OFF PAGE ONE
Friday, July 19, 2019
Retaliation: UEC’s Echenrode
alegedly breached his fiduciary duty
Continued from Page A1
$3.4 million for the loss
of future wages, benefits
and pension payments and
almost $3.8 million for emo-
tional distress and physical
harm.
Court records show the
plaintiff served copies of
the lawsuit to Echenrode
and the two power compa-
nies, but there are no legal
responses from the defen-
dants. Umatilla Electric
Cooperative, however, pro-
vided this response from
Echenrode:
“I’m proud of our work at
UEC to serve our members
by bringing power, progress
and opportunity to the com-
munity. I approach this mis-
sion with a commitment to
collaboration and supporting
an inclusive and safe work-
place for all of our employ-
ees. Those missions and
values guide my work and
remain my focus. I believe
the claims are without merit
and we will respond through
the appropriate legal pro-
cess, but my focus remains
where it should be — on
carrying out our mission
guided by strong values on
behalf of our members and
the community we serve.”
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
The Lodge has received a variety of state and local grants to aid in renovating the facade and
HVAC for the building.
Grant: Final dollar amount undetermined
Continued from Page A1
said, was over how much
money the former Benevo-
lent and Protective Order of
Elks Lodge qualified for.
According to Denight and
The Lodge’s grant applica-
tion, co-owner Lance Leon-
nig was asking for 40% of
the project’s total cost.
With renovations includ-
ing heating, ventilation, and
air conditioning replace-
ment, roof repairs, drain
installation, and electrical
work, Leonnig estimated the
project would cost $39,333.
But The Lodge is already
getting financial assistance
for some of those renova-
tions through its share of a
$155,609 grant from Oregon
Main Street.
Given the grant money
it was already receiving,
Denight said the commit-
tee wanted to pay the cost of
the second story renovations
after the Oregon Main Street
grant was applied, rather
than the total project cost.
Denight said the other
factor was the fact that
Leonnig, a licensed elec-
trician, intended to do
much of the electrical work
himself.
He said The Lodge could
qualify for more money if
Leonnig submitted a bid for
his own labor and included a
competing bid from another
electrician.
Although the committee
didn’t settle on a final grant
amount, Denight said mem-
bers didn’t want to hinder
Leonnig’s ability to move
forward with the HVAC and
roof work and approved his
application.
Leonnig said in an inter-
view that there’s a short
warm-weather window for
the roof work and he wanted
to move quickly.
Like the rest of the devel-
opment commission’s grant
programs, the second story
grant works on a reimburse-
ment basis. Leonnig will
pay for the costs of the ren-
ovations up front, submit
receipts of the costs to the
city, and then receive reim-
bursement based on the
grant amount.
Leonnig declined to talk
about discussions between
himself and the facade com-
mittee, but he said he was
happy to receive community
support for The Lodge.
He
bought
the
24,000-square-foot build-
ing in January, long after the
Elks had vacated their for-
mer home.
Leonnig and some local
business partners have spent
the ensuing months fixing
up the 63-year-old building.
He said the effort has
been labor-intensive, point-
ing to a series of outlets in
the building’s Stag Bar that
took hours to install.
Even though The Lodge
is still a work in progress, it’s
set to host the fourth install-
ment of its “Live at the Les-
lie” concert series on Friday.
East Oregonian
A7
Bike Week: Rumbles in Pendleton
Continued from Page A1
trate their routes using his
fingers on the back of his
sport bike.
After not participating
in any of the rides last year
— they instead made use
of the demo rides available
from various dealers and
enjoyed the week’s other
events — the Bobs wanted
to join in the fun this time.
The locations start with
the Rattlesnake Mountain
Harley-Davidson in the
vendor village at the con-
vention center and include
Oregon Grain Grow-
ers Brand Distillery, Elite
Guns & Tactical and Pend-
leton Woolen Mills along
with the Holton Secret Lab
in Helix and Midway Bar
& Grill in Hermiston.
Unlike the Rattlesnake
400 that both began and
ended on Thursday, rid-
ers have until Saturday at
7 p.m. to collect each loca-
tion’s stamp and return
their card to the conven-
tion center. With time to
waste, Jeff said he and his
wife will finish the ride
over Thursday and Friday,
making sure to enjoy the
most scenic routes between
the three Umatilla County
towns.
Within their 26 years
of marriage, riding has
become a family passion
for the Bobs. While Jeff
said he’s been riding since
1979, Carrie first started in
1997. Or at least she tried
to.
As she was participating
in a class to earn her Ore-
gon motorcycle endorse-
ment, Carrie learned she
was pregnant. Though
she finished the class, she
couldn’t begin to ride until
after the birth of their first
daughter.
Carrie was patient until
her daughter was 8 weeks
old, when they then took a
family trip and she put her
endorsement to use. Now
22, the Bobs’ oldest daugh-
ter recently received her
motorcycle endorsement
too.
“It’s something I always
wanted to do,” Carrie said
of getting into biking
Her
husband
had
another theory.
“She hates being a pas-
senger,” Jeff said, laughing.
The Bobs don’t ride
together on the same bike
unless they absolutely have
to, according to Carrie. But
biking has still been a way
for the couple to bond.
While now the couple
mostly takes some time to
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
A group of motorcycle enthusiasts rolls into the parking lot at
the Pendleton Convention Center for Pendleton Bike Week.
go riding together along
all the “twisty” back roads
near Portland, they used
to meet up with a group of
friends on Friday nights to
go biking and would make
an annual group fossil trip
to the John Day area.
While they share the
same passion for bikes and
motorcycles, their tastes
differ.
