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Life

April 10, 2012
Kiara holds Tina, one of her sheep, at the family home in Washougal. She is raising the animals for 4-H and will show them at the Skamania County Fair this summer.

Encouraging a ‘Revolution of Responsibility’

Mention the term "4-H" to most people, and an image of kids in rural farming communities raising livestock typically comes to mind.But 4-H is much more. While raising animals continues to be a core function, local leaders are also encouraging young participants to give back to the community by doing outreach and service projects. The Silver Star Stockmen 4-H group in Washougal mainly focuses on large animals for market and breed projects, but has also branched out into community service projects.

April 3, 2012
Alan Bosse is the featured artist for April at the Second Story Gallery at the Camas Public Library. He and his wife, Sharon, moved to the area nine months ago.

Designed by nature

Alan Bosse was at a truck stop in Long Beach, Calif., in 2009 when he made a seemingly insignificant decision. With a few extra minutes to spare, the long-haul trucker and graphic design student took his new camera out and snapped a few photos of passion flowers growing along a nearby fence.A few months later Bosse, 50, entered the photo, "Passion and Bee" in a nationwide Earth Day photo contest sponsored by the website Bing. It won first-place out of approximately 17,000 entries.

April 3, 2012

“Designed by Nature”

Alan Bosse's work will be on exhibit at the Second Story Gallery. It will be unveiled at a reception during First Friday on April 6 from 5 to 8 p.m. The Second Story Gallery is located at the Camas Public Library, 625 N.E. Fourth Ave.

March 27, 2012
The 2012 CHS Knowledge Bowl team celebrates its "three-peat" last week. Team members include (front row) Evan Roche, Marcus Bintz, Griffin King, coach Dale Croswell and Noah Wachlin and (back row) Vaughn Okerlund and Tim Grote.

CHS Knowledge Bowl team takes home the state trophy three years running

A "three-peat" is often considered the crown jewel in team achievement: To win a state title three years in a row takes accomplishment to a whole new level.It's the exact feeling the Camas High School Knowledge Bowl Team had when they realized they'd won the state tournament again. "It was really exciting," said Marcus Bintz, team captain. :State was a really good opportunity for us to showcase our strengths well. We're very happy." Knowledge Bowl is a competition which quizzes students on topics relevant to their education. "Basically, it's everything you ever learned in school if you never forgot anything," said team member Griffin King. "It's all related to school topics."

March 20, 2012
A group of young campers enjoy one of the outdoor activities at a Camas Community Education camp.

Into spring break

Spring break in the Northwest usually means stormy weather and cold days. But don't let that keep the kids from getting the most out of it.Camas and Washougal offer several options for kids to be interactive and engaged during their time off from school, without spending several hours in front of the television or computer. For those parents who don't have the week off with their kids, there is the option of an all-day or part-day spring break camp through Camas Community Education. "Not everyone goes on vacations and many parents need childcare," said Director Mary Weishaar. "And if others are going to be home and just want their kids to have some fun, structured activities, there's a half-day camp option, too."

March 20, 2012

Where to go and what to do during spring break:

Camas Parks and Recreation Community Center, 718 S.E. Seventh Ave., 834-5307 o Junior camp counselor training, $35: Provides pre-training for ages 12 to 16 who want to become camp counselors. The training is held Monday, April 2 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

March 13, 2012
Participants in Challenge Day take part in an icebreaker activity. The event included more than 100 students from Excelsior and Washougal high schools, as well as teachers, administrators and community members.

A motive for change

"Be the change you want to see in the world."This famous quote by Mahatma Ghandi calls people to action. It is also the theme of Challenge Day, an event which provides participants with the tools to break down the walls of separation and isolation, and build new levels of respect and communication within their schools and communities. Washougal and Excelsior high school students, along with teachers, administrators and community members, had the opportunity to participate in Challenge Day last week. WHS counselors Christina Mackey and Owen Sanford first heard about it from a student intern, who said he'd participated in it at another school and it, "changed his life." "When we heard that, we had to investigate," Sanford said. "I started researching it, and got pretty overwhelmed by the costs and how to make it all happen. Then we heard there was a grant opportunity through Clark County Department of Community Services, and so we applied and got it."

March 6, 2012
Just as Pat Mason was getting ready to open Wagon Wheel Park, the Memorial Day flood of 1948 hit. He led the construction of a 10-foot tall dike to protect his new building from flood waters.

Wagon Wheel Park was once a popular roller skating rink and dance hall in Camas

In its heyday during the late 1940s and 1950s, the Wagon Wheel Park skating rink and dance hall was the "rockin' place to be" on Saturday nights in Camas.While the venue located on Northeast Third Avenue on the banks of the Washougal River was a skating rink on the weekdays, on Friday nights it began its transformation.

February 28, 2012

John Grall’s speech for ‘A Night of Angels’ fund-raiser

It was a cold rainy night when my mom said "grab an umbrella, we're going somewhere special." I was hesitant to leave my house to go out into the storm. As we walked, my mom shared with me the story of a mother's loss of her three sons and how she channeled her grief and pain into a love and passion to build a place to keep all kids safe, and to develop them into productive and responsible adults. Where we went that night was a port in a storm, for me and hundreds of kids. That place is the Jack, Will and Rob Boys & Girls Club.