Quilters exhibit at Redmen Hall

NOT TOO BAD--We began this week with mostly sunshine and just a couple sprinkles on Valentine's Day and then on Monday, we had a mostly sunny day after some morning fog, before the clouds came in and got us pretty wet, but all in all, it wasn't too bad. I would say the Valentine/Presidents' weekend was pretty mild compared to other areas. I heard from my brother, Marshall Pedersen, in New Jersey and they have been doing a lot of that "shoveling routine." We better consider ourselves lucky as the East Coast is still getting battered by those snow storms.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from February 18-24 are Chuck Parker, Verna Almer, Amber Pedersen, Christa Hoven, Dale Strueby, Wanda Evenson, Milli Elven, Dwaine Almer, Melody Brown, Sara Buennagel, Tiffany Montgomery, Bob Olsen Sr., Stan Everman, Tawny Almer, Darrin Dow, Morgan Spieth, 67'er Shari Gorman Parker, Sally Nollan, and Logan Blain turns five this coming week, as does little Miss Jade Hauff. Happy anniversary wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Dale Strueby, Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Wirkkala and Mr. and Mrs. Terry Heagy.

NICE TIME--At the filet mignon dinner/fair fund raiser at the Skamokawa Grange hall last Saturday, we sat and chatted with neighbors, Alex and Katie Vegvary. They enjoyed the dinner and thought the hall was decorated very nicely, mostly the handiwork of Becky Ledtke, who did a great job! Also, we got to meet some others there, Scott and Sharon Horner. We had a nice chat about the area and how much they love it here; they are one of our newer Island home owners. We also enjoyed the WAGS members strumming their guitars and entertaining us, which included our very own Rick Nelson. Of course, listening to Kathleen Peterson tickle the ivories is always a delight and she got a thunderous round of applause for her time on the piano.

LOTS OF HOOPS--Granddaughter Tessa Sechler traveled to Beaverton last weekend with her family and her team of "Hoopaholics." She played multiple games in a tournament there; three in just one day! After beating a team from California, the girls finally succumbed to a team on Sunday night and wound up taking home the second place championship trophy. They can be mighty proud of doing so well in their first multi-out of state tournament, so congratulations to them!

IN OUR THOUGHTS--Connie Bassi has a good friend who is very ill and I hope you will join with Connie and her family as they continue to think good thoughts and say prayers on Kim Steinauer's behalf. Many of you here know who she is as her family has local ties to the Skamokawa area. Her mother was Kristie Eggman and the old Frank Eggman house is the one on the point on the water as you boat into Skamokawa, now occupied by Carmoreau and Jill Hatier. The Eggmans have ties to the McNallys and also the Healys, so acquaintances and ties to this family are far reaching in this small area. We certainly will keep Kim in our thoughts during these difficult days.

In my grandmother Elsie Everest's 1960 diary, an article reads: "Kimberly Dawn is the name chosen by Mr. and Mrs. Ray Steinauer, Jr. (Kristie and Joe) of Skamokawa for their 8 pound 7 ounce girl born February 24th. The little miss makes it a five generation family. Her great-great grandmother is Mrs. Anna Congdon of Fremont, CA and her great-grandmother is Gertrude Healy of Cathlamet (my Uncle Leon's mother), and her grandmother is Mrs. Frank Eggman of Skamokawa. Her paternal grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. Ray Steinauer Sr. of Longview."

TIME IS FLYING--Time is ticking away in this new year as we are already into the third week of the second month. It's sure whizzing by! With this in mind, don't forget that the two crab and oyster feeds in our area are coming up very soon. March 6 will be the annual feed at the Rosburg Hall, and March 13 will find the Norse Hall hopping, as they have three separate dinner serving times for that big feed which benefits the Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce. We hope you get your tickets to one or both of these events soon!

JUST A MONTH AWAY--Have you marked March 19 on your calendars yet? I hope so, as this is the date of some good ole dancing via caller Rich Goss and the band, "Cascade Crossing" at the Skamokawa Grange Hall. There's a half hour of basic step lessons, and then the dance starts at 8 p.m. and lasts until 11 p.m. Admission is $8 and if you have a child with you under 12 who would like to do some "contra dancing" or maybe even waltz on Daddy's feet, they can be admitted free. You won't feel bad about buying that dessert from the grange's dessert table, as you're going to dance off those calories anyway, so come and swing your partner and have a good time!

