Philomath Community Services

Philomath Community Garden - 2012 Flood

2012-02-06T23:14:00.000-08:00


Water Flowing Through the Garden Click image to see Slideshow

The January flood caused extensive damage to the Community Garden. Beds and contents were washed away by the swirling waters. Some of the wood and equipment was trapped by the well built fence. However, all the compost and leaves and much of the dirt has long since made the down river journey to Corvallis and other locations down the Marys and Willamette Rivers.

Garden Debris Saved by Fence
Click image to see Slideshow

Garden beds and debris captured by the well built fence. While the bigger items stayed within the garden, the smaller items were washed away.

Help is needed to repair the fencing and to put the beds back in place.

Barren Planting Area
Click image to see Slideshow

What was once a prime growing spot has
been stripped bare by the flooding.

According to Chris Shonnard, coordinator of the Garden

The flood of January 2012 did some serious damage to the community garden. My estimate that was sent to Benton County was $4200. The water crested 8" above the floor of the garden shed but in many ways we were very lucky. Many loose items and some not so loose (4 of the raised beds) floated and went with the current. If not for our good fencing they would all be in the Willamette river. We lost all our compost and leaves, about 20 yards of soil and several broken water lines. The fencing is pulled loose in places but held most things inside. We definitely will be doing some clean up work parties.

See more pictures after the break. Click the Read More link below.

MORE FLOOD PICTURES
Some Before and After Combinations

Men Enjoying the Garden
Click image to see Slideshow


No Garden to Enjoy Now Click image to see Slideshow

Garden Shed Before the Flood
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Garden Shed After the Flood
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Marys River at the "Y" Click image to see Slideshow


Water at the Back Edge of the PCS Building Click image to see Slideshow

Gleaners Cutting Wood 2012

2012-01-23T10:49:00.000-08:00

Another Big Tree Being Cut and Split by Volunteer Gleaners.


Click Picture to Enlarge

Gleaners wood crew works very hard in all kinds of weather to achieve the goals of providing wood to Adoptees and Gleaners. From March 2011 to the end of December 2011 they have cut split and hauled, 72 5/8 cords of wood.

Without the generous usage donation of a wood splitter by Philomath Rental our production would not have been nearly as successful. Thank you Philomath Rental.

The pictures to the left is of the first glean of 2012. Since then we have gleaned another 10+ cords of wood.

Wood Coordinater Don Harris and his crew Dean Hart and Rick Mann have done a wonderful job supplying wood to our Adoptees, and sharing with other Gleaner groups in the Willamette Valley.

Gleaners like Debbie, Brian and Peggy, all work on the crew for shares of the wood. One half of all wood gleaned goes to the Adoptees, and the crew shares the other half. Adoptees are Gleaners that are physically unable to collect their own wood so we cut split and deliver wood to them.

Want to be a Gleaner? Online information will be available here very soon.

Philomath Christmas Tree Lighting - 2011

2011-12-08T16:32:00.000-08:00

Philomath made sure the holiday season is now in full swing with the annual lighting of the community Christmas tree. Attended by 100's of jovial people, the lighting was proceeded by christmas carols from the Philomath Elementary School, Middle School and an Adult Choir.

Click to enlarge

Christmas came early to the Food Bank at the Philomath Community Services as the Philomath Frolic and Rodeo presented PCS with two generous monetary donations. One check went directly to the Food Bank ($1,500) and a second check was given to PCS to be divided between the other four departments (Kids Kloset, Holiday Cheer, Community Garden and Gleanrs). Presenting the checks on behalf of the PFR was the Rodeo Queen Denise Nelson.

Dot Richardson (in blue coat) and Jeff Lamb (in red had) graciously accepted the donations.

The Corvallis Knights baseball team mascot, Mack the Knight, (holding up 2 fingers) led the countdown to the tree lighting. Pacific Power and Light donated 14,000 kilowatts worth of renewable electricity to help light the tree and Benton County Museum building for the season.

Santa Claus closed the ceremony after he arrived in the Philomath Fire Department's truck #1 driven by Chief Phelps. To the delight of the children, Santa handed out candy canes.

The Corvallis Gazette Times has an article here: Click to Read

Philomath Community Services Does the Right Thing

2011-11-13T09:14:00.000-08:00

Because we care about people!

