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Manzanita City Council to return to in-person meetings in April

Will Chappell Reporter

Manzanita’s City Council decided to return to in-person meetings starting in April at their meeting on March 9.

The council also extended a moratorium on dune grading and approved an audit strategy and funding methodology for the city.

The council will meet in-person for their regular monthly meetings for the first time since the beginning of the Coronavirus in April, following a 4-1 vote in favor in favor of the move.

Given the city’s lack of a council chamber, the council will meet at the Pine Grove Community House, which will cost around $750 a month when all expenses are factored in. The meetings will still be livestreamed on the city’s YouTube page and have a virtual attendance option on Zoom.

The approval of an indirect cost financing methodology met with resistance from several public commenters, but eventually passed with only Mayor Deb Simmons voting no on the measure.

The methodology is used to allocate funds from the city’s water fund to pay for city staff’s support of the water utility as part of their jobs. The transfer approved this year was for $191,727, a figure roughly similar to that of past years.

Public commenters expressed skepticism at the size of the figure and questioned that it was justified by the quantity of services rendered to the utility by city staff.

Simmons said that she preferred direct funding and saving more money for water system projects when voting no. A moratorium on dune grading was extended by six months from its initial 90-day term. The moratorium was passed to let the city government develop new ordinances governing the practice, which City Manager Leila Aman said is in progress.

The council also approved a plan of action for the fiscal year 2021 audit and named March 2023 as Red Cross Month in Manzanita. Simmons appointed Chip Greening and Kathryn Stock to three-year terms on the budget committee and Kitman Keating to a two-year term.

Please send any comments to headlightreporter@countrymedia.net.

Neah-Kah-Nie School Board taps

Dr. Reed as new Superintendent

TheNeah-Kah-Nie School Board is pleased to announce and welcome Dr. Tyler Reed as the new superintendent of the school district effective July 1st, 2023. According to board chair, Sandy Tyrer, “Dr. Reed will bring a fresh look at the district and a collaborative approach to his leadership. We are excited about his ability to connect with staff, students and the community.”

Dr. Reed currently serves as the Director of Curriculum, Instruction,

and Assessment of the Tillamook School District. Prior to his current assignment, he served as a Middle School Principal in the Beebe School District in Arkansas from 2018 to 2022. He received his master’s and doctoral

degrees in Educational Leadership from Arkansas Tech University.

Dr. Reed thanked the school board for their thorough search process and decision. “I’m looking forward to partnering with the families, teachers, staff,

and students to build on and accelerate the district’s mission. Neah-Kah-Nie School District has an exciting future and I’m proud to be a part of this amazing community.” Dr. Reed can be reached at tylerr@nknsd. org.

The Neah-Kah-Nie school board is pleased to have Dr. Reed as our new superintendent and look forward to many successful years working together.

For more information, contact Sandy Tyrer, Chairman of the Board, at sandrat@nknsd.org

Save the Dates for Trash Bash Art Festival 2023

Heart of Cartm organization recognizes that caring for the land and creating art together isn’t just for one weekend. A tiny seed planted in 1999 is now a 24-year-old event reaching well beyond its original container. Rockaway Roastery, Hoffman Center for the Arts, COVE Gallery & Studio, and Nehalem Bay Winerywill each host an event this year in celebration of our community’s outstanding resourcefulness.

Trash Bash Art Festival 2023, May 5th - 20th, is a transformation celebration you don’t want to miss! Festival goers will experience the innovation of trash to treasure from designers, found object artists and storytellers among 4 separate events.

The inspiring Trash Art Gallery Opening will kick off the Trash Bash Festi-

val season on May 5th at COVE Gallery & Studio in downtown Wheeler, 5:007:00pm. Then, participants can delight in hearing a range of stories, poems, and essays, all focused on trashtales about the stuff we toss (or don’t toss) and what it means to face the garbage in our lives. Funny, profound and deeply moving, the new storytelling series called Trash Tales will be held at Hoffman Gallery for the Arts in Manzanita on May 7th and at Rockaway Roastery on May 19th.

