SOUTHERN OREGON MAGAZINE

Story by: Heidi Chackel and Jennifer Strange

Each of us is fabulous in some way or another. The trick is finding out what our gifts are and letting them shine. Maybe those gifts are in music, philanthropy, athletics or life experience. We should never be afraid to grab hold and make them ours. These fabulous locals have done exactly that. Read their stories and get inspired! 

Mary Arnstad
President of Arnstad 
and Associates, Inc.

Boards Galore
“Having traveled Oregon clockwise throughout my career, I am so thrilled to have settled down in Southern Oregon! My husband and I really love this region—if it takes commuting then we are committed to that. We love living here, who wouldn’t? It is beautiful with a temperate climate and is near both San Francisco and Portland. But mostly it is the people, the land, the sense of culture and the tremendous fabric of community here. My husband and I have a beautiful home with a spectacular view and room for my horses. For me, home is where the horses are!”

Very well put, Ms. Arnstad, and we believe most of our readers would agree with you. And while you continue to volunteer throughout the state, we are thrilled to have you residing in Southern Oregon and we are grateful for all the ways you have bettered our communities.
Traveling Oregon clockwise is certainly not an overstatement when it comes to Arnstad’s past experiences in hospitality. She first came to Oregon from Chicago in 1978 to help manage Salishan Lodge on the coast. She then moved to Portland to launch and operate the esteemed Heathman Hotel for 15 years; during one of those years, she also served as president of the Portland Oregon Visitors Association. Continuing around the clock, she stopped in Bend for five years at Broken Top Club, where she was president and CEO, and she finally moved to Southern Oregon seven years ago. Arnstad’s statewide business ventures still continue, but she chooses to commute, because, as she so simply stated: “Southern Oregon is worth it.”
Since her move to the region, Arnstad has served three years on the board for Crater Lake National Park Trust and four years and counting on the board of directors for Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. “I have a long history of cultural tourism through my work with the arts community in Portland, so I was a natural fit for OSF,” she says. “After moving here, I actually spent two years as general manager for Ashland Springs Hotel and further familiarized myself with tourism and arts.
“I have never been involved with a more well-run organization than OSF, period, end of statement,” Arnstad adds. “It is not only the artistic product but also the business of it, the budgeting and forecasting—the rigor and discipline of that organization is phenomenal. The talent runs down deep, even down to the concessions, it is amazing the complete and utter dedication to quality, unwavering.”
Arnstad also served ten years on the Oregon Tourism Commission (now known as Travel Oregon), has been a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization and is a current member of the Oregon Women’s Forum. And, Ms. Arnstad, you really have found time to pursue your love for equestrian and trail riding? You truly are fabulous!
—Heidi Chackel

Sen. Jason Atkinson
R-Central Point

Representing 
the People of 
Southern Oregon
The fabulousness of Southern Oregon brought this individual back home. Jason Atkinson grew up in Ashland, but moved away to tackle graduate school and a career on the ski slopes. He returned to the great valley and settled in Central Point with his wife and child. “It just fits,” says Atkinson. “Southern Oregon is who we are and we have had a tremendous amount of people who have supported us. Not to mention I am particularly interested in catching steelhead and this is an extremely wonderful place for my little boy to grow up.”
While Atkinson does have a flourishing and challenging day job in business consulting that has allowed him to travel the world, he is most known for his work in politics. A strong desire to influence the changes he wished to see prompted him to launch a political career in 1998, taking a seat on the state legislature representing the people of Jackson and Josephine counties in the Oregon House of Representatives. Being the youngest member of the House did not deter him and he soon moved on and was elected to the Oregon Senate in 2000.
“I was raised in a family that put a very high emphasis on service,” Atkinson says. “I have a degree in history and, after all, American history is the study of public service. I love serving and am very heartbroken that I am unable to run for governor right now, but I am still one of the youngest around, while also one of the most senior members, so I have time. When I first got into the senate I used to joke that I was the youngest by two bypass surgeries.”
Why isn’t Atkinson running for governor? In 2008, an unexpected injury caused the Atkinson family to shift their priorities. An accidental gunshot wound just a few inches below his right knee damaged Atkinson’s femoral artery. His wife, Stephanie, pressed straight into the wound and used a rubber tire as a tourniquet, saving his life. The trauma was followed by months of hard rehabilitation, and Atkinson still continues with physical therapy.
While Atkinson loves and is truly dedicated to his political career, he likes to be known for more than that in regards to the community. “I am very involved in conservation and private property issues, as well as the general business climate, which I don’t believe is very healthy right now,” he says. “Spending eight years on the board for Crater Lake has taught me a lot and I was able to spearhead their license plate project.” Atkinson is an influential member of the Natural Resources and Environment Committee and co-authored an aggressive renewable energy bill, The Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards for Oregon, which passed in the 2007 session.
“The main thing I want people to recognize me for is someone who will represent them on anything, big or small,” concludes Atkinson. “I believe that, in politics, you can accomplish anything if you give the credit away.”
—H.C.

