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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 2018)
Saturday, October 20, 2018 OFF PAGE ONE SPUDS: Nonprofit donated 26 million pounds of food crops between 2006 and 2017 Page 14A East Oregonian Continued from 1A Hamm said because the acres are a mixture of potato varieties, it doesn’t work to send them all to a french fry plant, for example, but each individual potato is good for eating. “This is a good use of potatoes that are absolutely OK, just not for a commer- cial setting,” he said. On Wednesday, Stahl Farms donated the labor and equipment to harvest the potatoes, which were loaded onto trucks provided by Medelez Trucking. The trucks took them to Wal- chli Potato to be processed, washed and packaged and sent to a storage facil- ity owned by farmer Steve Walker. Hamm said they didn’t have a final num- ber yet, but it was definitely more than 100,000 pounds of potatoes. Farmers Ending Hunger, which started in Umatilla County, facilitates dona- tions of fresh food from Oregon farmers to the Ore- gon Food Bank. Burt said Wednesday’s effort with the test potatoes was a lit- to their network of food banks throughout the state. “We will leave as much locally as possible,” Burt said. Hunger is an issue throughout Oregon. According to the Oregon Food Bank, 14 percent of Oregonians are “food inse- cure,” meaning they don’t have reliable access to a suf- ficient quantity of nutritious food. Of those 552,900 Oregonians, 194,070 are children. The food bank works to lessen hunger by distrib- uting food through 1,200 different local sites around the state and Clark County, Washington. Food is kept in 21 regional food banks, with CAPECO serving as one for northeastern Ore- gon. Food comes from cor- porate and individual dona- tions, and Farmers Ending Hunger is one of the top donors. The nonprofit donated 26 million pounds of food crops between 2006 Staff photo by E.J. Harris Potatoes are bagged, and then stacked on pallets on Wednesday at the Walchli potato processing facility outside and 2017. ——— of Hermiston. Contact Jade McDowell tle different than the normal the effort. Some of the pota- Pendleton to be distributed picked up by the Oregon at jmcdowell@eastorego- donation, but it was worth toes will go to CAPECO in locally, and the rest will be Food Bank to be distributed nian.com or 541-564-4536. GRIT: The difficult job is to convince the country that a print publication is still important Continued from 1A in 1875, a rough, risk-laden period in the state’s history. “Along with schools and churches, a newspaper pro- vided an important measure of civilization and order,” he writes. Having a newspa- per “was a way of proclaim- ing that a town was real and here to stay.” Willingham explains how small-town papers survived uncertain early years, how they weathered crises — such as the 1922 Astoria Fire and the Great Depression — why some papers succeeded and others folded, and why they aggressively promoted the development of their towns. “If the paper’s going to thrive, the community has to thrive, and vice versa,” he said. “Grit and Ink” also high- lights celebrated moments for the local press — such as EO editor Edwin Aldrich’s push to save Pendleton’s woolen mill and jump-start the Pendleton Round-Up, or Astoria Evening Budget edi- tor Merle Chessman’s bold editorial stand against the Ku Klux Klan. “You learn a lot of Oregon history, actually, through this book in a way,” Willing- ham said. “You see what the editors saw was important in their communities, and what they reported on, and what they commented on, and tried through their edi- torials to shape the response of the communities to those events.” Finally, the book shows how community journalism has changed from the late 19th century to the present — and how much of the pro- fession remains the same. Indeed, the values laid down by legendary EO edi- tor C.S. “Sam” Jackson were values Aldrich, his successor, built upon — a commitment to fierce inde- pendence, accurate and fair reporting, championing the underdog and serving as the voice of the community. Independent observer EO Media Group CEO Steve Forrester, The Daily Astorian’s former editor and publisher, asked Willingham to write the company’s his- tory back in 2014. Though “Grit and Ink” is a book about the company, published by the company, Willingham said it isn’t an “authorized biography.” The ground rules for research were “wide open,” he said. “I had a totally free hand to go wherever the research took me, and I had no inter- ference whatsoever with the process,” he said. The book will be distrib- uted by Oregon State Uni- versity Press. Willingham read through EO records, dug through documents at the Ore- gon Historical Society and researched second- ary sources. He studied the company’s two daily papers, handful of weeklies and 20 years of online editions. In