It’s been seven years since Dale and Claudia Lembke became a Gold Star Family after losing their son, Marine Corporal Matthew Lembke, from wounds suffered while on patrol in Afghanistan. I thought it important to introduce Tualatin to its own Gold Star Family so they could understand that when a son or daughter makes the ultimate sacrifice, the surviving family shares deeply in that sacrifice. I was concerned about adding to their grief by asking these questions, but as always, they were incredibly gracious and open about it. Thank you, Dale and Claudia, for allowing me to share your story.
In some ways, the superficial ways, it’s like so many other horse stables and arenas that dot our region. But where it counts, in its heart, and soul, and spirit, it is unique in ways of which someone unfamiliar with the story would be completely unaware.
Candice Russell is not just the girl next door. At the age of 24, this life-long resident of Tualatin is pursuing her dreams of becoming a recording artist. Her angelic voice combined with her melodic hooks will have you rolling down your windows in your car, turning up the volume and drinking in the summer air. As the daughter of a pastor, Russell has spent her whole life singing in church.
We all love our children, but in the “busy-ness” of daily life how do we make sure they FEEL loved? In his book, The 5 Love Languages of Children, Gary Chapman distinguishes five ways that most people (including children) prefer to be shown love. We might be able to identify our child’s preference early, or we might just use all the love languages with our children. The thinking can be compared to teaching something to children while keeping in mind that each child has their preferred learning style or styles (auditory, visual, kinesthetic). Children DO better when they FEEL better. The point needs to be made that usually we express love to others the way we prefer love to be expressed toward us. However, we need to express love to others the way THEY feel loved. There may be a difference. You’ll get a lot more bang for your buck if you take that into account.
The City of Tualatin is partnering with several community agencies to create a local pathway out of poverty through education and skills training. After being named one of eight national finalists, Tualatin’s America’s Best Community team has spent the summer working on phase 1 of a Community Revitalization Plan: developing a mobile maker space.
I’ve noticed more than once unfortunately, that since I’ve entered the modern era (after say, 2013) I’ve developed an insane habit of looking at my smartphone during any spare, empty moment.
We all have an incredible orchestra of hormones literally playing the soundtrack of our lives, allowing us to have a bounce in our step and move through life in a healthy, vital manner. That orchestra is complex and interdependent- when one hormone is off, the others can slowly but surely become out of tune. Dr. Clark recently discussed the relationship between testosterone, estrogen and the impact on a man’s health. Estrogen is vitally important to a woman’s health through her lifetime.
An essential part of the mission of the Tualatin Aging Task Force is to bring relevant information to our senior community, which in turn relates to everyone living in Tualatin. Following is an exciting new series to be launched at the Juanita Pohl Center this fall.
August 2nd was our annual National Night Out in Tualatin where neighborhoods held block parties and were visited by our local police and fire fighters.
Last month, I asked for feedback and you didn’t disappoint. I want to take a moment to thank all the people that took the time to call, email or check-in on our Facebook Page or website. Tualatin Life strives to be the voice of Tualatin so I encourage you to reach out if you have something to say or there’s something we could be doing better. I personally respond to phone calls, email and Facebook messages.
This issue is jam-packed with what I hope you’ll agree is a great selection of stories and a few new advertisers. It’s never easy to approach someone about a story idea after a tragedy, and over the last several weeks, we’ve had more than our fair share. By now, most Tualatin residents are familiar with the Clark Lumber True Value Hardware fire. We were grateful that members of the Clark family agreed to sit down with us and give us an update to share with our readers. It was heartwarming to see that they’re back at it already, conducting business out of a small trailer on the property. They remind us of the resilience of the human spirit… a theme that seems to play out repeatedly in this issue.
Past publisher Jonathan Crane makes a return to the pages of Tualatin Life with an interview with Tualatin residents Dale and Claudia Lembke, who graciously agreed to share their story on page 8. Through the loss of their son, a scholarship fund benefitting TuHS students continues to keep his name alive.
With the fifteenth anniversary of 9-11 around the corner, it’s timely for local resident John Beaulieu to share his involvement with rebuilding after another tragedy. John played a crucial role in the building of the Freedom Tower on the site of the destroyed World Trade Center buildings.
