Senior magazine

4 1 0 2EDITION

PUBLISHED

BY SIUSLAW NEWS

LIFE

The Good

Highlighting Senior Services and Stories in the Florence Area

Burns’s Riverside Chapel Florence Funeral Home

• Siuslaw Valley Crematory & Pet Crematory • Pacific Sunset Cemetery

Locally Owned & Operated by the Burns Family Back: Sam Reid and Alan Burns.

Front: Kourtney Burns-Reid, Clayton Kent Reid, Hank, Kenton Burns & Karen Burns

Your Community Friend... ...when you need one most.

B

urns’s Riverside Chapel/ Florence Funeral Home is locally owned and operated

by Alan and Karen Burns. The compassionate care that the clients receive from the family is based on their commitment to the community in which they live. Alan served as Mayor of Florence from 1998-2005. Karen is a member of the Kiwanis club.

Alan, Karen, daughter Kourtney and her husband Sam work at the funeral home. Their son Kenton is a 2014 OSU graduate with a degree in Forest Management. He is active in helping with the family business. Kenton recently became engaged to Olivia Hier , the couple have their wedding date planned for November 2015.

The warmth that welcomes visitors the moment they walk in the door continues throughout the relationship. Clients are

assisted gently and professionally through every step of the process of creating a service that honors and respects the deceased and the family.

From traditional to unconventional — military, indoor or outdoor, formal or casual — they work to ensure that all the needs are met to honor the loved ones and

www.burnsriversidechapel.com 2765 Kingwood St., Florence

families that they serve.

Alan is a second generation funeral director and a graduate of San Francisco College of Mortuary Science. Karen holds a funeral director license, and many women have found it comforting to have a woman to talk to during one of life’s most difficult and stressful times. Daughter Kourtney is a third generation embalmer and funeral director, continuing the family tradition along with her husband Sam, who has a certificate as a cremationlist.

In addition to the chapel and Pacific Sunset Cemetery, the family owns and operates two crematories — one for humans and one for pets. They offer products and memorabilia to honor those that have passed away and for beloved pets as well.

541-997-3416 24 Hour Caring Service

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LIFE The Good

A special publication of the

Siuslaw News P.O. Box 10 148 Maple Street Florence, OR 97439 (541) 997-3441

www.TheSiuslawNews.com

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John Bartlett Jenna Bartlett Theresa Baer Ryan Cronk Susan Gutierrez Cathy Dietz Ron Annis Jeremy Gentry

Publisher General Manager Editor Features Editor Advertising Director Office Supervisor Production Supervisor Press Manager

Copyright 2014 Siuslaw News Central Coast Publishing No part of this publication may be duplicated without permission.

Cover and inside layout designed by Ryan Cronk.

INSIDE

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House that Sears Built ...................... 4

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Ventures Abound .............................. 6

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Local Services Directory ................ 8-9

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A Love that Lasts ............................ 10

A Family Affair ................................ 12

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Life Through Art .............................. 14

4

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

In 1970, the Edwin Kyle house was moved from its site on the hill near Highway 101, where Dairy Queen sits today, to the home’s present location on Bay Street.

Contractors hauled the house down Kingwood Street without incident, according to a Siuslaw News article from March 12, 1970.

HOUSE that Sears

BUILT Edwin Kyle home, now a B&B, turns 100 years old.

BY RYAN CRONK Siuslaw News SIUSLAW NEWS PHOTOS

I

magine flipping through a catalog of pre-designed houses to find the perfect home that suits your tastes and budget. Upon ordering, precut lumber and all the materials — even the nails — are delivered with instructions, ready to be assembled. Back in the early 1900s, Sears, Roebuck and Co. provided such an option for families, selling about 75,000 homes through its mail-order Modern Homes program, which ran from 1908 to 1940 and included nearly 450 different housing styles.

