OREGON
A10 — THE OBSERVER
STATE BRIEFS
179 COVID cases
linked to Round-Up
‘Exhilarating’: Autism advocate reaches social media stardom
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — Uma-
tilla County health offi -
cials have traced nearly
180 COVID-19 cases to
events that occurred during
the week of the Pendleton
Round-Up.
But the spike in cases
that followed the week-
long rodeo seems to be on
a slight decline, said Uma-
tilla County Public Health
Director Joe Fiumara.
“I’m hoping we’ve gotten
past the initial bump,” Fiu-
mara said after reporting
the 179 cases. “Time will
tell. It will be important for
people who are sick to stay
home.”
Last week’s total
amounted to 487
COVID-19 cases, making
it the county’s third most
infectious week since the
pandemic started.
It’s a positive sign after
an alarming initial bump
in cases, Fiumara said,
but infection rates remain
far higher than they were
before the delta variant
surge began in mid-July.
“It’s hard to be happy
with cases dropping to 50
or 60 each day,” Fiumara
said.
Offi cials OK long-
lasting fi re retardant
BOISE, Idaho — U.S.
offi cials on Tuesday, Oct.
5, approved a long-lasting
fi re retardant that could sig-
nifi cantly aid in fi ghting
destructive wildfi res.
The U.S. Forest Service
approved Perimeter Solu-
tions’ fi re retardant that’s
intended to be used as a
preventive measure and
can last for months It’s sim-
ilar to the red-dyed retar-
dant dropped from aircraft,
but is clear and lasts much
longer.
“The real game-changer
here is once you treat it, you
can forget it,” said Edward
Goldberg, chief executive
offi cer of Perimeter Solu-
tions. “It’s there for the
whole year.”
The company said its
primary use will be by
industrial customers such as
utility companies and rail-
roads, but can also be used
at residential and commer-
cial properties.
Goldberg said the
product will likely be most
eff ective in the drier cli-
mate of the U.S. West, and
could be applied in the
spring to off er fi re protec-
tion throughout the wild-
fi re season. He said tradi-
tional retardant is eff ective
until there’s rain, but the
new product will remain
eff ective even after a couple
inches of rain.
Proud Boy guilty of
assaul in protests
PORTLAND — An
Oregon jury on Tuesday,
Oct. 5, found a member
of the far-right group
the Proud Boys guilty of
assault, menacing and
unlawful use of a weapon
for pulling out a loaded
revolver, fi ring paintballs
and spraying bear mace at
people during Portland pro-
tests last year.
Prosecutors called
Alan Swinney a “vigilante
cowboy,” while Swinney
and his lawyer argued he
was acting in self-defense
against “agitators” who
were harassing him.
The charges stem from
demonstrations Aug. 15 and
Aug. 22, 2020, as clashes
erupted between right-wing
and left-wing groups armed
with paintballs, bear mace,
pepper spray, umbrellas
and shields, The Oregonian
reported. The protests were
among rallies that were held
nationwide after a white
police offi cer murdered
George Floyd, a Black man,
in Minneapolis.
Swinney, 51, of Texas,
came to Portland “dressed
for battle” in August
because of his “hatred for
the left, for antifa,” Deputy
District Attorney Reid C.
Schweitzer told jurors in his
closing arguments.
— EO Media Group and
The Associated Press
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2021
PENDLETON —
When the social media
star announced in a video
that her 5-year-old son has
autism, William Wehrli
knew he wanted to reach
out.
Wehrli has autism and
is a local autism advo-
cate living in Pendleton.
He wanted to tell her
that doctors predicted he
would never be indepen-
dent or graduate; that he
proved them wrong when
he obtained his master’s
degree; that he has his own
home, pays his rent, owns a
car, cares for a dog, cooks,
cleans and works many
jobs.
He made a video on
Sept. 5 on TikTok saying
just that.
“This was me assuring
that her son would also
be able to succeed and be
independent,” Wehrli said.
He was shocked when
Laura Clery responded.
Clery is an actress and
comedian who consistently
receives millions of views
across multiple social
media platforms. She took
a video with her husband
reacting to Wehrli’s video.
They smiled, held their
hands over their heart and
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
William Wehrli and his dog
Rossy stand on the porch of
Wehrli’s home Thursday, Sept.
30, 2021 in Pendleton. Wehrli,
who has autism and is a local
autism advocate, made a video
supported a boy who has au-
tism, and the video went viral.
rli’s accounts as the video
spread rapidly and his fol-
lowing skyrocketed. Many
of the messages were from
people who have loved
ones with autism. They
said doctors had told them
the same thing — that their
child would never succeed
— and seeing Wehrli’s
video gave them hope.
“I was defi nitely sur-
prised,” Wehrli said. “In
fact, I responded by going
for a run with my dog
because it was so exhila-
rating for me.”
Wehrli was thrilled. He
said it felt great to see his
video having an impact.
He responded to many of
the messages, providing
people with advice. But
then the comments became
endless, and he became
overwhelmed.
“What they don’t realize
is that I’m only one person
and I can’t respond to
everybody,” he said. “All
those messages I was get-
ting was just so draining. A
lot of people think it would
be fun to be famous, but it
can be very overwhelming.
It was draining my mental
health and taking a toll on
me.”
He turned off direct
messaging to all his
accounts. Instead, he
pointed commenters
toward his website, where
they could sign up for paid
coaching. Some people
were pushy, insisting that
he dole out advice for
free. Others signed up for
sessions.
Wehrli helps parents
navigate the challenges that
come with having children
with autism. Whether it be
in school or at home, his
goal is to draw on his per-
sonal experiences to help
parents better understand
their children.
“I would give them my
take on what the situa-
tion is like in their shoes
to help them understand
how to connect with their
child and what I think they
should do to help their
child,” he said.
blew kisses. As with all of
her videos, thousands of
people commented back.
Who’s cutting onions?
Clery wrote in the
comments.
“I’m not crying my
eyes are just sweating,”
a commenter said. “My
grandson has autism. This
video makes me so happy.
Thanks for sharing.”
Messages fl ooded Weh-
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