Beginning on a runway made of overturned dumpsters, the Trashion Show has a long history of awe-inspiring creations made entirely out of discards. You might wonder if these early Spring fashions were shipped from Milan, but we can assure you that they’ve all been pulled right out of the trash

can! The crowd-pleasing Trashion Show will take place on May 20th, 4:009:00pm.

An Event Button, good for entry into all events is $50 and available at the Heart of Cartm storefront in downtown Wheeler. Each event is $20 at the door without a festival button. The Heart of Cartm is a 501c3 nonprofit organization which supports artistic expression and sustainable living, leading the community to zero waste. They operate a creative reuse space in the heart of downtown Wheeler, Oregon that includes a store full of donated curiosities and a workshop space that hosts a variety of events focused on reuse and repair. “Our work prioritizes creativity and collaboration to reimagine waste,” explains Jessi Just, the organization’s Executive

‘Elk fever’ sited by illegal elk poacher

Director. “When communities recognize their waste as a valuable resource, everyone benefits.”

For more information about Trash Bash Art Festival and how to participate please visit www.heartofcartm.org or reach out to Jessi Just at jessi@heartofcartm.org.

Special Election ballots set

Will Chappell Reporter

Tillamook County Special Districts candidates completed filing for the May 16 election by the deadline on March 16.

Many of the races are uncontested, however several will see voters faced with a choice between candidates.

Four positions are up on the Tillamook School District’s Board of Directors, with Danell Boggs challenging Matt Petty for position one, Heidi Rieger taking on the recently appointed Justin Aufdermauer for position two, Valareee Bentham running against Kris Lachenmeier for position four and Samantha Spratt facing off with Kurt Mizee for position five.

In the Neah-Kah-Nie School District, Landon Myers and Marisa Bayouth-Real are contesting the director’s position for zone two, Michele Aeder and Katie Wilkinson are running against each other to represent zone six and four candidates, Joseph Carr, Tim Borman, Christopher Kruebbe

and Heidi Luquette, are all hoping to represent zone seven. Sandy Tyrer is running unopposed in zone five.

Nestucca’s school district has four director’s positions up for grabs, with Phil Hurliman, Joseph Boyd and Norman Loveland running for position one, Sherry Hartford and Wally Nelson running for position two, Greg Woods and Diane Boisa running for position three and Russ Sanders and Zachary best contesting position four.

The Tillamook County Transportation District has Jim Heffernan facing off against Teah Laviolette for position one, Thomas Fiorelli taking on Mary Leverettee for position four and Marni Johnston and Johnathan Bean running unopposed for positions two and six, respectively.

Tillamook Bay Community College’s Board of Directors has three contested races, Jonathan Whittles, Mary Jones and Dwaine McClintock are all vying for position one, Betsy McMahon and Teah Laviolette are facing off for position five and Loten Hooley is challenging Mary Faith Bell

for position seven. Andrea Goss is running unopposed for position two and Shannon Hoff for position four.

Position one on the Nestucca Rural Fire Protection District’s Board of Directors is being contested in the election by Shelley Dickinson and Dwine McClintock. Dorothy Gann and Verne Mobley are running unopposed for positions two and four.

Teah Laviolette is running against Mary Gallagher for position one of the North County Recreation District’s board of directors, while Constance Shimek and Erin Laskey-Wilson are contesting position two. Michael Howes is running unopposed for position three.

Teah Laviolette is also running against Marc Johnson for position one on Nehalem Bay Health District’s board of directors while Jacki Hinton and Anupam Narayan are running unopposed for the board.

The rest of the May races are uncontested and the names of candidates can be found on the Tillamook County Clerk’s website.