One house ordered through the program still sits on Bay Street, though it has since been remodeled and turned into a bed and breakfast. The 1914 Sears Craftsman building, now known as the Edwin K Bed and Breakfast, turns a century old this year.

“It’s important for people in Florence to hold on to some of the city’s history,” said Marv VandeStreek, who owns the B&B with his wife Laurie. “I feel like that’s part of living here — to find out about the Kyle family, Sears homes, living in Florence 100 years ago — and we want to share that with people.”

For the past decade, the VandeStreeks have owned the B&B, which is named after the home’s first owner, Edwin Kyle, son of William Kyle, an early settler and entrepreneur in the area in the late 1800s.

The Kyle family owned a general store

Edwin K Bed and Breakfast, a 1914 Sears Craftsman home, still includes many of its original features. in Old Town, where the commercial structure — later restored and placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings — now serves as the Bridgewater Restaurant.

A sign on the building still reads “Wm. Kyle & Sons Co.” The family also owned a cannery on the Siuslaw River as well as a shipbuilding facility near Cushman, according to the VandeStreeks.

“The Kyle family was a very significant part of Florence’s early history, and this house happened to belong to their son Edwin Kyle,” Marv VandeStreek said.

The original house cost about $2,000 to build, a significant amount in 1914, and was 1,200 square feet with two bedrooms and one bathroom. Edwin Kyle built the Sears Craftsman home on a hill near Highway 101, where Dairy Queen sits today.

“A lot of these homes were being built remotely on homesteads away from any towns,” VandeStreek explained.

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014 “Sears wanted to make sure you could put the whole thing together, so it came with all the wood, roofing material, paint, indoor plumbing — it was a complete house,” he added.

In 1970, the house was moved to its current location at 1155 Bay St. to make way for the fast-food chain, which bought the land. A Siuslaw News article dated March 12, 1970, recounts the home’s transport: “This house journeyed from its site on the hill at the corner of Second Street and Highway 101 in Florence to its new location on Bay Street last Thursday. General Contractor Ron Sauter of Florence received expert advice from about 100 sidewalk superintendents, including many from the Florence Elementary School, and the two-story home was moved without incident.”

The Kyle house remained a single-family residence until 1991, when the first major remodel took place, and the following year it opened as a bed and breakfast.

5 Edwin K B&B’s current owners Marv and Laurie VandeStreek rent out the home’s rooms to about 2,500 guests per year. state of the union has been represented in our home,” Marv VandeStreek said.

Visitors from as far away as South Africa, Iceland and China have stayed at the B&B, but its most frequent guests come from England, Germany and Canada.

Though all the rooms have been updated, some of the house’s original features remain intact, such as the wood flooring, windowpanes and built-in

Through the 1990s and two different owners, the home grew to its present size of 5,400 square feet with eight bedrooms, nine bathrooms and two kitchens.

The VandeStreeks, who are the third owners of the B&B, share the home’s history with about 2,500 guests each year.

“We get guests from all over the world, which is the fun part of the business. Every

cabinets.

When asked if they have ever considered expanding the home with more additions, Laurie VandeStreek said with a laugh, “There’s no room left.”

Marv concurred.

“We can’t go any wider, so we would have to go up, and we’re not going up,” he added. ❖

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SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

6

V E N T U R E S ABOUND

Yaquina Head Lighthouse was the subject of a recent Outward Ventures trip.

LCC program accentuates community partnerships, activities.

E

ver wanted to visit a fish hatchery in Bandon or take a road trip around the county to view covered bridges?

How about learning techniques to outdoor photography or the art of flax fiber? Or perhaps attend a class on yoga fitness or ballroom dancing?

Opportunities to learn something new abound at Lane Community College Florence Center, where the Community Education Program continues to thrive with a variety of non-credit enrichment courses and off-campus cultural experiences.

“The idea behind community education, whether it’s a class or an Outward Venture, is for people to connect. It’s a social thing,” said Barbara Baker, Community Education Program coordinator for the Florence campus. “For our

BY RYAN CRONK audience, Siuslaw News who are a lot

of seniors, it’s a way for them to get out and be among people.”

