Sean C. Morgan
Unseasonably wet and chilly weather, logistical issues and schedule changes all had a hand in shaping the 2016 Sportsman’s Holiday, but most of the weekend’s events unfolded and Sweet Home residents had fun despite it all.
Sportsman’s Holiday kicked off Thursday evening with the coronation of McKenzie Yoder as queen of the Sportsman’s Holiday Court.
Mayor Jim Gourley, who served as a judge, read the annual Sportsman’s Holiday proclamation prior to the coronation program, and Yoder announced the beginning of festivities following her selection.
“She definitely deserved it,” said Princess Elea Hewitt. “She worked the hardest of us. She’s the kindest of us all. Her compassion and personality is an inspiration. She is a jewel in our community.”
Yoder led the court selling raffle tickets, which are used to fund the court and provide scholarships to its members. Yoder accounted for 2,430 out of the 5,048 raffle tickets sold by court members.
Tickets were drawn during the program. Prizes included a wide variety of items and services donated by local businesses, as well as Oregon Jamboree tickets and packages.
The princesses also selected Yoder as Miss Congeniality.
“I was really excited,” Yoder said. “I really worked hard.”
She also praised her court.
“They’re wonderful,” she said. “They’re really great. We all tried to help each other out. I’m glad I got the group of girls I did. They’re amazing.”
The six princesses were judged based on interviews, speeches, their poise, their personalities and the way they answered impromptu questions.
During her speech, Yoder said she appreciated how close the Sweet Home community is, how its members help keep each other safe and help each other and how beautiful Sweet Home is.
Brittany Nicholson was named First Princess.
The queen earned a $1,000 scholarship. First Princess earned a scholarship of $750. The remaining princesses earned scholarships of $500.
Judges were Donald Paschen, a resident of Sweet Home; Mary Sue Reynolds, a former court chaperone; Chelsea Corliss, a 2007 princess; and Gourley.
Beth Lambert of State Farm Insurance emceed the program. Mark Woody, pastor at Harvest Christian Center, gave the invocation. Taylor Thorpe performed “American Honey,” and Markus Thedford performed “How I Got to Be This Way.”
Chips ’n’ Splinters
On Friday, Trevor Tagle kicked off the Chips ’n’ Splinters show with members of the Boys and Girls Club, singing Tim McGraw’s “Humble and Kind.” The variety show featured musical performances and skits in an effort to raise money for the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Greater Santiam.
Through a dinner by Angila Tack Food Services, a raffle, admission and direct donations, the program raised more than $8,000.
Performers were were Trevor Tagle with Boys and Girls Club members Alyssa Peterson, Arthur Braunschweig, Zach Cunningham, Noemi Soto, Jacob Names, Christian Soto, Rayleen Bowman, Ava Poirer, Xavier Pennington, Ashley Braunschweig, Gabriel Majors, Indra Luna, Isis Luna, Savannah Hooper, Zoe Rains, Kayden Pennington, Kaden Zajic, Caidence Flint, Kaylene Zajic, Kyle Zajic, Wyatt Hooper, Dillan Davis, Annabelle Morris, Justin Names, Dacotah Pennington, Kaitlyn Kennedy, Sophia Ramos, Ben Cihak and Seth Corbin; the Sportsman’s Holiday Court, including Queen McKenzie Yoder and princesses Elea Hewitt, Tori Clark, Megan Oberg, Brittany Nicholson and Sierra Swanson; Kiah Cottrell; the Kiddlers, including Madison Hilburn, Megan Hilburn, Kirean Leslie and Hannah Wible; Aiden Shamek; the Theater Eggs, including Corbitt Sanders, Sophia Brown, Sierrah Owen and Keisha Goble; Aidie Morgan; Wendi Melcher and Heather Search; Markus Thedford; Antionette Clapp; the Blunderpants, including Lori McNulty, Aidie Morgan, Corbitt Sanders, Sophia Brown, Natalie Jackson and Shirley Austin; and Randy Nunn.
“I think it went really well,” said Wendi Melcher, who also served on the committee. “Hopefully, it’ll grow each year.”
