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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2013
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Woman’s body recovered BY EMILY THORNTON The World
CHARLESTON — U.S. Coast Guard crews Monday recovered the body of a 50-year-old woman missing from a Sunday shipwreck off the north jetty of Coos Bay. The victim was found at 6:45 p.m. about 1.5 miles southwest of the entrance to Coos Bay, said Petty Officer 3rd Class Nate Littlejohn. Coos County Sheriff’s deputies and medical examiner confirmed it was the woman who had been missing since the fishing boat she was on — Ruth — crashed into the north jetty Sunday night, Littlejohn said.
The cause of death was unknown as of Tuesday morning, he said. Crews earlier rescued two men and their dog off the north jetty of Coos Bay, according to Littlejohn. A Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station North Bend transported two men to Bay Area Hospital at 7:12 a.m. Monday, said Littlejohn. The identities of all three wouldn’t be released until the woman’s next of kin were notified, he said. The woman wasn’t wearing a life jacket or survival suit and wasn’t able to climb up onto the jetty, Littlejohn said. One of the men was injured and the condition of the
other male was unknown, he said. Littlejohn said an unregistered emergency position indicating radio beacon signal was received at 10:21 p.m. Sunday. A ground crew and Response Boat-Small II crew from Station Coos Bay were dispatched. The RB-S II crew located the beacon two miles from the north jetty up the Coos River with other debris at 4:56 a.m. Monday. “We started searching up the river last night,” Chief Warrant Officer Charles Chavtur said. But, he said they’d only found debris as of Monday morning. SEE BODY | A8
By Thomas Moriarty, The World
An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from U.S. Coast Guard Air Station North Bend idles on the helipad at Bay Area Hospital on Monday morning after rescuing two shipwreck victims from Coos Bay’s north jetty.
Schools receive extra funding
The heat is on
BY CHELSEA DAVIS The World
NORTH BEND — School officials have begun brainstorming what their school districts need next year after learning of thousands of dollars in extra funding coming their way. One of the five bills Oregon legislators passed during its special session, which ended Wednesday, pushed an additional $100 million into the State School Fund for the 2013-2015 biennium. The funds will be dispersed to school districts beginning July 1 to be used in the 2014-2015 fiscal year. North Bend Schools Superintendent BJ Hollensteiner flipped through her mental wish list when looking at the $659,400 in extra funding her district will receive next school year, the most of any school district on the South Coast. Classrooms are a little crowded this year, so more funding could help hire more teachers to reduce them to acceptable sizes. She also wants to look at programs that have been cut over the years, such as fourth-grade swimming lessons. All of these decisions will be made during budget discussions this spring. North Bend schools also needs new textbooks. While they were just able to purchase new math textbooks for elementary schools this year,it had been nearly a decade since the last purchase. “There have been very few adoptions because it’s a lot of money for textbooks,” Hollen-
Infrared treatment decreases pain BY EMILY THORNTON The World
COOS BAY — The treatment has been around for more than a decade. Navy Seals and Army Rangers use it to heal faster from injuries. Diabetics use it to increase circulation. Peripheral neuropathy patients use it to ease pain. And now the treatment is gaining popularity right here in the Coos Bay region. Monochromatic infrared energy treatment is formally recognized by the Federal Drug Administration to decrease pain and increase circulation. It isn’t formally recognized by doctors or Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as standard treatment, but it has many supporters. The MIRE device is made of many pads with LED lights in them. The lights emit heat and infrared energy — a combination that seems to work. The pads are placed on areas of the body that need treatment. If someone is suffering from pain or circulation problems in their feet, the pads are placed on the legs and feet. It increases the nitric oxide in the blood, which has been shown in studies to increase healing.
