Umpqua Post/Deborah YatesThe Winchester Bay Community Center has also been a grange hall and a one-room schoolhouse.
Winchester Bay Community Center is open for business
So when someone suggested turning the old one-room school house-turned-grange hall, into a community center, the group agreed it was a good idea. In 2007 they began the legwork to open the Winchester Bay Community Center.
The first thing needed was permission from the Winchester Bay Rural Fire Department, caretakers of the building, to do some renovation on the building. When the project received a green light, the housewives got to work.
“When we took it over, we painted the inside and outside, and repaired the roof,” said Peggy Edson, president of the center’s board of directors. “We purchased 15 tables and 210 chairs, two ranges, one upright freezer and an upright refrigerator. And someone donated a piano.”
They upgraded the kitchen so it could be used by caterers. This included putting in four sinks so the kitchen is commercially safe for dishwashing, said Edson.
Since 1917, the school house has been heated with two woodstoves. The smoke from these stoves turned the ceilings black, so they were replaced with two new propane stoves with an old-fashioned look.
“We wanted to keep it historical-looking because it is a historical building,” Edson said.
The women knew they wanted to make the community center a nonprofit organization, but they had no idea how to do that. Four women from the group �” Jane Wicks, Mary Jane Coyne, Sonnia Rowe and Peggy Edson �” took the Ford Family Foundation leadership classes to learn about creating and running a 501(c)(3) organization.
“The primary purpose of the community center is to be an emergency shelter,” said Edson. “We have two emergency generators, so people can come here to get hot food and a warm place to stay.”
When the center is not being used as an emergency shelter, it is available for special events or social gatherings. It is a busy place these days, with something happening every month.
“The RVers use it for their social gatherings when they travel through,” Edson said. “We have almost a wedding a month and the Old Time Fiddlers play here on the third Saturday of the month, as well as holding their weeklong regional jamboree here in the summer.”
Flea markets, tai-chi and art classes, community action committees, local government entities, and speakers all use the community center. And it operates on a shoestring budget.
“We are trying to make this a community events center and not a money-making venue,” Edson said.
The building rents for $100 for 24 hours. For more than a single day, it’s $100 for the first day and $50 for each additional day; $450 a year for weekly group meetings; and nonprofit organizations can use the center for free.
Fundraising events to raise money for the community center are held throughout the year. The board organizes spaghetti and pancake feeds, as well as selling cinnamon rolls in the gazebo during big events such as OceanFest, Kool Coastal Nights and Art by the Bay.
As far as musicians go, Edson said, the community center is under-used.
“The acoustics are wonderful,” she said. “The room is a gold mine for music.”
Winchester Bay Community Center Board of directors
President: Peggy Edson
Secretary/Treasurer: Sonnia Rowe
Publicity: Mary Jane Coyne
Park manager: Jane Wicks
Board member: Janet Boe
Board member: Sue Bridestone
Staff writer Deborah Yates can be contacted at dyates@theworldlink.com, or (541) 271-7474, ext. 206.
