22
Wednesday, January 7, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
DUCK FANS: Sisters
sent a heavy-hitting
rooting contingent
Continued from page 1
Rose Bowl was very much
like a home game, fans
reported.
“It really was like Autzen
(Stadium) South,” said
Maggie Bidasolo, a 16-year-
old Ducks super-fan who
traveled south with her father,
Mike, for the big game. It
was her third trip to the Rose
Bowl. “About three-fourths
of the bowl was all green-
and-yellow. By the second
quarter, we were just crazy. I
never felt anything like that.”
The Ducks took a lead
into halftime, then blew the
doors off in the third quar-
ter, forcing turnovers and
capitalizing on them to crush
the previously undefeated
Seminoles by a record score
of 59-20.
Thomas Arends had a
premium spot for watching
the game. His primary work
is recruiting so, although he
does some logistical work
during road trips, he readily
acknowledges that game-
time is fun-time for him.
“During the game... I’m
just the No. 1 fan there on the
sidelines.”
Arends started with the
Ducks program as an intern
in 2008 and worked his way
into a full-time position. He
checks the background of
potential recruits, calling
high school athletic direc-
tors and counselors to get
an understanding of who a
player is as a young man. It’s
not just about talent. Arends
and the staff look for char-
acter and for intangibles like
how a player reacts to plays
on the field.
It was exciting on New
Year’s Day to see the results
of that work.
“What an awesome game;
what an awesome experi-
ence,” he said. “It’s a lot of
guys coming together and
working really hard.”
Fouts gives the young
Sisters man a lot of credit.
photo provided
thomas arends with the rose Bowl trophy.
oregon
minimum
wage rises to
$9.25 in 2015
photo provided
Maggie and Mike Bidasolo witnessed a thrilling victory at the rose Bowl.
“Thomas, his fingerprints
are all over this team,” he
said. “They all look up to
him and ask him for advice
and stuff. We’re really proud
of him.”
Arends’ family hit the
road to join him at the Rose
Bowl. Dennis and Nancy
Dempsey and Paul and Mary
Shea were also on hand.
Duck-mania was not just
evident at the big game. The
Bidasolos went to Disneyland
on December 30, and found
more than just Donald Duck
there. The “Happiest Place
on Earth” was a sea of
green-and-yellow.
“The cheerleaders and
band performed in front of
the train station,” Maggie
Bidasolo said. “From that
point it was like a big
pep rally ... it was really
unforgettable.”
Maggie won’t be making
the trip to Arlington, Texas,
for the national champion-
ship game.
“No, we’re going to have
a huge party at my house for
that one,” she said.
Dan and Jeri Fouts plan
to be there — weather and
air travel permitting. He’s
broadcasting an NFL playoff
game from Green Bay the
day before.
“Getting out of Green Bay
is always a challenge, but
Jeri and I are planning to go
down there,” he said.
And, of course, Thomas
Arends will be there, from
his vantage point as “No. 1
fan on the sidelines,” watch-
ing the team he works for
contend for the first-ever
national championship
decided through a playoff
series.
He’s looking forward to
the big game on Monday,
January 12, in the mas-
sive Dallas Cowboys AT&T
Stadium.
“It’s so cool for the state,”
he said, “it’s so cool for
everyone for us to be in this
game.”
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PORTLAND (AP) — The
state minimum wage rose 15
cents Jan. 1 to $9.25 per hour.
That’s an extra $234 a year
for people working 30 hours
a week.
State analysts say the
change could affect as many
as 142,000 workers and 8 per-
cent of all jobs in Oregon.
The Oregonian reports that
Oregon’s minimum wage is
second-highest in the nation,
behind Washington at $9.45
an hour.
Oregon’s wage floor
adjusts each year in line with
inflation and is $2 above the
federal minimum in 2015.
Studies have shown that
more than half of Oregon’s
minimum-wage jobs are tied
to the leisure and hospitality
sectors of the economy. The
law generally applies to all
workers, including restaurant
workers who receive tips.
The hike comes amid
heightened local and national
attention to the minimum
wage. Critics on the left say
the wage floor is too low
for people to support their
families and escape poverty.
Critics on the right say higher
minimum wages make it
harder for businesses to grow
and create new jobs.
After the state Legislature
convenes in February with an
expanded Democratic major-
ity, lawmakers are likely to
weigh a steeper hike.
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