Letters to the Editor 08/10/2011

To the Editor:

Sisters and Central Oregon lost a great gentlemen, a very active volunteer, and for many a wonderful friend with the passing of Gary Woods on August 5 in Redmond.

Gary and his wife, Evonne, came to the Sisters area first as part-time visitors, built their first home here, and then became full-time residents. He became a volunteer and then the volunteer coordinator with the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce. He also was a member of the board of directors for the High Mountains Dixieland Jazz Festival and an active volunteer and computer guru with the Sisters Rodeo Association. He often offered this same computer advice and service to his many friends in the Sisters area.

Gary and Evonne also were founding members of the "Bored," a group of local residents that have met monthly for the past 18 years.

We will all miss his great stories, his humor, and his friendship.

Jim Fisher

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To the Editor:

Recently I observed a friend who owns a business property on his hands and knees, weeding. I joshed but he informed me that he had hired a high school student but the young man objected to working on his hands and knees and in the hot sun, so he had no alternative!

We of the Depression era started working at age 10 and it was not a matter of choice, but of survival for families. What has happened to America's initiative? When my oldest daughter, now a retired nurse, was in high school, she and her schoolmates worked as nurses' aides in a Masonic hospital. I still remember with great pleasure the joy she and her workmates added to the lives of the elderly there - the touch of a loving hand - a smile or some conversation. That need and other volunteer work is more sorely needed now, with our aging population. Add to that Habitat for Humanity and doubtless many other organizations, all of which are pleading for needed volunteers.

After over half a century of work, many of us still serve as volunteers for such causes. Why do we not include a minimum of volunteer work for every high school graduate - either during vacation or upon graduation. They will be embarking upon their lifetime of work - is it too much to ask that they learn the value of contributing to their own community? Isn't that one of the things America has always been known for and proud of, or did all of that disappear with the current generation? If it has, I have great fear for our country! How about a minimum of 80 hours, in four-hour increments? Not necessarily on hands and knees or in the hot sun.

Russell B. Williams

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To the Editor:

I'm writing in reference to the front-page article: Abandoned Campfire Sparks Brushfire. My family lives out in Camp Sherman directly opposite from that very spot. We were already aware that someone had been camping in that area of the forest for quite some time.

Last week we saw the fire start and were greatly relieved with the successful response of the fire fighters who came upon the scene. But, afterwards, I was shocked to read the casual response of Forest Service Assistant Fire Management Officer Vince Grace, when referring to the incidents of abandoned campfires, as "...kind of a problem

lately".

The fire danger out here is listed as HIGH, it's very hot and the wind is blowing most afternoons. This is the perfect weather for forest fires. Not only is the forest at great potential risk but also so are the lives of my family and all the other folks who live and recreate in this area. So I really don't understand how it's possible for anyone to be able to have fires in dispersed areas that, by their nature, are without some kind of official monitoring, fire pits and access to water.

The article ends with cautioning campers to "make sure a fire is dead out." Even if all of those people were to read this and then take it to heart, a simple cautioning is not good enough to prevent an accident that could cause a terrible catastrophe.

Most often forest fires are caused by human negligence. In my opinion, the Forest Service should not allow dispersed camping anywhere in the forest during High fire season and this policy should be backed up with signage and enforced by fines for those who disregard it.

Susan Prince

Camp Sherman