With the dawning of each new year, folks make a variety of New Year's resolutions. They decide to make changes and eliminate bad habits in order to improve their lives.

They vow to lose weight. To stop smoking. To control their tempers. To be kinder and more generous. To be better parents. To be better children. To volunteer. To stop drinking. To exercise and eat right. To stress less and enjoy each day more. To take things more seriously.

Well, we have one to add to the list.

How about taking better advantage of community resources? Here are a few underutilized resources we can think of:

• Trails. Why not go for a walk? Canby has a several great, natural places to get out and stretch your legs. Try a walk along Logging Bridge Road, among the towering trees of Canby Community Park, or through Molalla River State Park.
  
  
• Discussion forums. The city of Wilsonville has a citywide forum at egroups.com. Unfortunately, Canby doesn't have one yet, but any ambitious citizen could certainly set one up for a local exchange of ideas, thoughts, perspectives and opinions.
  
  And remember, this newspaper has an Opinion page. Why not speak your mind? The more folks express their opinions - respectfully, of course - the more the community profits.
  
  One can even go to a City Council or School Board meeting and speak up. Time is provided during every meeting for public comments on any subject, but few take advantage of this opportunity.
  
  
• Local churches. Canby has myriad churches to suit a range of preferences and beliefs, and Portland has the churches you won't find here. A visit to any of them carries no obligation other than perhaps an open mind, and it offers the chance to learn and make new friends. You will be welcomed warmly.
  
  
• Volunteer opportunities. Frequently the Herald lists opportunities to get involved in the community. Why not pick a job that fits your interests and give it a shot? Or, call local schools, civic organizations or service groups to lend your volunteer time.
  
  
• Newspaper listings. Believe it or not, it's easy to get in the newspaper..

Thank you for s
upporting us

We would like to extend a strong thank you to all those in the community who helped us raise the necessary funds in order to attend the National Youth Forum on Medicine. Without their help we would not be able to attend this once-in-a-lifetime forum. The following people and businesses helped in our endeavors in pursuing a career in medicine:

Hazel Aney, Celia Galego, Marilyn Cooper and family, Archie and Lois McLeod, Earl and Marilyn Stoller, Robert and Lynn Harrington, Eleanor Desbrissay Liberty, Robert and Lisa Welle, Audrey and Robert Graham, Gene and Julie Chapin, Harold and Nancy Howard, Mike and Nancy O'Brien, Phil and Arlene Judson;

Mary Christy, Ray and MaryAnn Mischelle, Bruce and Peggy Yeats, Curt and Judy Cooley, Canby United Methodist Church, Diane Parham, Allenbaugh Associates, Canby Boosters, Aurora Health Clinic, Sheri Fromm, Canby Kiwanis, Willamette Falls Hospital and Canby Herald-Jon Bell.

And a big thanks to all the others in our families and our community we have not mentioned. If you would like to still help us out for forum expenses, i.e. transportation, meals and other miscellaneous expenses, please call Robert Street at 503-266-2264 or Hunter Benedict at 503-263-6474. Your help is greatly appreciated.
Robert Street Hunter Benedict
Canby

Canby women
share history

I truly enjoyed the letter written last week by my namesake, Mary Weber. She wrote about her childhood, schools and trip back to Colorado this summer. Our lives are similar in so many ways. I also went to a two-room school when I was young. However, we did have bathrooms, but had to be very quiet when there were funerals as our rooms were housed above the church. The nuns made sure we did not disturb the grief stricken congregation with our busy little feet. We missed some good recesses, too.

Mary and Dennis came to Canby from Longmont, Colo. I came from Loveland, Colo., which is 27 miles away from Longmont. Many years ago, I married a local man, Lawrence Weber. I worked for Canby School District as a school secretary for 25 years.

Another coincidence is that at one point Mary worked for the school district and I always joked that I was the only one who would have to leave my name plate when I left so she could use it. She quit before I retired, however, so I still have it.

I do not think I would be able to produce such a well-written article, and commend her for her ability. Keep up the good work, Mary. Maybe we have more in common than we realize.
"The Other" Mary Weber
Canby

There are good
kids in Canby

Last week I was coming home from the clinic in my wheelchair at about 6:30 p.m. It was dark and had been raining. I was at the corner of Grant and Highway 99E when I realized I had dropped my billfold. I had no way of getting it.

Two young men, who looked to be high school age, were in a green Chevy pickup waiting for the light to change. I got their attention and a young, blonde-haired man got right out of the truck and got my billfold and gave it to me. He could have taken it, and I wouldn't have been able to stop him.

I just wanted to tell you there are good kids in Canby, and I want that young man to know how much I appreciated his help.
Allan Benson
Canby

What are parents
teaching children?

I have a hard time understanding what is happening to our children. I have been in the retail business for many years. What I see on a daily basis is sometimes beyond my belief.

Children are allowed to have full run of any store. They play with expensive display equipment ($400 cameras, televisions etc.), and parents think nothing about it. Parents let their children play with books and toys while they are shopping and leave them at the check stands because they don't want to buy the items (those items now considered used).

Parents let their children eat fruit before it is paid for and expect the clerk to be understanding and try to figure out how much it may have weighed. Where am I going with this? We wonder why the children act up so much now and have no respect for anyone or anything. This parent/child behavior happens on a daily basis with most families.

A mother allowed her son to purchase $120 worth of Christmas candy on a food stamp card. One night a child got tired, so the mother went to the domestics department and got a blanket for her child to sleep on while she finished her shopping (again a salvage item).

Perhaps my concern is, "What are the parents teaching their children?" These situations are only a drop in the bucket. What I see every day, with most families, is of great concern to me.
Helen Abel
Aurora

Donations honor
Myra Weston

Thanks to the following people for recognizing the late Myra Weston's passion for history by their generous donations to the Canby Historical Society:

Eagle Newspapers, Ronald Houch, Gertrude Crow, Wayne Guild, Cindy Glivenski, Fred and Herman Bergman, Polk County Itemizer Observer, Mary Bliss, Frank and Francis Young, Robert Schoenkopf, Roma and Arden Eby, Richard Nafsinger, Melanie Pitman, Nora Clark, Nancy J. Adams, Dick and Carol Morse, Helen Lewis, Norman Colvin, Asher Insurance, Nadine Beck, Charles Driggers and Elmer Anderson Jr.

The museum also has been the recipient of more than 44 cartons and four file cabinets, thus far, of Myra's research, records, photos and archival collections.

Our deepest thanks to Bill and David Weston for entrusting us with the honor of preserving Myra's research and the opportunity to make it available to the public in the future.
Peggy Sigler, Executive director
Canby Historical Society