Asubject shooting into a herd of elk near Nehalem killed one and mortally wounded at least three others in January, while illegally shooting from a road, and in the direction Hwy 101. The 66-year-old subject blamed “elk fever” when he self-reported the incident, according to authorities. The subject, whose name has not been released pending the investigation, expressed remorse after the event and had turned himself in.

OSP Fish & Wildlife Troopers criminally cited the subject for: Hunting Prohibited Method: Shooting from Roadway; Unlawful Take/ Possession of Antlerless Elk; and Unlawful Take/Possession of Bull Elk. Troopers seized a .308 rifle for evidence, along with the elk the subject had tagged and processed.

OSP F&W Troopers responding to the call into the Turn in Poachers (TIP) Line found three wounded elk wandering with the herd of about 30 animals. The subject had already left with a cow elk he tagged. Trooper Reeder put down a mortally wounded cow elk. The following day, Troopers again assessed the herd, and put down a mortally wounded bull. A wounded cow elk ran into the Nehalem River. It is unclear what happened to the cow elk, but troopers agree it likely drowned.

According to OSP F&W Sgt. Greg Plummer, the subject had both a late-season cow elk tag and permission from the landowner to hunt.

He field-dressed the carcass and left the area, according to the landowner, who wishes to remain anonymous. “The guy came out and stopped at the road, and started shooting,” the landowner said, “I told another hunter, who said the guy shouldn’t have left. He should have called state police and turned himself in.”

The landowner called the subject and encouraged him to return to the field, to call OSP and to turn himself in for poaching. The subject turned himself in.

The bull elk and cow elk that Troopers were forced to put down and the cow elk the subject had processed were donated. Two elk went to the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde and one elk went to the Tillamook County Jail.

n See POACHER, Page 3

Dr. Tyler Reed

Manzanita council extended moratorium on dune grading

Will Chappell Reporter

Manzanita’s City Council decided to return to in-person meetings starting in April at their meeting on March 9.

The council also extended a moratorium on dune grading and approved an audit strategy and funding methodology for the city.

The council will meet in-person for their regular monthly meetings for the first time since the beginning of the Coronavirus in April, following a 4-1 vote in favor in favor of the move.

Given the city’s lack of a

council chamber, the council will meet at the Pine Grove Community House, which will cost around $750 a month when all expenses are factored in. The meetings will still be livestreamed on the city’s YouTube page and have a virtual attendance option on Zoom.

The approval of an indirect cost financing methodology met with resistance from several public commenters, but eventually passed with only Mayor Deb Simmons voting no on the measure.

The methodology is used to allocate funds from the city’s water fund to pay for

city staff’s support of the water utility as part of their jobs. The transfer approved this year was for $191,727, a figure roughly similar to that of past years.

Public commenters expressed skepticism at the size of the figure and questioned that it was justified by the quantity of services rendered to the utility by city staff.

Simmons said that she preferred direct funding and saving more money for water system projects when voting no.

A moratorium on dune grading was extended by six months from its initial 90-day

term. The moratorium was passed to let the city government develop new ordinances governing the practice, which City Manager Leila Aman said is in progress.

The council also approved a plan of action for the fiscal year 2021 audit and named March 2023 as Red Cross Month in Manzanita.

Simmons appointed Chip Greening and Kathryn Stock to three-year terms on the budget committee and Kitman Keating to a two-year term.

Please send any comments to headlightreporter@countrymedia.net.

area students to compete in State Chess Tournament

Chess clubs from seven schools across Tillamook County are sending 18 students and four teams to the state chess tournament after a successful regional tournament on March 4.

More than 50 students competed in the tournament, while more than 200 participate in chess clubs at schools across the county, thanks to the support of Chess for Success.

“We had a great turnout compared to what we’ve had in the past,” said James Cox, the director of Chess for Success in Tillamook.

Chess for Success started in Portland in 1991 to help promote chess at local public

schools by subsidizing the game for interested students who could not otherwise afford to play.