Shirley Austin, a member of the show committee, said organizers got “a lot of great responses from people, how much they enjoyed it.”
“When you get good people, entertainers, and work at it, it works out.”
Following the dinner, Sweet Home residents met at McDonald’s to “cut the gut,” reviving an old tradition of cruising the downtown area.
Grand Parade
The Rotary Club and the Elks lodge provided breakfasts Saturday morning prior to the annual Sportsman’s Holiday Grand Parade.
The parade started a little after 10:30 a.m. following confusion about what time it would actually start. Typically held at 11 a.m., the Chamber of Commerce moved the time to 10 a.m. to accommodate a new Sportsman’s Holiday event, chainsaw carving, held prior to and after the parade behind the Rio Theater.
The police learned about the change after planning for the parade was complete, said Police Chief Jeff Lynn. Police planned to start the parade as soon as they could, when the parade corridor was safe and secure.
The time will remain at 10 a.m. going forward, so there shouldn’t be any confusion in the future, said Katrina Crabtree, executive director at the Chamber of Commerce.
“Other than the confusion,” Crabtree said. “I’ve had a pretty positive spin on the 10 o’clock.”
Holley Elementary School won the first-place trophy. Second place went to the Sportsman’s Holiday Court, and third place went to the Sweet Home High School cheerleaders.
The parade had 54 entries. Crabtree said some entries pulled out because of the rain.
Following the parade, sculptors carved four logs into Northwest animals, including an eagle, a salmon and two bears (See related story on pages 1-3).
“The carving turned out very well,” Crabtree said. People gathered throughout the day to watch.
“The coronation went well,” Crabtree said. “Chips and Splinters was great. The parade could’ve been drier.”
Adding the chainsaw art and the extra breakfast added to the holiday, she said. “Our Street Faire went really well. Without the rain, of course, it could’ve been busier.”
The new parade time is meant to accommodate more activities, Crabtree said. That included the carving this year. It’ll also help if Sweet Home can bring back a kiddie carnival.
Loggers Olympics
Elsewhere in Sweet Home, CTS, Inc., won its third title in the Logger Olympics relay competition, finishing with a time of 1:27.63. Its four members won $550 each.
Timber Harvest, Inc., finished second, with a time of 1:34.13, and Rick McKay Corporation finished third, with a time of 1:40.66.
The Logger Olympics featured eight relay teams, and loggers competed in a variety of events, including production power saw, obstacle pole bucking, choker setting, hook and tender and ax throwing.
“I thought it went really good,” said Milt Moran, an event official and organizer. “I thought it was very good. I thought we had some great competitors and good competition.”
The weather turned nice during the event, he said, and made it a nice day for competitors and spectators.
Moran thought that three times is the most a single team has repeatedly won the logger relay event, he said, so CTS, Inc., will be looking to set a record next year going for its fourth win.
“I was really pleased to see we had eight relay teams,” Moran said. He’s not sure the last time the Logger Olympics had that many teams.
The event gave away some $7,000 in prizes, he said, which are provided by numerous sponsors.
Logger Olympics officials wore baseball caps in memory of Hufford log truck driver Neil Nightingale, who died after being in a multiple-vehicle crash on Highway 20 in January.
Sweet Home ended the day with a fireworks display over Foster Lake.
Sunday’s Events Cancelled
Rain washed out the planned Horse Play Day and the Gospel Jamboree on Sunday.
The would-be inaugural Sportsman’s Holiday Horse Play Day ran into complications last week after organizers learned that the Sweet Home Events Center, the old rodeo grounds, would not be available for the event this year.
A new venue on Scott Mountain had been secured, but volunteer director Kimberley Brock had to cancel the event Sunday morning due to the wet weather.
The field was too wet to hold the events safely, Brock said, but she is moving forward to bring something involving horses back to Sweet Home. She is hoping to put together horse play days in August, September and October.
For more information or to help, contact Brock at (541) 367-2015 or find the event page on Facebook by searching for “bringing horses back to the sportsmans holiday sweet home oregon.”