Jeff’s bike of choice is
a silvery gray sport bike
with lime green trimming
— and that is considered
“naked” because of its min-
imalized windshield cover-
ing — while Carrie opts for
a sleek, black Indian brand
cruiser that she knew she
had to have after demoing
it at last year’s Bike Week.
“It looks bad-ass,” Car-
rie said, laughing.
As a self-proclaimed
slow rider, Carrie said the
cruiser was comfortable
for her, whereas Jeff pre-
fers the speedy bike and
“loves the curves.”
“Our bikes are like dogs
and we’re the dog owners,”
Jeff said. “And everyone’s
got a favorite dog.”
And what better way is
there to make friends than
taking your dog, or bike,
out to see what other favor-
ites people have.
As he stood next to his
bike parked in the con-
vention center lot, Jeff
motioned in a fellow sport
bike rider to park next
to him. The two quickly
began exchanging travel
stories and thoughts on
the latest models and news
about various bikes.
“This,” Jeff said, inter-
rupting their discussion
and pointing to the other
rider and then himself.
“This is why I’m here.”
Soon, Carrie noticed
somebody with an Indian
brand bike like hers and
went to talk with them on
the other end of the lot as
the Bobs each got to share
in their own unique passion
for their bikes.
Not everybody shows
up at Pendleton’s Bike
Week with a plan like the
Bobs. In fact, Kay and
Angela Hen never intended
to show up at all.
“It was a mistake actu-
ally,” Kay said.
The couple had been
headed back home to Port-
land on their Harley-Da-
vidsons after four days on
the road. After leaving the
previous Saturday morn-
ing, the Hens took the back
roads throughout Northeast
Oregon, dipping through
the John Day and Hells
Canyon areas and heading
all the way to Boise, Idaho.
On their way back west,
they heard of Bike Week in
Pendleton and decided to
extend their trip through
the weekend.
After attending Wednes-
day’s Ride with the Raiders
and enjoying some “amaz-
ing burgers” in town, the
couple planned to use the
Poker Run to get more of a
tour of the area.
Kay has been biking
consistently for the last
four years, though he dis-
covered his love for it at a
young age. As a child, Kay
remembers seeing his dad
ride his motorcycle and
immediately asking for
one for himself. When he
was 7 years old, his father
obliged and gifted him a
dirt bike.
Now, the Hens go bik-
ing just about every week-
end. Last week, the couple
took a 360-mile trip down
to Sisters, Bend and the
rest of Central Oregon. The
week before that, they went
to Astoria and took a trip
up and down the coast.
And then this week-
end they landed in Pendle-
ton by mistake. But riding
their bikes has nothing to
do with their destinations.
“Freedom,” Kay said of
why he bikes.
“That’s all you need,”
Angela said.
“It’s cool to ride and see
neat places,” Kay said. “But
it’s really about freedom.”
BMCC: Bikers looking
to give back for a cause
Continued from Page A1
funding goes back into the
team to help pay for things
like new equipment, uni-
forms and travel expenses.
The team will begin prac-
tices for the fall on Aug. 1
according to Larson, so Bike
Week gives the team a reason
to get together before it’s time
to get to business.
“It’s a lot of fun to get
out and spend some time
together before the chaos
of the season,” Larson said,
laughing.
While many of the players
are enjoying their summer
vacations, it wasn’t difficult
for their coach to enlist them
for help.
“The girls are really good
at coming out and volun-
teering,” Larson said. “They
know this goes to them. They
reap the benefits.”
Most of the team’s other
fundraisers throughout the
year are geared toward vol-
leyball, such as kid camps
and clinics. And with the
team in season when the
Round-Up is in full force,
Larson said they aren’t usu-
ally able to get involved.
“It’s nice to be a part of
the community out here,”
she said, gesturing to the sur-
rounding trucks and tents of
vendors set up throughout the
convention center’s parking
lot.
When it comes to the
bikes, Larson said the team
gets to enjoy the colorful
bikes and personalities that
come through. However,
with a group that specializes
in spikes rather than suds,
Larson said they have to han-
dle the bikes with care as
they clean.
“We know it’s expensive
equipment,” she said. “We
make sure to ask if there’s
things they don’t want to get
wet or if the don’t want us to
use a certain soap.”
Patrons of the bike wash
come to the tent for various
reasons. Some are just look-
ing to keep their bike shining,
while others are looking to
get it into top shape for Satur-
day’s bike show.
And some are just looking
to give back.
On Thursday afternoon,
Dinah Wheaton stopped
by the tent to have her bike
cleaned. A bike enthusi-
ast, Wheaton traveled from
Tacoma to attend Pendle-
ton’s Bike Week for the first
time. Her late husband was a
member of the stunt and drill
bike team known as the Seat-
tle Cossacks, and though her
bike was dirty, she mostly
just wanted to support the
girls.
“I’ve been helped a lot and
it makes you feel good to be
able to help others,” she said.
While Larson said busi-
ness has been slow to begin
Bike Week, the group will
remain at the convention cen-
ter through Saturday hop-
ing to raise more funds for
the season.
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Dinah Wheaton rides her freshly cleaned 2015 Harley Davidson Street Glide following a visit to the bike wash at the Pendleton Con-
vention Center. The event, part of Pendleton Bike Week, raised funds for the Blue Mountain Community College volleyball team.
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Shawn Rowland checks for any missed spots on his 2016
Harley Davidson Road Glide Special. Rowland purchased
the bike in May and decided to take it for its first wash
during Pendleton Bike Week.
Denali Twehues assists her teammates in drying off a Harley
Davidson during a bike wash fundraiser for Blue Mountain
Community College’s volleyball team. The bike wash, a part of
Pendleton Bike Week, starts daily at 12:30 p.m. through Satur-
day at the Pendleton Convention Center.