As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
Oct 30, 2019
The first picture I am sharing was taken in July of 1981 during the filming of a Budweiser Clydesdale commercial on the Bandon beach.
Filmng Budweiser commercial, 1981
An article in Western World explains that "a Clydesdale horse named 'Baron' his mate 'Shona' and a crew of 30 production people spent three days on the Bandon beach last week filming a commercial for Budweiser Light beer.
"Hundreds of Bandon residents and visitors lined the bluff and walked the beaches as they watched the filming ... with 12 Coos County people used in the television commercial. A Bandon woman, Lena Schultz, who is well known for her equestrian knowledge, was one of several riders who stood by on their mounts to 'head off' the Clydesdale in case he decided that running down the shoreline was not all that much fun."
The huge animal was said to be one of the top Clydesdales in the world. He was brought to the area from St. Louis, Mo., and had never been by the sea, according to Hazel Colgrove, who played a role in promoting the local beach. The horse weighed 1900 pounds and stood 16 hands high.
After three days the crews headed to Siltcoos to complete their filming in the sand dunes before returning to California.
If memory serves me, this was the second time a Budweiser commercial was filmed on the beach because I seem to remember that at one point the horse got loose and raced up onto Beach Loop Drive, which caused quite a stir before he was retrieved. I do not find that information in this article, but I clearly remember that it happened. I was also down on the beach to take this picture and a number of others during the filming.
I remember the second picture like it was yesterday, even though it was 47 years ago .... (April of 1972) during a crab feed sponsored at the local airport by the Bandon Aero Club.
This single engine aircraft crashed into the thick gorse at the south end of the runway as it was leaving the crab feed.
Plane crashes into gorse, 1972
The Portland man, who was piloting the plane, was accompanied by his wife and their 11-year-old daughter. In the article that I wrote about the accident, I said that the Portland family probably owed their lives to the thick cover of Irish Gorse into which their plane crashed, just a few feet off the end of the runway.
We were all enjoying our crab dinner when the plane took off, and all sat in horrified silence as we watched it crash into the gorse. We ran out to see if we could help, although the plane was deep in the gorse and it took people with chain saws and axes 30 minutes before they could cut a trail through the gorse to reach the wreckage of the Cessna 170. Aero club member and pilot Lowell Meyer was the first person to reach the plane, with City of Bandon employee Don Pierce close behind.
The pilot had yelled to us that they needed an ambulance as his wife and daughter were injured. Both she and her daughter were released from the hospital several days later, with the daughter treated for a broken arm and the wife suffering a wrenched back.
A boom truck, owned by Robertson's Sand and Gravel and operated by Earl Robertson, lifted the wrecked plane out of the gorse the following week.
At that point I had never flown, even in a small plane, but my date that day was Jim Wilson, manager of Coos-Curry Electric and a pilot. He had promised to take me flying as soon as the crab feed was over. After all the excitement was over, he turned to me and said, "are you ready to go up?" I said, "are you crazy?" But he convinced me that if I didn't go up that day I might never fly, and he was right. But I can assure you that after witnessing that plane diving headlong into the gorse, I was a bit nervous. I have never been a huge fan of flying but when I think of the great places I have been (like Hawaii four times), I'm glad he was able to talk me into flying that day.
The third photo was taken during the Cranberry Coronation in September of 1973.
Cranberry Coronation, 1973
Pictured are Rocky Kistner, crown bearer, and Maria Stadelman, flower girl, leading the 1972 queen Michelle Goodbrod, and her escort, Wayne Stolz, onto the stage. Later that evening, Mary Luther was crowed Cranberry Queen.
In the picture I can see Dale Terp and in the row behind him, Tom Rock seated next to Jeff Hess.
* * *
I did not realize until I looked at my ballot last week that the only thing on there besides the city's bond issue (measure 6-173) was an election for members of a county transportation board, about which I had read nothing.
I am just hoping that the people of Bandon will support this much-needed bond issue, which is necessary to maintain our sewer and water systems.
