LOCAL
A2 — THE OBSERVER
TODAY
In 1918, labor activist and socialist
Eugene V. Debs was arrested in
Cleveland, charged under the Espi-
onage Act of 1917 for a speech he’d
made two weeks earlier denouncing
U.S. involvement in World War I.
(Debs was sentenced to prison and
disenfranchised for life.)
In 1921, President Warren G.
Harding nominated former Pres-
ident William Howard Taft to be
chief justice of the United States,
succeeding the late Edward Doug-
lass White.
In 1934, Adolf Hitler launched his
“blood purge” of political and mili-
tary rivals in Germany in what came
to be known as “The Night of the
Long Knives.”
In 1958, the U.S. Senate passed
the Alaska statehood bill by a vote
of 64-20.
In 1971, the Supreme Court ruled,
6-3, that the government could not
prevent The New York Times or The
Washington Post from publishing
the Pentagon Papers. A Soviet space
mission ended in tragedy when
three cosmonauts aboard Soyuz
11 were found dead of asphyxia-
tion inside their capsule after it had
returned to Earth.
In 1982, the proposed Equal
Rights Amendment to the U.S. Con-
stitution expired, having failed to
receive the required number of rat-
ifications for its adoption, despite
having its seven-year deadline
extended by three years.
In 1985, 39 American hostages
from a hijacked TWA jetliner were
freed in Beirut after being held 17
days.
In 1986, the Supreme Court, in
Bowers v. Hardwick, ruled 5-4 that
states could outlaw homosexual
acts between consenting adults
(however, the nation’s highest court
effectively reversed this decision in
2003 in Lawrence v. Texas).
In 1994, the U.S. Figure Skating
Association stripped Tonya Harding
of the national championship and
banned her for life for her role in the
attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan.
In 2009, American soldier Pfc.
Bowe R. Bergdahl went missing
from his base in eastern Afghan-
istan, and was later confirmed to
have been captured by insurgents
after walking away from his post.
(Bergdahl was released on May 31,
2014 in exchange for five Taliban
detainees; he pleaded guilty to
desertion and misbehavior before
the enemy, but was spared a prison
sentence by a military judge.)
In 2013, 19 elite firefighters
known as members of the Granite
Mountain Hotshots were killed bat-
tling a wildfire northwest of Phoenix
after a change in wind direction
pushed the flames back toward
their position.
In 2016, saying it was the right
thing to do, Defense Secretary Ash
Carter announced that transgender
people would be allowed to serve
openly in the U.S. military, ending
one of the last bans on service in the
armed forces.
In 2020, Mississippi Gov. Tate
Reeves signed a landmark bill
retiring the last state flag bearing
the Confederate battle emblem.
Boston’s arts commission voted
unanimously to remove a statue
depicting a freed slave kneeling at
Abraham Lincoln’s feet.
Today’s birthdays: Actor Lea
Massari is 89. Actor Nancy Dussault
is 86. Songwriter Tony Hatch is 83.
Singer Glenn Shorrock is 78. Actor
Leonard Whiting is 72. Jazz musician
Stanley Clarke is 71. Actor David Gar-
rison is 70. Rock musician Hal Lindes
(Dire Straits) is 69. Actor-comedian
David Alan Grier is 66. Actor Vin-
cent D’Onofrio is 63. Actor Deirdre
Lovejoy is 60. Actor Rupert Graves is
59. Former boxer Mike Tyson is 56.
Actor Peter Outerbridge is 56. Rock
musician Tom Drummond (Better
Than Ezra) is 53. Actor Brian Bloom is
52. Actor Monica Potter is 51. Actor
Molly Parker is 50. Actor Tom Burke
is 41. Actor Lizzy Caplan is 40. Actor
Susannah Flood is 40. Rock musi-
cian James Adam Shelley (American
Authors) is 39. Country singer Cole
Swindell is 39. R&B singer Fantasia is
38. Olympic gold medal swimmer
Michael Phelps is 37. Actor Sean
Marquette (TV: “The Goldbergs”)
is 34.
CORRECTIONS
The Observer works hard to be
accurate and sincerely regrets
any errors. If you notice a
mistake in the paper, please call
541-963-3161.
LOTTERY
Monday, June 27, 2022
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7 p.m.: 6-1-1-3
10 p.m.: 6-3-7-1
THuRSday, JunE 30, 2022
La Grande Dutch Bros has new owner
David Beamer
also acquires
Pendleton
franchise
EOU, TVCC,
BMCC agree to
strategic plan to
close equity gaps
By JOHN TILLMAN
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — David
Beamer, of Walla Walla,
has bought Dutch Bros
coffee shop franchises in
La Grande and his home-
town of Pendleton. He
acquired two franchises in
Walla Walla, in 2008 and
2018, and another in
Milton-Freewater in 2013.
