Cheers: To coming home. Martha’s Pantry is a food bank that has long served local people living with HIV/AIDS. It absorbed a blow in May 2016 when an arsonist, still never arrested, set fire to its home, the Vancouver United Church of Christ in Hazel Dell. The Vancouver Heights United Methodist Church offered a temporary location so that the charity could continue its services. Just recently Martha’s Pantry moved back into its original home in the newly repaired church, where with the help of Chuck’s Produce and Bonneville Power Administration employees was able to offer supplies for 100 Christmas meals. The pantry is open 4-7 p.m. Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fridays; in addition to those with medical problems, all needy people are served.
Jeers: To the continuing deaths of homeless people. No one keeps an accurate track of how many people die in Clark County every year, cold and alone, living on the streets. Often the official cause of death is something like an overdose of drugs or a heart problem, but homelessness is a relentless killer. At a recent candlelight vigil, nearly two dozen people who died this year were remembered. While the causes of homelessness are complex and difficult to address, the deaths of these vulnerable people remind us why we must continue to confront this community crisis.
Cheers: To the Junior Rangers. Not park rangers, nor forest rangers, the Vancouver Junior Rangers play hockey at the Mountain View Ice Arena off East Mill Plain Boulevard. Recently there was a proposal to convert the arena, which has not always been a financial success, into a church school. But, as they say, cooler heads prevailed and the plan was iced. In fact, there are plans to refurbish the arena next summer. The Junior Rangers offer opportunities for kids from ages 4 to 16. Players must pass an audition, and the group offers a higher level of competition than no-cut youth hockey programs. For more information, visit http://www.vyha.org.
Jeers: To the Port of Astoria, Ore. As the Barbary Pirates once exacted tributes from merchant ships passing North Africa, the port administrators would tax vessels passing — but not necessarily stopping — at its docks as they ply the Columbia River as far upriver as Vancouver. The Daily Astorian reports that port management wants to levy the fee on vessels 250 feet and longer and use the money to make improvements to Pier 1, which large vessels would likely use if they experienced an emergency and needed a place to tie up in Astoria. The shipping industry has mobilized against the proposal, arguing that local ports can’t enact broad maritime taxes without an act of Congress. Wouldn’t it be better for people and companies actually using or benefiting from the facilities to pay?
