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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2016
Sisters: ‘They bonded immediately’
Continued from Page 1A
professions, including com-
mercial pilot and CEO of a
machine shop — was raised by
her grandparents, and Musante
by an aunt. Two boys were
placed in foster homes. A third
brother died in infancy.
“Mother had a way of get-
ting rid of the kids,” said John-
ston, an insurance broker and
former paralegal.
When Johnston was adopted,
her new parents changed her
birth name to prevent her bio-
logical family from inding her.
Family accounts paint Dar-
ling as an abusive and unstable
mother. Kibby declined to talk
about her.
An article in The Annis-
ton Star in Alabama from April
1948 describes Darling drop-
ping off the boys — then 10 and
8 — at a San Francisco bus sta-
tion with a sack of clothes and a
quarter and telling them to ind
the adoption agency.
After the brothers died later
in life, Johnston thought she’d
seen the last of her siblings.
But rumors of two older sisters
remained with her until she dug
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Ship tenders bring passengers, Patricia Kibby among
them, to the shore.
through court records several
years ago and conirmed their
existence.
“That’s how I found out,”
she said. “Then I didn’t know
what to do about it.”
Johnston put it out of her
mind — until Musante’s
resourceful
daughter-in-law
brought them all together.
“This is something that should
have happened a long time ago,
for her to get acquainted with
her sisters,” Bill Johnston said.
“They bonded immediately.”
Together at last
Sitting side by side on a
bench inside the Columbia
River Maritime Museum, the
sisters — who didn’t even know
each other until two months ago
— relected on their day, one of
the most important in their long,
eventful lives.
How did it go?
“Amazing,” Kibby said.
“Yes — I inally have a big
sister I can pick on,” Johnston
added, putting her arm around
Kibby. “And I do, too — it’s all
I did, all day.”
The Johnstons had taken
Kibby out for breakfast at Pig
’N Pancake in Astoria. Down in
Cannon Beach, they took pic-
tures in front of Haystack Rock
— the irst time Kibby had seen
the iconic sea stack in real life.
At the Seaside Carousel
Mall, they bought each other
gifts: Kibby got Johnston a sign
that reads, “I smile because
you’re my sister. I laugh because
there’s nothing you can do about
it.” And Johnston found Kibby
a wooden carving of two sisters
hugging with the inscription,
“Sisters are forever.”
“We tried not to tell every-
body that we were sisters,”
Johnston said. “Every store we
went in …”
“… We told them, over and
over,” said Kibby, who lives in
Pomona and Colfax, California.
The Norwegian Jewel set
sail at 5 p.m., but the women
said they would meet up again
in July in Idaho, where Musante
lives, for a family reunion.
Some of their own children may
be present, giving the family’s
younger generations a chance to
know each other in a way their
parents couldn’t until fairly late
in life.
“The whole family is very,
very excited,” Johnston said.
“You never know when you’re
going to ind out something
more about your family.”
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Marti Johnston and Patricia Kibby stand for a portrait
near the Columbia River Maritime Museum.
Salmon: ‘These efforts have already cost billions of dollars’
Continued from Page 1A
It was the ifth time since
2001 that the court has invali-
dated the government’s plans,
and rulings in the case show
increasing impatience with fed-
eral agencies, including NOAA
Fisheries, the Army Corps of
Engineers and the Bureau of
Reclamation. In his 149-page
opinion, Simon found that for
the past 20 years, the agen-
cies have focused on trying to
revive the basin’s 13 endan-
gered and threatened salmon
and steelhead runs by restoring
habitat without compromising
the generation of electricity.
“These efforts have already
cost billions of dollars, yet they
are failing,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, he said, fed-
eral agencies have “done their
utmost” to avoid even consider-
ing breaching the Snake River
dams — despite strong sugges-
tions to do so by Judge James
Redden, who oversaw the case
from 2001 to 2011.
Among those who sued the
government are the Nez Perce
Tribe and the state of Oregon;
conservation groups includ-
ing the Sierra Club, National
Wildlife Federation, Ameri-
can Rivers and Columbia Riv-
erkeeper; and ishing organi-
zations including the Paciic
University of Oregon
Dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers.