“I was born in Walla
Walla and lived in Athena
through kindergarten,”
Beamer said, ”but moved
to Pendleton for first
grade, and graduated from
high school there in 2000.
It’s exciting to own a fran-
chise in my hometown.”
Beamer graduated from
Oregon State University in
2004.
“I worked at Hill Meat,
slaughtering hogs every
morning,” he said. “In
October 2002, I started
working night shifts at
Dutch Bros, and made
manager in 2007. I never
thought that pouring and
handing out coffee was
going to be my future. But
it’s the easiest and most
The Observer
Brady Cutler/For The Observer
The Dutch Bros in La Grande is under new ownership after being purchased recently by David Beamer,
of Walla Walla. Beamer also purchased the Pendleton franchise to add to his locations in Walla Walla
and Milton-Freewater.
fun job I’d ever had, so I
made a career of it.”
At a Dutch Bros
meeting in Nashville,
Beamer learned about the
opportunity to buy fran-
chises in La Grande, Pend-
leton and Hermiston from
their owner Marc Lee. A
friend from the Tri-Cities
purchased the Hermiston
shop.
“I might be the only
franchisee with a store in
his hometown,” he said.
“There may be only about
40 franchises left. The
company owns most of the
stores. Dutch Bros’ target
is 4,000 locations.”
Beamer has been
amazed at the loyalty of
his customers.
“We had regulars at
the Milton-Freewater
store who drove daily
from Pilot Rock,” he said.
“The Pendleton outlet has
saved them a lot of time
and money. It’s exciting
for me to be on the road to
Pendleton and La Grande
every Wednesday and
Thursday.”
yasser Marte/East Oregonian
David Beamer, of Walla Walla,
shown with his daughter, Ayla, on
June 27, 2022, purchased Dutch
Bros coffee shop franchises in
La Grande and Pendleton.
Ron Pickens/Contributed Photo
Ground was officially broken Monday, June 27, 2022, for the new bicycle playground to be constructed behind Wallowa schools.
Ground broken for bike playground
Plans made for
Aug. 20 grand
opening
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
WALLOWA — Ground
was officially broken
Monday, June 27, for a
bicycle playground to
be built behind Wallowa
schools and plans are well
underway for an Aug. 20
grand opening, project
leader Ron Pickens said.
Pickens, a prevention
coordinator and alterna-
tive school teacher with
Building Healthy Fami-
lies in Enterprise, spear-
headed last year’s project
to refurbish the Enterprise
Skate Park. Since then,
Eastern
Oregon
colleges
join forces
he became interested in
seeing a similar project
built in Wallowa.
He said that the project
— which is expected
to cost $329,500 —
has received pledges
of $12,000 from the
Reser Family Founda-
tion and $10,000 from
the Roundhouse Foun-
dation to match $22,000
raised locally. The Wal-
lowa County Board of
Commissioners pitched
in $7,000 and they have
since received additional
support totaling $2,000.
Early on in the project,
the Wallowa City Council
pledged $2,000 and the
Wallowa School District
agreed to have the project
built on its property.
Pickens said plans for
the grand opening of the
playground are coming
together. Tony Hoffman
is scheduled as a guest
speaker. Hoffman is a
former BMX Elite Pro
and placed second at
the 2016 World Cham-
pionships in Medellin,
Colombia, in the Masters
Pro Class. Hoffman also
coached Women’s Elite
Pro Brooke Crain to a
fourth-place finish at the
2016 Rio Olympic Games
in Brazil.
“His story is full of
redemption as he has seen
some of the highest highs
and the lowest lows,”
Pickens said.
Hoffman is the founder
and director of the Free-
wheel Project, a non-
profit organization that
mentors thousands of
youths through action
sports. Today, he is one of
the most requested sub-
stance-abuse speakers in
the country, traveling over
200 days a year to share
his inspiring story with
various audiences.
Pickens also said he
is ordering and seeking
raffle donations for the
day of the event for those
attending and is in the
process of lining up food
and beverage vendors.
He said there will be
community partners —
such as Mountain Works
Bike Shop from La
Grande, Dusty’s Board
Shop out of Walla Walla
and the Oregon Depart-
ment of Transporta-
tion — setting up booths
the day of the opening.
Building Healthy Fami-
lies will have its fleet of
mountain bikes and hel-
mets for kids to ride the
new facility.
NEWS BRIEFS
Oregon Department of
Forestry begins fire season
in Northeast Oregon District
LA GRANDE — Warming tem-
peratures and changing fuel con-
ditions are prompting the Oregon
Department of Forestry to begin
fire season on private forestland in
Northeastern Oregon.
Fire season will begin at
12:01 a.m. Friday, July 1, for for-
estland and rangeland protected by
ODF Northeast Oregon District,
according to an announcement from
the department.
