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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 21, 2017)
Page 14A OFF PAGE ONE East Oregonian Saturday, January 21, 2017 REACTION: ‘I think everybody just needs to settle down and see what he does’ Continued from 1A Staff photo by E.J. Harris Jim Cheney, owner of the Hill Meat Company, speaks after his business was named the business of the year at the Pendleton Chamber of Commerce’s First Citizens Banquet on Friday at Wildhorse Resort & Casino in Mission. PENDLETON: U.S. Bank manager Katie Nooy named boss of the year Continued from 1A Wilkins was a member of a 1986 task force that evalu- ated and made recommenda- tions on Pendleton women’s sports as the district faced a potential Title IX lawsuit. When the Pendleton School Board considered cutting 16 sports, she helped found the Buck Boosters to provide the needed funding. When she wasn’t involved in athletics, Wilkins has also volunteered at West Hills Intermediate School, the Helping Hand food pantry and the First Presbyterian Church. “It’s kind of tiring to think I did all that,” she quipped as she accepted her award. Wilkins credited her passion for volunteering to her father and mother, who is turning 100 this year, suggesting Wilkins has more years of philanthropy ahead of her. Fouquette also made a name for himself in athletics. For 35 years, Fouquette was the man who supplied sporting goods to Pendle- ton’s youth as the titular owner of Dean’s Pendleton Athletic. When he wasn’t selling kids gear he was coaching them in it, having served as a basketball coach at Blue Mountain Community College, Echo High School , Helix High School and at the AAU level. Fouquette has also founded or co-founded the Pendleton Outlaws, a baseball team for men 40-plus, the Linebacker’s Club, a organization that raises funds for athletics and scholarships, and the Clash at the Border AAU Basket- ball Tournament. Among his non-athletic contributions, Fouquette co-chaired the political action committee that helped pass a $55 million bond in 2013. Fouquette said Pend- leton had a long history of “I think that speaks to the quality of this community. We have so many people doing so many good things.” — Dean Fouquette, Pendleton man of the year, on the city’s long history of supporting its youth supporting its youth. “I think that speaks to the quality of this community,” he said. “We have so many people doing so many good things.” Besides man and woman of the year, the chamber handed out five other awards to Pendleton individuals and businesses. • After 70 years of making it, Hill Meat Co. is finally bringing home the bacon. Hill Meat claimed the business of the year award, which was due in part to the company’s numerous community sponsorships, including the Round-Up, Relay for Life and Special Olympics. Hill Meat also recently expanded and added 20 workers, meaning it now employs more than 90 people. Hill Meat owner Jim Cheney said that the company went from a regional meat supplier when he started in 1992 to now stocking meat in markets across the western United States. • The President’s Award was bestowed on the notably giddy members of Altrusa International of Pendleton, who could be heard cheering in the hallway as they left the event room. Chamber immediate past president Arne Swanson said Altrusa was the differ- ence between Pendleton “surviving and thriving.” • Mark Mulvihill’s two-year reign as boss of the year is over. The InterMountain Education Service District superintendent won the award in 2014, but since no one was nominated in 2015, Mulvihill hung onto the title until Kathie Nooy of U.S. Bank took home this year’s prize. U.S. Bank’s Pendleton branch manager, Nooy’s employees highlighted her inclusiveness and motivational skills, her sympathy when employees experience familial issues and the Christmas breakfast she personally organizes for workers each year. • Nothing helps a dental professional better than a nice smile. As the office manager and receptionist at Main Street Dental Care, bosses and clients alike said Lori Sutphin’s positivity and enthusiasm made her worthy of employee of the year. “I love the people I work with and the people I work for — the patients,” she said. •Although he doesn’t serve customers or clients, Dr. John McBee’s dedica- tion to his patients secured him the customer service of the year award. Since he starting prac- ticing surgery in 1994, McBee has been known to strap on ice cleats to meet with patients when condi- tions weren’t safe enough to drive and open his practice up to high school students interested in job shadowing. • For its role in enriching the “Pendleton experience,” the Pendleton Center for the Arts was awarded the excellence in tourism award. Harriet Isom, a member of the art center’s council, said the award was dedi- cated to executive director Roberta Lavadour, who was in Portland on Oregon Arts Commission business. ——— Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0836. WILDLIFE: 6,748 roadkill reports in 2015 Continued from 1A By using dogs to increase the success rate of cougar hunts, he said it could help increase ungulate populations. “I think it would be a good idea,” Becktold said. Hansell said cougars may also pose a public safety threat when they get pushed out of their usual territory and closer to communities. “They just don’t interface well with human popula- tions, and can be dangerous,” Hansell said. Another of Hansell and Barreto’s proposals, Senate Bill 372, directs the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commis- sion to create a permit system for salvaging roadkill deer and elk. Similar laws are already on the books in nearly 20 states, including Washington, Idaho and Montana. “You always see carcasses laying across the side of the road, left to decay,” Hansell said. “I thought this might be a productive use of an unfortunate situation.” The Oregon Department of Transportation logged 6,748 roadkill reports in 2015, of which 1,539 came out of Eastern Oregon. The vast majority of animals hit were deer, amounting to 5,832. The total number of elk hit and killed was 229. ODOT currently handles the carcasses in a number of different ways, such as natural disposal, incineration, composting or, in rare cases, burying. SB 372, on the other hand, would issue permits allowing people to recover the meat. Antlers would be submitted to ODFW. “Other states have done this, and done it success- fully,” Hansell said. Finally, Hansell and Barreto are both signed on to Senate Bill 373, which would give cities the ability to peti- tion ODFW to control urban deer populations within