Page 8A
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East Oregonian
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
FRUPeU ¿UVW OaG\ NaQF\ ReagaQ GLeV aW NUDE: Took a group of
LOS ANGELES (AP) —
Nancy Reagan, the helpmate,
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protector of Ronald Reagan
in his journey from actor
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during his 10-year battle with
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died. She was 94.
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died Sunday at her home in
the Bel-Air section of Los
Angeles of congestive heart
failure, assistant Allison
Borio told The Associated
Press.
Her best-known project as
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No” campaign to help kids
and teens stay off drugs.
When she swept into the
White House in 1981, the
former Hollywood actress
partial to designer gowns
and pricey china was widely
dismissed as a pre-feminist
throwback, concerned only
with fashion, decorating and
entertaining. By the time she
moved out eight years later,
Mrs. Reagan was fending
off accusations that she was
a behind-the-scenes “dragon
lady” wielding unchecked
power over the Reagan
administration — and doing
it based on astrology to boot.
All along she maintained
that her only mission was
to back her “Ronnie” and
strengthen his presidency.
Mrs. Reagan carried that
charge through the rest of her
days. She served as a full-
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melted away her husband’s
memory. After his death in
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herself to tending his legacy,
especially at his presidential
library in California, where
he had served as governor.
She also championed
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raising millions of dollars
for research and breaking
with fellow conservative
Republicans to advocate
for stem cell studies. Her
dignity and perseverance
in these post-White House
roles helped smooth over the
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The Reagans’ mutual
devotion over 52 years of
marriage was legendary.
They were forever holding
hands. She watched his polit-
ical speeches with a look of
such steady adoration it was
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Continued from 1A
a way to improve his health
and has been riding in Red 2
Red for the past four years.
While he used to start
with the rest of the pack, the
laborious nature of municy-
cling meant he was forced
to leave the course before he
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So this year, he started
at 6:10 a.m. and spent the
next seven hours going over
a course that winded many
seasoned two-wheel riders.
Myers is the uncle of
Shayne Myers, who helped
build the course and co-owns
Echo Bike & Board with his
wife, Stephanie.
Although the shop has
since moved to Pendleton,
Echo Bike & Board returned
to its namesake town to help
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Stephanie said Red 2
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major mountain bike race of
the season, given that most
other bike trails are covered
in snow or bogged down in
mud.
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into several groups based
on skill level, age, gender
and duration of ride, with
options to bike 12 miles, 25
PLOHV RU WKH HQWLUH PLOH
course.
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change the layout of the
course each year, meaning
there are no Red 2 Red
records to be set or broken.
By noon every group was
on the course, which takes
cyclists through the heart of
Lloyd Piercy’s Echo West
vineyards.
In return for the physical
punishment sustained from
the winding course, race
participants are given scenic
views of the Umatilla River
and the high desert.
Driving through the rows
of Zinfandel and Pinot Noir
Saturday, Piercy said he
views himself as a steward
of the land, which is one of
the reasons he allowed orga-
QL]HUV 6KD\QH 0\HUV DQG
Brian Cimmiyotti to build
Photo by Antonio Sierra
Two Red 2 Red competitors bike down the track through Echo West Vineyards
Saturday.
Photo by Antonio Sierra
Racers travel down Main Street at the Echo Red 2 Red
Cross Country Mountain Bike Race Saturday.
the course 10 years ago.
Before then, Piercy used
the area as a cattle pasture,
but he has since removed the
cows to give cyclists a sense
of the high desert’s natural
beauty.
Before returning to Echo,
Piercy stopped by an area
looking over the Umatilla
River, where Kenji Sugahara
ZDVÀ\LQJDGURQHWKDWZDV
taking video of the race.
Sugahara,
executive
director of the Oregon Bike
Racing Association and
a member of the state’s
tourism commission, said
Eastern Oregon was one of
his favorite parts of the state
and was an ideal place for a
bike race.
While operating drones
was more of a hobby, Suga-
hara said he was happy to
use video footage that could
draw tourism to the area.
“Rural Oregon needs as
much economic help as it
can get,” he said.
Piercy agreed with Suga-
hara’s assessment, saying
events like Red 2 Red and
businesses like his own Sno
Road Winery bring much-
needed economic develop-
ment to a city that’s been hit
KDUG E\ WKH PHFKDQL]DWLRQ
of the agriculture industry.
