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OPENING DAY OF BUCK DEER HUNTING SEASON IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER |
September 25, 2021
OUTDOORS & REC, B1
WEEKEND EDITION
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New job
off ers new
opportunity
Timothy Bishop will be
La Grande’s economic
development director
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
LA GRANDE — The city
of La Grande announced the
hiring of a new economic devel-
opment director on Tuesday,
Sept. 21, 2021. Timothy Bishop,
who has served as Baker Coun-
ty’s tourism marketing director
for the last 11 years, is set to
take over the position Oct. 21.
Bishop will
replace former
director Christine
Jarski, who held
the position for six
years and left the
role in June.
Bishop
“I’m excited,”
Bishop said. “I
have a lot of work
to button up here
in the next few
weeks, but I’m
super excited to hit
the ground running
Strope
and be a part of the
La Grande team.”
Prior to his role in Baker
County, Bishop worked as a
main street program manager
for approximately 20 years in
Walla Walla and Ellensburg.
In Walla Walla, he focused his
eff orts on creating a thriving
downtown area in the late
1990s. Bishop’s background
in marketing and promotions
helped him transition into the
tourism marketing position,
where he moved to be closer to
his wife’s family.
“I loved my time in Baker,”
he said. “It’s been exciting to be
a part of a tourism industry that
has transformed a lot in the last
decade.”
Now in La Grande, one of
Bishop’s primary points of
emphasis will be helping local
businesses recover from chal-
lenges presented during the
pandemic. Bishop stated that
his focus will be on small busi-
nesses and how tourism can
play a role in stimulating local
economies. He is looking for-
ward to working with the Union
County Chamber of Com-
merce, La Grande Main Street
Downtown and Eastern Oregon
University.
“When the opening came
up in La Grande, I just felt like
this was an opportunity for me
to get back into more of that
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Freshman Kaydance Birkeland, a pre-veterinary student at Eastern Oregon University, competes in an obstacle course on Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021, during the
university’s annual Week of Welcome event.
Back in
session
Eastern Oregon set to
launch new school year
with 100% in-person
classes
By ANDREW CUTLER
The Observer
LA GRANDE — After
spending more than a year dealing
with in-person and hybrid learning
schedules, offi cials with Eastern
Oregon University are excited at the
prospect of campus life resuming a
more normal look in 2021-22.
Classes are set to begin on
campus Monday, Sept. 27. The
school started its 93rd academic
year on Sept. 20 with the annual
Convocation, while students began
moving into residence halls on
Sept. 22.
“This fall we are planning to be
100% in-person, in the classroom,”
said Tim Seydel, Eastern’s vice
president for university advance-
ment. “Students in the classes,
being taught directly in-person with
faculty? You bet.”
That doesn’t mean Eastern isn’t
taking the continuing pandemic
seriously.
See, Bishop/Page A5
See, Session/Page A5
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Incoming Eastern Oregon University freshmen line up for gear during the university’s annual Week of Welcome
event on Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021.
EOU off ers a ‘bridge’ for students
LA GRANDE — Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity is now off ering a free class to
incoming freshmen as a way to help stu-
dents from abroad get acclimated to univer-
sity life.
Summer Bridge, which is fi nanced by
the university, allows students to earn up
to two credits over the course of less than
two weeks before classes begin on campus.
Students get together in a small group —
the cohort in the inaugural class numbered
just 23 students — and do team-building
exercises and activities. The program is
something the university has wanted to get
rolling for the past few years.
“The summer bridge program was cre-
ated so that we could give students a kind
of a kick start into the year,” said Kath-
leen Brown, student success coordinator at
EOU. “They actually can get two credits
See, Bridge/Page A5
Employers face a changing demographic
Editor’s Note: This is the
fourth in a fi ve-part series by EO
Media Group looking at the lack
of workers for jobs in Central and
Eastern Oregon — why workers
are not returning to previously held
jobs and how businesses are piv-
oting to function without being fully
staff ed.
By BILL BRADSHAW
and ALEX WITTWER
EO Media Group
WALLOWA COUNTY — It’s
no secret that employers across the
state are struggling to fi nd workers.
Business owners
collectively
furrow their brow
at the trickle of
job applications
as more and more
businesses open
and the share of
workers seems to
be vanishing into
thin air.
The tightening labor market
makes operation diffi cult, and
expanding nearly impossible.
“It’s pretty much across all
industries,” said Stacy Beckman,
general manager of Wallowa
INDEX
Classified ...............B2
Comics ....................B5
Crossword .............B3
Dear Abby .............B6
WEATHER
Horoscope .............B3
Lottery ....................A2
Obituaries ..............A3
Opinion ..................A4
TUESDAY
Outdoors ...............B1
Records ..................A3
Sports .....................A6
Sudoku ...................B5
County Grain Growers in Enter-
prise. “Managers I’ve talked to are
having diffi culty trying to get help.”
He said the business he runs
didn’t actually lose any workers to
the pandemic, but expanding his
workforce has been a challenge.
“Trying to add (workers) is
tough,” he said. “It’s even tougher in
a smaller community like we are.”
Cindy Ellis, who owns and
operates Heavenly’s Restaurant
in Enterprise, switched to takeout
only when the pandemic fi rst
struck, but was able to resume
indoor seating as businesses were
allowed to reopen. But then reliable
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Sunday
47 LOW
81/46
Partly cloudy
Partly sunny
EDIBLE PLANTS IN YOUR OWN YARD
employees became scarce.
“We had to cut our indoor
seating because someone we hired
didn’t show,” she said.
Ellis on Thursday, Sept. 16, said
Heavenly’s was open for indoor
seating.
“We got a lot of folks from
Elgin,” she said, and despite a small
workforce, “we were swamped.”
More boomers are retiring
Eastern Oregon saw only negli-
gible gains in population over the
See, Workers/Page A5
CONTACT US
541-963-3161
Issue 113
2 sections, 12 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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