March has many events scheduled

GORGEOUS--We might be back to some rain now but wasn't last week gorgeous? West Valley saw freezing temps several nights in a row, but those sunny days sure made up for the cold! The only down side to the wonderful weather was my back and knees and everything else, were aching in rebellion against the yard work I was trying to get done! Whew! Always quite a job but I'm glad to get ahead of some of the weeds for a change. I hope you've been able to enjoy some of this sunshine prior to the rains coming back, as it's really a "pick-me-upper."

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from February 25-March 3 are Wyatt J. Parker, Allyx McKinley, Whitney Kuller, Shelley Olsen, Chris Stewart, Becky Hoven, Judy Garrison, Debra Twiet, Felicitie Knight, Ursula Jorgensen, Jonas Owen and Judy Pedersen. Belated birthday wishes to Mac Johnson who celebrated his 67th birthday last Saturday. Happy Anniversary to Adam and Sara Fletcher this week!

TICK, TICK--We are already heading into March, and if you're like me, you're wondering where the first two months of this year have gone! So you might want to think about entries into this year's Wahkiakum County Fair: The quilts, the photographs, the knitted and crocheted items, along with all the other things that take time to make. There are things that can't be done until the last minute, like baked goods and flowers, but you might want to make a list of what you want to do, so you'll be ready when the time comes. Ginger and Stewart Moonen were the winners of the fair theme contest, so congratulations to them. They donated the prize money back to the fair as well, very nice! In case you missed the new theme, it's "Blue Jeans and Country Dreams," so for those of you planning displays around the fair theme, it's time to get your thinking cap on and come up with great decorating ideas.

NEXT MONTH--Speaking of the fair, the Wahkiakum Fair Foundation (WFF) will hold a fund raiser for the fair next month. We hope you like Chicken & Dumplings, as Janet Bryan will spearhead this Sunday dinner with the Foundation's members, at Julius Wendt Elementary school's multi-purpose room on March 21 and it will come complete with Marie West's famous pies. They will be looking for volunteers or donations, so keep that in mind if you are able to help out in some way. Give Martha Backman a call at 849-4486 for more info. Don't forget to mark those calendars!

PLAY POKER?--If you like to play a fun game of poker now and then and you're looking for somebody to challenge you to a game or two, head to the Duck Inn tonight (Thursday) at 7 p.m. and get in on the action. Glen Crown will lead this Texas Hold'em Style play, complete with instructions for beginners, who should be there at 5 p.m. This free tournament is open to all skill levels. There will also be prizes awarded for the first three places, so come and join the fun! For more information call Angela at 795-6410.

BACK IN TOWN--It was great to see "Little Bill" in town the other day; that's Bill May to those who don't know who I'm talking about. Bill was back in town to get his place ready for new owners and while he was here, he and his sister and other family members came to the Duck Inn for lunch. He got to visit with some of his old friends for a little while. We've missed his smile and that keen, dry sense of humor he had going for him. I'm happy to say, he hasn't lost his great come back lines to those who try to give him a bad time!

BUSY WEEKS AHEAD--March is going to have something going on every weekend. There will be Fellowship and Soup Supper at the Skamokawa Methodist Church on March 3. A free will offering will be donated to the food banks. There will be one held every Wednesday at 6 p.m. all month long by the various churches in the area. We've got the crab and oyster feed at Rosburg Hall on March 6, music at Redmen Hall by Andrew Emlen on March 12 and the Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce feed at the Norse Hall on Puget Island March 13. Then we'll be dancing at the Skamokawa Grange on March 19, so you can wear off some of that crab and oyster dinner, and then a couple of days later, the WFF dinner at the grade school that I mentioned earlier. On the last Sunday of March, the Skamokawa Methodist Church will hold their annual Hosanna Musicale. Who says there's nothing to do around here?

CORRECTION/CAR SHOW--The Dollars for Scholars car show information for contact people has changed. Vickie Reid will not be a contact person this year, so my apologies for that error. Contact Lee Tischer at 360-430-4377 if you have any questions, or email him at tisch@centurytel.net. You can also check out the Wahkiakum Chamber website.

This car show/sturgeon derby will be held June 5. It's a huge fund raiser to help raise money for scholarships for kids in the Naselle and Wahkiakum schools and it's a family event.

Once again there will be plenty of hot cars to look at and if you'd like to enter a car and get the best deal ever, you need to enter by May 20, to get a T-shirt, a goodie bag, a dash plaque to those who participate in the voting, and a meal ticket. All for just $25--a terrific deal! The day of the show, the $25 will get you entered and get you a meal ticket but that's it, so enter early and take advantage of the total package offer. High school students get free entry, so bring your car down and join the fun.

Don't want to enter a car or fish? That's okay, as it doesn't cost a thing to get into the fairgrounds or park to view the cars or see the big sturgeon. You can listen to the music while you look around and have a great day at the Skamokawa Grange/park and fairgrounds. The raffle tables are going to be fantastic, so you'll want to buy plenty of tickets and you might just win one of those great prize tables.

Folks from both sides of the county work hard all year long getting this event put together, so kudos to all of them for pulling together and doing such a great job each year, and also to those wonderful, generous folks who donate those great prizes we raffle off!

BREAKFAST--If you come to the car show early, head to the Skamokawa Methodist Church and grab some breakfast, as they'll be serving up a pancake breakfast beginning at 7. Even if you have nothing to do with the car show or sturgeon derby, why not support the efforts of these nice folks and have breakfast out that Saturday morning!

GREAT IDEA--If you have any toys that are in like new condition, why not donate them to the newly formed Game Land Toy Bank which was recently created by Marty and Sue Kuller? Your donations of toys, or dollars to buy new ones, would be greatly appreciated. You can check this out on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Wahkiakum County Fairgrounds. It is held in conjunction with the Helping Hands Food Bank.

RECYCLING--We are fortunate to have several recycling bins in and around our area, and so it is hoped that you will do your best to recycle those products whenever possible, as currently, we are filling up a lot of landfills with things that could have been recycled.

GRANGERS--The SkamokawaGrange # 425 met last Monday night and welcomed new member, Mike Mouliot. The grange meets every second and fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. and we welcome everyone to join or just stop by to see what's going on. While we have been putting a lot of emphasis on fund raising to keep the building up and going, the grange is very involved in promoting educational programs to the community as well as collecting things to donate to various organizations. If you have picked up a lot of little soaps and shampoos, we could certainly use them as we either give them to the Ronald McDonald House, or we send them to soldiers overseas. We collect old eye-glasses and frames and glass cases as well. We take part in the "Words for Thirds" program which gives all third graders their very own dictionary. There are many other things grangers do, and if you'd like to learn more and help us out, come to a Monday night meeting. Our next meeting will be March 8 at 7 p.m.