Cold weather in the Westend

Yes, it was cold. Some of our pipes froze, but with a little patience and time, we eventually have water again. Just like camping for a day or two. We did make sure that the animals had fresh water and a warm place to stay, and added a feeder and a heat lamp to the inside of the chicken pen, though they even said “it’s too cold to lay you any eggs.” Now we are back to a little bit of normal behavior.

Naselle news

With the winter weather hitting us just a bit early, the Naselle-Grays River Valley students have already experienced some snow days. In order to keep everyone informed the school district is posting weather related updates for you on their website and on their Facebook page or you can call the hotline at 484-7121 ext. 5. Delays and closures will also be available on KOMO 4 news, KING 5 news on their ticker at the bottom of the screen, and on KMUN radio.

The sports calendar for Comet teams this week: Friday, JV boys basketball with Valley in Naselle at 5 p.m., girls basketball with Valley at 6:30 p.m. and boys basketball with Valley at 7:30 p.m .; Monday, middle school girls basketball at Raymond at 5:45 p.m .; Tuesday, girls basketball with North Beach in Naselle at 5:45 p.m .; Thursday, boys basketball with North Beach in Naselle at 4:45 p.m. Go Comets!

In the event of adverse weather, you should check with the school to find out if a game or an event has been postponed or cancelled.

The Naselle –Grays River Valley School Board will hold their regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, the 17th, at 6:30 p.m.

Another big night of music and joy brought to you and your family by this year’s performers at the Naselle School’s annual Christmas Concert will be performed on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Bring the whole family for a truly enjoyable evening during this joyous time of year.

The Naselle-Grays River Valley School District is accepting applications for the position of School Board Director. The applicant must be a registered voter and reside in District #3. Applications can be found on the school website: http://www.naselle.wednet.edu.

The Appelo Archives Center in Naselle will host a Holiday Extravaganza this Saturday. Their bazaar will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tables can be reserved for $5 each by calling 484-7103. Photos with Santa will be taken from 2-3 p.m.

A Scandinavian tradition of welcoming Saint Lucia’s Day will commence as they welcome Santa Lucia at 3 p.m.

Okie’s Select Market in Naselle is selling raffle tickets for a very nice, brand new bicycle and the winning ticket will be drawn on December 24th (need not be present to win). The bike is on display at the store. Good luck!

Westend news

Do you have a youngster who would like to make a handmade gift for Grandma, Grandpa, a special Aunt, a special friend or whoever? Here is your chance. Bring your child to the Grays River Valley Center on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday beginning at noon. All the materials will be provided for this special gift. For more information please call Gail at 360 465-2443.

If you ventured out during the inclement weather in order to go to the Grays River Valley Library and Community Computer Center, you may have found it closed. The roads have been extremely slick and icy so the board has decided to close under those circumstances and we apologize in advance for any inconvenience. We will be monitoring the Naselle School District’s decisions to delay or close the school and will follow suit at the GRVC. If you are planning to go to the center, you may want to call ahead first-465-2310.

Don’t forget that December is Tolkien month at the Grays River Valley Center. Four free movies on Friday nights. This week’s flick is the first of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy – “The Fellowship of the Ring.” Bundle up the kids and come on up for a great movie, shown on our big screen with surround sound. Bring a sleeping bag, pillow or comforter to throw on the floor and be comfortable or sit in our comfy chairs. Concessions are available with popcorn (free refill), pop and candy for a reasonable price. The movie is free.

Last week’s showing of “The Hobbit” (the extended version) was pretty well attended even though it was cold and nasty outside. If you haven’t seen the extended version, it really is much better than the regular version.

An invitation is extended to the entire community to join with the Grays River United Methodist Church and their congregation for a Christmas pageant and celebration of the Christmas holiday on December 22 at 5 p.m. The program will include music, poetry and a candlelight ceremony followed by refreshments. If you need more information please call 465-2740.

The next big fundraiser for the Grays River Valley Center at Johnson Park will be another fun day with all the proceeds going to retrofit the gymnasium with energy efficient lighting. The lights that we had in the building were an enormous drain on the electricity and our monthly bills reflected that. Since we receive no monies from the county or from taxes, we rely on rentals and donations to maintain these bills and other operating costs which are huge in the winter months.

After receiving a bid to do the work, the advisory board decided that we would hold a fundraiser to help raise the money for this retrofit, as the bid was higher than we had expected. In the meantime, Wadsworth Electric has donated and temporarily installed some bulbs that are a little less costly to use and we would like to publicly thank them for their generosity and give everyone a heads up that here is another company that cares about community.

The fundraiser for the gymnasium lighting retrofit will take place on January 19, 1-5 p.m. It’s our 2nd Annual 3 C’s Chowdown: Chili, Chowder and Chicken Noodle Soup. Your donations from this event will go a long way to help us make the Grays River Valley Center a better place for you and your family to enjoy.

Do you have a larger than normal group/family activity coming up during this holiday season? The Grays River Valley Center is available for rent just for occasions such as this. Our commercial kitchen is also available for rent as are the meeting rooms. If you need more information or would like to check and see if the date is open for your activity, please call Judy Durrah, our events coordinator at 465-2331.

The Rosburg Wednesday Senior Lunch Bunch that meets at the Rosburg Hall will hold their annual Christmas Social on the 18th at noon. Come join in with this friendly group, bring a dish to share, a smile and a warm heart and enjoy a wonderful traditional meal with friends.

There will be no senior lunch on the 25th for the Senior Lunch Bunch. They wish everyone a wonderful Christmas Day.

Rosburg Senior Community Lunches are also served at the Rosburg Hall on Tuesdays and Thursdays and the meals are sponsored by CAP. Menus for the coming week include: Thursday, the 12th-turkey pot roast, steamed potatoes, carrots and mushrooms and tossed salad; Tuesday, the 17th-baked ham, potato Romanoff, green bean casserole, berry Jello salad and Dutch apple pie; Thursday, the 19th-sweet and sour chicken, brown rice, broccoli and mushrooms and berry parfait.

There will be no senior lunch served on the 24th and everyone is wished a happy holiday.

Happy Birthday to the following: Leslie Bolton, Jim Eastham, Trevin Leeland, Wally Wirkkala, Margret Stayton, Maija Ross, Nathan Erickson, Carson Lane, Tyler Smith, Adrian Corona, Rebecca Busse, Dale Tienhaara, Caleb Haataia, Chase Haataia, Gary Olmstead, Breanna Smith, Ron Salme, Samantha Henry, Katie Adair, Sonja Engebretson, Christina Jackson and Brian Macy. Enjoy your special day.

Happy Anniversary to Ed and Rita Rafferty and Monte and Mona Givens. Wishing you many more celebrations together.

A special Happy Birthday to our good friend and neighbor, Alan Gregory of Rosburg. Here’s to a perfectly wonderful day and many, many more to come. Thanks for being such a supportive and generous person in our lives. We appreciate calling you friend.

As we come closer to Christmas, we should think about how fortunate most of us are and look around us to see if we can help others in any way during this time of giving. Remember the food banks, and the other services that are available for those less fortunate. Help them make Christmas a happy time for all, give what you can, whether it’s financial help, food, warm clothing or even your time. Make this a Merry Christmas.