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IRU ¿QLVKLQJ WKH HQWLUH
course was Red 2 Red
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two hours.
The former pro had just
started to get back into
competitive cycling and
wasn’t expecting to take
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a tough course.
“It’s such a long day and
hard day, you just take what
your body gives you,” the
\HDUROGVDLG
———
Contact Antonio Sierra
at asierra@eastoregonian.
com or 541-966-0836.
MURDER: No arrests yet in 2010 Morrow County murder
Continued from 1A
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drew his last breath.
Two weeks later, a vehicle
associated with the murder
turned up in southern Cali-
IRUQLD 'HWHFWLYHV ÀHZ WR
Los Angeles. Edmiston cred-
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Bureau of the Los Angeles
County Sheriff’s Department
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was taking place.
Edmiston, though, said he
could not discuss a theory of
the crime or provide certain
details because he did not
ZDQWWRMHRSDUGL]HWKHLQYHV-
tigation. Umatilla County
District Attorney Dan Primus
said much the same.
He and Edmiston met for
lunch last week and discussed
the homicide. Primus, who is
running for re-election, said
Hermiston police keep his
RI¿FHLQIRUPHGDERXWGHYHO-
opments and actions in the
case. He explained providing
details of a crime, though —
what kind of gun a shooter
used, for example, or where
the victim was shot — makes
it harder for police to sort out
what happened and then for
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Law enforcement in
Morrow County is in a
similar hard place with the
murder of 16-year-old Ariel
Velasco. Someone gunned
him down in the street the
night of Dec. 18, 2010. So
far, no arrests.
Morrow County District
Attorney said without a
cold case team to crack the
case, police have to wait for
someone to spill a new clue.
“I think there’s still people
out there that know,” he said,
“... but no one has come
forward.”
Nelson said Velasco’s
older brother, Alexandre
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is wanted on an attempted
murder charge for the
November 2012 shooting of
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Blue Mountain Enforcement
Narcotics Team arrested in
late February. He now faces
drug charges.
Nelson said maybe with
time a person would mature
and break from the gang
rules of staying silent. But
until then, it looks like a
killer remains free.
Edmiston said Hermiston
police are on the right track
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even if the case is a slog.
“A handful of people
have intimate knowledge of
what took place that night,”
Edmiston said. “We’re
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people involved have had
criminal histories in the
past and will continue to
have engagements with law
enforcement.”
20 people to rescue him
Continued from 1A
inspect the Wilson’s shed,
took off running. Pendleton
Police Chief Stuart Roberts
said Burton dashed north,
scaled a cyclone fence and
dove off the side of a 40- or
50-foot bluff that borders
the Umatilla River near the
Riverside Bridge. When
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other indication the man
had hit bottom, they ran to
get a better view.
“When they got there,
they looked down,” Roberts
said. “He was hanging
upside-down in a tree.”
Roberts said the appar-
ently
drug-intoxicated
Hermiston
man
was
combative. Burton hung,
his left ankle wedged in the
crotch of a tree and his head
DERXW ¿YH RU VL[ IHHW IURP
the bank.
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assistance from Emergency
Medical Services and
Umatilla County Search
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Keene, who made his way
down a steep game trail,
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injured man.
“He was hollering for
help,” Keene said. “He was
struggling to get free.”
Keene had been warned
by law enforcement that
the man was combative. He
pulled back until Dwight
-RKQVRQD8PDWLOOD&RXQW\
Sheriff’s
Deputy
and
sergeant with Search &
Rescue, joined him. They
pondered how to dislodge
the contentious fugitive.
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to keep him calm.”
-RKQVRQ
UHFRJQL]HG
that Burton seem to be in
“excited delirium,” a state
sometimes triggered by
drugs. Drugs might also
have earlier driven Burton
to remove his wet clothes
on the riverbank below the
Wilson home.
“With drugs such as PCP
and acid, the physiology
changes,” Roberts said.
“People sometimes get hot
and start disrobing.”
-RKQVRQVDLGWKHUHVFXHUV
had three priorities: “get this
guy out of the tree, keep
him from escaping and
keep ourselves from getting
injured.”
Eventually,
Burton
DOORZHG -RKQVRQ WR ZUDS
a rope around his chest
and another around his
ankle. From above, others
manipulated the lines,
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and then lowering him to
the ground. The group of
rescuers and law enforce-
ment had grown to about
20, according to Keene.