And on page 4, you’ll read how one family honored their daughter’s spirit and love of horses and through Cindy’s House of Horses. It was great meeting so many of you at the Crawfish Festival and the various National Night Out events throughout our city. We took a lot of photos, so many that we decided to publish them on our website. Be sure to check them out at www.TualatinLife.com.
Finally, A big thanks you to our advertisers that make Tualatin Life possible. Please continue to support them.
Michael Antonelli – Publisher
mike@tualatinlife.com
503-692-9215
Jerry Larsen, a Tualatin resident and Naval Academy graduate, had a significant role in the first US major military offensive action during the Vietnam War. Called Operation Starlite by U.S forces, it was known in Vietnam as Battle of Van Tuong. He shared this experience as a speaker at last year’s Tualatin Veteran Appreciation Breakfast. He said the operation was conducted about a year after the two Gulf of Tonkin incidents which “may or may not have happened” but were considered an “act of war.” The “incidents” prompted Congress to pass a resolution giving President Johnson a blank check regarding military engagement in Vietnam. During that year, US military grew from 800 in advisory capacities to 88,000. Jerry was the Communications Officer aboard the flagship, USS Bayfield, for an 11 ship amphibious squadron including troop transports (APA) cargo chips (AKA) and Landing ship docks (LD).
Ensign Jerry Larsen aboard his first duty station, guided missile destroyer USS Buchanan. in 1963.
One of the largest US bases in 1965 was at Chu Lai which is 29 miles north of Da Nang. It had an airport, large Marine base and a powerful communications tower, making it a prime target. After a learning from a Viet Cong deserter that the VC were getting ready to attack the Chu Lai from the south from a Viet Cong base near Van Tuong, U.S. forces immediately began preparations to do a pre-emptive strike, with utmost secrecy so that surprise would be complete. Jerry put together the Navy communication plan which includes all aspects of radio and signal communications , including the various circuits, voice and encrypted teletype, signal flags, flashing light and radio silence criteria. There were many “flash” top secret messages sent during that period. Jerry was responsible for getting them to his Commodore and others properly cleared and involved in the operation.
The Starlite assault took place on the Van Tuong peninsula. Jerry said there were five battalions of marines,5,5000, involved. “It was a coordinated assault from land, coming down from Chu Lai; from the air using “vertical envelopment” with helicopters from land bases and from the LPH (Landing Platform Helicopter) Iwo Jima. One battalion came from the sea, embarking from amphibious ships that had picked up troops in Chu Lai. The seaborne attack was just like the movie “Away All Boats” with Jeff Chandler where the marines get in landing craft which circle and finally form waves that hit the beach in sequence. Naval gunfire support came from the cruiser Galveston and a couple of destroyers. There were F-8, F-4 and A-4 jet aircraft dropping bombs and strafing the beach ahead of time, with more softening up from shore-based artillery.” Jerry explained that this was an incredible amount of inter service coordination, completed in two days, all done in top-secret fashion.
Starlite map shows Marine insertion points.
Starlite was a success. The VC did not attack Chu Lai. The assault resulted in 680 confirmed VC killed at a cost of 54 KIA Marines. The word was that this was a major victory, proving that US forces could easily overwhelm and destroy enemy forces; and the war would end quickly. That was the message to the American public. Jerry disagreed “nothing was further from the truth. The VC learned from this action and never again put themselves where they could be attacked from the sea in this fashion.” He continued “also, the American public were told that further actions would deplete the enemy’s forces and demoralize them. But even with severe losses, they quickly reinforced their units with new troops.” Regarding war tactics in Vietnam, Jerry said the Marines had been successful in other conflicts using “pacification” with the locals which basically means winning their hearts and minds. But the Army generals were dead set on using the WWII ground war tactics, which were inappropriate as was shown by the failures in Vietnam. The Army was running things, so the Marines had to subordinate their more modern strategic concepts to Army direction, and undoubtedly many lives were lost because of this. He concluded “after a decade of fighting, the US lost over 58,000 but the Vietnamese lost 1.1 million, and everyone knows what it did to our country” .
The stress of wartime military gave Jerry a minor case of dysentery, going down from 165 pounds to 140 during Operation Starlite. His ship did not have air conditioning so living conditions were terrible in Vietnam in the summer. But Jerry said “the hardest part was being gone for ten months from his wife and two children – a month old son and 14 month old daughter. He explained that PC’s, Skype and email communication hadn’t been invented yet so his only communication home was by written letter.” He concluded “you ship out and wonder if you are coming back.” He did come back and is thankful for it.
