Josephine County has eliminated six vacant positions across the county’s corrections department and sheriff’s office for the current fiscal year after collective bargaining agreements with union employees raised costs.

The positions were two corrections department workers, along with two patrol deputies and two major crimes detectives in the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office. None of the positions were filled.

It was the kind of start that Hidden Valley head coach Nathan Scott was hoping to avoid.

Scott’s Mustangs fell behind by 17 points before the first quarter was over. Hidden Valley couldn’t get out of that hole, falling to visiting South Umpqua 48-26 in Friday night’s non-league football game in Murphy.

Herbalist, author and natural beauty expert Janice Cox is the guest speaker at this month’s meeting of the Medford Garden Club. Her topic is “In Full Bloom: Celebrating Herbs and Roses in the Garden.”

The meeting also will include a business meeting, refreshments, door prize drawings and a fall plant sale, with club members bringing extra plants to share and sell. Proceeds will go to a fund for participating high school horticulture programs.

Black artists, creators and storytellers are invited to submit their individual forms of artistic expression for the annual Black History Month exhibit at the Rogue Galley & Art Center in Medford.