Weekly Update - Time to start the holiday festivities!

Did everyone have a happy Thanksgiving?  Hopefully none of our new native Reedsport turkeys ended up on the table. The flock has steadily been wandering from their hatching ground at the end of Ranch Road to as far away as Ridgeway Drive.  Have you seen them in other places around town?  Wild turkeys aren’t native to this area, but they are a welcome sight.  Let’s hope our little flock continues to grow.
 
Thank you so much to the volunteers who helped relight the city’s Christmas wreaths last week!  Stripping off the old lights and securing the new ones took more work than we expected, so everyone who came played a huge part in getting the job done.  A big thanks also to the Public Works crew who let us take over their maintenance shop with Christmas music, light bulbs, and red spray paint.  Take a look at our Facebook page for a picture of our festive volunteer crew in action.
 
What do you think of the new color-changing Christmas lights on the wreaths?  Another great big thank you to Central Lincoln PUD for putting them up, and on the day before Thanksgiving, no less!  It was a challenge to find new places to hang them.  The poles along our highway are distributed with all the regularity of holes in a dartboard, not to mention that we have vast stretches in town where, for various reasons, the poles are off limits to hanging things.  As you drive through town this Christmas, reflect on the fact that the wreaths represent the partnership between many different people, while their irregular placement represents the long history of Reedsport’s access to telephones and power.
 
Don’t forget that this Thursday is Moonlight Madness from 12pm to 8pm.  This year all participating businesses are doing the poker run, with $695 in prizes to the lucky hands.  The businesses will also have various sales, drawings, and events.  Here’s the list:
Reedsport Pharmacy – 1409 Hwy 101
Reedsport Antiques – 454 Fir Ave
Dockside Gifts – 120 Coho Point Loop (Winchester Bay)
Sunrise Shop and Save - 140 Hwy 101
Amber Dawn Tanning Salon – 115 20th St
The “Store” – 2033 Winchester Ave
Umpqua Discovery Center – 409 Riverfront Way
Recreation Station – 1575 Hwy 101
Bedrocks – 2165 Winchester Ave (Reedsport store only)
Jitterbug N Java – 2211 Winchester Ave
Double D’s on the Rocks – 460 Beach Blvd (Winchester Bay)
RV Masters of Oregon – 2057 Hwy 101
Forest Hills Golf Shop – 1 Country Club Dr
DnD Deli Mart – 1050 Hwy 101
 
In the mood for some  traditional Christmas music?  Carolers from the Reedsport Church of God will be singing their way through town from 4pm to 6pm.  It’s a new thing – caroling in Reedsport has always been difficult because of the winter rains – but they will be trying to visit as many of the Moonlight Madness businesses as they can, and maybe some more along the way!
 
On Friday, now that your holiday spirit is in full swing, feast your eyes on local arts and crafts at the 52nd Annual Holiday Bazaar.  It runs from 4pm Friday to 6pm Saturday in the Reedsport Community Center.  Round off the week on Saturday with a visit to the Umpqua Discovery Center for their Community Appreciation Day.  Exhibits are free for the day, the gift shop will have fantastic sales, and there will be a drawing for a family membership.  What a great week to celebrate our community!
 
Now on to a topic that’s almost as exciting as Christmas…meetings!  Next week the RMSP Promotion Committee will meet on Tuesday, December 8th, 5pm at the Waterfront Restaurant.  The RMSP Economic Development Committee meets on Wednesday, December 9th, 5pm in the conference room at City Hall.  As always, anyone is welcome to attend, and if you do, hopefully you’ll leave with some homework!  Ideas are wonderful, but action is even better.  Or another way to look at it, come with one brain for ideas, but two hands to make them happen.  The future generations of Reedsport thank you in advance!
 
All the best,
 
Katie Lockard
Reedsport Main Street Program Coordinator