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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 2018)
REGION Saturday, January 27, 2018 East Oregonian Page 3A PILOT ROCK BRIEFLY Despite permit, no problem turkeys killed Former Echo councilor Nakapalau dies By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian The federal wildlife service stands ready to take out wild turkeys roaming Pilot Rock should the need arise. So far, it hasn’t. Citizen complaints about the turkeys causing property damage and creating mounds of scat prompted the city council last year to ban feeding the birds, and on Nov. 21 the council voted in favor of having the United States Department of Agriculture eliminate the wild turkeys. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife in Pendleton on Dec. 11 wrote the kill permit. State wildlife biologist Mark Kirsch said the permit allows the city to pursue lethal taking within certain parameters and desig- nates the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service as the agency to handle the work. Kevin Christensen is the assistant state director for ALPHIS and Wildlife Services in Oregon. He explained the division uses a series of steps before an agent can kill an animal, beginning with an on-site inspection to assess if wild animals are a real threat or actually causing property damage. “A lot of people would have the perception of damage or the threat ... but that may not be the case,” he said. Field agents also look to see if efforts to harass or haze wildlife are working. Chris- tensen said folks might have done good work harassing animals or putting up barriers, for example, but maybe there are other methods Wildlife Services can help with. Sheriff’s patrol car theft suspect faces three criminal cases EO file photo In this Sept. 2017 file photo, a pair of wild turkeys walk though a yard in Pilot Rock. Agents have to check back to see if the harassment was successful. “Then if nothing else works,” he said, “they have to find a suitable, safe location to generally use a firearm to take turkeys.” That does not mean busting buckshot in bunches of birds. “When taking one animal, you have educated the other 10 or 20 or 30,” he said. Agents again return to reinforce the negative conse- quences. Christensen said that might just mean showing up and not having to fire a gun. He said the goal is to convince the birds they are no longer safe and returning to the wild is the better option. The gist of the process, he said, is using the least amount of response to get the desired action from wildlife. Wildlife services employs about 15 people statewide, including field agents working out of their homes. Umatilla County has one agent, Ken Mitchell, who Christensen said acts as a “one-stop shop” for all kinds of wildlife situations. Christensen said he did not know if Mitchell has made an assessment of Pilot Rock’s turkeys, but he has not killed any to date. ODFW’s Kirsch also confirmed there have been no kills. The turkeys in recent weeks have not been running around the city, he said, so there does not seem to be a need right now. He also said the permit requires the carcasses be returned to the state. “We’re going to try to salvage the birds for chari- table distribution,” he said. Municipalities struggling with turkey damage is not atypical, Kirsch said, and it takes a city council interacting with its citizens to reach conclusions on how to handle the situation. But some solutions don’t work so well. Pilot Rock has heard from at least one local willing to relocate the turkeys. Kirsch said these birds have been hanging around people and pets, and state veterinarians would have little confidence the turkeys are free from transmitting disease. The turkeys also are accus- tomed to people, he said, so relocating them means the state has to ensure they don’t bother new neighbors. “Again, our comfort levels with that are not super high,” Kirsch said. “We don’t want to move a problem from one place and create it for someone else.” ——— Contact Phil Wright at pwright@eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0833. STANFIELD Dojo to break boards for young cancer patient By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian A local taekwondo studio is getting ready to break bricks and boards in the hopes of raising money for a local girl fighting cancer. Erwin Watson, owner of Eastern Oregon Family Tae Kwon Do, said his students are soliciting donations from their friends and family, in the hopes of donating the proceeds to Maddy Thomas, an 11-year-old from Echo. Thomas was diagnosed with a pilocytic astrocytoma, a brain tumor, in August. She had surgery in October to remove part of the tumor, but due to the location of the growth, not all of it could be removed by surgery. She is undergoing chemotherapy to shrink the rest of it. Maddy’s mother Jenny Thomas said her daughter had been doing well, but had to go back to the hospital in Seattle earlier this week to get treatment for a blood infection. But she said her daughter has been positive throughout her illness. “She is one strong cookie,” Thomas said. “She wants to be at school. She gets upset that she can’t do as much, but she always has a smile.” Watson said his students ECHO — Lou Nakapalau, former Echo city coun- cilor, has died. He was 66. Stanfield Police Chief Byron Zumwalt said Friday there is nothing suspicious about the death. “We’re calling it natural causes,” he said. Nakapalau did not show up for a doctor’s appoint- ment Friday, Zumwalt said, and his department received a call to check on him at his Main Street home. The chief also said his department is working with the county medical examiner. He said he did not anticipate releasing more information. “At this point, it’s like any other unattended death,” Zumwalt said. Nakapalau recently resigned from the Echo City Council amid a controversy over remarks he made on social media and revelations about past criminal charges. He was a speaker at multiple Veterans Day events at local schools, where he spoke about his two Army tours in Vietnam from 1969 to 1971. Contributed photo Maddy Thomas, 11, is fighting cancer. A Stanfield tae- kwondo studio is hosting a “breakathon” on Feb. 3, breaking boards and bricks and raising money to help Thomas. The event is open to the public. are asking their friends and family to purchase boards or bricks, which the students will then get to