Local
Food
‘Savor’
debuts
– A2
H O M E & GARDEN
G O R G E
R E A L
SPECIAL
SECTION
INSIDE
E S T A T E
June 2015
W EEKEND E DITION
Vol. 109, No. 43
75 cents
3 Sections, 28 Pages
A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E D A L L E S C H R O N I C L E & H O O D R I V E R N E W S
Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
HOOD RIVER, OREGON
■
SATURDAY, MAY 30 , 2015
Recycling
on wheels
Waste
Not
Ways to save water
To fight the summer drought in
Hood River Valley, homeowners can
take some key steps to cut down on
water use.
■ Don’t spew on the sidewalk! Pic-
tured at right is a sprinkler wasting
precious H2O on the concrete instead
of a lawn that needs it.
■ Water early in the morning, late in
the evening, or at night. Without harsh
sunlight, evaporation is much less.
Make sure water goes where it’s need-
ed and stays put.
■ Reduce and downsize irrigation
sprinklers; fix leaks. Consider voluntar-
ily reducing the number of sprinklers
you use. Fix any leaks quickly and
don’t leave sprinklers running in one
place for longer than necessary.
■ Upgrade old sprinklers. Many
landowners use outdated and waste-
ful impact “butterfly” sprinklers, and
single and double-hole “spray type”
lawn sprinklers.
HR Lions set up
mobile stations
Valley in drought, water
districts urge conservation
By PATRICK MULVIHILL
News staff writer
Hood River Valley is facing one
of its worst droughts in decades.
The Hood River is running at 40
percent below its normal level,
and Mt. Hood bears a paltry 0.1
inches of snow water equivalent
at the National Resources Conser-
vation Service site, compared,
compared to 50 inches in an aver-
age year.
Local irrigation districts and
watershed groups are urging
homeowners and agriculturists to
cut back on their water use by at
least 25 percent.
“Our water is dwindling down,
so we’re asking for conservation,”
www.hoodrivernews.com
said John Buckley, manager of
East Fork Irrigation district.
The East Fork district serves
936 customers across of swath of
9,494 irrigated acres on the east
side of the Hood River. Growers’
land accounts for about 70 to 80
percent of the total acreage, said
Buckley.
Buckley said several people, in-
cluding agriculturists, have called
asking how they can conserve
water. He usually tells them to
check their water pressure and in-
stall micro-sprinklers instead of
older “butterfly” nozzles which
waste water—they spew 5-7 gal-
lons per minute while smaller,
more economic models use about
See LIONS, Page A2
one gallon per minute.
“My goal would be to actually
go work with the growers,” said
Buckley. He said he would rather
visit a grower’s land and consult
with the owner on water conserva-
tion practices than risk “getting in
a fight.”
“The worst scenario is to try to
demand a cut back. I may have to
cut orifices,” said Buckley, refer-
ring to water access from the dis-
trict’s diversion points, which may
have to be decreased.
Steve Castagnoli, associate pro-
fessor of horticulture at the Oregon
State University extension office,
S p o t l i g h t
a
t
u
r
d
a
y
People wishing to easily recycle
deposit-value beverage containers
have a 24/7 option.
The Hood River Lions Club is ex-
panding can and bottle drop-off op-
tions through the use of trailers
that will eventually be sited
around Hood River and the upper
valley.
The first trailer was situated
last month on the west end of the
parking lot at the Hood River Sup-
ply store on 12th Street in Hood
River.
At any time of day, people can
drop off deposit-value beverage
containers at the trailer. The Lions
note the importance of the deposit-
value qualifier. The trailer is
meant only to collect containers
that carry the mandated 5-cent de-
posit paid at purchase.
Recycling of non-deposit con-
tainers can be done through curb-
side pickup or directly at the trans-
fer station on Guignard Drive.
Under Oregon law, the 5-cent de-
posit applies to beer, soft drink,
water and flavored water bever-
ages in metal, glass and plastic bot-
tles and cans of 3-liter or smaller
capacity.