As most of you know, the city council has not had rate-setting authority since the approval of a citizen-initiated charter amendment in 1995, and although we have asked the voters to return that authority to the council at least twice, we have not been successful. That has made it very difficult to set the rates for our water, sewer and electric systems. As a result we passed emergency rate increases several months ago after it appeared that we would be about $400,000 short of balancing the water and sewer budgets. We have been sued by a Bandon man, Rob Taylor. What happens next to our utilities will depend largely on what happens with the bond issue and the lawsuit.
At the recent Utilities Commission meeting, there was a lot of discussion as to what alternatives the city might take if the bond issue is turned down and the emergency rate increase was overturned.
Options could range from continuing to operate them as municipal utilities, selling the utilities to Coos-Curry Electric or Pacific Power (both of whose rates are higher than Bandon's), creating a subdivision of the city with a council-appointed board, forming an independent consumer-owned utility with an elected governing board or other options that we have not yet thought of. The last thing we want to have happen is for the state to step in and take over our utilities because neither the customers or the council would have any say over the rates that we pay.
I urge the voters of the City of Bandon to please send in your ballot ... and support our bond issue.
* * *
The ad which has been running lately in Coffee Break about a seafood business and restaurant for sale has caused lots of questions, and most thought it must be Lori and Barry Osborne's new seafood business in the Port's Old Town Marketplace building. They have taken over and completely remodeled the spot formerly occupied by Watson's Live Seafood.
Lori advised us this week that is absolutely not true, and she hoped I would put it in my column so people would know that she is not selling her business.
We understand the business that is for sale may be in Port Orford, but I have not confirmed that.
I guess we could call the numbers attached to the ad if we were that interested... but it's more fun to guess.
* * *
Bandon's new acting city manager is planning director Dennis Lewis. He has been working in Bandon for more than a year, but is no stranger to the community having served as planning director under Matt Winkel some years ago. He has a great deal of local government experience and we appreciate his willingness to help us as we prepare to search for a new city manager following the resignation of Robert Mawson.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
Oct 23, 2019
I'm not sure when this first picture was taken, but I am guessing it was in the 1920s.
Bandon arch, 1920s
According to Dow Beckham's book, the Roosevelt Highway (later Highway 101) came into the business section from the south on Oregon Avenue (now the highway coming down the hill and onto Chicago Avenue). "The state of Oregon made improvements on Second Street to lead the highway east out of town. The state agreed to provide $6,000 toward the project."
This arch would probably have been on the east side of Chicago Avenue, and contains mileage information for Coquille (18 miles); Marshfield (now Coos Bay), 37 miles; Roseburg, 88 miles, and Myrtle Point, 27 miles.
The service station below the arch later became Capps Motor Company's station after the Fire of 1936, and today is the site of the Bandon Visitor Center and Chamber of Commerce office.
The second photo shows long-time Western Bank manager Cecil Kemp and his son, Bob, after what appears to be a pretty successful fishing trip. This photo was taken in April of 1968.
Western Bank manager Cecil Kemp and his son Bob, 1968
Their boat was on the back of Cecil's pickup, and I am pretty sure the photo was taken in front of the Western World office (now home of The Cobbler's Bench) because I can see the lumber stacked on the Moore Mill lot in the background (which is now the gravel lot at the east end of Second Street and across from the Old Town Marketplace).
The third photo was taken in November of 1957, a few months after Robert L. Ray and his wife Phyllis opened Ray's Pharmacy in the Dahl building on the north side of Second Street, next to Boone's Hardware, barely visible at left, and Kaping's Florist.
Ray's Pharmacy, 1957
These buildings are now owned by Lynn Davies and her daughter, Jessica Markham Brink, and house a number of different businesses.
The Western World article about Bob and Phyllis moving to Bandon said they had four children: Robert 10, Martha 9, Chris 8, and Stephen 6. He was a former Portland druggist.
They later opened their business across Second Street in the building that now houses Winter River Books.
* * *
Several of my faithful readers pointed out that the picture of the barge going under the Bullards Bridge was backwards, which apparently happened when I was scanning the negative. So if you thought the mill was on the wrong side of the photo, you were right. Unfortunately I have no idea where the negative is or I would re-scan it. But when you're talking around 30,000 negatives, it would be literally like finding a needle in a haystack. This is a photo that ran several weeks ago in my column.
