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“Gnome and Fairy Gala” for Camas May First Friday 2017

Camas, WA — For First Friday, May 5th, downtown will be having a “Garden Gnome & Fairy Gala” in honor of the Camas Plant & Garden Fair the next week. Events are from 5-8pm.

Find those mischievous gnomes and cute fairies in each participating location and see what kind of fun each is having! You’ll earn tickets to win great prizes for each location you go to!

Other activities will include:

  • Find the fairy houses through town and feed the fairies! (get the fairy food at the DCA tables in Journey! :))
  • S’mores roasting with iQ Credit Union (weather permitting!)
  • Get your picture taken with our friendly gnome family!
  • Enjoy the “Secret Garden” window display at Camas Antiques.
  • Fairy flower crowns! Plus 3 Crafting will be selling very cool flower crowns to fit our theme! In Journey.
  • Art gallery shows and receptions with refreshments:
    • Attic Gallery: Encaustic paintings by Sheary Clough Suiter and Tyler Marchus. Free “Painting With Encaustic” demonstration by Sheary Clough Suiter; Live music
    • Camas Gallery: featuring paintings by Katey Sandy
    • Second Story Gallery: Douglas Keith – painting & sculpture and Earlene Holmstrom – soft pastels
    • Watch a craft beer brewing demonstration by the group Drib Pro Quo in honor of National Homebrew Day; next to Caps N’ Taps, 337 NE 4th
    • The movie “Labyrinth” at the Liberty Theatre at 8pm
    • Gnome and fairy kids’ crafts at the DCA tables in Journey
    • *Cinco de Mayo Celebration hosted by Mesa unfortunately had to be cancelled due to the weather. They will be having a fun celebration inside though! Thank you for understanding!
    • After Hours Shopping–get a ticket to win for every $10 spent in downtown!
    • Much more!

The fun begins at Journey, 304 NE 4th; May 5th, 5-8pm (Some activities are weather permitting).

Information provided by the Downtown Camas Association. To learn more, visit www.downtowncamas.com

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“Images from the Interior” Art Exhibit Opens Friday at Camas Library

CAMAS, WA — “Images from the Interior” is a dual art exhibit from two artists who were introduced when they were selected by Second Story Gallery for its May show.  Both use their chosen tools to explore beyond the surface.  Often that surface begins life as a portrait but goes deeper to capture an inner quality.
Interior
Earlene Holmstrom sticks to pastels to capture the spark.  She will be joined by Douglas Keith who paints and sculpts to get to the interior of his subject matter.  They will unveil their recent works at a reception on First Friday, May 5, from 5 to 8 pm in the gallery. Keith experiments with a variety of textures and styles to capture his subjects, but he also notes his ideas and images come to him for some internal source.  He says he suspects they may come from the same place where dreams and myths originate, and that capturing them becomes a dialogue between the creator and the created.  His pieces range from dreamy landscapes to what could be death masks from an ancient–or alien–civilization.  His mediums include mesh, wood, basalt, molded cloth and paper.
Interior
While Keith looks inward for inspiration, Holmstrom spends her time observing passersby.  She says she loves the challenge of capturing subtle nuances in each face as well as the emotional message in the figure.  Nothing inspires her painting more than the people she encounters daily, she says. Holmstrom spent her teen years working at the Ringling Art Museum in Florida but only recently settled on soft pastels for her own style.  She says she loves the vibrancy, the layers that can be built on paper and the feel of them in her hands.  Walking into her studio, she says, is like walking into a rainbow. Both artists have turned to their mediums after careers in other fields.  Their combined show, a mix of images that delve into the interior of each subject, will open May 5 and continue through May 27 in the Gallery, upstairs in the Camas Public Library.  In addition to the artists, keyboardist Brad Jensen will be at the First Friday reception with live music. To learn more, visit www.camaslibrary.org
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Camas DECA Makes History at International Conference

Anaheim, CA — The Camas High School DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) team had its best showing in history at this week’s International Career Development Conference, which concluded on April 29.

Finalists from Camas are as follows:

  • Liz Schwartkopf placed 1st in Automotive Services Marketing Series;
  • Ashley Miles placed 1st in Restaurant and Food Service Management Series;
  • Kevin Chen and Cami Kirby placed 2nd in the Creative Marketing Project; and
  • Skylar Becerra and Xiansheng Yan placed in the top 10 in Business Service Operations Management.

