Pastor Louise Buckles stands amid the labyrinth created at Ocean Park Lutheran Church and highlighted in Patrick Webb’s varied feature articles appearing in the Chinook Observer this past year. She is one of many unsung heroes in the Long Beach Community, making a difference with her dedication, serving as a board member with Peninsula Poverty Response, which provides practical help to the homeless.

Happy new year to all our readers. It continues to be a privilege to be a storyteller for the Chinook Observer.

I attended the 50th wedding anniversary of a family member recently and thought, “Wow! Fifty years? That’s a long time.”

Later I realized that if this retirement hobby continues a little longer, I may be writing about an equivalent milestone for my newspaper career.

I started as a cub reporter in 1976, oh-so wet behind the ears, eager for a career as an ink-stained wretch, portrayed in the movies by my namesake Jack Webb in “Deadline Midnight.” I wanted to change the world, make a name for myself, thirsty to build a portfolio of headlines.

My first published story was about a woman whose cactus bloomed for the first time on her 25th wedding anniversary.

Nothing has changed, spilling ink at nine newspapers in two countries and five states. A fascination with nice people doing interesting things has driven me into people’s living rooms ever since. I had a long period in my career when I was a mere editor. I say “mere” knowing that editors are important, orchestrating the whole business. But I never lost sight of the importance of writers and photographers; my staffs were always more important than me. All I did was design the borders for each day’s jigsaw.

Highlights

Looking back on 2024, I realized that it may not have seemed like a banner year for me — but it was to the people I wrote about.

The role of the local paper is to record and celebrate the accomplishments of our neighbors.

And, boy, there were a bunch! My Macintosh computer contains 127 folders of projects, ranging from detailed time-consuming feature articles to brief mentions of upcoming events.

Periodically, the Observer allows me to “parachute” in to assist with its sports coverage. Those were some of my bigger projects this year, including visits to the state wrestling and track meets. Track is my favorite. It is either pouring with rain or blazing sunshine, both of which make photography a challenge. Not to mention participants are moving — usually very fast! Coaches Sarah Taylor and Crystal Bell from Ilwaco and Scott Smith and Marie Green from Naselle are among the most fun people to hang out with; their commitment to student welfare is unparalleled.

One highlight last spring was reporting the pole vaulting prowess of senior Jacob “Pak” Pakenen. His dedication, and the detailed preparation that Smith and his likable colleague Jack Osadchey orchestrated, was a joy to behold.

And then there’s volleyball. A family member coached a state championship-winning team 20 years ago (“Go, Greyhounds!”), so it’s a sport close to my heart.

From Naselle to Yakima is 222 miles. Fans drove that distance in mid-November to watch the Comets under inspirational captain MyLinh Schell begin a game at 8 a.m., win the first set, then lose the next three.

Because of the configuration of the bracket, which I termed “dispiriting” in my report, that one loss meant the girls’ season was over. So what did the Naselle players, coaches and fans do next? They dried their tears and moved to another court where they cheered for their Pacific County rivals Willapa Valley.

That is class.

Marvel

I believe one of the most important functions of a local newspaper is to mark important milestones. Sometimes it is simply celebrating events, often through the eyes of people who organize them. Jenna Austen is a veritable Energizer Bunny, powering positivity in Ilwaco, and Bill Svendsen brings talent to his stage in Long Beach. Please join me in applauding them.

We are blessed, too, with hardworking neighbors who put energy into creating local theater, folks like Angela Grote and Jerr Harding at PAPA and Rita Smith and Robert Scherrer at Peninsula Players. Their productions blend ages, so audiences can savor astonishing talents like retiree David Immel as well as teenager Aliyanna Hudson. (I keep saying that “one of these days” I’ll audition and share in the fun.)

Meanwhile, I marvel at the talents of Annika Kay, the Oyster Crackers ladies and Clint Carter sharing other performing arts like dance and music. Our community has rallied to support Carter in his health troubles; that’s one of the reasons I have enjoyed living here this past quarter-century.

People who contribute in “helping arts” inspire, especially Nikki Fortuna, dedicated to enhancing our community’s mental health, and Nancy McAllister, who leads efforts to help the homeless. Until our society resolves to properly address both issues, sadly often interlinked, we will continue to have to rely on their volunteer commitment.

Delight

In the 1970s, I was a lone teen, four years distant from my sibling, and too weird to be recruited into peer gangs, so I spent my childhood in the library. I am 67; nothing has changed. I view librarians on a pedestal and if I ever get off my duff and write my first book I likely will dedicate it to them.

This year I marked “Banned Books Week” with a story about Gio Perez, an enthusiastic staffer at Ilwaco Library who researched and built an impressive display. I hope the day will come when I no longer have to write about such projects.

Our Peninsula seems awash with authors, all of whom have written at least one more book than I. Ocean Park is particularly well stocked with literati; I have proifiled many. Pete Young’s zeal for authenticity sets the bar; he has no idea how good he is. At the other end of the “age scale,” Steffi Thomas taught me much about her high fantasy genre with youthful zeal, as well as providing an example of a diversified artist.

Art takes many forms, and we are especially fortunate that we have folks whose enthusiasm extends to sharing their creations, including the Peninsula Quilt Guild, the Ocean Park Rug Club and the Columbia Pacific Fiber Arts Association. Among fine folks who make their magic happen are Magen Michaud, Dian Kazlauskas and Shelly McSweyn.

Finally, I am not big on new year resolutions. Back in the 1980s, I did manage to stagger out of bed and run around my neighborhood for 11 mornings — until the day it rained. But as this new year begins, I do want to invite all my Long Beach Peninsula neighbors to join me in appreciating what we have.

I am confident your newspaper will continue to celebrate our community’s milestones and achievements in this wonder-filled world.