FROM PAGE ONE
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2021
THE OBSERVER — A5
TREES
Continued from Page A1
“We lost basically our
entire plantings this year.
Now we’ve got another big
hole that’s going to suck
up any excess that would
have been in the future,”
Smith said, speaking about
the Christmas industry as a
whole.
Tim Donivan, who runs
the Donivan Tree Farm in
La Grande with his wife,
Loraine Donivan, said
the drought compounded
the problem regarding the
shortages.
“There was a glut of
trees 15 years ago and the
price went really low,” Tim
Donivan said. “A certain
amount of farms converted
into wine production, so
that changed the supply bal-
ance, and this summer with
the drought certain trees
turned red and aren’t on the
market.”
The Donivans have
been running a tree farm
since their fi rst planting in
1979. Their 3.5-acre prop-
erty on Igo Lane north of
La Grande is fi lled with
trees of varying ages
and species. Many of the
younger trees had been
scorched by the summer
heat wave, leaving the sap-
lings to resemble the sickly
tree from the animated
TV classic “A Charlie
Brown Christmas.” Older
trees largely survived
the onslaught of record-
breaking temperatures,
though a few trees suc-
cumbed to the heat while
other trees saw only a smat-
tering of reddened needles
and crispy branches.
Loraine Donivan
described this year’s
weather conditions as
highly unusual, and said the
heat and drought prevented
the trees from developing
root structures that would
help them weather the dry
conditions.
“We lost a lot of the
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Alex Wittwer/ EO Media Group
Reddened needles signify a dead tree scorched by the summer heat waves and drought at the Donivan
Tree Farm in La Grande on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. Though most of the adult and market ready trees sur-
vived, some were damaged by the unusually dry and hot conditions this year.
Alex Wittwer/ EO Media Group
Benny, the unoffi cial mascot of the Donivan Tree Farm, La Grande,
makes her way through the grove on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. The tree
farm operates on 3.5 acres and has been planting trees since 1979.
seedlings we planted this
spring, and I’m sure that
was the case for other
growers too,” she said.
“We went through and
spot watered every tree,
including every seed-
ling, fi ve times through the
summer, but we still lost
a large percentage of this
year’s seedlings — half of
what we planted.”
Oregon leads the nation
in Christmas tree pro-
duction, with exports
fueling an industry worth
just more than $100 mil-
lion, according to statistics
from the National Agri-
cultural Statistics Service.
According to the Cap-
ital Press, Oregon grows
nearly one-third of all U.S.
Christmas trees. Most of
the Christmas tree farms
are in or near the Willa-
mette Valley where condi-
tions are prime for pines.
According to Loraine
Donivan, trees in Eastern
Oregon take longer to grow
than those in the Willa-
mette Valley, with the
average growth time of
10-12 years for an Eastern
Oregon Christmas tree, as
compared to the eight to
10 years in the Willamette
Valley.
“We’re a lot higher and
drier, and they’re a lot more
temperate and moist,” she
said.
And while the Willa-
mette Valley is poised to
exit its drought starting next
year according to National
Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration data, the
dry conditions in Eastern
Oregon are expected to per-
sist for at least one more
season. That means local
Christmas tree growers will
continue to struggle with
their crops in the years to
come.
“We’re just going to have
to replant more next spring
and hope we don’t have
another weather cycle like
that,” Loraine Donivan said.
Still, the Donivans con-
tend they have more than
enough trees to supply
buyers in the Grande Ronde
Valley looking to cut down
their own tree for holidays.
Tim Donivan said the farm
has “more than we did last
year.”
WOLVES
Continued from Page A1
Offi cials from ODFW and
from the federal USDA Wild-
life Service agency arrived
on Sept. 30 and found four
more dead ewes.
Wildlife Service
employees then found three
more dead ewes on Oct. 1,
and one dead and one injured
ewe on Oct. 4. Workers euth-
anized the injured ewe that
day.
All the sheep were in
the same pasture. Offi cials
estimated the sheep were
attacked the night of Sept. 28.
ODFW employees exam-
ined seven sheep carcasses
on Sept. 30, three on Oct. 1
and two on Oct. 4.
All suff ered wounds
before death, with tissue
trauma up to 2 inches deep
and tooth scrapes consistent
with wolf attacks on sheep,
according to ODFW reports.