Calvin Scott 
Henry III
Founder of 
Henry Estate
Vineyard and 
Winery


Leading the Way
Henry Estate Winery is almost synonymous with family, as five generations of Henrys have farmed the land, with three 
currently working side by side. It is no wonder, then, that Calvin Scott Henry III returned to work the farm after enjoying a career in nautical engineering in California.
Henry returned to the Umpqua Valley in 1972 with his wife and three children. Once settled at the family homestead, he decided to venture out and grow grapes. “California is where I got the grape and wine bug,” he says.
The entire family’s sweat equity went into planting 12 acres of grapes, which sold so well that the Henrys built a winery of their own in 1978. This winery is exactly what makes the third Henry so fabulous: History will not forget his mechanical contribution to the wine industry—the Scott Henry Trellis System.
Once comfortable with his own winery, Henry, known to strive for perfection, looked for a way to increase the quality of his wine grapes.
“We came up with the trellising technique,” he says. “I was somewhat surprised to find out that no one had done it before; it was weird because I knew so little compared to others. But the trellis soon got picked up within Southern Oregon. It is beginning to expand throughout Oregon on those sites that have the proper type of dirt and it is used a lot in Australia and New Zealand. It was really fun and rewarding to create.”
Henry believes the wine industry is in a good position to keep growing and contributing to Southern Oregon’s economy. “People are still drinking wine and that will continue to increase as time goes by,” he says. “That is very important for the community, especially in the face of job reductions. Wine seems to be one of the bright spots.”
Henry Estate Winery is proud to work with Umpqua Community College’s Southern Oregon Wine Institute. In fact, while students are waiting for their own newly-planted vineyard to take hold, many can be found working hand in hand with one of the Henrys, learning from some of the region’s true wine wizards.
So who are the three generations of Henrys currently working the family homestead? There is, of course, the fabulous Calvin Scott Henry III. His son, Calvin Scott Henry IV, is in charge of all the winemaking duties, including bottling and labeling, warehouse inventories and wine competition entries. Finally, Henry’s daughter, Syndi Henry Beaver, helps coordinate the whole show from the winery’s main office; she also runs the tasting room.
—H.C.