* * *
Hopefully we have been able to reach most of the residents, who own property in the City of Bandon, but in case you did not see the Facebook posts and other attempts to notify people, the bottom line is that there was a mistake on the property tax statements that you received last week in the mail and you should not pay your taxes until after you receive a corrected statement. A staff member incorrectly certified the bonds resulting in slightly higher tax bills on the City of Bandon bond portion of the statement.
The county will be reissuing corrected statements, but it may not happen until sometime after the first of November, but still in time for people to receive the 2 percent discount for paying by Nov. 15.
I know that a number of you probably paid your taxes the day you received your statement, and I am not sure whether a refund will be issued or a credit given on next year's taxes, but as soon as we receive the information from the county, we will let people know.
* * *
I saw a post last week indicating that Linda Markham, widow of Don Markham, a very successful Bandon High School football coach, had died. I do not know the details, nor where she was living, but the post generated a lot of very positive comments about Linda and how she related to the football players and the community. Her husband was a brother of the late Chuck Markham.
* * *
By now I am sure most of you have received your ballots in the mail, and I hope that those of you who are city of Bandon customers have had a chance to read the comprehensive Q&A which accompanied your last utility bill. It explains in detail the critical need for the passage of the general obligation bond for the water and sewer systems.
If the bond passes, the assessment for the first couple of years will be 56 cents a thousand, increasing over the life of the 20-year bond to 77 cents.
The improvements at the water and sewer plants are aimed at helping to ensure that the City can continue to provide an adequate supply of clean water for drinking, fire protection and other domestic purposes, and helping ensure that the City can continue to treat its sewage and protect the river, estuary, and bay for fishing, crabbing and other recreational activities.
The council wants to keep the costs to residents as low as possible, and feels that everyone who lives or own property in Bandon should share in the cost of the needed improvements. Even residents who do not have City water and sewer to their homes benefit from these improvements in a myriad of ways, including fire protection and the use of public facilities.
We all benefit from a sewer plant that discharges clean effluent and does not pollute the Coquille River.
I am urging people to vote yes on ballot measure 6-173.
* * *
Sprague Theater Manager Jeff Norris has announced that the first in a series of movies will be shown at the theater on Thursday night, Oct. 31, beginning at 7 p.m. A special Halloween short will be shown along with the Bette Midler movie, Hocus Pocus. Special holiday pricing is 10 and under, free; 11-18, $3; 60 plus, $4, and all others, $5.
Jeff says they have purchased a popcorn machine to add to the theater ambience.
* * *
"Help guide the fate of the Oregon Coast" is the theme of a special meeting to be held in Bandon Friday, Nov. 1, at The Barn from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. A press release advises that "The Oregon Coastal Management Program wants to hear from you. OCMP, a division of Oregon's DLCD, is undergoing strategic planning that will guide the program's work over the next five years. This process is an opportunity for groups and concerned residents to advocate for strengthening protections relative to 9 categories: Wetlands, Coastal Hazards, Public Access, Marine Debris, Cumulative and Secondary Impacts, Special Area Management Planning, Ocean and Great Lakes Resources, Energy and Government Facility Siting and Aquaculture."
In addition to the one scheduled for Bandon, the second interactive workshop is set for Lincoln City on Friday, Nov. 8.
Robert Bailey, retired Coastal Program Manager for DLCD, will be the facilitator.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
Oct 16, 2019
The first picture I am sharing this week was from my collection of pictures taken during the aftermath of the Columbus Day Storm, which was the subject of a special program at the Bandon History Museum Saturday.
Science room at Pacific High School after Columbus Day Storm, 1962
It was great to have a standing-room-only crowd, who seemed to thoroughly enjoy my presentation, which was accompanied by photos that had appeared in Western World. Like this photo, which is not of very good quality, the negatives were never found, but Jim Proehl was able to copy the photos out of the pages of Western World so we could share them. It would be great to learn what happened to the negatives, as I know I took many more than just the ones that made it into the paper. But hey, that was 57 years ago .... so they could be anywhere.