All these competitors qualified for finals in the morning at Achievement Awards Ceremony.

On Wednesday, April 26, nearly 20,000 DECA members, advisors, business partners and volunteers came together in Anaheim, Calif., for the largest-ever conference the organization has ever held.

The conference itself is an opportunity for each attendee to show his or her uniqueness and value the diversity of DECA membership, while coming together to celebrate as #OneDECA.

This year’s conference theme was Own Your Future, and included a message of unity – coming together as #OneDECA to support the organization’s mission, which is to celebrate personal strengths, to appreciate the diversity that each of our members represents, and to signify a strong organization that members want to be part of.

About the organization

Camas DECA strives to integrate learning into classroom instruction, apply learning, connect to businesses, and promote competition. We are preparing the next generation to be academically prepared, community orientated, professionally responsible, and experienced leaders. The club’s adult advisors are Dave Johnson and Suzie Downs.

To learn more, visit www.camasdeca.com

DECA

Some of the Camas ICDC qualifiers with Meyers Leonard, of the Portland Trail Blazers at the LAX airport.

 

DECA

Kevin Chen and Cami Kirby placed second in CMP.

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Garden Bar Opens New Location

Portland, OR – Locally owned GARDEN BAR has opened their newest location at Hassalo on Eighth (1061 NE 9th Ave), bringing its fresh and healthy salad concept to the underserved Lloyd District area. GARDEN BAR plans to open additional locations this year, with the next being on SE Water Ave in early summer and a PSU location on 4th Avenue in late summer. The Hassalo on 8th restaurant is housed in 1500 sq. ft. at 1061 NE 9th Avenue and is Garden Bar’s first east side location. Hassalo on 8th is located in the fast-growing Lloyd District on the MAX Line and will be a LEED Platinum community.

“Like Garden Bar’s six other locations, we will be satisfying the need for healthier lunch options in Portland’s business districts.” said the company’s Marketing Director, Scott Hargrove. “It’s exciting that Portlanders are responding so positively to the GARDEN BAR concept,” said Ana Chaud. “It’s through their continued support that we are able to grow.”

GARDEN BAR isn’t just working on new restaurant locations.

“Over the next few months we will be layering in our mobile rover unit that will deliver our product to locations not served by one of our restaurants. We have also launched our fill-scale wholesale and catering division allowing customers to order our product for their events at home or at work. Our wholesale division is taking new clients interested in retailing the GARDEN BAR product to their customers”.

GARDEN BAR is currently at 7 locations throughout Portland.

Established in 2014 in Portland, Oregon, Garden Bar is a good destination for farm-fresh, handcrafted salads.

Their mission is: To give the underrated salad the love and respect it deserves. No limp iceberg lettuce. No sad tomatoes. No store-bought dressing. Only bountiful bowls of raw leafy greens tossed with locally sourced vegetables and fruits, fresh meats and cheeses, exceptional toppings and an array of our very own gourmet dressings.

Businesses interested in the GARDEN BAR wholesale program should contact Scott Hargrove (scott@gardenbarpdx.com) to discuss the opportunity.

Learn more at www.gardenbarpdx.com

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Journey Theater Arts Group presents Meredith Willson’s The Music Man Jr.

Youth Theater Production Runs Two Weekends – May 19 – 28, 2017 at Washburn Performing Arts Center at Washougal High School

WASHOUGAL, WA

Based on Meredith Willson’s six-time-Tony-Award-winning musical comedy, The Music Man Junior features some of musical theatre’s most iconic songs and a story filled with wit, warmth and good old-fashioned romance. The Music Man Jr. is family entertainment at its best – a bold, brassy show that will have the whole town atwitter!

Master showman Harold Hill is in town and he’s got “seventy-six trombones” in tow. Can upright, uptight Marian, the town librarian, resist his powerful allure? The story follows fast-talking traveling salesman, Harold Hill, as he cons the people of River City, Iowa, into buying instruments and uniforms for a boys’ band he vows to organize. The catch? He doesn’t know a trombone from a treble clef. His plans to skip town with the cash are foiled when he falls for Marian, whose belief in Harold’s power just might help him succeed in the end in spite of himself.