“We’ve seen a little reprieve
this spring and early summer. Fire
season has been announced in June
for the past few years, so it’s been
good to have some delay this year,”
Matt Howard, an ODF district for-
ester, said.
The fire season declaration
implements fire prevention restric-
tions on landowners and the public.
Additionally, fire prevention reg-
ulations on industrial logging and
forest management activities are put
into place. Lands affected include
private, state, county, municipal and
tribal lands in Union, Baker, Wal-
lowa and Umatilla counties along
with small portions of Malheur,
Morrow and Grant counties within
the Northeast Oregon Forest Protec-
tion District. This area encompasses
approximately 2 million acres of
protected lands.
“Those spring storms have pro-
vided some much-needed moisture.
However, this moisture has caused
a lot of growth in our fine fuels,
such as grasses, small brush and
shrubs,” Howard said. “These are
often our carrier fuels and are more
susceptible to quickly drying and
becoming ready-to-burn faster.”
Cove City Council to review,
approve bids for city hall
expansion
COVE — The Cove City
Council will review bids for the
community’s city hall expansion
and remodel during its meeting
Tuesday, July 5.
It is expected that the city, after
reviewing all of the received bids,
will approve a bid during the July 5
meeting, according to Sherry Riley,
Cove city recorder. Bids were due
to the city by 2 p.m. June 30.
During the city’s May 4 meeting,
the city council discussed that
expansion plans would include
moving a portion of city hall into
the connected shop building.
Cove Mayor Sherry Haeger said
prior to the city’s May 4 meeting,
the expansion project will be paid
for with funds from the federal
government for helping cities to
deal with issues related to COVID-
19. She said that expanding city
hall will create a safer site by pro-
viding extra space, preventing
people from being packed closely
together at meetings.
Scott Newman, the execu-
tive director of the Union County
Chamber of Commerce, is sched-
uled to present during the council
meeting.
Public comments for the council
can be submitted via email to
cityadmin@cityofcove.org before
6:45 p.m. July 5. Participation via
Zoom videoconference also is
available. For access, go to www.
gotomeet.me/CityofCove or call
877-309-2073. The access code for
the meeting is 566-891-733.
— The Observer
LA GRANDE — A col-
laboration between three
Eastern Oregon schools aims
to close equity gaps for the
region’s students at two- and
four-year colleges and uni-
versities by 2030.
Gov. Kate Brown
announced Monday, June
27, an investment of $1.6
million for Eastern Oregon
University, Treasure Valley
Community College and
Blue Mountain Community
College to launch an initia-
tive called “Moon Shot for
Equity.” The three schools
will work together as part of
a five-year, student-centered
comprehensive strategic plan
to identify and remove sys-
temic barriers that are pre-
venting access to and attain-
ment of a postsecondary
education.
“Every student in Oregon,
no matter who they are or
where they come from,
deserves equitable access to
higher education. We must
invest and innovate to break
down the barriers that have
kept too many Oregonians
from succeeding in higher
education,” Brown said in
a press release announcing
the initiative. “This initial
investment is just the start of
a program to deliver lasting
and meaningful change this
year and in years to come.
Every person in Eastern
Oregon — and throughout
the state — should be able
to attend college and earn a
degree.”
The initiative is part of
Brown’s work with public
universities and community
colleges to embrace innova-
tion and focus on working
smarter across education
sectors to support students
through every stage of edu-
cation. The $1.6 million will
be funded with federal Gov-
ernor’s Emergency Edu-
cation Relief Fund dollars,
which are reserved for allo-
cations by governors through
the Coronavirus Response
and Relief Supplemental
Appropriations Act.
“This initial invest-
ment is a critical first step to
launching this five-year ini-
tiative,” Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity President Tom Insko
said. “Together, I believe
we can reshape the future
of postsecondary education
in Eastern Oregon, which
means eliminating the equity
gap and making sure all stu-
dents reach their attainment
goals in less time and money
and set the path to better
career outcomes.”
The Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity Board of Trustees
convened via Zoom for a
special meeting on June 27
to authorize Insko to enter
into a contract with educa-
tional consulting firm EAB
Global, Inc. Board authoriza-
tion is required because the
contract exceeds $1 million.
EAB Global launched
the Moon Shot project in
the fall of 2020 with a focus
on removing systemic bar-
riers to graduation among
first-generation students as
well as students of color.
“Our work with this new
cohort of institutions in
Eastern Oregon adds a new
focus around bridging the
rural versus urban divide
that too often leaves students
from more remote areas with
reduced access to higher
education and all of the
opportunities that go along
with that,” EAB Vice Pres-
ident of Partnerships Tom
Sugar said.
Blue Mountain Commu-
nity College President Mark
Browning said open and
equitable access is what the
Pendleton-based institution
strives for.
“We are excited about
how Moon Shot for Equity
can help us reach those goals
and deliver even greater suc-
cess for students,” he said.