City Council Meeting
July 14, 2022
6:00 PM
@ Athena City Hall- Miller Family Community Room

A MESSAGE FROM OUR MAYOR:

First, the upsides… our town has been immensely blessed the last few years having Kristin Williams as our librarian. She has brought such great life and richness to Athena’s library. We wish her well in her new paths of life, and we are so very excited that the legacy she leaves is going to be carried on in the more than capable hands of Stephanie Partida. Stephanie comes to us with such great energy, creativity, and a true passion and love for the library, as Kristin also had. I encourage you to check out what is going on at the library and stop by to meet Stephanie at the library if you have not done so yet. I’m sure you will leave with a smile! Our town has also been immensely blessed to have Kim King in our public works department. The range of skills, professionalism as a public servant, and dedication Kim has had have been great assets to Athena. Kim will be retiring at the end of this year, and we are very excited to welcome Brian Pickard on board to be learning the ropes with Kim and Kenneth until that time. Brian comes to us highly recommended and brings a wealth of skills and experience for this position. So - a thousand welcomes, Stephanie and Brian!

Sorry to say, but we also have a downside this month. In recent months there have been some characters passing through our town who have not had the best interests of Athena or its citizens at heart. We know we do not live in a perfect world and there is simply no way to prevent all of this. I heard a great training from a law-enforcement officer once who stated that police, fire, and ambulance workers are not technically the “first responders” to any situation. It is the actual people who are there when the thing happens… Those who dial 911… Those are the actual “first responders”. This is why it is so important for all of us in our small community to keep our eyes and ears open. If you see something going on that does not seem right, say something! I think social media can be a good place to communicate and network in ways that can help keep our community safer, but it is only one tool. Please do report things to the sheriff's office so they can be even more informed and will have a record to use when they need it for documentation. Talk to your neighbors, but please make sure your conversations are not just hearsay or gossip as these can be more destructive than helpful. Also be aware that often times our law enforcement and code enforcement officers are doing much more behind the scenes than you are aware of to correct situations. You are always welcome to contact them and ask questions if you feel you need to.

Athena Caledonian Games

Volunteers are always needed to help with short-term projects for our Scottish festival on July 9, 2022.  Call 541-566-3880 to check in.  Caledonian Games has a Guardian program for donors who donate $50.   The Guardians are protecting our precious Scottish heritage in Athena.    Please mail donations to Athena Caledonian Games, PO Box 161, Athena, OR.   Athena Caledonian Games will feature Celtic band, "Endalos", with Scottish and Irish music in the park!