A2
Hood River News, Saturday, January 31, 2015
Filing period begins
for May 19 election
The filing period has start-
ed for the Hood River County
Special District election on
May 19.
Filings for special district
seats are accepted through
March 19, which is also the
deadline for districts to file a
measure for the May elec-
tion.
The positions are for all
county special districts, in-
cluding the county-wide Li-
brary District.
Potential candidates can
find the filing form on the
Hood River County Elections
w e b s i t e ,
www.hoodriver.co.us/electio
ns.
All applications must be in
the Elections office no later
than 5 p.m. on March 19. For
details contact the Hood
River County Elections of-
fice at 541-386-1442.
F IRE
eyeglasses and clothes, but
they have enough for now to
get by,” Sieverkropp said.
The home is located next
to a steep, heavily vegetated
area overlooking the Colum-
bia River, at the end of a 30-
yard sloped driveway, mak-
ing hose attacks possible pri-
marily from the south and
west sides.
Mason was first on scene
and said the house was en-
gulfed. “If there had been
anyone in there at that time
they would not have made
it,” he said. He checked the
perimeter and determined
that everyone was out safely.
Char maine McCafferty
said the family awoke when
they realized there were
flames in the garage.
The first is under investi-
gation and the cause is un-
known, according to West-
side Fire Marshal Jim Tram-
mell.
Continued from Page A1
DALTON HUTSON, Kyle Bond, Alex Dahlstrom, Troy Hewitt and Angel Jones, are team “Bucket of Bolts,” aka “Bob.” The Ro-
botics I team will compete in the First Tech Challenge (FTC) Tournament in The Dalles this Saturday. Not pictured: Team mem-
bers Lizet Monzo and Ivan Castillo. Below Terri Hewitt and Garrett Kelly work on their Robotics 2 entry.
‘Confidence will come’
FTC Robotics teams
head to The Dalles for
Tournament Saturday
BY TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
Eight Robotics teams from Hood
River Valley High School — along
with two each from Hood River Mid-
dle School and Wy’east Middle
School — are competing in the
FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Tour-
nament in The Dalles today, Jan. 31,
at The Dalles Middle School. The
Hood River County School District
has the largest FTC Robotics team
in the state, said HRVHS engineer-
ing and math teacher Jeff Black-
man, who is taking teams from his
Robotics I and Robotics II classes.
The free event is open to the public
and is the local qualifier for the in-
ternational FTC robotics competi-
tions for students in grades 7-12.
Best public viewing is from 12-3 p.m.
The Dalles Middle School is at 1100
E. 12th St.
HRVHS students have been con-
structing and fine-tuning their ro-
botic entries since September, often
putting in late nights after school.
The team of Garrett Kelly, Cole Os-
borne, Terri Hewitt, Kiefer Kreps,
and Maddy Graham, seniors, and
Payton Rigert, a junior, were still
working on constructing their robot
in Robotics II Wednesday afternoon
— a common occurrence with over
30 students in the class and limited
equipment time. Were they confi-
dent in their design?
“Confidence will come once we’re
all done,” Kelly quipped.
In Robotics I, Angel Jones, Kyle
Bond, Alex Dolstrom and Lizet
Monzo, all freshman, and Dalton
Hutson, Troy Hewitt and Ivan
Castillo, sophomores, had their
robot in the ring and were testing
its ability to play the game they
would be judged in on Saturday:
Teams compete on a 12-by-12 foot
field, working to pick up plastic
balls and place them into strategi-
cally placed cones around the game
table; touching the cones results in
an automatic deduction.
“It’s been five months of trial and
error,” said Hewitt, noting that if
something didn’t work, it was
quickly discarded in favor of anoth-
er idea to turn the robot into “what-
ever this is now.”
The students are learning real-
world skills, such as problem solv-
ing, work as a team, and how to
modify and change designs.
“Plus, the world is getting so me-
chanical, it’s good to know this,”
said Hewitt.
“In the future, STEM jobs (sci-
ence, technology, engineering and
math) are going to be a top priority,”
added Jones. “Even now, there are
lots of things to do with electron-
ics.”
Blackman is looking for FTC
team sponsors, as entry fees for
each event costs between $150 and
$1,000. Right now, School Aid is the
program’s only sponsor. Those in-
terested in sponsoring a team of
five to 10 students is asked to con-
tact Blackman at 541-386-4500 or
Jeff.blackman@hoodriver.k12.or.us.
Help the Library win the million page challenge
A g auntlet has been
thrown! Hood River County
Library District has been is-
sued a Million Page Chal-
lenge by the Pendleton Pub-
lic Library and a combined
team of the Harney & Lake
County Libraries. T his
three-way race is to see
which library’s patrons can
reach one million pages first.
With help from patrons,
Hood River County could
win.
Libraries will count pages
of library materials read by
people aged 16 and over be-
tween Feb. 1 and March 15,
2015. The library that reach-
es a million pages first wins
bragging rights. If no library
has reached a million pages
by March 15, the library with
the most pages read wins.
Patrons can stop by any
Hood River County Library
District location to pick up a
bookmark to track their
reading, or they can keep
track themselves on any
piece of paper.
