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Good day to our valued subscriber Jennifer Isley of La Grande
Teachers,
students react
to in-person
instruction
expansion
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Plenty of
La Grande School District edu-
cators and students are thrilled
with the move back to in-person
learning every day starting
Monday, April 12.
“We are all elated. This has
been a year in the making,” said
La Grande High School Principal
Brett Baxter.
The announcement on
Thursday, April 1, means the
La Grande School District soon
will be a big step closer to oper-
ating as it did before the corona-
virus pandemic struck in March
2020. Oregon shut down schools
to in-person learning then to
curtail the spread of the virus.
Early in the 2020-21 school year,
the LGSD began adding back
in-person learning opportunities
because of falling infection rates,
changing state metrics and the
state allowing more local control.
Elementary schools have
off ered in-person learning for all
students fi ve days a week since
January, and students in grades
7-12 have received in-person
instruction on alternate days for a
little more than two months. High
school and middle school students
are in cohorts that attend classes
on-site every other day and com-
plete assessments at home on their
off days.
Baxter said students will ben-
efi t greatly from again receiving
in-person instruction fi ve days a
week.
“Students need more indi-
vidual attention. It will help them
so much more,” he said.
Middle school and high school
students now are attending school
from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on their
in-person days, a schedule that
will continue after April 12. La
Grande High French and English
teacher Kevin Cahill said main-
taining this schedule will be a
plus.
“I think it will help make the
transition smoother,” Cahill said.
He noted there is a daily
rhythm students have become
accustomed to. Prior to the
COVID-19, high school and La
Grande Middle School students
started classes at about 8 a.m. and
were dismissed at about 3 p.m.
Senior Kierstin Lofton said she
and many other students are glad
the school district is keeping the
9 a.m. start time because most
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Potter Bob Jensen paints ponderosa pines on a freshly glazed ceramic pot Thursday, April 1, 2021. Jensen, along with other potters in the region, are donating handmade
bowls to Shelter From the Storm’s annual Soup Supper fundraiser.
Soup’s on, safely
Shelter From
the Storm’s
fundraiser will be
different this year
By DICK MASON
The Observer
ISLAND CITY — The COVID-19 pan-
demic will not sideline Shelter From the
Storm’s popular and long-running Soup
Supper fundraiser this spring.
Shelter From the Storm’s Soup Supper
has been conducted annually for about three
decades, and this year’s event will operate
with a twist to allow for social distancing.
“We wanted to honor the tradition,” said
Jamie Landa, executive director of Shelter
From the Storm, a nonprofi t that provides
services for survivors of domestic violence,
sexual assault and stalking.
In past years, Soup Supper participants
picked up donated handmade bowls at the
event, enjoyed a dinner there, and then took
their bowls home. This year, the supper will
not serve any soup because of social dis-
tancing restrictions. However, donors still
will receive bowls and meals.
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Bowls and cups await glaze in Bob Jensen’s La Grande pottery shop, The Potter’s House, on Thursday, April 1,
2021. Jensen, along with other potters in the region, are donating their goods to Shelter From the Storm for the
nonprofi t’s annual Soup Supper fundraiser.
TO ATTEND THE SOUP SUPPER
You can buy Soup Supper tickets online this month. Go to Shelter From the Storm’s website, www.unioncountysfs.
org, and click on a link to Eventbrite. Tickets for two fundraising quilt raffl es also are available at the Eventbrite site.
Shelter From the Storm will announce the quilt raffl e winners May 1.
See, Supper/Page 5A
See, React/Page 5A
Academy Award nominee credits Eastern for success
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Award-win-
ning documentary fi lmmaker
Skye Fitzgerald, a 1993 graduate
of Eastern Oregon University, is
a risk taker. The premium Fitz-
gerald paid for kidnap insurance
in 2020 is harrowing proof.
Fitzgerald purchased the
insurance policy prior to fi lming
“Hunger Ward,” a 40-minute
work that documents the eff ects
the war and famine in Yemen
is having on children, families
and health care workers. He shot
the fi lm over 30 days in January
and February 2020 in northern
and southern Yemen, a west
Asian nation devastated by war
between Saudi-backed pro-gov-
ernment forces and the rebel
Houthi movement.
Fitzgerald, a two-time
Academy Award nominee, said
he never forgot he was in peril
throughout his time in Yemen.
“I was on guard at all times.
The fear was real,” Fitzgerald
said.
The EOU graduate and mem-
bers of his party took numerous
precautions. For example, they
kept their cellphones and lap-
tops in a bag made of material
that blocked signals from the
INDEX
Classified ...............4B
Comics ....................7B
Crossword .............4B
Dear Abby .............8B
WEATHER
Home ......................1B
Horoscope .............4B
Letters ....................4A
Lottery ....................3A
THURSDAY
Obituaries ..............3A
Opinion ..................4A
Sports ..............6A-8A
Sudoku ...................7B
PAVING PROJECT
devices, helping prevent poten-
tial abductors from detecting
their location. Fitzgerald’s party
also avoided traveling at night
and made sure someone outside
Yemen knew their exact location
at all times.
Fitzgerald, whose party was
detained during its Yemen visit
for a frightening seven hours
before being released, emerged
from the war-torn nation with
footage that has caught the
world’s attention. “Hunger
Ward” is one of nine fi lms to
receive a 2021 Academy Award
See, Award/Page 5A
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Wednesday
34 LOW
65/36
Clear
Sunshine and
nice
Michael Seidler/Contributed Photo
Skye Fitzgerald, a 1993 graduate of
Eastern Oregon University and a docu-
mentary fi lmmaker, has been nominat-
ed for a 2021 Academy Award.
CONTACT US
541-963-3161
Issue 41
2 sections, 16 pages
La Grande, Oregon
Email story ideas
to news@lagrande
observer.com.
More contact info
on Page 4A.
Online at lagrandeobserver.com