Coast Federation of Fisher-
men’s Associations.
The judge ordered the gov-
ernment to come up with a
new plan by March 2018, but
he said the invalid 2014 plan
could nevertheless remain in
effect until then because it does
provide some level of protec-
tion for the salmon. He said he
would not dictate what options
the government must consider
in the new plan, but he noted
that a proper analysis under
federal law “may well require
consideration of the reason-
able alternative of breaching,
bypassing, or removing one or
more of the four Lower Snake
River Dams.”
Many biologists say breach-
ing the dams is a crucial step
for bringing back populations
of salmon and steelhead that
were decimated when the dams
blocked upriver passage to their
breeding grounds. Allowing the
water to low freely would also
reduce its temperature, espe-
cially important in the face of
global warming.
Last summer, hundreds
of thousands of adult salmon
died because of warm tempera-
tures in the reservoirs behind
the Columbia and Snake River
dams, said Todd True, a law-
yer with the environmental
law irm Earthjustice who rep-
resents some of the plaintiffs.
“We need to seriously con-
sider a plan that retires and
removes the four lower Snake
River dams,” he said in a writ-
ten statement. “Only action on
this scale has the potential to
allow wild salmon to survive
and recover in light of the vivid
threat they face from a warm-
ing climate.”
Oregon oficials have sug-
gested another approach: spill-
ing more water over the dams
to improve salmon survival
rates.
The federal agencies were
disappointed in the ruling,
NOAA spokesman Michael
Milstein said in an emailed
statement.
“The decision will require
time and effort to analyze and
fully understand,” the state-
ment said. “We sincerely
appreciate the region’s unprec-
edented collaboration and com-
mitment on behalf of salmon,
and the important progress that
it has produced. We’ll continue
our efforts with our partners to
protect salmon and steelhead
in the Basin and work toward
their recovery.”
The Bonneville Power
Administration, which oper-
ates the dams and has touted
the habitat restoration efforts,
declined to comment Wednes-
day except to say it was review-
ing the decision.
Northwest RiverPartners,
an alliance of farmers, utilities,
ports and businesses, intervened
in the lawsuit on the side of the
government. In a written state-
ment, spokesman Terry Flores
said the government’s plan was
“the most science-based, com-
prehensive and expensive effort
to restore an endangered species
in the nation.”
“The decision potentially
unwinds years of collabora-
tion between federal agencies,
Northwest states and tribes,
and other stakeholders,” Flores
said. “The ruling does not pro-
vide a path forward for the
region, other than re-doing the
plan’s analysis and conducting
an evaluation of alternatives,
including dam removal, under
the National Environmental
Policy Act.”
In addition to suggesting
the agencies consider breach-
ing the dams, the judge found
several aspects of the gov-
ernment’s plan inadequate. It
failed to properly consider the
potentially catastrophic impact
of climate change on the ish
and was based on a dubious
legal framework that allowed
the agencies to conclude the
species were “trending toward
recovery” even with very little
actual improvement in salmon
numbers, he said.
Awards: More than 60 employees honored
Continued from Page 1A
Superintendent Craig Hop-
pes started the awards with a
moment of silence among the
teachers and staff packing the
high school’s commons for
Martha Moore, a former lan-
guage arts teacher who had
been battling illness and died
Tuesday.
“Over 85 people have
worked for the district for 10
or more years, and that says a
lot about our commitment to
our kids and our commitment
to our community,” said Hop-
pes, who has been with the
district 19 years.
The award ceremony hon-
ored about 60 employees who
have been with the district
between 10 and 19 years, and
about 20 more with 20 to 29
years of service.
Hollaway joined ive oth-
ers with more than 30 years
experience, including sec-
ond-grade teacher Deb Nel-
son, fourth-grade teacher
Diana Lilley, special educa-
tion teacher Dianna Young
and former teacher and
technology director Scott
Holmstedt.
