Mary Ann (Nance) Byrne, 88, passed away August 31, 2021, at her home in Jacksonville, Oregon.
Born in Des Moines, Iowa, to Gladys and Frederick Nance, she was the youngest of four children, joining her two older sisters and one brother. She had many fond memories of her childhood saying, “Our family was fortunate to have […]
MEDFORD, OR — The Britt Music and Arts Festival’s Board of Directors is announcing the planned retirement of Donna Briggs, President and CEO of Britt Music and Arts Festival, effective December 31, 2021. Briggs informed the Board leadership of her intentions to retire earlier this year.
Former Board Chair, Mike Burrill Jr., stated that “Briggs started […]
The Jacksonville business community is a vital part of the fabric of town and makes it unique and a contributing part of our quality of life. There are many changes happening this month—some a result of the pandemic, some a result of natural life changes and some for pure economic reasons. Below is a summation […]
AUGUST 25, 2021-JACKSONVILLE, OR – JACKSONVILLE INN is pleased to announce the appointment of Jeff Mailley as the General Manager of the iconic Rogue Valley restaurant. Mailley will oversee restaurant operations for new owners, ADLO RESTAURANTS, LLC, a partnership of local Rogue Valley residents Corey and Amy Donovan, Jeremy and Randee Leever, Shaun and Crissie […]
Local columnist and features writer, Peggy Dover, is pleased to announce the release of her novel titled Stone Revival, set in post-WWII England.
All aboard for a visit to the rail village of Rakefoot Crossing, a most unlikely location for espionage, kidnapping, and deception.
Glory Stone is content with her life as a country vet’s wife and […]
Doug was born to Eugene Hunter Favell and Winifred Carol Lamm Favell in Klamath Falls, OR where his family founded the Favell Museum. Doug went to college in Ashland and studied business. He lived in Dallas, TX and Lake Shastina, CA before settling down in 1988 to live the rest of […]
JERICHO, N.Y., Sept. 7, 2021 – 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLWS) has announced plans to hire more than 10,000 team members nationwide for seasonal positions across its gourmet foods and gifting brands to […]
(Salem, OR) – The Oregon Water Resources Department is asking Oregonians who rely on wells for their water use to report their dry wells or low producing wells online. Visit our Dry Well webpage at www.oregon.gov/owrd/drywell and click on the link to report your dry well.
Reported information helps the Department understand changes in aquifers […]
Medford, Ore., September 3, 2021 — Following her four-chair-turn appearance on NBC’s popular singing competition “The Voice,” DANCIN Vineyards & Winery will present two performances by Chicago-based blues & soul singer/songwriter Katie Kadan on September 15 and 16 at 5:30 pm.
In-person seating was limited to DANCIN wine club members […]
When this edition comes out, it will be almost the anniversary of the Almeda Fire, a fire that transformed the face of the Rogue Valley and scarred all of us. If we had previously believed that catastrophic fires happened elsewhere or that we were somehow immune, that all changed last September. Concerns about fire and […]
Hi, my name is Sam Olsen. I want to thank many friends and neighbors who inspired me and made the quality of life, and my ride through Jacksonville, memorable and rewarding. Several days ago, I fell in my bathroom and was unable to get up. Eventually an ambulance was called […]
Back in the mid 1990s, while out hiking the Jacksonville Woodlands with my wife, Linda, we noticed an old mining road branching off of the main Rich Trail and winding up to the top of what was to become dubbed “The Knoll” or “Panorama Point.” At an elevation of […]
On Saturday, September 18, from 3-7pm, 2021, Todd Lovett and Leslee Parr will host a showing of their artistic collaboration, “Off the Charts,” at the Artist and Gardener shop at 130 South 3rd Street, Jacksonville. The public is invited.
Leslee Parr, PhD, Professor Emeritus, San Jose State University: I have always believed that scientists and artists […]
Join the Jacksonville-Applegate Rotary Club for their Rotary Poker Run on Friday & Saturday, September 17 & 18, 2021, 1-7pm. Winners will be announced at Rotary BBQ, Sunday, September 19, 1-3pm, at Rellik Winery. Players will purchase a scorecard at participating Jacksonville wineries (no purchase required). At the last winery, players will make the best […]
It’s a truth universally acknowledged that in the book industry, romance is the genre of hope. I’m often asked what makes a romance and I can say one thing for sure, it absolutely has to have what’s known as an HEA, a Happily Ever After. Peril, conflict, miscommunication, and pain can all be tolerated if […]
On June 22, Jacksonville residents, Herstle and Kelly Jones, founders of Jones & Associates Premier Financial Solutions, awarded Miranda Gillaspie with a gift of paying her mortgage for the next 12 months—the gift was a part of the firm’s annual Jones Cares program.
