Lots of events this Fair weekend

STILL HOT--Well, as this week begins and the weekend ends, it's still plenty toasty out there and I hope you are all being extremely careful about how much heat and sun you're taking in. Of course, it goes without saying that nobody should be left inside a car during these heat waves, as even with the windows down, there is no way a person or an animal can survive, so if you see someone's pet inside a vehicle or worse yet, a person, notify authorities immediately. If you have outdoor animals, make sure they have access to water and some shade if possible; sounds like we're all going to be needing some!

THIS IS IT--The next three days will be full of entertainment, animals, crafts, fair food and more, as the Wahkiakum County Fair gets underway down here in Skamokawa. You may have noticed the new hours, as the Fair now runs from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Today, (Thursday), is the first day of the fair and it's Senior Citizen Day, which means everyone over 60 gets in free until 4 p.m.; on Friday is the traditional Kids' Day, with children under 12 getting in free until 4 p.m. and on Saturday, it's time to honor our Military personnel and with their military ID card, they can get in free all day long. With jugglers, Model T rides, puppets, spelling bees, cribbage tournament, horseshow tournament and a wide variety of music going on throughout the three days, there should be something for everybody. See you at the Fair!

TEENAGERS--Tomorrow (Friday) night, the teens will gather at the Skamokawa Grange Hall for their annual Teen Fair Dance. It begins as the fair ends, at 9 p.m. and goes until midnight. A DJ will spin his magic and turn the quiet hall into a place where kids will want to do some dancing, and beings there's not always a chance to dance it up around here, I hope they'll all take advantage of the music and have some fun! The cost of admission is $5.

LIVE MUSIC--Island Rio will be in Skamokawa at the newly remodeled Duck Inn this Saturday evening, so we hope you'll come and check out their music, which I understand is a blend of a lot of different styles, so whether you like country or rock, or a style in between, they should be able to play something you'll enjoy.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from August 16-22 are Becky Ledtke, Riley Petterson-Emlen, Addy Hauff, Jessica Fletcher, Steve McClain, Sarah Exum, John Gustafson, Tyna Zink, Krista McGuire, Toni Ostling, Vivian Olsen, Deanna Dachtler, Teresa McNally, Chip Perkins, Arnold Andersen, David Thompson, Nick Keithley, Linda Debriae, Cindy Faubion, Bobbie Weaver, Cathy Stuart, Vicki Jacobson Gregory and Lori Pedersen Finkas.

Celebrating their anniversaries this week are: Mr. and Mrs. Larry Bonds and Mr. and Mrs. Russ Durrah. Here's to wonderful celebrations on your special days!

NEW LISTING--With the wedding of Larry Holland to Deb Moonen this past Saturday in Skamokawa, we're adding them to our list of anniversaries on our calendar. The two tied the knot under the gazebo at the Skamokawa Resort and then held their reception at the Fairgrounds park. We offer our congratulations to the newlyweds as well!

ALSO NEW--As of this Saturday, another new anniversary will be making the calendar as well, as on August 18, Ty J. Finkas will be marrying Kendra Kincaid in Spokane. The bride's parents are Mr. and Mrs. Cory Kincaid and the groom's parents are my niece and her husband, Lori and Steve Finkas. We send the couple our heartiest congratulations as they begin their lives together. Both are currently enrolled in college. As this also happens to be Ty's Moms birthday, you can bet it's a day he had better not forget!

COMING UP--The Friends of Skamokawa will be hosting a new exhibit up at Redmen Hall beginning this Saturday with a reception for the artists from 2 to 4 p.m. This end of summer celebration is entitled, For the Birds and will feature mounted birds from the Audubon Society, with artwork, photos, crafts and other items to go along with the theme. This exhibit runs through the end of September.

NOT FAR OFF--The Friends of Skamokawa, will hold their annual Wine Tasting and Auction on September 8 at the Skamokawa Grange Hall. This is always a very fun event with both live and silent auctions and a whole lot of great gifts to bid on. This is a very important fund raiser for the continued good works of the FOS. They hope they can count on your support this year by either attending the wine tasting or donating towards it, or both! Donations can be made for this event by stopping by or contacting the hall during business hours, which are Thursday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. at 795-3007 and donations are tax deductible. This will be an evening for adults only, so get those babysitters lined up and plan on enjoying a sip of wine, some tasty hors d'oeuvres and some great bidding wars!

FUN TO WATCH--The Hobie Cats were in Skamokawa this past weekend and they were certainly enjoying the windy conditions Sunday afternoon as they zipped along the river and ran their courses during their annual races. It was a warm, sunny day and along with the breeze, it made for a perfect day for those sails. It was neat to see how they hauled them to and from the beach, as it's just a couple of wheels with fat, slick tires and some scoops for the pontoons to sit in and a rope to pull with and away they went with a couple of guys pulling them along the beach and up into the camping area!

GRANGERS--The Skamokawa Grangers met this past Monday evening and shared a tasty potluck dinner. We mulled over our latest venture, which was the Vendors' Market at the end of July and are planning for another one next year, which would be on July 27. We won't have to compete against the Finn Fest next year, so that may make things a little better as well.

Also, we'll probably have just the first meeting of the month for the next couple of months as many of us are trying to recuperate from a very heavy summer schedule of activities and will use this for a little down time.

Our biggest event coming up this year, will be our Christmas spaghetti dinner on December 8, so we hope to see you there. We will be holding it at the same time, which is between 6 and 8 p.m., but we'll try to talk to Santa into coming a little bit early, like 6:45 p.m., so bring the kids and get a treat. The dinner is free but we gladly accept donations. This holiday event is being put on by the Skamokawa Grange and the Skamokawa Fire Department. Come and meet and greet your neighbors, enjoy some music and buy a ticket for the big $300 gift basket that we'll be giving away that night, as it's filled with everything you need for a holiday dinner, plus gifts for your family and your tree and more. Now, you don't have to be present to win it but you will need to buy a few tickets, so come and see me in the T-building at the fair and I'll be happy to sell you a few!

GRAND OPENING SOON--Well, many of us here remember Tony Parker from the good ole days when he cooked at the old Duck Inn. Well, years later, Tony opened up Parker's Steakhouse in Longview and he was there for awhile, but he recently took over the old Rose Tree Restaurant and Lounge off of I-5 at the Castle Rock exit. If you're up in that area and you'd like to visit with an old friend from Skamokawa, head to the lounge Tuesdays - Thursday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.