Skamokawa, small town, has got it all

HOT ENOUGH?--We've had some sweltering days this past week but luckily we haven't been nearly as miserably hot as some areas nearby. It was actually quite cool as this week began. We were 15 degrees cooler than Portland most of the time and that was a big plus as far as I was concerned!

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from July 17-23 are Pam Elliott, Rick Benfit, Bev Moonen, Stuart Bosch, McKenna Longtain, Ashley and Kelsey Hedges, Steve Doumit, Eric Ferguson, Kelsea Blix, Cameron Mendez, Marsha Cleveland, John Buennagel, Larry Hendrickson, Les Burns, Kaisha Harris, Zoe Roper, Frank Webb, Rocky Rose, Ruth Doumit, Steve Doumit and Mike Clark. Happy birthday one and all

Celebrating their anniversaries this week are Rick and Janet Bryan, Mark and Patti Phillips and Mr. and Mrs. Rocky Rose. Enjoy your special celebrations!

THIS IS IT--This is Bald Eagle Day weekend and we hope you're all ready for the big event this Saturday. If you don't have a booth or you aren't taking part in the parade but you'd like to be a little more involved, you could contact the Wahkiakum Chamber and see if they are still in need of volunteers to help with the various aspects of this event. You'll need to do that right away if you're interested, so call 795-9996 and see what they have open. There are things to do with the whole family and things the kids can do and of course, the fireworks in the evening, so get your friends together and come on down to Cathlamet's Main Street and enjoy the live entertainment and vendors!

For those of you who are attending a reunion this weekend, we hope you all have a great time and enjoy seeing your classmates from years ago and sharing your stories and pictures of your family, etc., with them as well. Whatever you do, have fun this weekend!

BINGO--My apolgies for any mix-up regarding the bingo at the Norse Hall last weekend, as it's always moved to the evening hours on Bald Eagle Day, so it will be taking place this Saturday. Sorry about that! The Sons of Norway members invite all of you to come and vie for cash prizes.

BUSY TIME--When there's one event in our area, everyone benefits, and such was the case last weekend. Ken Peterson and Bev Elliott got hitched this weekend and held their big doings at the Skamokawa Grange Hall and we heard many folks were very pleased with the building and the area. Many of the folks stayed in local hotels, like at the Skamokawa Resort and others rented spots either in Vista Park or the county park next to the grange and that helped all of them economically. You can always count on the crowd to need a bit to eat or something to drink and you'll find them at the Duck Inn, or the Skamokawa General Store, or mailing a post card at our local post office and maybe checking out the kayak center, all of which benefit from having things like weddings and reunions here. We hope that if you're thinking of having a big family event, you'll think Skamokawa, the little town that's got it all! The grange is a great place to hold things and with its handicap access, makes it very easy for all ages. The Skamokawa Resort has their big room in back available for rent to larger groups as well, so if you need an inside venue, these are great spots to use and there are plenty of places to stay in Skamokawa!

NEXT WEEKEND--It's almost time for the "Nasel Heritage Days" in Naselle. Take part in their Finnish American Folk Festival which takes place every other year towards the end of July. This is a three day event beginning Friday, July 25 and ending on Sunday. However, most exhibits and things are only open on Friday and Saturday . There are a lot of flyers around the area with the schedule of events or you can look it up on-line at http://www.finnam.naselle.net. There will be lots of food, dancing and music, which includes our very own Willapa Hills group on Friday evening at 7:15 p.m., so we hope you get a chance to go to the Naselle High School and check it all out.

P.O. MEETING JUST 12 DAYS--Everyone is urged to attend the very important meeting regarding our Skamokawa Post Office that is coming up on July 29 and will be held at 6 P.M., at the Skamokawa Grange Hall. As you can tell by the time and date, it is my opinion that this is a meeting that officials probably hope you'll forget to attend or cannot attend, as it's not exactly a day or a prime time that is convenient for many folks who work and that time slot is usually reserved for dinner. However, I hope that everyone who wants to keep the post office here in Skamokawa will rally around once again and come to this meeting. Please spread the word among your friends and neighbors as this is very important to our area's people and businesses.

NEW HOURS--I have been asked many times about the hours of the "Oasis Mexican Bar and Grill" on Fairgrounds Road, and so I hope you saw their ad in last week's Eagle and were able to clip that out and keep it as a reminder. However, just in case you missed their new hours, they have them listed as Closed on Mondays but open Tuesday thru Sunday from 2-10 p.m. If you have any other questions or need more information, contact them at 795-8672. I talked to some folks who had stopped by there and they truly loved the Mexican dinner they had, so good reviews like that are always nice to hear.

