COMMUNITY CORNER
Saturday, June 13, 2020
Obituaries
Community
Betty E. (Newton) Morse
Union County
Senior Center
takeout lunch
menu — June
15-19
La Grande
Pickup 11:30 a.m. to
12:30 p.m. at 1504 N.
Albany St., La Grande. For
delivery, call 541-963-7532
before 10 a.m. Age 60+,
$3 suggested donation; all
others, $5. Call ahead for
weekend meals for four.
JUNE 15-19
Monday: baked
potatoes with variety of
toppings, salad greens.
Tuesday: chicken enchi-
ladas, chips and salsa.
Wednesday: pork roast
or BBQ chicken, mashed
potatoes and gravy, baked
apples, tomato-cucumber
salad, fresh bread, dessert.
Thursday: Italian
sandwiches, pasta salad,
watermelon, fruit tarts.
Friday: chicken Alfredo,
Caesar salad, steamed
vegetables, Italian bread,
dessert.
Union County
Kids Summer
Food Program
grab & go lunch
menu — June
15-19
Pickup 11:30 a.m. to
12:30 p.m. at Riveria Ac-
tivity Center, 2609 Second
St., La Grande. Free for age
1-18; all others, $4.
JUNE 15-19
Monday: ravioli, fresh
veggie medley, rolls, fresh
fruit, Jell-O.
Tuesday: enchiladas,
rice and beans, chips and
dip, fresh fruit, steamed
veggies, pudding.
Wednesday: roast
pork, mashed potatoes,
baked apples, veggie sticks,
cookies.
Thursday: deli sand-
wiches, macaroni salad,
grapes, dessert.
Friday: chicken Alfre-
do, rolls, garden salad,
steamed veggies, fresh
fruit.
Public
Safety Report
WEDNESDAY
8:21 a.m. — La Grande
police received a complaint
about vandalism on the 400
block of Fir Street. An officer
took a report.
9:48 a.m. — A caller report-
ed the possible illegal sale of
morel mushrooms on the 2400
block of Adams Avenue. An of-
ficer contacted the caller, who
already reported the incident
to the U.S. Forest Service.
11:41 a.m. — La Grande
police received a report of a
person suffering a mental or
emotional crisis. Officers re-
sponded, and the person went
to Grande Ronde Hospital for
observation.
3:38 p.m. — A La Grande
resident reported a burglary
on the 200 block of Polk
Avenue.
5:18 p.m. — A caller report-
ed vandalism 4 miles north of
La Grande. A Union County
sheriff’s deputy checked and
determined the culprit respon-
sible was the weather.
THURSDAY
11:19 a.m. — A Union Coun-
ty sheriff’s deputy responded
to Walmart, 11619 Island Ave.,
Island City, on a report that
someone left children in a
vehicle. The deputy found the
vehicle and counseled the
driver.
2:18 p.m. — Union County
dispatch received three 911
calls from the same residence
on the 64600 block of Orchard
Road, La Grande. A deputy
responded, and the situation
was OK.
4:51 p.m. — A caller report-
ed a horse on the loose at
Fruitdale Lane and Mt. Glen
Road, La Grande. A Union
County sheriff’s deputy tried to
contact the horse’s owner.
5:51 p.m. — A caller report-
ed the theft of a trailer from
Mountain Life Church, 10700
Walton Road, Island City.
9:32 p.m. — La Grande
police responded to the
1000 block of X Avenue for a
domestic disturbance. Officers
separated the parties involved.
FRIDAY
1:23 a.m. — La Grande
police received a report of a
vehicle theft on the 2200 block
of 26th Street. Police took a
report.
Betty Evangeline
(Newton) Morse, 92, of
La Grande, died June 11
at Grande Ronde Hospital.
Arrangements are by Dan-
iels-Knopp Funeral, Cre-
mation & Life Celebration
Center.
Brenda D. Shaffer
Formerly of La Grande
Brenda D. Shaffer, 81,
formerly of La Grande,
died May 30 in Las
Vegas, Nevada. Arrange-
ments are by McDermott
Funeral & Cremation of
Las Vegas.
Glenn D. Clark
Elgin
Glenn D. Clark, 91, of
Elgin, died June 11 at his
home. Arrangements are by
Loveland Funeral Chapel
and Crematory.
