Donning reflective vests and walking a 1.3-mile stretch in Philomath last weekend, a group of Citizens Bank employees got together to pick up trash.
Brent Kaseman, Philomath branch manager, wanted to find a project that would benefit the community in some way. The idea to pick up litter came to him on a routine walk around town.
“I was just walking the sidewalks in Philomath one day and at that level, you look in the nooks and crannies (and realize), ‘oh, there’s a lot of little things,’” Kaseman said. “Generally, Philomath is quite clean but it’s just in some of those nooks and crannies.”
The group included volunteers from the Citizens Bank branch as well as its Customer Care Center located a few blocks up the road. They picked up litter on both sides of the street — starting at the branch office, walking west down Main Street to Dollar General and then returning up Applegate Street to complete a loop that took about 1 hour, 45 minutes.
Kaseman said he reached out to City Manager Chris Workman and Assistant City Manager Chelsea Starner to see if his group could help beautify the city. The response was in the affirmative.
“And so Public Works, they let us borrow some of the reflective vests and they gave us some trash bags for us to fill and then they allowed us to dump whatever we had in their dumpster at Public Works,” Kaseman said.
The Citizens Bank cleanup crew could become a regular thing.
“It probably will be because it just seems like something — and I know this sounds funny — but I think we actually had a good time doing it,” Kaseman said. “Just the camaraderie of our team, getting out there and then just to beautify the town.”
Kaseman said the group is considering different ways to accomplish the cleanup on a regular basis.
“Very likely, we’re going to do it quarterly and if we have some slow times at the bank, we may even take an hour and a couple of us go out,” he said. “It was just two hours on a Saturday, it was also fun and every little piece adds up. I would like to see more things like that, I think it’s great.”
Kaseman will be joining the Philomath City Council in January — he’s one of three candidates running unopposed in Tuesday’s election. He hopes such activities will inspire others to contribute to their community.
“I’m not sure who it was but on that same day … I saw another group that was more on the east side of Philomath, maybe even getting towards Corvallis, that had reflective vests and were picking up trash as well,” he said. “It was nice to see that, too.”
Just the latest example of Philomath living up to its nickname, “City of Volunteers.”
2. Black History Month speaker
Black History Month is three months away and the city is making arrangements to secure a speaker to lead a special program. During the Philomath City Council’s meeting this past Monday, it was decided that the city would cover the $400 speaking fee for Zachary Stocks of Oregon Black Pioneers.
Councilor Christopher McMorran said during the meeting that the Inclusivity Committee was making the recommendation to bring in Stocks, possibly in mid-February at the museum, although he added that the details were still being worked out.
Philomath should be familiar with Stocks — he was one of the featured speakers at the Shipley Family Homestead Historical Marker dedication in July 2022 and was part of a Q-and-A following a screening last year at Philomath High School of “Buffalo Soldiers” Fighting on Two Front.”
“He’s sort of familiar with the history of our community and I think the committee felt good about that idea,” McMorran said, adding that former mayor Eric Niemann had made the suggestion for Stocks as the speaker.
This time around, Stocks will apparently lead a program focused on the historical contributions of strong Black women.
The presentation will apparently be virtual with Stocks — McMorran said he lives in Astoria — leading a Facebook live stream. The program would be recorded and archived for later viewing.
Councilor Jessica Andrade mentioned the possibility of securing sponsorship funds to cover room and board costs for Stocks to be able to have an in-person program, an option that appears could still be on the table.
Black History Month is recognized nationally each year in February.
3. Reaching out about drugs
Philomath Superintendent of Schools Susan Halliday sent out an email to parents and families last week to share concerns about fentanyl and opioid drugs. The letter didn’t provide any local statistics or examples of specific incidents in Philomath with generalizations that it’s an issue in the community.
“These drugs are harming people in our community. We hope this information will help protect students,” Halliday wrote, later adding, “We know these conversations can be hard.”
School districts in the state are required under state law to provide information to students and families about opioid overdose prevention. You can read the full letter here.
Halliday said the school district provides comprehensive drug and alcohol education aligned with the Oregon Health Education Standards and added, “We care deeply about the health and safety of every student in our school community.”
In alignment with school district policy, Halliday said all schools will stock naloxone and necessary medical supplies. Staff may administer naloxone (also known by the brand name Narcan) to any person suspected of experiencing an opioid overdose, she said.
If that situation plays out, school staff will call 911 and notify the student’s parents or guardian.
The opioid crisis has gripped many parts of the nation in recent years — especially in larger cities but also in other communities of all sizes. Fentanyl use has been on the rise and been blamed as a drug that has particularly fueled youth overdoses. Philomath is not immune.
Halliday’s letter includes contact information for the school district’s nurses for those with questions or comments.
(Brad Fuqua is publisher/editor of the Philomath News. He can be reached at News@PhilomathNews.com).
