show menu

Guerneville Rollin on the River by Yvette Bidegain

MAY DAY! MAY DAY! I feel like I need to use this distress call for all we have been through for the last month and a half. Let’s hope by the time this column comes out we will not need that distress call any longer. It’s hard to know what’s “Rollin on the River” this month as last month everything was either closed or cancelled. So, let’s talk about the positive things that came out of this. First I want to give a BIG thank you to our ESSENTIAL WORKERS! Their hard work and dedication, putting their lives on the line for us that thank you just doesn’t seem enough. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts you are truly our hero’s.

Here is how we were “rollin on the river” during this pandemic. The majority of us rose to the occasion and did our part by “Sheltering in Place” (SIP). By doing this we prevented the spread the virus as bad as they thought it might spread. I know it was a big sacrifice for us, but we did it. My heart goes out to all the other area’s that this virus went through like wildfire affecting so many lives. I am relieved we managed the low numbers that we have. But let’s not get complacent, we are almost over this invisible enemy. We need to keep all the safeguards that are in place for us not to get a re-emergence of this virus. I hold positive thoughts for the family/friends who lost any loved ones.

Our Guerneville community lost one of our loved ones to the virus, Alby Kass. He was one of the founders of the Russian River Jazz Festival. Alby and his wife Wallie use to own Riverlane Resort. He was very active in the community with many other accomplishments in this town. I’m sure many of you remember him. They will be having a celebration of life once people can gather again. My deepest sympathies go out to the family.

Despite all of the unpleasant stuff that happened, we had so many great things where people stepped up to the plate to help our community. So many people lost jobs, had no idea where they would get money for their next meal, pay rent/mortgage and other essential items to keep their houses running. We knew a stimulus check was coming, but we needed money now! Well, some families did get a lifeline. The Russian River Alliance Workforce Fund purchased thousands of dollars in local restaurant gift certificates to distribute to local laid off households. They had pre-paid for transportation, delivering from the local restaurants and markets, including picking up weekly food bank deliveries using our local taxi companies.

The Homeless Shelters were due to close at the end of March but instead of letting the homeless back in the streets with no protection from the virus, West County Community Services had several restaurants from the community prepare meals for the month of April. Thank you BAKED ON THE RIVER, BIG BOTTOM, BOON, MAIN STREET BISTRO, PAT’S INTERNATIONAL, SAUCY MAMA’S AND SMARTPIZZA! Also thank you for staying open for the community during this turbulent time.

Just a reminder that as of April 17th Sonoma County has put in place a Health Order requiring us to wear a mask while in any public places. Coco at Shake Down and Bonnie at Bonnie Sew Good have them available if you need some

CENSUS TIME! I hope everyone has either went online, by phone or mailed Census questionnaire. We have nothing but time right now so we all could get this done. This is very important for our community. So, let’s all do it as this is a once in a decade event.

With all this virus stuff I almost forgot to say HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! This is one thing we can celebrate no matter what’s going on.

Not much “Rollin on the River” this month but I will say it again, THIS TO SHALL PASS. We all have to stick together and do our part.

I leave you with a quote,

”PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE HAVE A MAGICAL EFFECT BEFORE WHICH DIFFICULTIES DISAPPER AND OBSTACLES VANISH” JOHN QUINCY ADAMS

We've moved our commenting system to Disqus, a widely used community engagement tool that you may already be using on other websites. If you're a registered Disqus user, your account will work on the Gazette as well. If you'd like to sign up to comment, visit https://disqus.com/profile/signup/.
Show Comment