Annual
festival
is a feast for the eyes
Photo by Steve Wilkowske
Shilpa Karnik of Beaverton and her aunt, Sharmishdha Navalkar, stroll through a field of flowers during the Swan Island Dahlia Festival this past weekend. Navalkar, a resident of Bombay, India, clearly enjoyed the colorful display at the Gitts family farm, which is located on Northwest 22nd Avenue in Canby.
By Tom Morlan
of the Herald
It's show time at the Gitts family farm. For the
past few weeks, flower lovers have flocked to Swan Island Dahlias to view the colorful
blooms adorning the fields along Northwest 22nd Avenue in Canby. And this past weekend,
the show moved indoors for the Swan Island Dahlia Festival.
The annual event started with a three-day run Aug. 26-28, and dahlia lovers still have a
chance to check out the beautiful blooms this weekend. Breathtaking indoor displays will
be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. throughout the Labor Day holiday weekend.
"Over the years, it keeps getting bigger and bigger as the word spreads," Linda
Gitts said. "We have a lot of people who repeat both weekends - they want to have a
second peak around."
The Gitts family doesn't keep track of crowd numbers, but an estimated 12,500 people came
to the last year's festival.
"We'll probably have at least that many this year," Linda Gitts by one grower
anywhere in the world," Linda said.
The festival also features refreshment booths and plenty of free parking for visitors.
Although plenty of bulbs and fresh-cut dahlias will be sold at the event, Linda said the
emphasis is on fun.
"It's nice to hear that somebody enjoyed their time here," Linda Gitts said.
"It makes all the work worth it."
For people who can't make it to the festival, the fields will remain open to visitors
until first frost. For more information, call 266-7711.
CCC sends $47 million
levy to voters
By David Howell
of the Herald
OREGON CITY - If at first you don't succeed, try, try again? The Clackamas
Community College's board of directors has officially approved the ballot title for a new
bond measure in the Nov. 7 election to keep up with the county and district's continued
growth.
The $47 million Clackamas Community College Bond Measure 3-97 is estimated at a cost of 20
cents per $1,000 of assessed value to property owners, or $2.50 per month for a $150,000
home.
It is very similar to a bond measure voters defeated in the May primary election.
"We did a lot of polling of voters after the election, and found there was a large
under-vote," said John Keyser, the college's president. "Many people who voted
didn't know what the issue was about.
"It's a pretty important measure for the future of the district and its
students."
Last year, 27,775 students got an affordable college education at Clackamas Community
College, he said.
The general obligation bonds would add classrooms, upgrade buildings and improve
technology.
"There are more and more demands on the community colleges, and we're just trying to
keep up," Keyser said.
The proposed bond would finance the costs of capital construction and capital
improvements.
A new college master plan developed in the last three years was designed to address
college classroom limitations and address future needs of growth in the county.
The measure would provide funds to upgrade and expand five buildings, refinance
outstanding debt, construct one new multipurpose classroom building, leverage private
funds for additional buildings, and correct infrastructure and unanticipated maintenance
problems.
Keyser said the state Legislature's Emergency Board released $2 million in funding this
summer to Oregon's 17 community colleges.
Clackamas Community College received $150,000 as its share.
"We got a little more favorable review from the E-Board this year," Keyser said.
"Representative (Kurt) Schrader argued the case for us, and we appreciate his
effort."
Ballots for the mail-in election will be mailed to voters Oct. 20, 2000, and the election
tally will be completed on Nov. 7.
For more information on the school bond measure, contact Corky Kirkpatrick at 657-6958,
ext. 2538.
Canby High students
gear up for longer classes
By Stephanie South
of the Herald
Canby High School students will have longer class periods this year,
giving them more time for in-depth studies of each subject.
The new trimester system will increase class time from 47 minutes per period to 70
minutes. Students will have five classes per trimester, rather than the seven classes
currently offered.
And instead of two 18-week semesters, the school year will be broken into three 12-week
trimesters.
The new system also will allow students to gain 7.5 credits per year - a half-credit more
than the current schedule allows.
"I think it will go very smoothly," said Bill Westphal, Canby High School's
principal. "This will really change our school day and improve the school's culture.
"There will be fewer transitions and fewer disruptions, and the extended learning
time will be a real plus for teachers. Everyone's real excited about it."
The decision to switch over to a trimester schedule wasn't an easy one, Westphal said.