Performances are May 19 – 28, 2017 at Washburn Performing Arts Center at Washougal High School, 1201 39th Street, Washougal WA, 98671.   Tickets are on sale now at journeytheater.org or by calling 360.750.8550.   Pre-sale adult tickets are $14.  Youth and senior tickets are $10.  Groups of 10 or more are $9.  Our “family day” performance is Saturday, @ 7 p.m. with all tickets $10 in advance.  Tickets for all performances will be $4 more at the door. School day pre-performance prices are:  groups (10 to 99) – $6, groups (100 or more) – $5 with 1 free ticket with each 15 purchased!  School day tickets at the door are $8.

Public Performances

Friday, May 19th @ 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 20th @ 7:00 p.m.

Sunday, May 21st @ 2:00 p.m.

Friday, May 26th @ 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 27th  @ 2:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 28th @ 7:00 p.m.

Sunday, May 28th @ 2:00 p.m.

School Day Performances

Wednesday, May 24th @ 11:30 a.m.

About Journey Theater Arts Group

Journey is the most dynamic theater arts community in the Portland/Vancouver area, offering dozens of classes in drama, dance, voice and more, as well as producing 12 shows in four locations during the school year and a professional-level community theater musical each summer.   Journey strives for excellence, while providing a welcoming and encouraging environment where kids ages 6 to 18 and their families can build life-long skills and friendships. Journey is a 501(c)3 nonprofit educational organization, with offices located at 1400 NE 136th Ave, Suite 201, Vancouver WA, 98684.  Contact at 360.750.8550 or www.journeytheater.org.

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A Fun Summer Treat: Peach Cheese Danish

The Peach Cheese Danish is a fun, and easy to make summer treat the whole family will love!

by Haley Childers

Peach season in Southwest Washington begins in July and lasts clear through the month of September, and while there is nothing better in the world than a single fresh peach on a hot summer day, this easy baked treat is sure to please.

Once you have obtained your ingredients, this simple recipe can be made in as little as 30 minutes.

*We paired the fresh peaches with rich goat cheese for a more savory pairing, but if you are looking for a sweeter treat, switch the goat cheese out for sweetened cream cheese. *

Peach Cheese Danish Ingredients:

2 Tubes of Crescent Rolls

4 ounces Goat Cheese

2-3 Peaches

2 tablespoons Honey

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit.

Wash, pit, and slice peaches into ½ inch pieces.

Open the crescent rolls and join two triangle of dough together to form a rectangle shape.

With a spoon, scoop about 2 tablespoons of goat cheese and place in the center of each rectangle.

Top the cheese with 3-5 fresh peach slices.

Create your Danish by folding over each corner of the dough towards the center.

Bake at 350 for 18 minutes.

 

Best served warm and drizzled with honey.

Peach Cheese Danish

 

Peach Danish

Slice your peaches.

 

Peach Cheese Danish

Roll out your dough.

 

Peach Danish

Add cheese and sliced peaches.

 

Peach Cheese Danish

 

Peach Danish

A completed Peach Cheese Danish.

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Vancouver Victory: Zach Morris, 17 and Semi-Pro

Interview soccer player, Zach Morris, of Vancouver.

by Haley Childers

Since he could remember, Zach Morris has always been a soccer player. “My parents volunteered at the YMCA when I was really young and I remember playing every sport while I was there, but I decided to pursue soccer after that, and it just went from there. So since I was 4 years old I haven’t stopped.”

At seventeen years old he is currently playing at the semi-pro level with Vancouver Victory FC, currently in his second season playing goalie. The season is off to a great start, with 5 wins and zero losses for the team.

Coach Aaron Lewis said Zach’s age hasn’t presented any challenges for anyone on the team.

“Physically, Zach is a mature player,” said Lewis. “He also has a great attitude, always looking to improve and takes opportunities whenever he can get them. He’s a helpful teammate and is always looking for ways to give back to the team and the community.”

Zach Morris

Zach Morris

Lewis says that the goal of Vancouver Victory is to develop great soccer players, giving them a place to perform and flourish so that they can grow as players, as well as serving the community to give back to Southwest Washington.