This is a picture of the science room at Pacific High School, which suffered extensive damage in the Oct. 12, 1962, storm, said to be the worst natural disaster ever to hit Oregon.
The science room was one of several on the south side of the north wing of Pacific High which lost its ceiling, all windows and portions of the walls. Small pieces of jagged glass at the base of the windows are all that remained of the large windows which faced to the south.
Another of the pictures, which appeared on a photo page, shows the vertical siding and diagonal sheathing on the Vocational Agriculture room (just to the east of the gym) which were severed like paper when a large ventilator, weighing between 750 and 1,000 pounds, was hurled by the wind through the air from the balcony and dropped through the ceiling. Beneath the debris, piled ceiling high, was most of the equipment used by the shop and Vo-Ag students.
What I remember most was being in the gymnasium and looking up and being able to see daylight between the roof and the walls.
Even though it was estimated that fifty percent of the school was destroyed, Fire Chief Lanny Boston, who attended the program at the museum, recalls that he was a student at Pacific High School at that time, and said that students were able to return to school the next week (the storm hit on Friday) because the other wing of the building was not damaged.
The Pacific High students had been sent home less than an hour before the storm hit. Students were also released early at Bandon, but damage to the school was minimal and was pretty much confined to the loss of the electronic scoreboard. Many commercial buildings in Bandon lost their plate glass windows and signs. There was 2.3 million in insured damages in the area from Bandon to Gold Beach, with Port Orford being particularly hard hit.
I remember that day very clearly as I was a young cub reporter for the Western World, and was driving around in the strong winds taking pictures, until I realized that this might not be your average windstorm, and headed home. I lived with my family in the two-story house across from the cheese factory on Highway 101, and I remember pressing my face up against the plate glass window and watching the roof of the hydro-electric building (across from what is now the museum) sail across Fillmore. Pieces of it went through the south windows of what was then Yockey Electric (and is now Reese Electric) and out the front windows that faced onto Fillmore. Virtually everything in the shop was destroyed.
In spite of winds that reached 145 miles an hour at Cape Blanco, 116 mph in Portland, 130 mph in North Bend and 100 mph at the wind gauge in the Bandon High School science department, only 15 people were killed in the entire state and a total of 46 in the 1000-mile area (Oregon, Washington, northern California and British Columbia). That in itself was a miracle considering the damage, which amounted to billions of dollars.
The second photo was taken in 1970 as Public Works Director Bob Hiley, right, and an unidentified helper patch First Street near the Coast Guard Station.
Patching First Street, 1970
Another employee, Mr. Yost, can be seen behind the truck which is dumping the patching material. I think his first name was Elmer, but just not positive. My memory usually serves me well .... but sometimes not.
The third picture, taken in the mid-50s, is of Father Peter Dally, priest at St. John's Episcopal Church, left; W.J Sweet, acolyte Louie Bohles and Bishop Benjamin Dagwell, following a confirmation service at the church.
Father Peter Dally, W.J Sweet, acolyte Louie Bohles and Bishop Benjamin Dagwell, St. John's Episcopal Church, 1950s
The Sweet family donated most of the money to build the additions to the church in memory of Mr. Sweet's wife, Theresa; his daughter, Helen Mayes; and his grandson, Richard Sweet.
* * *
Golf magazine recently listed the four No. 1-ranked resorts from their Top 100 Resorts lists, and Bandon Dunes Golf Resort was listed No. 1 in the Buddies (resorts best suited for your annual golf vacation with friends) category. Big Cedar Lodge in the Missouri Ozarks was the best for Families, Pebble Beach Resorts in Pebble Beach, Calif., was tops for luxury, and The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo., was No. 1 for general excellence.
Here is what Golf had to say about Bandon Dunes: "Of all the resorts on our Top 100 lists, none are more purely about golf than the No. 1 in the Buddies category: Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. In just 20 years, Bandon has become the premier golf destination in all of the United States. The Oregon resort's four 18-hole courses are routinely ranked among the Top 100 courses in the world. In addition, they have a short course and a massive putting course, with a brand-new 18-holer on the way."
* * *
There have been several personnel changes at Southern Coos Health District in the last couple of months, along with some positive news on the financial front.
