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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 2016)
Page 10A OFF PAGE ONE East Oregonian Friday, January 29, 2016 MURDER: Nelson moved to Pendleton in 1995 Continued from 1A Staff photo by E.J. Harris Supporters of Pendleton High School Spanish teacher Kathryn Youngman during a rally to get her on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Thursday at the Happy Canton Arena in Pendleton. YOUNGMAN: More than 300 attended Continued from 1A Falcon defensive end Vic Beasley, Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, the operating room team at St. Anthony Hospital, the BMCC mascot and even rival Hermiston High School, among others. Ellen has noticed. At about 2 p.m., Thursday, Executive Producer Ed Glavin tweeted, “So everyone who’s tweeting knows, we are aware of #YoungmanOnEllen and we are in touch. Thanks. @ TheEllenShow” Until Youngman gets a formal invite, however, the campaign will cruise on. The idea to photograph a sea of supporters at the Happy Canyon arena germi- nated from a request by 2014 Happy Canyon Princesses Jory Spencer and Marissa Baumgartner for the Happy Canyon Board to retweet the hashtag. But Happy Canyon Grounds Director Johnny Pimentel wanted to do more than just shoot the hashtag further into the Twittersphere. “Johnny said, ‘Let’s put on our pink shirts and pose for a picture with the hashtag,’” said Communica- tions Director Cory Neistadt. “It grew from there.” Eventually, they decided to invite the whole town. Some of those at Happy Canyon had fueled up on “We learn so much more than Span- ish. We learned about kindness and persistence … and life in general.” — Charla Simons, PHS student pizza earlier in the evening, stopping off at Big John’s Pizza where $10 from each family-style pizza went to Youngman. Every employee was working. Taryn Solo- loski, one of Youngman’s students who was preparing pizzas, said the response was overwhelming. “It was crazy,” she said. “At one point, we had to stop doing takeout. The customers were so patient.” As the crowd gathered at the Happy Canyon arena, HQHUJ\ EXLOW $ GURQH ÀHZ overhead to capture footage of the gathering. The drone pilots, Jeff Ware and Joey Burns of Hermiston, said they just wanted to support “a cool cause.” Their footage will appear in future Twitter and Facebook #Young- manOnEllen posts. After the 300-or-so supporters assembled in the dirt arena, Happy Canyon Vice-President J.J. Spriet whipped them into a frenzy. “This is trending worldwide,” he said of the hashtag. “From New York to Hermiston, from Germany to Irrigon, from South Bend, Indiana, to Spokane, Washington, from Spain to Arizona to West Virginia.” Several of the teenagers who drove the Twitter campaign spoke to the crowd about doing something for their beloved teacher. “It was our privilege,” said senior Roman Martinez. “She means a lot to us.” He grinned and said, “It’s the power of teenagers – we know how to get on our phones and tweet.” “We learn so much more than Spanish,” said student Charla Simons. “We learned about kindness and persistence … and life in general.” The group erupted when Youngman herself took the microphone. She thanked the community. She talked about the importance of being kind and then praised her students. “Teenagers are amazing,” Youngman said. “They took an idea. They took their compassion and their energy and started a movement.” ——— Contact Kathy Aney at kaney@eastoregonian.com or call 541-966-0810. COAL: Wind, solar have become increasingly cost-competitive policy, this now provides Resources Defense Council, Continued from 1A opportunity for near-term Sierra Club and Climate to Initiative 63. renewable resources as the Solutions collaborated on 2Q :HGQHVGD\ 3DFL¿F most cost-competitive alter- the bill. The Citizens’ Utility Power released its analysis of native,” Link said. Board of Oregon, the state’s the plan, showing HB 4036 HB 4036 also maintains primary advocate for resi- would save $600 million a 4 percent incremental cost dential ratepayers, has also through 2030 versus the FDS PHDQLQJ WKDW 3DFL¿F signed off on the plan. ballot measure. Customer Power and PGE won’t have “Oregonians from all rates would increase by to add renewables if the cost walks of life and across the less than 1 percent per year is more than 4 percent higher state that it is time to move over that time, the analysis than developing non-renew- to a cleaner energy future,” continues. able power. said Stefan Bird, president 3DFL¿F3RZHUKDVURXJKO\ 8QGHU WKH SODQ 3DFL¿F DQG &(2 RI 3DFL¿F 3RZHU 17,847 customers in Umatilla Power says it will close or ³3DFL¿F 3RZHU KDV DQ REOL- County. convert 2,800 megawatts of gation to achieve that shared PGE conducted a similar coal-fueled generation by objective in an affordable analysis, with similar results: 2034, and could build up to way. HB 4036 does that.” the company projects an 600 megawatts of renewable The Public Utility overall savings of $220-$360 energy projects in the near Commission will meet at million, and a rate impact future. Its analysis shows DPWRKHDUIURP3DFL¿F of 1.5 percent per year the bill will reduce Oregon’s Power and PGE on their compared to business as carbon emissions through analyses. A public hearing on usual. 