DEBUT
Hogars de Niños
Wedding
planning
magazine
– A9
Helping orphans in Guatemala –
M IDWEEK E DITION
B1
HOOD RIVER, OREGON
Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
■
Vol. 109, No. 14
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015
75 cents
2 Sections, 20 Pages
www.hoodrivernews.com
Man charged with murder in 2009 Eagle Creek death
By BEN MITCHELL
News staff writer
A Bend man has been charged
with murder in connection with
the death of a Portland woman that
occurred in 2009 west of Cascade
Locks.
Stephen Wagner Nichols, 40, was
arrested Feb. 12 at the San Francis-
co Airport for allegedly murdering
Rhonda Kristen Casto, who was 23
when she died Monday, March 16,
2009 on the popular Eagle Creek
Trail.
According to a story in the
March 18, 2009 edition of the News,
Hood River 911 received a call at
Darren
Nichols
resigns
by Deputy Mark Smith
6:09 p.m. the evening of
March 16, 2009 from a
and for mer deputy
man who reported he
Gerry Tiffany.
had
accompanied
Rescuers ar rived
Casto on a hike. He
shortly after 7 p.m. and
claimed Casto had died
found the body of
after falling off a cliff
Casto down an em-
on the trail.
bankment located ap-
Hood River County
proximately 100 feet
Sheriff Matt English, a
off the trail, according
deputy at the time, con-
to the ar ticle. The
firmed that he was one Stephen Wagner Nichols story did not identify
of the responding
the male caller and no
deputies. English de-
follow-up story about
clined to offer specifics on the inci- the circumstances of her death
dent, other than he recalled it was could be found, nor was there a
raining and he was accompanied mention of Nichols.
A 2011 U.S. District Court case
detailing a dispute between
Nichols and a life insurance com-
pany provides additional informa-
tion. According to the text of the
case, Nichols had become “roman-
tically involved” with Casto in 2005
and the two had a child together in
mid-2008. The text of the case notes
that Nichols and Casto each bought
a $1 million life insurance policy in
late 2008 and that “each policy
named the other as the primary
beneficiary,” with their daughter
as the “contingent beneficiary.”
The case’s text also states that
Casto’s “death is considered to
‘It’s less about the subject matter expertise than how to help students
ask higher level questions.’ – Haley Harkema, AVID teacher
See CHARGE, Page A5
Funland
finale?
Rasmussens will sell
famed Pine Grove
destination farm
Gorge Commission
executive takes job in
Seattle in April
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News editor
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News editor
Columbia River Gorge Commis-
sion executive director Darren
Nichols will leave the Commission
in April to take on a new role as the
Associate Director of the William
D. Ruckelshaus Center in Seattle.
Nichols joined the Commission
three years ago immediately fol-
lowing a period of deep agency
budget cuts.
“When I first arrived at the Com-
mission, we didn’t know whether
we would be able to keep the doors
open for more than
a few months,”
Nichols remembers
with a smile. “I’m
pleased that we are
in a much better po-
sition now. I sin-
cerely hope the
states will continue
Darren Nichols to invest in the
Commission’s vital
planning role for a healthy, sustain-
able Gorge future.”
“The commission is still in a
good position to stay engaged to the
legislative session and that will be
one of my highest priorities in the
transition, to stay engaged and
build as much support and partner-
ships between the states as we pos-
sibly can,” Nichols said Monday.
Gorge Commission chair Keith
Chamberlain said, “I am saddened
Darren is leaving us at the CRGC.
In three short years he has helped
stabilize our funding and intro-
duced us to a new way of thinking
of who we are and how we should
function as the Columbia River
Gorge Commission. I will miss
working with Darren and wish him
the best in his new endeavors.”
Nichols has been critical in re-
cent months of Washington Gov.
Jay Inslee’s budget commitment to
the Scenic Area — which he high-
lighted as an example of a “long
term pattern of orchestrated disin-
vestment” in the commission — as
well as the “outdated system” used
to determine the agency’s budget.
Inslee increased his state’s commit-
ment to the Commission by $64,000.
have occurred under suspicious
circumstances,” and adds that
Casto’s mother had filed a wrongful
death claim against Nichols and
filed a suit on behalf of Casto’s es-
tate that laid claim to the insurance
proceeds. According to an order
signed by former Judge Ancer L.
Haggerty, the wrongful death claim
was dismissed as the court could
not exercise jurisdiction over that
matter.
A copy of the secret indictment
that ultimately charged Nichols
with the death of Casto was filed in
Hood River County Circuit Court
Photos by Trisha Walker
AVID’S ESTEFANIA GALLARDO ALVAREZ and peer tutor Sam Ortiz-Gandara work through a complicated
math equation during a small group session.
AVID learners need tutors
BY TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
Hood River County School
District middle and high
school students are AVID for
college.
AVID — Advancement Via
Individual Determination — is
a new instruction-based elec-
tive designed to increase the
number of students who enroll
in four-year colleges.
Last year, HRCSD received a
“competitive grant from the
Oregon Department of Educa-
tion to suppor t student
achievement and mentoring
programs,” said Kim Yasui,
ANGEL SOLIS works
on a math problem.
Hood River County School Dis-
trict coach and AVID director.
