Community Chest

When a large pickup truck and camper suddenly crashed through the front of Creswell’s Dak Thai Cuisine restaurant the morning of June 18, shutting the restaurant down, Seth Clark knew he had to do something to help.

As seen in photos posted on social media, the truck nearly disappeared into the building when it knocked down the front wall of the restaurant, leaving the large slide-in camper dangling on the sidewalk.

Clark, who owns and operates Blue Valley Bistro in Creswell along with his wife, Melissa Clark, remembered how important community support was when their coffeehouse was the victim of a burglary in December.

“My wife and I were like, ‘Oh, my goodness,’” Clark says. “We’ve got to do something.”

“Something” quickly meant collecting donations to help Dak Thai and its owner, Venus Crofts, with uninsured expenses, such as lost revenue while repairs are made to the building. The restaurant, run by Crofts, her sister and their parents, opened in March 2020, immediately closed due to the pandemic, and then reopened that July to serve takeout. It specializes in homestyle Thai food and was profiled in Eugene Weekly’s Creswell-focused Spring Chow issue on May 5.

The pickup driver, who was not hurt in the accident, apparently lost control before his truck hit the front of the building, took out the restaurant’s small seating area and even damaged the kitchen, Crofts says in an email.

“I’m not certain yet when we will be able to re-open,” she says, “but I’m coordinating with our landlord to make sure we will be able to open as soon as possible. Luckily, I am fortunate to have a very lovely and caring landlord. He helped us through this ordeal and is very kind and generous.”

Clark says he hasn’t counted the money collected so far at Blue Valley, but he thought that it totaled between $500 and $1,000 as of June 20.

Other businesses have also stepped up to collect money to help the restaurant out, Crofts says, including the Round Up Saloon next door to Dak Thai; Pazzo, another eatery in town; and Creswell Health Mart pharmacy.

“My parents and I were overwhelmed by the kindness, the love and the support our neighbors showed us,” Crofts says. “Creswell is not just a community, but Creswell is a family and we definitely felt that to the fullest.”

“This is what it is to live in a small community,” Clark says.

Contributions can be made at Blue Valley Bistro, 116 Melton Rd., Creswell Health Mart, 175 E. Oregon Ave., Pazzo, 44 W. Oregon Ave., and Round Up Saloon, 13 N. Front St., Creswell.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!