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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2022
VOL. 130, NO. 41 Serving the Lower Columbia Region since 1891
Rainier Cheer wins State, takes on Nationals ZOE GOTTLIEB chronicle2@countrymedia.net
For the first time in Rainier history, Rainier cheerleaders are gearing up for a competition on the national stage before the dust settles on their State victory. “We received permission months ago and fundraised,” Head Cheer Coach Lori Schimmel said. “With the help of our Rainier community, we are headed there!” The USA High School Spirit Nationals is the season-capping goal for many competitive high school cheerleading teams and will showcase more than 7,000 athletes this year, according to the association website. “We had to enter a virtual Regional competition,” Schimmel explained, of bid-meeting requirements for the national event. “Not only did we do this, but we took third place in the Regional!” On Saturday, Feb. 12, the Rainier Columbians outperformed six other 3A-3 Coastal Range League high school cheerleading teams at the 2022 OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union Cheerleading State Championship in Oregon City. The Rainier cheer team scored 96.90 out of 120 possible points, one or more points higher than their competitors in every category. Around 7 a.m., before the big game, the parents and families of the cheerleaders shared their
Courtesy photo
The Rainier Cheer team poses with their State trophy.
messages of love, support, and encouragement on Facebook. “As your mom, I couldn’t be more proud of the time and effort you put into this program and your team,” Schimmel said, ad-
dressing her cheerleading daughter. “You show up consistently, (and) you work hard. This is the moment where it’s going to pay off.” For Rainier Jr./Sr. High
School’s pom-pom wielding athletes, the hard work did pay off. State competition
final scores based on their skill mastery according to OSAA standards, measured by performance in three categories. Three categories include building, tumbling/jumps, and overall routine. Each is worth up to 40 points, for 120 points total. Building includes stunts, pyramids, and execution, Schimmel explained. “Rainier typically does well in this category,” Schimmel said. “Our girls work year-round to become strong in the weight room and during practices by lifting flyers over their heads for two hours.” “They love to be challenged with stunting,” she added. Stunts involve an individual, or flyer, being lifted above the performance surface by one or more teammates. Judges look at factors such as transitions, inversions, dismounts, and tosses in deciding how to score a stunt. The Rainier Columbians’ performance in tumbling and jumps gave them a competitive advantage this year, according to Schimmel. “(Tumbling) had saved us,” Schimmel said. “We have the most difficult team tumbling in our division with team tucks running and standing along with team layouts and back handsprings. None of our girls are gymnasts See SPORTS Page A6
At state, judges award teams
The new face of Jo’s Country Market
Courtesy photo from Yvonne Krause
Jo’s Country Market along Highway 30 in Clatskanie burned down Tuesday, Oct. 5. ZOE GOTTLIEB chronicle2@countrymedia.net
Plans for rebuilding Jo’s Country Market in Clatskanie are coming together, according to Owner Yvonne Krause. In an interview with The Chief, Krause said she and her husband met with an engineer on Friday who offered to draw up free engineering plans for the new structure, which Krause hopes will be up and running in May. “This gentleman called (because) he had read an article, I think, in the Columbia River Reader and reached out and said, ‘Hey, we just moved here in November,’” Obituaries ................. A2 Classified Ads ......... A3 Legals ....................... A3 Opinions ................... A4 Clatskanie Grows .... A4 Who We Are ............. A5 Sports.........................A6
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she said, recalling the moment. “He didn’t know when the building had burned down. He said, ‘I don’t have any money I can give you, but I would be happy to draw you out an engineering plan.’” Jo’s Country Market, formally managed by Jim and Joyce (Jo) Frye, was a prominent fixture of Clatskanie: a place for local growers to sell their products on consignment and for residents to buy fresh, farm-grown goods free of toxic chemicals and GMOs. The morning of Oct. 5, an electrical malfunction caused the fruit stand to catch fire. When the Clatskanie Rural Fire Protection District arrived on the scene, the roof was mid-collapse. Fire Chief Sharek said the fire was “difficult to suppress,” and required firefighters to remain outside in a defensive position as they fought the flames. Following the devastation, others provided their assistance, including Dwayne Sterba of Diggin Bone Excavating, Steve Stadleman, the Clatskanie PUD, and many more in the community. Krause said she received about $600 in donations for the construc-
Courtesy photo from Yvonne Krause
The Jo’s Country Market property is valued at a half million.
tion effort as well as offers for free building supplies. Her plans for the structure include adding insulation, a feature missing from the former building, and exposed beam ceilings. Background Krause said she became familiar with the fruit stand when she was 20 years old, passing by the fruit stand every day on her way to work at an automotive shop in Mist, Oregon. “One day I just thought gosh, I should see if they have like old produce they don’t want for my pigs right?” she said. “And they (the Fryes) said ‘Yeah if you want to stop (by) you can take whatever is out here in this bin.’ Then over the course of a month or two of talking with them, they said ‘Hey, we need an employee. Do you know anybody that’s interested?’” “At first I was like, I should ask around, and then I eventually ended up just taking the job.” Krause worked with the owners for 13 years until a car accident put them out of commission, at which point the Fryes offered her the opportunity to manage the fruit stand.
“Joyce had broke(n) her hip, and I was scared to death,” Krause explained. “But I said let me see how the first year goes.” Krause bought the market with a $50,000 down payment and was still paying down her $100,000 mortgage when the structure caught fire. Krause explained she did not opt for an insurance policy, since most of the building’s fixtures were outdated. No one, not even Krause, could have predicted that one October afternoon, a few minutes and an electrical failure would reduce 33 years of work to all but a cinder. A ‘family-run business’ Krause said the quality of her produce is what sets her business apart from chain grocers. “We always get our strawberries from Goble — from Crawford’s Berries, and their shelf life is like a day because it’s a fresh picked strawberry,” she said. “You go to (a retailer), and their strawberries are grown for size (and) have no flavor. The difference in flavor and texture and everything, there’s no comparison.” As the fruit stand’s manager, not only did Krause prioritize buying lo-
cal first, but she also made a point to buy from farmers for fair prices. “Sometimes there’s years when say, cherries are expensive because there was a short crop,” she said. “We still need to buy those cherries and support that farmer, or they’re not going to be there next year. That’s how I’ve always tried to run my business.” Jo’s Country Market is what Krause calls a “family-run business.” Market operations run seasonally, with two staff members excluding Krause. The work atmosphere, she said, encourages kids and even allows employees to bring their children to work. After the fire, Krause received an offer from a prospective buyer. She declined to sell. “They (the Fryes) were like my parents,” she said. “I worked for them before I had kids, and I raised my kids there. I just had to say no. We’re really excited now about the prospect of rebuilding.” If you would like to donate to the rebuilding effort, contact Fibre Federal Credit Union or Wauna Federal Credit Union under YvonneKrause/ JosCountryMarket.
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