Remember to use 360 area code for local calls

TOASTY--By the time you read this, we should have experienced some very hot temperatures and I hope you're faring okay during this first full week of August. Needless to say, it seems almost impossible that we are into yet another month, which is synonymous with the Wahkiakum County Fair, football practice and school shopping, as the buses will be rolling out before you know it! However, we've got this little heat wave to deal with first, so we hope you're doing all you can to keep yourself and your animals, cool and well hydrated! Sadly, I don't think there's been a hot day that has gone by that we haven't heard of a child or an animal dying due to being left in a hot vehicle by negligent parents or owners. If you see either in danger, please call 911 and do your part to put an end to this horrendous occurence.

SPECIAL DAYS-- Those celebrating birthdays from Aug. 3-9 are Kamie Helms, Cassi Luthi, Brian McClain, Austin Smith, Jenny Benfit, Treasure Collupy, Marsha Helms (the big "5-0" this year), Monte Robinson, Fred Hoven, Danny Eaton, John L. McClain, Maureen Zacher, Terry Bonny, Amy Gorley, Mike Backman, Susan Brown, Jason Blain, Jacob Fletcher, Jenny Pedersen, Padyn Pedersen, and 67'ers Judy (Lindwall) Bergman and Marnee (Ostervold) Davis and Martin Ostervold. Belated birthday wishes to Ron Free and Nancy Jacobsen Brady!

Celebrating their anniversaries this week are Rick and Theresa Kuljis, Jeff and Mary Baldwin, Don and Kitty Speranza, Steve and Janna Doumit, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Hoven and Doug and Sunny Manary. Enjoy your special days everybody!

THIS IS IT--It's time for the Wooden and Classic Boat Festival at the Elochoman Slough Marina this weekend, complete with a breakfast put on by the Kiwanis, which will give you pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausage for just $8, so come and support them on Saturday from 7-10 a.m., and enjoy checking out all the great boats! The "Ugly Car Show " will take place at the Brewery that day, so don't be shy; bring your "work in progress" down to the show and you could possibly take home a prize! The "Ducky Derby" will also be going on, so it will be a full day of fun. By the way, you can buy your "duck" at the Bank of the Pacific for $5 and the derby will take place at 3 p.m. The Nautical Swap Meet will be held Sunday, beginning at 8 a.m., so if you're in need of anything marine, you might just find it down there!

BAKE SALE--We hope all of you will help support our Skamokawa Princess, Kayla Bowcutt this year, and for starters, you can attend her bake sale this Saturday, Aug. 5, in front of the Skamokawa Resort/General Store. Be sure to buy your fair passes from her while you're buying a goodie, as we hope to make Kayla our Queen this year! Just in case you miss this one, she'll be selling more goodies the following weekend.

PHONE NUMBERS--How are you liking the changes to the way we have to make phone calls now? Back in the old days we had just three numbers on Puget Island to dial, and then if you were in Cathlamet, you used to be able to call just the last four numbers, then it was seven numbers and now, we're up to 10 numbers for local calls; aah, progress! If you try dialing numbers the old way, you will hear, "This local call requires 10 digits" so you need to add "360" in front of our area's local phone numbers. Don't forget to redo all the phone numbers in your cell phones, which is a real pain, but they will no longer go through unless you make the proper changes.

FAIR IS CLOSE--Two weeks from today, the Wahkiakum County Fair will be held, August 17-19, and if you're entering something in the fair, you're being asked to please read the fair book and enter all items on the day and time provided, as that's when designated people will be there to help you with your entry. We do hope you're planning on attending this 109th fair and be sure to take advantage of the "free" days: Senior Citizens get in free on Thursday, military folks get in free on Friday and kids get in free on Saturday. Here's to another great fair! See you there.

CLASS OF 1968--I had a nice chat with Krista Blix McQuire recently and she was telling me that her WHS class of 1968 is planning on getting together this month. She was disappointed to find out that it's going to be held on the weekend that their family already has plans, but she's hoping that everyone else is able to meet on August 12. I am betting that if you need to know more about this class reunion, you can contact Dennis Emery at 360-795-3972. More than likely, the group that shows up will be talking about their big 50th class reunion next year, so if you want to get your two cents in there, you may want to attend or contact other class members who will most likely be in charge.

