Editorial

Another fine fair

For another year, the Clackamas County Fair & Rodeo is consigned to history, leaving us with memories and photos of six days spent enjoying the fun in the sun.

As usual, the fair featured something for everybody. Entertainers, be they singers, dancers, jugglers or lumberjacks, wowed the crowds from start to finish.

Two talent shows, a new Pretty Baby contest, arts and crafts shows, plus 4-H and FFA agriculture and livestock programs showed county residents - young and old - know how to have fun and get involved.

Nothing beats ambling around the fairgrounds, soaking in the atmosphere and ambience, the spectacle and the stage shows.

Numerous contests - from baking to art, flower arranging to canning - allowed people, especially children, to play a big p art in the 2000 fair, a true hands-on experience.

But, having just finished its 94th year, the fair does suffer from growing pains that come naturally with being an annual success, a key date in many local and regional residents' calendars.

Finding a place to park is a problem the county sheriff's office Explorers did well to help solve, but there are no easy solutions and the problem is not a new one.

Thankfully, many people walk or cycle to the site, and Wilsonville's SMART bus and the Canby Adult Center ran needed shuttle services.

Some amusement park attendees raised concerns about the "Fun Card," which is supposed to make paying for and getting on rides easier.

The long lines suggested otherwise, particularly on Kids Day, and many people complained the machine would not accept their cards.

The process of using the card took longer than the old-fashioned, but tried-and-trusted, method of giving a paper ticket to a ride attendant.

The apparently high cost of food at some fairground booths also attracted the ire of some visitors, especially those who stayed all day and ate multiple times. For a family of four, it could get pretty pricey.

There's little doubt the county fair is a good deal, especially considering all the discounts available throughout the six-day run. It does much for the city, the county, and its people.

But, as more and more competitors vie for people's "entertainment dollar," holding the line on costs and keeping the lines for rides moving will help ensure happy families keep returning to the fair.

It's not easy to make everyone happy all the time, but the fair's management and maintenance staff do their best, and we thank them for their efforts.

Good job, enjoy some time off, and good luck in 2001.

Letters to the editor

Thanks for playing in
our family golf tournament

The Miller family would like to thank everyone who participated in the Mike Miller Invitational Golf Tournament at Arrowhead Golf Club on Friday, Aug. 11.

Whether it was through sponsorship or golfing, we appreciate your support. We hope everyone had a good time and will join us again next year.

Thanks again.
The Millers
Chris and Stephanie, Wilsonville
Roger and Jo and Kim and Taylor, Canby

Square dance club
appreciates support

We would like to thank everyone who helped make it possible for the Canby Cloverleafs Square Dance Club to go to Canada the last weekend in April to compete in the Pacific Northwest Teen Square Dance Festival.

To all the parents and grandparents who have spent many hours cutting out and sewing the dresses and shirts for all our 4-H group, and all the neighbors and friends who bought the See's candy bars we sold to raise the money needed to go, we couldn't have done it without you.

Thanks also to Swan Island Dahlias for the dahlia bulbs we also sold to help pay for the trip.

And a big thanks to Willamette Industries, Canby Telephone, Fred Meyer, and all the adult square dancing groups from Eugene to Portland who have also helped by donating money and buying the promotional pins.
Derek Aamodt, president
Brooke Gitts, vice-president
Becky Miller, secretary
Daniel Vosler, treasurer
Ann Skoe, 4-H leader
Canby

Resident 'insulted'
by recent mailer

I was greatly insulted by a letter we received Saturday, Aug. 11, from DirectLink Cable Services.

I understand there may be a problem with people "stealing" their cable services, but I think they should find a better way of dealing with this.

A few years back, after being upset with the cable service we were getting, we decided to get a satellite dish for most of our television services and erect our old antenna for the local channels.

In the letter we received today, we were made aware of an amnesty period that DirectLink is offering for those people stealing their cable services.

In this letter, it states,

"To encourage you to become a paying customer, we have enacted an amnesty period that will last through Aug. 31, 2000. If you call our office during the amnesty period, we will activate your cable account and you can begin paying for the services you are currently obtaining illegally."

Excuse me? Let me tell you, if using DirectLink was the only service that could provide us with television service, we'd go without at this point!
Janell Casey
Canby