Husky basketball
to hold skills camps
Sweet Home High School boys basketball Coach Brandon Gaskey and his team will hold two half-day skills camps from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Dec. 27 and Jan. 3 at the high school.
The focus will be on fundamentals, with instruction from the coaching staff and players. The camp is open to all ages.
Cost is $10 per session or $15 for both. Participants can sign up in the gym prior to the start of the camp.
For more information, contact Gaskey at (541) 401-4206 or e-mail [email protected].
Dec. 30 deadline to
donate to first baby
Dec. 30 is the final day for local businesses in its service area to contribute toward a gift basket for the first baby born at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital in 2015.
Deadline to contribute is noon Tuesday, Dec. 30.
The hospital has a tradition of giving a gift basket to the parents of the first baby born every year. The hospital’s maternity team contributes gifts toward the basket, and local businesses have generously donated gift certificates, stuffed animals or other gifts in the past.
For more information, call Ian Rollins, Public Relations, at 541-451-7161 or 541-812-4638.
AARP needs tax prep volunteers
AARP Tax-Aide, the nation’s largest free volunteer-run preparation and e-filing service is seeking volunteers to assist in tax preparations.
All ages and backgrounds are welcome and volunteers are particularly needed in Sweet Home and Lebanon.
Tax counselors, who get free tax training, help taxpayers one-on-one at tax sites at four sites in Linn County. Volunteers are also needed to greet the taxpayers and assist them in filling out an intake form.
For more information on joining the Tax-Aide team, call Jan Huskey, 541-928-3068:email [email protected] or visit http://www.aarp.org/taxaide to register online.
Hope Center needs help, donations
Hope Center, a shelter for homeless women and children, is seeking donations of supplies, cash or gift cards to continue operating.
The center provides transitional housing for women and children who are homeless for various reasons, helping them find educational, job training, and other life skill opportunities to improve their lives. It is a 501(c) (3) organization and donations are tax-deductible.
Volunteers are also needed to answer the phones, and help with facility maintenance.
Needs include cash donations to help with utilities and other ongoing costs; gift cards for grocery stores, Bi-Mart or WalMart; a wide variety of kitchen, bathroom and office supplies. Nearly every item associated with those uses is needed. Also needed are new or used Bibles containing both the Old and New Testaments.
Items can be dropped off at Steelhead Fitness Center on the corner of Main Street and 13th Avenue, or mailed to Hope Center at PO Box 351, Sweet Home, OR 97386.
For more information, contact Litta Bergstrom at (541) 367-4673.
Day camp offered by humane society
SafeHaven Humane Society will host a winter break day camp for kids from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 32220 Old Hwy 34 in Tangent.
The camp is open to children in grades kindergarten through fifth grade, and will feature fun crafts, games, snacks and socialization time with our adoptable animals.
Campers should bring a lunch, water bottle and wear closed toe shoes. Registration is $35 per child.
SafeHaven Humane Society is a non-profit, full adoption shelter that does not euthanize animals for population control. SafeHaven is solely supported by donations, events and adoption fees. Each year, the humane society finds home for more than 1,600 cats and dogs.
To register, visit safehavenhumane.org and select the For Kids tab. For information, contact
Katie at (541) 926-2924 or e-mail [email protected].
Space limited for land use classes
Sweet Home is offering a two-session training course entitled Planning in Oregon, designed to be a deep dive into the Oregon planning system and how it applies at the local level.
It will include a discussion on the various types of applications, the processes, hearings, and ethics.
The two sessions will be held Tuesdays, Jan. 6 and 20, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Jim Riggs Community Center.
Seating will be limited, so RSVPs are required by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 30.
To RSVP either e-mail [email protected] or contact Linda at (541) 367-1431.
Softball open gym
to start on Jan. 4
Sweet Home softball will hold open gym on Sunday afternoons beginning Jan. 4.
Sessions will be from 4 to 6 p.m. and are open to all ages.
Also, the softball program is seeking softball coaches for all ages.
For more information, contract Shane Cochrane at (541) 409-1337.
Free eight-week class on diabetes
East Linn County residents diagnosed with pre-diabetes or similar conditions are invited to participate in a free eight-week class at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital.
The hospital’s next Diabetes Prevention class will be held from 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7. The weekly class will run for eight Wednesdays, concluding on Feb. 25. Topics include weight loss, healthy eating, exercise and other lifestyle changes that will help people avoid a diagnosis of diabetes.
In addition, the hospital’s diabetes team facilitates a monthly support group for anyone diagnosed with diabetes, pre-diabetes or similar conditions. The group meets the first Monday of every month – unless the first Monday is a holiday.
The next group meeting will be Monday, Jan. 5, from 11 a.m. to noon at the hospital. Dr. Sarah Swarts, endocrinologist with Samaritan Internal Medicine, will discuss the newest medications available for conditions related to diabetes. She will also take questions from attendees.
Pre-registration is required for the Diabetes Prevention class and the support group. Participants are encouraged to complete the Diabetes Prevention class before joining the support group, but it’s not required.
To register, either for the class or the support group, call (541) 451-6313.
Recycling class
offered at OSU
Oregon State University Campus Recycling and Republic Services are offering a weekly Linn and Benton Master Recycler class on Tuesday evenings at the OSU campus in Corvallis.
Registration is available at the Master Recycler website, http://tiny.cc/recycclass. The deadline is Jan. 6, but class size is limited.
Classes meet from 6:15 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays from Jan. 13 through March 3. Topics include landfill science, recycling, waste reduction, reuse opportunities, composting, community sustainability, green building, hazardous waste and taking action. The class will also include two or three fun, information-filled field trips.
The course is free to residents of Linn and Benton County who agree to “pay back” what they learned through 30 hours of volunteer service after completion of the course. To learn more, e-mail Rachel Snyder, Republic Services recycling coordinator, at [email protected] or call the Albany office at (541) 928-2551.
Meals on Wheels
weekly menu
Meals on Wheels, also known as Your Table or Ours, offers lunch at the Sweet Home Community Center to seniors over 60 at noon on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays.
Suggested donation is $3.50. All meals are served with milk, coffee or tea upon request and diabetic desserts are available on request.
The lunch menu on Friday, Dec. 26, is Krab patty with Tartar sauce or BBQ smokehouse chop, Colcannon potatoes, Oregon bean medley, French bread and chocolate chip bar.
The menu for Monday, Dec. 29, is beef mushroom patty or chicken a la king, whipped potatoes, broccoli cuts, oatmeal bread and pineapple.
The menu for Tuesday, Dec. 30, is chicken pomodoro or broccoli omelet bake, country trio vegetables, spinach Romaine salad, multigraine roll and banana pudding.
For more information, call (541) 367-8843.