A4
East Oregonian
Tuesday, June 18, 2019
CHRISTOPHER RUSH
Publisher
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
ANDREW CUTLER
Editor
WYATT HAUPT JR.
News Editor
JADE McDOWELL
Hermiston Editor
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Volunteer to help your community
I
n a perfect world children would
not go hungry.
We don’t live in one of those,
so that’s why local free lunch pro-
grams — becoming, thankfully, a
summer feature — are so important.
Free lunch programs — spon-
sored by entities such as the Herm-
iston Recreation Department or the
Umatilla-Morrow Head Start — fill
a vital need even as the local econ-
omy seems stabilized. Child pov-
erty is down — from 26.3 percent in
2017 to 19.1 percent in 2018 — but
the decline is hardly a case for rejoic-
ing. A 19 percent child poverty rate
is still dismal and troubling. How to
solve it, though, is the difficult ques-
tion. To answer the child poverty rate
requires the kind of thinking-outside-
the-box behavior that isn’t always
readily available. It isn’t just a Uma-
tilla County problem, either. Other
counties in Eastern Oregon — Mal-
heur County comes to mind — also
face a lingering problem with child-
hood poverty.
Until a wide-sweeping solution
is discovered, entities such as Uma-
tilla-Morrow Head Start are essen-
tial. Far too many children rely on
the free lunch program to find a mid-
day meal. Without such programs,
it is hard to understate the potential
damage to young people in our great
county.
The damage, of course, not only
occurs now but manifests itself in
the future. Afterall, it is hard to con-
centrate and be productive in any
endeavor if you are wondering where
your next meal is coming from.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
The summer lunch program at the Umatilla-Morrow Head Start will feature a range of lunchtime activities for participants. Previous years
featured rock painting, water balloons, visits from the mayor and fire department, and even the occasional dunk tank.
The number of students who qual-
ify for reduced or free lunch hovers
near 60 percent in Umatilla County.
That means the poverty-hunger issue
here isn’t going to go away anytime
soon.
That means all of us should find
a way to help such organizations as
Umatilla-Morrow Head Start. While
most of us do not have access to a
crystal ball where a solution to child-
hood poverty and hunger is readily
available, we all have the capacity to
volunteer or help in other ways.
Volunteering to help your commu-
nity — in any form — is a special
kind of civic virtue. Chances are, if
you look closely at many local orga-
nizations you’ll see a core of volun-
teers who make it successful. Volun-
teering to help the Umatilla-Morrow
Head Start or any other local group
that provides a free lunch program
during the summer is a noble act.
Volunteering to help with a free
lunch program also provides resi-
dents the opportunity to engage with
young people in a positive way.
So if you have the opportunity,
lend a hand. You won’t regret it.
YOUR VIEWS
Use for fire station proceeds a
no-brainer
The council needs to move on ASAP
with the sale of the old fire station and rental
homes. No more hearings, etc., on who the
buyers should be — list it and get it sold! Be
done with it!
Now the most important ending to this
deal: All proceeds, not a portion of, will be
placed in the street repair fund. Funds can
not be used for anything else — street repairs
only.
It’s a no-brainer.
Dennis Moffit Sr.
Pendleton
OSP car helps foster
partnership with LGBTQ
community
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
U.S. PRESIDENT
Donald Trump
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
whitehouse.gov/contact/
U.S. SENATORS
Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
La Grande office: 541-962-7691
La Grande office: 541-624-2400
Rep.GregBarreto@state.or.us
GOVERNOR
Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753
Pendleton office: 541-278-1129
Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court Street
Salem, OR 97301-4047
503-378-4582
Greg Smith, District 57
900 Court St. NE, H-482
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1457
Rep.GregSmith@state.or.us
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE
REPRESENTATIVES
Greg Walden
185 Rayburn Hous Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6730
Greg Barreto, District 58
900 Court St. NE, H-38
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1458
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of
the East Oregonian editorial board. Other
columns, letters and cartoons on this page
express the opinions of the authors and not
necessarily that of the East Oregonian.
SENATOR
Bill Hansell, District 29
900 Court St. NE, S-423
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1729
Sen.BillHansell@state.or.us
I would like to thank Phil Wright for his
June 8-9 article sharing information about the
OSP Pride Car. Historically the police have
been, and sometimes continues to be, an agent
of fear to gay, lesbian and transgender people.
This month we celebrate Gay Pride in remem-
brance of a particularly egregious example of
police brutality.
As an ally of the LGBTQ community, it is
gratifying to read this uplifting article and the
show of partnership between a police force
and this community. It is unfortunate not
every jurisdiction can enjoy this relationship.
PFLAG offers support to people who have
recognized it is time to live the life they were
meant to live. We reach out to their families,
friends, and the community to show them how
to best give their support. We partner with the
community and elected officials to change
unacceptable laws and to encourage equal
treatment of all people regardless of their sex-
ual orientation or gender expression.
If you see us tabling in the community
please stop by and say hello. Just look for our
lovely rainbows.
Alice Hepburn, president
PFLAG Pendleton
The East Oregonian welcomes original letters of 400 words or less on public issues and public policies
for publication in the newspaper and on our website. The newspaper reserves the right to withhold
letters that address concerns about individual services and products or letters that infringe on the rights
of private citizens. Letters must be signed by the author and include the city of residence and a daytime
phone number. The phone number will not be published. Unsigned letters will not be published.
Send letters to the editor to
editor@eastoregonian.com,
or via mail to Andrew Cutler,
211 S.E. Byers Ave.
Pendleton, OR 97801