Pamala Joy
Founder of Ashland  Food Angels


Nourishing the Soul
Pamala Joy brings nourishment to the Rogue Valley’s “hidden poor”—students, single parents, elderly and other people who don’t make a lot of money in a generally affluent community.
Deeply affected by famines in Africa and her own background in community service, Joy founded the Ashland Food Angels in 1995. A volunteer, grassroots organization dedicated to collecting and distributing food that otherwise might go to waste, the non-profit distributes to 17 organizations in Ashland, Talent and Medford, serving over 2,000 people each week.
“I quickly learned I could really only do things locally and I just began asking questions,” says Joy, who moved to Ashland in 1992 from Hawaii.
She started asking bakery and grocery store proprietors what they did with excess food. She then linked up the parts of her community that had excess food with the parts that needed food.
“People don’t like to throw food away, but they didn’t know what to do with it,” explains Joy. “I had the time, the vehicle, the interest and I could connect the dots and move it from ‘A’ to ‘B’.”
Nearly 60 volunteers strong, the Angels work every day of the year, often collaborating with the Ashland Food Network and Ashland Food Bank. Five years ago, Joy started an outreach program for mentoring high school students; now about 60 teens interact with the Ashland Food Angels over the course of an academic year.  
“I go to classrooms and talk to them about food, health, travel and communities,” Joy says. “Then they come to my house and do an hour of community service in the spring and autumn. Some of these kids I work with throughout their high school educations.”
The 60-year-old organizer traces her own service-orientation to an early awakening to what she calls “the universal consciousness,” helped along by a decade she spent at Findhorn Foundation (a spiritual community, ecovillage and international workshop center in Scotland).
Joy encourages people in other towns to follow her lead. “Simply check with local bakeries and stores to see if they have extra food,” she advises. “If they do, pick it up and deliver it to senior centers, food banks, free meal programs or Head Start. It’s easy to replicate.”
—Jennifer Strange

Ron Kramer
Executive Director of Jefferson Public Radio


One for the Listeners
Where would hundreds of thousands of listeners in Southern Oregon and Northern California be without Ron Kramer? Well, they might still be listening to the radio, but probably not to Jefferson Public Radio.
Twenty-five years ago, Kramer was hired as executive director of the station (established as KSOR in 1969). At that time, the station was a tiny, 10-watt, student-run station on the campus of Southern Oregon University, struggling to survive. Under Kramer’s leadership, JPR has become a regional public radio service reaching over 1 million potential listeners in a 60,000-square-mile area via the largest translator network in public radio.
Just who is this man behind the State of Jefferson’s acclaimed airwaves? A self-described “audio kid,” Kramer has been drawn to the dial since he was a toddler in 1940s Cleveland, Ohio.
“When I was three, I had my own record player and record collection,” he says. “I did sound recording as a junior and senior high student. An FM radio station was built a few hundred feet away from my high school and I started hanging around there just to absorb it (they were very tolerant) and I then started doing the same thing at other stations in Cleveland.”  
A fascination with network shows fed Kramer’s imagination. Following college, he made it his business to work for ABC Radio Network. “I wanted to know what it was like on the inside,” he says.
He ended up in Hollywood, working as a radio program director. Soon after, he accepted a job teaching radio/TV at Lewis and Clark College in Portland. Seven years later, in 1974, Kramer was hired as a consultant to SOU President Jim Sours to “help the school decide whether to abandon the station or try to build it into something more meaningful and, if the latter, how to best do that.”
When Sours signed on to Kramer’s “Cadillac option” of business plans, Kramer agreed to stay, becoming the only professional broadcaster associated with the station.
“Things grew slowly, but steadily,” he says. “First, we expanded KSOR to reach the entire Rogue Valley and then to a regional service, initially by translator and later by adding separate radio stations. My technical background was helpful in dealing with the engineering challenges of making JPR’s signal so widely available.”
Politics also presented a challenge. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting had denied the station’s application, which JPR needed to become a member of National Public Radio. It was Kramer’s plan to use NPR as a vehicle to building the station’s membership.
“It wasn’t easy,” he says of the years spent arguing his case in front of politicians in Washington, D.C. Finally, in 1980, CPB reconsidered and accepted JPR’s application, leading the way to NPR membership and a growing base of regional donors.  
SOU’s unwavering support of his efforts continues to humble Kramer, who has worked with nine university presidents, was promoted to full professorship, delivered a commissioned lecture at SOU’s Inaugural Professorial Lecture Series and, in 1994, wrote the “History of Broadcasting in Southern Oregon,” published by the Southern Oregon Historical Society.
“I believe JPR has had a powerful effect upon our communities’ cultural and educational life as well as their self-concept,” he says.
While Kramer has had opportunities to go elsewhere, he values the opportunity to make an ever-larger contribution in the region. He has recently published “Pioneer Mikes: A History of Broadcasting in Oregon,” on commission from the Oregon Association of Broadcasters.
“The media, including JPR, are going through wrenching evolutionary changes,” concedes Kramer. “I think I still have something to contribute to JPR’s crafting of its response to these changes, so that will keep me from getting bored.”
He also looks forward to the opening of the Western States Museum of Broadcasting in Ashland. “I’d like to get that up and running before I even think about retirement,” he says. “Who knows? Life has been good to me in that interesting opportunities keep presenting themselves. Hopefully, that will continue.”
It’s not time yet for Kramer to turn the dial away from the radio career that nourishes so many listeners.
—J.S.

