INSIDE
OLD PHOTOGRAPH PROVOKES NOSTALGIA, LEADS TO SHOTGUN RESTORATION |
May 15, 2021
OUTDOORS, 1B
WEEKEND EDITION
$1.50
COVID-19
Got your
shots? OK
to drop
the mask
Oregon following
the new guidance
effective May 13
By ZEKE MILLER
and MICHAEL BALSAMO
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — In a major
step toward returning to pre-pan-
demic life, the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
eased mask-wearing guidance
for fully vaccinated people on
Thursday, May 13, allowing them
to stop wearing masks outdoors
in crowds and in most indoor
settings.
“Today is a great day for
America,” President Joe Biden
said during a Rose Garden
address heralding the new guid-
ance, an event where he and his
staff went without masks. Hours
earlier in the Oval Offi ce, where
Biden was meeting with vacci-
nated Republican lawmakers, he
led the group in removing their
masks when the guidance was
announced.
“If you are fully vaccinated,
you no longer need to wear a
mask,” he said, summarizing the
new guidance and encouraging
more Americans to roll up their
sleeves. “Get vaccinated — or
wear a mask until you do.”
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown
announced Oregon as of May 13
will follow the new guidance,
which applies only to fully vacci-
nated individuals.
“That means Oregonians who
are fully vaccinated no longer need
to wear masks or social distance in
most public spaces,” Brown said in
a prepared statement.
The guidance still calls for
wearing masks in crowded indoor
settings, such as buses, planes,
hospitals, prisons and homeless
shelters, but it will help clear the
way for reopening workplaces,
schools and other venues — even
removing the need for social dis-
tancing for those who are fully
vaccinated.
Brown also said the Oregon
Health Authority will provide
updated guidance for businesses,
employers and others to allow the
option of lifting mask and phys-
ical distancing requirements after
verifying vaccination status. And
businesses may prefer to con-
tinue operating under the current
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Union County sheriff ’s deputy Lani Jones speaks to a pet owner about a noise complaint she received from a neighbor about a dog barking on Wednesday, May 12,
2021. Dog barking calls, which are one of the most common calls the animal enforcement offi cers receive, are an opportunity for deputies to educate the public about
possible solutions and keep communities civil.
The four-legged beat
Union County’s
animal enforcement
duo stays busy
By ALEX WITTWER
The Observer
UNION COUNTY — Union County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce deputy Lani Jones was
on the lookout Wednesday morning, May
12, for loose cattle on the outskirts of
Summerville.
Her police vehicle kicked up dust as she
arrived where someone had reported the
livestock — only to fi nd the cattle lazily
grazing a fi eld in the sun.
As an animal enforcement offi cer,
Jones said her responsibilities are much
more than serving as the county’s offi -
cial “dogcatcher,” a term she said carries a
pejorative not unlike “ambulance driver”
for emergency medical technicians. Jones,
along with deputy Patricia Kelly, her
fellow animal enforcement offi cer, are
responsible for handling all animal-related
calls in the county — from wayward dogs
to vagabond bovines. With thousands of
animals in the county, the two fi nd them-
selves frequently inundated with service
calls.
Jones recalled an incident several
years prior where the sheriff ’s offi ce had
to confi scate underfed and abused live-
stock, and keep the animals nearly four
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
A horse grazes outside a La Grande home on Friday, May 7, 2021. Rural areas like Union County come with a
host of challenges to animal enforcement offi cers in comparison to metropolitan areas including instances of
loose livestock and working animals.
months. During that time, Jones had to
learn to become a rancher — though
with help and assistance from the com-
munity. That meant feeding, providing
shelter and giving medical attention to
the animals.
By the time the sheriff ’s offi ce
was able to auction off the livestock
to cover accrued costs, the evidence
had multiplied.
Education fi rst
Jones left the cattle and headed toward
Union, taking backroads.
“I have all the shortcuts,” Jones said.
Jones has lived in Union County for
most of her life, and has spent nearly 20
years working for the sheriff ’s offi ce. Her
offi cial role is a civil deputy responsible
See, Animals/Page 5A
Downtown pocket park on the upswing
See, Mask/Page 5A
Small site to become
a pollinator garden
full of native plants
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Three years
ago Reynolds Park on Wash-
ington Avenue in La Grande
had bright sunfl owers but was
waiting for its chance to shine
again.
La Grande Boy Scout Matt
Valentine created the pocket
park in 1986 for his Eagle
project. The site has lost some of
INDEX
Classified ...............2B
Comics ....................5B
Crossword .............2B
Dear Abby .............6B
its luster since. Then Katie Boula
stepped forward.
Boula asked the La Grande
Parks and Recreation Depart-
ment if she could begin working
at the park as a volunteer. Now
the sunfl owers are gone but the
park again has much more than
pocket-sized appeal. There is
not a weed in sight, and the park
is a botanical oasis, fi lled with
well-cared for plants, many of
which are native to Northeastern
Oregon.
Stu Spence, director La
Grande’s parks department,
said the revitalization is a major
credit to Boula.
WEATHER
Outdoors ...............1B
Horoscope .............2B
Letters ....................4A
Lottery ....................3A
TUESDAY
Northwest .............6A
Obituaries ..............3A
Opinion ..................4A
Sports .....................7A
“She transformed it with
hours and hours of volunteer
time. She is just a great volun-
teer,” Spence said.
And she is not done yet.
Boula said she plans to keep
adding to the native plants in
place, which now include two
types of milkweed plus golden
rod, chokecherry and mountain
ash, which are small ornamental
trees. In the process of adding
native plants, Boula said she
hopes to transform the park into
a pollinator garden. This will
be a place that attracts birds and
See, Park/Page 5A
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Sunday
45 LOW
84/47
Clear
Sunny and warm
NEW DOCTOR DURING A PANDEMIC
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
A trio of tulips grows in Reynolds Park,
La Grande, which has received a recent
facelift and much-needed attention.
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Issue 56
2 sections, 14 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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