A time to shine.

Byline: JEFF WRIGHT The Register-Guard

JUNCTION CITY - When the Airborne Express registered letter arrived at her doorstep last August, Amy Feinberg had no idea what it could be. "I thought I was either being sued or had won the Publisher's Clearinghouse," she says.

When she read the contents, Feinberg says she laughed, cried and whooped for joy - all pretty much at the same time.

Feinberg, an indefatigable woman despite a degenerative joint disease that causes near-constant pain, learned she would carry the 2002 Winter Games Olympic torch when it makes its way to Oregon.

Feinberg, 45, will be at the Eugene Amtrak Station on Tuesday when the Olympic flame arrives from Klamath Falls around 10:30 a.m. One of more than 50 people selected to carry the torch along a seven-mile route in Eugene, Feinberg has the very first four-block leg and will do it in her wheelchair.

She's among an estimated 11,500 torchbearers who will carry the flame on a 65-day trek that began in Atlanta and will conclude in Salt Lake City. Americans nominated more than 210,000 people who they felt were inspirations to their communities and embodied the Olympic spirit of giving their best.

But Feinberg says she has no idea who nominated her - which, in a way, makes the tribute all the sweeter.

"The idea that somebody out there thought of me as inspirational, that's incredibly moving and a tremendous honor," she says. "I'm humbled and I'm privileged."

Feinberg suffers from osteomyelitis, a bone infection in her spine. She's unable to work and lives at Lindeborg Place, a public housing complex in Junction City that she shares with Mandy, her black Lab service dog - and 334 Beanie Babies.

Her medical prognosis is uncertain. "My doctor says I'm degenerating, but I don't feel like I am," she says. "I have a strong fire within. That's the (Olympic) theme. I got a fire that refuses to get blown out."

Tracy Randall, Feinberg's in-home caregiver since August, can attest to that. Randall says she's been a caregiver for 25 years and has never met anyone as remarkable at Feinberg.

"No matter how bad she feels, she's always upbeat and happy," Randall says. "The only way I can tell that Amy is having a bad day is to look into her eyes, or Mandy (the dog) lets me know."

Randall says Feinberg "makes me appreciate every day, and has helped me be a better mom, wife and care provider. I've grown up a lot since I've been with her. She's my best friend."

Outgoing by nature, Feinberg calls out the numbers when the older women at Lindeborg Place gather for bingo every Monday night. She also serves on the Tenant Advisory Group for the Housing and Community Services Agency, which owns and manages 1,000 units of public and assisted housing in Lane County.

Chuck Hauk, the agency's resident services director, calls Feinberg a "mother hen" to the older residents at Lindeborg, and "the proverbial squeaky wheel" who isn't afraid to advocate for tenant rights. In Hauk's view, she's a perfect candidate for torchbearer.

"She represents some of the stuff that's good about America," he says. "She has a visible disability and in spite of that she's passionate, optimistic, involved in her community and politically active."

Raised in the Midwest, Feinberg says she remembers as a child watching ice skater Peggy Fleming and other Olympians on TV. She says she was most impressed by Kerri Strug, the U.S. pixie who competed while injured to help her team win a gold medal in gymnastics in Atlanta.

"That's what I do: I work through the pain," Feinberg says. "I have a choice of just going to bed and being bitchy or getting up and living my life, carrying my own torch."

She says she's thrilled to be a part of the Olympics and the ideal "of striving to be the best you can do. That's what my parents taught me from the very earliest stages - and it doesn't matter if you win a gold medal."

Feinberg's mother died of cancer 10 years ago, her father of cancer six years later. But they will both be with her in a special way Tuesday. A Christian today, Feinberg was born Jewish - and each year she lights a special "yahrzeit" candle of remembrance on the anniversary of her parents' death. A few weeks ago, Feinberg was startled to realize that the dates of her parents' deaths - Jan. 22 and Jan. 23 - fall on the day and the day after her Olympic moment.

"So instead of lighting a little candle, I'll be carrying this big torch for them," she says. "They're up in heaven thinking, `That's way cool.' '

TORCH RELAY FACTS

The route: The relay began in Atlanta, site of the 1996 Summer Games, on Dec. 4 and will travel through 46 states (including, for the first time, Alaska), arriving in Utah on Feb. 4 and at the Olympic Stadium in Salt Lake City on Feb. 8. The relay arrives in Oregon (Klamath Falls) early Tuesday morning, with stops in Eugene, Salem and Portland before heading to Washington on Wednesday.

The distance: The relay will cover more than 13,500 miles. The flame will travel an average of 208 miles a day during a 12-hour day.

The modes: The flame travels via torchbearers, cars, trucks, plane, ship, dogsled, horse-drawn sleigh, skiers, ice skaters and ski jumpers.

The torchbearers: Some 11,500 torchbearers will carry their torch about 0.2 miles each, or roughly four blocks. Torchbearers were nominated by relatives, friends and colleagues who wrote brief essays explaining how the nominees embodied the Olympic spirit and provided inspiration to their communities. The Salt Lake City Olympics Committee and two corporate sponsors, Chevrolet and Coca-Cola, received more than 210,000 nominations.

The flame: It was ignited Nov. 19 in Olympia, Greece. It will be extinguished Feb. 24 at the Winter Games' closing ceremony. The flame is kept in a closely guarded lantern that travels with the relay. A torch is lit from the flame every morning to start that day's relay, and the flame is then passed from torch to torch as participants complete their legs.

The torches: Intended to represent "a fiery icicle in motion," they're made of glass, copper and high-polish and aged silver. They're 33 inches long and weigh about 3 1/2 pounds.

More information: Log on to www.saltlake2002.com.

- Winter Olympics 2002

CAPTION(S):

CHRIS PIETSCH / The Register-Guard Amy Feinberg of Junction City, accompanied by her service dog, Mandy, will carry the Olympic torch as it travels through Eugene on Tuesday. STEPHANIE BARROW / The Register-Guard