Books, magazines, news-
ing the challenge period to
win. Participants will need
to record the title and num-
ber of pages they read or lis-
ten to. To count audiobook
and e-book “pages,” library
staff can help look up the
number of pages of a print
book of the same title. Pages
can be turned in any time at
any Hood River County Li-
brary District location.
For more infor mation,
please contact the Hood
River County Library Dis-
trict
at
541-386-2535,
info@hoodriverlibrary.org,
or visit their website at
hoodriverlibrary.org.
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
PLACARD near the library front entrance spells out details of the
million page challenge, starting Feb. 1.
papers, e-books, and audio-
books checked out from the
library all count. They must
be started and finished dur-
HOOD RIVER NEWS (ISSN 07465823) is
published twice weekly, every Wednesday
and Saturday. Subscription rates: $42 per
year prepaid ($36 for senior citizens, 65 and
over) in Hood River County and western
Wasco County, Oregon; and Klickitat and
Skamania counties,Washington. Elsewhere,
$68 prepaid per year. Known office of pub-
lication, 419 State Ave., Hood River, OR
97031-2031. Periodicals postage paid at
Hood River, Oregon. POSTMASTER: Send
address changes to HOOD RIVER NEWS,
P.O. Box 390, Hood River, OR 97031-0103.
daughter, Charmaine McCaf-
ferty, comforted her daugh-
ter, Gracie, 11, and their dog
on a bench along Westcliff.
Police officer Erin Mason
carried Gracie to a warm car.
The Red Cross is providing
lodging and Suzanne’s em-
ployer, Windermere Realty,
got her a rental vehicle.
“They’re shaken, but
good,” Sieverkropp said.
Michael Maurer suffered su-
perficial burns, but other-
wise the four occupants were
unhurt, according to Siev-
erkropp.
A fund has been set up to
assist the Maurers, at U.S.
Bank.
“It’s overwhelming to start
from scratch — medications,
Create a scrapbook at
the Parkdale, CL library
Create a handmade three
ring 8-by- 8-inch scrapbook
album at the library. Deco-
rate the album with ribbons,
tags, and other various ele-
ments. Classes will be held
Saturday, Feb.21, 2 p.m. at the
Parkdale Library and Satur-
day, Feb.28, 2 p.m. at the Cas-
cade Locks Library.
Local mother of two, Pam
Sanchez will teach the class.
Sanchez has lived in the
gorge for the past 20 years.
Scrapbooking is a hobby for
Gas Appliances
Electrical Repair
Get your RV
road ready!
RV Doc — Bruce Henderson
Mobile Service & Repair
State Fire Marshal
Certification
#001242-08
Service & Repair. I come to you!
B RUCE H ENDERSON
541-993-5982
Sanchez and she loves to pre-
serve memories and stories.
The presentation is free
and open to the public.
Valentine’s
Day
Special
FOUR
COURSE
DINNER
Call for Reservations
541-386-3940
Stonehedge
Gardens
L ICENSED & C ERTIFIED
Hear Better Now!
Free Consult
* In your home or
at our office *
Hearing Aid Counselors
541-387-3277
$200 off Binaural Fitting
APPLE VALLEY BBQ
HOOD RIVER RESTAURANT
RIVERSIDE AT THE HOOD RIVER INN
Cherry wood smoked pulled pork, meatloaf, pork ribs, chick-
en, burgers, awesome salads & vegetarian options. Smoked
Prime Rib on Friday & Saturday night! Local draft beers, wine
and hard cider. Full service catering available! Full menu
online!
Open Wed-Sun: 11-8
4956 Baseline Dr, Parkdale
541-352-3554 • AppleValleyBBQ.com
Chinese and American dishes. Golden Rose Lounge with our
Famous Scorpion! Try our lunch specials and great dinner
combinations! Banquet facilities available.
Open Every Day: 11:30 am to 10 pm
108 Second St., Hood River;
541-386-3966 • VISA, MasterCard
Enjoy panoramic river views and casual dining from Chef
Mark DeResta’s menus featuring fresh, all-natural ingredi-
ents for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Live weekend enter-
tainment and happiest hours in town, Mon. - Fri., 4-6pm at
Cebu Lounge.
BEST WESTERN PLUS Hood River Inn
1108 E. Marina Way, Hood River
541-386-4410
Open every day 6 am to 9 pm
GRACE SU’S
CHINA GORGE RESTAURANT
HOOD RIVER TAQUERIA
MEXICAN RESTAURANT
Serving the best Szechuan and Hunan Chinese food in the
Gorge. Healthy dining. All food prepared fresh, no MSG
added. Lunch and dinner. Dine in or take out. Beautiful view
& convenient parking.
2680 Old Columbia River Dr, Hood River
541-386-5331
Featuring fine authentic Mexican food and cocktails.
Spacious outdoor seating.
Open seven days a week:
Sun. - Thurs. 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.,
Fri. - Sat. 9:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
1210 13th St., on the Heights, Hood River
541-387-3300
ADVERTISE YOUR RESTAURANT HERE!
Only $0.25 a word with a 25 word minimum.
Contact your ad representative today!
Jody, Liana, Kirsten or Chelsea
Mon - Fri: 8am - 5pm
541.386.1234 • HoodRiverNews.com