Eva W. Bennett
La Grande
Eva Winnefred Ben-
nett, 95, of La Grande,
died April 26 at her res-
idence. A graveside ser-
vice will be held June 20
at 2 p.m. at the Island City
Cemetery.
Upcoming local services
Charles ‘Leroy’ Poe
Island City
Charles “Leroy” Poe,
73, of Island City, died May
28 at his residence. A cel-
ebration of his life will be
held June 25 at 4 p.m. at
the Summerville Baptist
Church.
Calendar courtesy of Loveland Funeral Chapel
June 13 — RONALD CASWELL: 10 a.m. memorial service
and potluck (bring a dish to share); Riverside Park Pavilion,
La Grande.
June 20 — EVA BENNETT: 2 p.m. graveside service; Island
City Cemetery.
June 25 — LEROY POE: 4 p.m. celebration of life, Summer-
ville Baptist Church.
Scouts work, play and camp virtually
How the
organizations are
staying active while
unable to meet in
person
J
By Sabrina Thompson
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Like
many organizations that
made the transition to vir-
tual meetings because of the
coronavirus pandemic, Boy
Scouts and Girl Scouts in
La Grande are taking their
experience to the internet.
“There are a variety
of things available,” said
Angie D’Antonio, leader
for Girl Scout Troop 50145.
“Camps closed for the
summer so they mail sup-
plies. People meet mostly
via Zoom.”
GIRL SCOUTS
Girl Scouts of the United
States of America told local
troops not to hold meet-
ings until Aug. 31, D’An-
tonio said. To keep troops
together and continue
the Scouting experience,
D’Antonio has encouraged
girls to participate in the
camping activity projects
and invited guest speakers
for weekly Zoom meet-
ings. The activity packets
from the national organiza-
tion offer three experiences
to get girls outdoors and
active: the camp adven-
tures at home marketplace,
at-home outdoor activities
and virtual outdoor events.
The marketplace allows
girls to sign up for events
Photo contributed by Stephen Koza
Russ West, far left, instructs Boy Scout Troop 514 on avalanche rescue at Anthony Lakes
March 14-15, the last outing by the troop since the start of the pandemic.
across the nation, with
prices between $25-$100,
depending on age group
and activity. Parents can
use the marketplace to pur-
chase gear for activities
such as camping, crafting
and sporting equipment to
use along with the virtual
guides. The girls’ at-home
outdoor activities are self-
guided activities to com-
plete from home, with a
focus on nature.
A “Camp in Campout”
will be June 27 with addi-
tion events in the works
for July and August. The
Girl Scouts of Oregon and
Southwest Washington
are providing girls with
camping related activities
and suggestions for girls
to do at home, and those
who register and complete
the event will receive a
patch to commemorate the
occasion.
D’Antonio is offering
the girls in her troop the
opportunity to participate
in these programs in addi-
tion to her own troop’s
weekly online meetings.
Prior to the pandemic,
the troop would meet less
often, but with the girls
no longer in school and
missing their friends,
they asked to meet more
frequently.
“I don’t think they love
doing the meetings vir-
tually. They miss getting
together,” D’Antonio said.
“But it is nice to still see
everyone and talk. The
speaker series is some-
thing the girls are enjoying
and something we wouldn’t
normally have done.”
In addition to badge
work, D’Antonio has intro-
duced a guest lecture series
into the meetings. Girls
have the chance to talk
to professionals from a
variety of fields including a
movie producer, Broadway
performer, professional
chef, aquanaut and special
effects makeup artist.
BOY SCOUTS
The Eastern Oregon
District of Boy Scouts of
America Troop 514 held its
last in-person meeting in
March. With students no
longer in school, the troop
decided to cancel meetings
for the foreseeable future
according to scoutmaster
Stephen Koza, but badge
work continued.
“Since our meetings
were canceled, some of
the parents and volun-
teers took up working
with some of the boys via
Zoom to work on their
rank advancement and
merit badge work,” Koza
said. “Eric Valentine
and M.J. Heather, who
worked on merit badges
with some of the boys,
found the Zoom platform
worked very well as the
boys were able to focus
on the work being done
without the distractions
of others being around
them.”
In-person meetings for
the troop will resume June
22 with adherence to state
guidelines.