Cox, who was working as a contractor at the time, had already identified chess as a game that could teach valuable lessons to his three sons. He had started a club at Garibaldi Grade School and when he learned about Chess for Success, he eagerly embraced their help expanding chess in Tillamook.

“I always felt it was a great influence in those lives,” Cox said of chess, “it did teach them manners and stuff.”

Over the past 30-plus years, the program has grown to support clubs at seven schools across the Tillamook and Neah-Kah-Nie school districts.

Chess for Success pays community members $25 an hour to coach students for an hour or two weekly after school during the season, as well as covering tournament entry costs and buying materials for the clubs.

Anybody with a knowledge of chess can volunteer and Cox is always looking to expand his roster of coaches, who he says are crucial to the program’s continued growth.

“It’s really based on having a person in the building to coach and encourage and recruit,” Cox said.

Six schools sent teams to the tournament on March 4, and those from Nehalem and East Elementaries and Tillamook Junior High and Neah-Kah-Nie Middle Schools qualified for the state tournament.

In addition to helping fund the clubs and run the tournaments, Chess for Success has recently started

a program to help teach manners and sportsmanship. Cox said that the program dovetails well with lessons students learn while playing chess.

“It’s a tenacious game, chess is, but you can play it nicely,” Cox said. He said that the chess has enjoyed particular popularity at the grade school level, with East Elementary boasting more than 100 chess club members in each of the last two years.

“The neat thing about chess is…their chess skills can soar way beyond their years and their age and their grade,” Cox said, specifically mentioning a kindergartener who recently competed in the state tournament.

Chess for Success has grown into a statewide program and supports chess in Northern California and Vancouver, Washington. The annual state tournament

Save the date - April 8, at North County Recreation District

Join Mark Beach, Liz Cole and filmmaker Carl Vandervoort for the documentary”Homestead - the Life and Times of Mary Gerritse.”

This s a 58-minute documentary about the Oregon coast’s first female mail carrier. Actor Liz Cole brings to life Mary’s experiences as a homesteader, as written in Mary’s personal journal.

From her arrival in the Nehalem Valley at age 12 to her challenges packing the mail by horseback over Neahkahnie Mountain to

north county post offices, Mary Gerritse’s stories, along with numerous archival images and documents, give a dramatic sense of life on one of Oregon’s last frontiers. Historian Mark Beach and Liz Cole developed this program for live performance in 2018 and collaborated with filmmaker Carl Vandervoort to bring it to the screen. After a two year delay, this screening is the Audience Premiere. $10 at the door supports Nehalem Valley Historical Society education programs.

accepts around 500 competitors, roughly the top 10% of participants.

Cox said that he thinks chess’s popularity will continue to grow in Tillamook and that he hopes to get chess clubs meeting at four new schools next year.

“This has been our most successful year and I think a lot of that has been through the support of the Chess for Success program,” Cox said. Please send any comments to headlightreporter@countrymedia.net.

City of Manzanita’s STR Committee begins Liveability Survey

The City of Manzanita’s Short-term Rental (STR) Committee is conducting a survey open to all interested community members from March 6 to April 15. The survey will reach out to, and collect information from residents, second homeowners, STR owners, and managers of local STRs. It will provide City leadership with a better understanding of existing community sentiment regarding the impact of STRs on neighborhood livability in Manzanita.

• The link to the survey is https://www.surveymonkey. com/r/3MTWDQP

• Paper copies are available by calling City Hall 503.812.2514 option 4, Information on current feelings and new trends will help the City Council and its STR committee identify cost-effective solutions to new and/or existing issues that are related to STRs. City Council approved a mission statement in February 2023 for the new STR committee: “Our mission is to propose policies on Manzanita short-term rentals which will enhance the City’s livability; consider financial health; and inform residents, managers, and visitors about these policies.”

Will Chappell Reporter

Marine Reserves hook-and-line surveys head to Garibaldi in 2023

Oregon’s Marine Reserves Program plans to return to the ports of Garibaldi and Port Orford this spring and fall in the latest installment of this unique way for coastal commercial and recreational fishers to help fuel scientific research in the state’s nearshore waters.

