Posted: Tuesday, June 5, 2007 12:00 am
I have been very impressed by the community's generosity. Wildcat Park was rebuilt in record time, due to the many hours of those who have been determined to have a wonderful playground in that area of town.
For the last four years, the Garfield Playground Committee, which consists of parents, grandparents and friends of Garfield, have planned an accessible playground to replace the old, outdated and unsafe playground that Garfield had for many years. We are hoping that the Corvallis Community can support two wonderful playgrounds!
Phase I of the playground was installed last fall and consists of a 12 swings and a round structure with overhead events. The most expensive part of the new playground is the rubber tile surfacing. It allows for year-round accessibility. The former playground often flooded.
Phase II of the playground consists of the first part of the large ramped structure. The large ramped structure will be installed in three phases. The first phase consists of three ramps, an overhead event and slides, seek panel and much more.
The second phase consists of a ship configuration with slides and opportunities for climbing. The third phase consists of castle panels, slides and more opportunities for climbing and imaginative play. We are approximately $12,000 away from ordering phase II, the first part of the large structure. The deadline for ordering phase II is July 10 in order for installation to take place this fall. The installation of the rubber tiles requires a dry surface, which limits the time- frame for installation.
If you are interested in helping meet our goal by July, please contact the Corvallis School Foundation at 757-5857. If you are willing to help with the installation of phase II, please contact Garfield Elementary School
Heidi Garza
Chairwoman
Garfield Elementary School
Playground Committee
Superintendent salutes Class of 2007
As Oregon's Superintendent of Public Instruction, spring is an exciting time for me. Across the state, students from Oregon's 197 school districts are walking across the stage or down the aisle, with family and friends watching, receiving their diploma and setting out on a new stage of their lives.
When I took office in 2003, the class of 2007 was just about to enter high school, and over the next four years, they surmounted the varied challenges that faced them. I want to celebrate those students and the educators who helped them graduate. With the education they have received, they are prepared to go on to the next set of challenges - whether college or the workforce. I am so proud of every one of this year's graduates.
Congratulations, Class of 2007, and good luck!
Susan Castillo
Salem
Shaw was a historic presence at OSU
On May 25, Frank Shaw, a long-time friend, passed away. For 30 years, we were colleagues in the Oregon State University History Department. I, as well as many others in this community, will always remember his contagious enthusiasm on encountering a new idea or book.
We shall miss his great sense of humor; his compassion; his love of the theatre (especially in Ashland); his voraciousness as a reader of history, public affairs, etc. and his unwavering support of the Chicago Cubs.
The best example of his compassion was his immersion in the Civil Rights movement. Very early in its evolution, he developed a department course on it which he taught for many years. He dedicated himself to reading every book published on the movement during those many years. As a result, Frank became an invaluable resource on the movement for his colleagues and friends.
The best evidence of his strong support of the Civil Rights movement was the year he spent without pay as a visiting faculty member at Miles College, a small black institution in Birmingham, Ala. For years afterward, Frank continued to support Miles financially and in other ways, such as organizing book drives for its library.
For all these reasons and many more, Frank Shaw is going to be very much missed by many in this community.
Thomas C. McClintock
Corvallis
We will have need of Whiteside again
We recently attended a ballet performance of Peter Pan at The Newport Performing Arts Center. It was a great performance, and it brought my mind to the Whiteside Theater dilemma.
As our town grows, we will need to keep in mind more spaces for performing arts, as we don't just want to grow in terms of housing, big box stores, etc. Why couldn't we maintain this fine old theater for such performances and musical performances as well?! This seems a much better idea than breaking it up into shops. I have been in lots of big places that were turned into little shops. They're half-empty. They aren't as irreplaceable (construction-wise) as a piece of art - for the use of artists - would be.
Janet Hagen
Alsea
It's prudent policy to bomb Iran
Two hundred and eighty-eight U.S. lawmakers recently showed uncommon common sense in rejecting U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio's proposed Iran Attack Ban.
It was about five years ago that Iran's intent to develop and deploy nuclear weapons was revealed. Since then, the civilized world's policy of appeasement (e.g. diplomacy, sanctions, bribes, etc.) has failed to change the jihadist intentions of Iran's mullocracy. Iran openly avows to "wipe Israel off the map" and wants to create "a world without America." With the threat of nuclear weapons propping him up, Iranian President Ahmadinejad asserts, "The wave of the Islamic revolution will soon reach the entire world."
It's time that Rep. DeFazio and his ilk stopped whistling past the graveyard. Rational people eliminate threats before they materialize. If we are serious about stopping Iran's nuclear intentions, the only rational alternative is military force. Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney (Ret.) estimates that an air campaign by a coalition of willing nations against Iran's 1,500 nuclear-related "aim points" would delay Iranian nuclear plans at least 5 years. It might even cause the overthrow of Ahmadinejad and the mullahs.
Surely, there are risks involved. But to paraphrase John McCain, the only thing worse than bombing Iran is allowing Iran to get the bomb.
Gordon L. Shadle
Albany