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HOOD RIVER, OREGON • Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
Dani Annala new OSU
Extension 4-H coordinator
Dani Annala has been hired as the
new Oregon State University Exten-
sion Service 4-H program coordinator
in Hood River County.
Annala, who started on Jan. 6, is re-
sponsible for the management, over-
sight and leadership of the 4-H Youth
Development program in the county.
She was previously the 4-H program
coordinator and county leader from
December 2010 to July 2015.
“I’m excited to return to lead Ex-
tension 4-H in Hood River County,”
Annala said.
“Being the 4-H program coordina-
tor here for four and a half years was
one of the most enjoyable and mean-
ingful positions I’ve held.”
Annala has a variety of experi-
ence in the Colum-
bia Gorge: She spent
the last 18 months
as food safety coor-
dinator for the Di-
amond Fruit Com-
pany in Odell; and
prior to that, she
Dani Annala
was a relationship
manager and branch
manager for Northwest Farm Credit
Services in The Dalles.
She has been involved in several
local, state and national organiza-
tions, including the National Associa-
tion of Extension 4-H Agents, Oregon
4-H Foundation, OSU Extension As-
sociation, the Hood River Valley FFA
Alumni Association and the Mid-Co-
www.hoodrivernews.com
LUNCH AND LEARN
Crossing the
Border: Looking into
immigration
lumbia Junior Livestock Show.
Annala holds two degrees from
OSU: A bachelor’s in agricultural
business management/general agri-
culture and a master’s in agriculture
education.
“With more than 6 million mem-
bers, 4-H is the largest out-of-school
youth program in the United States,”
said an OSU press release. “4-H em-
powers young people with hands-on
learning experiences to help them
grow and thrive. By creating a safe
and welcoming environment, young
people develop the skills needed to
make a positive impact on the world
around them.”
By TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
The third in a series of Lunch and
Learn presentations at the Hood
River Library, held Jan. 23, tackled
the difficult topic of immigration
and why people are risking their
lives and the lives of their families to
cross the border between the United
States and Mexico.
(What would have been the third
presentation, “Gender Identity,” was
canceled Jan. 16 due to inclement
weather and has been rescheduled
for Feb. 6.)
More than 20 people came to hear
Nubia Contreras speak on the theme
of “Crossing the Border/ Cruzando
la Frontera.” Contreras, born and
raised in Hood River, is the daughter
of immigrants. She is a certified pre-
vention specialist with Hood River
County, a DJ and board member at
Radio Tierra and the new commu-
nity liaison for Columbia Center for
the Arts.
“My parents migrated here in the
‘80s, and I don’t think they thought
that their daughter would ever be
doing this conversation,” she said.
Her parents crossed the border
some 40 years ago, her father more
than 10 times and her mother once.
“My parents did cross, and 27
years later, I’m here,” Contreras said.
“I have that luck and privilege of
being born and raised in Hood River.
People want a better life, to afford a
house and a roof over their heads
that’s not going to crumble because
of war violence.”
There’s a common perception that
migrants are coming to steal jobs
and sell drugs, or that they wake up
one morning and decide to make
the trip. In reality, it’s a matter of
survival.
“It’s not a fun thing to do,” Con-
treras said. “There’s a lot of dangers.
There’s not enough water most of
the time, not enough food. When
my parents crossed over, my mother
said she had a plastic bag with a set
of clothes …
“It can cost $10,000-$20,000 to
be smuggled into the U.S. (today) …
and I think people are so desperate
they’re willing to risk it because
anything is better than their current
The ‘gift’ of caregiving
GEM and AGA host
first of three-part
series on caring for
aging loved ones
By EMILY FITZGERALD
News staff writer
Even though taking care of an aging
loved one — or being the aging loved
one yourself, in need of help — can
be overwhelming at times and scary
at others, Andy Wade encourages
people to keep the experience in
perspective.
“Life is not a series of crises or
problems to be solved … It’s so easy to
get overwhelmed with the task, or the
problems, or the frustrations or what-
ever it is that you’re dealing with, that
we forget that at the core (of caregiv-
ing) is love. At the core (of caregiving)
is our relationship with one another.”
Wade, a Mennonite Pastor and
Warming Shelter volunteer, present-
ed to a group of about 20 gathered
in FISH Food Bank’s meeting room
Wednesday afternoon for the first of a
three-part brown bag lunch presenta-
tion series, co-hosted by Gorge Ecu-
menical Ministries (GEM) and Aging
in the Gorge Alliance (AGA), about
MIDWEEK EDITION $1.00
Vol. 114, No. 9
2 Sections, 20 Pages
Photo by Emily Fitzgerald
PASTOR Andy Wade presenting at the Jan. 22 brown-bag on aging.