Note: As this column was being written, Jerry and his wife, Jan, after 25 years of living in Tualatin, were in the process of downsizing, moving to King City. Jerry has been very active in our community, most recently serving on the board of the Tualatin Community Police Foundation.
Midshipman Jerry as a plebe (and crewcut) at Naval Academy.
USS Bayfield, flag ship for amphibious ships.
Maines preparing for Operation Starlite battle.
Jerry and Jan were married on Oct 27, 1962. Marriage earlier than planned because Cuban crisis changed Jerry’s Navy duties.
I’ve just had a rare chance to visit the Netherlands recently. It’s been awhile since I’ve been there. When you travel, they say, you never return home quite the same way.
I’m not sure if that’s because the entire experience of immersion into another culture may change our perspective ever so subtly or whether it’s because the neglected work and duties you were suppose to be doing while you were away suddenly comes crashing down the very moment you whisper to yourself “I’m home.” And that can change you too.
Towards the end of last month, the City of Tualatin announced that Bill Steele had been selected to serve as Tualatin’s new Chief of Police, following the retirement of Kent Barker. Chief Bill Steele’s first day with the city was July 5th.
Chief Steele comes to the City of Tualatin with 20 years of law enforcement and community leadership experience. He most recently served as the Chief Deputy with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, where he served over 575,000 residents and managed nearly 600 employees. Starting with Washington County in 1996 as a Patrol Deputy, Chief Steele advanced his career through the department, serving in a number of roles including Patrol Lieutenant and Patrol Division Commander. In 2012, he also served as the interim Chief of Police with the City of Forest Grove.
Yvonne Addington introduced me to a member of one of Tualatin’s early families at the conclusion of our Memorial Day event, Gordon Sunde. Gordon, at 85, is the youngest and only surviving member of four brothers. Very spry for his age, he has an infectious smile that makes you feel happy when you talk to him. The Sunde brothers were next door neighbors and friends of Yvonne’s father Ted Saarinen and his brother Bob. The Sunde’s lived on the SE Corner of Boones Ferry Road and Avery Streets, where Boones Ferry Community church is now located.
On June 29th, four members of the Tualatin Area Aging Task Force attended the “Livability for All Age-Friendly Washington County Roundtable” presented by AARP of Washington County. Following the guide lines set by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Age-Friendly Cities and Communities, a project was created by WHO to help cities prepare for the rapid aging population. Washington County is the second fastest growing county in the state. The 65+ population makes up 12.2% of the total population, compared to 16.4% for the rest of Oregon. This same 65+ population in Tualatin makes up around 15% of the community’s total population.
Pokémon GO! is a new free mobile game from Niantic that overlays a world of Pokémon over your real-life location. The Pokémon franchise turns 20 years old this year (the first games came out in 1996 for Game Boy), and has migrated from its video game roots to a wildly successful anime, many movies, a trading card game, and graphic novel series! The game encourages you to be active and explore your surroundings.
Tualatin, Oregon is thrilled to be one of the top eight teams to advance to the ABC Finals! We’ve had much press coverage, and even more community pride knowing that we can advance our innovative Mobile MakerSpace (MMS) project on a much faster timeline with the $100,000 prize.
ArtSplash Art Show and Sale has been one of the most anticipated summer events in Tualatin for the past twenty years! From July 22 through 24 ArtSplash will be set up next to the sparkling lake of the Tualatin Commons to create the perfect setting for this juried art show. ArtSplash features Northwest artists showcasing their works in jewelry, watercolor, oil, acrylic, wood, ceramic, glass, fiber, and more.
Some wonderful relationships have been made in Tualatin through the opportunity to host international exchange students. Tualatin families and students alike are nervous, excited and overwhelmed with emotion as they prepare for this new adventure. Soon, they are united and the students’ fears of living in a strange land start to dissipate as they see their personalized “Welcome to America” signs. Host families are relieved to see the sweet faces of students anticipating the journey ahead. Both host families’ and students’ dreams have finally materialized and they are overcome with joy as they begin the experience of a lifetime.