COURTESY PHOTOS The program, which is Students take a fitness class, part of the open to anyone, includes Community Education Program, at the Doreen more than two-dozen courses Ditzhazy Dance Studio at LCC Florence Center. that range from basic computer classes to dance lessons each term in addition to kinds of classes, they’re tuition free, so Outward Ventures, day trips that offer edubusinesses can get the word out about what cational and cultural activities outside the they do and how it’s a benefit.” classroom setting.

The college has partnered with such Baker has led the program since October businesses as PeaceHealth Peace Harbor 2012, enlisting the community’s help in Medical Center, offering health and hospice offering classes and trips that appeal to care classes as well as a new lecture series, everyone. Local businesses have also been and Front Desk Florence, a concierge servasked to teach courses designed to inform ice providing information on available residents about their company and trade. resources.

“I’m trying to bring in more businesses Siuslaw High School, another partner, to make people aware of what’s going on in allows the college to use its culinary classour community,” Baker said. “For those room for special food courses.

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014 “It’s life-long learning,” Baker explained about the benefit to enrolling in community education classes. “When you stay active and stay open to ideas and new things, I think you live longer, healthier lives. You’re happier.”

Outward Ventures, an excursion program, provides transportation to culturally significant places along the Oregon coast and Eugene. Lighthouses, museums and historic buildings are common stops, though different trips are scheduled each term. The outings, arranged on different days of the week, are educational experiences, without the pressure of tests and assignments.

“You’re never tested. It’s for your own self-enrichment,” Baker said.

Baker invites input from the community for new ideas for classes and trips.

“I want the Community Education Program to be open to all kinds of classes, whether it’s for information or enrichment or getting out and seeing things up and down the coast,” she said.

Classroom sizes vary from eight to 20 students at the campus, depending on the type of class being offered, and the van used for Outward Ventures is limited to 14 passengers. Early registration is recom-

7

mended. and the whole Last spring, side was taken up.

LCC partnered I thought, ‘What with the Osher is going on?’”

Lifelong Learning Kuhar recalled.

Institute, a non“… We had this credit community technology group outreach program with all these offered through folks bringing the University of their iPods and Oregon Academic iPads and every Extension, to device that they bring a series of have because they four lectures to wanted to learn Outward Ventures participants view the coast. The how to use them.” the wonders of the Pacific coast. program was Kuhar would designed to serve the educational interests like the college to ultimately become the of adults in their post-career years. community’s resource.

“As you can see, there are lots of won“Community is our middle name, and derful things happening at the college,” said Lane Community College is here to serve Mary Jeanne Kuhar, dean of the LCC the entire college district, which is the size Florence Center. of the state of Connecticut,” she added. “…

She said Baker has helped the college If there is some way that we can help you, with networking in the community to find call us up and ask us.” out the current interests of residents, citing For more information about the the school’s technology class series as one Community Education Program and example that has proved successful.

Outward Ventures, call 541-997-8444, go “I drove into the school one morning and online to lanecc.edu/florence or stop by the there were no parking spaces in the front LCC Florence Center at 3149 Oak St. ❖

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SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

