The Applegater

2 Winter 2018 Applegater Job Opportunity The Applegater needs a self-motivated advertising salesperson for Josephine County. Existing book; generous commissions. Must know Excel and be able to meet deadlines. Email resume to gater@applegater.org. OBITUARY Hans Rilling June 6, 1933 - October 16, 2018 H a n s R i l l i n g , a r e s e a r c h scientist, professor of biochemistry, and former board member of the Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council, has died in Orleans, Massachusetts. He was 85 years old. Hans and I became friends after he retired from 35 years of teaching at the University of Utah and moved to Ruch, Oregon, with his wife, Alison Baker. As lead organizers in making plans to improve Rogue Valley libraries and the environment in the Applegate, the two of them contributed greatly to the community in the few years they spent here. H a n s a n d A l i s o n l e d t h e campaign to build 14 public libraries throughout Jackson County. As a result, the towns of Applegate and Ruch each has its own beautiful library. As an active board member of the Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council, Hans was instrumental in designing a water-quality monitoring p r o g r a m i n t h e Ap p l e g a t e R i v e r Watershed, which became a model for a state-sponsored program. Hans was a frequent advocate for the environment and loved the beauty and naturalness of the Applegate. As a mentor, he offered insight and encouragement to the younger scientists and managers of the Watershed Council. Hans attended countless meetings and field trips, always bringing with him his gentle humor and friendliness. He gave himself fully to the betterment of others and to the environment, and he finished whatever he started. As a lifelong environmentalist, teacher, and leader in the effort to gain clean water for the streams in the Applegate, he deserves our deep gratitude. His devotion to getting more people involved in a project so that he could move on to another project was outstanding. He and his wife, Alison, remain an inspiration for us all. Chris Bratt • 541-846-6988 is year's Southern Oregon Smoked Salmon Fest, a benefit for the Maslow Project, featured eight contestants. As usual, a wide variety of ingredients and techniques went into creating the savory end products. I didn't participate this year so I could sample other people's offerings, which is difficult to do as a contestant. It was a rewarding experience tasting what other smoke chefs had prepared. About 500 people turned out to taste the smoked salmon, enjoy a drink, and listen to the music or browse through the numerous vendors and nonprofit tables on a pleasant afternoon in September. First-time contestants, Don Drager and Mary O'Brien, both of Central Point, walked away with first and second places, respectively, in the judged competition. With smirks on their faces they revealed that they sourced their salmon from Albertson's. (Many of the competitors are purists like me who use only self-caught fish.) Drager's winning entry was wet-brined and included some maple syrup in the recipe, while O'Brien's was dry-brined and had a fruity flavor from the basting. Prior to the award ceremony, I had chosen O'Brien as the winner because of a unique flavor that I picked up in her salmon. After talking to her and determining that our methods and recipes didn't differ that much, I believe that her unique flavor came from the madrone used to smoke her winning entry (also used for Drager's salmon). Many people, myself included, primarily use alder for smoking fish, although some use fruit woods. I have smoked meats with both madrone and manzanita in the past with excellent results and would recommend that you home-smokers give Maslow's Fifth Annual Smoked Salmon Fest wrap-up BY PAUL TIPTON it a try if you haven't already. My next batch of smoked salmon will be done with madrone. ird-place winner, Kiley Chisholm, also of the Central Point area, credited her success to the pineapple-apricot basting that she applied throughout the smoking process. It did provide a very nice background flavor. And then there's the People's Choice award winner, for the second year in a row, Mike Gervais, from the Upper Applegate. (He also won first place in 2016.) Mike is very particular about the handling of his fish. After catching it, he follows standard procedure by bleeding it, then immediately putting it on ice, but he never freezes it. He only keeps it on ice or refrigerated. Even after the brining and eight to ten hours of alder-wood smoking, it goes back into the refrigerator. But you know it's worth the effort once you taste it—excellent! Kudos to all of this year's winners. is year's event brought in about $29,000 to benefit the Maslow Project, which serves homeless and needy youth in Jackson and Josephine counties by providing a variety of services, such as access to clothing, meals, and hygiene supplies; counseling; family advocacy; and positive youth development with life skills workshops, a drop-in art studio, job readiness tutoring, and more. To learn more and find out how you can support this important local nonprofit, go to maslowproject.com. And next year come out and get some tastes of great smoked salmon or enter your own—whether wild-caught or store-bought. Paul Tipton ptipton@frontier.com 541-846-7501 Last year many women from Applegate Valley—and their spouses, children, family, and friends—participated in the Women's March. is annual event is a safe, fun, and joyful space to raise our voices and share our visions. Women's March 2019 will happen at 11 am on Saturday, January 19, at Hawthorne Park in Medford and at Riverside Park in Grants Pass. You can keep up-to- date at rogueindivisible.org and engage with other Applegate marchers on Facebook—search for "Women's March Southern Oregon." Thousands par ticipated in the inaugural 2017 Women's Marches in Ashland and Grants Pass, with similarly high turnout in 2018. Event organizers expect even more enthusiasm next year. Women's March in 2019 Time to pull out those pink hats! See you on January 19! Laura Ahearn laura.ahearn@stanfordalumni.org Thank you from the Applegater! We appreciate you—our contributors, donors, advertisers, and readers— for your support throughout the years. The Applegater would not be here without you. Happy Holidays from the Board of Directors

• Cover