Thursday, Aug. 21,2014 - Mason County Journal - Page A-15
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Descendant among
volunteers building shelter
BY GORDON WEEKS
gordon@masoncoun com
One hundred years ago, members
of the logging Schafer family gathered
for picnics on the banks of the Satsop
River in the southwest corner of Mason
County. In 1924, the Schafer Broth-
ers Logging Co. donated that land to
the state for a park to honor John and
Anna Schafer.
Today, a direct descendant of the
family is continuing to put his stamp
on the pristine ll9-acre camping park.
Max Muller, who lives next door to the
park near the Grays Harbor County
border, and fellow volunteers Mike Sin-
clair, Wayne Kingery and Rob Mills are
constructing a 22-by-36-foot covered
shelter for large groups on the site of
a former volleyball court. They hope to
complete the building next week.
The builders, all retirees, have deep
roots in the park. Sinclair's father was
the park's ranger from 1962 to 1982.
All four live nearby.
The project was green-lighted by
the state after the neighbors joined the
state's Adopt-A-Park program. All the
wood for the shelter -- mostly fir, some
hemlock-- is from trees in the park.
Muller is the great-great nephew of
the Schafer brothers. About six years
ago, he pitched in when fast-melting
snow flooded the park and dumped 500
yards of gravel from the Satsop River
into the parking lot.
"It devastated the park," Muller
said. Neighbors came in with their
equipment to load and haul away de-
bris.
When the neighbors decided to adopt
the park, Muller said he told them,
"Why don't we build them a building?
I have a sawmill."
The volunteers poured the concrete
for the shelter in July 2013, and started
erecting the structure two months ago.
The shelter will feature 40 feet of
countertop, electric outlets, picnic
tables and six fluorescent lights on to play cards, and utilize it," Muller
the ceiling. Daylight also will stream said.
through plastic windows. Muller said the state spent about
"We want plenty of light for people $7,500 on the materials. Businesses
ABOVE: Cutting wood for a 22-by-
36-foot shelter at Schafer State
Park on Tuesday are Mike Sinclair,
left, and Wayne Kingery. Sinclair's
father was ranger at Schafer
Park from 1962 to 1982. AT LEFT:
Neighborhood volunteers are
constructing the covered shelter for
large groups on the site of a former
volleyball court at the park, situated
in southwest Mason County. It is
scheduled to be completed next
week.
Journal photos by Gordon Weeks
from Aberdeen to Olympia donated
materials, or offered discounts, he said.
see SCHAFER, page A-24
HAFISTINE ISLAND NEWS
Alli~er traveling the is-
and, I see that some
ogging is going on. One
gets accustomed to driving
through the trees and when
coming to a clearing, I'm star-
tled to see so many acres open
up to the sky. Many years
ago, I had
a friend
drive up
here from
Yuma, Ari-
zona. She
was born
and raised
in Yuma
and had
By MIKE not trav-
CALLAGHAN
eled out
of the des-
ert. When she got into Oregon
and the trees, she had to pull
over as she felt the world was
closing in on her. Instead of
spending two weeks with us,
she headed back to the flat
sandy desert aider four days.
As i look out my win-
dow I'm noticing a dramat-
ic change in one of my ma-
ples. The leaves are turning
the brightest red I've ever
seen. If this is the case, I can
just imagine how yellow the
big leaf maples are going to
be this fall.
Pioneer School Superin-
tendent Marty Brewer sent
me this information: "We are
fortunate to have overwhelm-
ing community support from
our citizens, business owners,
parents and other community
groups. Here are two recent
examples: Northside Baptist
Church donated $14,500 to
the Pioneer School District for
helping children and families
in need of assistance. The
Harstine Island Women's
Club donated $2,000 to the
Pioneer School District library
to buy books for both the
school and classroom librar-
ies." Again, isn't it just great
how this community comes
together to support one an-
other?
This is the weekend if you
want some entertainment.
The Hartstene Pointe Travel
Club is planning another
great musical event for Sat-
urday. If you enjoyed the last
one, then you need to mark
your calendar for this one.
There will be a social time
beginning at 6:30 p.m. and
the concert will start at 7
p.m. If you live outside Hart:
stene Pointe, organizers will
make getting through the
gate easy. You can bring
your own beverage and there
• will be light snacks and des-
serts provided. Tickets are
$12. The two artists they
have planned are Connie Lim
-- "Music Connection" called
her one of the hottest 100 live
performers of the year -- and
Katie Cole, who was named
Best Country Artist and Art-
ist of the Year at the 2013
Artists in Music awards.
For more information, call
Doug McGraw at 426-0883 or
email him at mcgrawfandd@
gmail.com.
I see the apples on my trees
are just about ready to pick,
which reminds me that on
Sept. 20, the annual Harstine
Island pie contest will be at
the hall. They will be looking
for the best fruit pie you can
make. If you have any ques-
tions, call Donna at 528-7150
or Jill at 426-0309.
Fall is near. Here is the
new senior lunch menu. On
Sept. 3, they will be serv-
ing up its famous barbecue
country ribs, along with some
baked beans, coleslaw and
a cook's choice cake. Then,
on Sept. 17, they will have
one of my favorites -- meat
loaf, baked potatoes and
green salad, along with fruit
crisp topped with whipped
cream. As usual, serving
starts at noon, but with an
average of some 100 people
showing up for lunch, plan
on getting there a little ear-
lier. A donation of $3 is re-
quested as these dedicated
volunteers work for hours to
prepare their meals and they
don't need to pay for the food
out of their own pockets. All
ages 50 and older and their
friends are invited.
I :l !1 I I1 IIII
