Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Baker County press. (Baker City, Ore.) 2014-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 2, 2016)
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2016 THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 5 Local Mental health, substance abuse topics of meeting BY TODD ARRIOLA Todd@TheBakerCountyPress.com The Baker County Local Alcohol Drug Planning Committee and Mental Health Advisory Coun- cil (LADPC-MHAC) Joint Committee met for its regular meeting, on Tuesday, August 30, 2016, 12 p.m., in the Community Connection Board Room, located on the west end of the Community Connec- tion/Senior Center build- ing, 2810 Cedar Street, Baker City. Among the topics discussed is a September screening of the KPJR Films produced video, “Pa- per Tigers,” which follows six students at an alterna- tive high school for a year, as a new, trauma-sensitive program’s implemented, to break the cycles of poverty, violence, and disease that affect families. Present from the com- mittee were Chair Anthony Washington, New Direc- tions Northwest (NDN)/ Powder River Correctional Facility (PRCF); Vice Chair Staci Erickson, Baker County Juvenile De- partment; Shari Selander, NDN CEO, Ex-Officio; Kelli Wright, New Direc- tions Behavioral Health and Wellness (NDBHW); Lisa Weichbrodt, NDN/ Developmental Disabilities (DD); and Michael Fed- derly, NDBHW Consumer. Washington called the meeting to order at about 12:15 p.m., in order to allow other members a chance to attend (eight members were absent), and the committee reviewed the minutes from the last meeting (meetings are usually held on a quarterly basis). The minutes were approved, with a motion from Erickson, and a sec- ond from Wright. Washington asked if there was any news or details to share, from the MHAC, and Selander began the discussion by reading from a handout she provided, titled “The Power of Attitude.” The handout included the acronym ATTITUDES: “Always make today your best day; Take pride in a job well done; Treat others with respect; Interrupt negative thoughts; Treat tasks and challenges as opportunities; Utilize your personal talents daily; Discover the gifts that others bring to you; Expect positive outcomes; Speak well of others.” Todd Arriola / The Baker County Press The Baker County Local Alcohol Drug Planning Committee and Mental Health Advisory Council (LADPC-MHAC) Joint Committee. Selander discussed some current projects, including working with the School District, to implement spe- cialized classroom instruc- tion, to address behavioral issues, from kindergarten, through the third grade, initially. She said that potential staff are being identified. Wright added that the group of students would be kept to a size of around eight to ten, located at North Baker, and that funding for the program has been located. Wash- ington asked when the program might be expected to begin, and Wright said around mid-October, with meetings with teachers and therapists to be scheduled before that, to develop cri- teria, among other details. A possibility is a partial day of instruction, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., then the students could return to their regu- lar classroom, she said. Salender spoke about other projects and pro- grams, including“Total Health,” New Direc- tions Northwest’s newest program, located at 3975 Midway Drive, in the far west wings of St. Alphon- sus Hospital. Total Health, an out-patient program, serves the residents of Baker County, and ad- dresses a broad range of mental health, substance abuse and addictions, pain management, community health care, and prevention services. Erickson discussed a free screening of the film“Paper Tigers,” sched- uled for Thursday, Septem- ber 29, 2016, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., at the Eltrym Theater, in Baker City. She said that this screen- ing is for adolescent and other related staff, but there will be a future screen- ing for the general public. This particular item is one she emphasized, and she repeated the topic of the screening during the meet- ing, saying that it “really opens your eyes.” Accord- ing to the handout she pro- vided, there will be a brief discussion following the film, regarding the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study, as well as trauma informed care. Wright added that she hopes that the screening of the film will be comple- mented later with some related training, in order to begin to implement a program of the same type in the community. Washington asked if there was any news or details to share, from the LADPC, and Weichbrodt said that final corrections from the audit were being turned in this week, and effort is being made to pro- vide more in-house train- ing for support workers. Wright said that, through a grant co-written by Will Benson of Parole and Probation (P&P), drug and alcohol addiction treatment will be provided to both a male group, and a female group, while in prison, resulting in continuous treatment, making the process easier, once they’re released. Also, she said a sex offender program is being implemented at P&P, covering both adults