"It was based on extensive research," he said. "We closely examined other
schools that are using the system. I've gotten nothing but positive feedback from
them."
A trimester workshop for CHS teachers took place Aug. 24-25, led by Portland education
consultant Gail Elkins. The workshop's aim was to give teachers strategies to use in
longer class periods.
"They (learned) how to maximize their teachings so they can accomplish more,"
Westphal said.
The trimester system was decided on last year during the Thanksgiving weekend. Almost the
entire teaching staff at CHS voted on the issue of whether to switch to the trimester
system.
Seventy-nine percent of the teachers at Canby High voted in favor of switching to the
trimester system.
Westphal said studies have shown that student achievement is higher with trimester
scheduling, and the attendance level is higher as well.
Westphal said his hope for the new trimester scheduling is that it will allow more time
for highly engaged, reflective activities so students can gain a more in-depth
understanding of key concepts.
"Forty-eight minutes (per class) just isn't enough," Westphal said.
"In order to take a skill or concept or body of knowledge requires time. Now the
teachers will have the time to explore the contents they are teaching - and students will
have the time to apply the lessons in some meaningful way and to reflect and internalize
their learning."
Tres Cafe
caters to
folks with good taste
By Roma K. Eby
of the Herald
Three young women, whose idea it was to create a fun and funky atmosphere
for the Canby restaurant they call Tres Cafe, have accomplished their goal.
Its decor, designed and painted by Carol Meeuwsen, local artist and Canby Community School
coordinator, was inspired by Southwestern Indian petroglyphs, she explained.
"We wanted it to be a major change from what people are used to seeing," she
said. "The whole reason was to make it fun and interesting to walk into, as well as a
place to enjoy good food."
The restaurant, which opened Aug. 21, is located at 243 N.W. 2nd Ave., in Canby's Holly
Mall, and has been a labor of love for owners Shantel Harney, Kasie Rapp and Wendy Morton,
who grew up together in Canby and left their respective jobs to undertake the new project.
Handpainted ceramic tiles are one of the focal points at the cafe. A tile-painting party
was held recently, during which many friends and family members stopped by to paint one or
more small tiles with a design of their own choosing.
After the tiles were fired, they were installed on several coffee bar tops, around the
west windows and surrounding the kitchen pass-through.
Meeuwsen, her sister, Sharon Braden and niece Nicki Salisbury, faux painted the walls in
transparent stripes of greens, lavenders and purples rolled on in no particular rhythm or
pattern. One wall is spatter painted and adorned with metal sculpture by Canby resident
Pam Boyer.
The new restaurant features the very freshest food, made daily by chef Kasie Rapp, who is
a graduate of the Western Culinary Institute in Portland and a former chef for the
Heathman Corp.
She prepares soups from scratch, fresh salads, deli sandwiches and baked goods daily. She
also prepares eye-pleasing, delectable desserts.
"I'm always trying to find something different," she said. "I like to go to
different restaurants and see something I can bring back, tweak it, and make it my
own."
The Tres Cafe also offers wine and beer and an espresso bar, which the women hope early
morning customers will come to enjoy.
Rapp's sister, Shantel Harney, also has been in the restaurant business for years. She
worked at Canby's Elm Street Inn for eight years, then managed the 4th Quarter Sports
Grill for more than two years.
"We felt Canby is a growing community, and there's a need for a good lunch spot and a
catering service," she said. "We've gotten a lot of response since we put up a
banner advertising our catering service. In fact, just last weekend we catered the Wayne
and Kelly Oliver wedding reception for 300 guests.
''I hope we've found a niche," she added. "Eventually, when we work out the
kinks, we hope to start delivering food at lunch time."
The third partner, Wendy Morton, gave up a nine-year career with McKesson Corp. Five of
those years she spent little time at home.
"I'm happy to be off the road and out of airports," she said. "It's
enjoyable to see and work with my friends."
The cafe has a banquet room that presently seats 20, and boasts outdoor seating for 12.
The banquet room is available for receptions, club meetings or private parties.
The partners, whose ideas have blossomed into reality, admit it's been an ambitious
undertaking.
"We're no strangers to 13- to 14-hour days," they agree.
In addition to the three owners, four local women have been trained to work the entire
range of restaurant jobs. They are Andrea Robitsch, Heather Derksen, Suzi Monroe and
Chantel Kirwan.
The Tres Cafe is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day except Sunday. For more information,
call 263-8738.