break as part of their taekwondo training. Bricks can be purchased for $10, and wooden boards for $5. The bricks and boards were donated by the manager at Home Depot. The board-breaking event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 3 at the studio, at 155 W. WE HEAR YOU! LOCAL, INDEPENDENT AUDIOLOGIST Working within the community of Pendleton, our clinic provides a variety of hearing healthcare services including hearing assessments and rehabilitation, education, and counseling. FULL SERVICE CLINIC Our clinic also fi ts and dispenses sophisticated hearing aids and related devices to suit all types of hearing loss and life styles. Renata Anderson is a certifi ed licensed audiologist with over twenty years experience. SERVICE YOU CAN RELY ON! You can trust Renata to provide a complete hearing evaluation and a professional diagnosis of your specifi c hearing loss. Call for an appointment with Renata today and start hearing what you’ve been missing. Renata Anderson, MA Pam Wagenaar, Administrative Assistant 2237 SW Court, Pendleton 541-276-5053 • www.renataanderson.com Coe Ave. in Stanfield. Watson said so far, some students have raised hundreds of dollars. “Money is still coming in,” he said. “We’ve had a couple of kids bring in $400.” He said the studio has about 80 students. A few weeks ago, Watson said, Maddie and her mom came in and met some of the students, and watched a practice. “If she’s feeling well enough, I’m hoping she’ll be there,” he said. Thomas said her daughter was excited while watching the taekwondo practice. “The first thing she said to me was, ‘When I get better, can I take a class?’” Thomas said. Another child who has battled cancer will also be in attendance, Watson said. A few years ago, Watson’s studio raised money for Marcos Madera, a McNary boy who was diagnosed with cancer. Watson found out that his mother was struggling to make ends meet as she took him to Portland for treatment, and wanted to help. He found out about Thomas through a Facebook friend, and immediately sent her a message asking if his class could help. Thomas said her family had been overwhelmed by the support from Watson and other community members. “They’ve been a huge support, allowing us to spend more time helping her,” Thomas said. ——— Contact Jayati Ramakrishnan at jramakrishnan@eastorego- nian.com or 541-564-4534 HERMISTON — Christopher Alvin Phillips of Hermiston faces 11 counts for burglary as well as stealing and crashing a Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office patrol car. The district attorney’s office arraigned Phillips, 23, Friday afternoon in the Hermiston courtroom of Circuit Judge Eva Temple, according to court records. The charges range from misdemeanors of unlawful entry into a motor vehicle and third-degree theft to felonies of unauthorized use Phillips of a vehicle and attempted first- degree burglary. The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office the morning of Jan. 18 responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle at a vacant house near 33464 E. Punkin Center Road east of Hermiston. Deputy Chris Daugherty found the vehicle, a red 1994 Ford Explorer, as well as Phillips and Tyler Morris, 19. Daugherty arrested and handcuffed Phillips and put him in the back seat of the patrol car, according to a written statement from the sheriff’s office, and released Morris. Daugherty kept his car running while waiting outside for a tow truck to take the Explorer. That’s when Phillips moved his cuffs to his front, broke out the rear window of the patrol car, crawled into the driver’s seat and took off. He crashed the car in a small canal at the corner of Tabor and Punkin Center roads, then fled on foot. Deputies that afternoon caught Phillips near the Short Stop gas station at 32553 E. Punkin Center Road. The district attorney’s office also charged Phillips in two more cases: • First-degree criminal mischief, second-degree burglary, second-degree theft for a Jan. 2 break-in at Eastside Market, 528 E. Main St., Hermiston; • and first-degree burglary, first-degree criminal trespass and third-degree theft for a Jan. 11 break-in at 33464 E. Punkin Center Road, Hermiston. Phillips has hearings Feb. 12 to consider trial readiness in each case. Until then, he remains in the Umatilla County Jail, Pendleton, in lieu of $225,000 bail. Longtime banker cashes in experience WALLA WALLA — Rosendo Guizar, who has worked in all facets of consumer and commercial lending during his 22 years at Baker Boyer Bank, was recently promoted to credit administrator. The Walla Walla man’s most recent role was as a business advisor. As credit administrator, Guizar will be in charge of the bank’s entire commercial and consumer lending portfolio. Guizar, who graduated from the University of Colorado School of Guizar Banking in 2003, also has a degree in biochemistry from Whitman College. Prior to working at Baker Boyer, he held several entrepreneurial roles, which were instrumental in providing a well-rounded banking and financing background, said a press release from the bank. A community bank based in Walla Walla, Baker Boyer also has a branch in Milton-Freewater. For more information, visit www.bakerboyer.com. ——— Briefs are compiled from staff and wire reports, and press releases. Email press releases to news@ eastoregonian.com BUCKAROO BOOSTER CLUB FUNDRAISER Dinner & Auction Cracked Crab-Baked Salmon-Tri-tip an Evening in P RIS CASA Fundraising Gala February 24, 2018 6-10pm (21+) Hermiston Community Center Dinner & Dancing TICKET INCLUDES: - Meal and Complimentary Beer - Chance to Win • 1 of 5 $100 in Auction Bucks Certifi cates • $500 Cash Drawing • Heads/Tails Game with a chance to win $500 Wednesday • February 21st $35 Per Person DINNER: 5:30-7pm • AUCTION: 6:30pm Pendleton Convention Center Tickets $40 each/$75 VIP Limited to fi rst 500 tickets sold Purchase tickets at UMCHS main office 110 NE 4th St., Hermiston and online at umchs.com/donate Come and have fun with the Tickets available at Big John’s Pizza, Dean’s Pendleton Athletic, Dave’s Food Mart or board members. Must be 21 & over to attend. DUELING PIANOS Dr. Robert Alan Pratt, DMD PC Hill Meat Company Dean’s Pendleton Athletic • Wheatland Insurance • Andrew Bower MD • Eastern Or Orthopaedic Surgery & Fracture Clinic • Kelly Lumber Supply • Kruse Construction • McLaughlin Landscaping • Papa Murphy’s Pizza • Thews Sheet Metal • D.A. Davidson & Co.