More than 400 people descend on echo for annual mountain bike race | SPORTS, A10
E O
AST
145th year, No. 67
REGONIAN
Tuesday, March 23, 2021
$1.50
WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
VACCINE ROLL OUT
cTuIr
vaccinates
thousands
Tribes have now
vaccinated more
than 2,600 people
on the reservation
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
Alex Wittwer/La Grande Observer
Pendleton Police Department officer Cass Clark and police dog Bali train to find a suspect on Saturday, March 20, 2021, at the training com-
pound in Pendleton. Pendleton police received Bali as part of a scholarship through the nonprofit Working Dogs Oregon.
PENDLETON — Kyndra
Nelson was nervous.
She shuffled side-to-side wait-
ing at the front of the line wear-
ing her cross-country uniform for
the meet planned later than after-
noon. She’s terrified of shots, but
she found solace in the fact that, at
the very least, “it won’t hurt like
breaking my arm did.”
Nelson sat down in a booth. Two
members of the Oregon National
Guard prepared her vaccine. One
took her arm and asked her if she
could relax.
“I’m trying,” she said, her
head turned over her left shoul-
der. In moments, it was over. she
threw her hands over head and
See Vaccine, Page A9
Police in Eastern Oregon partner up for K-9 training
By ALEX WITTWER
La Grande Observer
P
eNdLeTON — under
blue skies amid brisk
wind, a cadre of K-9
handlers and trainers
met saturday, March
20, in Pendleton. The purpose —
train the working dogs that serve
eastern Oregon’s police and sher-
iff’s offices.
Police resources for training in
rural Oregon are limited, so inter-
departmental training is a crucial
way to pool assets and provide
opportunities that resemble real-
life situations the K-9 units could
run into while working calls.
“There’s a good knowledge
sharing that occurs with differ-
ent departments, and how things
they have seen in the past add
to the experience,” said Noah
robbins, master trainer and owner
of howling creek in hockinson,
Washington. “It’s a good learning
opportunity to learn from others.”
The training compound, just
north of the Pendleton Police
department, hosts a small ware-
house, a derelict bus and a firing
range. here, the dogs can train in
several tactical situations, such as
tracking, apprehension, evidence
finding and with real gunfire.
“We have a lot of room here,”
robbins said. “From the dog’s
See Dogs, Page A9
Police,
fire bonds
on ballot
Bond package would
raise $13.1 million
for umatilla county
Fire district No. 1
By JADE MCDOWELL and
ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Alex Wittwer/La Grande Observer
Union County Sheriff’s Office deputy Dane Jensen, left, with Pendleton Police Department officer
Cass Clark and K-9 Bali train on Saturday, March 20, 2021, at a compound in Pendleton. The joint
training helps officers, deputies and K-9s practice real-world scenarios as a team.
herMIsTON — umatilla
county Fire district No. 1 and the
city of Milton-Freewater are asking
voters to approve bonds for public
safety during the May 18 election.
ucFd1 is asking voters to
approve a bond that would help the
fire district cover equipment, vehicle
and facility upgrades.
If voters approve Measure 30-148
during the May 18 election, the
20-year bond package would raise
$13.1 million for the fire district
and add 23 cents per $1,000 of
assessed value to property taxes in
the district, which covers hermis-
ton, Stanfield and the Hat Rock area.
ucFd Fire chief scott stanton
said continued population growth in
the area is creating new challenges
See Bond, Page A9
area school board
races get competitive
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
uMaTILLa cOuNTy — This
May, thousands of umatilla county
residents will get something that isn’t
supposed to be novel in a democracy
— a choice.
each spring of every odd numbered
year, dozens of seats governing
services like public education, fire
protection, parks and recreation,
public libraries and more go up for
election. during most of those elec-
tions, most candidates either run unop-
posed or no one runs at all, meaning
the election is determined by write-in
or appointment.
But after the Thursday, March 18,
filing deadline for this year’s May 18
election, residents stepped up to run
for office, especially in the Pendleton
and hermiston school districts.
“We’re thrilled there’s so much
interest,” Pendleton School Board
chair debbie McBee said in an inter-
view.
Pendleton breaks
a long dry streak
all of the school board seats up for
election were open this year as McBee
and incumbents Gary George and
steve umbarger all declined to run
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
See School, Page A9
Boxes of ballots await counting at the Umatilla County Elections office in
Pendleton on Nov. 3, 2020.