History
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TD seniors
cap regular
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Weekend
The Dalles, Oregon
www.thedalleschronicle.com
Vol. 229, Issue 18
Blue Horizons
Weekly virus
updates planned
There are no cases of Novel
Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Oregon
and risk remains low, but North
Central Public Health District
(NCPHD), in partnership with the
Oregon Health Authority (OHA),
is monitoring developments and
will begin posting weekly statewide
updates March 3, according to Teri
Thalhofer of NCPHD.
Updates, posted by OHA, will
provide information on persons
under monitoring (PUM) and
persons under investigation (PUI)
for the virus as state epidemiolo-
gists, local public health officials
and federal partners continue their
investigation of the disease, which
has sickened tens of thousands of
people worldwide.
Starting Feb. 26 and continuing
every Tuesday beginning March 3,
OHA will post current data on its
website, http://healthoregon.org/
coronavirus.
PUMs are individuals who do not
have symptoms such as fever, cough
or difficulty breathing but who may
have been exposed through close
contact with a confirmed case or
have travelled to mainland China.
PUIs are individuals with
COVID-19 symptoms—but not
necessarily the virus—who have
had one of these exposures.
OHA is notifying local health
departments daily as they are
informed by the CDC of Oregonians
reentering the country after travel-
ling to China. Local health districts
are then contacting those identified
to evaluate their individual risk
level, and to facilitate quarantine
and monitoring.
If a person with symptoms tests
positive for the virus, OHA will no-
tify the public through a statewide
press release naming the person’s
county of residence.
NCPHD is working with com-
munity partners in healthcare to
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February 29 - March 1, 2020
coordinate response in the event
that a case is identified in the
community.
“The CDC, OHA, and local
health authorities are commit-
ted to providing all residents of
Oregon with the most up-to-date
information available regard-
ing the COVID-19 investigation
and clear guidance regarding
preventive efforts” said Miriam
McDonell, MD, a health officer
with NCPHD. “We encourage
individuals to reach out to their
healthcare providers, local public
health and the OHA website for
additional information if needed.”
FACT SHEET
Novel Coronavirus
What is novel coronavirus?
Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is
a virus strain that has only spread
in people since December 2019.
Health experts are concerned
because little is known about this
new virus. It has the potential to
cause severe illness and pneumo-
nia in some people and there is
not a treatment.
How does novel coronavirus
spread? Health experts are still
learning the details about how this
new virus spreads. Other corona-
viruses spread from an infected
person to others through:
• The air by coughing and
sneezing.
• Close personal contact, such as
touching or shaking hands.
• Touching an object or surface
with the virus on it, then touching
your mouth, nose, or eyes.
How severe is novel corona-
virus? Experts are still learning
about the range of illness from
novel coronavirus. Reported cases
See VIRUS, page A2
An adult male western bluebird perches on the dead branch of a pine in the area of Cherry Heights. The bluebird is a small
thrush about 6.5 to 7 inches long. The adult males are bright blue on top and throat with an orange breast and sides. They
can be found in open woodland, both coniferous and deciduous. They also live in backyards, burned areas and farmland,
from sea level far up into the mountains.
Gary Elkinton photo
Wasco Cultural Trust grants awarded
Sacon
■ By The Walker
Dalles Chronicle
to do a little bit of testing a couple
of years in a row and the kids that
attended S.L.A.M. slid about 50
The Wasco County Cultural Trust percent less,” Anderson said.
Corin Parker, who teaches music
Coalition awarded $11,350 in grants
to 12 projects on Feb. 8 in a ceremo- at Chenowith Elementary School,
ny at The Dalles Art Center. Coalition received grants for two projects
she’s working on as Columbia Gorge
board member Corliss Marsh said
the awards went to projects which fit Orchestra Association’s education
into the coalition’s three priorities of outreach director. One is a youth
youth, multiculturalism and service choir which she hopes to take on the
road and the other is a summer dra-
to the entirety of Wasco County.
Marsh said the coalition typically
ma camp where students will learn
awards around $9,000 in grants an-
stagecraft and perform “Frozen.”
Parker said there are “huge gaps”
nually and had some leftover money
from last year’s grants to use this year. around culture, art and music in
kids’ lives.