2040 by 35 million tons. the bill is scheduled for Feb. Rick Link, director A number of environ- 2 in the legislature. RI RULJLQDWLRQ IRU 3DFL¿F mental groups including ——— Power and lead analyst on the Oregon Environmental Contact George Plaven HB 4036, said the primary Council, League of Conser- at gplaven@eastoregonian. difference between the bill vation Voters, Natural com or 541-966-0825. and proposed ballot measure is how the utilities will be allowed to phase out their coal generation. A number of the company’s coal plants PM are expected to depreciate between 2024-2030, but Link said the bill gives them ÀH[LELOLW\ WR DGMXVW WKHLU depreciation schedule. “It allows us to essentially take advantage of fully paying for coal resources after they’ve depreciated,” 8 S.E. COURT, PENDLETON Link said. 541.278.1100 Wind and solar energy have also become increas- ingly cost-competitive, even with historic lows in natural JDVSULFHV/LQNVDLG3DFL¿F Power forecasts show new wind and solar projects are January 29 • 6:00 pm • $20.00 about 20 percent less expen- sive than new natural gas plants. Another key development, Link said, was the extension of federal tax credits for • Complete Salad Bar wind and solar energy. Both • Baked Potato the Production Tax Credit and Investment Tax Credit • Steamed Vegetables received multi-year exten- • Dessert sions with gradual phase-out periods that Link said should Proceeds to benefit Pendleton Elks’ Charities give greater certainty to SE 3rd, Pendleton investing in renewables. Pendleton Elks Lodge #288 14 541-969-2765 • 541-276-3882 “Irrespective of Oregon Live Music 9:00 Local and state police responded at about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday to a 9-1-1 call about a shooting near milepost 233 on the Old Oregon Trail Highway in the Meacham area on the Umatilla Indian Reserva- tion. Marnie Elder is Nelson’s sister. She said in an email she learned her brother returned home Wednesday morning and found someone attempting to steal one of his vehicles. It was unclear what happened after that, she said, “except that he was shot and killed by” McIver. Nelson’s daughter, Ashlyn Nelson, said she heard about her father’s death through social media and called her grandparents, Susan and Steve Nelson, who live in California. “I had to be the one to say he got shot and didn’t make it,” Ashlyn said. Elder said her brother was outgoing and char- ismatic and never met a stranger. “He had the ability to engage an entire room WHOOLQJDWDOOWDOHRI¿VKLQJ or hunting,” she said, “and was funny enough to be a professional comedian.” Thadd Nelson became a general contractor after moving to Pendleton in 1995 and developed a large clientele in Umatilla County and Washington, according to Elder. He also worked for wineries in Sonoma and Mendocino counties in California. Elder said her brother was a skilled stone mason, and the TV show “This Old House” featured one of her brother’s jobs. Ashlyn Nelson said her father’s construction company folded during the Great Recession, so he traveled for work, including to California and more recently in Hermiston. Ashlyn was born in Boise and moved back there in 2010, but for a time attended Pendleton High Photo contributed by Marnie Elder Thadd Nelson stands next to his masonry work in the late 1990s. He was a skilled stone mason, according to his sister, Marnie Elder. Ayala Vargas School and lived with her father. He said she cher- ished those years. “It was just the two of us,” she said. “He was a hard-working man, a good man.” Elder said he helped her start her own business, Vintage Photos, in Pend- leton, and volunteered to bring the Pendleton Farmers Market to fruition. Her brother also was an avid hunter and angler, she said, and taught children to ¿VK “He loved kids and animals,” she said. “(He) was a very loving father, son, brother and uncle. He had an extremely big heart for anyone in need and would give what he had to help out others.” He is survived by his parents, his daughters Ashlyn and Alexa Nelson, his sister Marnie Elder, and his niece Savannah Elder. Anyone with details about the crime can contact the Umatilla Tribal Police Department at 541-278- 0550 or the Umatilla County dispatch center at 541-966-3651, -3652 or -3653. ——— Contact Phil Wright at pwright@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0833. OREGON HUNTERS ASSOCIATION HUNTER’S RIGHTS - HUNTABLE WILDLIFE - HABITAT Banquet, Raffle & Auction Featuring 3 Day Defensive Training Course in Las Vegas Hunting, fishing & getaway trips Valentine’s Adventure February 13th FRIDAY, JANUARY 29 at the Pendleton Convention Center JD Kindle Over $30,000 in Raffle & Auction Items including 17 Guns Friday Night Dinner Prime Rib or Cordon Bleu To Register Call Terry 541-231-4384 MONEY RAISED BY OUR BANQUET STAYS IN OREGON! Columbia Basin Chapter Supported the Following Events and many others: • Youth Bow Hunt • Coyote Predation Management • OHA/ODFW Pheasant Hunt and Skeet Shoot