CLASS OF 1962--According to WHS graduate Janice Freeman, the Class of 1962 will meet at the Duck Inn for their 55th reunion on September 16, with a social hour taking place at 5 p.m, and then dinner will be at 6 p.m. So, for all of you who are in this class or if you know of somebody in this class that might be out of the loop, be sure to let them know about this specific date and time.

CAN YOU HELP?--Many people don't seem to realize that right here in our area, we have our very own pet rescue group, and as always, they often need a hand after helping a number of animals that were in dire need of rescue. So, if you have extra foods on hand, like veggies, or oats, or beans, etc., that can be cooked up to give some of these critters some real food, they'd sure appreciate it! Angel Wings is located on Puget Island at 568 SR 409, so you could drop things off there, although you may need to honk at the gate, or call ahead and talk to Kym Jardine at 360-261-9541 or Debra at 360-353-6802 and see what they need.

WELL WISHES--We were happy to see that Tom Webb is out and about after his recent surgery, so that's always a good sign. We hope he continues to do well and stays out of those hospital beds! I heard that former resident, Pam Elliott wound up in OHSU recently with an undiagnosed problem and we want to send her some get well wishes, as I'm sure it's not the way she wanted to start things off in their new place in Garibaldi, Ore. Take care Pam! I was also told that our neighbor, Barry Brown needed a ride to the hospital the other day, so we're sending get better soon wishes to him as well.

CAME THROUGH OKAY--While we were out of town, another "someone" had to be rescued, as a horse had gotten stuck in a creek! Thankfully, after a group of people put their heads together, including our local fire department and rescue team, and those with equipment got involved, the horse was removed from its said predicament and is doing just fine. As they say, "It takes a village....." and in this case, it was true. So glad this had a happy ending, as it's not always the case.

LITTLE BREAK--As I said, we were out of town when all the "rescuers" were busy, as it was time for us to enjoy a little early birthday and anniversary celebration down the Oregon coast. We hadn't been down that way in years, and wow, how things have changed! I was so happy that we went mid-week as rooms are cheaper, there are less people around and even then, there was plenty for this "love peace and quiet" lady! As we returned home, the traffic was just starting to pick up quite a bit, so I certainly wasn't sorry that we celebrated our big day a little early and got home in time to recuperate from dealing with the masses. We topped off that evening by using a gift certificate to the Duck Inn, which was set up for me by my pen pal, Vail St. Vrain, so that was super nice of her! Plus, the halibut was absolutely delicious and the folks next to us, who had it as well, were raving about "cooked to perfection" by the cook. So, if you're looking for some good seafood, you don't have to travel far to get a great meal!

FOS FUND RAISER--It won't be long and the annual fund raising event for the River Life Interpretive Center/Central School/Redmen Hall will take place on Sept. 9 from 6:30-10 p.m. Once again, this will be held at the Skamokawa Grange Hall at 18 Fairgrounds Road, and is an adults only evening. Advance tickets are $15 for a single or $25 for two, but those prices will each go up by $5 at the door so save a few bucks to spend at the auction! This is always a very fun event, as with both a live and silent auction and items ranging from blown glass to gift certificates, and everything in between, there's bound to be something you will just have to bid on. Of course, if someone else feels the same, those bidding wars can be a real hoot! As always there will be food to go along with the wines, and it's provided by Don and Kitty Speranza this year, and besides the wine, there are non-alcoholic beverages available. This is the main fund raiser for the hall and helps for the maintenance and operation of the hall, so your help in donating items and attending these fund raisers, is truly crucial and most appreciated. If you haven't donated anything yet, it's hoped that you will consider it. You can bring your item to the hall, Thursday through Sunday from noon to four and if you need further information, call 360-795-3007. If you're a computer user and you'd rather send your questions or comments via email, then use the address: fos1894@gmail.com.