On the morning of Oct.
1, a sheepherder found two
injured Kangal guard dogs
on an industrial timberland
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife/Contributed Photo, File
Five goats were killed by at least one wolf in the Elgin area during a two-day period in late November,
according to a report from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The attacks have been attributed
to the Balloon Tree Pack.
grazing allotment.
The herder told ODFW
employees that at about
2 a.m. on Oct. 1 he heard an
apparent fi ght between his
guard dog and an unknown
The most valuable and
respected source of local news,
advertising and information for
our communities.
www.eomediagroup.com
One solution for oxygen at home, away, and for travel
Introducing the INOGEN ONE – It’s oxygen therapy on your terms
No more tanks to refi ll. No more deliveries. No more hassles with travel.
The INOGEN ONE portable oxygen concentrator is designed to provide
unparalleled freedom for oxygen therapy users. It’s small, lightweight,
clinically proven for stationary and portable use, during the day and at night,
and can go virtually anywhere — even on most airlines.
Inogen accepts Medicare and many private insurances!
Reclaim Your Freedom And
Independence NOW!
Call Inogen Today To
Request Your FREE Info Kit
1-855-839-0752
© 2020 Inogen, Inc.
All rights reserved.
MKT-P0108
BACKED BY A YEAR-ROUND
CLOG-FREE GUARANTEE
R GU
2
15 % & 10 %
RD
TH
GU
TE
1
’S
T
EXCLUSIVE LIMITED TIME OFFER!
NATIO
N
E
A
OFF
YOUR ENTIRE
PURCHASE *
FINANCING THAT FITS YOUR BUDGET!
1
Promo Code: 285
1
Subject to credit approval. Call for details.
CALL US TODAY FOR
A FREE ESTIMATE
+
5 % OFF
OFF
SENIORS &
MILITARY!
WE INSTALL
YEAR-ROUND!
TO THE FIRST 50
CALLERS ONLY! **
LIFETIME
WARRANTY
1-855-536-8838
Mon-Thurs: 8am-11pm, Fri-Sat: 8am-5pm, Sun: 2pm-8pm EST
For those who qualify. One coupon per household. No obligation estimate valid for 1 year. *Off er valid at time of estimate only 2The leading consumer reporting agency
conducted a 16 month outdoor test of gutter guards in 2010 and recognized LeafFilter as the “#1 rated professionally installed gutter guard system in America.” Manufac-
tured in Plainwell, Michigan and processed at LMT Mercer Group in Ohio. See Representative for full warranty details. CSLB# 1035795 DOPL #10783658-5501 License#
7656 License# 50145 License# 41354 License# 99338 License# 128344 License# 218294 WA UBI# 603 233 977 License# 2102212986 License# 2106212946 License#
2705132153A License# LEAFFNW822JZ License# WV056912 License# WC-29998-H17 Nassau HIC License# H01067000 Registration# 176447 Registration# HIC.0649905
Registration# C127229 Registration# C127230 Registration# 366920918 Registration# PC6475 Registration# IR731804 Registration# 13VH09953900 Registration#
PA069383 Suff olk HIC License# 52229-H License# 2705169445 License# 262000022 License# 262000403 License# 0086990 Registration# H-19114
predator, with barking and
growling.
Biologists examined
both guard dogs. One had a
6-inch-long area of matted
blood on its throat and the
left side of its neck that was
dripping blood. The dog
was agitated and could not
be held for further examina-
tion, according to an ODFW
report.
Kathy Rudd, center, and Mary Ann Taal, right, lay out photos of
the La Grande High School class of 1964 on Thursday, Dec. 2,
2021. A small group of volunteers are restoring yearbook dis-
plays to place in the hallways of La Grande High School, show-
casing the school’s history.
PHOTOS
Continued from Page A1
with the school’s blue and
white colors, according to
Kathy Rudd, a 1969 LHS
graduate and a Gradua-
tion Class Picture Project
member.
To date, frames have
been restored for the
classes of 1934, 1964,
1966 and 1969. The work
is not inexpensive, run-
ning approximately
$206.44 per frame.
Rudd said the volun-
teers for the Graduating
Class Picture Project will
need funding before they
can restore many more
picture frames. Rudd is
encouraging each class
between 1924 and 2001 to
submit donations to cover
the cost of renovating
their class frame. Rudd
said each time a class
provides full funding,
her group will make that
class its next priority.
