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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 2015)
REGION Friday, August 14, 2015 MILTON-FREEWATER East Oregonian Page 3A HERMISTON School district FFA shows off pigs at fair ponders trying for a bond By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian A school district ballot measure for a bond could be coming to Milton-Freewater voters in the near future. Superintendent Rob Clark formally started the conversation at a Milton-Freewater School Board meeting Monday. In an interview Thursday, Clark said nothing is set in stone, but he does have some ideas of what the bond could look like. Clark said the bond could be anywhere between $5 million and $25 million and could appear on the ballot as soon as May. Successful passage of a bond issue in 2016 would give the district access to matching funds from the state for facility improve- ments recently made available by the Oregon Legislature through Senate Bill 447. “I want us to be one of the ¿rst districts out of the chute,” he said. Clark didn’t anticipate using the bond to add any new square footage to the district’s facilities, instead wanting to use the money to make needed improvements to the district’s current space. That rings especially true for the facilities that house the district’s secondary education — Clark said some parts of Central Middle School were built in 1912 while McLoughlin High School was constructed in 1922. One of the areas a bond could address is the district’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, which costs the district $200,000 per year to maintain and has frequently failed to cool down students during hot weather. “I just cringe whenever I see the HVAC repairman’s pickup in the parking lot,” Clark said. Clark also wants to prior- itize electrical upgrades. Last winter, Clark said an electrical failure at Mac-Hi caused the lighting to go out. Without emergency lighting in most parts of the building, students used the light from their cell phone screens to navigate the hallways. “If it wasn’t so sad, it would be comical,” he said. Other projects that could see bond funding is new carpeting at some schools and façade work at Mac-Hi. Clark emphasized that these proposals are his ideas alone and the actual list of bond projects could change signi¿cantly based on community input. Whenever the school district decides to mount a bond campaign, it would be ¿ghting against recent history. The school district hasn’t passed a bond since the early 1980s, with Milton-Free- water voters rejecting ¿ve measures since 2000. The school district hasn’t attempted to pass another bond since November 2006. The district has been able to pass tax levies, the most recent one passing last year, but Clark said tax compression has slashed levy revenues by 50 percent. While changes to the school system’s infrastruc- ture will have to wait at least another year, changes to the system’s con¿guration are set to start later this month. As a part of a recon- ¿guration plan, all of the district’s ¿rst and second graders will attend Grove Elementary School, second and third graders will attend Ferndale Elementary School and fourth and ¿fth graders will attend Freewater Elementary Schools. Clark said he anticipates the transition to the new recon¿guration to go smoothly, especially if the new transportation routes work well. A few school administra- tors are also being shufÀed as a result. Although both former Grove Principal Stacey Warne and Ferndale Principal Ami Muilenburg initially agreed to trade spots, Warne eventually decided to return to his previous job as a counselor at Central. Left with a vacancy at Ferndale, the district elevated Ferndale reading intervention specialist Brian Heim to interim principal. While his school isn’t affected by the recon¿gu- ration, Mac-Hi Principal Ralph Brown also departed the district, taking another principal position at Sweet Home High School. Brown was replaced with Mindi Vaughn, a former adminis- trator for the Baker School District. Clark said the school district will see 18 new teachers this year, a turnover of about 20 percent for the district’s faculty. “If this was an athletics team, this would be the rebuilding year,” he said. ——— Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0836. Umatilla County unveils new program to keep local businesses safer East Oregonian Businesses in Umatilla County have a new tool to curtail after hours criminal activity. The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Of¿ce in a written statement announced businesses in unincorporated areas of the county can participate in the free trespass enforcement program. A business representatives simply signs a “Trespass Enforcement Authorization Form” and gives that to the sheriff’s of¿ce, according to the statement, which provides a “No Trespassing” placard for the business to display. The program then empowers deputies to act on behalf of the business to remove possible trespassers without having to contact the owner or representative. Pendleton and Hermiston police departments already have similar programs in effect. The programs have the most bene¿t after business hours, when contacting a business owner or representative is the most The livestock pens are narrow and noisy behind Rankin Pavilion at the Umatilla County Fair, where Sydnee Miller brushed her Yorkshire crossbreed pig, Zazu, Thursday morning in preparation for FFA swine showmanship. “You really want your animal to be presentable and clean,” said Miller, a 17-year-old senior at Herm- iston High School. “You just want a nice, clean, controlled run.” Zazu already placed eighth overall in the previous day’s conforma- tion, showing good overall balance and structure. Miller ¿gures she’s spent at least 30 minutes every day with the 287-pound hog since July, going on regular walks to build up the animal’s muscle mass and endurance. That consistency served Miller well in the show ring, where she won a blue ribbon in her class and advanced to the top 10 in showmanship. The judges watched closely while Miller kept Zazu moving in the right direction with gentle raps of her whip. After the event, Miller prodded Zazu back to his pen where he collapsed under a cool mist and lay with his pink tongue hanging out. “They’re funny, and they’re pretty laid back,” Miller said of raising hogs. “They’re pretty personable, “It’s a really good thing to get involved in. It teaches you a lot of skills.” — Sydnee Miller, Hermiston High School FFA member Staff photo by George Plaven Sydnee Miller, a 17-year-old senior at Hermiston High School, tends