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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2019
The Observer
LHS senior named a National Merit Scholarship semifinalist
Barbara Raines — 95th birthday
Observer staff
Courtesy photo
Barbara Raines, of Wallowa, will be celebrating her
95th birthday on Nov. 20 with her family. Cards may be
mailed to P.O Box 152, Wallowa 97885.
Retta Hoxie — 102nd birthday
Lillian Victoria Parker-
Halstead, a senior at La
Grande High School, was
among the approximately
16,000 students announced
to be semifinalists in the
65th annual National
Merit Scholarship Program,
which honors individual
students who show excep-
tional academic ability and
potential for success in rig-
orous college studies. These
academically talented high
school seniors have an op-
portunity to continue in the
competition for some 7,600
National Merit Scholar-
ships worth more than $31
million that will be offered
next spring.
To be considered for a
Merit Scholarship award,
semifinalists must fulfill sev-
eral requirements to advance
to the finalist level of the com-
petition. More than 90% of
the semifinalists are expected
to attain finalist standing,
and about half of the finalists
will win a National Merit
Scholarship, earning the
Merit Scholar title.
NMSC, a not-for-profit
organization that oper-
ates without government
assistance, was established
in 1955 specifically to
conduct the annual Na-
tional Merit Scholarship
Program. Scholarships are
underwritten by NMSC
with its own funds and by
approximately 400 business
organizations and higher
education institutions that
share NMSC’s goals of hon-
oring the nation’s scholastic
champions and encourag-
ing the pursuit of academic
excellence.
More than 1.5 million
juniors in about 21,000 high
schools entered the 2020
National Merit Scholarship
Program by taking the 2018
Preliminary SAT/National
Merit Scholarship Qualify-
ing Test (PSAT/NMSQT),
which served as an initial
screen of program entrants.
The nationwide pool of
semifinalists, representing
less than 1% of U.S. high
school seniors, includes the
highest-scoring entrants in
each state. The number of
semifinalists in a state is
proportional to the state’s
percentage of the national
total of graduating seniors.
To become a finalist, the
semifinalist and a high
school official must submit a
detailed scholarship applica-
tion, in which they provide
information about the
semifinalist’s academic re-
cord, participation in school
and community activities,
demonstrated leadership
abilities, employment, and
honors and awards received.
A semifinalist must have
an outstanding academic
record throughout high
school, be endorsed and rec-
ommended by a high school
official, write an essay, and
earn SAT or ACT scores
that confirm the student’s
earlier performance on the
qualifying test.
Students chosen to
advance to the finalist level
will be notified in February.
The 2020 National Merit
Scholarship winners from
this group will be awarded
$2,500 scholarships and/
or considered for sponsored
scholarships and university-
based financing.
Braden Flory of La Grande interns with congressman
Observer staff
Braden Flory of La Grande was
selected to intern with the office of Rep.
Chris Stewart in Utah during the fall
2019 semester as part of the University
of Utah’s Hinckley Institute of Politics
Local Internship program.
The Hinckley Institute was founded
in 1965. Its mission is to promote civic
engagement at all levels and to provide
transformative experiences that inspire
students to be more thoughtful and in-
volved in the world around them. Since
then, the institute has placed more than
8,000 students in local, global, national
and legislative internships.
“We pride ourselves on the fact that
no matter what type of student you are,
from a first-semester freshman to an
experienced graduate student, we have
a substantive internship to suit your
skill set,” said Jason Perry, Hinckley
Institute director.
The University of Utah, located in Salt
Lake City in the foothills of the Wasatch
Mountains, is the flagship institution
of higher learning in Utah. Founded in
1850, it serves more than 31,000 students
from across the U.S. and the world and
offers more than 72 major subjects at the
undergraduate level and more than 90
major fields of study at the graduate level,
including law and medicine.
H onors
Courtesy photo
Retta (Zachow) Hoxie, of La Grande, was born Nov. 7,
1917, in Cleveland, North Dakota, and has lived in the
Grande Ronde Valley since 1952. Her family helped
her celebrate her 102nd birthday, which she pro-
claimed to be the “best birthday ever.” Her daughter
and son-in-law, Ruth and Lonnie Lester, also live in
La Grande. She has five grandchildren, nine great-
grandchildren, one great-great-grandson and several
step-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren.
Elgin Lions honor vets
COVE CHARTER SCHOOL
The following students in seventh
through 12th grades at Cove Charter
School earned the academic honor of
making this year’s first-quarter honor
roll.
7th grade: Skeen Dittmann, Cabella
Gregory, Micha Jayne, Jesse Ledbetter,
Colter Loman, Josephine Patton, Gillian
Rivard, Hannah Robbins, Tanner Rovey,
Seth Umpleby.
Honorable mention: Cadence Castillo, Cor-
ban Marsh, Lucy Matthews, Baylee Stitzel.
8th grade: Cade Bolton, Wyatt Burgess,
Autumn Dobbs, Ally Gettman, Rowan Has-
singer, Trevor Johnston, Olivia Mack, Kade
McLean, Avalon Perkins, Elijah Williams.
