SINCE 1979 • VOLUME 39, NO. 37
SECTION A
JUNE 15, 2018
$1.00
THE CLASS OF 2 018
By DEREK WILEY
Of the Keizertimes
SALEM — McNary math teacher Louis
Tiller's dad died when he was 9 years old,
leaving his mom to raise six kids.
One of Tiller's own sons had craniofacial
surgery when he was 8 months old. Another
was diagnosed with dyslexia.
Tiller failed his fi rst Calculus class in college
and when he interviewed for a math position at
McNary, the fi rst time, Tiller didn't get the job.
“Sometimes life knocks you down,” Tiller
told the McNary graduating class of 2018 on
Friday, June 8 at the Oregon State Fairgrounds
Pavilion. “It's your choice whether to get back
up. The teachers who you will remember and
the classes that you will recall from high school
will not be the easy ones. In school as in life
the best things come with the satisfaction of
overcoming
Please see CLASS, Page A7
Volcanoes
return this
weekend
PAGE B1
A new
approach to
substance
abuse
KEIZERTIMES/Derek Wiley
LEFT: McNary 2018 graduate Collin Wentworth receives his diploma. RIGHT: Michaela Ernest, Samantha Van Voorhis, Megan Schneider and Kirsten Williams.
16000
miles
Man
embarks
on sixth
cross-
country
bike ride
By CASEY CHAFFIN
Keizertimes Intern
Keizer resident Brent
Bundy, 50, began his sixth
cross-country bike ride for
breast cancer awareness on
June 1. He plans to take the
“straightest and legalest” path
through the country and
arrive in Staten Island, New
York in mid-October.
Bundy’s bike rides began
in 2006, two years after his
best friend since high school,
Gina, died of breast cancer. To
Brent Bundy recently
launched his sixth cross-
country trek on a bike
to raise awareness for
breast cancer screening.
KEIZERTIMES/
Eric A. Howald
and counting
commemorate her, he rides
dressed in pink and with a
sign strapped to the back of
his bike to encourage women
to get screened early. Catching
the cancer early is the best
way to survive it, so he felt
embarking on his one-man
campaign to promote regular
screenings would be the best
way to prevent people as
loved as his friend Gina from
succumbing to the illness.
“Maybe [seeing my bike]
will remind you to get tested,”
he said.
In addition to the breast
cancer awareness message,
Bundy has written several
other names and causes on his
bike. These include Newtown,
Conn., and Parkland, Fla.,
the cities of two school
Keizer artist
in spotlight
shootings in 2012 and 2018,
respectively, the name of war
correspondent James Foley,
who was killed in Syria in
2014, and the hashtag “So I
Stayed,” referencing the plights
of women caught in abusive
relationships. He describes
these names and causes as “the
closest to my heart.” Raising
awareness about breast cancer
remains his primary goal, and
Gina his primary motivation
to continue.
“I pretend she’s helping me
on the big hills,” Bundy said.
He also attached her name to
his helmet, and he taps it for
encouragement.
Other obstacles arise on
the road, however. Bundy
Please see MILES, Page A9
Would you know
what to do in a
Mental
health
crisis?
Free class will give
you a place to start
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
News
of
Anthony
Bourdain's death by suicide
was the fi rst alert on my
tablet when I awoke Friday,
June 8. What followed was
hours, then days, of would'ves,
could'ves and should'ves
voiced by people who knew
him well and those that didn't.
I've written previously, and
in hyperbolic fashion, about
the hardest words to say in the
English language, but time and
experience are still teaching
me that such diffi culty is the
direct result of context. When
someone angers us, we have
to fi nd our way back to “I
love you.” When someone we
love is being abused, we need
to silence doubt and say, “I
believe you, and it's not your
fault.” When someone is under
assault by their own mind and
looking for a way out, we have
to ask, “Are you thinking of
killing yourself?” And then, if
the response is “no,” ask again.
Under
the
right
circumstances, each of those
phrases is an oversized
elephant in a claustrophobic
room and knowing what to
do when the moment arrives
can be a matter of life and
Please see CRISIS, Page A9
B. Ebbs
headed to Iowa
PAGE B1