to her pig, Zazu, following FFA advanced showmanship Thursday at the Umatilla County Fair. too, if you hang around them a lot.” It takes plenty of dedi- cation and early mornings to get 4-H and FFA market animals ready for the county fair. Miller arrived at the fairgrounds at 5:30 a.m. Thursday to bathe Zazu and clean his pen, putting down fresh wood shavings and combing any dirt off the swine’s back and legs. Miller switches off jobs with her pen mate, HHS sophomore Garron Anderson, who is showing a female hog named Ed for competition. Ed actually came from the same litter as Zazu, purchased from a breeder in Idaho. Yorkshire crosses require especially close attention, Anderson said, because they are white and any stray dirt will be spotted by the judges. But the judges aren’t just looking at the pigs. They’re also watching the students to see how they handle the animals around the ring — whether they are able to present the pigs while keeping their eyes forward. “They want to see you’re in control of your pig, and you don’t have to whack it to get that control,” Miller said. “You’re just trying to keep them moving.” At the end of fair, Miller and Anderson will sell their hogs during the livestock auction, which can fetch upwards of $1,300. Miller said she will save the money for college, where she hopes to study medicine. Miller said she got into 4-H and FFA because she was drawn to agriculture. “It’s a really good thing to get involved in,” she said. “It teaches you a lot of skills.” Leah Smith, Hermiston’s FFA adviser, said it is nice to see her students do well in competition but added what’s most important is the kids learn how to raise a quality agricultural product. “That’s absolutely why the organization was started and why they’re here,” Smith said. “Doing this and showmanship is just icing on the cake.” ——— Contact George Plaven at gplaven@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0825. Two sex crimes cases heading to Sept. trials By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian The sex crimes trial of Melvin Forest Buckmaster of Hermiston remains on the docket for early September. Buckmaster, 37, was in circuit court Monday in Hermiston for a pretrial conference. Court records show he asked for a new defense attorney, but Judge Eva Temple denied the request. She also kept his trial on for Sept. 1 and 2 pending the possibility of a plea deal by the end of this week. Buckmaster pleaded not guilty in November 2014 to ¿ve counts of second-degree sodomy, four counts of ¿rst-degree sexual abuse and one charge of second-degree unlawful sexual penetration. The state accused Buckmaster of committing the crimes between Aug. 1, 2013, and Jan. 4, 2014, against a girl younger than 14. Defense attorney Thomas Gray of Pendleton in April asked Temple to review records showing the girl had ³memory de¿cit and learning problems” and received counseling for “recent depression and anxiety.” The defense also claimed the girl had a history of living in a home with domestic violence. That kind of home life can cause trauma, but it also can be the kind of situation a sexual predator uses to take advantage of a potential victim. Men who abuse often go after victims they see as emotionally or mentally vulnerable, such as children living in tough family situations. Another sex crimes case also soon could head to trial. Robert Wayne Price, 48, Hermiston, has pleaded not guilty to ¿ve counts of ¿rst-degree sexual abuse against three girls. The state alleges in the charging document Price molested the girls on separate occa- sions from August 2009 through mid-November 2014. Court records reveal allegations about Price came up sometime before the criminal investigation. Pendleton police of¿cer Cody Pieschel on Oct. 9, dif¿cult. The sheriff’s of¿ce also noti¿es business representatives when deputies take action. Sheriff Terry Rowan said in the statement the goal is to improve security on property and “the quality of life in your neighborhood.” Business representatives can call the sheriff’s of¿ce at 541-966-3600 to request an information packet. H AMLEY S TEAK H OUSE Pick your Barnyard Favorite BEEF • CHICKEN • LAMB PORK • TURKEY $ 15.00 541.278.1100 • COURT & MAIN, PENDLETON 2014, received a report from the Oregon Depart- ment of Human Services about possible sexual abuse. Pieschel called the state social worker on the case, who reported the agency closed the case “because she did not believe the alleged suspect had been allowed contact with the children for at least a year.” Yet, according to Pieschel’s report, the case worker also said she had not con¿rmed that with the children’s guardian, their grandmother. Pieschel reported that evening he spoke with the grandmother, who had guardianship of three chil- dren because their parents used drugs and were in and out of jail and prison. The grandmother reported “she had heard from other family members about the alleged sexual crimes regarding Price,” but as far as she knew Price last had any contact with children around June 2013. She said Price in the past saw the children when they visited their parents or went camping. She also said she had not reported any of what she heard to police or state social services. During the visit, according to Pieschel, a young relative revealed one of the girls told her about possible sexual incidents with Price at his residence in Hermiston and on camping trips. Pendleton police sent the case to Hermiston. Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmiston has stated other family members in Washington also came forward in late 2014, and the subsequent investiga- tion led to Price’s arrest in April. And rape defendant Shaun Allen Dick, 37, of Pendleton, has a pretrial hearing Monday at the Umatilla County Court- house, Pendleton. The state accused him of raping and sexually abusing a woman on Jan. 18, and of threatening to harm her if she revealed his actions. He had pleaded not guilty to all charges. ——— Contact Phil Wright at pwright@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0833. C HRIS J. L UNDQUIST , M.D. Family Practice I am moving my medical office on Oct. 1 st , 2015 where I will continue to see my established patients at my new location: Gifford Medical 1050 W Elm Ave., Suite 110 Hermiston, Oregon All medical records for patient care will be available at Gifford Medical. Please continue to call our office at 541-276-0852 to schedule appointments at our current and future location. After October 1st, please call 541-567-2995 to schedule appointments or request records. I look forward to continuing to meet your health care needs.