FLORENCE AREA DIRECTORY Volunteer Opportunities • Boys & Girls Club of Western Lane County 1601 15th St., 541-902-0304 • City of Florence 250 Highway 101, 541-997-3436 • Florence Area Chamber of Commerce 290 Highway 101, 541-997-3128 • Florence Area Coordinating Council 541-902-8308 • Florence Area Humane Society 2840 Rhododendron Drive, 541-997-4277 • Florence Events Center 715 Quince St., 541-997-1994 • Florence Food Share 2190 Spruce St., 541-997-9110 • Friends of Florence Cancer Van Willamette Valley Cancer Institute, 541-683-5001 • Front Desk Florence 541-902-5122 • Habitat for Humanity 2016 Highway 101, 541-902-9227 • Helping Hands Coalition 1339 Rhododendron Drive, 541-833-8550 • Meals on Wheels Program 1570 Kingwood St., 541-997-5673 • Memory Loss Respite Center 1570 Kingwood St., 541-902-8539 • Oregon State Police Auxiliary 541-997-7156 • Peace Harbor Home Health & Hospice 2230 Kingwood St., 541-997-3418 • Senior Connections 3180 Highway 101, 541-902-9430 ext. 7831 • Senior Center 1570 Kingwood St., 541-997-8844 • Siuslaw Outreach Services 1576 12th St., 541-997-2816 • Siuslaw Pioneer Museum 278 Maple St., 541-997-7884 • Siuslaw Public Library 1460 Ninth St., 541-997-3132 • Siuslaw School District 2111 Oak St., 541-997-2651 • Siuslaw Valley Fire & Rescue 2625 Highway 101, 541-997-3212

Get Acquainted Health & Nutrition • Better Breathers Club Peace Harbor Medical Center, Conference Room C, fourth Wednesday, 2 p.m., 541-902-6300 ext. 5635 • Disabled American Veterans Vans to Medical Centers Florence Elks Lodge, 6 a.m., Mondays through Fridays • Senior Meals Program Senior Center, 11:30 a.m., Monday, Wednesday, Friday, $3 suggested donation with reservations, 541-997-5673 • Singing Pines Café Senior Center, 11:30 a.m., Tuesday & Thursday, $5 with reservations, 541-997-8844

Music • Community Chorus Cross Road Church, 10th & Maple streets, 7-8:30 p.m., every Monday, Laura Merz, 541-902-8567 • Community Concert Band Siuslaw High School music room, 6:30 p.m., every Monday, Gail Nichols, 541-999-6907 • Yachats Big Band Yachats Commons, 7-9 p.m., first Thursday, $5 donation with children 12 and younger free, 541-547-4308

Social Activities • Band of Brothers Koffee Klub Florence Elks Lodge, 11:30 a.m., every Monday, former military members of all services invited, 541-997-1677 • Bingo Senior Center, 1-4 p.m., every Thursday, 541-997-3945 • Central Coast Miniatures Club Siuslaw Public Library, 4 p.m., first Thursday • Florence Duplicate Bridge St. Andrews Episcopal Church, 12:30 p.m., every Tuesday and Thursday, 541-997-2677 • Line Dancing Senior Center, 1:30-2:30 p.m., Tuesdays, Pat Wheeler, 541-999-0797 • Pinochle Group Laurelwood Community Center, 1137 Maple St., every Thursday, 9:30 a.m., walk-ins welcome • Professionally Retired Ornery Single Seniors (PROSS) Senior Center, 5:30 p.m. social, third Thursdays, 60 years of age and older, 541-991-6430 • Senior Party Bridge Senior Center, 12:30-4 p.m., every Wednesday and Friday, 541-997-8827

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

Senior Services Assistance Services • Front Desk Florence 541-902-5122 • Siuslaw Outreach Services 1576 12th St., 541-997-2816

Errand Services • Heavenly Helpers LLC 1720 34th Place, 541-991-7051

Funeral Home, Crematory, Cemetery • Burns’s Riverside Chapel/Florence Funeral Home 2765 Kingwood St., 541-997-3416

Home Health & Hospice • Peace Harbor Home Health & Hospice 2230 Kingwood St., 541-997-3418

