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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 11, 2020)
2A — THE OBSERVER TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2020 LOCAL Economic development summit offers connections D AILY P LANNER what we have to offer,” Beverage said. Representatives of 14 entities, many with state, federal and local government ties, will attend the summit and provide information on the services they offer to businesses. “It will be a place where business- es can do some one-stop shopping,” said Beverage, the organizer of the summit. “We want to help businesses make the contacts they need.” Union County’s Baum Industrial Park is among the participants. It is a site providing space for businesses By Dick Mason TODAY The Observer Today is Tuesday, Feb. 11, the 42nd day of 2020. There are 324 days left in the year. LA GRANDE — Local business owners have more services and op- portunities available to them than they realize in Union County. This is what Union County Com- missioner Donna Beverage said she believes many business owners will discover Tuesday at the 2020 Busi- ness Summit for Economic Develop- ment, which runs 5:30-8 p.m. at the Blue Mountain Conference Center, 404 12th St., La Grande. “It will be a good way to showcase TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT On Feb. 11, 1979, followers of Ayatollah Ruhollah Kho- meini seized power in Iran. ON THIS DATE In 1531, the Church of England grudgingly ac- cepted King Henry VIII as its supreme head. In 1861, President-elect Abraham Lincoln bade fare- well to his adopted home- town of Springfi eld, Ill., as he headed to Washington for his inauguration. In 1937, a six-week-old sit- down strike against General Motors ended, with the com- pany agreeing to recognize the United Automobile Workers Union. In 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin signed the Yalta Agree- ment, in which Stalin agreed to declare war against Impe- rial Japan following Nazi Germany’s capitulation. In 1968, New York City’s fourth and current Madison Square Garden, located on Manhattan’s West Side at the site of what used to be the Pennsylvania Station building, opened with a “Salute to the USO” hosted by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. (The same evening, the New York Rang- ers played their fi nal game at the third Garden, tying the Detroit Red Wings 3-3.) In 1975, Margaret Thatcher was elected leader of Brit- ain’s opposition Conserva- tive Party. In 1990, South African black activist Nelson Man- dela was freed after 27 years in captivity. In 2008, the Pentagon charged Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and fi ve other detainees at Guantanamo Bay with murder and war crimes in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks. In 2011, Egypt exploded with joy after pro-democracy pro- testers brought down President Hosni Mubarak, whose resig- nation ended three decades of authoritarian rule. In 2012, pop singer Whitney Houston, 48, was found dead in a hotel room bathtub in Beverly Hills, California. LOTTERY to relocate or for new businesses to start. The park completed paving work last spring and offers electri- cal, water, sewer and other services to business willing to operate there. Beverage said three local businesses that are expanding their operations have purchased lots and are con- structing buildings at the park. Other organizations coming to the summit include the Small Business Administration and Small Busi- ness Development Center, Business Oregon and the Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative. Beverage said she believes these entities will benefi t from having representatives at the summit because they will get a better idea of the services offered to businesses in Union County. “They will learn what others have to offer,” Beverage said. This also makes it easier for the staffs of the organizations and agen- cies and institutions to make referrals for business owners in the future. People attending the summit also can attend presentations on business planning, funding, marketing and workforce development. Window closing on time to vaccinate students By Sabrina Thompson The Observer LA GRANDE — The Center for Human Develop- ment sent out 229 letters to parents of students across Union County whose school records do not show the children have received all required vaccinations. Oregon state law requires the immunization of school- children. If a child has not been immunized or records have not been updated to show he or she has received required vaccines or are exempt, parents have until Feb. 19 to update the records or the child will not be al- lowed to attend school. “There are no exceptions to students returning after the exclusion day without either the documentation of needed vaccination or the appropriate paperwork com- pleted for claiming a medical or non-medical exemption,” said Elizabeth Sieders, pub- lic health specialist at CHD. According to the Oregon Health Authority, medical exemptions can be tempo- rary or permanent and done when there is a severe risk of an adverse reaction to a vaccine. It is up to the child’s doctor to determine if the risk is enough to allow an exemption. A non-medical exemption