Ana Mugica has been hired as the new Chief Financial Officer to replace Alan Dow, who is returning to retirement after the transition. Dow returned to Bandon and came out of retirement to serve as CFO after the board hired former CFO Amy Fine to be the new CEO, replacing JoDee Tittle.
Deborah "Debi" Ellis is the new Chief Nursing Officer. She joined Southern Coos as the Swing Bed Coordinator in 2017. Victoria McNeeley has joined the health district as Risk and Quality Manager. She will also serve as Medical Staff Coordinator and Compliance Officer.
The August minutes indicate that the "July volumes were improved for the month and inpatient volumes were substantially higher than the prior year with inpatient days up 58% and Swing Bed days 65% higher. The resulting robust revenue was the highest in the history of the hospital. However our high Medicare utilization combined with Medicare cost-based reimbursement that does not allow a profit, impacted our ability to report a more robust bottom line. Cash on Hand is at 54.3 days."
The district continues to search for a physician for the clinic to replace Dr. Megan Holland, who left to join the clinic associated with the Coquille Valley Hospital.
* * *
There are still tickets left for "A Night at the Museum," hosted by the Bandon History Museum Thursday night (Oct. 17) from 5 to 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 and are available at the front desk of the museum. Refreshments will be served thanks to sponsors Robin and Geneva Miller and the Beverage Barn.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
Oct 09, 2019
A headline in the April 10, 1958, Western World prompted me to share this picture of the information center at Bullards Beach State Park, taken in July of 1971.
Information center at Bullards Beach State Park, 1971
The 1958 headline read: "Abandoned lighthouse may bring state park."
Here is what the story had to say. "The abandoned Coquille River Lighthouse, opposite Bandon, together with an adjacent area of land may be made into a state recreational park.
"Since the U.S. Coast Guard has announced that the lighthouse together with some 11 acres of land is to be assigned to the surplus property list and offered for public sale, it has been learned through Congressman Charles O. Porter that the federal government may withhold the property from sale if it will be accepted by the state or a local government for park purposes."
The article adds that the matter had been referred to the state park superintendent who had discussed it with the State Highway Commission. The highway commission approved a study of the area surrounding the lighthouse, together with the area north of the river and east as far as Bullards Bridge.
And that was the beginning of what has become one of the South Coast's premier state parks.
The caption beneath the picture talked about how busy the park was on the three-day Fourth of July weekend.
Park Manager Ira Haskett reported that it was necessary to turn campers away two nights as there weren't enough spaces.
An earlier article, from 1966, talked about the new modern facilities installed at the campground, which included 128 campsites with sewer, water and electric accommodations, plus wood.
"This is believed to be the first state park where all campsites are so equipped," said a Western World article.
I am not sure of the exact date of the second picture, taken in 1966, which shows a tug guiding an Oliver Olson barge under Bullards Bridge, headed to Rogge Lumber.
Tug guiding barge under Bullards Bridge, 1966
An item in October of 1966 talks about the Oliver J. Olson barge, Whitney, which struck Bullards Bridge as it was headed toward Rogge mill, causing the closure of the bridge for over a week. During that time, all traffic (including those living just on the other side in Randolph and Prosper), had to detour over Highway 42S through Coquille .... or as my uncle Lou Felsheim did, walk across the bridge to a car waiting for him on the other side.
The displacement of the pier was so great that the southwest corner of the span had nothing to sit on.
Since I could not find this particular photo in the paper, it is quite possible that this is the barge that struck the bridge. If not, it was another barge owned by the same steamship company.
In the meantime, the barge loaded with over 3 million board feet of lumber waited for the bridge to be repaired before it could once again go beneath it en route to the local harbor and out to sea.
The third picture is Alfred Owens, a well-known and much loved figure, who seldom missed an event in town.
Alfred Owens, 1975
This photo was taken in 1975 as Alfred headed into Edgewater Department Store (now the Continuum Center) which was owned by Dave and Joan Gradt. In the background you can see the sign for The Minute Cafe.
* * *
Sorry to hear that Bandon lost two graduates in the past week, including Steve Eggert and Bobbie Owens Miller. Steve, who graduated from BHS in 1969, died Oct. 2 with his wife, the former Tracee Nagel, and family by his bedside. Among his survivors is his brother, Mike Eggert Oyster.