Koza said outings
such as camping will also
return slowly as the troop
works through logistics.
National events and cam-
pouts have been canceled.
With the extra time, he
added, the boys can con-
tinue to work on their
merit badges and indi-
vidual projects.
“Overall, we’re excited
to get started back up,”
Koza said. “We want to
do it properly to protect
everyone and stay within
the proper guidelines.
We also want to keep the
Scouts engaged during
this time.”
Upcoming La Grande schools budget tops $26 million
School district budget
committee approves
spending plan
J
By Dick Mason
The Observer
LA GRANDE — The La
Grande School District moved a
step closer Wednesday to being
in a better position
to weather a finan-
cial shortfall starting a
year from now.
Its budget com-
mittee voted to recom-
mend the adoption of a
Mendoza
2020-21 general fund
spending plan of $26.39
million that would allow the school
district to maintain all programs
and staff while boosting reserves
significantly. The proposal is $1.18
million greater than the 2019-20
budget and would allow the school
district to build up reserves it likely
will need over the next three years
to deal with state budget shortfalls
due to the coronavirus-driven eco-
nomic slowdown.
“It is a well-thought-out, pru-
dent plan,” said La Grande School
Board member Joe Justice, who
like all school board members is
also on the school district’s budget
committee.
Under the budget proposal, the
school district would not spend
state money it has saved since
mid-March when all schools in
the state were shut down to curb
the spread of the coronavirus. The
school district has saved a total
of $900,000 since then, including
$250,000 on substitute teaching
costs, $300,000 on employee pay
Observer file photo
The La Grande School District is considering a $26.4 million budget that
could enable the local schools to weather cut backs in state funding.
due to furlough days, and substan-
tial savings on transportation and
athletics expenses, according to
Chris Panike, the district’s business
manager.
“The budget will allow us to pre-
serve these savings,” Panike said.
The intent of building up
reserves is to put the La Grande
School District in a position to
withstand projected decreases
in state funding in 2021-22 and
2022-23.
“We will experience a shortfall
in the next (2021-23) biennium,”
La Grande School District Super-
intendent George Mendoza told the
budget committee.
Mendoza said Oregon’s public
schools may see their state funding
cut significantly both years. His
goal is to have at least $3.2 million
in reserve entering that two-year
period, which he said would greatly
enhance the district’s chances of
retaining its staff and programs
10106 N. ‘C’ • Island City
during that time.
“We need to save money now
so we can continue having a high-
quality school district,” Mendoza
said.
The funding outlook for Ore-
gon’s schools is murky at best
because of the coronavirus pan-
demic, which forced the state to
shut down many businesses for
two months, costing it significant
income tax revenue and crippling
the economy.
The state expects its school fund
to lose about $490 million in rev-
enue, but Mendoza said he thinks
there is such strong support for
education in Oregon that schools
will receive all of their funding
lawmakers approved — a $9 billion
education budget for the 2019-21
biennium. He said he believes this
could be achieved by drawing
money from several reserve funds
and money generated by the new
Corporate Activities Tax, which
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could generate between $1 billion
and $2 billion a biennium, all of
which is to be spent on boosting
student success.
Mendoza said if the state back-
fills its education fund it will pre-
vent the La Grande School Dis-
trict from having to draw upon its
reserves in 2020-21, putting it in a
much better position to deal with
likely budget cuts in afterward.
The Legislature is expected to
meet this summer to determine
how it will deal with the state’s
funding shortfall. Until then, Ore-
gon’s public school funding picture
will be anything but in sharp focus.
This delay is helping to make it
exceptionally challenging to create
a school district budget for 2020-21
because it is impossible to know
what to expect in terms of state
funding.
“I have never built a budget with
this much uncertainty,” said Panike,
who has been the La Grande School
District’s business manager for
about 14 years.
Adding to the level of anx-
iety, Panike said, is the possibility
the school district could lose stu-
dents because of the coronavirus.
He explained some parents may
choose to homeschool their chil-
dren to protect them from possible
exposure to it or choose other edu-
cation options. A drop in student
enrollment could have a big impact
on funding because the money
school districts receive from the
state is based on enrollment. The
La Grande School District receives
about $8,800 per student from the
state.
The La Grande School Board
will vote June 24 on adoption of the
proposed 2020-21 budget.
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