The Applegater

2 Winter 2019 Applegater OBITUARY Janis Mohr-Tipton. e name is synonymous w i t h " l i b r a r i a n" a n d "community volunteer extraordinaire," right? e latter still holds true, but Janis retired from the Jackson County Library Services (JCLS) this fall, after spending almost 30 years in an active r o l e m a n a g i n g Ru c h Branch Library, providing p r o g r a m m i n g a n d events for her community, tirelessly campaigning a n d f u n d r a i s i n g t o rebuild our libraries, and raising her family in the Applegate. Janis has always been active in local organizations and in building community. She was an active 4-H leader for many years, helped establish the most recent Upper Applegate Grange, and has a green thumb up to her elbow. Janis volunteered with Ruch Library for several years and became Ruch Branch Supervisor in 1992. At that time there was a committee of dreamers, called the Applegate Valley Community Center- Library, who knew the time had come for a new library. Janis helped keep that group grounded, and the center-library ended up merging with the Friends of the Library in 1994, a move that gave strength to the grassroots push from this community for a new library. Fundraising efforts followed, including Applegate Valley Days, bake sales, miles of pennies, book sales, and more, always with Janis at the helm. Janis Mohr-Tipton retiring? Say it's not true! BY THALIA TRUESDELL The official grand o p e n i n g o f t h e n e w Ruch Branch Library was Januar y 2, 2003, and the staff rejoiced at the b r i g h t n e w w i n d ow s and open spaces. Janis worked tirelessly with Ruch School about how to use this valuable new resource—a library next d o o r ! Sh e c o n t i n u e d working shortened hours at Ruch Library while also managing the Central Point Branch. In the fall of 2008 Janis left Ruch Library to begin doing book talks at Jackson County libraries, sharing enthusiasm with school students about new and interesting books they would enjoy. J a n i s c o n t i n u e s as a volunteer in the S M A RT Pr o g r a m a t Ruch Outdoor Community School and works with the Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council to educate schoolchildren about the life cycle of salmon. She is also on the board of A Greater Applegate and chair of its Cantrall Buckley Park Enhancement Program. She was instrumental in the construction of the new sundial at the park and all the educational signage. The Friends of Ruch Library are fortunate to count Janis as a board member, but we're going to miss her at the library. alia Truesdell • 541-899-7438 Ruch Library Branch Manager Jackson County Library Services Volunteer extraordinaire Janis Mohr-Tipton, in costume as Madeline, the young storybook character, for Halloween at Ruch Library around 2000. We l c o m e , A a r o n Krikava, to the Editorial C o m m i t t e e o f t h e Applegater! Aaron was born in Arkansas and raised in upstate New York and suburban Philadelphia. He attended Fordham University, in New York City, where he earned a BS in chemistry with a minor in psychology. After a brief stint in the pharmaceutical industry he decided to heed the deep calling he felt to leave the east coast and explore the rugged natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest. In 2004 he arrived in the "gorgeous" Little Applegate River drainage for an agricultural internship on an organic farm and ranch. He was immediately taken with the incredible beauty and natural diversity of the Applegate area, as well as the kindness and warmth of the local community. Working on a forest restoration crew introduced him to the concepts of ecological natural resource management, and he was hooked. He is currently developing a local prescribed burning program to increase the use of controlled burning on both Aaron Krikava joins the Applegater Team private and public lands in the Applegate and surrounding areas. W h i l e c o - ow n i n g a n A p p l e g a t e - b a s e d ecological restoration c re w, h e j o i n e d t h e board of the Applegate P a r t n e r s h i p a n d Watershed Council as a way to contribute h i s k n o w l e d g e a n d experience to the land m a n a g e m e n t o f t h e greater Applegate area. Aaron believes deeply that the volunteer efforts of local residents are vital to a healthy rural community. He has found that communicating regionally important information across a diverse social and geographic region like the Applegate Valley is a complex and difficult task and that small local newspapers like the Applegater have an unmatched ability to do just that. He is honored to help support those efforts by joining the Editorial Committee. No t e : T h e E d i t o r i a l C o m m i t t e e reviews all submitted articles each issue for appropriateness, clarity, and factualness. Other members are Tom Carstens, Diana Coogle, Barbara Holiday, Sandy Shaffer, and Greeley Wells. Anyone who knew my father, Tom Klinefelter, will tell you that he was a rare and extraordinary person, but to say he will be missed or remembered is not enough. e reach of his influence knew no limits, and, despite his death, he continues to inspire and guide us. is was a man who passed from this place with tremendous dignity and grace, on his own terms. Thomas Franklin Klinefelter II November 25, 1949 - October 25, 2019 ere is no greater honor than to be his son, enjoy the memories we made, and embody him. Tom made patience look easy and lived with strict intention. As a result he was a pillar of strength for the people of his global community. We can only hint at the Joy, Talent and Love he shared. He leaves behind many broken hearts, yet there is no shame in his passing. Sebastian Klinefelter sebastian@excavationoregon.com Mitakuye Oyasin by Tom Klinefelter ere was never a time When I did not exist Nor you…you know it's true Nor will there be any future in which we shall cease to be…so let it be Dear family and friends— we are all one family Please dance when I die I want you to smile and dance when I die…No sad eye I wish for you to sing and party Laugh until you cry Please don't hesitate— cause I'm the one that's free So let's all celebrate my liberation from me. I love you all! —Space Elk A true renaissance man—an engineer, electrician, poet, and writer. Musician, pilot, chef, photographer, actor, athlete, and martial artist. Survivalist, mountaineer. Counselor, teacher, political/environmental activist, healer, and farmer. Tom Klinefelter was an expert on life and could master anything he chose to. When Barbara Holiday announced at the October board meeting that she would be leaving the Applegater as its editor and a board member, we were stunned. e Applegater without Barbara?! Unimaginable. Inconceivable. But actually, of course, in the end, inevitable. She wasn't going to go on forever, though we in our complacency at having such a good editor hadn't been thinking about an end date. To say we are going to miss Barbara is only to scratch the surface. She has been the mainstay of this paper for 14 years. She has overseen articles, making sure every sentence in every article is grammatically correct and syntactically graceful. She has been adamant about giving priority to contributions from the community and letting all voices be heard. e Applegater is visually attractive because of her layouts. She has supervised our ad reps. She does all the interaction with the printer, and it was she who suggested we use a higher quality paper and more color pages. She works like a Trojan for our fundraisers. She got us started on our book projects. She has done so much for the Applegater it would take half this page to tell it all. And Barbara wouldn't allow that. In her eyes the Applegater's first function is for the members of the community. We have so much to thank her for. As sorry as we are to see Barbara go (the next issue will be her last), we understand what she meant when she said, "I want a life." She has put her life into the Applegater, and the whole community of the Applegate is the better for it. We will all miss her. We on the board send her off with hugs and kisses, a thousand thanks, and best wishes for life after Applegater. Applegater Board of Directors Diana Coogle, David Dobbs, Paul Fattig Jeannette LeTourneux, Cathy Rodgers Farewe Editor in chief Applegater Newsmagazine Applegate Valley Community Newspaper, Inc., seeks a part-time editor in chief to manage production of its quarterly 24-page newsmagazine, the Applegater. e editor is paid as an independent contractor; benefits are not included. e editor is required by corporate bylaws to sit on the board of directors as a volunteer and attend monthly board meetings in the Applegate Valley. See more information, including responsibilities and requirements, on page 19. — Employment opportunity — to Barbara Holiday

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