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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
May 10, 2012     Shelton Mason County Journal
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May 10, 2012
 
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]OURNALEDITORIAL New crime statistics show Shelton moving in rigl S helton saw a 17.8 percent drop in the total crime rate from last year. According to the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs report released recently, Shelton is the fourth most crime- ridden city (per capita) in the state, but even at No. 4 we have seen a massive decrease in crime. The violent crime rate is down 14.7 percent and property crime is down 10.1 percent. Only one category, aggravated assaults, reported to the association by the Shelton Police Department saw an increase. It's awful that Shelton is con- sistently one of the most violent cities in the state, but this is good news. Yes. placing in the top ten of cities with the highest crime is a problem, but the last year has shown that this com- munity can come together to put a stop to it. New leadership at the SPD as well as a committed force of of- ricers at the police department, sheriffs department and tribal agencies are working hard to make our streets safer and it's showing. Let's hope this trend continues for years to come. On another note: A coup for the Mason County Senior Activi- ties Center. The center will welcome the Northwest Harmonica Jamboree this weekend. The festival for harmonica enthusiasts has found a new home in Shelton after .__-- direction years in Tacoma and is open to all with classes for the inexperi- enced and professionals alike. Event organizer Vern Morgus stopped by the Journal office earlier this week and his enthu- siasm for the event and talent with a harmonica were inspiring. We encourage everyone to attend for a great time and interesting music. GUESTCOLUMN LETTERSTOTH EEDIT()R Trip to Shelton included a call of the wild t had me at hello. No, not a girlfriend. Not even a prospective one. Instead, it was the small town of Livingston that caught my eye. Situated in southeastern Montana near the Wyoming border, the town of Liv- ingston -- population 7.000 -- was a place I quickly decided I could live tbr a while. I'd entered Montana on Wednes- day morning from the east, having left West Vir- ginia on Mon- !!: :Mii 800 miles took ii :i:::: :i1" me to some place west of Chicago. At the end of day two, after an- other 800 miles, I was in Dickin- By KEVIN son, N.D. SPRADLIN Times must be pretty good in Dickinson be- cause the lowest hotel rate I could find was $159.99 a night. I was tired, and having few other good choices available. I ponied up the dough. A quick Google search verified my first thought times were, indeed, good in Dickinson due to the oil boom. On day three, I entered eastern Montana early. I first fueled up in Miles City. More than 250 miles lat- er. my 1999 Kia Sportage -- which passed the 221.000-mile mark dur- ing the trip found its way to the off ramp of Interstate 90. At this point. I knew I was less than two good days of driving away from Shelton. Then I learned I was at the door- step of Yellowstone National Park. [ fheled up, grabbed a quick lunch and hopped on the restaurant's Wi- Fi connection to check email. I realized I had two choices. I could turn right, return to 1-90 West and arrive in Shelton on time. Or I could turn left toward Yellowstone. Normally, I'm a stickler for details - and for being on time. Maybe that's from my days in the Army. In this case. though, I turned left. Perhaps I simply heard the call of the wild. It didn't last long. Only a couple Where are the local folks? Editor, the Journal Spring is here. Excitement builds among some folks around Shelton for Bluegrass from the Forest, May 18-20, at Shelton High School. Those of us work- ing hard to make this festival a success often shake our heads in wonderment, for a couple reasons. Firstly, there is going to be so much wonderfully great music over that entire weekend. Secondly, 'Why is it that folks come from far and wide, even from out of state to attend, but not many local folks show up?' Now here's the thing, some folks think 'Well, isn't that the fiddle fest thing'? Answer, no, it is not solely about the great fiddle music, that's in April at the high school. Bluegrass is a different interpretation of sometimes those same tunes & songs, although there are fiddles in bluegrass. Some re- ally great hot fiddlers will be at 'Bluegrass from the Forest' this year. Other folks think 'Bluegrass. it's just a bunch of toothless banjo players in bib overalls and straw hats. like on the old Hee Haw TV show.' Those folks, maybe you are one, are way off the mark about today's bluegrass mumc. It's come a long way from Hee Haw. It has evolved into a more sophisticat- ed, virtuosity driven, acoustic, distinctly American treasury of songs and tunes. Laced with a taste of blues, old '50s-'60s style country music. Irish and tra- ditional American tunes along with a dash of gospel. For eight years, Bluegrass from the Forest has been locally produced by Kristmas Town Kiwanis, as a non-profit en- deavor. Many local businesses help sponsor the event. All proceeds stay in Shelton. For a small town out in the forest, this festival continues to bring some of the biggest, most well known performers and best na- tional bluegrass musicians in the country to Shelton, year af- ter year. Its reputation among folks who know about and regularly attend the wealth of festivals staged in Washington/ Oregon and beyond, the Shelton festival is regarded as one of the BEST of its kind in Washing- ton. Our little town of Shelton actually kicks off the summer festival season. Folks have come from Alas- ka, Hawaii, California. Mon- tana, Arizona. Idaho, Canada and far beyond. But each year when asked for a show of hands of folks in the audience from this part of the forest, the results are small and a darn shame. There are two stages, two mornings with sessions of acoustic workshops for guitar, two styles of banjo, Dobro, mandolin, fiddle and bass led by master players, a three hour youth intensive workshop, just for kids who bring their instru- ments to learn to play blue- grass, a band contest, a banjo contest and a band scramble for amateur players who aspire to play like professionals, on the main stage with microphones and spot lights. There's something for every- one. If you were wondering, 'Where the heck is country mu- sic these days like