FROM PAGE ONE
THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2022
THE OBSERVER — A3
WELLS
PREPARING
Continued from Page A1
Continued from Page A1
the Marine recruiter told
them that because they
were just 17 and only high
school juniors, they needed
parental permission to join
the Marines.
“They had to return to
Union with the appropriate
papers for signatures,
which their folks reluc-
tantly signed,” Martin said.
The twins shipped out
of Union County about
two weeks later, on Feb.
27, 1943, but not before
catching the attention of at
least one local newspaper.
“It ran a picture of them
titled ‘Double trouble for
the Japanese,’” Martin
said.
Once in the Marines
the Wells twins were sep-
arated for the fi rst time in
their lives following boot
camp, with Gene receiving
training in artillery and
Dean being trained as a
rifl eman.
Dean Wells later par-
ticipated in amphibious
assaults on Tarawa in
November of 1943 and
Saipan in June of 1944.
On April 1, 1945, both
Dean and Gene Wells par-
ticipated in an amphib-
ious landing on Okinawa
although in diff erent bat-
talions. Over the course
of about six weeks, the
brothers each sustained
serious wounds and Dean
became a war hero after
displaying bravery for
which he was awarded the
Navy Cross.
The Navy Cross is the
United States Navy and
United States Marine
Corps’ second highest mil-
itary decoration, awarded
to sailors and marines who
distinguish themselves
for extraordinary heroism
in combat with an armed
enemy force.
Dean Wells received the
cross for actions he took
while with a Marine rifl e
platoon on the island of
Okinawa on May 15, 1945.
Wells’ platoon was
receiving intense fi re from
an enemy ridge when the
attack was momentarily
halted, according to a cita-
tion for the Navy Cross
written by Roy S. Geiger,
a lieutenant general in the
U.S. Marine Corps.
Wells then led a dem-
olition team forward
through a withering bar-
rage and destroyed one of
three enemy strongpoints.
When the overwhelming
fi re superiority of the
diff erent situations such as
an active shooter and school
lockouts or lockdowns.
“We identify safety areas
and work to address those
areas,” Hays said.
The police department
has an extra patrol in La
Grande school zones during
the morning drop-off period
— the busiest time. Patrols
are present not only in case
of emergencies, but also
to assist with day-to-day
issues, such as road crossing.
After the 2012 Sandy Hook
shooting — the deadliest
school shooting in the U.S. to
date, when a gunman killed
20 elementary
students and
six teachers
in Newton,
Connecticut
— Hays
also started
to patrol in
Hislop
school zones
some morn-
ings in an
unmarked
vehicle.
“We learn
from each of
Pettit
these on how
to harden our
schools so
people with
criminal intent
can’t get to
our kids,” he
said. “We can
Seydel
do our best
to prevent it
and I’m going to pour my
resources into prevention.”
The importance of being
proactive when it comes to
safety also can be seen at the
collegiate level.
Tim Seydel, the vice pres-
ident for university advance-
ment at Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity, explained that EOU
has worked extensively to
develop plans for crises on
campus. The university
worked with county and city
offi cials to create road maps
for incidents, which delineate
the roles the university and
local law enforcement would
take during an emergency.
This helps to ensure quick
response time and decisive
action is taken in a time of
crisis, he said.
EXHIBIT
Continued from Page A1
the story of the Oregon Trail,
the settlement of Eastern
Oregon, and the history of
the Bureau of Land Manage-
ment while we update the
center for the next 30 years,”
Wayne Monger, Vale Dis-
trict manager, said in a BLM
press release.
In addition to the dis-
play, NHOTIC is planning
special programs and per-
formances this summer at
Geiser-Pollman Park, just
west of the museum across
Grove Street.
Explore the trail
The exhibit begins
with an introduction to the
Oregon Trail, including the
chance to pack a wagon
with supplies for two adults
and two children during the
journey. A basket is full of
magnets marked with items
and the corresponding
weight, and visitors can
choose up to 2,400 pounds.
“Do your math care-
fully,” the instructions read.
“Too much weight and the
wagon will be too heavy for
your oxen to pull.”
The display continues with
“Across the Wide Prairie,”
Dick Mason/The Observer
John Martin, U.S. Marine Corps veteran, participates in a fl ag raising ceremony at Summerville
Cemetery on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30, 2022.
enemy made it impossible
for the team to continue,
Wells voluntarily and
alone crawled forward and
across an exposed area and
succeeded in destroying
another position.
After obtaining addi-
tional grenades he again
braved a deadly hail of
shrapnel and bullets, and
although he was seriously
wounded, he succeeded
in killing everyone at the
last center of resistance,
according to Geiger, to
allow the platoon to secure
the ridge.
“His courageous actions
and aggressive fi ghting
spirit were in keeping with
the highest traditions of the
United States Naval Ser-
vice,” Geiger wrote.
Dean Wells never said
much about his war experi-
ences until later in his life.
The family knew about the
Navy Cross but for many
years did not know the
details, Martin said.
The war hero discussed
what he did to earn the
Navy Cross in the 2016
book “We All Have a
Story to Tell,” which was
edited by Robert Wells
and includes many stories
about the Wells family’s
contributions to America’s
World War II eff ort.
