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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 24, 2019)
OFF PAGE ONE Tuesday, December 24, 2019 East Oregonian A11 Cheer: ‘These memories will last a lifetime for the family’ Continued from Page A1 she was unable to take them in, they would be put into the foster care system. Within hours, she and her mother were packed up for the drive to Iowa to go and pick up her children. “(The boys) had been told they didn’t know how to reach me and I had been get- ting head games (from their father) for quite awhile,” Tallman said. “When they finally said, ‘You need to come get them it’s become a CPS-type matter,’ I said, ‘I’ll be right there.’” Though Tallman was fraught with emotions throughout the nearly 24-hour drive, she and her mother drove nearly con- tinuously to get to Iowa, stopping only for the occa- sional smoke break to calm her nerves. With years of no communication, Tallman was unsure how her boys would react to seeing her again. Upon arriving, Tall- man’s son, TJ, 12, said that he greeted his mom with a big hug. TJ said that it feels “awesome” to be back with his mom. His brother, Wes- ley Foster, 14, agreed. “It’s difficult to readjust to a new house and new school,” said TJ Tallman. “I’m not used to rules.” In Iowa, Wesley Fos- ter had been taking care of his brother as the pair lived largely unsupervised in an apartment, with their father rarely coming home or pro- viding rules, according to Ivamay Tallman. TJ Tall- man said that he likes hav- ing rules again and the pair is anxiously awaiting school Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Wesley Foster poses as his mother, Ivamay Tallman, takes his picture on Josh Griffin’s Harley Davidson on Sunday morning in Pendleton. at Sunridge Middle School after the holidays. While Ivamay Tallman is elated to have her boys back, she and her fiance, Jim Russell, are both on disabil- ity and are working to make ends meet with their newly expanded family. “It takes a little getting used to,” she said. When Russell heard about the condition the boys were in, he swallowed his pride and reached out for help on Facebook in search of donated clothing or toys. Within hours, members of the Brotherhood United Motorcycle Association and the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association reached out to see how they could help. “I had to swallow my pride and ask for help for them, and that’s OK,” Rus- sell, a U.S. Army veteran, said. “You could see the bones on them.” Members of Brother- hood United Motorcycle Association took the family to the Tri-Cities on Satur- day to go shopping for new clothing and to eat a hearty meal. Derek Turner, with Brotherhood United, said that being able to help fam- ilies and veterans in need are the core reasons for the association. “We’re helping a vet- eran, but we’re also help- ing a family in our commu- nity,” said Turner. “It’s just what we do. We’re always looking for those in need of help.” The family said that the trip was beyond anything they could have asked for and it is even more special to be able to provide some new clothes for the kids and have a nice experience as a reunited family. While the family was elated with Saturday’s shopping trip, the Christ- mas surprises continued on Sunday. Members of the Combat Veterans Motorcy- cle Association arrived with the thunder of their motor- cycles to deliver Christ- mas gifts to the boys. Josh Griffin, the chapter com- mander with the CVMA, said that he is thankful that the group was in a position to help. “None of us get paid a lot, but when we come together, it’s amazing what we can do,” he said. “All of us have been deployed to combat zones and seen the worst in life, so it is import- ant to celebrate the good.” Although the family will wait until Christmas to open the presents, Grif- fin said that gifts contained games, toys and clothing as well as Christmas din- ner fixings for the whole family. “This is why we exist,” he said. “These memories will last a lifetime for the family.” Despite the gifts and support from the commu- nity, the family said that there are still a few hurdles for the family to overcome. The family is currently residing in a one-bedroom apartment and, due to the sudden expansion, are now over the occupancy limit for their unit. “We’re looking for a new place because right now we’re over occupancy,” said Russell. “Our landlord is awesome but there are rules in place and we are over the limit.” As the family looks for a place to live, they take solace in the fact that so many people have helped them have a special Christ- mas experience. “I’m really surprised that so many people would help people like this that they don’t even know,” said Ivamay Tallman. “I’m speechless.” SNAP: New rules could have an impact on local businesses Continued from Page A1 “With SNAP you can go to the store,” she said. “Peo- ple have the ability to go and purchase what they can cook and eat. Folks who are homeless don’t have a way to cook beans and rice, and a lot of staples we provide.” In 2018, CAPECO’s point-in-time count logged more than 500 people fac- ing homelessness across Umatilla County, although it’s uncertain how many of them would be affected by the new rule. The average monthly allocation of SNAP bene- fits statewide is $191. But in Umatilla County, that num- ber is closer to $110 a month. Between January and June of this year, an average of more than 15,000 people receive SNAP benefits each month. DHS warns that this change could affect 19,000 Oregonians, but didn’t pro- vide specific data per county. Each year, the state of Oregon usually uses waivers for a majority of its 36 coun- ties to extend the amount of time that people in the single, able-bodied demo- graphic can utilize food EO file photo Oscar Garcia, a driver for the Fresh Alliance program, does inventory inside the CAPECO warehouse in Pendleton in 2017. A new rule, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture de- scribed as a “rule to promote work” in a press release earlier this month, targets able-bodied adults ages 18-49 with no dependents if they aren’t employed, training or volunteering for