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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 22, 2020)
IN SPORTS Inside LHS boys, girls sweep Mac-Hi Walmart employee utilizes program, 2A Hospital treating coronavirus patients, 8B Weekend Edition SATURDAY • February 22-24, 2020 • $1.50 Good day to our valued subscriber Lonnie Lester of La Grande Volunteering Education Town Hall Charter school working to get Merkley Photo contributed by Imbler Christian Church BACK TO NORMAL ■ Cleanup from January fire well underway at Wallowa County school Members of the Imbler Christian Church and other volunteers Monday re- move mud from beneath a modular home in Umatilla County. The local group is among others helping fl ooding victims. The Observer ■ Union County residents volunteer to help Umatilla County residents By Dick Mason The Observer See Volunteer / Page 5A ■ U.S. senator weighs in on immigration, administration By Sabrina Thompson Locals continue to assist flood victims LA GRANDE — Union County volunteers who want to assist fl ood victims in Umatilla County can join emergency relief agencies al- ready working on the ground there. This will maximize the volunteers’ effectiveness and ensure their safety, said Tom Roberts, Umatilla County’s emergency manager. Roberts said Thursday those who want to assist should contact the American Red Cross, Samaritan’s Purse or Team Rubicon to be assigned to sites where help is needed, learn about the precautions they need to take and receive tools and safety supplies. Roberts said volunteers “are exposed to danger” at fl ood sites. Hazards include structures now fragile after being hit by fl oodwaters. “The integrity (of some visits Union County Bill Bradshaw/EO Media Group Students disembark their bus while teachers and staff give directions Monday, Feb. 10, at Joseph Charter School. The K-4 students returned to the Joseph campus after a Jan. 16 fi re at the school forced them to spend several weeks in makeshift classrooms at the Wallowa County Professional Building in Enterprise. By Ronald Bond, The Observer JOSEPH — A sense of normalcy is beginning to return at Joseph Charter School after a fi re in January damaged the school and burned much of its gymnasium. The blaze displaced kindergarten through fourth-grade students, who were able to return to their own classrooms last week as cleanup crews made their way through dam- aged rooms. Most of the rooms students vacated either had limited water or smoke damage. “By the end of this week we’re hoping the high school hallways are open,” Joseph Superintendent Lance Homan said Tuesday. The return of the K-4 put about half of the school’s students back in their classrooms. Seventh through 12th grades remain in temporary classrooms in the school’s ca- reer and technical education building, which was fi nished in 2019, and, Homan said, “we have a modular north of the gym that was cleaned up.” Homan said the bathrooms are the last places that need coats of fresh paint before the school reopens the hallway from the main offi ce to the gym. After that work, he said, “we’ll have three high school classrooms opened up. It’ll get us a little bit closer to being normal.” The cleanup crews have repainted any surfaces ex- posed to smoke or soot from the fi re, Homan said. “As you get closer to the fi re, everything has to be stripped down, repainted,” he said. “Every surface, every- thing that was exposed.” Items such as desks and chairs, though, are in good shape. Technology equipment, such as computers, as well as band instruments are being cleaned, he said. Homan said a crew has recently moved into the cafete- ria, which he expects will take about four weeks to clean. Without an on-site place to eat, buses transport roughly 270 students daily to the Joseph Community Center for lunch. Ahead are assessments of the school’s library and the See Normal / Page 5A ELGIN — U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley told Union County residents he supports limit- ing the number of bullets in guns, and he believes U.S. im- migration policies are faulty. Merkley marked his 414th town hall meeting Friday morning at the community center in Elgin, where roughly 70-80 gathered for the event. He told the crowd he is wait- ing on funding estimates for disaster relief for Eastern Oregonians who suffered property damage and losses in the recent fl ooding. Once he has those, he said, his offi ce will be ready to help expedite funds so residents can rebuild and repair damages. Merkley also fi elded ques- tions ranging from immigra- tion and President Donald Trump’s policies to the Demo- crats seeking to oust Trump in the 2020 election. Often he asked the question back to the audience to get a sense of how the crowd felt. When asked, the sena- tor said he supported and encouraged young people to volunteer their time in public service and giving back to the community. On immigration, Merkley spoke about his visit to the U.S-Mexico border, where he saw fi rsthand Central Ameri- can refugees fl eeing oppression and seeking a better life in the United States. He said the re- ality of the situation was worse than what he imagined. “We broke the refugee con- vention by not offering safe haven,” he said. He related a story about a young woman who made it across the border by washing windshields of the vehicles waiting to cross the check- point. He said this highlights his desire to see a better system for immigration and asylum seekers. After this election, he said, See Merkley / Page 5A Oregon Legislature Brown tries to bargain with state Republicans ■ With Oregon Republicans ready to walk out of the session, governor seeks negotiations By Lauren Dake and Dirk VanderHart Oregon Public Broadcasting SALEM — On Valentine’s Day, Gov. Kate Brown and Republican state Sen. Bill Hansell of Athena surveyed fl ood damage in East- ern Oregon from a Black Hawk helicopter. The following Monday, the gov- ernor stopped by Hansell’s offi ce in the state Capitol. She wanted to discuss how the state might give fi nancial help to fl ood victims in Hansell’s district. Perhaps not coincidentally, INDEX Classified ....... 3B Comics ........... 7B Crossword ..... 5B Dear Abby ...... 8B WEATHER Horoscope ..... 5B Lottery............ 2A Obituaries ...... 3A Opinion .......... 4A TUESDAY Outdoors ....... 1B Sports ............ 6A Sudoku .......... 7B Weather ......... 8B CAP AND TRADE 101 Brown also had a request — one tied to a bill the Democrats want to pass this session, but which Hansell and his party vow to block. “I had begun to hear that maybe there was going to be a quid pro quo,” Hansell recalled Wednesday. “The governor was going to hold up relief work in order to try and extract a com- mitment from me on some of the Full forecast on the back of B section Tonight Sunday 31 LOW 47/29 Turning cloudy Showers around bills or something.” That’s not what happened. Ac- cording to Hansell, Brown even told him: “I’m sure you heard rumors I’m here to do a quid pro quo. I am not.’” But the governor did ask Hansell for something: that he call Shaun Jillions, an industry lobbyist who is among the most forceful opponents to Senate Bill See Barter / Page 5A Brown Hansell CONTACT US HAVE A STORY IDEA? 541-963-3161 Call The Observer newsroom at 541-963-3161 or send an email to news@lagrandeobserver.com. More contact info on Page 4A. Issue 23 2 sections, 14 pages La Grande, Oregon Online at lagrandeobserver.com
