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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 26, 2019)
WEEKEND EDITION BMCC HOSTS BIG BEND FOR ‘DIG PINK’ NIGHT HEMP FARMER CAT DAY GETS HIGH CROP CELEBRATES AT HIGH ALTITUDE FELINE FRIENDS NORTHWEST, A2 LIFESTYLES, C1 SPORTS, B1 E O AST 143rd Year, No. 267 REGONIAN REGONIA OCTOBER 26-27, 2019 $1.50 WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Curbing big money donations EO SPOTLIGHT Secretary of State candidates working to limit infl uence in 2020 race By DIRK VANDERHART Oregon Public Broadcasting High-speed internet making its way to east Umatilla County Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Ron Thomas, an employee of Eastern Oregon Telecom, unloads conduit from a trailer at a construction site in Umatilla on Friday afternoon. By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian MATILLA COUNTY — Weston Mayor Jennifer Spurgeon has made her case for rural broadband to mem- bers of Congress and the chairman of the Federal Communications Com- mission, but it was an encounter with the chief executive of a local service provider that has Weston on the verge of gaining access to high-speed internet. Eastern Oregon Telecom President Joseph Franell said he met Spurgeon at a Hermiston Chamber of Commerce function about a year ago, a meeting that helped convince him that it was worth it to extend fi ber internet to some of Oregon’s smallest incorporated towns. Not only will Weston get high-speed broadband in the coming days, but EOT is expecting to extend fi ber into Athena by the end of the year and Adams shortly thereafter. The giants in the telecommunications industry have typically passed over smaller communities because the customer base isn’t large enough to justify the investment. Franell said EOT is able to save money by doing all of its construction and engi- neering work in-house, but what really mat- tered, he said, was that Spurgeon and her fellow mayors in Athena and Adams were U SALEM — In a state with no limits on campaign cash, the candi- dates vying to oversee elections are rushing to set their own. The three top Democrats run- ning for Oregon Secretary of State next year have quietly developed an array of proposals for how they’d like to curb the infl uence of big money in one of 2020’s highest pro- fi le statewide races. If they’re agreed upon by all con- tenders, the proposals could reshape a contest that — with Oregon laws being what they are — is certain to attract mountains of cash. But as of Thursday, any potential for an agreement was unclear, and at least one candidate was vowing to go her own direction. The candidates, state Rep. Jen- nifer Williamson, D-Portland, state Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton, and former congressional candi- date Jamie McLeod-Skinner, have repeatedly emphasized their support for changes to the state’s permissive campaign fi nance laws. Two have taken pains to tout their support for a legislative resolution that will give voters the opportunity to OK contri- bution limits next year. None have formally unveiled proposals for self-imposed limits, but they shared their intentions with OPB. State Rep. Jennifer Williamson Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Eastern Oregon Telecom is making strides to expand rural broadband access throughout Northeastern Oregon. The company has recently been a part of a rural broadband expan- sion into Weston, Athena and Adams. “broadband champions.” “We tend to go where we’re wanted,” he said. If EOT tried to expand fi ber into each community individually, Franell said the investment probably would have been cost-prohibitive. But by grouping all three east county communities together — collective Williamson signaled on Wednes- day that she intends to set her own limits, regardless of what her oppo- nents do. “I believe candidates for Secre- tary of State have a special responsi- bility to set a new standard and lead the way on this issue,” Williamson said in a statement to OPB. “That’s why I have decided to voluntarily place limits on corporate contribu- tions to my campaign.” Williamson’s pledge is to limit donations from corporations or political action committees run by See High-speed, Page A9 See Money, Page A9 Tenor lived life on the opera stage By KATHY ANEY East Oregonian PENDLETON — Quade Win- ter’s obsession with opera began early. At age 9 or 10, he started play- ing the music of dramatist W.S. Gilbert and composer Arthur Sul- livan, the team who created such comic operas as “H.M.S. Pinafore” and “The Pirates of Penzance.” Winter, opera singer and com- poser who died this month at age 68, played their music constantly as a boy growing up in Pendleton. “He absolutely drove us nuts playing Gilbert and Sullivan,” said Phil Winter, Quade’s older brother. “He played it day and night, night and day.” Winter eventually parlayed his fi xation into a career. Start- ing with theater at Pendleton High School and the University of Ore- gon, the operatic tenor eventually sang with San Francisco and Port- land opera companies. Later, he performed in Austria, Italy, Can- ada, Mexico and New York City. He sang with a state-run opera company in Germany for almost 10 years. Reviewers described him as a big teddy bear of a tenor who pos- sessed a rich, clear voice and per- fect pitch. Winter debuted his fi rst major composition as the result of a boast. When the Ohio Light Opera in the mid-1990s bragged in a publication that the company had performed every one of Gilbert and Sullivan’s works, Winter pro- tested. He contacted the artistic director at Ohio Light Opera and reminded him of a work called “Thespis,” a Gilbert and Sulli- van collaboration that had van- ished except for two songs. Win- ter half-jokingly offered to send him a score he had composed for “Thespis.” “He called my bluff and slated the world premiere for the summer of 1996,” Winter later wrote. After a successful run, Winter became the theater’s composer in residence. Winter moved back to Pendle- ton in 2014 to be near his mother, who was nearing the end of her life. He kept his vocal cords limber by singing with the Pendleton Men’s See Opera, Page A9 Contributed photo Opera singer and composer Quade Winter per- formed on stages all over the world before re- turning to Pendleton to retire.