Dan Mish
Owner of DDM Canine Counseling
Dog Whisperer 
and Fine Artist


You may recognize this fabulous person as Dan the Dog Man, especially if you watch KTVL Channel 10’s five o’clock news on Tuesdays. His show, running for seven years now, provides tips for dog owners who are, well, having a difficult time with their dog’s behavior.
“In reality, people need to change to be able to help their dog,” says Mish. “You can’t expect the blame to be placed entirely on your pet.”
Some dogs, or, for that matter, their owners, require a special home visit by Mish, whose business is called DDM Canine Counseling. “For dog training, it is great to venture into someone’s home and help with a problem that has been turning their life upside down,” says the dog whisperer. “Bad dog behavior has serious potential for injuries; it can really be a lifesaver if owners are taught how to control their dog’s behaviors. If I can help them with that, then I feel great. I love getting calls from clients who thank me and say how much better things are because then I feel I have made a difference in all of their lives.”
Mish moved to Talent eight years ago and relocated to Medford in 2008 from California. Having friends and family in the area made the move to Southern Oregon an easy choice. An artist by trade, he immediately created a studio for himself. Three years ago, he ventured further into the artistic community, becoming involved with Studio Sfumato, a social enterprise of living opportunities based in Medford.
Studio Sfumato’s mission is to “provide workshops, instruction and events to promote independence, individuality, creativity and an income for artists with a wide range of disabilities...and to share their unique talents with our community using art as a common thread that joins us all.”
“We have over 40 artists in the studio and we meet three days a week at The Rogue Gallery and Art Center in Medford, which provides all of the supplies,” says Mish. “The artists come and create and the stuff that works well for them is displayed in local venues around town, in shows and also outside the area.”
Mish spends 20 to 30 hours a week as the studio’s director. “I thoroughly enjoy working with developmentally disabled artists,” explains Mish. “I derive great joy out of bringing my talent to the artists and watching them flourish, paint and sell their artwork. It gives them a sense of accomplishment, and, for many, this is all they have. It builds their self esteem to see their piece hanging on a wall and receive a check from the purchase.”
It takes a truly fabulous person to give of themselves so others can experience newfound self-confidence. From dogs and their owners to developmentally disabled artists, many Southern Oregonians have much to be grateful for when they see Dan Mish come through the door.
—H.C.

Donna Patella
Founder of Seasons Events

The In-Kind 
Event Planner
Twelve years ago, Donna Patella started Seasons Events in Medford. The event planning business has flourished, now employing ten people on a regular basis and more as events occur. “I am definitely going to keep moving forward, I love this job!” Patella says. “Every day is different, working with different people and events. I would go nuts if I did the same thing every day, that is just not who I am.”
Southern Oregon residents love Patella as much as she loves her job. In addition to coordinating fabulous events, Patella is known to give back a whole lot more than she receives. And that’s just the way she likes it.
“This company helps the community—you name it, we do it,” she enthuses. “Donating my services and time to help raise money is the best way I can help the community. I think this valley is so huge in giving, and I believe in being a part of it. This is my community and if I can’t donate and help, then what does that say about me? It says I don’t care.”
Perhaps you have seen one of Patella’s floral masterpieces up for bid at an auction for a local non-profit organization. Or perhaps you have purchased a centerpiece sold as you walk out the door. If you really keep an eye out, you might catch Patella in the act, as she and her employees are often found staffing these types of events.
“The comments we love to hear as guests leave focus on how much fun they had and how they can’t wait for the next one,” Patella says. “When you get people to have a good time and enjoy themselves, that is the goal, especially since that makes them eager to return the next year and donate to the cause again.”
One of Patella’s favorite charities is Mobility Unlimited of Medford, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping working adults obtain mobility equipment. “The equipment helps adults stay in their homes and jobs,” says Patella. “It is a wonderful charity that I love to help, whether it be their auction, centerpieces, staffing, whatever they need help with, we step in.”
Patella moved to Medford from Portland 20 years ago and has never looked back. “My husband’s company transferred him down here and I said, ‘Yahoo!,” Patella laughs. “It is a great community. To raise our children, it really has been wonderful, not to mention that the weather is warmer, there is less rain and it is smaller than Portland.”
—H.C.