See AGING, page A8
Photo by Trisha Walker
NUBIA CONTRERAS presented on
the topic of immigration at last Thurs-
day’s Lunch and Learn at the Hood
River Library. She will present again
on Thursday, Jan. 30 on the topic of
“My American Dream.”
situation,” she said. “Keep that in
mind. They’re just here to work and
for a better life. And I don’t think
that’s a crime.”
Contreras showed three YouTube
videos to highlight issues surrounding
immigration: One of a border cross-
ing simulation, another featuring a
border patrol agent and a third on the
much-publicized caravan that was
headed to the U.S. border in 2018. In
one, a smuggler says, “Immigration is
unstoppable. It doesn’t matter what
President Trump says.”
In another, agents show how mi-
grants have cut through razor wire
installed on the border wall between
San Diego and Nogales or dug tunnels
underneath. In a third, a pregnant
mother of two talks about how her
children’s lives were threatened by
criminals and her hopes of asylum in
America.
“Would you have that determina-
tion yourself … travel thousands of
miles, maybe wear out your tennis
shoes because you don’t have the
luxury of taking a suitcase. Would you
consider putting yourself and your
family through that?” Contreras asked
audience members.
See BORDER, page A8
HEARTS OF GOLD
For year-round work, Christmas Project honored Feb. 29
Coordinating food and meals, register-
ing families, making deliveries, sorting
gifts and ensuring toys are given to kids
are just some of the roles for volunteers.
There’s also a sub project called Tree of
Joy, in which businesses sponsor kids
and seniors by taking a card from a giv-
ing tree and fulfilling wishes.
According to a press release, the
efforts by the Hood River Christmas
Project are monumental each year.
They also fundraise throughout the year
and many know of the Christmas Proj-
ect from the fashion shows coordinated
for years by Cathy Carter in partnership
with downtown merchants.
“When more than 300 volunteers,
like Carter and others, show their hearts
of gold the results are amazing,” Frost
said.
Just tallied for 2019 — the group
served 470 families made up of 1,787
individuals, including 868 children.
When the Providence Hood River
Submitted photo Foundation board received a “Hearts
HOOD RIVER Christmas Project volunteers, from left, Mary Finley, Leslie Hidle, Teri Fisher, Cindy Winfield, Bruce Holm- of Gold” nomination form for the proj-
ect, it was clear this group deserved
son, Elise Byers, Heather Walker, Tracey Tomashpol and Lindsay Holmson.
recognition, according to Frost. It was
also the first nomination to be made by
another organization and not an indi-
groups took on the responsibilities. key volunteers, created more structure unteers in year-round roles make it vidual. The Christmas Project was nom-
Participation varied throughout the by forming a board of directors in 2006. possible for the group to help those who
Many people don’t know that vol- need it most during Christmas time.
years and Holmson, with several other
See HEARTS OF GOLD, page A8
Classifieds
Entertainment
Gatherings
Greater Gorge
Happenings
Kaleidoscope
Legal Notices
B6
A3
B4
A2
B3
B1
B5
Obituaries
Opinion
Sports
Yesteryears
A6
A4
A7
B2
“We want this to be a living room
for outdoor sports in the Gorge.”
— Conor Byrne, B1
3
BRIEFS
Border talk tonight
Slopeswell helps PERIOD
‘Dreams’ closes Feb. 1
Fresh from a volunteer trip to
the U.S.-Mexico border, Mariah
Carlson is giving a presentation
on her experience at 6:30 p.m.
tonight at the Hood River Coun-
ty Library, 502 State St.
Slopeswell Cider is hosting a
fundraiser for PERIOD@HRV
through March; $3 for every
One Breath Kombucha; will go
to the club to supply products
to menstruators in need.
Columbia Center for the Arts’
January exhibition, “Dreams,”
closes Feb. 1. Also featured is
artist Dan Pillers in the Lobby
Gallery. For more information,
visit columbiaarts.org.
05105 97630
INSIDE
7
Providence Hood River Memorial
Hospital Foundation will award the an-
nual Hearts of Gold honor to the folks
behind Hood River Christmas Project.
Next month’s celebration in the
group’s honor will be a benefit for an-
other community project, a day respite
program for people living with demen-
tia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Hearts of Gold happens Feb. 29 at 6
p.m. at th Best Western Plus Hood River
Inn Gorge Room.
For more than 20 years, health pro-
fessionals and community members
have been honored by the Providence
Hood River Memorial Hospital Foun-
dation with “Hearts of Gold” awards.
For 2020, the foundation is honoring
the Christmas Project as a group for
their substantial impact on our com-
munity.
“We are thrilled to honor this group
and the impact they’ve had for almost
100 years in existence,” said Provi-
dence’s Susan Frost.
For Bruce Holmson, his heart of gold
urged him to step up and help lead the
Hood River Christmas Project in 2006
when some of the regular volunteers
said, “Bruce, you’re it.”
From what he knew, the organiza-
tion began in the 1920s as an Elks Club
organization and over the years other