Crow Booster Club will be holding their annual alumni basketball tournament December 9 and 10. If you or someone you know is interested in playing, please contact Booster Club President Linda Lay at 541-844-5840

The Lorane Grange Christmas Dinner will be held on December 11 at 1:30 p.m. The Grange will provide the turkey, dressing, ham, potatoes and drinks. Please feel free to bring a dessert or side dish.

The Lorane Food bank will be accepting non-perishable donations for the holiday food baskets until December 15. If you or someone you know that lives in our community is in need of food assistance, please contact Sande Maxwell at 541-942-5083

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Sweet Lorane Community News – October 6, 2016

October 6, 2016Newspaper Columns, , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Fern Ridge Review
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
October 6, 2016
By Pat Edwards

Fall is finally upon us and there has been enough rain to end the fire season. LRAPA (Lane Regional Air Protection Agency) has even opened rural backyard burning of yard debris a week early. It has been allowed, providing weather conditions are acceptable, since last Saturday, October 8. Before lighting that match or igniter, you must call ahead (541-726-3976) or check the LRAPA website at http://www.lrapa.org to find out if burning is allowed on that particular day in our area, however.

The Crow-Applegate-Lorane Booster Club, which also includes the district’s Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is in dire need of new members. Marissa McNutt Cooper has recently posted a plea to area residents to become members.

“I am hoping to spread the word to people who have children at Crow who might be interested in joining (the Booster Club). If they don’t get some new members soon, they may have to close, which would be catastrophic for our district. They fund an astonishing amount (usually around $20,000-$30,000 annually) for the entire district. Last night alone (Thursday, October 6), they approved close to $5,000 in funds requested for supplies for Science Classes at the high school, new welders, welding hoods and welding jackets for the shop and automotive class, and supplies and materials for the drama club. They also provide sports scholarships, buy new curriculum for the elementary and they’ve purchased new projectors for all of the classrooms. The list is endless. They meet once a month, usually the first Thursday of the month.”

This is a vital organization in our community. The boosters sponsor large fundraising events throughout the year that enable our area’s students to get the best education possible from our small school district. Until the state legislature figures out a better system for school funding, we are all going to have to do what we can on a community level. We all get frustrated with national and state elections and feel that we have no voice. But we do have a voice at the community level and if each community takes care of its own, then we are making a difference that may extend even further. We are all busy these days, but we need to find the time for something as important as this. For information on how to join, contact Linda Lay, Crow-Applegate-Lorane Booster Club President (541-844-5840), or one of its members.

Mark October 15 on your calendar! Roberta Pietila Miller and Pam Kersgaard have organized a community apple cider pressing at Roberta’s house, across from the Lorane Grange, on Saturday, October 15 starting at 10:00 a.m. All you have to do is bring your own apples and containers. They’ll break for a potluck lunch and proceed until all of the apples have been processed. For questions or more info, contact Roberta (360-318-6028 or e-mail robertamiller77@yahoo.com) or Pam Kersgaard through the Lorane, Oregon Facebook page.

Another date to mark is Sunday, October 23. Groundwaters will be presenting a program, Groundwaters LIVE! at the Applegate Regional Theater, 87230 Central Road, Eugene, in the former Central School gymnasium, from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. to launch our just-completed 2016 Groundwaters anthology. We will feature 11 of our 63 contributors who will each read 5-minute portions of their stories and poems that are included in the book. The readers list includes: Jeanette-Marie Mirich, Jo-Brew, Vicki Sourdry, Demetri Liontos, David Erickson, Karen Wickham, Sherry Hunter, Michael Foster, gael Doyle-Oroyan, Eunice Scruggs and Stanley Buck. Refreshments will be provided and books will be available to purchase before, during the break and afterwards. There’s no admission… it’s free! Please come join us!

Attention all female Crow High School alums who played basketball for the Cougars! A women’s alumni basketball tournament is in the planning stages in conjunction with the annual men’s tournament to be held on December 9 and 10. Four teams from all age groups are being formed. If you are interested in participating, please contact Marissa McNutt-Cooper (541-517-6608) or a booster club member. More information can be found on the Lorane, Oregon Facebook page.

Sweet Lorane Community News – July 14, 2016

July 14, 2016Newspaper Columns, , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

Fern Ridge Review
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
July 14, 2016
By Pat Edwards

Life has begun to return to whatever “normal” is for Jim and I since our recently aborted attempt at a vacation. My brother-in-law, John, is back under his own doctor’s care and is at home for now. Jim’s been busily working at the store and at home, and Jennifer Chambers and I’ve begun our work on this year’s edition of the Groundwaters 2016 anthology.

Jim has been in seventh heaven since our grandson, Kevin, moved back to Lorane to help him at the store and with our rentals across the street. Kev’s been a godsend and we are so grateful that he is here to help out. It has allowed Jim to take on some projects at home he has been wanting to do for a long time, and Kev’s experience at managing Safeway stores is really making itself evident at the store, too. Thank you, Kev!!

The Lorane Grower’s Market is about to be set up at the Lorane Family Store. Whenever any of you have extra produce from your gardens or fruit trees that you would like to donate to the Lorane Community Association, please bring them to the store and put them on the display rack in front under the canopy. (Flowers and plants are welcome, too, if you bring them in containers with water.) If you know that you will be donating something perishable that needs refrigeration, let Marissa McNutt Cooper or Jim know so that a cooler chest can be made available to store them in.

The way it works is that donated produce is left at the stand and anyone who wants to buy or trade for it can do so. It’s set up on the honor system, and a secure cash box is located beside the produce bench. Place whatever amount you want to donate towards the produce you are taking (or towards the community fund). If you bring produce, you are welcome to trade it for some that others have left. The cashbox is emptied daily and all proceeds go towards community projects that benefit us all.

I am trying to get information on a new group that seems to be forming in Lorane. Apparently, community women are being invited to participate in a crafting get-together to be held at the Lorane Christian Church. An initial meeting has been set for Tuesday, July 19 at 7:00 p.m. I understand that if there appears to be enough interest, depending on how many show up on Tuesday night, they may begin holding them on a regular basis. I’ll try to get more details for next week’s column.

Here’s some more information about the free Rural Art Center’s Film Camp…“For the 5th year in a row, Rural Art Center will transform the Art Room at Applegate Elementary into Film Production Central. Thanks to generous grants from Oregon Country Fair Foundation and Plum Creek Foundation we have great equipment to work with. People of all ages are encouraged to come and join in the flurry of creativity and in the making of a film.

“We have used a variety of mediums to tell wonderful stories to our community. The Rural Art Center Movie Night will premiere our production in October. This year’s camp will meet Monday, August 8 to Thursday, August 11 and Monday, August 15 to Thursday, August 18. All days will be from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

“Takako Bartoldus will join us to share a well-known Japanese story called “Tears of the Red Oni.” This story explores sacrifice, friendship and, especially, Japanese culture. Takako taught high school in Japan for 10 years before relocating to Eugene 5 years ago. She is now an Assistant Teacher at Bridgeway House School.

“The Film Camp is free. Contact Alyssa Shepherd at malyssa2@yahoo.com or call 541-556-8151 for questions or to enroll.”