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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 22, 2019)
DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, APRIL 22, 2019 146TH YEAR, NO. 210 ONE DOLLAR Knappa fire chief to retire Olheiser served for 28 years By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Father William D. Oruko speaks to the congregation on Easter Sunday at St. Mary, Star of the Sea in Astoria. An Easter celebration The faithful marked the holy day By COLIN MURPHEY The Daily Astorian P arishioners at St. Mary, Star of the Sea in Astoria observed Good Friday and Easter over the weekend. Father William D. Oruko delivered both services. CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: People attend a Good Friday service at St. Mary, Star of the Sea in Astoria. Father William D. Oruko, far right, prepares to lead the Easter Sunday service. Father Oruko, far left, prepares to deliver the Easter Sunday service. Members of the congregation bow their heads during the Good Friday service. Paul Olheiser is excited to finally have the chance to finish a woodwork- ing project. “As soon as I get involved in a wood- working project, a tone always goes off and I get distracted,” he laughed. After 38 years as a firefighter and 28 years as the chief of the Knappa Fire Dis- trict, Olheiser, 61, is set to retire in June. After going through a number of sur- geries in the past year, he decided the time was right. “I want to spend more time with my grandkids while I have my health,” he said. Originally from Prineville, Olheiser’s interest in firefighting was piqued while serving in the Marine Corps. He was assigned to protect natural resources as part of his range management duties at Camp Pendleton in California. “I just enjoyed doing it,” he said. After his military tour, Olheiser ended up moving to Madras, where he talked to a friend at the Jefferson County Fire Dis- trict about joining as a volunteer. His first day was actually a trial by fire. A semitruck full of potatoes was in flames on a highway. “I just remember getting the call: ‘Get dressed, get on the truck.’ No training, no nothing,” Olheiser said. “That was real common, getting training on the fly ... it isn’t like it is now. Now they’re required to have about 80 hours of training before they can even go on a call.” While it felt overwhelming in the moment, what he remembers vividly is the satisfaction after the fire was out. He wanted to make firefighting his career. Olheiser was hired part time with the Warm Springs Fire Department before eventually moving to work full time as a captain in the Black Butte Ranch Rural Fire Protection District. A few years later, his fire chief encouraged him to apply for the fire chief position that had opened up in Knappa. “He just came in one day and he put a flyer in front of me. It was an adver- tisement for this position. And he said, ‘I think this is your cup of tea,’” he said. Olheiser decided to make the leap, expecting to be in the position for only about five to seven years. “They say to move positions every five years or so to keep yourself chal- lenged,” he said. Yet every five years, “different things kept making the job challenging.” Over the course of almost three decades, Olheiser led the fire district during a significant period of growth and change. When he started in 1991, Knappa would get about 90 calls a year. Today, it’s closer to 500. Instead of responding to 10 car wrecks, his crew is respond- ing to closer to 100. Wildfire conflagra- tion calls, which used to be a rarity, are becoming more routine. The fire district also expanded from one station to three during Olheiser’s tenure, while also taking over operations at the John Day Fire District. See Olheiser, Page A7 Pursuing nature in a time of climate change By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian I t was a bad year for com- mon murres. In 2015, the small sea- birds, widespread from California to Alaska, were starving. The ocean was a warm soup and the birds’ usual prey was scarce. Thousands of murres died. The above-average ocean temperatures hurting the birds were perfect for massive algal blooms capa- ble of producing the neu- rotoxin domoic acid. The blooms exerted another kind of pressure on ocean ecosystems and delayed or even shut down commer- cial and recreational fisher- ies along much of the West Coast. While temperatures are not as high now and the ocean appears to be more productive than it was in the warm years, nothing is truly back to normal. The ocean is still reeling. In the face of climate change, “normal” is a bit of a moving target anyway. All this to say: 2015 was a strange time to enter the world of natural resources. But that’s when Cassidy Turner, best known locally as a bartender at the Voo- doo Room in Astoria, began online coursework through Oregon State University, pursuing a degree in nat- ural resource policy and management. Beginning in May, Turner, now in her senior year, will leave Astoria and spend much of the Katie Frankowicz/The Daily Astorian See Turner, Page A7 Cassidy Turner is interested in a career in the natural resources sector.