At the time, Miranda Gillaspie was a stranger to the Jones family—they met […]
Join the Jacksonville Rotary Club for a fun winery Poker Run on September 17, 18 & 19. Players will purchase a scorecard at participating Jacksonville wineries (no purchase required). At the last winery, players will make the best five-card hand they can according to standard poker hand ranking and turn the card in to be […]
In mid-July, a volunteer crew spent the day plowing a 30-acre field that was overgrown with tall grass and weeds—the parcel abuts Royal Mobile Estates to the north. Not only was the patch of ground an eyesore, it was a fire hazard that’s now been mitigated with a fire line. With a generous donation of […]
Landscaping Against Your Home—An easy way to create defensible space around your home is to remove weeds, brush, and other invasive vegetation and debris. Use noncombustible rock mulch around your home in place of standard mulch. Trim grass and flowers to 4” or less and maintain all summer. Trim touching or overhanging tree branches to […]
It happened again. This column took a sharp turn as I was polishing-up a completely different piece, and was unexpectedly but pleasantly interrupted at the office. As my hands were pecking away on home row, two friendly-looking un-face-masked faces (and their dog) peered […]
JACKSON COUNTY OREGON — Jackson County Emergency Management launched a layer to the existing Everbridge mass notification system that allows individuals to receive all Citizen Alert Level 1, 2 and 3 evacuation alerts issued in Jackson County by Emergency Management and City jurisdictions.
“We are very excited to add this to our mix of alerts. This […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR—Beginning in August 2021, Historic Jacksonville, Inc. will again be opening the oldest bank in the Pacific Northwest to the public! Scheduled “banking hours” are 11am to 3 pm, Saturdays and Sundays, from August 7 through September 5, 2021. The 1863 C.C. Beekman Bank Museum is located at 110 W. California Street in Jacksonville.
The […]
Long-time restaurateurs Colin and Monique Cox are back. As the former owners of The Honeysuckle Café, they closed their doors in 2020 after six successful years of operation. The couple said, “We just could not survive on To-Go business alone and after much consideration, and missing our loyal customers, decided to get back to doing […]
In Psychology Today, Dr. Steve Albrecht says that for his money, “ice cream wins the prize as the snack food that brings the most joy. Feeling blue? Go to your local ice cream shop and get a scoop.”
The feeling of delivering joy through fun and delicious ice cream and other treats is what drives Violets […]
Historic Jacksonville and its abundance of wineries once again will serve as the scenic backdrop for the annual Oregon Wine Experience. As people from across the country and around the world travel to our beautiful hamlet for the event, vintners will present their signature wines and chefs will prepare their culinary delights.
“Everyone who attends or […]
JULY, 14, 2021, MEDFORD, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival invites everyone to “Come Together” for more concerts during the 2021 Britt Presents season, offering more musical variety and a comedy act. This is the final announcement for the 2021 Britt Presents season, bringing the total number of concerts to 17. The announcement introduces […]
On Saturday, June 5, 2021, a newly-constructed suspension bridge below the reservoir in Forest Park was officially named the “Tony Hess Bridge,” in honor of its long-standing champion. Back in 2003, Tony Hess headed up an ad-hoc group of volunteers to work with the City Council to transform 1800 acres of city-owned land into a […]
Local Jacksonville residents, Mike and Laurie Thornton, working with the Jacksonville City Council and the Jacksonville Boosters Club are sponsoring a demonstration-site event focusing on the removal of blackberries and other invasive plants. The event will take place on Saturday, July 17, from 8:00-10:00 AM with work on the creek bed across from the Jacksonville […]
Climate scientists from World Weather Attribution recently attributed the recent Pacific Northwest heat wave to climate change.
As the summers’ sweltering heat reminds us, fire risk is here and now. Last year’s fires were devastating, but the consequences of ongoing global warming tell us a repeat is almost inevitable. The message is that while we […]
Darla Baack was born in Marengo, Iowa to Shirley and Marvin Baack. She was the youngest of three children and grew up on a number of farms in Iowa County, Iowa. Her father was also the local sexton, so she spent numerous hours helping to groom local cemeteries. From a young age, she […]
At the June 1 City Council meeting, the 2021-2022 fiscal year city budget was adopted. The following summation was excerpted from the Budget Message provided by staff to council prior to budget deliberations.
We have had some budgetary impacts from the COVID-19 Pandemic; however, the City’s fiscal prudence of previous years has prepared us for impacts […]
Due to extreme wildfire risks, fireworks are now banned on private and public property in Jacksonville.
Please see the below resolution passed on 6/29 by the City Council.
RESOLUTION NO. 2021-007
A RESOLUTION DECLARING CRITICAL FIRE DANGER AND PROHIBITING ANY FIREWORKS DURING 2021 JULY FOURTH HOLIDAY IN THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE
WHEREAS, the City Council of the […]
June 25, 2021 – The Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO), under the leadership of the festival’s Music Director, Teddy Abrams, is announcing three unique musical experiences for its 2021 season.