Morris highlights several coaches who have really helped him grow as a player: “Andy Barth who coaches for North Florida University, Sorin Popovici, who I met at the Olympic Development Program when I was 10, and I’ve been training with him ever since. Aiden Brown who coaches at the Timbers, all of them have helped me out a lot. They’ve really raised me as a player, put me under their wing in a way.”

His passion in life is definitely clear: His whole life is soccer – no outside hobbies. Besides playing for Vancouver Victory FC, Morris is excited to start working for Kidz Love Soccer, a group that offers camps and classes to communities in Washington, Oregon, California, and Texas. It serves as a non-competitive environment for kids to build confidence and self esteem. And as for the future, Morris is excited to see what college brings and hopes to play on a university team and eventually professionally.

“It’s just the drive, soccer never gets old for me. I just love it.”

Zach Morris

Zach Morris practices with his teammates.

 

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PNWonderful: Punchbowl Falls Hike Review

Hike the Eagle Creek Trail to Punchbowl Falls for a one-of-a-kind Northwest hike

by Haley Childers

Whether you’re a Pacifc Northwest native or just outdoorsy and looking for adventure, the Eagle Creek Trail to Punchbowl Falls is a definite must for the beginning of an adventurous summer. The Trail boasts incomparable views from tall heights that other trails don’t offer. Make sure you make it down to the water for a fun swim at the falls after your hike, and you’ll forget you ever huffed and puffed your way up there!

While you’ll only need to walk about 1 ½ miles in until you reach the break off trail which has a path leading down to the waterfall. The Eagle Creek Trail is actually the trailhead for about 6 other trails. Don’t be surprised if you run into PCT hikers passing through, as the trail ultimately leads to Mexico. Many PCT hikers like to divert from the usual course to take in the powerful views of the Eagle Creek Gorge.

A moderately easy hike, all you’ll need to bring with you is water, some snacks, and if you’ve worked up a sweat getting there, your swim trunks. Don’t forget your GoPro if you have one, as the waterfall at Punchbowl is far from standing ground; you can get some really fun pictures if you dare to swim to it. As for the trail, it would be wise not to bring your young kids with you. It is steep in some places, but the real concern is that there are cliffs on the side of the trail in certain areas, and for that reason it isn’t recommended to bring small children or pets with you.

What is amazing about the trail is that it was built in the early 1900s to preserve parkland areas in the Columbia River Gorge. Workers used dynamite to blast through the rock in certain areas and create the trail. Their work to protect the area from becoming industrialized made it possible for us to have access to incredible views that are incomparable to say the least.

Take caution where you park your car. While the trail is a popular one, it is known that cars are often broken into in the parking lot outside the trail. It is recommended to park in the lower parking lot near the fish hatchery because there is a park host there who supervises the area during the summer. Make sure you do what you can to protect your car: don’t leave any belongings or valuables, take ID information with you, and leave the doors unlocked to insure that the windows don’t get broken in.

Driving Directions to Punchbowl Falls

Eagle Creek Trailhead:  Traveling eastbound on I-84, take Exit #41. At the bottom of the ramp turn right. Go about 1/2 mile to the end of the road. You will go past a footbridge (that takes hikers up to Wauna Viewpoint) as the road narrows to one lane. Continue a short ways to a large parking lot; park only in designated spaces. NW Forest Pass required. Coming from the east, there is no westbound exit at Exit #41/Eagle Creek. You must continue on I-84 and get off at Exit #40/Bonneville Dam, get back on the interstate and head east for one mile to Exit #41. At the bottom of the ramp turn right. Go about 1/2 mile to the end of the road. You will go past a footbridge (that takes hikers up to Wauna Viewpoint) as the road narrows to one lane. Continue a short ways to a large parking lot; park only in designated spaces. NW Forest Pass required.

Punchbowl Falls

Driving Directions.

 

Punchbowl Falls

Photo by Haley Childers.

 

Punchbowl Falls

Photo by Haley Childers.

Punchbowl Falls

Photo by Haley Childers.

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Huckvale Earns Prestigious Eagle Scout Award

Camas Senior, Luke Huckvale, was honored Thursday night with the presentation of his hard-earned Eagle Scout Award, which is the highest honor a youth can earn in the Boy Scouts of America.

Huckvale, 18, of Camas Boy Scout Troop 694, entered the program seven years ago, and had to earn six rank advancements to achieve the Eagle honor. The ranks are Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life, and Eagle. Within each rank, the requirements become more challenging, and require numerous tasks, merit badges, service hours, and leadership roles.

