in GO! OES holds free concert BILL MILLER INTEGRITY • TRANSPARENCY HARD WORK • EXPERIENCED VETERAN • PRO 2ND AMENDMENT FOR SHERIFF Look me up on Facebook: Bill Miller For Union County Sheriff Email me: billmillerforucsheriff@gmail.com Paid for by Committee to elect Bill Miller, Sheriff. Jared Rogers - Treasurer, 73001 Palmer Junction Rd., Elgin, OR 978827 Follow us on the web THURSDAY • April 9, 2020 • $1.50 Good day to our valued subscriber Jean Dillon of La Grande Wallowa County has first COVID-19 case By Ellen Morris Bishop EO Media Group Updates for Thursday ENTERPRISE — Wal- lowa Memorial Hospital announced Wallowa County has its fi rst in-county case of COVID-19. The hospital in a news release Wednesday morning reported the patient is iso- Observer staff lating and recovering at home and does not require hospitalization. “The person was exposed OUTSIDE of our county, but was tested here,” according to the news release. “Confi denti- ality remains paramount, and no additional informa- tion about this patient will be released to the public.” Oregon Gov. Kate Brown recently called on the Oregon Heath Authority to provide more informa- tion to the public about COVID-19 cases, including more specifi c age ranges of people who have the virus. Wallowa Memorial Hos- pital also said the Oregon Heath Authority is notifying and investigating any recent contacts of the patient. “We are testing known contacts for the COVID-19 infection as indicated,” according to the news release. Spreading kindness These are the latest signifi cant local and regional developments of the coronavirus outbreak. Look for more compre- hensive coverage of these and other COVID-19 stories on our website, www.lagrandeobserver. com, and in subsequent issues of The Observer. Union County’s number of confi rmed cases of COVID-19 remains at three as of Wednesday afternoon. By the numbers* Worldwide cases: 1,356,780 Worldwide deaths: 79,385 U.S. cases: 395,011 U.S. deaths: 12,754 Oregon cases: 1,239 Oregon deaths: 38 Union County cases: 3 Union County deaths: 0 Wallowa County cases: 1 Wallowa County deaths: 0 *As of 3 p.m. Wednesday April 8. Sources: World Health Organization, Cen- ters for Disease Control and Prevention, Oregon Military Department LA GRANDE •The NE Oregon Joint Information Center announced local author- ities identifi ed a sec- ondary site at the Grande Ronde Hospital Pavilion, La Grande, for an alter- nate care facility in preparation for a poten- tial surge of hospitalized patients due to COVID- 19. At the request of the county, the Oregon National Guard on Wednesday delivered cots, bedding and per- sonal care items for this site. The county also will receive a mobile kitchen and refrigerated trailer for food storage for the secondary site. •Oregon Rural Action announced Tuesday the La Grande Community Garden will not open this year. The nonprofi t in a news release stated that keeping the garden closed was due to the importance of Gov. Kate Brown’s “Stay Home, Save Lives” executive order. “Staying home is the primary way we can contribute to slowing the spread of the virus.” according to the state- ment from Kristin Anderson Ostrom, exec- utive director of Oregon Rural Action. •The La Grande Opti- mist Club announced it is postponing its annual fi shing derby until fur- ther notice. Dr. Gary Zeigler, attending physician, said in the news release the hos- pital’s “extensive planning for this moment paid off. Our systems and processes worked. We properly pro- tected our staff, they are healthy and continue to work.” New neighborhood watch group helps La Grande residents cope with crisis By Dick Mason The Observer LA GRANDE — The homebound of La Grande may be shut in, but they are not being shut out during the COVID-19 crisis. A new La Grande neighbor- hood watch group is doing its best to make sure these community mem- bers are not neglected. The volun- teers are striving to keep the lives of the homebound rolling in a positive direction during the COVID-19 crisis by delivering not only food but also smiles. “Our mission is to love our neighbors,” said Spring Roberts of La Grande, the founder of the #LaGrandeStrong Corona Virus Neighborhood Watch. The neighborhood watch was cre- ated about three weeks ago and has “Our slogan is ‘Spread Kindness, Not Virus,’” Spring Roberts, founder of the #LaGrandeStrong Corona Virus Neighborhood Watch been growing quickly since then. It has a total of 1,500 members in Union County, about 1,400 of whom are from La Grande. All have been directed to strictly follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for preventing the spread of COVID-19. “Our slogan is Spread Kindness, Not Virus,” Roberts said. The watch is part of the broader organization La Grande Strong, which Roberts also started. Members of the La Grande neigh- borhood watch are concerned not only with the virus but also law enforcement. They are asked to be on the lookout for suspicious people in their neighborhoods