Rep. Dennis Richardson
R-Central Point

The Veteran 
and Politician
If you have driven by the Oregon Fallen War Heroes Memorial in Central Point, you have seen one of Dennis Richardson’s many community contributions.
“We broke ground on Memorial Day, 2008, and dedicated it on Veterans Day of the same year,” says Richardson. “Since then we have held what will be annual events honoring our veterans on both Memorial and Veterans days.”
The memorial contains the name of every Oregonian who has died in combat since Oregon became a state in 1859. To many, it is the most beautiful memorial in Oregon and has already been used as an example for other memorials around the country. A result of the combined efforts of many individuals (including Marty Terrell, who had the original idea), businesses and the City of Central Point, the memorial exudes honor from its pristine setting.
“It was placed in the new Don Jones Memorial Park in Central Point so families enjoying the park can take their children and grandchildren by the hand and walk throughout the memorial and teach the younger generations how important our liberty is,” says Richardson. “Because, for those who have fallen, freedom wasn’t free and, through the memorial, we can teach that duty and honor still matter.”
Richardson is a veteran himself, having served as a helicopter pilot in Vietnam in 1971. After losing a good friend in the war, Richardson “wanted to make sure that those Oregonians who have been lost in various wars are never forgotten.”
Richardson has lived for 30 years in Central Point, where he started a small law firm in 1979. “While in law school, my wife and I made a list of ten desirable items on where to live,” he recalls. “We looked all over the western U.S. and decided on the Rogue Valley and we have been happy with that decision ever since, no plans of leaving.” The pair has raised nine children in Central Point and boasts 27 grandchildren.
While Richardson’s efforts with the war memorial are fabulous in and of themselves, he and his wife’s life philosophy only adds to the pie. “When I was 46, I was reading a bio on Benjamin Franklin—a tremendous servant—and his philosophy was that for the first 50 years of life, you take from society with education, a job, raising a family and preparing for the future. And your second 50 years should be given back in public service. So at 46, I started to prepare for that to be my life philosophy.”
Five years later, he began serving on the city council and a few years later moved into the state legislature representing District 4 (Applegate, Central Point, Gold Hill, Grants Pass, Medford, Merlin, Murphy, Rogue River and Williams). When that runs its course, Richardson insists he will find another way to serve.
“I will keep going as long as the citizens want me to represent them,” he says. “The more I learn, the more effective I am at watching out for our citizens at the capitol.”
—H.C.

