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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 26, 2017)
INSIDE: 97/65 2017 FOOTBALL & BRAIN DAMAGE HELD AT EOTEC SPORTS/1B AUG. 8-12 YOUR GUIDE TO THE UMATILLA COUNTY FAIR WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2017 141st Year, No. 202 One dollar WINNER OF THE 2017 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Goodbye ‘Mr. Hermiston’ Frank Harkenrider, former councilor and mayor, dies at 90 By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Hermiston has lost its biggest cheer- leader. Frank Harkenrider, 90, died in Hermiston Monday night. He served in Hermiston’s city chambers as a coun- cilor or mayor for close to 50 years, before taking his last vote in December 2014. Harkenrider was known for his intense loyalty to Hermiston, which grew from 800 residents to more than 17,000 in his lifetime. He faithfully lost bet after bet with Pendleton city offi cials on Hermiston High School’s football team during their growing years and his last few months on the city council were peppered with frequent references to the fact that the team had fi nally won a state championship. “I’m still Hermiston fan number one,” he said during an interview the afternoon of his last city council meeting. His tenure on the city council was not always without controversy. He survived a recall election in 2012 and kept his seat by just two votes in 1998. And there was spirited resistance by See HARKENRIDER/10A EO fi le photo Frank Harkenrider waves a fl ag from the back of the Desert Shriner’s fl oat in the Irrigon Watermelon Festival parade in July, 2004. PENDLETON HEPPNER Sorte resigns as top county administrator Was fi rst to fi ll position By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian Staff photo by E.J. Harris Liam Campbell, 10, and his brother, Rowan, 8, read to cats in the cat room at PAWS during the reading with animals summer reading program Tuesday in Pendleton. PAWS HOOKED ON PHONICS Young volunteers practice their reading with shelter animals By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian Despite the kids’ best efforts, the dogs just weren’t getting it. Accompanied by volunteers from the Foster Grandparent program, a trio of elementary school students read books to Pongo and Aurora at the Pendleton Animal Welfare Shelter Tuesday. The children read aloud to the dogs and delivered detailed summaries of the books they just read — but Pongo and Aurora were far more interested in gnawing on bones or wagging their kennels than in literacy. Of course, the goal of reading to animals was to improve the literacy of the children rather than the dogs, and nine-year-olds Kayle Smith and Maryn Broker gave it their endorse- ment. The Foster Grandparent program has long provided its senior volun- teers to assist local students with reading, but when Pendleton Public Library Assistant Director Jennifer See READ/10A Staff photo by E.J. Harris Joy Rana, right, a volunteer with Foster Grandparents, compliments Kayle Smith, 9, of Pendleton on her read- ing during the reading with animals summer program on Tuesday at PAWS in Pendleton. Morrow County is looking for a new top administrator. Jerry Sorte, who was hired as the coun- ty’s fi rst full-time administrative offi cer in 2015, submitted his resignation Monday after accepting a new job as community and economic development director with the city of Sweet Home. Sorte’s last day in Eastern Oregon will be Aug. 25. In the meantime, the Morrow County Board of Commis- sioners has called a special work session for 9 a.m. Friday at the Bartholomew Building in Heppner Sorte to discuss fi nding a replacement. “For me, this was a really tough decision because there is so much going on in Morrow County,” Sorte said. “I am especially happy with the steps our team has taken to make the county organization more effi cient and transparent.” Sorte arrived during a time of historic change in Morrow County government. Prior to his hiring, administrative duties fell to the county judge, who also presided over juvenile court. However, when longtime Judge Terry Tallman retired, the county abolished the judge position and shifted to having three part-time commis- sioners, while hiring an administrator to supervise department heads and serve as a liaison with elected offi cials. Since coming on board, Sorte said he has tried to modernize the way the county does business — such as updating the county website, where the public can now fi nd meeting notices, minutes and audio recordings. The county is also on solid fi nancial footing, Sorte said, thanks to money from Strategic Investment Program agreements See SORTE/10A HERMISTON Dack named Realtor of the Year By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Contributed photo from Melinda Newman Charlotte Dack poses with her award after being honored with Realtor of the Year. The government may consider retirement age to be 67, but at 94 Charlotte Dack is still showing up to work. “I guess I just don’t know what else to do with myself,” she said. Dack, the principal broker at Universal Realty in Hermiston, is the oldest licensed Realtor in Oregon. Last week she was named Realtor of the Year by the Columbia Basin Board of Realtors. When Dack got her license in 1961, she was only the second woman in Umatilla County to do so. Today women make up almost two-thirds of the real estate agents in the country. Dack was working at US Bank at the time, but had decided she could make more money selling real estate and liked the idea “It’s interesting to get to know their background, and very satisfying when you help them fi nd what they want.” — Charlotte Dack, Realtor of the Year of being her own boss. She worked by day and studied by night; after getting her license she spent three more years at US Bank while selling houses in the evenings and weekends. She sold her fi rst house on East Highland Avenue to a doctor and his wife. “It’s still in use today,” she said. “It was a well-built house.” Each piece of real estate has its own character and interesting things about it, See DACK/10A