can be given due to personal, religious or philosophical beliefs. Parents who would like to claim this must fi rst provide a certifi cation of vac- cination education. For either exemption, schools need the proper doc- umentation before students can return to classes. “Students may not be re- Contributed by Center for Human Development This is a sample copy of an exclusion letter in Union County. The La Grande-based Center for Human Development sent 229 of the letters to notify parents and guardians whose children lack required immunizations or whose records were not up to date. ceiving the required immu- nizations for many reasons. Most of the time it is simply that the parents have fallen behind in getting their child in to get these done,” Sieders said. “The intent of the school exclusion process is to have a way to enforce deadlines. If there were not deadlines, and consequences, many people would never make it a priority to keep themselves or (their) children up to date on vaccines, but rather vac- cinate during an outbreak as a reactionary method.” Children who miss class due to the exclusion date will be marked as unexcused, according to the Oregon De- partment of Education. Each district will follow its own attendance policy in regard to responding to the absence. “We prefer not to disrupt the education of a student and highly value students in schools attending on a regular and consistent basis,” La Grande Superintendent George Mendoza said. “We prefer not to exclude anyone if at all possible (and offer) a great deal of communication, support and information gathering in advance of the cut-off date.” Sieders said it is important for students to remain up to date on their vaccinations. Not only does missing school have a negative effect of learning, staying properly im- munized can help prevent the spread of disease and illness. “As we know, vaccines pre- vent many diseases,” Sieder said. “Diseases fl ourish and spread in places where many people gather closely for pro- longed periods of time, like school and daycare. ... As the local health department, our role is to try to decrease the barriers to families staying vaccinated by providing free or low cost vaccine and in- creasing accessibility outside of primary care clinics.” In Union County, the schools with the high- est number of incomplete records include Cove Charter School and La Grande Middle School, whose num- bers were in the 40s. Central had the highest number of students with no records, with 6. Local preschools and daycares, and the Riverbend Academy students did not receive any letters. Accord- ing to the Oregon Health Authority’s data on vaccina- tion rates, 89% of Union County is vaccinated. Union is among one of the lowest in vaccination rates, just ahead of Grant County at 88%. Second man arrested for 2019 Baker City robbery Megabucks: $3.6 million 7-12-16-38-47-48 By Chris Collins EO Media Group Mega Millions: $202 million 9-14-27-36-52-4 x3 Powerball: $70 million 35-49-50-59-66-PB-6 x2 Win for Life: Feb. 8 51-60-71-75 Pick 4: Feb. 9 •1p.m.:0-5-3-9 •4p.m.:3-0-7-2 •7p.m.:5-1-1-5 •10p.m.:8-8-5-4 Pick 4: Feb. 8 •1p.m.:4-8-4-0 •4p.m.:8-8-9-6 •7p.m.:7-6-3-3 •10p.m.:2-4-2-6 Pick 4: Feb. 7 •1p.m.:8-7-7-5 •4p.m.:5-1-0-9 •7p.m.:8-2-5-1 •10p.m.:8-5-5-7 DELIVERY ISSUES? If you have any problems receiving your Observer, please call the offi ce at 541- 963-3161. QUOTE OF THE DAY “We had better live as we think, otherwise we shall end up by thinking as we have lived.” Paul Bourget, French author (1852-1935) BAKER CITY — Baker City Police have arrested a second man on allegations that he helped rob two men of cash and a cellphone while assaulting one of them during an altercation at Cedar and H streets last summer. Zachary Aron Carter, 22, of Baker City is charged with six counts of second-degree robbery and one count each of third-degree assault and second- and third-degree theft, District Attorney Greg Baxter said Monday. Carter is accused of partic- ipating in the robbery with Colvin William Cutshall III, 30, of Baker City. Carter was arrested on a Baker County grand jury indictment at 9:40 p.m. Sat- urday at Campbell and East streets. He was arraigned Monday in Baker County Circuit Court, Baxter said. Bail has been set at $50,000. Cutshall, who has been held at the jail on other charges since Nov. 19, was arrested on a grand jury in- dictment for the same crimes on Feb. 3. The grand jury indicted both men on Jan. 30, court documents state. Cutshall and Carter are charged with robbing Caleb Day, 22, and Dillon Bald- win, 20, both of Baker City, at 1:30 a.m. in the area of Cedar and H streets on July L 22, 2019. The charges of second- degree robbery, a Class B felony, accuse Cutshall and Carter, in different scenar- ios, of working together to threaten Day and Baldwin while claiming to be armed with a dangerous weapon when they took their prop- 10106 N. ‘C’ • Island City Day when they took his wal- let and cellphone valued at more than $100, which con- stitutes second-degree theft, a Class A misdemeanor. The third-degree theft charge, a Class C misde- meanor, accuses the two men of taking cash of less than $100 from Baldwin. !! lf se ur Yo E V Take care of you. 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