NOW IS THE TIME--If you missed sending Valentine cards out, you can think about sending out some St. Paddy's day cards. I know not everyone is Irish, but on that day, everybody can be Irish for the day and wear a little green just to keep in the spirt of things. If that's not your deal, why not make Easter cards? If you start now, you'll have them all done by April 4, as Easter is pretty early this year. I'd encourage as many of you as possible to sit down and make some cards up with your kids in Sunday School or 4-H class or school class. You'll make someone smile and anytime you can do that, you've done a good thing!

HALL RENTAL--I'll remind those who are interested in renting the Skamokawa Grange Hall to call Kitty Speranza at 795-0585 or Jessica Fletcher at 795-8770. Or give me a call and I'll shoot an email to them for you.

The Hall is going to be very busy in June with the car show on the 5th and the Follies during the last full three day weekend, (25 -27) with practices being held in between. However, there's quite a few empty spots between now and then, so give the gals a call if you'd like to book a gathering of some sort. This is a great place to hold birthdays, weddings, anniversaries or memorial gatherings. It also has wheelchair access. Don't delay, call today if you're thinking of renting it!

LOTS OF QUILTS--The Friends of Skamokawa were really pleased with how many quilts Tom and Cora Irving had, as they literally covered the exhibition hall and just lit up the place with their amazing show of colors and different patterns. It also shows a whole lot of patience and diligence in one's work. They are terrific at both! So head to Redmen Hall and take in the "Tom and Cora Irving - Master Quilters" exhibit. Call the hall at 795-3007 for more information.

KAYAKS IN SKAMOKAWA--The Columbia River Kayaking services will be offering a Dynamic Water/BCU three star training day February 28 with Karl Anderson as the coach. The class costs $135 and will begin at 9 a.m. in Skamokawa. You'll be practicing your skills in moving water and in some rougher water with some winds and waves too, if the weather co-operates. Mark Whitaker tells me that you can email him at mark@columbiariverkayaking.com or call 360-849-4016 to either register or ask for more information. Keep your eye out for a newsletter coming soon which will have a list of all the upcoming Spring tours.

HOME LUCKILY--As you have probably heard by now, one of our area State Patrolmen, Scott Johnson, was shot in the head in Long Beach last weekend. We were happy to hear that he is not only doing okay, but he's home now after being admitted to OHSU after the shooting. We always considered him to be a very decent officer around our neck of the woods. We were so happy to learn of the arrest of the man who allegedly did the shooting.

OUT OF THE PAST--This last couple of weeks in 1960 were sad ones, as several long time residents passed away. Mary Ann Risk 84, on February 13; H. Dillen Ozment February 16; Ole Dahl Pedersen 88, of Puget Island on February 19, who had settled in Oak Point after coming from Norway in 1902 and logged until turning farmer when he moved to Puget Island in 1924, and Lettie Warren 94, on February 20 after coming to Cathlamet as a bride in 1892. Mary Ann Risk was a good friend of Grandma Elsie Everest's and Grandma had enjoyed the many hours they spent visiting together and would miss her company terribly.

World news was all about Queen Elizabeth giving birth to a baby boy which was the first baby born to a reigning monarch in 103 years.

On February 19, Herbert Faubian was celebrating his birthday. Krist Pedersen called his family from Longview; it was such a great smelt week on the Cowlitz, he said they should get dressed up as they were all going out to dinner.

In 1965 the general board of the National Council of Churches got together and announced that they wanted Easter to be held on a fixed date. The United Church of Christ brought up the matter at the council's convention and urged a careful study of this matter to establish this date. Easter is held on the first Sunday after the first full moon after March 21, so that Easter can be held no earlier than March 22 or later than April 25. (Considering this still holds true in 2010, it is obvious that the "fixed date" plan fell through.

All this according to Grandma Elsie Everest's diaries.