Right now, America has 42 million people living in poverty, to make it hit home for us in Oregon, and our State is one of the top five poverty-stricken States in the nation. We must find ways to do for ourselves.

This is serious stuff, and people of America’s communities have to get serious, rise to the occasion in their communities and do the right thing. We have to care about our people. Philomath is doing work that seamlessly helps make the difference…because we care about our people!

Click Collage to Enlarge

Open House
The many projects of PCS did not come easily. They took a great deal of hard work, time, and volunteer effort. We are proud of our efforts. We wanted to have our yearly Open House to draw attention to some of the recent changes and renovations we have completed to serve out community with greater distinction.

Click Here to View the Open House Slide Show

Of course, it is always nice to celebrate our efforts with the people who make it happen, our staff volunteers, directors, department heads, project managers and the people of our community. We were pleased to see Benton County Commissioner Annabelle Jaramillo, Philomath Mayor Ken Schaudt and Councilwoman Angie Baca visiting with us. PCS directors Ken St. Pierrie, Debbie Thorpe, Rollie Bowers, Bardon McGinnis, Peggy Clark, Marti Barlow, Lupe McGinnis, John Barlow, Betty Hooper joined the festivities. Food Bank head Dot Richardson was there as well as Pat Hart from Gleaners, Carey Oien of the Kids Kloset, Chris Shonnard of the Community Garden all offering tours of their departments and ideas on their program. And our effervescent President, Jeff Lamb, was giving tours and smoozing in his own inimitable way, as only Jeff can do.

The food was a delicate eye feast of homemade excellent choices, as were good conversations about the changes a year can make. Most of all, it was nice to see our community friends stopping by to say hello, and wish us well and congratulating PCS, because they seriously care about people in our community.

PCS is a community umbrella of volunteers that works.
The Philomath Community Services organization, located at 360 S. 9^th Street in Philomath rises to the occasion year after year. It is the umbrella for five volunteer operations serving our Philomath community families on several levels. Each is an independent resource, with a dedicated responsible manager, or project manager, but works as part of a total unit under a single roof and governed by a Board of Directors. There are no paid staff members.

The community is fortunate to have these five volunteer organizations that weaves a lattice of good works. All our organizations products are made of donations. In this time of critical need, we appreciate every donor that has stepped up to help us with donations of funds, and products.

                Kid’s Kloset: Provides baby clothing, diapers, formula and layettes to families. For the older children we provide dresses, blouses,sweaters, pants, shirts, warm coats and shoes for back to school clothing. Department head is Cary Olen.
            Food Bank: Founded in 1975 the Food Bank provides emergency food boxes (meals for 3-5 days) for low-income families and individuals. Department head is Dot Richardson.
            Holiday Cheer: Is a seasonal volunteer program providing Christmas gifts and food to families in need for the holidays. If you want to donate or volunteer services, the project manager is Debbie Thorpe.
          Gleaners: This is a positive self-help, volunteer program supplying food and firewood to our seniors on fixed incomes, people with disabilities and families with children. Department head is Pat Hart.
            Community Gardens: Provides the land and space to “grown your own plants and vegetables.” We provide information, tools, and space. The individual provides the temperament and muscle. Project managers are Chris Shonnard and Betty Hooper.

          Recent Expansion Completed
The main expansion is the 1,800 sq. ft. renovation of the loft or second floor. This area store will foodstuffs for Dot Richardson’s Food Bank, however all of the organizations will be able to make use of the new space.

“It is a dream come true,” Jeff Lamb PCS president said. “And we are adding new a new stairwell to the loft and some wooden shelves to the Kid’s Kloset very soon. Of course, we are pleased with the new state of the art tool shed complete with a roll up door allowing the storage of heavier equipment for our Community Gardens project. Philomath’s Rotary Club executed the project. It is a beautiful job, the cooperation of two organizations working together to fill a community need. We celebrated the shed’s completion with a Community BBQ. Our work never ceases because caring never stops...it takes time to do the right thing."

