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THURSDAY
•
May 14, 2020
• $1.50
Good day to our valued subscriber Sara Williamson of La Grande
Cemetery upgrades almost fi nished in La Grande
By Dick Mason
The Observer
LA GRANDE — A La Grande
Cemetery District project half a
decade in the making is less than
six weeks from becoming a striking
reality.
The cemetery district is com-
pleting signifi cant additions to Hill-
crest and Grandview cemeteries.
Two columbariums for ash niches
have been installed at Hillcrest
Cemetery and the district is in the
process of creating a columbarium
center at Grandview Cemetery,
which should be fi nished in June,
said Sue Anderson, manager of the
La Grande Cemetery District.
“This is very exciting,” said
Anderson, who said she has been
working on the project for fi ve
years.
The new center at Grandview
will have two columbariums and
a gazebo on the south side of the
cemetery. One columbarium was
installed Monday and the second
will be put in next month. Each
is made of granite, weighs 10,300
pounds and has 72 niches for cre-
mains. The center has concrete
pads for both columbariums, which
are being installed by Memorial
Monuments, based in Meridian,
Idaho, and with a La Grande offi ce.
The gazebo, which will have a
roof and be 12 feet by 18 feet, is
being built by M.L. Construction of
Sherwood and should be completed
in a week. The gazebo will pro-
vide a place for small services and
a site for people to sit and refl ect,
Anderson said.
The columbariums at Hillcrest
are on the western edge of the cem-
etery. Each has 48 niches, weigh
7,800 pounds and both are accom-
panied by new metal benches on
concrete pads.
Anderson said the columbar-
iums fi ll an important need at Hill-
crest because no cemetery plots are
available there. This is a concern to
many people who want to be buried
with their families.
The new columbariums make it
possible for people to reserve space
and ensure their cremains will be
interred in the same cemetery as
their family members.
The columbarium center at
Grandview will complement a
mausoleum about 300 feet to the
east. The mausoleum has niches
for ashes and crypt chambers. The
mausoleum, built in the 1970s, has
See, Cemetery/Page 5A
COVID-19
by the
numbers*
Worldwide cases:
4,179,479
Worldwide deaths:
287,525
U.S. cases: 1,364,061
U.S. deaths: 82,246
Oregon cases: 3,416
Oregon deaths: 134
Total Oregon tests: 83,909
Union County cases: 4
Union County active
cases: 1
Union County deaths: 0
Total Union County nega-
tive tests: 180
Wallowa County cases: 1
Wallowa County active
cases: 0
Wallowa County deaths: 0
Total Wallowa County
negative tests: 55
*As of 2 p.m. Wednesday,
May 13. Sources: World
Health Organization, Cen-
ters for Disease Control and
Prevention, Oregon Health
Authority and Oregon Mili-
tary Department
Virtual
sports gain
traction at
EOU
New esports team
has 27 members
and is under the
oversight of student
organizations

Staff photo by Dick Mason
La Grande Drive-in manager Patty Johnson works Wednesday morning to prepare the venue for its opening this weekend. The drive-in will adhere
to strict social distancing rules, including prohibiting viewing the movie from lawn chairs or the beds of pickups.
La Grande Drive-in opens Friday with social
distancing rules and vehicle limit at 125 per show
By Dick Mason
The Observer
LA GRANDE — A time-
less symbol of a bygone era will
have a starring role on the La
Grande entertainment scene this
weekend.
The La Grande Drive-in the-
ater will provide movie fans their
fi rst opportunity in two months
to see a fi lm in a social venue
when it opens for its 2020 season
Friday. There have been no public
ally, grossing about $100 million
before theaters were shut down
due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Johnson described “Onward” as a
family friendly movie.
“We always try to start with
a kids’ fi lm to get families to
come,” said Johnson, who said all
showings will begin at dusk.
See, Drive-in/Page 5A
See, Esports/Page 5A
“People have been calling us since mid-April
asking us when are we going to open.”
showings of movies in Union
County since Gov. Kate Brown’s
stay-home order in March in
response to the COVID-19 crisis.
Patty Johnson, manager of the
La Grande Drive-in, said interest
in the venue’s opening has been
higher than in recent years.
“People have been calling
us since mid-April asking us
when are we going to open,” said
Johnson, noting that such calls
don’t usually start until a number
Patty Johnson, manager of the La Grande Drive-in
of weeks later.
The La Grande Drive-in will
be open at 7:30 p.m. Friday,
Saturday and Sunday for
one showing each evening of
“Onward,” a computer-animated
urban fantasy adventure fi lm pro-
duced by Walt Disney Pictures
and Pixar Animation Studios.
The fi lm was released in late Feb-
ruary and was popular nation-
The Observer
LA GRANDE — They
don’t use a bat, a glove or a
hoop. They don’t kick balls
into goals, throw them into
endzones, or sprint to a
fi nish line.
But members of the
Eastern Oregon University
esports team, which offi -
cially formed over the last
year, are able to have some
of the same experiences —
victory, defeat and learning
to overcome — that tradi-
tional athletics provides,
according to esports assis-
tant coach Ethan Melville.
“More than winning, it’s
these moments that make
sports as benefi cial to per-
sonal development as they
are,” Melville said in an
email. “And though they
Coming soon — real soon

By Ronald Bond
Stay-home order means more time for hobbies
By Sabrina Thompson
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Gov. Kate
Brown’s executive order to stay
home to curb the spread of the
COVID-19 is giving folks the
opportunity to pick up new hobbies.
Joyce Hoke, owner of Joyful
Sounds Studio, La Grande, was
doing online classes before the iso-
lation orders began, so it hasn’t
been as diffi cult of a transition.
However, Hoke said there are chal-
lenges to teaching music online.
“We have to listen to each other
even more,” Hoke said. “I can’t
point to the notes, but I can still
play the piano for them and help
them fi nd it that way.”
Several new students have joined
her in virtual music lessons, and
INDEX
Business ...... 1B
Classified ..... 3B
Comics ......... 7B
Crossword ... 5B
those who were already taking
classes told her having music con-
tinue to be a part of their life has
helped them during this time of
isolation.
See, Hobbies/Page 5A
CONTACT US
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Lottery.......... 2A
Obituaries .... 3A
SATURDAY
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Sudoku ........ 7B
Weather ....... 8B
Issue 58
3 sections, 20 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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to news@lagrande
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