MUSEUM--In front of the Wahkiakum County Historical Society Museum in Cathlamet, sits a big tractor which is in need of a nice sign to explain what it is and all the pertinent things about it. Temporary signs have come and gone, but the museum would like to raise some money for a nice, metal sign that will withstand the elements. We hope you'll stop by the museum in Cathlamet this weekend while you're looking at everything in town, and just maybe, think about making a donation towards the new sign, as the current budget can't handle it. But like the saying, "Many hands make for light work," well, "many dollar bills will make for a tidy sum," without breaking anybody's wallet, so if we each give a little, maybe we can get this new sign sooner than later. It sure would be a nice addition to this exhibit. If you can't stop by in person but would like to make a donation, you can just mail it to: Wahkiakum County Historical Society (WCHS) at P.O. Box 541, Cathlamet 98612. Your help would certainly be appreciated!

SYMPATHY--We want to offer the family of Susie Cothren our deepest sympathies as she passed away last week on July 10 at the age of just 55. A celebration of her life and potluck was held yesterday, July 15, at Erickson Park in Cathlamet. She leaves behind her mother, Billie Jo (Gordon), her sister, Debbie, and her two sons, Tony and Chris and two grandsons, besides many other family members who will miss her great laugh and bubbly personality.

LONG, HOT RIDE--Last Saturday was extremely hot in some areas so it made for quite a trip if you were one of the bicyclists taking part in the STP (Seattle to Portland) ride that day. Son, Pete Sechler was one of those "crazy" people who were among the thousands of riders (approx. 12,000 this year) taking part in this annual event, and once again, he was doing it on one of his sons' 21st birthdays. The first time it was son, Kyle's birthday and he joined his Dad on the ride, but this time Blake let his Dad handle the ride on his own. The route is over 200 miles on the backroads of all the cities and then through Longview, over the Lewis & Clark bridge and down Hwy. 30 to Portland. Pete was feeling pretty good that his younger teammates couldn't keep up with the "old man" of the group and he wound up leaving the pack and got to the finish line 45 minutes ahead of them, so he felt he did alright. Many riders take two days to do this ride and spend the night along the way, so if you happen to be one of the 20 percent who do it in one day, you're doing really well, so a hearty congrats to Pete!

OUT OF THE PAST--This week back in 1944, the week began hot and the second day was even hotter with a 102 degree reading in the shade! By the next day, there was a complete turn around as it up and rained before getting nice again. Ralph Everest went to Puget Island with grandsons, Ralph and Frank Pedersen to help with the hay and to pick blackberries. The country was all abuzz about the news of the Liberty ship, "E. A Bryan" which exploded at Port Chicago in California and was destroyed. Reggie Nettles had been on that ship but was ashore when it blew up so he was not injured; his baby boy was born that day. It was a sad day as over 300 men died and about 240 were injured. This ship was unique as it had been bought with 4-H bonds and all aboard had all been 4-H members at one time. It was named after the first Washington State College president. George Everest was headed to Seattle along with the Wegdahl boy and Navy nurse, Susan Stutts and they needed a ride to Kelso in order to continue on their trip and Sankey Blix was kind enough to oblige them. One of the operators at the telephone office, Niva, quit that week; she opted to go pick mint. The first load of wood for Fall got delivered to the Everests that week from Joe Helpler. Mr Marincovich came by and dropped off a nice big sturgeon so Grandma Elsie got busy canning it up one day. George Everest's friend, Ralph James, was on one of the submarines that had gone missing. All 65 members of the crew and officers were reported lost. They had slipped through the Japanese barriers to try to remove vast amounts of gold from the treasury of the Philippine government.

In 1964, The week began with a couple of wet days before turning nice for one day and then rain again. The last day was dry and sunny but quite cold for July. Carol Pedersen and son Frank headed to Alaska that weekend while daughter Kay went to stay with Carolyn Pedersen out towards Lexington and Marshall Pedersen went to stay in Bremerton with his Aunt Grace and Uncle Deb Moore. Grandma Elsie was busy canning raspberries, as well as making raspberry jam that week. Mack McGowan, an old friend of the Everests, was laid to rest that week. Grandma visited with the Kendalls one day and then Peggy Pedersen and sons and her friend, Betty Vincent came by for a visit as well. After attending a wedding at their church, Mrs. Head, Maren Tholo and others divided up the flowers that were left behind and were thoroughly tickled to be able to take home such lovely pink and white rose bouquets. All this according to Grandma Elsie Everest's diaries.