at least 20 hours each week and are receiving assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. assistance benefits. Without a waiver, SNAP eligibility is limited to three months every three years. Time limits in both Uma- tilla and Morrow counties were waived for this year, along with 21 other counties. But that’s about to change. According to the DHS, only six counties might receive such a waiver after the rule goes into effect in April — Crook, Curry, Grant, Harney, Wallowa and Klamath counties. “However,” said Chris- tine Stone, a communica- tions officer for the Depart- ment of Human Services, in an email to the East Orego- nian, “this is still pending federal approval and until a waiver is approved, we can’t know for certain.” According to DHS, areas requesting federal waivers must have unemployment rates at least 20% higher than the national rate but not less than 6%. In a press release earlier this month, the agency stated that rural areas with limited transportation for getting to work or areas with lower rates of high school diploma owners are more likely to fall into such a category. “Transportation in our rural communities is such a huge barrier. People who are low income might not be able to get around and to work,” Colvard said. Umatilla County Com- mission Chair George Mur- dock said he applauded Kayak Public Transit for addressing the issue through- out a lot of the county. “I do not think the inabil- ity to get there is a major cause of people in the coun- ty’s inability to work,” Mur- dock said. For him, a change in SNAP eligibility is a com- plex issue. “I’ve never seen a time when our food banks have a surplus,” he said. “Any actions that put additional strain on our food banks could have a negative impact.” He also said he has the greatest empathy for the elderly and children when it comes to food insecu- rity, but that when it comes to able-bodied adults facing unemployment, “employers are begging for workers,” across the county. DHS stated the change could carry an economic impact on local Oregon businesses that might accept SNAP benefits. David Meade, who man- ages Harvest Foods in Uma- tilla, said it will be hard to tell how the new rule might affect business until it actu- ally goes into effect in April. “If there is a reduction in business, it would be sub- tle,” he said. “For us, it will be vague. We’d start to see it in our numbers in the reports we get monthly.” Erica Miller manages the Gotta Stop Mini Mart on Highway 395 in Hermiston. She said that during the first few days of each month, cus- tomers ring up high amounts of electronic benefits. “As the month goes on, it kind of dwindles,” Miller said. “It seems like this rule will affect those who are unemployed, and it could affect us too.” Giving: Toiletries, socks and other everyday items can make a difference Continued from Page A1 14 this year and was coor- dinated through the Pend- leton School District, the Oregon Department of Human Services, Umatilla County Human Services and the Umatilla County Care Program. The gifts donated go to local children in need, many of whom are in the foster care system. In its 19th year at the store, the tree was as suc- cessful as ever. “There were many, many more,” Lapp said of this year’s gift requests, all of which were filled. “There was just a greater need in the area than past years.” The Pendleton DHS office couldn’t confirm whether this year’s requests through the giving tree pro- gram were greater than pre- vious year’s, but said 120 foster kids already have or will be receiving a gift from it. After the gifts are donated, DHS picks them up and their workers dis- tribute them to children during their monthly face- to-face meetings, prefera- bly before Christmas. Children aren’t the only ones in need of something special during the holidays. Since 1993, the Rite Aid in Pendleton has been col- lecting gifts to donate to assisted living facilities in the area. Though the tree was a little bit late getting set up this year, those gifts are going to the residents of Willowbrook Terrace and Desire for Healing. “It’s really important because many of those poor folks don’t have families or loved ones to see or spend the holidays with,” said Juanita Brown, who has Staff photo by Kathy Aney Valerie Scott, co-owner of the Desire for Healing assisted living facility, and Pendleton Rite Aid shift supervisor Barbie Fleming carry gifts collected at the store to Scott’s car. Resi- dents will open the gifts on Christmas morning. worked for the last 44 years at Rite Aid. Willowbrook Terrace picked up its package of presents, which included two gifts each for the home’s 40 residents, and distributed them during a Christmas party held at the home last week. Corey Crismon, an administrator at Willow- brook, also pointed out that many of the home’s resi- dents don’t get to see their families even during the holidays, and how import- ant the donations can be. During the party thrown last week, Crismon said, Willowbrook residents were also able to partici- pate in cookie decorating and a Christmas recital. Regardless of whether they see their families over the holidays or not, most residents at Desire for Healing don’t have the financial means to pur- chase presents. According to Valerie Scott, owner and executive director of Desire for Heal- ing, which was renamed from Elizabethan Manor after she took over in July, 26 of the home’s 29 current residents are on Medicaid “and extremely limited by their income.” Though this was her first holiday season at the helm of the facility, Scott said many of the staff that was retained at the home let her know of the giving tree’s history and she was happy to continue the connection with Rite Aid. On Monday, Valerie and her husband, Les Scott, received the home’s dona- tions from Rite Aid and loaded them up to prepare for the party on Wednes- day. On Christmas morn- ing, residents will open their presents and take part in more festivities that day at the facility. Scott added that as nice as it is for many of her res- idents to receive gifts in general, even donations like toiletries, socks and other everyday items can make a “critical” difference.
