Braving Fall temperatures far above comfortable levels, volunteers came together this past Saturday morning for a community wide clean-up effort along Hwy. 99. The cleanup began at the Ray's Food Market, and finished at the Chicken Place restaurant, near Exit 103. Six trucks and over 40 clean-up volunteers took part in that effort alone.
   We also tackled one of the main rooms in the Veterans' Memorial Building, painting the interior. Prep works for the painting effort was completed on the previous evening by a small group of early bird volunteers.
   Preparations commenced for setting up the BBQ area almost as soon as the clean-up volunteers took to the hwy. Another 20 or so people helped with setting up the tables, chairs, canopy, and BBQ grill.
   Representative Tim Freeman gave an excellent speech during the BBQ, stressing the tax and spend habits of our current legislative body, and fielding questions from the crowd. Noting that he ranked 2nd among all house representatives voting no the most often.
   One question that I put to him, asked what the legislature can do about the abuses that cities across Oregon, who are seeking to use the Urban Growth Boundaries laws to facilitate annexations, against the will of communities and land owners. Tim responded by acknowledgeing that the UGB laws are not always being used as they were intended, but that 'opening up that can of worms" might not be a very good idea considering the group that's currently running the Oregon Legislature. Instead of tightening there use, we might instead get something entirely different, and make our situation even worse.
   We collected $251.00 from donations and 50/50 ticket sales, and spent $102.50 on supplies for the event. All told our coffers have $649.50 in them.
   All-in-all the event went off without a hitch. It was well attended, with an estimated 75 people attending some part of Spirit Day. No one was hurt, or got upset, or had anything but positive things to say about the day. Our hwy got clean-up, the Veteran's Memorial Building got painted, and perhaps most of all, we did something positive together.
   I would like to personally thank the many volunteers that spent their afternoon attending Spirit Day. All the good intentions, preparations, and planning in the world don't a successful Spirit Day make. That takes you . . . and you . . . and you.
   Well done everyone!