The Marine Preserves Program, administered by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, plans to target the Redfish Rocks Marine Reserve near Port Orford and the Cape Falcon Marine Reserve near Garibaldi during this year’s hook-and-line surveys.

During the surveys, private commercial boats -- usually charters – contract with the agency to take out volunteer anglers who catch rockfish in key underwater reefs. They focus within marine reserves where all other fishing is banned as well as comparison areas outside of them. Biologists on board identify and measure the fish before they are quickly and safely released.

When compared to data from nearly identical fishing efforts dating back as far as 2010, marine scientists are able to track changes in catch rates, species caught and their sizes from before and after marine-reserve protections went into place.

This growing data set not only will help reveal changes

to marine life within reserve areas but also create more clarity to the murky world of Oregon’s near-shore reefs.

“It’s our most powerful tool for tracking fish,” says Stephanie Fields, the program’s interim ecological project leader. “We consistently get out on the water to get the fish in hand, gathering information on species ID and size.”

The hook-and-line surveys are one of four key ways fish are surveyed in the reserves and outside monitoring areas. The others are visual surveys, such as trained volunteer SCUBA divers and other contracted commercial boats from which stationary cameras are lowered into the reefs as well as a remote underwater roving video camera.

Last year, hook-and-line surveys were run at the Cascade Head Marine Reserve out of Depoe Bay and Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve out of Newport. The fifth and final Oregon marine reserve at Otter Rock near Newport is not part of the hook-and-line surveys because its waters are deemed too shallow for it. Since the hook-andline survey began in 2010, the program has paid $382,619.25 to commercial fishermen under survey contracts. The Marine Reserves Program also conducts mon-

itoring of the social impacts of all five reserves on coastal communities, and studies have shown wide-ranging support throughout Western Oregon.

Each year, the hook-andline surveys rely on new volunteer researchers as well as a cadre of regulars, like Don Sarver of Newport. Sarver travels the Oregon coast each summer to jig in the name of science and just plain enjoyment.

“Everybody’s laughing, telling fish stories and just having a great time,” Sarver says.

“It’s a fun fishing trip, but on the other hand, it’s a scientific study,” Sarver says. “And they are comparing this every year to see do we get more, do we get less, do we get more variety and are the fish bigger. So it’s kind of neat to see that.”

This year’s survey effort began Friday when the Marine Reserves Program officially asked for bids from commercial captains. The program plans to hire one boat each out of Garibaldi and Port Orford this year.

Bids are due by April 4. For more information on the process bidding requirements on the Redfish Rocks contract, click HERE. For requirements on the Cape Falcon bid, click HERE.

No fishing dates have yet

been set, but plans are to run trips of up to 10 anglers each between April and June, then again from mid-August to early October. Ten trips are planned out of Garibaldi and a dozen out of Port Orford. Potential volunteers, who must have marine fishing experience, should email Ryan.T.Fields@odfw.oregon. gov to apply.

Enacted by the Oregon Legislature in 2009, the Marine Reserves Program includes five actual marine reserves and nine protected areas that together cover nine percent of Oregon’s near-shore ocean waters. The reserves, where no plants or animals can be removed and where development is banned, are underwater

listening stations tracking ocean changes including fish, invertebrate and algal communities. It is the first long-term nearshore ocean conservation and monitoring program run by the state of Oregon and includes cutting-edge research on the economic, social and cultural dynamics of the Oregon coast and coastal communities.

Library leaders developing new strategic plan

Tillamook County’s libraries are in the process of developing a new strategic plan that will guide their operations and programming over the next five years.

Library Director Don Allgeier has been hosting a series of listening sessions to solicit public feedback, including one at the Garibaldi library on March 15.

At the meeting, Allgeier started by giving a brief presentation on the library’s operations across the county before listening to suggestions from a group of library patrons.