Insurance • Oregon Health Plan 800-359-9517 • Medicare (general) 800-633-4227

Legal Services • Lane County 800-575-9283

Senior Living • Florentine Estates 182 Florentine Ave., Florence, 541-997-1762 • Greentrees Village, Inc. 1600 Rhododendron Drive, Florence, 541-997-8674 • Inland Point Senior Estates 2290 Inland Drive, North Bend, 541-756-0176 • Munsel Park Apartments 2021 12th St., Florence, 541-997-2661 • Sea Aire Assisted Living 1882 Highway 101, Yachats, 541-547-5500 • Shorewood Retirement Residences 1451 Spruce St., Florence, 541-997-8202 • Spruce Point Assisted Living Community 375 Ninth St., Florence, 541-997-6111 • Tanglewood Apartments 1956 16th St., Florence, 541-997-8817 • Terpening Terrace 50 Ruby Ave., Eugene, 541-689-0619 • Windsong Apartments 1365 Spruce St., Florence, 541-997-5398 • Ya-Po-Ah Terrace Retirement Apartments 350 Pearl St., Eugene, 541-342-5329

Medical • Lower Umpqua Hospital 600 Ranch Road, Reedsport, 541-271-2171 • Peace Harbor Medical Center Primary Care 400 Ninth St., 541-997-8412 541-997-7134

Medical Equipment • All-Med Medical Supplies & Equipment 1845 Highway 126, 541-997-9600

Respite Care • Memory Loss Respite Center of Florence 1570 Kingwood St., 541-902-8539

Senior & Disabled Services

Care Facilities Alzheimer’s Care Unit • Elderberry Square 3321 Oak St., Florence, 541-902-8821 • Regency Florence Rehabilitation Center 1951 21st St., Florence, 541-997-8436 • Spruce Point Memory Care Unit 375 Ninth St., Florence, 541-902-7945

Assisted Living

• Elder Help/Senior Companions 3180 Highway 101, 541-902-9430 ext. 7831

• Elderberry Square 3321 Oak St., Florence, 541-902-8821 • Enchanted Gardens 1610 22nd St., Florence, 541-997-0209 • Inland Point 2290 Inland Drive, North Bend, 541-756-0176 • Spruce Point 375 Ninth St., Florence, 541-997-6111

Social Security Administration

In-Home Care

• Florence Office 3180 Highway 101, 541-902-9430

Senior Center 1570 Kingwood St., 541-997-8844

Senior Connections

800-772-1213

Tax Aid (AARP) 888-687-2277

Transportation • Rhody Express 541-902-2067

Veteran Services • Roseburg — 800-549-8387 • Portland — 800-949-1004

• Peace Harbor Home Health & Hospice 2230 Kingwood St., Florence, 541-997-3418 • New Horizons 398 Highway 101, Florence, 541-997-8115

Nursing Facilities — Long-term Care • Peace Harbor Rehabilitation & Wellness Center 685 Highway 101, Florence, 541-902-1669 • Regency Florence Rehabilitation Center 1951 21st St., Florence, 541-997-8436

9

10

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

A love that lasts Through thick and thin, Florence couple stays united. t was love at first sight — through a pair of binoculars — for Margaret Thorngate, a then 19-year-old member of the 4th Interceptor Command who spotted a young soldier jogging on the beach while she sat with a group of girls on a sand dune surveying the Southern California coast for signs of aircraft during World War II.

I

“They were supposed to be looking for Japanese vessels, but as I jogged by I noticed they were following me,” recalled Fred Thorngate, who was stationed in Carpinteria, Calif., as a field artillery officer in early 1943.

The next day, the 23year-old jogged passed the girls again and decided to introduce himself.

He and Margaret dated for a couple months after that until his military unit was transferred away from the coast and eventually overseas.

They kept in touch by mail over the next two Thorngates, years. Once the war circa 1943 ended in Europe, Fred’s unit returned to the United States in July 1945, and he and Margaret were married soon after in her hometown of Carpinteria.

The

BY RYAN CRONK Thorngates, Siuslaw News now in their

PHOTO BY TERRI PENNINGTON

Fred and Margaret Thorngate 90s, are one of the oldest — if not the oldest — veteran couples in the Florence area.

They have been married for 68 years, spending the past 28 years at their home in Greentrees.