Hood River Middle School,
Wy’east Middle School and
Hood River Valley High School
began recruiting tutors in the
spring of 2014, with the pro-
gram’s official start coming in
September. There is one AVID
elective class at each of the
three schools, with between 25
and 30 students enrolled per
site.
While the program is up and
running, volunteer tutors are
still needed. Training will be
held twice a week at each of
the participating schools,
where tutors will learn to work
with small groups under the
supervision of an AVID elec-
tive teacher.
At the middle school level,
eighth graders are participat-
ing in the program; sopho-
mores are enrolled at the high
school level. Participating stu-
dents are from the “academic
middle” with grade point aver-
ages ranging from 2.5 to 3.2,
said HRVHS AVID elective
teacher Haley Harkema, and
whose circumstances vary:
they may be the first in their
family slated to graduate from
high school or not have an es-
tablished academic support
system, for example.
But they have to want it. Stu-
dents are invited to join the
program, and then to apply.
They must receive at least two
recommendations from teach-
ers, and then interview to get
into the class.
And that’s where the tutors
come in.
Harkema said it’s not so
much what a tutor knows (“al-
though it would be wonderful
having professionals volun-
teer,” she added) as it is to sim-
ply have an interest. Tutors
See AVID, Page A9
GET INVOLVED
Tutor training will be held Feb.
21 and again on Feb. 28, from 9
a.m. to 3 p.m. Lunch will be pro-
vided. Tutors are needed at Wy’east
Middle School from 8:40-9:50
a.m., Hood River Middle School
from 2:55-3:45 p.m., and Hood
River Valley High from 2:10-3:30
p.m.
For more information, contact
Kim Yasui at 541-387-5704 or
Kim.yasui@hoodriver. k12.or.us.
See GORGE, Page A5
For Lynn and Dollie Rasmussen,
2015 will be a landmark year, but
without the land.
The Rasmussens, owners of one
of Hood River County’s best-known
places, Rasmussen’s Farms, are
selling the property that has been
in the family for 70 years.
The Rasmussens, who will cele-
brate their 60th wedding anniver-
sary on Aug. 14, will place the farm
for sale
on March
1,
and
m o v e
when the
17-acre
spread
s e l l s .
T h e y
hold hope
t h a t
someone
will con-
tinue to
operate
the farm
as it has
been for
50 years.
R a s -
mussen
File photo
Farms is
an agri- PUMPKIN FUNLAND
tourism version of Paul Revere.
destina-
tion on
Thomsen Road in Pine Grove, fa-
mous for its Pumpkin Funland and
Corn Maze attractions each fall, its
summer and fall produce selection,
and its flower gardens featuring
one of the largest assortments of
sunflowers in Oregon.
“We’ve had very kind comments
from people, and I know they’ve
had a good time over the years. And
we’re hopeful someone else will
come along and have a good time
with that,” Dollie said. “We just feel
its time.”
The Rasmussens will retire for
good once the farm is sold, but they
have not been operating the place
for the past five years, since leasing
it in 2010 to Patrick and Julie
Milling. The lease expired this
year, and the Millings opted out of
the purchase option.
The Millings purchased the mail-
See FARM, Page A9
Three To Go
Aporkalypse Now! returns Feb. 20
The second annual Aporkalypse Now! — Hood River’s Bacon Festival will be
on Feb. 20 , 6-9 p.m.at Springhouse Cellars in Hood River. It’s an evening of
bringing together those who can cook with bacon and those who go hog wild
over the stuff. Restaurants will be vying for the coveted Golden Ticket to the
World Food Championships, a bacon eating contest, bacon poetry, and even a
Kevin Bacon look-alike contest. Kids can take a whack at a candy-filled “pig-
nata”. Participating restaurants include Apple Valley BBQ, Boda’s Kitchen,
Double Mountain Brewery, SawTooth Roadhouse, and White Buffalo Wine Bar.
Tickets are $20 and available on www.eventbrite.com or at the door (on a space
available basis). All proceeds go to Helping Hands Against Violence, a non-prof-
it organization in the Gorge which supports victims of domestic violence (541-
386-4808). Helping Hands relies upon commu-
nity support for its programs including shel-
ter for women and children, counseling, job
training, and other resources.
7
05105 97630
3
Native plants
now available to order
Hood River Soil Water Conservation
District is taking orders through
March 20 for its annual native tree
and plant sale.
Check out the SWCD website at
hoodriverswcd.org to download an
order form and gather information on
plant descriptions and site suitability.
Tree and shrub orders can be placed
by mail, e-mail
(kris@hoodriverswcd.org) or phone
(541-386-4588), or at 3007 Experiment
Station Rd. for more information or
guidance.
Immanuel hosts glow-in-the-dark golf
Hood River’s only full-size
indoor “Glow in the Dark”
mini-golf course will open its
doors for two weekends this
month. This course offers 18
unique and entertaining holes
that will be q fun challenge for
all ages. Immanuel Lutheran
Church (9th and State streets)
hosts the course in its base-
ment, and all proceeds go to-
wards Immanuel’s middle school and senior high
youth ministries. Hours are Feb. 20, 5 to 8 p.m.; Feb.
21 , 2 to 8 p.m., Feb. 27 , 5 to 8 p.m. and Feb. 28, 2 to 8
p.m. Cost is $5 per person for 18 holes.