Allgeier, who started as Tillamook’s Library Director last July, said that the library has been using a strategic vision plan developed in

n Poacher

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One of at least four elk that were killed when someone shot into a herd of elk near the Nehalem River in Tillamook County. The subject turned himself in to OSP Fish & Wildlife Troopers.

The Stop Poaching Campaign educates the public on how to recognize and report

2015. He said that following the passage of a new fiveyear levy by voters last July, it was an appropriate time to replace the outdated document. There are six libraries spread across Tillamook County that work in concert and rely on the services of a bookmobile to transfer books between them. The taxpayer funded levy accounts for 98% of the library’s budget.

Allgeier said that surveys revealed that county residents were even more satisfied with the library system than they had been in 2015, finding it more convenient, easier to use and a better contributor to the community.

Last year, the library continued to expand its services, adding WIFI hotspots, expanding or adding Saturday hours across the system and

poaching. This campaign is a collaboration among state agencies, sportsmen and other conservationists, landowners, and recreationists to engage the public in combatting Oregon’s poaching problem. Our goal is to: Incentivize reporting on wildlife crimes through the TIP Line; Strengthen enforcement by increasing the number of OSP Fish and Wildlife Troopers; and Support prosecution in becoming an effective deterrent. The campaign helps to protect and enhance Oregon’s fish and

offering printing and faxing at all branches. It has also started a “library of things” that allows residents to check out various objects, like microscopes or water and air quality testing equipment, an offering that will continue to grow.

Residents who attended the meeting shared their enthusiasm for the library’s operations and offered suggestions on how it could continue to improve its services over the next five years.

The foremost recommendation was that the library focus on expanding its usage amongst the Hispanic community in the county, with hiring a Spanish speaking staffer mentioned as a priority. The group also were curious about the library expanding its offerings to seniors and increasing the

wildlife and their habitat for the enjoyment of present and future generations. Contact campaign coordinator Yvonne Shaw for more information. Yvonne.L.Shaw@odfw. oregon.gov.

If you know of or suspect other crimes against fish wildlife or habitat, please report to the Turn In Poachers (TIP) Line. 1-800-452-7888 or *OSP (*677) from a mobile phone. Or email: TIP@osp. oregon.gov.

It’s time to live your best life

Research shows that higher levels of physical activity is linked to lower risk of several types of cancer, including breast, bladder and colon. If you are thinking about adding new physical activity to your life, you may want to ask your primary health care provider (PCP) for advice. Getting regular health care, which includes cancer screenings, can help you continue to be healthy for a lifetime. Our PCPs are experts in your health care, through all ages and stages of your life. #cancerprevention

ODFW’s Jessica Watson holds a cabezon caught by volunteer angler Don Sarver during a hook-and-line survey at Cascade Head Marine Reserve.

Photo courtesy of ODFW.

March 22, before library staff begin work on writing the strategic plan.

send any comments to

Neah-Kah-Nie Softball begins season with loss against Willamina

Last week, the Neah-KahNie High School softball team played valiantly against the Willamina Bulldogs. Scoring two runs in comparison to Willamina’s eight, the Pirates

experienced their first loss of the non-league season.

Lorelai Keefauver scored the first point of the night, while Kailynn Stinnet scored the second. Still, the team maintains a positive outlook for the rest of the season. When discussing their weaknesses, the Pirates

Great opportunities at Tillamook

Cheese Operator (swing) Tillamook

Compensation $20.50

Utility Operator (Boardman)

Compensation $17.32/hr

Packaging Sanitation-graveyard (Tillamook)

Compensation $22.21/hr

Packaging Operator (Tillamook)

Compensation $19.95/hr

Commercial Truck Driver (Tillamook)

Compensation $26.14/hr

Ice Cream-graveyard (Tillamook)

Compensation $21.91/hr

Please check out our website for more information on these and other great opportunities www.tillamook.com or contact latha.meyer@tillamook.com H21763