“I don’t know how much longer we have to be together. Could be a year, could be 10,” said Fred, who turned 94 years old last December. “My family members are long livers. My ancestors lived to be 100 or more, so maybe I still have a few years left.”

The year 2013, however, was especially tough on the Thorngates, who lost both their sons within months of each other to cancer.

“I lost two boys almost simultaneously from the same thing I lived with — prostate cancer. They both had it, but they died from it and I’m still here. Why? I don’t know.

God knows, I guess,” Fred said with tears forming in his eyes.

His wife Margaret, 90, also suffered a stroke and, after receiving treatment at the local medical center, was taken to Regency Florence for recovery. Their daughter, who lives in Medford, Ore., returned to help take care of her.

Needless to say, Fred decided not to celebrate his birthday that December. He said once you reach his age, birthdays are “just another day.”

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014 Originally from suburban Philadelphia, Fred attended college for civil engineering, but after the war he wanted a different occupation. His father gave him a piece of land on the coast of Maryland, where he built and operated a bar and restaurant for many years.

Afterward, the Thorngates moved back to the West Coast to raise their three children in Carpinteria before retiring to Florence in 1985. They have four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

“We thought we would give this town a

try, and here we are 28 years later. We just love Florence,” said Margaret, who formed the local Coastal Women Veterans group.

In their retirement, the couple became members of St. Andrews Episcopal Church, where Fred helped build a new bell tower and Sunday school rooms. They said the church at the time could not afford to do the additions by itself.

“They couldn’t get money to do it. So when Fred saw (the building unfinished), he did almost the whole thing himself,” Margaret explained. “He would get people

11 to help him from time to time, but he finished the church.”

The Thorngates are also avid travelers, though not so much in recent years. They have been around the world twice, visiting more than 65 countries and every continent except Antarctica.

“We had a lot of good times,” Margaret said with a smile. ❖ This story was originally published Dec. 11, 2013, in the Siuslaw News.

Fred Thorngate passed away June 14, 2014, at age 94.

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SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

SIUSLAW NEWS PHOTO

The Richards family gathers at ICM restaurant for dinner. Earlier in the week, some members went clam digging (below).

A FAMILY AFFAIR Richards family reunites to share Florence heritage.

N

early 70 descendants of the Richards family reunited in Florence this year to share stories from their heritage that dates back 65 years when patriarch Frank Richards established one of the town’s first garbage

BY RYAN CRONK hauling servSiuslaw News ices.

first get-together in Florence and the first reunion ever for the more than 30 children present. The last time the family reunited was 20 years ago in Utah, before any of the youngsters were born.

This trip gave the children a chance to learn about the family’s history.

In 1949, Frank Richards COURTESY PHOTO could no longer support his They came from around the country — growing family, which included his wife California, Colorado, Florida, Nevada, Margrett and children Beverly, Kathrin, Ohio, Oregon, Utah, Washington, West Tom and Cherie, as a part-time professional Virginia and Wyoming — for the reunion musician. He began to look for work elselast July. The weeklong gathering, planned where and found that Florence needed several years in advance, was the group’s another garbage hauling service.

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014 He knew how to drive a truck and thus created Frank’s Sanitary Service, serving the Florence community for the next 35 years. During that time, another child was born, Julie, to complete the family.

All five of the children graduated from the Siuslaw school system.

Frank and Margrett were involved in many of the town’s activities. He served on the Chamber of Commerce, the Boosters Club and in local theater, while she was a member of the area’s garden club. Frank was also a founding member of the Rhodo

Dunes golf course, now known as Ocean Dunes Golf Links.

The couple later moved to St. George, Utah, to live out the rest of their years.

Their descendents now total 94, and though none of them currently live in the Florence area, they all still share this connection.

