Naselle Youth Sports Club grows in area

I spent Sunday afternoon at the home of the Garlock family including Trenton and Megan along with their children, their oldest child, daughter Auspyn, middle son Tregan, and youngest son, Atlas, and three dogs. They have lived up Salmon Creek on Alanen Road for six years. What a fun family and the children have exemplary manners. Megan homeschools the kids, and Trenton works alongside his father-in-law, Lee, with the family business, Burnard Construction.

Lee Burnard started the business in 2007 as a master carpenter who excels at finish work. They've been building a lot on the Peninsula, but they also work in Oregon as far as Knappa. Trenton tells me they would like to have jobs east as far as Cathlamet and Puget Island so they don't have to travel so far to work. They plan on building a large shop on Lee's property on Salmon Creek to augment their storage unit in Knappa.

I enjoyed myself so much being with them. They have the biggest Christmas tree I've ever seen in a private home and they have a larger, newer Santa than I have. What fun to visit with them. Their home is blessed.

I went to visit them to learn more about the Naselle Youth Sports Club. The Naselle/Grays River Valley School District does not have organized sports available for kids under the seventh grade, so the NYSC fills that gap for families. The club has many parents enrolling their children from kindergarten through sixth grades in various sports including baseball, softball, basketball, volleyball, and flag football. They are currently enrolling students who want to participate in various sports beginning in January. The cost is $60 per sport per student, but with each child in a family added, the cost is reduced by $5. If it's hard for a family to pay the cost, it will be covered with no questions asked.

Each sport has two volunteer coaches, and 100 or more youth usually enroll. Their vision is the more the merrier on the teams. They will begin sports practices in January in the NGRV school gyms or in other facilities that might work. I myself imagined them using Johnson Park for most of the program with the big gym and the outside areas for ball games and bathrooms for small people. One asset is that the location is between east and west Wahkiakum County. Also, the new heaters the county commissioners had installed make a huge difference. NYSC welcomes kids from Puget Island, Cathlamet, Skamokawa, Grays River, Rosburg, and on through Chinook. The club is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit recognized for many years as such by the IRS. They are fundraising this Saturday afternoon/evening by selling chowder and chili at the high school during the basketball games. They are not legally connected to the school because they are a separate legal entity. The kids who play will get a T-shirt from the dues they pay.

Several business sponsors have signed up, and hopefully, there will be more. The board and their advisors are meeting on December 18 to discuss fundraising ideas and get more planning done. Anyone who wants to attend that meeting can contact Trenton or Megan Garlock at (360) 484-3348. A few currently affiliated with the board – or were in the past - include Luke and Crystal Wagner, Jennifer Boggs, and Amy Chadwick. I personally hope they will sell T-shirts to the public because it's clearly a good club that can use financial support for sports equipment and to help low-income families enroll their children in the program. Providing funding for dues at Christmas sounds like a good gift for all kids that can't make the costs. They will get exercise out of the rain much of the winter.

Donations can also be sent to Crystal Wagner, Treasurer, at the Garlock's address: 44 Alanen Road, Naselle, 98638. I am personally excited to see families interested in enrolling their younger children in these activities. I know using Johnson Park at times may seem a long way to drive, but old-fashioned carpooling has usually helped with time and driving. If the idea isn't feasible, at least it was considered. It seems it has been a while since we had very many kids in our area, so this gives me personal joy and I hope lifts your Christmas spirits as well.

Here is Saturday's high school basketball schedule: HS boys BB: Home vs. Toledo - JV at 3 p.m. and varsity at 6 p.m. HS girls BB: Home vs. Toledo - JV at 1:30 p.m. and varsity at 4:30 p.m. If I made mistakes in all this, please forgive me. Lots of details, but it is going to be such fun. God bless us, everyone.