Excellence awards
The Collaboration Recog-
nition Award, which honors
a group of teachers working
together to enhance student
learning, went to the staff, vis-
iting teachers and volunteers
of the Gray Alternative High
School. The program helps
students in Clatsop County
who, for whatever reason, do
not it into a traditional high
school, to earn their diploma
from Astoria or pass a Gen-
Court: ‘Warrenton is
where we started. And
we are coming home’
offers from other possible
buyers.
Judge A. Wallace Tashima
In March, Paciic Seafood
found that the ishermen — announced plans to rebuild
including Dennis Rankin of a ish processing plant that
Astoria — showed a sufi- burned down in Warrenton
cient likelihood of success in 2013. State Sen. Betsy
in their legal challenge and Johnson,
D-Scappoose,
demonstrated the potential helped secure $3 million in
for irreparable harm from the state funds to help with the
sale.
project.
The Oregon Attorney
But Haglund continues to
General’s Ofice
question whether
has called the
Paciic Seafood
potential merger
would rebuild in
of Paciic Seafood
Warrenton if the
and Ocean Gold
company is able
“presumptively
to acquire Ocean
unlawful given the
Gold.
degree of market
“Fishermen
concentration.”
in Warrenton and
“The decision
Astoria have a
this week was
signiicant stake
Daniel
about where the
in this battle,”
Occhipinti
dispute would be
Haglund said. “If
heard,” said Dan-
Paciic Seafood
iel Occhipinti, Paciic Sea- were successful in acquir-
food’s general counsel and ing Ocean Gold, industry
director of government sources tell us that the War-
affairs. “We’re disappointed renton plant will never be
with the ruling but we con- rebuilt and would be little
tinue to maintain that the more than a landing station.”
Occhipinti said the com-
plaintiffs’ claims are merit-
less, and we will prove that in pany has always intended to
whatever forum we have to.” rebuild the plant. “Warrenton
Michael Haglund, a Port- is where we started. That was
land attorney for the ish- our irst processing plant,”
ermen, said the ishermen he said. “And we are coming
hope Ocean Gold entertains home.”
Continued from Page 1A
Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Annette Macareno, second from right, was awarded the Classified/Support Staff of the
Year Award for translating and interpreting with Spanish-speaking families for the Asto-
ria School District. John Jacob Astor Elementary School Principal Kate Gohr, left, gave
Macareno the award, flanked by Astoria School Board members Shawn Helligso, second
from left, Jenna Rickenbach, center and Jeanette Sampson.
eral Educational Develop-
ment tests.
“I’ve watched this pro-
gram grow probably the last
eight or nine years to where
we’ve graduated one or two
kids, to last year, where we
graduated 12 kids,” Hoppes
said. And these are 12 kids
who graduated, that if were
not in this program, would not
have graduated from any high
school.”
Annette Macareno, a bilin-
gual teaching assistant, took
home the Classiied/Sup-
port Staff Member of the
Year Award. Macareno often
translates for Spanish-speak-
ing families, and also works
at Astoria’s Migrant Summer
School.
“She is what we call a
connector, Hispanic families
to our school, and also dis-
trictwide” said Principal Kate
Gohr of John Jacob Astor Ele-
mentary School. “She trans-
lates every document we send
out at Astor School.”
Gohr said Macareno helps
the school district igure out
transportation for Hispanic
families, their contact informa-
tion and where parents work,
while also providing teach-
ers language support in the
classroom.
The Certiied Staff Mem-
ber of the Year Award went to
Angela Calvin-Pederson, who
teaches general music at Lewis
and Clark, and orchestra at
Astoria Middle School and the
high school.
“Mr. Hoppes emailed a
month ago and asked us to
play tonight,” said Calvin-Ped-
erson, who conducted the high
school’s orchestra during
the awards. “I go to the high
school class and I was joking
with them like ‘Oh, they’re
going to acknowledge me’ …
But these kids, it’s pretty spe-
cial, because I have them third
to 12th grade, and I watch
them grow up. I chaperone
them at the dances. It’s crazy,
but I do love them to death.”