addition, he inter- viewed Mike Forrester, Steve’s older brother — who like their father, J.W. “Bud” Forrester, also edited The Daily Astorian and EO — Heidi Wright, the com- pany’s chief operating offi- cer; John Perry, the retired COO; and John Shaver, the company’s retired chief financial officer. And he had East Oregonian family ownership through four generations E.B. Aldrich EO editor and owner, 1908-1950 Elsie C. Aldrich Board director, 1950-1983 J. W. “Bud” Forrester EO editor, 1951-1973 Board director, 1951-2000 Eleanor Aldrich Forrester EO business manager, 1951-1973 Board director, 1951-2007 Amy Aldrich Bedford EO commercial printing manager, 1950-1975 EO public affairs, 1975-2006 Board director, 1951-2006 Michael Aldrich Forrester EO editor, 1973-1990 Board director, 1968-present Stephen Aldrich Forrester Board director, 1972-present Jacqueline Bedford Brown EO human resources, 1988-2006 Board director, 1988-2009 Kathryn Bedford Brown EO associate publisher 2007-2013 EO publisher 2013-2018 Board of directors, 1997-present continuing conversations with Steve Forrester and his cousin Kathryn Brown, who is now vice president of EO Media Group and until recently was the publisher of the EO. Steve Forrester said he learned things about his family’s company that he never knew. “From listening to din- ner-table conversations, I knew that there had been an unsuccessful venture in Idaho” — namely, the com- pany’s purchase and subse- quent sale of the Twin Falls Times in the early 20th cen- tury. “From Bill’s research I learned the details,” he said. “The book has been four years in the making, so it is most heartening to see the finished product that is so compelling and attractive,” he added. Fighting newspapers With material that errs on the informational rather than colorful side, the book may put off readers uninterested in the finer points of running a news operation. What will make the big- gest impression? “The fierce commitment of that fam- ily over three generations — four generations now — to succeeding in commu- nity journalism, to really do what it took and make the sacrifices to keep those newspapers alive,” Will- ingham said, “because they felt the value they were add- ing to the community and the importance of what they were doing.” Part of that value comes from the decision to remain a print publication, some- thing that appears at peo- ple’s doorsteps and dentist’s offices. “I think that’s still what you need for an identity with your community,” Willingham said. “There is that physical presence that’s really necessary, and of course the difficult job is to convince the country that that’s still important. Because when everything is online, it’s so easy to lose sight of it, or to forget what it takes to maintain it.” There’s a deeper value every journalistic enterprise must consider: “What are the basic principles that you won’t sacrifice over time, that you feel — under what- ever economic and political and social circumstances — will stand the test of time?” If “Grit and Ink” has a central message — a phi- losophy of how journalism should be practiced — Will- ingham said it is captured in a quote by Jackson that serves as an epigraph for Chapter 1: “Print the truth. Fight for the right. People like a fighting newspaper.” “I think that motto really runs through the entire his- tory of the Forrester fam- ily newspaper adventure,” Willingham said. For more information, call 1-800-962-2819 2x3 EXAMPLE Celebrate your loved ones in our We are so proud of you for serving your country. VETERANS DAY TRIBUTE Free Example: Honoring those who have served and those who are currently serving our country! They’ve served our country with courage and honor. They’ve left behind loved ones to risk their lives while protecting our country. They’ve defended our freedoms and ideals. They make us proud to be Americans. Help us honor them. SALUTE E Love We Evelyn, are so Joe and proud of you Cheryl for serving your country. J OSEPH B. D AVIS Staff Sergeant Joel Davis US Marines Veteran This special section will print in the Hermiston Herald on Nov. 7, 2018 and in the East Oregonian on Nov. 10, 2018. There is NO CHARGE to be included. Bring us or send in photos of servicemen, servicewomen or veterans, along with the information in the form to the right, by November 1, 2018. 1x4 EXAMPLE J OSEPH S MITH Thank you for your service! Love Evelyn, Joe and Cheryl If you’d like to purchase a larger space to include a special message, border, flags, or stars and stripes, rates are $40 for a 1x4” space or $60 for a 2x3” space. Private party only. Please call 1-800-962-2819. Love always Marcy, Julie & Emily Service Person’s Name Military Branch Your Name Your Address Your Phone Number Military Rank Currently Serving Veteran (Check One) Deliver to: East Oregonian 211 SE Byers Ave. • Pendleton, OR or e-mail to classifieds@eastoregonian.com