The Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
April 13, 2023
By Pat Edwards

I’ve taken the last couple of weeks off from writing my column because they’ve been busy ones. My husband Jim has signed up for a wonderful twice-weekly Neuromuscular Fitness class at the Celeste Campbell Senior Center in Eugene to help strengthen his legs and balance in preparation for our 12-day bus trip and cruise through Canada in late-June. He also just started another round of physical therapy sessions, too… for the same reason.
In addition, we’ve spent time with our family and I made a 5-day pilgrimage to Montana to visit a close, long-time friend who has been struggling with widowhood this past year. I paid a visit to her twice last fall, but the Montana winter, the absence of her soulmate, and the memories of a long marriage have taken their toll. We spent the four days I was there, visiting, reminiscing about our college days and just reconnecting as we always do when we are together. We occasionally found ourselves sitting at her little kitchen table, talking well after dark without turning the lights on. I think it allowed each of us to shut the world out for awhile and concentrate on our friendship and the blessings it has brought to us through the years.

My plane landed back in Eugene at noon on Easter Sunday. I was greeted by Jim and our daughter, Gloria, and at 5:00 p.m., after a refreshing nap for me, our adult children and their spouses arrived at our home, bearing a wonderful Easter dinner for the nine of us. Our littles all had other plans this year, so there were no Easter egg hunts, but it was a beautiful day, anyway, in which we gave thanks and counted our many blessings.

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Now, on to Lorane news…

Both the Lorane and Creswell Granges agreed to host a Lane County Sheriff’s office “Public Information Session” to provide information and discussion on the upcoming Lane County Public Safety Levy to appear on the May 16, 2023 ballot. The Creswell Grange’s program was held last week.

The Lorane Grange program is scheduled for Thursday, April 27, at 6:00 p.m.
According to the published info on the official Lane County website, “If passed, the levy would fund a minimum of 255 jail beds for local offenders, as well as 8 detention and 8 treatment beds for youth offenders, including associated treatment services. Currently, the jail has 317 beds for local offenders, 62 more than the minimum required by the levy.”
If the levy is passed, it will be a renewal, meaning the tax rate will not increase. Residents won’t have to pay any more than they are already paying in taxes. The tax rate for this levy is $0.55 per $1,000 of assessed value. It is the same rate that was approved by the voters in 2013.

The next Lorane Grange Dessert and Bingo is scheduled for Saturday, April 29, at 7:00 p.m. It has proven to be a fun evening for all ages and the attendance reached over 40 people recently. It’s a fun way to get out and meet your neighbors and enjoy some laughs and camaraderie.

Mother Nature seems to be in “game mode” this year, too. While driving into town lately, each day has brought us little surprises in the form of April showers for a mile or so, and then we enter dry pavement and sunshine for a short distance. We’ve even encountered smattering of snowflakes or hail pelleting our windshield a bit further down the road. It’s become a guessing game and not easy to plan for when deciding what to wear.

But a sight that many of our Lorane residents are being treated to this spring is the local herds of beautiful elk calmly grazing in our fields. One resident counted 57 head of elk this morning. The cattle ranchers aren’t thrilled with these visits, but for everyone else, they are an inspirational sight.