Letters to the Editor 5/04/2022

Support Cloverdale Fire levy

To the Editor:

The Cloverdale Fire District needs your help. There is a critical shortage in qualified fire officers available, and currently no volunteers able to make a commitment to the hundreds of extra hours required for the leadership roles.

The current two paid officers have been striving to maintain full district coverage, resulting in hundreds of additional hours worked per month between the two positions. This is not sustainable, and could rapidly lead to burnout and stress-related health issues if not resolved soon.

This levy would allow the Cloverdale Fire District to hire two additional Fire Officer/EMTs, providing the full coverage needed for 24-hour staffing and alleviating the burden on the two current paid officers.

Full-time in-station staffing would also help improve response times.

A volunteer responding from home can take up to 12 minutes to be able to get an emergency vehicle on the road.

With 24-hour station staffing, an emergency vehicle can be on the road within just a few minutes.

Finally, it would also allow the District to bring on additional full-time students to supplement the ranks of our first responders.

This five-year levy would have a rate of just 69 cents per $1,000 of assessed value (not market value; there’s a big difference).

This would bring the total rate to $2.16 per $1,000, which is still much less than neighboring agencies such as Sisters, Black Butte Ranch, and Crooked River Ranch.

Please help the Cloverdale Fire District to be able to maintain the high level of service our community needs and expects, and vote YES for the levy.

Cindy Kettering

Vice President, Cloverdale Fire District Board of Directors

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To the Editor:

Please vote “yes,” in favor of Ballot Measure 9-146.

Your Cloverdale Volunteer Firefighters Association and the Fire District Board of Directors are asking for our community’s support. It is paramount that the residents of this district vote “yes” in support of this levy.

This will ensure that when the call goes out, no matter the time of day or night, we will have an experienced officer immediately responding. This levy will allow the District to hire two qualified fire officer/EMTs for 24/7 staffing and provides for the safety of our volunteers, fire students, and the community. The levy will also fund three additional student positions to provide staffing to the District’s North station. This request is at a “bare bone” minimum and will help your volunteers to keep this community safe.

As a volunteer lieutenant, I was able to perform the responsibilities of taking on a duty shift every Tuesday and a weekend each month.

All that changed when issues with my health led to my having to stop being an active interior firefighter.

As is the case with most volunteer fire districts throughout the nation, getting enough active firefighters is an ever-increasing struggle.

The time demands for certification requirements seem to grow with each passing year.

It is no wonder that it’s difficult to recruit and retain dedicated personnel as we ask them to take on a volunteer career and lifestyle that can be more demanding and dangerous than most paid jobs.

The additional time requirements for becoming an officer are even more demanding and stressful.

We desperately need these two additional fire officers to keep our volunteers and community safe. The worst nightmare of any firefighter is to see one of our own fall in the line of duty. Having the security of knowing there will be an experienced officer on duty could mean the difference in all of us making it back home.

Sixty-nine cents per $1,000 is a small price to pay for the increased safety of our community members and first responders.

Please join me in voting Yes for Ballot measure 9-146, and support your firefighting volunteers and our community.

Rex E. Parks, Sr.

Volunteer Apparatus Operator Engineer and Maintenance Officer

Cloverdale RFPD

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To the Editor:

I have been in fire and emergency medical services (EMS) for 25 years, and I am voting YES on 9-146 to support the Cloverdale Fire District. I have served with many organizations in multiple communities. I have lived in Cloverdale for 11 years, been a volunteer with Cloverdale Fire District for 10 of those years, and currently serve as a Lieutenant/Paramedic and the EMS Coordinator. I volunteer because I believe it is important to serve my community, and I see this levy meeting District needs and providing significant benefits.

What does Cloverdale gain with a YES vote?

• Qualified and paid fire officers staffed 24/7.

• Improved training for volunteers, with staff available seven days a week.

• Consistent supervision of live-in students.

• Increased support and supervision for all volunteer responders.

I am also deeply grateful for the level of support my community has shown to the volunteer firefighters who serve Cloverdale.