Honorable mention: Riley Copeland,
Ashton Furrer, Tee Ledbetter, Laurel Marler,
Trystin Underhill.
9th grade: Olivia Bentz, Daniel Crist, Ter-
rell Davis, Taylor Fox, Patrick Frisch, Jaden
Furrer, Bo Ledbetter, Jacob Lindsey, Collin
Rovey, Caleb Wiggins.
Honorable mention: Markus Taggert.
10th grade: Rachel Baird, Maggie Frisch,
Trinity Gettman, Madeline Johnson, Isaac
Lee, Kailee Mansveld, Brenda Sain.
Honorable mention: Donald Harris,
Madison Harvey, Skyler Perkins, Carlee
Porter.
11th grade: Hannah Alldredge, Elise
Farrell, Emma Lund-Ottesen, Kierra Moore,
Zak Nguonny, William Pettit, Chance Ri-
vard, Wil Slagle, Haiden Wiggins.
Honorable mention: Tristin Brown, Israel
O’Reilly, Alex Williamson-Turnbull.
12th grade: Nekoda Carlson, Elliana Hines-
Dunlap, Riley Overton, Stuart Patton, Tristin
Walker, Karia Weber, Kelly Winebrenner.
Honorable mention: Brenna Harvey,
Austin Kendall, Kaleb Ralph.
UNION HIGH SCHOOL
The following students at Union High
School in seventh through 12th grades
earned the academic honor of being
included on this year’s first-quarter
honor roll.
7th grade: Amos Lewis, 4.26; Oliver
Bliesner, 4.17; Morgan Johnson, 4.13; Paisley
Miller, 4.00; Larkin Sanders, 3.91; Janey
Cordero, 3.89; Mikael Pence, 3.76; Aiden Later,
3.61; Tyler House, 3.51.
8th grade: Marielle Graffunder, 4.30;
Kaci Baxter, 4.17; Lindsey Butler, 3.97;
Jayda Blackburn, 3.93; Elijah Gliddon, 3.84;
Samantha Mathews, 3.61.
9th grade: Samuel Baxter, 4.08; Mary Baxter,
3.98; Jakob Graffunder, 3.91; Nicholas Baxter,
3.90; Emily McCants, 3.61; Caleb Later, 3.58.
10th grade: Audrey Hill, 4.44; Audrey
Wells, 4.40; Callie Glenn, 4.36; Kaylin
Nowak, 4.09; Virginia Kuhl, 3.84; Emma
Ricker, 3.79; Jenna Sypher, 3.56; Natasha
Thiesfeld, 3.55.
11th grade: Riley Later, 4.36; Grady Fite,
4.13; Keegan Glenn, 4.13; Jordan Defries,
4.12; Adam Lewis, 4.11; Kylie Marriott, 4.03;
Kaylee Lantis, 4.04; DeLaney Smith, 3.99;
Sydney Antoine, 3.98; Kaitlin Martens, 3.90;
Carter Blackburn, 3.79; Jace Phillips, 3.73;
Brooklynn Lathrop, 3.66; Saskia Ackerman,
3.57.
12th grade: Zachary Johnston, 4.48;
Kylie Bruce, 4.44; Ashlyn Baxter, 4.38;
Brianna Kohr, 4.30; Jaimee Baxter, 4.18;
Aubrey Sellick, 4.13; Hunter Coon, 4.12;
Autumn Daggett, 4.08; Hannah Bello, 4.05;
Taylar Daggett, 3.93; Levi Hammond, 3.88;
Cameron Dillman, 3.85; Rory Hill, 3.83; Ja-
cie Kromwall, 3.74; Jaxon Blackburn, 3.65;
Alexandra Tapia, 3.60.
Come in today and let our
staff help make your Thanksgiving
HAPPY & FESTIVE!
Courtesy photo
The Elgin Lions honored the veterans among them
during a club meeting. Shown here are Darrin Ward,
Kayla Ward, Steve Oliver, Lynn Knopp, Bill Hall, John
Broughton, Mike Garver, Jim Hallgarth, Bob Wiles, Jack
Meilke and Jim Way.
Sheriff deputy
graduates from
police academy
Observer staff
SALEM — Deputy
sheriff Eric Rynearson of
the Union County Sheriff’s
Office graduated with the
Basic Corrections Local
#BCL039 class on Nov.
8 at the Oregon Public
Safety Academy in Salem.
Rynearson successfully
completed the Department
of Public Safety Standards
and Training 16-week Basic
Police Class, which covers
dozens of training areas
including survival skills,
firearms and emergency
vehicle operations,.
The DPSST operates the
Oregon Public Safety Acad-
emy, which spans more
than 235 acres in Salem.
The academy is nationally
recognized for its innova-
tive training programs and
active stakeholder involve-
ment. The department
trains and certifies city,
tribal, county and state
law enforcement officers,
corrections officers, parole
and probation officers, fire
service personnel, telecom-
municators, emergency
medical dispatchers and
private security providers.
1123 Adams Ave., La Grande
541-963-5741
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November 30th & December 1st