Here are two of the sweetest comments that came in:

"Last night was absolutely wonderful - the music, singers, ambience, people, art, everything. We had a fabulous evening - so thanks to all of you volunteers - truly magic. Irmin and I won two great pieces of art; Jackie also has a great piece of art. "      -Jan & Irmin Roberts

'The Spirit of the River 2009 was stellar!!!!! Artful, in its presentation all the way around. What a wonderful event to be able to attend in this community! Spirit to the core. Thank you, and to all who were involved in its production."      Dinah Urell, Editor/Publisher hipfish

Thanks to the generosity of the estuary communities - we successfully raised funds to protect our beloved river. Our goal was to raise $10,000 and we raised just over $15,000!! These funds will go to Columbia Riverkeeper and will be used primarily for legal battles. Right now we have a challenge in the state courts at LUBA (Land Use Board of Appeals) for the Clatsop County Commissioners' decision that Bradwood is "small to medium" and "protects fish." We also have a legal case before the 9th circuit federal court challenging the FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) approval.

BOUQUETS to:

15 performers whose presentation of "spirit" captivated the audience

56 artists whose concepts of "river" graced the Josie Peper
building and raised huge sums of money

23 businesses and families who were Spirit Sponsors

Kamila Swerdlof who chose Spirit of the River as her Sr. Project

18 additional volunteers who worked with us on the day of the event
to make everything go smoothly for our 200+ guests

and

SPECIAL THANKS

From the bottom of my heart to the Spirit Committee, who began meeting in June and worked hard for 4 months to give us this delightful opportunity to celebrate our river: Carol Newman, David Lee Myers, Judy VanderMaten, Cindy & Jeff Miller, Kamila Swerdloff, Bobbi Brice, Deborah McEuen, Josef Gault, John Fenton, Lucien Swerdloff, and LaRee Johnson.

Gratefully, Cheryl Johnson