We were living about six miles east of Woodland when the eruption happened. Dad was a logger. Mom was a waitress. I was 5.
I remember President Carter’s helicopter envoy (at least that’s what I was told it was) flying by. Not much time passed by before Mom panicked and took me to live in Astoria, Ore., with relatives.
I can remember sitting on I-5 between Woodland and Longview for hours upon hours with the other thousands of stranded motorists.
One thing is for sure, the eruption changed my life, and I now consider both Astoria and Woodland ‘Home’, since I ended up going back to high school in Woodland 10 years later.