Bobbie Miller was a member of the Class of 1988. Among her survivors are her husband Clay, two children, her sister Peggy and her mother JoAnn. Her father was the late Bobby Owens and she was a niece of well-known Bandon photographer Airlee Owens.
* * *
As announced on the front page of the Bandon Western World last week, City Manager Robert Mawson has submitted his resignation.
We had called a meeting to evaluate progress on a number of issues, and it was during our conversation that Robert handed us an envelope containing his letter of resignation, effective Oct. 11. We did not ask for his resignation and it took the council completely by surprise. We are very sorry it did not work out.
After handing us the letter, Robert assured us that he would work with the department heads and other staff to ensure a smooth transition for current efforts and day-to-day activities. We thank him for the professional way this is being handled.
I can definitely say this has been a difficult few weeks for the city.
* * *
Just a reminder that I will be narrating a program on the Columbus Day Storm of 1962 this Saturday at the Bandon History Museum at 2 o'clock. As a cub reporter for the Western World, I took a great many photos of the storm damage, but even though we were never able to locate the negatives, Jim Proehl has copied the photos that appeared in the paper to share during a slide show of the Storm.
We would love to hear your stories of where you were during the largest natural disaster ever to hit the Pacific Northwest.
I was having lunch with Jim and Matt Winkel the other day and asked where they were when the storm hit. Jim remarked that he was in the fourth grade, and Matt said he was in junior high .... in Maryland. Talk about making me feel old .....
* * *
I received the September rainfall data from Gerry Terp this week and noted that there were 4.87 inches recorded this September compared to 0.45 last year. In the last 15 years, the most rainfall recorded in September was in the 12/13 rain year (6.67 inches), with this year's total being the second most recorded in the 15-year period.
Hope this isn't a harbinger of things to come this winter. I am just not ready for months of steady rain.
* * *
After learning last week that Dish had dropped FS1 (where some of the Pac12 football games, including Oregon, are aired), I had just about decided to call Spectrum Monday morning and change carriers. But Sunday morning, Dish sent out an email that said they had reached an agreement and FS1, FS2 and other sports channels were back on the air. That comes just in time for the Oregon game Friday night at 7, which will air on FS1.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
Oct 02, 2019
The first picture I am sharing is a bit like one I shared more than a year ago, but this one was taken in March of 1958 while the barge was parked at the Moore Mill & Lumber Co. dock.
Barge stacked with lumber, 1958
What made this unusual is the fact that the lumber was stacked up like a 10-story building on the Pacific Barge No. 2, owned by the Oliver J. Olson Company, as it prepared to leave for San Francisco.
The biggest lumber cargo ever to leave the Bandon harbor is aboard this barge, more than 4,200,000 board feet, which is equal to between three and four times the average cargo taken out by the Olson Co. steamships.
The article in Western World explained that the reason is that the steamers draw more water and can take only partial cargoes. The barge is this photo is said to be drawing between 14 and 18 feet. The cargo was made up of shipments from Moore Mill and other mills that shipped over the Port of Bandon public dock.
Earlier I know that I read somewhere that as the barge was enroute to San Francisco, it ran into bad weather and lost part of its load. But when I went back to find the article, it has escaped me. It might not have been this specific trip, but I am pretty sure it was.
Moore Mill, of course, was the area's largest employer for many years, dating back to the early 1900s when L.J. Cody and George W. Moore built a sawmill in Bandon in 1906. The mill burned in 1909. They rebuilt the mill and Moore bought out Cody to begin Moore Mill & Lumber Co. It was later purchased by D.H. Miller, a well-known mill operator, who had come to Bandon to manage the local mill. Moore Mill had closed its mill operations and was dismantling the mill when it was destroyed by fire in 1987 after operating for almost 80 years.
Note smoke coming out of the wigwam burner at the far right side of the photo. Interestingly enough, the Bandon History Museum recently received several photos taken during the Columbus Day Storm of 1962, which show the burner tipped onto its side by the force of the winds. (That reminds me that the museum and I are hosting a special program on the Columbus Day Storm on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 2 p.m. at the Bandon History Museum). Come and see the photos I took that day of damage in the Bandon/South Curry area and share your stories with us.)