To achieve the Eagle rank, a youth must complete a challenging, and often rigorous service project that benefits the local community.

“It’s designed to demonstrate leadership, and challenge the young man,” said Ron Shake, a local District advancement chairman. “It’s designed to be hard.”

For his project, Huckvale gathered volunteers to clean up and repair several damaged and vandalized tombstones at the Fisher Cemetery in Vancouver. The group also repaired a fence which was damaged by fallen trees, and built a wooden bench, which was placed at the war memorial at the site.

Each Eagle Scout also has the opportunity to select a mentor, a person who guided the scout along the journey. Huckvale chose Scott Murphy as his mentor, and honored him Thursday evening.

“I chose Scott because he was there to not only help me with my scouting needs, but also other needs I had like emotional physical and educational needs,” said Huckvale.

Huckvale also expressed what he loved most about scouting.

“I like the brotherhood and loyalty that it brought between my friends and I,” he said. “And I loved Camp Meriwether the most because it was just a very good environment for doing everything scouting and there was a beach so that made it ten times better.

“Regarding tonight, I’m glad that all of my work finally came to fruition, and it was especially good to see how many people cared enough about me to come to my court of honor and support me.”

Nationwide, only about 5 percent of scouts earn the rank of Eagle. Since the organization’s inception, a total of 2 million boys have earned Eagle.

To learn more about Boy Scouts, visit www.cpcbsa.org

 

Eagle

Eagle Scout, Luke Huckvale, speaks at his Eagle Scout Court of Honor.

 

Eagle

Luke Huckvale hugs his mother, Shannon Huckvale, while his father, Derrick, looks on.

 

Eagle

A look at Luke’s scouting history.

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Calwell: “Our Kids Need Us As PARENTS”

by Sandy Calwell, Author and Swim Mom

Much has been said about the Stanford swimmer rape case. Everyone has formed an opinion, it seems, in the court of public discourse. Besides my heart breaking for the two young people whose fates collided that tragic evening, I am burdened by the feeling that many parents, in the years when parental guidance is most needed, are not stepping up and teaching and modeling how life should be lived as a teenager, and then eventually, as a mature adult.

While most will say I’m old fashioned, out of touch and naive, I still believe we can teach our young people that underage drinking is wrong and risky on a lot of levels, and that sex is not a recreational activity or a power play.

Where theory and reality collide is when we assume that others maintain the same understandings or moral guidance we do. As women we are never really safe. Even as a middle-aged woman now, out on a run I am looking around the environment where I am…because I am female, I am vulnerable…almost always when around men.

Not that all men are predators. Most men are not. But I cannot effectively determine who the bad ones are, and so must constantly be on guard. It is the human condition of a woman. That’s how I see it. In theory it shouldn’t be so, but in reality it is.

To add alcohol and a decreased level of control and awareness into the mix, you will never know what you’ll get. The odds are not in your favor.

I believe we as parents, largely, haven’t gone for a high enough bar. We expect kids to drink and have sex and assume there is nothing we can do to stop them. But I still maintain that this is faulty thinking and lazy parenting.

We must. We must model self control by how we handle ourselves with alcohol and around those of the opposite sex. Young men will not respect women if they are not taught to. Culture will teach them otherwise.

A woman’s body is beautiful and alluring. It will draw attention whether she wants it or not. Real men know this to be true and will honor her, while honoring themselves in their conduct and speech.

So there it is. A mom of a son, who’s a collegiate swimmer in California, who has found herself sleepless over the anguish of both sets of parents, and over the girl who was so violated and mistreated that she believes her value will always be lessened because of that night. I am praying for them all.

Our kids need us as parents. Our kids need to know God loves them, values them and holds their bodies and minds in highest regard.

If I could talk to every high school and college kid, I would tell them, “You are loved, dear and precious. Don’t risk your future, safety or reputation for things that don’t satisfy. It’s a lonely and disappointing road. Take the high road. Be the one who stands against the tide. Stand strong…and pray to the God who loves you. He will be there for you.”

Calwell is the author of “What If Parenting is the Most Important Job in the World?”

Her Facebook page is: Sandy Calwell Books

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