Brad Russell
Executive Director of the Rogue Valley YMCA

A Man on
 the Move
Brad Russell has been on the move since the day he entered the world. 
“I was born in 1967 in Reading, Pennsylvania,” he says. “My parents were on a road trip and I popped out along the way.”
After growing up in New York and Texas—where he volunteered for 4-H, Boy Scouts and the Lighthouse for the Blind—Russell earned a business administration degree at the University of Maine and a master’s degree in recreation administration from Springfield College in Massachusetts.
“I decided on Springfield because it used to be the YMCA International Training School,” says Russell. “I was inspired to see the gymnasiums where the YMCA invented basketball and volleyball. This innovation-tied-to-solving-social-issues was at the core of my studies.”
Degree in hand, Russell set off to see the world, a turn that led him into public service.
“I backpacked through Europe soul searching,” he remembers. “The passion I felt from social workers I met in Denmark combined with the YMCA’s mission statement—’To put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all’—was the spark for my career.”
That was 20 years ago and during those two decades, Russell has worked for the YMCA in Rochester, NY, Taiwan, San Diego, Calif., and Monterey County, Calif. He has visited YMCAs in more than 35 countries, speaks Mandarin Chinese and Spanish, and volunteers for a non-profit in Oakland, Calif., that creates community gardens in low-income, high crime areas. Before moving to the Rogue Valley with his wife, Stella, in 2006, Russell took five months off to hike the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada.
What flames his passion to help people? “From Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, I believe that beyond the basic needs of food, water, shelter and good health, people want financial security, education, love, belonging, self-esteem and greater opportunities for themselves and their children,” Russell articulates. “This important field helps families achieve just that.”
As executive director of the RVYMCA, Russell makes a point to meet face-to-face with every family that asks for help so he can assist in getting them involved with YMCA programs and other networking opportunities. He also helps manage the board and staff that raise money to invest in the Y’s financial assistance program.  
“As for milestones, we completed a comprehensive strategic plan in 2008 and we have invested in our facilities, improved our finances and further developed our programs and partnerships,” says Russell. “For example, we changed our swimming pool from chlorine to UV water filtration, the first in Southern Oregon. Therefore, this year we have taught more kids to swim than any other year on record.”  
Since Russell’s arrival, an automatic door has been installed and specialized programs have been instituted that provide older adults with new fitness and fellowship options. “Activate America,” a national wellness plan designed to help with obesity, has been launched and the RVYMCA works with local school districts to provide after-school, out-of-school and summer camp programs for thousands of children.
“They play, make friends and learn the values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility,” Russell says. “Purpose, people, programs and partners . . . words that start with P seem to be our focus.”
Paddling might be next for Russell, who hopes to paddle the rivers across America to complete a “lifelong triathlon”—in addition to hiking the PCT, he has also biked 3,200 miles across the country. For the time being, though, the Rogue Valley is lucky to have this caring advocate in his office.
—J.S.

