THE GORGE BUSINESS NEWS Business, Art, Culture, Outdoors, Travel & Entertainment
Connecting Communities Throughout the Columbia River Gorge Serving Oregon and Washington Volume 3 - Issue 2 FREE MAY/JUNE 2019 FREE
North Bonneville Gorge Days ~ July 4 - 6, 2019 Pink in the Gorge Raises Money for Pink Sistas
By Lori Roach
Grief changes people. It tears at your heartstrings, rips at your soul, and takes over your entire body as if to drown you in sorrow…forever....but!!!! .....somehow, someway, eventually it usually loos-
Remedy rocks the house at Pink in the Gorge ens its grip enough that the person consumed by grief, can take that first breath of healing and that person changes once again, often ready to tackle their world in an entirely new way; less whole than before, but whole enough to try life again; never leaving behind the grief, yet learning to live life a new way within grief’s thick walls. Such was the case with Deb Hart. She was
born and raised in Stevenson, Washington, which is where she also raised her children. The loss of her son, Kasey in August of 2006, rocked her world like never before. Not knowing the cause of his death made the loss that much more unbearable. Never knowing why he was taken at such a young age, fresh into a new promising career, with a whole life in front of him, can cause a mom to question everything there is to question about life and why one stays on earth while another is swept away before the next breath can be breathed. Grief took hold of Deb and took a toll on not only her mind, but also on her body. She was diagnosed with breast cancer just seven months after the loss of Kasey. She found herself fighting for her life at the same time she was trying to navigate the many channels of the quagmires of grief. “I called it my year from hell,” she said. “Everybody has one; for some it’s a diagnosis, others it’s a divorce, others the loss of someone they are close to.” Deb’s ‘year from hell’ didn’t miraculously end at the end of twelve months, but eventually her health returned and she knew she had to turn the devastation of losing her son into something positive. “It took me four years to get out of the worst funk ever. I was bitter and I was angry, and then I got to a point where it could not be about me anymore.” So in 2011 she started Pink Sistas
Deb Hart Continued on Page 5
Quiet Little North Bonneville is Making Some Noise By Rick Roach
W
e recently moved to the charming little town of North Bonneville, Washington and are starting to become acquainted with our neighbors. Since part of the mission of the paper is to promote Gorge communities and businesses we are starting with the community in which we live. North Bonneville is a beautiful place with picturesque scenery of mountains and evergreen trees in every direction. A master planned community with twelve miles of lighted paved trails, and a disc golf course, it is situated adjacent to the Beacon Rock golf course and Pierce National Wildlife Refuge as well as numerous nearby hiking trails.
The small town has an interesting history which includes its transplantation in the early 1970’s due to the construction of the second powerhouse at the Bonneville Dam. An event that happened shortly after we moved in was the Birds of Prey 5k run sponsored by the Columbia Gorge Running Club and benefitting the cross-country running team at Stevenson High School. The event was an encouraging example of the community spirit and commitment of its’ citizens to support their youth. A recent meeting by the city council proved that the mayor and city councilors are
North Bonneville Continued on Page 4