It begins with a virtual installation art piece titled Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK that will be accessible through a smartphone app from July 1 through October 15. Then, […]
With the easing of Covid restrictions comes the ability to gather again—and there is no better place than in the purple fields of the Applegate Valley! The farms and ranches are happily full steam ahead with plans for Lavender Festival Weekends, June 25-27 & July 16-18. They may require […]
The Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO) will present the world premiere of an experiential new work by the multi-faceted, Pulitzer Prize-winning musician and composer, Caroline Shaw. Under the leadership of the festival’s Music Director, Teddy Abrams, the BFO will perform this special project on the Jacksonville Woodlands Trail system in six free performances from July 30 […]
MEDFORD, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival is excited to announce its first set of concerts for the 2021 Britt Presents season. In the first of two announcements, Britt invites music lovers to “Come Together” and enjoy a wide variety of musical […]
Michele Brown Riding passed away on June 22, 2021, at her Salt Lake City home.
She was born October 5, 1952 in Fairbanks, AK to Dale. W and Mildred W. Everill, and was raised in Salt Lake City, UT. Michele attended St. Mary’s and Judge Memorial Catholic High Schools where […]
MEDFORD, OR — ATTENTION: Do not purchase your Britt Music & Arts Festival tickets anywhere except at brittfest.org. Britt is seeing more ticket scams than ever this year. Don’t get scammed.
Only go to: https://brittfest.org/performances
Many ticket resellers such as StubHub, Seat Geeks, and Tickets-Center offer Britt tickets at inflated prices. Purchase your […]
This June, the Jacksonville Library is the place to be in-person (and online) to get out and expand your knowledge base and have fun at the same time with events covering a wide array of fascinating topics. Register for events (both virtual and zoom) online at https://jcls.org/.
Bee a Leader with the Southern […]
The Jacksonville City Council has identified emergency preparedness for wildfires as a key focus this year. The Council is working on several steps including revision of the Emergency Operations Plan, a review of the Britt Evacuation Plan, instituting a set of emergency protocols which include potential evacuation routes, warning systems and fuel reduction. Our partners […]
Eric, 51, of Jacksonville, was born October 19, 1969 in Norwalk, CA to Ted & Lynn Wroblewski. Eric lost his hard-fought battle with alcoholism in April 2021. Eric was raised in the area, having lived in Phoenix, OR in the early 1970’s and in Jacksonville starting in 1975. He played Little League in the Rogue […]
A question many climate concerned individuals face is: how do I talk about climate with friends, family, and co-workers who are less accepting of the science than am I? The pre-eminent organization in the U.S. exploring climate attitudes and ways of communicating about the science is the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication.
For the June […]
There will be a dedication/ribbon cutting at the new suspension bridge in Forest Park on June 5 at 10:00am. At that time, the official name will also be unveiled.
Visitors to Jacksonville’s Forest Park, a large city park located in the Jackson Creek Watershed, have given rave reviews on the newest park […]
The start of Fire Season was officially announced May 12 in Southern Oregon Department of Forestry Southwestern District. Conditions are pointing to be a very busy summer for wildfires and normally fire season starts at the beginning of June but this year there have been more than 30 wildfires caused by open burning and with […]
Wildfire Firewise Community Preparedness Day is a national campaign where people to come together on a single day to take action to raise awareness and reduce wildfire risks. Jacksonville is especially vulnerable to wildfires due to many homes being in the wildfire-urban interface, in close proximity to woodlands and forested land. Removing dead vegetation in […]
Water is life – in so many ways! Without adequate supplies, life is threatened, as are our agriculture, forests and fisheries, and our natural ecosystems. As the climate changes, droughts are occurring more frequently in southern Oregon resulting in adverse impacts to our water supplies as well as an increased risk of fire in the […]
On April 22, 2021, Michael R. Charles passed away suddenly of cardiac arrestat the age of 71. Michael was born in San Francisco to Robert and Lee Ann Charles and grew up in South San Francisco and Millbrae. He graduated from Mills High School in 1968 and attended Sonoma State.
Mike loved his family, friends, music, […]
At the Jacksonville Community Center, we are excited to be offering more programming as vaccination rates increase and infection levels decline. Now, after the hurdles of the past year, you can help us relaunch more fully in this improved environment.
As a nonprofit organization, the JCC […]
Jacksonville’s creaky boardwalks of yesteryear are today’s concrete sidewalks. But for people with disabilities, Jacksonville’s streets remain difficult to navigate, harkening back to when the streets were dirt during summer and a muddy mess during winter.
That will soon change. This spring through June, you’ll see workers on six corners of 5th Street (Oregon 238) from […]
Awen Winecraft is excited to announce the opening of their first tasting room, the “Inspiration Station,” in late February at the historic McCully House at 240 E. California Street. The location offers both indoor and outdoor seating with patio heaters and fire pits to keep everyone warm while they enjoy a glass or bottle of […]