Patients see results Kent Palaniuk was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis two and a half years ago. It crippled his ability to work as a pharmacist, since he is on his feet for 10 hours a day. He said it took about six months of trying to figure out what worked for treatment before he arrived where he is today. He heard about MIRE and decided to give it a try. He went to Sarah Hicks, who specializes in it. “When you’re in that situation, you’re
By Lou Sennick, The World
Sarah Hicks demonstrates how the infrared light therapy pads are placed on a leg for a knee treatment on Thomas LeBaron on Thursday afternoon.
Get help
■ Post-operative recovery
Monochromatic Infrared Energy can help treat the following: ■ Diabetic neuropathy
■ Tendonitis
■ Repetitive strain injuries
■ Chronic back pain
Shin splints/plantar fasciitis ■ Nerve impingement ■ Carpal/tarsal tunnel ■
■ Acute injury recovery ■ Broken bones/ sprains ■ Frozen shoulder
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Sciatica
■ Chronic neck pain ■ TMJ ■
Shingles
SEE INFRARED | A8
SEE SCHOOLS | A8
Douglas County candidate’s campaign in question
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to maintain a clear delineation between the two. “We try to get it right,” he said. “If it’s not clear, I definitely want it to be clear.” By telephone Monday, Schultz explained to The World that she has been splitting her time between her chief of staff duties and as campaign manager. She said that her part-time status with the state takes between 10 and 20 hours a week. “I was working back and forth,” she said. “I can understand that might be confusing.” Freeman said Schultz is being paid $2,000 a month for her campaign work and $850 a month for her state duties as chief of staff. Both Freeman and Schultz said all emails were sent on her own time from her personal computer.
Glenn Moen, Coos Bay Dennis Mateski, North Bend Beth Andersson, North Bend Shirley Osincup, Coos Bay Carole Matson, Coos Bay
Obituaries | A5
But as to the signature identifying her as chief of staff? “It sounds like I’m going to have to go back and change what needs to be changed,” she said. Freeman concurred. “We’ll go back and take a look and make changes if necessary,” he said. Freeman is completing a third term in the state House.The seat he’s running for is currently held by Commissioner Joe Laurance, who announced in March that he will not seek re-election. The only other person who has filed for commission Seat 2 is Dale R. Rogers of Myrtle Creek, a former welder and heavy equipment operator and currently a municipal court bailiff. Rogers has no prior government experience. As a representative, Freeman cur-
Glitch remains The Cover Oregon website has been visited by nearly a quarter of a million viewers this week, but you still can’t enroll.
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A state House member running for Douglas County commissioner is getting an early start on his campaign. But in the process, his campaign and its manager may have skirted state elections law. State Rep. Tim Freeman, R-Roseburg, filed as a candidate for county commissioner Sept. 12. To note the event, Betsy Schultz, the state House member’s chief of staff, sent a press release to various media outlets. In fact, between Sept. 10 and Oct. 1, Schultz sent at least four email messages promoting Freeman’s campaign, all from an email account belonging to his campaign. All emails were sent during normal working hours.
Schultz also made phone calls to various news representatives on behalf of the campaign, also during what would be considered normal working hours. State elections law specifically forbids any state employee from participating in political campaigning unless they do so on their own time, Tony Green, communications director for Secretary of State Kate Brown said Monday. Green added that the secretary has received no complaint concerning Freeman or Schultz and that no investigation is currently being conducted. Freeman explained Monday that state legislative workers often find their time divided between state duties and campaigning during election seasons. But he has always tried
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DEATHS
LARRY CAMPBELL
rently earns $21,936 a year. Douglas County commissioners earn $75,940 a year. But money isn’t the reason he won’t return to the House. “I just decided I want more time with my wife and kids,” Freeman said. “My son’s 17 now and my daughter’s in college. I just miss them and want more time around here.” Freeman said he will not run for state House again. Freeman became known statewide for introducing some attention-grabbing issues into House discourse. In 2011, he got the House to adopt the “Code of the West,” a set of principles from the book, “Cowboy Ethics.” He also introduced a measure earlier this year to invalidate federal firearms restrictions in the state.
Rain likely 58/46 Weather | A8