Dean Wells’ humility
shines through in the
book. He notes in the
book that the citation he
received for the Navy
Cross indicates he accom-
plished a lot after being
wounded in Okinawa
on May 15, 1945. Wells
begged to diff er.
“Personally I don’t
think I did that much after
I got hit,” he wrote in a
chapter for the 2016 book.
Dean Wells later had
a successful career as an
educator in the Portland
area. He and his wife had
three children. He died in
2018 at the age of 93.
His twin, Gene Wells,
who also lived in Portland,
died fi ve years earlier.
The ceremony Martin
spoke at on May 30 was
attended by about 50
people. Those in atten-
dance included members
of the Imbler Rural Fire
Department, the Patriot
Riders and Pastor Frank
Humber of the Summer-
ville Baptist Church.
Martin said during his
presentation that about
400 veterans are buried
at Summerville Ceme-
tery and relatively little
is known about many of
them.
“But,” he said, “it is
important to remember this
one detail — they served.”
Building inclusive
communities
Another focus for super-
intendents is building inclu-
sive communities within
their schools. According
to Wells one of the biggest
blessings of a small school
is how individualized their
approach with each student
can be.
“You are not a number,
you are an individual, you
are listened to and heard,”
Union’s superintendent said.
Cove Superintendent
Earl Pettit said a sense of
belonging is integral to mit-
igating a lot of issues. When
students feel included, when
they do not feel left out or
pushed out, there are lower
rates of bullying, he said.
Providing mental
health resources
A pressing concern for
schools has been providing
students with mental health
care. According to Union
and Wallowa school offi cials,
districts in the counties have
focused on bringing spe-
cialists onto their staff s in
light of challenges students
of all ages face as a result
of the pandemic and other
stressors.
Jones, of Wallowa, said
when children experience
trauma in their lives, proac-
tive support is necessary to
allow learning to occur.
Similar sentiments were
expressed by Hislop, who
is making sure Imbler’s
teachers are equipped with
ways to speak with students
and teaching strategies to
help them cope.
“You don’t make their
feelings go away, but you
help them cope with those
feelings,” he said.
In addition to having
mental health therapists
available to students, Wells
explained that the Union
School District is working
with Eastern Oregon Univer-
sity to adopt a social-emo-
tional curriculum for next
year.
Students’ mental health is
of vital importance to EOU,
according to Seydel. Given
the challenges of the past
few years, the administra-
tion recognizes behavioral
health is critical now more
than ever.
Seydel said Eastern
Oregon has two professional
counselors on campus, and
if a faculty member notices
a struggling student, there is
a process and team in place
to ensure the individual gets
help.
While questions linger,
schools are taking precau-
tions to keep students safe
and emotionally healthy.
“It can happen anywhere
and we have to keep that in
mind,” Jones said. “When
something like the shootings
happens it makes us realize
the importance of relation-
ships with kids and commu-
nity and how that has to con-
tinue to be a priority for us.”
ABOUT THE
RENOVATION
The $6.5 million renovation
of the Bureau of Land
Management’s National
Historic Oregon Trail
Interpretive Center, near Baker
City, includes new cement
board siding, insulation,
roofi ng, windows and doors,
along with a new heating and
cooling system.
Although the main road to the
top of the hill is closed during
the renovation, the Oregon
Trail Ruts Access on Highway 86
will remain open to the public
for hiking and exploring.
To learn more about the
interpretive center and the
Oregon Trail, visit www.
oregontrail.blm. gov or call
541-523-1843.
which details why emigrants
came west, as well as who
embarked on the trail.
Other panels cover
adventures and obstacles
the pioneers encountered,
the displacement of Native
Americans, and early trail
preservations eff orts, such
as markers placed by Ezra
Meeker.
The story then winds
through preservation eff orts
by the Bureau of Land
Management, including the
building of the National
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Randy Yawn, left, and Kim Orr ponder their choices for packing a
virtual wagon, part of the new Oregon Trail exhibit at the Baker
Heritage Museum, Baker City, on Sunday, May 29, 2022.
Historic Oregon Trail
Interpretive Center, which
opened May 23, 1992.
Other information in the
exhibit details the Baker
County Culture and Her-
itage Passport, which
encourages everyone to
visit participating locations
in Baker County and obtain
a special stamp in the pro-
vided passports.
Locations are the Baker
Heritage Museum, Adler
House Museum, Cross-
roads Carnegie Art Center,
Sumpter Valley Railroad,
Sumpter Valley Dredge,
Sumpter Municipal
Museum, Eastern Oregon
Museum in Haines, Hun-
A basket holds magnets representing potential items to be taken
along on the Oregon Trail at a new exhibit at the Baker Heritage
Museum, Baker City, on Sunday, May 29, 2022. Visitors to the
museum are challenged to choose the best items without exceeding
the weight limit for their team of oxen.
An Independent
Insurance Agency
tington Historical Museum
and Pine Valley Museum
in Halfway.
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the People”
Open
Fri-Sun Take-out
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5pm-8pm Updated
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541-963-8766
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