Bilingual Certified Peer Support/Recovery Mentor (English/Spanish)

F.T. 40-Hours/week Position

Tillamook Family Counseling Center is currently looking to add a bilingual peer specialist to our Prime+ program. The mission of the Prime+ program is to prevent acute life-threatening outcomes of substance use which include reducing overdose morbidity and mortality by providing harm reduction centered overdose prevention education and facilitating access to Naloxone. We also strive to reduce injection-related infections by providing harm reduction centered infection prevention education and facilitating access to safer use supplies. The Prime+ program supports linkage to care, diagnosis and treatment of substance use related conditions and substance us related infections.

This position includes training that leads to state certification according to OAR 410-180-0305 (12) and (13). As a certified Peer Specialist, you will be a living example and role model of recovery life. As a peer you will be a provider of the life wisdom gained through your own lived experience of recovery as well as a change agent for hope.

Benefits:

Dental Vision and Medical-prescription coverage. HSA and FSA plans. 9 paid holidays a year, paid sick leave and vacation time. Vacation starts out at 8 hours a month with increases over time. Generous retirement program: non-contributory 403(b), we put in 9% of your salary and you are vested after 6 months.

To see our complete job description and to apply go to http://tfcc.bamboohr.com/jobs. Be sure to submit an online application and upload your resume. Any questions, please visit us online at http://tfcc.org or contact us at jobs@tfcc.org

agreed their batting could improve throughout the season.

One senior, Americas Pierson, has a goal to improve her batting, as well as to be a more “aggressive” runner. Another player, Abigail Waldron, also looks to improve their batting. Sophomore Kumiko Hoffmeyer’s goal is to “make a point,” this being her first high school season.

Pierson believes that, while the Pirates did lose this match, they “stayed pretty positive the whole time” and “the girls were mentally in the game.” Waldron supported this idea, with people “put in spots they weren’t used to” and “not getting stressed” because of the change. Indeed, certain positions were played by various team members. While the team is still searching for a dynamic that fits, three players pitched Tuesday night: Melly Pierson (Junior), Liliana Rodriguez (Junior),

and Keefauver (Sophomore).

When discussing their favorite parts of playing softball, multiple team members cited the social aspect rather than the sport itself.

Waldron cited “teamwork” as their favorite component of softball, while Pierson stated that “the family that you have as a team” is softball’s best aspect. The team will face

Port commissioners weigh Air Museum’s future

The Port of Tillamook Bay’s Board of Commissioners began discussing the future of the airport’s hangar B, which houses the Tillamook Air Museum.

The World War II blimp hangar needs roof maintenance that will cost around $1.5 million and the port does not have funding set aside for the project.

That amount would allow for upgrades to the weatherproofing connection between the upper and lower section of the roof, cutting down on the amount of water intrusion. The roof repairs would need to be repeated in twenty years.

Other than concerns about the roof, the building is structurally sound, according to a report commissioned by the port.

Today, the hangar realizes around a $50,000 profit annually, bringing in about $650,000 while costing nearly $600,000 to operate. In addition to the air museum at the north end of the seven-acreplus building, Stimson lumber and local business owners and community members lease

space in the hangar for various purposes on a shortterm basis.

Four options were discussed to address the hangar situation: levy, sale, long-term lease and demolition. The demolition option was unpopular among the commissioners as a 2011 study by NASA showed that, at that time, demolition of the building would cost between $20 million and $40 million.

The commissioners also noted that the building was the last World War II era blimp hangar open to the public, was important to the fabric of the local community and was crucial to the crucial operations of the air museum.

With those same concerns in mind, the commissioners said that any sale or long-term lease of the hangar would

need to include conditions to protect the structure’s future.

The most appealing option to the commissioners was partnership with the county to put a levy on the ballot to pay for the repairs. This would allow the port to maintain ownership of the hangar but would face the hurdle of receiving voter approval.