PCS Open House - You Are Invited

2011-11-07T23:39:00.000-08:00

Mark your calendar for the Philomath Community Services' Open House on November 13. Come join us for a tour of our recently renovated second floor. Meet and greet some of the hardest working volunteers in all of Benton County. Enjoy some tasty treats and delicious drinks.

This is a wonderful opportunity to see how one building accommodates five volunteer programs helping our friends and neighbors. Perhaps you want to donate your time or a little money. We can show you how to get started. Or, maybe you need a helping hand. We are ready and willing to be of service to you.

We look forward to visiting with you on Sunday, Nov. 13.

Philomath Community Services Annual Newsletter Online - November 2011

2011-11-05T12:03:00.000-07:00

The 2011 Annual Newsletter and Open House invitation is now online. Click on the image or the link below to read the letter about the past busy year at Philomath Community Services and how you can help keep these viable programs in our community.

Click to read the newsletter here:

2011 Annual Newsletter

Philomath Rotary - Community Garden BBQ

2011-10-31T07:18:00.000-07:00

Philomath Community Services hosted the Rotary Club of Philomath for a barbeque in the garden to thank them for building the Community Garden a shed for storage of the gardeners' tools and equipment. Over 75 people from both organizations attended the event. And as you can see from the photos, the Rotary Club built a top of the line shed, with a large roll up door that was donated by Applegate Door and a Suntuff panel in the roof to allow light in. The roll up door allows us the space to move heavy garden equipment in and out via the ramp with ease. The Rotary Club will be returning to finish the other half off with a set of steps and guard rails to both sections.

Many thanks go to the Rotary Club members for their support and generosity to all of the programs offered by Philomath Community Services.

The Board Members, Staff, Volunteers and Garden Participants prepared many side dishes to share along with the roasted corn, giant sliced tomatoes, hamburgers and hot dogs. There was much laughter and many smiles as people met new friends, caught up with old friends, and celebrated in the garden.

It is times like this that help everyone remember the Philomath Community Services motto, "People helping People, It's the right thing to do. "

PCS Renovation Spotlighted by Corvallis GT

2011-10-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

PHILOMATH Last month the Philomath Community Services food bank helped 580 local residents, 75 more than the same time last year and part of a continuing trend.
The past five years, the demand has increased, food bank manager Dot Richardson said. I don't see it going down for awhile, either. It's not just the unemployed that need help these days; the underemployed do, too.

Philomath Community Services was established in 1975 and has grown into an umbrella organization supporting five local nonprofit ventures in Philomath. The largest is the food bank; the others are the Kids Kloset clothing program, the Philomath Gleaners, the Holiday Cheer Christmas charity and the Community Garden. Except for the garden, the programs are located in a large metal building at 360 S. Ninth St.

Meeting the growing demand for services is challenging for Philomath Community Services. Space is tight in the 5,000 square feet building but a new 1,800 square foot expansion is in the works.
Work began two weeks ago on an addition to the second floor on the west side of building. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of the month.

Philomath Community Services Board President Jeff Lamb said the new space will be used by all of the organizations except the community garden program. He said the board discussed expanding the building for years but until recently didn't have the money to make it possible.

This is a dream that's manifested into reality, Lamb said. This will allow us to continue serving people in need, even as more people show up. We never turn anyone away and we don't plan to, either.
A $4,800 grant from the Benton County Foundation, Philomath Community Services funds and donations from supporters are funding the project. Also planned are construction of a new stairway to the second floor and wood shelves for the Kids' Kloset program.

Lamb said estimates for the construction work ran as high as $26,000. Local contractor Steve Oien offered his services at discounted price. Oien's wife, Carey, is the Kids' Kloset manager. As a result, Lamb said he expects the project to cost between $9,000 and $10,000.

It's a big savings for us, Lamb said. Steve knows how important this place is to the community and wanted to help us. It's that that kind of community support and generosity that keeps us going.
The next issue the Philomath Community Services board plans to address? Parking. Lamb said the building's parking lot needs to be paved. Lights to improve safety for visitors and volunteers are part of the plan.

For now, Richardson said the extra space will help ease congestion inside the building.
During peak times, there can be as many as 30 or 40 cars of people going in and out of here, Richardson said. So It can get a little chaotic at times. This should make things a little easier for all of us.

Above article from the Corvallis Gazette-Times web site.