The coalition distributes funds
“I think the schools have to do
locally from the Oregon Cultural
Trust, Marsh said. Their yearly total more, but I also think the commu-
is a percentage—determined by
nity as a whole needs to be more in
population—of the statewide trust’s tune with it. I also think that every
annual allocation, Marsh said.
individual family is losing it,” Parker
said.
Youth focus
Parker said her older students,
fourth and fifth graders, are “blown
Eight of the projects receiving
grants directly involve Wasco County away” when she points out that the
youth. Marsh said kids are the coali- media they consume is created by
working artists.
tion’s “number one priority.”
“I think just knowing that they
Coalition board member Leslie
can create the art instead of just
Nelson said these projects are for
everyone in the county to enjoy but sitting in front of a television and
watching it is a big difference,” she
they focus on reaching youth.
said.
South Wasco Youth Programs
Marsh said exposing children
director Amber Anderson said her
non-profit work was funded almost to culture and the arts helps make
entirely by grants like this until she them better citizens.
“It adds so much to the commu-
started receiving donations from
individuals in the last few years.
nity to have kids that are engaged
Anderson runs summer camps
and learning not just ‘ABCs’ but
and after school programs at Maupin culture, arts and music,” Marsh said.
Elementary School. She said her
Artistic support
S.L.A.M. (science, literacy, arts and
math) summer camps focus on keep-
Columbia Gorge Community
ing kids from disengaging intellectu- College Library Director Dylan
ally and forgetting what they learned McManus said art education teach-
during the previous school year.
es students critical thinking and
“We were able to get the school
problem solving. Art education also
INSIDE
For the Record
Opinion
History
‘Gorge
Us Night’
brings fun
to Salem
Neumann-REA
■ By The Kirby
Hood River News
Dylan McManus, Columbia Gorge Community College library director, accepts
a grant at Wasco County Cultural Trust Coalition’s 2020 grant award ceremony
Feb. 8 at The Dalles Art Center.
Courtesy Scott Stephenson
teaches students to willingly accept
criticism, he said.
McManus received a Cultural
Trust grant for a September gallery
show which will feature prints
made by artists from the Mexican
state Oaxaca. He said he hopes the
show, which will feature artists’
statements in English and Spanish,
will empower Hispanic students.
“By showing art that is culturally
diverse, not rooted in a single style,
you can empower those people who
might think their art isn’t of value
because it doesn’t fit in a traditional
western mold,” McManus said.
“Then think about what that
does to design. Think about what
that does to problem solving, what
it does to product design. Think
about what it does to a community,”
McManus said.
McManus said art training is
more practical and economically
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valuable than some realize.
“Every brand needs a logo. Every
wall needs a piece of art or it’s
boring,” McManus said. “There’s
a reason art is on the wall. There’s
a reason we turn music on. What
would a dentist’s office be if there
was no art on the wall? It would be
a very scary place,” McManus said.
Oregon Cultural Trust spokes-
person Carrie Kikel said the trust
has issued $259,466 in grants to
Wasco County since it was created
by the state legislature in 2001. The
trust is funded entirely from do-
nations through the Cultural Trust
tax credit and sales of the Cultural
Trust license plate, Kikel said.
Kikel said 42 Wasco County res-
idents contributed to the Oregon
Cultural Trust in 2018. She said the
trust has received 147 donations
from residents of the county since
the its founding.
Obituaries
Comics
Sports
A festive air surrounded
legislators, staff and Gorge
residents at last week’s annual
social event, “Gorge Us Night in
Salem.”
The Gorge-wide advocacy
group One Gorge hosted the
eighth-annual event. One Gorge
is an informally organized group
of professionals from various
public agencies, organizations
and private businesses in the
Columbia River Gorge National
Scenic Area that works on issues
and priorities of the Gorge
region in the state and federal
legislatures. One Gorge held a
similar event earlier in February
in the Washington capital,
Olympia.
Beer, wine and cider flowed
courtesy of purveyors in Hood
River, Cascade Locks and The
Dalles to go with a catered buffet
at Willamette Heritage Center’s
Spinning Room in the historic
Mission Mill complex.
Present were groups promot-
ing private and public projects
that seek long-range funding
support from the legislature.
These included City of Mosier’s
See GORGE, page A2
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