#McKenzieStrong Diaries – Organic Redneck Growers
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#McKenzieStrong Diaries – Organic Redneck Growers

ByTom Atkinson

Adam Lee is the farm manager at Organic Redneck Growers, a local farm and shop which has been one of my favorite stops along the 126 for a long while now. At the time of the fire, this was Adam’s fourth season on the farm: “I knew it was a red flag warning day,” Adam…

#McKenzieStrong – Rebuild the Blue River Library
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#McKenzieStrong – Rebuild the Blue River Library

ByTom Atkinson

Libraries are often a focal point for small communities, and that was most certainly the case in Blue River. I had just started volunteering at the Frances O’Brien Memorial library at the end of August, and on my first – and as it sadly turned out, only – shift I was amazed at how busy…

#McKenzieStrong – Janice & Art – Iron Forest
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#McKenzieStrong – Janice & Art – Iron Forest

ByTom Atkinson

People often talk about how they pour their heart and soul into a business, but speaking to Janice Myers leaves you in no doubt that this has been true for Iron Forest. As we talk, her husband Art takes a chainsaw to some of the burnt trees in their beloved property. Those trees, Janice explained,…

#McKenzieStrong – Virtual Tour Videos
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#McKenzieStrong – Virtual Tour Videos

ByTom Atkinson

Below are the videos that were shown in today’s Virtual Tour of McKenzie Recovery efforts. Thank you everyone for your support and feel free to share these videos as they are hosted on YouTube and available to the public.

Holiday Gift Boxes for the McKenzie Community
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Holiday Gift Boxes for the McKenzie Community

ByTom Atkinson

With the holidays fast approaching and winter drawing in, our thoughts turn to the hundreds of families who have been affected by the Holiday Farm Fire. 2020 has already been a tough year, and with a spike in COVID cases forcing new restrictions on gatherings in Oregon, this would have been a strange and challenging…

#McKenzieStrong – Sarah – Serendipity Coffee
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#McKenzieStrong – Sarah – Serendipity Coffee

ByTom Atkinson

Sarah Slowick came to the McKenzie valley in search of a sense of community, and she was not disappointed. “I was living in Hawaii, in this cabin by myself in the middle of the jungle, and was really isolated,” she says, recalling that when she saw the coffee cart for sale in Blue River it…

#McKenzieStrong Diaries – Amber And Brian – HoneyPaddle
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#McKenzieStrong Diaries – Amber And Brian – HoneyPaddle

ByTom Atkinson

It was a week before the Holiday Farm Fire when I first met Amber and Brian Jackson. They were making the Honey Paddle delivery rounds and visited my plot of land in Blue River with a quart of the most excellent honey I have ever tasted. Months of careful planning and hard work had produced…

#McKenzieStrong Diaries — Tiffany and Travis
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#McKenzieStrong Diaries — Tiffany and Travis

ByTom Atkinson

Tiffany and Travis got the keys to their home on June 8th, 2020. 3 months later — to the day — the Holiday Farm Fire reduced it to ash. As if the pain of losing their house wasn’t enough, both their family dogs, Duke and Hammy, also perished in the fire. Their six-year-old daughter, along…

Cooperator’s Update Wednesday 21st October
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Cooperator’s Update Wednesday 21st October

ByTom Atkinson

Sean Davis Sean is working on a COVID-compliant Halloween party for the kids. Last year’s one was a great success and they’re hoping that in spite of all the difficulties they’ll be able to make some fun memories for the young’uns. Madison offered to host the event at the MGS and it is likely to…