The second photo was taken sometime in the 1970s of The Style Shop, which was probably owned by Marvin and Carol Manes when this photo was taken.
The Style Shop, 1970s
The first Style Shop was opened on Second Street by Louise Philpott in the late '50s in the building that is now occupied by Esscents Candle and Gift Shop. In 1960 it was owned by Belle Shortridge and Gertrude Greenwell, who later moved to this building on Highway 101 and 10th Street, which today is Bandon Video.
Marvin and Carol bought it from Belle and Gertrude, and after operating a very successful business for many years, sold to Max and Mary Peabody. I am not sure when it closed and later became a video store.
But I do know that between The Golden Rule and The Style Shop (not to mention The Hub in Coos Bay), they pretty much shared my paycheck from Western World (which wasn't much in those days but it was enough to keep me in clothes).
My dad often said, disparagingly, that I would be the best dressed person in the poor house.
I love this third picture, taken in August of 1981 when the Pickle Family Circus came to town.
Pickle Family Circus, 1981
I thought about it the other day when I saw how popular the carnival was that was here for the Cranberry Festival. But the Pickle Family Circus was very different, and was definitely for the younger crowd as evidenced by this clown performing for a rapt audience of little girls, including facing the camera a little one that appears to be Erica Shindler. The article said the two-day event in City Park delighted a crowd of 1200 people. I do remember having fun taking the pictures.
* * *
I mentioned that as soon as I obtained the names of the girls involved in the wreck on Beach Loop Road, near Devil's Kitchen, I would release them. Sgt. Larry Lynch called me at home this afternoon to give me the information.
I had learned that the road had flooded in the low spot just south of Devil's Kitchen, and when the vehicle hit it, the driver allegedly lost control and the vehicle spun into the bank.
The three girls, all from Bandon, who were injured and taken to the hospital in three separate Bay Cities ambulances were Alisa Rouse, 19, who ended up in Bay Area Hospital, and Clarissa Stevens, 18, and Page Bryant-Kirk, 16, both of whom were taken to Doernbecher Hospital in Portland. All three girls have now been released from the hospital, Sgt. Lynch said.
The driver, 18-year-old Sina Napier, was arrested Sept. 27 in connection with an ongoing investigation into the crash, which occurred Sept. 18. She was lodged in the Coos County Jail on three counts of reckless driving, three counts of recklessly endangering and three counts of third-degree assault, according to the Sergeant. As of Sunday evening, she remained in jail.
For a point of clarification, if a person is injured in a car crash, the driver is often charged with assault.
* * *
I've learned that Heather Bouher, who most recently worked as a server at The Crow's Nest/Wheelhouse Restaurant, has purchased The Loft Restaurant and Bar. The popular gourmet fine-dining establishment, is located in the upper level of the High Dock building, owned by the Port of Bandon, overlooking the Coquille River.
* * *
I read on the Bandon School District's Facebook page that fire had broken out in the Harbor Lights Middle School Saturday evening around 8:30. Fortunately quick action on the part of the Bandon Rural Fire Department quelled the blaze, which apparently started in the east wing of the school adjacent to the boys' locker room near the gymnasium.
The post added that the district is working with the fire department and the police department to determine the source of the fire. The state fire marshal was also on scene that night to help determine the cause of the fire and whether it was intentionally set.
Firefighters had to cut a hole in the outer wall to get into the building. There is smoke damage to the building.
In a later post, HLMS announced that while classes were to resume Monday with their normal schedule, PE and music classes will be relocated to a temporary location while they work to get the music room and the boys' locker room repaired. The damage was primarily located in a storage room that contained all of the middle school football equipment, and none of it could be salvaged. For further information people can contact Supt. Doug Ardiana at 541-347-4414.
The fire brought back vivid memories of that night 45 years ago when an arsonist completely destroyed the Bandon High School. That night firemen were able to save the junior high, which was directly behind the high school.
Previous columns by Mary Schamehorn
bandon.tv