Sue Shaffer
Chairperson of Cow Creek Band 
of Umpqua Tribe of Indians

Lifeways 
of a Leader
In 1853, the Umpqua—Cow Creek Band (as it was then known) was the first tribe in the Oregon Territory to sign a treaty ceding their land to the U.S. government. The tribe exchanged the land for a small, temporary reservation and $12,000, to be given to the tribe in household and farming supplies. Following the Rogue River Indian Wars of 1852-1856, the treaty was ignored; in 1954, the government designated the Umpqua—Cow Creek Band a “terminated tribe.”
Cow Creek Indian Sue Shaffer, following in the footsteps of her mother, Ellen “Nellie” Furlong Crispen, and her grandmother, Mary Thomason Furlong, refused to allow her tribe’s identity to perish. She began speaking out about her 1,050-member band, all descendants of seven tribal families in the South Umpqua River watershed.
In 1982, Shaffer persuaded Oregon’s congressional delegation to support tribal restoration. Armed with reams of evidence, including notes she’d taken as a girl at tribal meetings held in her parents’ home, she helped push a 140-year-old land claim through Congress. On December 12, 1982, the Cow Creek Band’s tribal status was restored, gaining recognition through the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Two years later, the tribe received a settlement of $1.5 million, roughly equal, when adjusted for inflation, to what the original treaty had promised. Shaffer convinced her tribe to place the money in an endowment instead of dividing it among individual tribal members. After Congress approved the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988, she was the first tribal leader in Oregon to negotiate a gambling compact with the governor. The state’s first high-stakes bingo hall was opened in 1992, on the site of what has become Seven Feathers Casino Resort.  
The tribe established the Cow Creek Seven Feathers Foundation in 1998; in 2000, this philanthropic organization changed its name to Cow Creek Umpqua Indian Foundation. To date, the foundation has awarded $9,150,260 in grants to community non-profit organizations in a seven-county area. The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians is now a sovereign tribal nation with a growing land base and health insurance, scholarships and housing assistance available to its members.
Shaffer is known nationally for her advocacy of tribal rights and is often named by congresspeople as a trusted advisor on tribal affairs; she served as tribal liaison to President Clinton’s special assistant on intergovernmental affairs.
At 87-and-a-half, the elegant, 5-foot-2-inch matriarch is still going strong. Working ceaselessly from her office in Roseburg, she meets with employees, staff, grantees, public servants and government officials; she loves to get her nails done and she tells heartwarming stories about her adorable dog, Rocco.
“After 35 years of my time and money, I would hope that I have left a mark,” she says, fondling a locket around her neck that holds a gold flake her beloved late husband, George Shaffer, prospected from their family ranch near Tiller. “The Cow Creek recognition is certainly a landmark. And our business development, land and education for children who wouldn’t have gotten it otherwise are certainly a plus.”
Shaffer’s compassion and commitment to positive change don’t stop at the tribal door. As her parents and tribal elders taught her, everyone benefits when the community at large is encouraged to stay healthy, employed and educated.
“The tribe is very cognizant in our job of feeding and supporting our communities and I don’t just mean our tribes,” says Shaffer. “With the recession and with mills down and unemployment high, Douglas County is very dependent. When we think about doing for people, we have the responsibility of our community folks, too.”
Where does this dynamo get her energy?
“I’ve always just worked; that’s all you can say,” concludes the leader, whose lifeway has changed the course of so many.
Read the original 1843 treaty between the U.S. government and the Cow Creek Band: http://www.fws.gov/pacific/ea/tribal/treaties/Umpqua_cowcrk.pdf
Learn more about Cow Creek Foundation: www.cowcreekfoundation.org
—J.S.

Hairo Torres
Professional Dancer


A Talented 
Young Man
Hairo Torres is a fabulous dancer. But don’t just take our word for it! Millions of viewers and a few judges placed him in the final ten in the fourth season of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” This reality series pits singers, dancers, magicians—you name it—against one another to see who comes out on top. Thousands try out and this fabulous Southern Oregonian was one of the few left standing.
“I was born in Southern California and grew up in Grants Pass, having moved here when I was just six years old,” says Torres. “I recently moved to Las Vegas to pursue my profession in dancing, but I miss Southern Oregon very much … not necessarily the cold weather, but the beautiful mountains and green trees!”
Torres has always dreamed of making a living doing what he loves best: dancing. “I have been dancing hard for ten years,” he says. “I did my very best on the show and I had a lot of support. People from all over the U.S. cheered me on, but my biggest support came from friends and family in Oregon.”
During preliminary auditions in Houston, Texas, Torres was the last act. Not intimidated, he busted out some amazing moves and wowed the judges (David Hasselhoff, Sharon Osbourne and Piers Morgan). Having received a standing ovation, he was invited to join the show.
While on “America’s Got Talent,” Torres experienced several difficulties. Most notable was his inability to generate an income and pay his bills. Support poured in from Oregon; in particular, the Woodworth family of sisters and a former co-worker, Charlie Brown, saved the day, helping Torres push onward.
Uniqueness and variety characterized Torres’ dancing; he even threw in some humor for good measure. Judges, audience members and viewers never knew what the limber 24-year-old was going to do next, as his body seemed able to move in ways never thought possible.
“Doing the show has changed my life in more ways than one,” explains Torres. “I have reached a place that not a lot of people get to even see and I feel very blessed for that. I may not have won, but I am very proud of what I accomplished. After all, top ten finalist out of 100,000 or so people—how much more lucky can a guy from Southern Oregon get?”
Well, Hairo Torres, you might not be right on that one. Luck? Not so much. Talent and dedication? Absolutely! As Thomas Jefferson once said, “I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”
—H.C.