NORTH BEND — Forty-four community organizations collected nearly $362,000 on Friday from the Coquille Tribal Community Fund, in the Coos Bay area’s biggest annual distribution of community grants.
“To know that we can help so many people is gratifying,” said Denise Hunter, a tribal elder who chairs the Community Fund’s board of trustees. “I feel blessed to be a part of it.”
COOS BAY — Pride of ownership radiates from Vivian Holt’s home. Updated siding and modern windows keep the 1970s doublewide cozy. A picket fence encloses the tidy yard.
But when rainwater began pouring through the mobile home’s worn-out roof, the 89-year-old Coos Bay woman saw her home and her financial security at risk.
NORTH BEND — It’s 3 p.m. on a Tuesday. The last bus has pulled away from Hillcrest Elementary School. Peace reigns in deserted hallways.
Or not.
Down the stairs and around a corner, joyful noises spill from the school’s music room. Tink-tink-tink! Tonk-tonk! Tink-tunk! Marimba Club is vigorously in session.
POWERS — Like a milk carton or a quarterback’s knees, firefighting gear comes with an expiration date. That means keeping current with safety standards can strain a small town’s budget.
That’s certainly true in Powers, a Coos County town with about 700 residents and chronic economic hardships. But thanks to a $22,000 grant from the Coquille Tribal Community Fund, Powers soon will outfit its volunteer fire department with all-new “turnouts” to replace its increasingly antiquated gear.
EUGENE — The rain that poured down didn’t dampen spirits of local residents who stood with hundreds of others and marched in protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline in Eugene Tuesday.
The protest was just one of many that occurred across the country outside Army Corps of Engineer offices.
COOS COUNTY — Halloween night kept officers busy when a high speed chase led them in and around North Bend and Coos Bay.
The pursuit began near Walmart at 8:15 p.m. when a Coquille Tribal Police officer attempted to stop a 2013 Honda Civic for running a red light, according to a press release.
