Props to the student body, staff and family members of the Westside Christian High School for pitching in to help 23 area non-profits as part of their annual Get Out Serve-a-thon.  The annual event has generated 22,500 service hours and $260,000 in supplies from the 270-member student body.

            They took on all kinds of tasks, things like painting an weatherizing, construction, yard work, even warehouse tasks. 

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Here’s a great story from the Register Guard about Olympian, Nick Symmonds.  Though he came home from Beijing empty-handed, he got some very special recognition upon his return to Springfield:

http://registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/1232769-35/story.csp

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Few people actually enjoy  Jury Duty.  It’s a big inconvenience, can get in the way of work and family and the day can be downright boring (having served multiple times, the staff at GoodNewsPDX knows this too well).  However, while Jury Duty may be an annoyance, there are things that are MORE likely to raise one’s blood pressure.  For example, people who don’t think the rules apply to them.  The driver who skips past a line of cars waiting at a light, only to crowd in at the front.  The nattering twit in the movie theatre who enjoys talking throughout the film.  And, of course, people who are summoned to Jury Duty but decide they don’t really need to attend.

A couple dozen of these scalawags were called before a Lane County judge this week for skipping out on service over the summer.  The ne’er-do-wells were hand delivered summons by Sheriff’s deputies and got the pleasure of standing in court to be LECTURED about their irresponsibility.  Plus, each juror STILL has to serve over the course of the winter.

The action was taken after several jurors skipped out on service, leaving the court without enough bodies to fill the jury boxes on three trials set to start that day back in August.  Apparently, random citizens had to be plucked off the street to fill in.

Those who showed up and took their lecture like adults are apparently getting by with a warning.  A few lay-abouts ignored the SECOND summons and now are looking at “unpleasant consequences.”

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A team of departments in Southwest Washington helped nab a dozen (alleged) bad guys the past few weeks.  Detectives targeting repeat offenders, violent fugitives, gang members, high risk parolee and probation offenders and felons who have committed criminal acts rounded up the “Dirty Dozen” along with 15 guns, three and a half pounds of drugs and more than one hundred grand in cash.

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t the age of 16, one of our reporters at GoodNews PDX ran off the road in the snow and was stuck in an embankment.  While he was never in any serious danger thanks to passing motorists, the dark, cold night couldn’t help but drive home how hazardous roads can be around Oregon in the winter.  That’s why we are all VERY jazzed about the latest news from the Department of Transportation.

When the snow starts to fall, you may notice more emergency lights on state roads.  The DOT authorized 500 hours of overtime for Oregon State Troopers.  Those troopers will be staged at some of the most hazardous spots in the winter, mountain passes.  Expect to see them stationed on I-5, I-84 plus the Willamette, Santiam and Mount Hood Passes.

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Check out this from the Portland Tribune:

http://portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=122410857876807300

Apparently, the new recycling roll carts are doing their job, increasing the amount of collected recyclable materials.

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A 74-year-old Vancouver man nearly dove, head-first, several stories down a garbage chute.  His wife caught him by the knees when he fell forward trying to dislodge something blocking the chute.  He’s scraped and bruised but otherwise OK.  For the full report, check out the link

http://www.columbian.com/article/20081020/NEWS02/710209966

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Here’s the article in the Ashland Daily Tidings

http://www.dailytidings.com/2008/1018/stories/1018_solar-plant0.php

The 480,000 square foot plant in Hillsboro will generate as much energy as most coal or natural gas fired plants by 2011 and will establish SolarWorld as the number one solar power provider in the nation.  Not to mention the 2,000 high wage jobs it creates.

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Thanks to a 2.4 million dollar donation from Peter and Rosalie Johnson, paying for college will not be as much of a headache for 16 students.  The donation endows the Johnson’s previously existing scholarship fund (established in the late ’90s) and guarantees financial aid to 16 Beavers every year.  For more, check out the full story here:

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/10/osu_alum_pledges_24_million_fo.html

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