city limits. “It’s a pretty basic bill,” Barreto said. “All it does is give local control to take care of this problem.” Michelle Dennehy, ODFW spokeswoman, said urban deer are definitely a problem in some places across the state. As deer become habituated to humans, Dennehy said they may begin to act more aggressively. Too many deer in cities can also mean more collisions with vehicles, she said. Hansell said the idea for SB 372 started with Dennis Sands, the mayor of Joseph. But after a backlash from concerned residents, Sands told the Wallowa County Chieftain in December that the bill had “less than a zero (percent) chance of passing the legislature.” Still, Hansell said they are moving forward with the proposal. He said the bill has received positive feedback from both ODFW and the League of Oregon Cities. “(Deer) should be out in the woods, not living in cities,” Hansell said. Hansell said cities could pass an ordinance under the bill declaring urban deer are of nuisance, Hermiston causing oyota a public and petitioning ODFW to euthanize the animals humanely. The meat would be distributed to the Oregon Food Bank, and cities would collect the antlers and hides. “It is not an open season,” Hansell said. “Hunters are not going to be marching down the streets.” All three bills are sitting in the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources for review. ——— Contact George Plaven at gplaven@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0825. Moore’s first choice from the Republican field of candidates, he said the man is now his president and it will do the country good to accept that. Those who are unwilling to work with the new administration are just as much of the problem, he said. He also said he was pleased with the president’s Cabinet picks and is looking forward to seeing what the Republican-led Congress and White House will do in the next four years to lead the country in a new direction. ——— Chuck Becktold, chapter president for the Oregon Hunters Association, said he wasn’t sure how Presi- dent Trump would impact hunters moving forward. Speaking personally, Beck- told said he felt people were overreacting to Trump’s rise to the Oval Office. “I think everybody just needs to settle down and see what he does,” Becktold said. “We just have to back him, unless he turns out to be a Nixon, and then we can get rid of him.” ——— Jose Garcia, the Herm- iston Hispanic Advisory Committee’s new chair, said he was inspired by the inauguration ceremony. “I watched Trump’s speech, and I was moved,” he said. “My wife, she’s a Democrat, and she rolled her eyes, but I said ‘Look, he moved me.’” Garcia has worked in addiction recovery programs for more than 20 years, and watches drugs and gangs destroy peoples’ lives every day. Often it makes him feel powerless, he said. If someone doesn’t have $10,000 on hand, for example, it usually takes about four months to get them into a rehabilitation facility. “I lost my brother to addiction,” Garcia said. “He was young. Thirty-four. I was powerless. I wanted to send him to rehab and I couldn’t get him in.” Trump’s talk of putting America first and taking care of the people in our own backyard has reso- nated with Garcia over the past year. The president specifically mentioned ending “the crime and the gangs and the drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential” in his inaugural speech, and said power was being handed back to the American people when he took the oath of office. Garcia said he was so excited that he sent Trump a message via Twitter telling him he wanted to be his addiction advisor. ——— Mark Peterson of Pendleton, a member of the Democratic Party of Umatilla County, said he is trying to keep an open mind. “No one likes to lose, whether it is in athletics or politics,” he said. “I’m taking a wait-and-see attitude. I’ll give Trump a chance and hope he succeeds. Because — regardless of your opinion of him — if he succeeds our nation succeeds.” He said the new pres- ident could help bring the country together, but perhaps not in the way Trump imagines. “He’s getting people involved in the political process again,” Peterson. “It’s all our country, you know.” ——— Writer Shaindel Beers teaches for the English Department of Blue Moun- tain Community College. She said she did not watch the inaugural address. “As a survivor of various types of violence and advocate of women’s rights, Donald Trump is very triggering to me and many women. I will be making protest signs tonight and marching tomorrow [Saturday]. If Donald Trump is triggering to you, I hear you, and I believe you. You are not alone.” ——— Anne Emmons, president of the League of Women Voters West Umatilla, said she was trying to focus on the league’s goals of equality and education. “We need to have respect for the office of the presi- dent,” she said. “We may not agree with the policies, but we have to work to hear all sides.” The League is a nonpar- tisan group, and usually does not support one posi- tion. This year, Emmons said the League’s national chapter would be protesting at the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., and that some local members planned to participate in marches in Pendleton, Port- land and other local events. “They’re marching for rights for all,” Emmons said. Emmons said that watching the inauguration, she had some personal concerns about Trump’s presidency, but was hopeful citizens would continue to encourage diversity and support equal rights. “I went to the MLK march on Monday,” Emmons said. “Mayor Drotzmann said that America is a melting pot. I think we’ve forgotten that.” She said the league would continue to do outreach and help people exercise their rights. ——— Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmiston said he found inspiration in the peaceful transfer of power from one administration to the next. “Not having tanks in the road, things along those lines,” he said, “It’s pretty awesome to think about.” Paid Advertisement Rogers Toyota of Hermiston 1550 N. First Street, Hermiston, OR 97838 IMPORTANT NOTICE Residents of Hermiston and Surrounding Area: 2017 is upon us and we would like to extend a thank you to all the customers that have chose to do business with Rogers Toyota of Hermiston and helped us reach a record breaking sales goal in 2016. Due to the success of 2016, Toyota has provided us with an additional allotment of New Toyotas. We currently have over 130 new Toyotas in stock. We thought the best thing we could do is offer our customers all of our in stock inventory at EMPLOYEE PRICING + $1.00. 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