Santa attended Friendship Circle

News from Naselle:

Though I wasn’t able to see a “Beauty and the Beast” performance this past week, I have heard nothing but rave revues. Some folks liked it so much that they actually went to see it twice.

It’s comments like those that should make this community very proud of our wonderful Barb Swanson and her expertise in putting together these productions every year, while giving our kids the opportunity to gain self confidence and perform in front of appreciative audiences. This community is so fortunate to have good teachers and a wonderful school for our kids.

The school year is winding down, and another new generation will be moving on to their chosen futures. There are still some events coming up, though that we shouldn’t miss. On Wednesday, the 25th, there will be a music concert including students from the 5th though 12th grade. The concert will be held at 7 p.m.

Don’t forget the Athletic Awards will be presented to our favorite athletes on Tuesday, the 31st at 7 p.m.

No school on May 30 in honor of Memorial Day.

The Naselle Lutheran Church will host a large multi-family garage sale during the Memorial Day weekend. The event will be held on May 27 and 28 from 7 a.m. until 1 p.m. each day with coffee and baked goods also available for purchase. Proceeds from the sale will be used to continue mission work of the church. The church is located at 308 Knappton Road in Naselle.

The Congregational United Church of Christ located at 14 Parpala Road in Naselle will be holding its annual Trash and Treasures Sale onMay 28 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. One person's trash is another person's treasure. They will have both - come and see. Lunch will be available consisting of soup, beverage and dessert. It will be served for a $6 donation.

Other news from the Westend:

At the recent American Legion awards dinner, Dale Rose of Rosburg was recognized as the "Legionnaire of the Year" for District #5 which encompasses the Legion posts from Vancouver, Camas, Kelso, Ridgefield, White Salmon, Woodland, Kalama, Deep River, Washougal, Carson, Longview, Amboy, Castle Rock, La Center, Salmon Creek and Battleground. Dale was singled out as the best of the best from the 2776 Legionnaires in District #5. During that same meeting, the Barr-Johnson-Hill American Legion Post #111 in Deep River, under the leadership of Commander Dan Anderson of Grays River, shared the title of "Legion Post of the Year" with the Legion Post in Castle Rock. Additional recognition was given to the Deep River post for having 100 percent plus membership for each of the last three years; at a time when many other posts are experiencing a decline in membership.

All that and these fellows can cook too! Their first pancake and egg breakfast of 2011 is scheduled for Saturday, May 28. Breakfast starts at 8 a.m. and runs until 11:30 a.m. All you can eat for the very reasonable price of $5 per adult and $3 for children. Proceeds from this breakfast helps to fund the many community and veterans related activities the post supports each year.

Need a quart of milk at 5 a.m.? Off to work early, and want a cup of hot coffee? How about barbecue sauce at 8:45 p.m. on Friday or Saturday night? Guess what? You don’t have to go any farther than the Rosburg Store. Their new store hours are: Monday through Thursday- 4:30 a.m. to 7 p.m .; Friday and Saturday- 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Good job, Rosburg Store!

If you didn’t make it to the Grays River United Methodist Church’s Friendship Circle Tea on Sunday, you missed a special gathering. History of the area came to life, literally. On display were many old photos provided by locals as well as out of town lenders, and wonderful old, well loved photo albums.

The attendees enjoyed a beautiful buffet with lemonade and tea, provided by the ladies of the Friendship Circle, after browsing through the items on display. Many local folks participated in a skit depicting different photos found in a scrapbook, and narrated by Richenda Fairhurst, pastor of the Grays River United Methodist Church. Santa Claus even showed up and reminded us that there are only 7 months until Christmas. He was passing out fresh oranges that he said had been grown at the North Pole. The weather there has been just as weird as ours here in Grays River. Go figure!

There was also an exceptional display of portraits depicting local folks done by Jack Braman. Jack is a wonderful artist, and this is his first attempt at doing portraits. His models were chosen in order to showcase some of our local folks. I must say that he has captured the essence of each of his subjects. On display were paintings of Noreen Fitts on the Covered Bridge, Mary Steller with one of her donkeys, Carlton Appelo with his ever present camera, Jennie Pearson and Glenrose Hedlund. Thank you so much for sharing your talent and your heart with the community, Jack.

This is it, the weekend of the Great White Tail Run. Get your running shoes on and head to the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge in Skamokawa on Saturday. You can still register to run in the 10K, 5K or 2 mile run at 8:30 a.m. at Vista Park. Awards will be presented to several different age divisions as well as the dog division in which special rules apply. For more information call 360 465-2275 or 360 795-3278.

The 27th Annual Great White Tail Run proceeds will once again benefit the Wahkiakum County 4-H programs.

The Wednesday Senior Lunch Bunch that meets at Rosburg Hall will enjoy beef stroganoff over noodles, veggies, blushing pears, hot rolls and dessert on the 25th.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Rosburg Senior Community Lunches are served at the same location and are sponsored by CAP. Menus for this week are: Thursday, the 19th-Swedish meatballs, egg noodles with kale, orange barley salad and peach cobbler; Tuesday, the 24th- Swiss steak, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots and apricot bread pudding; Thursday, the 26th- chicken Romesco, pureed hominy, spinach salad and caramel custard.

Birthdays being celebrated this coming week include Ed Hunt, Sheriff Jon Dearmore, Spencer Lewis, Bill Coop, Irene Blake, Linda Stover, Jim Larson, Hank Nelson, Robin Kent, Alex Bighill, Carol Penttila, Dan Zimmerman, Elizabeth Dalton, Alexander Stenvall, Debbie Lopez, Marc Gacke, Linda Cary, Cherilyn Phipps, Manual Lopez, Nikki Hoven and Darian Jacot. Happy Birthday everyone.

Happy Anniversary wishes go out to the following couples this week: Shawn and Joni Matthews, Rob and Wendy Crozier and Bill and Jeanette Grimberg. Wishing you many more.

I know I wished Norman and Myrtle Anderson a happy anniversary last week, but after the column was sent in, I was told that it was their 60th. What a milestone. It couldn’t happen to a more wonderful couple. Congratulations, Norman and Myrtle. You two are an inspiration to many and a wonderful asset to our community.

Once again, the Hospice organization has stepped in to the life of a family member. My sister Sharon’s husband Larry is finally home from the hospital in the Bay Area of California. He has been in the hospital for 7 months. We are hoping for a miracle, and that Hospice will be able to move on to someone else who really needs them as Larry and Sharon beat this affliction. My prayers go out to them and my most sincere thanks to Hospice. That organization is made up of “angels here on earth,” and I can’t thank them enough for all they do.

On a happier note, my hardwood flooring was delivered today, all 1600 square feet of it. Now it will sit in the house for at least two weeks to become acclimated before we lay it down. Since it is unfinished, we still have a ways to go before we are done. But, we are getting there.

And the sun has been shining. Can we ask for much more than that?