Commisioner Matt Mumford suggested that the port start setting aside all or some of the profits that the hangar makes as a show of commitment.

Mumford and Board President Sierra Lauder agreed to form an ad hoc committee to meet twice in the next month to begin preliminary work on a potential levy. Port General Manager Michele Bradley asked commissioners to also send in the list of requirements that they would like to see attached to a sale or longterm lease of the hangar.

Please send any comments to headlightreporter@countrymedia.net.

H21629

Spring term registration at TBCC now open

Registration for spring term courses at Tillamook Bay Community College is now open. Spring term will begin on April 3, and registration will be open until April 2. TBCC offers classes in person, online, through Zoom, and a combination of different modalities. Start your career in business, healthcare, industrial manufacturing, criminal justice, and more. With scholarships available for any type of student, there is no end to the opportunity at TBCC.

The Career-to-Career scholarship provides tuitionfree education for students. Any Tillamook County Resident who received a diploma or GED in the last five years is qualified to receive the Career-to-Career scholarship—

which covers tuition until the student earns their degree.

Interested in non-credit classes to continue your learning? TBCC has many Community Education courses available this term, from photography to mosaic art, because education is for everyone. Don’t miss your chance to discover a new interest or learn more about your passions.

First-time students at TBCC will need to complete an admissions application and attend a student orientation session before registering for classes. You can get started online at https://tillamookbaycc.edu/getting-started/ apply/, or by contacting the Student Services team at studentservices@tillamook-

baycc.edu. Students who have recently taken classes at TBCC can register online after speaking with their Success Coach.

TBCC does not require SAT or PSAT scores to enroll. They are an open-admission college, which means all students are welcome to attend. Your placement in classes is determined by multiple measures.

A schedule of credit courses and non-credit community education classes offered throughout the term is available on the TBCC website, https://tillamookbaycc. edu/. If you need assistance, please contact Student Services at 503-842-8222 ext. 1100.

a $100,000 donation

TBCC Foundation receives a $100K endowment from Loren E. Parks Trust

The Tillamook Bay Community College Foundation has received a 100K endowment from the Loren E. Parks Trust that will support healthcare pathways students. The

Puzzle answers on page 5.

Loren E. Parks Trust Endowed Scholarship will be used to support Healthcare Pathways students – such as EMS, Medical Assisting, Phlebotomy, and Nursing Assistant.

The ability to support a variety of TBCC students in a booming industry is extremely beneficial because the cost of equipment and fees associated with healthcare pathways are higher than in other TBCC classes. The perpetual support of the Loren E. Parks Trust Endowed Scholarship will help many healthcare pathways students pursue their careers with less financial stress.

For the past three years, the Trust has been managed by four trustees. Jerry Dove, a trustee, spoke to why the endowment would go towards healthcare pathways students, “Loren made his living inventing, manufacturing, and selling medical electronics; and my wife, Johna Dove, is a retired RN. The Trust has donated to the hospital several times, and Johna and I want to see our local hospital have and retain locals in the medical

field.”

The Loren E. Parks Trust Endowed Scholarship will support healthcare pathways students in many ways. Funds can be used for tuition, fees, books, educational expenses, living expenses, and childcare. The TBCC Foundation wants to provide as many academic opportunities as possible for TBCC students, which includes the means to help students with basic needs. This is the first endowment that the TBCC Foundation has received this year. Britta Lawrence, the Executive Director of the Foundation said, “The TBCC Foundation is extremely grateful to receive this generous gift of $100,000 to start a new endowment focused on supporting our healthcare pathways program. The Loren E. Parks Trust has been a fantastic community supporter in previous years, and we are grateful that once again the TBCC Foundation was selected to receive funds. This endowment will exist into perpetuity, positively impacting TBCC students forever.”

Jerry Dove, representing the Loren E. Parks Trust hands

check to Britta Lawrence, Executive Director of the TBCC Foundation and Ross Tomlin TBCC President.