To make sure, look on the label
for the words “OR 5¢”. Only con-
tainers purchased in Oregon may
be returned for deposit at the
Lions Club trailer.
According to the Department of
Environmental Quality, Oregoni-
ans return more than one billion
beverage containers every year.
Because returning containers at
local stores can be a tedious and
messy job, the Lions Club envi-
sioned an easier solution that
would help serve the community.
For several years, the Hood
River Valley Leos Club — a Lions
affiliate club for young people —
has been conducting deposit-value
container collections on the first
Saturday of each month. The Hood
Submitted photo
A weekly series about a day in the life ...
See WATER, Page A8
LION Leonard Wood stands with the recycling trailer, stationed on the Heights.
Joanne Franz sees many changes in 41 years
BY TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
Photos by Trisha Walker
COOK MANAGER Joanne Franz has served
meals at Westside Elementary for 41 years and has
seen many changes in that time, such as how stu-
dents check themselves in for lunch, under the watch of
Franz and Kitchen Helper Susana Hernandez.
A lot can change in 41 years.
Just ask Joanne Franz, Cook Manager III at Westside Ele-
mentary, who began as a substitute kitchen helper in 1974.
She’s seen changes in the way food is prepared and served, in
the students’ tastes, the trend to incorporate local food into
the menu — even the number of schools she serves.
But what hasn’t changed is how much she enjoys the
work.
“I still enjoy the job,” she said. “The kids are great and I
love my coworkers — I have a really great team I work with
in the kitchen.”
It was Franz’s mother-in-law, Jane, who got her started.
Jane was head cook at Westside for many years, and recruit-
ed Joanne as a newlywed.
“I started as a substitute for one of her helpers,” she said.
“So I subbed for a little bit, and that person quit, and I kind
of fell into the position. My interview was with her and
(then principal) Marv Turner.”
Franz worked with her mother-in-law for 12 years before
See JOANNE, Page A8
Four To Go
‘Poetry Slam’
at A Kidz Dental Zone June 3
The eighth grade students of Hood River Middle
School will be participating in a poetry slam June
3 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at A Kidz Dental Zone, 419
State St., Suite 4. All are invited to attend this free
event.
Drinks and snacks will be provided. Parents will
have the opportunity to “buy back” their chil-
dren’s art by making donations. All proceeds will
then be submitted back to HRMS to support the
Arts and Literature departments. Dr. Kyle House
will match the
proceeds.
7
05105 97630
3
HRVHS art show, reception June 2
Digital photography and sculpture by Ad-
vanced Placement Studio Art students at
Hood River Valley High School will be on
display at Dog River Coffee from June 2-11.
Each student has created a series based on a
theme of their choosing. Most art is for sale
and all proceeds will go directly to the
artists.
An artist’s reception will take place at
Dog River Coffee June 2 from 5 to 6 p.m. All
are welcome to come and meet the artists.
Fossil fuel forum
in Portland June 4
Write on: schools offer
K-12 contest
A fossil fuel projects forum is
planned for Portland at 7 p.m. on June
4. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. at Central
Lutheran Church, 1820 NE 21st Ave.,
Portland. Visit the Friends of the
Gorge website to RSVP for the free
event. Friends release said the forum
will look at “coal and oil projects and
what we can do to stop them and carve
a path forward for a clean energy econ-
omy.”
(The June 4 forum is a postpone-
ment of a forum originally planned for
May 27.)
The Hood River Public Schools writ-
ing competition is on. You have until
June 5 to submit your work of fiction,
non-fiction, how-to, poetry, graphic
novel or other type of writing.
It could even be a pop-up. It could be
written either forward or backwards.
Talk to your school librarian for full
details; both English and Spanish
pieces are accepted.
First place prize for K-5 is $50, for 6-8
it’s $75 and for 9-12 it’s $100. Second
and third-place cash prizes will also
be awarded.