and report any concerns to the police. Roberts said there have been reports of suspicious people going to the homes of the vul- nerable in other parts of the North- west, and her group wants to prevent that from happening here. The well-being of those at risk is constantly on the mind of Roberts. She said this is particularly critical now because those most vulnerable to COVID-19-19 — seniors and indi- viduals with pre-existing conditions — may not be getting out to shop. In See, Kindness/Page 2A Staff photos by Dick Mason Above left, Jordan Hovingh and her daughter, Ellla, are all smiles Wednesday after receiving a supply of food from Spring Roberts. The mother and daughter have a genetic condition that prevents them from leaving their home during the COVID-19 outbreak. At left, Spring Roberts, the founder of a new La Grande neighborhood watch, delivers milk and bread Wednesday to the home of Josh and Jordan Hovingh. Candidates for Legislature share diff ering opinions Thoughts range from conspiracy theories to relief packages By Alex Castle and Antonio Sierra EO Media Group PENDLETON — As the coro- navirus has escalated into a global pandemic that has killed more than 12,000 Americans and left mil- lions unemployed, Barbara Wright, a Pendleton woman running as a Dem- ocrat for Oregon’s House District 58, has been pushing a debunked con- spiracy theory online claiming the virus is a man-made “bio weapon” that was intentionally released into the public. In February, Wright made posts on an online knitting forum, knit- tingparadise.com, detailing the theory and citing military contacts as her source. In a recent interview with the EO Media Group, Wright con- fi rmed she made the posts and dou- bled down on her theory. Wright claims she’s researched and verifi ed the tips provided by her “backchannel sources,” such as a story about a Harvard professor recently arrested for lying to author- ities about his connection to a Chi- nese lab in Wuhan, where COVID-19 was fi rst identifi ed in December 2019. “Before people think that I’m a crackpot and a kook, they need to do some easy research on the internet and see what I’m seeing and make conclusions for themselves,” she said. However, “easy research on the internet” shows Wright’s theory already has been debunked. Charles Lieber, the now former chairman of Harvard’s department of chemistry and chemical biology, was INDEX Business ...... 1B Classified ..... 4B Comics ......... 7B Crossword ... 5B arrested in January for lying about his involvement with the Chinese government program to recruit sci- entifi c talent. He also was receiving funding from a university in Wuhan. Wright and others have claimed Lieber’s arrest also is connected to two Chinese students who were arrested in January for allegedly stealing U.S. research and biological samples. But both of those arrests took place at different universi- ties. Nothing links those arrests to the coronavirus nor is there a link between those arrests and Lieber’s. Additionally, 27 scientists pub- lished a joint statement in February in The Lancet, one of the most pres- tigious peer-reviewed medical jour- nals, denouncing such theories. “We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories sug- See, Opinions/Page 2A Schools closed for rest of school year By Dirk VanderHart Oregon Pubic Broadcasting SALEM — Public schools will not reopen again this school year, Gov. Kate Brown announced Wednesday, as the state works to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus. In a widely anticipated move, Brown extended a March school closure past its April 28 expiration, ensuring that students and teachers will not congregate in person before summer break. “This decision is important because it is about safety,” Brown said at a press conference where physical attendance was strictly limited. “It is fi rst and foremost to pro- tect our kids and teachers. It is impossible to adhere to social distancing mea- sures in our classrooms and schools.” Brown also announced new Oregon Department of Education guidelines for graduating seniors. The rules ensure that stu- dents will graduate on time if seniors were expected to pass their courses. The guidance also asks that teachers work with students who were struggling prior to schools closing on March 12, so they can also receive diplomas. That could involve stu- dents working with school districts through August in an attempt to get up to a passing grade, ODE Director Colt Gill said. “We want them to know one thing for sure. That is that we believe in them,” Gill said of Oregon seniors. CONTACT US Dear Abby .... 8B Horoscope ... 4B Lottery.......... 2A Obituaries .... 3A SATURDAY Opinion ........ 4A Sports .......... 6A Sudoku ........ 6B Weather ....... 8B 541-963-3161 Issue 43 3 sections, 18 pages La Grande, Oregon Email story ideas to news@lagrande observer.com. More contact info on Page 4A. COVID-19 AND THE HOUSING MARKET Online at lagrandeobserver.com