and juveniles, which Erickson added is a benefit, because it allows treatment locally, instead of contracting that out. Washington spoke about the treatment program at PRCF, which he said has a good success rate. He said that currently, he notices a surge in the number of her- oin addicts--the most he’s seen at one time. Erickson added that methamphet- amine addiction is usually seen in the age range of 15 to early 20s, and Washing- ton said that heroin addic- tion is usually seen in ages above that range. Erickson said she had been asked to speak to school students about the issues of “sexting,” and dating violence, by staff of Mayday, Inc., a domestic violence, sexual assault, and elder abuse service agency, located at 1834 Main Street in Baker City. She’s enthused about the idea, which she said will be a good partnership. Selander said she had been communicating with the Eastern Oregon Coor- dinated Care Organization (EOCCO), and the EO- CCO will be the first CCO in the state to implement a new approach to analyzing individual case rates, re- garding drug, alcohol, and mental health issues. She said the news is exciting, and she hopes to provide more detail on the topic at the next meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 25, 2016, 12 p.m. Wildfire causes Griffin Gulch evacuation Wednesday BY KERRY McQUISTEN News@TheBakerCountyPress.com A wildfire up Griffin Gulch, just two miles southeast of Baker City, was reported around 4:30 p.m., triggering an almost instant response with air and ground support tapped. By 5 p.m., the immedi- ate area around Griffin Gulch was under a Level 3 Evacuation Notice—leave immediately, with the area between Griffin Gulch and Baker City under Level 1. SEE GRIFFIN GULCH PAGE 9 Earthquake CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 According to that plan, “In all counties east of the Cascade Mountains, effects related to the earthquake include: indirect impacts related to transportation cor- ridors (roads, rail, and air), power disruption, supply side chain distribution (including fuel, food, and natural gas), demand for logistics and staging areas, shelter, and relocation of individuals and animals from the impacted areas. Transportation interruptions and prioritization of emergency supplies to Western Oregon will disrupt raw material imports and finished agricultural product export. Financially this is an extreme impact and alternate routing to ports of opportunity will be required. This will increase shipping costs, affecting Oregon’s agricultural economy. Massive staging areas are likely to be required in various areas of Central and Eastern Oregon with the primary location of relief supplies likely at an established federal ISB at Roberts Field Airport in Redmond, Oregon, De- schutes County. River traffic on the Columbia River will be an important response and recovery lifeline. Mutual aid from Eastern Oregon local jurisdictions will be sought to the maximum degree possible. Many build- ing inspectors, police, firefighters, medical personnel, engineers, and public works personnel may deploy to the impacted areas of Western Oregon.” Woman accused of credit card theft Photo courtesy of the Baker County Sheriff’s Office. Jamie Marie Patton. According to Baker City Police Chief Wyn Lohner on Wednesday, a Baker City woman has been arrested on multiple charges including 13 counts of fraudulent use of a credit card. Arrested was Jamie Patton, age 30, at 6:43 p.m. Tues- day. Patton is accused of charging $143.40 to her alleged victim's credit card at Jackson's on Campbell Street between July 29 and August 16. Lohner said the victim, Jorja Culley, reported the card stolen and a surveillance system inside the business aided in the detection of the crime. The $143.40 was used to purchases “food, fuel and tobacco,” said Lohner, over a period of 13 different visits to that business. Patton is also accused of aggravated identity theft, sec- ond-degree theft and 13 counts each of computer crime, which as Lohner explained, is due to using a computer- ized card scanner during the purchases on the stolen card. Another MIP marijuana arrest made School Resource Officer Lance Woodward arrested another juvenile on Wednesday morning at Baker High School, charging that individual, age 16, with Minor in Possession (MIP) of Marijuana at around 10 a.m. A second juvenile, age 15, has been charged with Unlawful Delivery of a Controlled Substance within 1,000 feet of a school. To date this year, 11 minors have been charged with an MIP for marijuana—more than double the amount typical in an average full calendar year, according to Baker City Police Chief Wyn Lohner. Officer certified Photo courtesy of Tiffany Maness. The fire, shown here at just under 10 acres, as viewed from the Maness’s drive- way. Jonathan Stanley, one of the Baker City Police Depart- ment’s newest recruits, will graduate September 9, 2016, 11 a.m. at the OPSA Auditorium in Salem from the Or- egon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST). Stanley has achieved his basic certification, which required the completion of several areas of skill and testing pertinent to on-the-job duties.