Happy Camp News

January blues aren’t a problem when all the fun garden catalogs begin arriving. What fun!! The days have been much too dry this winter, but the sun is wonderful. The low level of the lakes and str3eams remind us that we need the precipitation.
Perhaps it is because children love holidays, and from day care years we celebrate every holiday that comes along with enthusiasm! We make up a holiday if there isn’t one. This time of year, with all the Thanksgiving, Hanukah, Christmas, and New Year’s holidays over, we need a holiday.
Valentine’s Day is coming, it is true. Three weeks from Friday, everyone can celebrate Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day can celebrate our romantic love, but all love deserves celebrating.
Love always deserves celebrating because it is what makes life worthwhile. It is love we first experience as all our needs are taken care of in a loving family. It is loving friendships that take us to our first experiences in the outside world and enlarge out circle of living. It is the neighborly love of our community of Happy Camp that encircles us in the center of this beautiful surroundings of forest, stream and blue skies above along the Klamath River. Our Klamath Neighbors are privileged to live, work and recreate in this home of outdoor beauty.
Our school children will, no doubt make red hearts to share with each other. Some high School students are planning a bake sale the day before at Parry’s Market. Our church messages will teach that we Love God because He first loved us, and we ought to Love God and love our neighbors as ourselves. The Golden Rule, to do to others as we want them to do to us is the heart of many persons value system.
Hope that you will give me a call and share what is going to be happening between now and then, Who is having a bake sale, where a special meal will be offered for the occasion, or other special things will be happening to celebrate love.

Yesterday we celebrated a little boy, Michael King born on Jan. 15, 1929, to the Rev. Michael King and Alberta Williams King gave a speech in 1963 that we still remember today. How many speeches by present day leaders are remembered, except for a few quotes. Those quotes repeated primarily to complain by half that keep them going. The only pastor that American honors with a day bearing his name as a national holiday.

When the Rev King went to a conference in German in 1934 he was inspired by the reformer, Martin Luther changed his name and the name of his son, to Martin Luther King. Young Martin followed in the footsteps of both his grandfather and father and served in at Ebenezer Baptist Church.

Not long ago I was reminded of Martin Luther King Jr. stirring speech from 1963 when an English Class at Happy Camp High School Class looked at it in depth for a study of rhetoric.

“And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
“I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
“I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of “interposition” and “nullification” — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
“I have a dream today!
“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.”…
“And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
“Free at last! Free at last!
“Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

We go back to school January 6th. Half of the vacation time is over already and it sounds like students have been visiting friends and relatives and fishing and so far only one “boring” complaint…. that I’ve heard.

My sister, Nancy, has a birthday today so I get to call her up to catch up on what’s happening with her children, grandchildren and darling little great grandson. Happy Birthday to Jess Haun, our drama and English teacher at Happy Camp High School also. Belated birthday wishes to Megan Hague and Vickie Simmons also. It’s difficult to have a birthday at these very busy times of the year so wanted to remember them!

Next week will be another busy return to business.. Sunday, will be the Dear Mad’m meeting at 2 o’clock. The 4th annual Dear Mad’m event which honors Stella W. Patterson who wrote Dear Mad’m about moving to a mining cabin by the Klamath River when she was eighty years old, is a combination effort of the Klamath Writer’s Group and the Chamber of Commerce. This year’s event will be May 2-4th. The Writer’s have proposed a Writing contest for all you great storytellers to write your favorite story about Happy Camp! At Sunday’s meeting we will establish the guidelines and then we will be ready to let you know the details and the nice prizes that you may win for your entry into the contest!!

The old year, the year that has been with us for so long, is passing away. A new year, 2013, full of promise and potential is about to begin! What new challenges will the new year bring? What blessings are in store for us?

Tuesday, January 7th is the first meeting of the New year for the Happy Camp Chamber of Commerce. We usually meet at six o’clock at the Chamber of Commerce office 35 Davis Road next to the post office. We will have a special speaker so please call the office 493-2900 if you don’t usually attend and would like to hear about grants available and help that Ore-Cal RC&D can offer to Happy Camp organizations, please let us know. We will have a the Director of the OreCal RC&D with us at that time and we remember how very helpful that they have been to our community in the past.,

Neighborhood Watch and Community Emergency Resource Team (CERT) meeting will be Wednesday, January 15th, so be sure that is on your brand new January calendar and plan to attend. By working together we can turn things around and eliminate the crime from our area. Thanks to those who have had the day long training by Deputy David Nye for patrolling and have been keeping an eye out for suspicious characters! Your help is needed to keep out Klamath River Neighborhood safe and crime free!\

Perhaps you’ve made it a New Years resolution to become more active in our community this year. There are a number of organizations that need volunteers to help make Happy Camp work. they’d welcome you with open arms!!