Fifty first names only …’

Karen dropped off a flyer for the Presbyterian Church Ice Cream event. She helped design it – including the bright yellow background — and we placed it in our front window. Pictures from the event indicated it was a big hit, as always.
Lois was dressed in all of her July 4 glory; met her right around 1st Street and Oregon Ave., about 15 minutes before the parade started. It turns out she’s well-known as a “super fan” at Oregon Ducks games.
Wednesday mornings, the papers that are mailed to Chronicle readers go to the Creswell post office. I was able to meet Melissa and Mimi (Miriam) as we all hauled sacks of mail off and on the big rolling platforms.
Tina delighted all of us at the office when she came by to place ads in the paper. She told us all about the goats she and her colleagues “adopted” and cared for through decades.
One regular stop for me is the Creswell Bakery, and I recently met Marisa, who works there.
Steve and Beth of Seattle were visiting Tom during the July 4 holidays. They needed to notarize a few things and we chatted about the parade.
Wayne, a reader from Eugene, popped by the paper to renew his subscription.
Sally is well-known and we’ve spoken a few times since my arrival. While she works on “Moveable Feet” dance activities, she’s also the driving force behind the Lace festival.
The AM/PM is a regular stop on the newspaper delivery route, and I met Keaton the last time I was there.
Halie is another person I regularly see at Espresso coffee shop.
Ron has arrived in town, eager to cover the local music scene and artists. You’ll see his byline soon. He brought a four-legged friend, too. Monita will no doubt be a frequent visitor to the newsroom.
Mariah and Alisha accepted the Chamber of Commerce “Agribusiness of the Year” award on behalf of Creswell Bakery during the May banquet. I also saw Patti there for the first time, though I’ve seen her a few more times now around town, including at her house and garage – still packed with yard sale items. I also met Brandee and Sue as part of the awards ceremony.
The student winners were delightful. McKenzie, Tayler and Kelsey were all awarded by the Chamber for their academic and community work.
Ryan, Bonnie and Kari work right across the street from our newsroom; they were good sports when I took a silly picture of them for the Chamber banquet.
Angelo was out recruiting new business for his office automation business. He’s new to town and seemed to be adapting quickly.
A particular thrill recently was meeting with The Chronicle’s former publisher, Helen. We first went to lunch together, and later my wife and I were invited to see Hollyer’s Prairie and her home. We couldn’t be more excited to meet her and hear about her life and times as the publisher here.
Dean also visited the newspaper. He’s a former journalism professor at the University of Oregon and was Helen’s right-hand man during her tenure. He offered a wealth of experience and contacts.
Tom dropped off a flyer promoting the 41st annual Jim Wright Memorial Stearman Fly-In on Aug. 3 in Cottage Grove. “People love the big biplanes,” he assured me.
I wrote about this last week, and I’m still upbeat about the “Downtown Team” assembled by Maddie and including Amy, Heidi, David and Taylor, among others who have been mentioned in this space before. Great lineup of people.
I visited Magnolia Gardens recently and met quite a few people I hope to get to know better. Glen is the poet laureate of the senior home, “Montana” had terrific tales about growing up in the area and Pat had plenty of suggestions for newspaper coverage.
The Chronicle worked an important series on suicide called “Breaking the Silence,” in partnership with The Cottage Grove Sentinel and The Siuslaw News. Ned is the managing editor of The Sentinel and played a key role in developing and executing the important series (still available at thecreswellchronicle.com).
I see Robert and Harley run by the newsroom – literally jogging from downtown to the Dairy Queen and back – and then they usually come in for water and treats (for the dog).
Happened to meet Dena, who was just out for a walk this past weekend on a glorious day.
Although I was there before the late-arriving party crowd, I had a good time at a friend’s birthday party. I met Brian, Amy and Jeff.
I’ve gotten to know Hannah – who works next to our newsroom – much better the past few weeks. We appreciate her and other staffers next door who put out the beautiful planters in front of our building.
It’s nice having a bench outside and right in front of the newsroom. It’s a great place to meet people like Tracie, who had a towel spread out on the bench while trying not to take in too much sun.
Jay visited with our team recently; he’s a sales manager for a local publication and it’s always a good time talking shop about the publishing industry.
Finally made it out to downtown Eugene with a few friends to check out the music scene. We ended up at a table with Jan and Faith of Cottage Grove. They were big fans of the Austin, Texas-based band, The Deer, which was playing that night. It was a great show, and we definitely made new friends that evening.