At one point, the agitated
Burton lunged toward the
weapon of Umatilla County
6KHULII¶V 2I¿FH 'HSXW\
-RKQ 5HLW] 6RRQ WKH\
talked the man into getting
into a suspended stretcher,
handcuffed and sedated him
and had rescuers at the top
of the bluff lift him to safety.
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in to the stretcher with a
carabiner and accompanied
Burton as he used another
rope to climb.
Burton was taken to St.
Anthony Hospital for an
examination before heading
to jail. He faces charges of
burglary, harassment, disor-
derly conduct and resisting
arrest.
Wilson said she feels
JUDWHIXO WR SROLFH ¿UH-
¿JKWHUVDQG6$5SHUVRQQHO
who responded. She won’t
forget the kindness of
Sgt. Charles Byrum who
stepped inside the house
numerous times during the
three-hour rescue operation
to check on her.
Wilson remains feisty
about the experience and
said she moved her pistol to
the front room.
“I’m not afraid to use it,”
she said.
———
Contact Kathy Aney at
kaney@eastoregonian.com
or call 541-966-0810.
UAS: 7HVWÀLJKWVZHUHOHVVWKDQ
400 feet above unpopulated ares
government
agencies,
universities and industry.
data with UAS.”
The PNNL team was
7KHWHVWÀLJKWVZHUHOHVV accompanied by a repre-
than 400 feet above unpop- sentative from ArgenTech
ulated areas during daylight Solutions, a technical
hours and in accordance services company with
with FAA regulations, D 8$6 RI¿FH EDVHG LQ
according to the release.
Vancouver, Washington.
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The Pendleton UAS
the relationship between Range is part of the
the test range and the labo- $ODVNDQ OHG 3DQ3DFL¿F
ratory will be “longterm,” Test Site Complex, one
with a crew of 8-10 pilots of the six FAA designated
DQG VFLHQWLVWV IRU WKH ¿UVW testing locations in the
round of training and country. Oregon supports
testing and smaller groups the range through SOAR
of 2-4 people for subse- Oregon, a state-funded
quent trainings.
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Based in Richland, of fostering the growth
Washington, PNNL is one of Oregon’s unmanned
of 10 national science labo- aircraft industry.
ratories managed by the
“The City of Pendleton
U.S. Department of Energy. and (ArgenTech Solutions)
The lab does research for have provided the ideal
DOE, the U.S. Department operational area for us to
of Homeland Security, the complete our current and
National Nuclear Security future missions,” Hubbell
Administration,
other said.
Continued from 1A
We have what
you are looking for:
• Friendly neighbors
• Award-winning staff
• Wellness-centered
philosophy
• Flexible stay options
In Partnership with Adventist Health Services
Cool!
KOVACH: Has a master’s degree in teaching
Continued from 1A
position in Walla Walla.
Kovach has been the prin-
cipal at Ontario High School
since 2012, and during that
time the graduation rate has
increased from 54 percent to
79 percent, according to the
press release.
During his open interview
with the district he talked
about the career and tech-
nical education programs his
district had added, and said
new courses in engineering
and bio-medicine have been
added. He was previously an
associate principal at the high
school, an elementary school
principal and the director of
migrant education for the
district. He also was an asso-
ciate middle school principal
and social studies teacher in
Nyssa, and was a teacher and
special services coordinator
in Crane.
He has a master’s degree
in teaching from Willamette
University and a Bachelor of
Arts degree in history from
Oregon State University.
“My
philosophy
of
education is founded on
commitment and hard work,”
Kovach said in the release.
“To be successful we must
commit ourselves to excel-
lence and be willing to do the
hard work and make the hard
choices in order to change
things for the better.”
He went on to say
schools must offer a safe and
welcoming environment that
offers a range of activities to
keep students engaged. He
also said he plans to spend
a lot of time in Pendleton in
the coming months to learn
about the community and
schools.
“I invite anyone who has
thoughts about Pendleton’s
schools to contact me,” he
said. “I’d like to listen.”
Have you
heard?
One bedroom
apartments at
$1499
What?
509.527.9600
www.wheatlandvillage.com
Exciting!
1500 Catherine Street
Walla Walla, WA 99362
Where?
1500 Catherine Street | Walla Walla, WA 99362 | 509.527.9600 | www.wheatlandvillage.com
License #1640