Several activities were planned throughout the week for the family members, whose ages ranged from 7 months to 84 years old. Some went sand sledding at Cleawox Lake and clam digging in the river, while others visited such historical

13 sites as the Heceta Head Lighthouse and Cape Perpetua. The group was hard to miss, especially when they all gathered at ICM restaurant in Old Town for dinner one night, many of them wearing blue shirts that read “Richards Family Reunion 2014.”

The highlight of the trip, according to Kathrin, was when the family convened at Pacific Sunset Cemetery, just east of town, to honor her brother Tom, who died of cancer in 1994 and is buried at the cemetery.

“Everybody was there, and it was very happy. We all loved him,” she said. ❖

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SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014

14

BY RYAN CRONK Siuslaw News

through

LIFE

Stuart Henderson shines light on progressive painting.

ART “Mourning in America”

ar. Corruption. Injustice.

His paintings often convey a visual language that evokes political contemplation through abstract textures and representational imagery, but Stuart Henderson refrains from calling his artwork contemporary.

W

SIUSLAW NEWS PHOTO

“It’s more therapy than anything else,” he said.

Though probably most known for his hand-painted signs, some of which still adorn buildings throughout Old Town, Henderson has received much attention lately for his ethereal paintings that depict social ills.

The 75-year-old artist is modest about his work. He calls painting a “liberating process,” a way for him to express his thoughts on progressive issues.

“For a long time I was, and still am, pretty upset about the way our country is going,” he said. “I’m finding that as I paint I touch those bases, and it comes out with some sort of relationship to what I’ve been

Henderson arranges leaves for inspiration for his next painting in his studio area.

thinking about.”

Originally from Tacoma, Wash., Henderson earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology at the University of Washington before moving to New York City to attend Cooper Union, where he not only met his wife Joann, but also pursued his passion for art.

“I knew in my heart painting is what I

wanted to do, but I felt like I had to get a degree — family pressure — so I got a degree in sociology,” he explained.

The couple eventually relocated to Los Angeles. For three years Henderson worked as a lithographer, printing work from such famous contemporary artists as Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and Frank Stella.

In 1971, they moved to Florence and became co-owners of the Kyle Building, the town’s first mercantile built in 1901 on Bay Street. They live in the top floor of the building, now known as the Bridgewater Restaurant.

“I didn’t think I’d last here, but it seemed like a good fit for me,” he said.

To make a living, he started Henderson Signs, designing graphics and painting signs for the community. Coincidentally, one of his first jobs while in junior high was painting signs for local businesses.

“So I had that in my genes apparently,” he said with a laugh.

Through his business over the years, Henderson has left his mark on the town — literally. In Old Town, he painted the Bill’s Auto sign, which currently hangs on the east side of Siuslaw River Coffee Roasters, and the Bridgewater Restaurant sign.

SIUSLAW NEWS • THE GOOD LIFE 2014 He and his son Nick also created the logos for the now-defunct Chowder Blues and Brews event for more than 12 years in addition to the Florence Events Center logo and many other signs for individual businesses. Henderson left the sign business in 2000, but he never stopped painting.

His methods are unconventional, using such materials as masonite — a hardboard wood surface — and textiles that include sand and powder pigment in addition to translucent paint, acrylics, latex and oil. A few of his paintings have taken up to six

months to reach fruition.

“Painting is a way to get out of the world and leave a bit of a mark. If you have something to say, do it with whatever kind of means you have at your disposal,” he said. “It seemed like painting was the one thing I could do better than anything else.”

The last few years have been a relearning experience for Henderson.

He struggles with remembering certain painting techniques since having a stroke four years ago that also partially impacted his speech as well as his right arm and

15 hand, which lost some nerve endings.

“It was pretty much unexpected,” he said. “Makes you wonder how the brain works.”

Though he can no longer paint signs like he used to, Henderson said the stroke “didn’t seem to affect painting” in his studio.

Henderson’s paintings range from abstract to landscapes to sociopolitical commentary. His paintings have been displayed at Gallery 903 in Portland and Kenneth B Gallery, a new contemporary art gallery in Florence. ❖

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