Merle Hag- gard or Johnny Cash?' They're alive, well and hiding in plain sight right in bluegrass. You will sing or hum along on the songs you know. Tickets are available at the door or locally at five different locations. Check the ad in this Journal edition for details. In- formation on the 2012 line-up of performers, workshop & show times can be found online by typing 'BluegrassfromtheForest. com' into your web browser. When you see those orange 'BLUEGRASS' road signs, it's time to follow them to Shelton High School. So, dust off your straw hat, don your bib over- alls and come on out to help celebrate a great American and Shelton tradition at Bluegrass from the Forest May 18- 20. I'll be looking for more local hands raised in the audience and seeing you there. Don't miss the fun again this year. Sally Burtscher Shelton America no, United States yes Editor, the Journal It sort of strikes me strange that an organization such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars Ladies Auxiliary, priding itself in patriotism, seems to object to the use of the correct name of their/our country. What re- ally hurts is that Pete, a past student of mine, has forgotten our morning recitation of "The Pledge of Allegiance" to the flag of our United States, (not to the flag of America). We are no more America than Canada or Mexico now are we? We stood with hands over our hearts and spoke the words of the "Pledge" (which was being led from the office over the sound system by our student body president), even though we didn't have a flag in our room in the old Angle building. Thinking this strange, together with my eighth grade Industrial Science students, we thought that we might find other classrooms without our United States flag. Volunteers in our class were chosen (demo- cratically) to, with permission from each principal, check every classroom on our Shelton School District, to find how many class- rooms did not have a United States flag for the students to face, see. look at, proudly ad- mire and pledge allegiance to. Not surprisingly, the commit- tees found that over 20 class- rooms did not display our Unit- ed States flag. Our class decided that we could raise enough money to buy that many flags and wall mounts, which we did. My students chose teams, each with a leader and proper tools, to complete the job of mount- ing the flag on the wall. From that time on, when the school day began, we knew that every classroom had a United States flag for the students to face when they began their school day reciting the Pledge of Al- legiance. Isn't that an interest- ing history. The preamble of our "Constitution of the United States" begins with "We the people of the United States." Shirley uses a 1947 dictionary as proof that the proper name of our country is "America." Please take a look at the 1947 World Book Encyclopedia. There is no country America, but there are some 85 pages headed United States. Yes, I am an old public school teacher who hopes teach- ers and parents of today teach youngsters the proper name of the country of which they are a citizen. Only two. but oh so very meaningful two words, United States. Period. Vern Morgus Shelton Learn more about garden safety Editor, the Journal King County has a Depart- ment of Natural Resources and Parks. Within this agency is a water and local hazardous waste management program. The people who run these departments consult with the most knowledgeable scientists in the fields of horticulture and environmental health. As a re- sult of their efforts they have See Letters on page A-7 miles down the road, the city boy m me returned in full force. I pulled over. Waited for a few minutes. Checked the weather. Snow was in the forecast for the area and I didn't want to get caught in it. I turned around. Back onto 1-90. Headed west. The rest of the trip was pretty much nondescript. That is, until I hit Snoqualmie Pass. You see, Mason County is new to me. But I've been to Snoqualmie to play in the snow with my children, while I was sta- tioned at Fort Lewis several years ago. I remembered this area with great affection. Suddenly, I wasn't so disappointed that I hadn't kept going toward Yellowstone. Yes, Yel- lowstone is a pretty special place. And while I hope to visit one day, it was only going to be a tempo- rary stop for me. I'm hoping Mason County is more permanent. On my fifth day in town, some- one described the Shelton area to me as "the most beautiful place in the world." And given the views I've seen, I'm not inclined to argue. WORDONTHESTREET Is marijuana use a problem in Mason County? Why or why not? Bruce Tracy Ann J.D. Arensmeyer Wilson Baker Johnson "I don't know, I know meth is a problem, but not about pot. I know a lot of people support legalizing it. It's a way to start and it leads to other things, that's why I don't like it." 'I've seen lots of different (drugs) in this county. I do see it as a problem with the youth." "I think it's a problem be- cause it's so wide-spread and they have proven it does affect your mind more than some would like to admit." "It kind of depends on the person, age-wise. I think it's out of control with the younger crowd but as they get older, they learn to regu- late it better." • 1 She.!toni!Mas!on C;un W :". ':',. ::: li usPs 492-800 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Shelton-Mason County Journal, P.O. Box 430, Shelton, WA 98584. Published weekly by She ton-Mason County Journal, Inc. at 227 West Cota Street, Shelton, Washington Mailing address: RO. Box 430, Shelton WA 98584 Telephone (360) 426-4412 • www.masoncounty.c0m Periodicals postage paid at Shelton, Washington Shelton-Mason County Journal is a member of Washington Newspaper Publishers' Association. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $37 per year for Mason County addresses, $51 peryear in state of Washington but outside Mason County, $61 per year out of state. Owned and published by Shelton-Mason County Journal, Inc Kari Sleight, publisher Newsroom: Jesse Mullen, editor Natalie Johnson, reporter Kevin Spradlin, reporter Emily Hanson, sports reporter Adam Rudnick, copy editor Advertising: Dave Pierik, Sr. Acct. Executive Harvey Morris ad representative Sharee Miller, ad representat ve Front office: Donna Kinnaird, bookkeeper Margot Brand, circulation Cricket Carter, mailroom supervisor Page A-4- Shelton-Mason County Journal- Thursday, May 10, 2012 Composing room: William Adams, graphics Becky Corr, typing Pressroom: Kelly Riordan, production manager Travis Miller, press operator