In addition to Rudd,
the group’s members
also include LHS gradu-
ates Mary Ellen Taal, Jim
Roper, Nan Fordice and
Gail Fuller-Hug.
The picture frames
being restored were pre-
viously displayed in the
school’s main entrance.
They were taken down to
be restored and because
they were in a disorga-
nized state and not in
chronological order.
“They were in dis-
array,” Rudd said.
Members of the Grad-
uation Class Picture
Project stepped forward
to restore the frames,
Rudd said, because they
were afraid the photos
would be put somewhere
where they might be
damaged. The school’s
senior classes, she said,
deserve to have their
place in their school’s his-
tory preserved.
FEEL THE SPEED,
EVEN AT PEAK TIMES.
“We want to share
LHS’s history,” Rudd
said.
The volunteers hope
to display the restored
class photos inside the
school’s east entrance,
which gives access to
the gym and the school’s
auditorium. This is a
high-traffi c area used by
the community coming
to school events and also
off ers more open low wall
space where people could
easily see framed photos.
“We want to increase
their visibility,” Rudd
said.
She noted, though,
that the photos will not
be placed there until
approval is received from
La Grande High School.
The frame renova-
tion work is being done
in the school’s Tiger Cage
room. LHS’s Leatha Can-
fi eld, a behavior interven-
tion specialist and com-
puter lab paraprofessional
who is in charge of the
Tiger Cage room, made
space available for the
photo project. Canfi eld
is impressed with the
group’s energy and the
quality of the work they
are doing.
“They are so emotion-
ally involved,” she said.
Rudd said she has
emotional ties to the
project because her late
mother, Betty Martin
Peck, was a member of
the school’s class of 1934
and her late husband,
Calvin Rudd, graduated
with the class of 1966.
“This makes it special
for me,” she said.
Rudd said the project
is also worthwhile
because it is so closely
linked to history, which
all members of the photo
project love.
“It is an awesome
project because we are
having so much fun with
it,” she said.
Get strong, fast Wi-Fi to work and
play throughout your home. ^
No annual contract.
Based on wired connection to gateway.
Power multiple devices at once—
everyone can enjoy their own screen.
Number of devices depends on screen size/resolution.
AT&T
INTERNET 100
††
45
$
/mo *
For 12 mos, plus taxes & equip.fee.$10/mo equip. fee applies.
Limited availability in selectareas. *Price after $5/mo
Autopay & Paperless bill discount (w/in 2 bills).
Limited availability in select areas. May not be available inyour area.
Call or goto att.com/internetto see if you qualify.
Over 99% reliability.
Excludes DSL. Based on network availability.
Contact your local DIRECTV dealer
IV Support Holdings
888-486-0359
INTERNET OFFER: Subj. to change and may be discontinued at any time. Price for Internet 100 for new residential customers & is after $5/mo. autopay & paperless bill discount. Pricing for first 12 months only. After 12 mos., then prevailing rate applies. Autopay & Paperless Bill
Discount: Discount off the monthly rate when account is active & enrolled in both. Pay full plan cost until discount starts w/in 2 bill cycles. Must maintain autopay/paperless bill and valid email address to continue discount. Additional Fees & Taxes: AT&T one-time transactional fees, $10/mo.
equipment fee, and monthly cost recovery surcharges which are not government-required may apply, as well as taxes. See www.att.com/fees for details. Installation: $99 installation for full tech install, plus tax where applicable. Credit restrictions apply. Pricing subject to change. Subj. to Internet
Terms of Service at att.com/internet-terms. ^AT&T Smart Wi-Fi requires installation of a BGW210, 5268AC, or NVG599 Wi-Fi Gateway. Standard with Internet plans (12M or higher). Whole home Wi-Fi connectivity may require AT&T Smart Wi-Fi Extender(s) sold separately. ††Internet speed claims
represent maximum network service capability speeds and based on wired connection to gateway. Actual customer speeds are not guaranteed and may vary based on several factors. For more information, go to www.att.com/speed101.
©2021 DIRECTV. DIRECTV and all other DIRECTV marks are trademarks of DIRECTV, LLC. AT&T and Globe logo are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property.