Even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, our community responded with record high donations.

The community has supported bringing the facilities, apparatus, and equipment to a modern level, which brings benefits for decades to come.

A YES vote will provide stable staffing in Cloverdale for improved response and better support of the volunteers who will remain an integral part of emergency response.

Yes, this is a significant increase from the current rate, but the return on this investment is far greater than the cost.

You may also experience a significant decrease in your homeowners insurance, which could cover a large portion of the increased tax rate.

I am voting YES because,

• The current staffing model is not sustainable with area growth.

• Multiple examples of slow response times from volunteer companies.

• Lack of qualified officers within the volunteer ranks to meet response needs.

• Fire and EMS responses will be more reliable and consistent.

YES on 9-146.

Damon E. Frutos

Lieutenant/Paramedic, Cloverdale Fire District

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Don’t bag pinecones

To the Editor:

As a local Tollgate resident, I’m concerned about the pinecone cleanup practices currently taking place in our neighborhood and in other local areas and the incredibly wasteful use of what must be thousands of nonbiodegradable, environmentally harmful plastic bags to collect them.

As we all value Central Oregon’s pristine environment, I’m curious about who made the decision (and why) that is contributing all this unnecessary waste to gather a natural material that would compost and biodegrade on its own? I’ve also seen the same [activity] happening near Peterson Trails area, on the way towards Three Creeks.

There must be more sustainable methods for fire safety and cleanup maintenance practices. It would be helpful to know why this particular method was selected and what other options there are that would reduce this wasteful practice and environmental harm.

Darcie Meihoff

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Supporting Patti Adair

To the Editor:

Patti Adair has continued to effectively serve the residents of Deschutes County as Commissioner, Position 3, for the past four years. During her time in office she has used her many years of experience as an accountant and business manager to lead Deschutes County through the challenges of COVID, mass business closures/reductions, and soaring unemployment. Under her steady leadership, Deschutes County has continued to grow and thrive.

Our county’s population is projected to grow at unprecedented levels, which will present our leaders with complex and demanding challenges, not the least of which will be land use, water, affordable housing, and budget concerns. These and other issues will impact the quality of life for all county residents, now and into the future. Patti Adair’s experience and skills will be crucial during these times.

Commissioner Adair’s opponent in this race is quoted in the April 13 issue of The Nugget as saying she was motivated to run for this office based on her interpretation of Commissioner Adair’s proposed ordinance that the County would not enforce capacity limits for churches for public health reasons. No such ordinance was inacted by the County. However, Commissoner Adair did successfully lobby the governor’s office to reduce the overly restrictive capacity limitations that were placed by the State.

Pastor Schmidt and her church were free to establish whatever capacity limits, within state regulations, they deemed appropriate for the safety and well-being of their members. Additionally, parishioners could choose to attend or not based on their own personal risk assessment. I believe we all have seen firsthand how intrusive government overreach has been during this pandemic.

In the Voters’ Pamphlet Ms. Schmidt lists an endorsement from “Veterans of Central Oregon.”

I am told, that as a matter of policy, veterans’ organizations do not make political endorsements. It would be of benefit to the many Central Oregon veterans to know which veterans organization made this endorsement.

Patti Adair has a proven record of leadership and sound common sense management. Given the challenges facing our county we will need her now more than ever. Please join me in reelecting Patti Adair for Deschutes County Commissioner, Position 3.

Andy Sichler

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Vote in primary

To the Editor:

Most people have received their ballots for the primary.

If you’re conservative, please don’t just vote for incumbents.Many candidates, who aren’t politicians, are running for office for the first time because of the direction Oregon has been going the past few years. They couldn’t stay silent anymore and they’re qualified leaders.

Don’t let liberal media choose conservative candidates by their endorsements.

Please everyone get educated and vote. Our County Clerk said only 46 percent of registered voters in Deschutes County voted in the 2020 Presidential Election. I couldn’t believe it when Steve Dennison stated this to a group meeting I was at the other night.

Thanks for reading.

Valerie Troyer