A6
RECORDS/COMMUNITY
East Oregonian
PUBLIC SAFETY
MONDAY
11:28 a.m. — Police responded to a reported assault on
North Fourth Street in Athena.
8:47 p.m. — Police responded to a reported burglary on
Southeast Third Street in Pilot Rock.
TUESDAY
4:07 a.m. — Police responded to a reported burglary on
Adams Road in Pendleton.
5:51 a.m. — Police responded to a report of the unautho-
rized entry of a motor vehicle on Rio Senda in Umatilla.
7:37 p.m. — A domestic disturbance occurred on Northwest
48th Drive in Pendleton.
ARRESTS, CITATIONS
The Pendleton Police Department arrested Matthew Colin
Lindsey, 45, on six counts, including felony counts of sec-
ond-degree assault, strangulation, the attempted unlawful use
of a weapon and violating parole. He was also charged with
other counts of interfering with law enforcement making a
report and menacing.
The Milton-Freewater Police Department arrested Mar-
cial Tiscareno, 32, on two counts of harassment, one count of
attempted harassment and one count of second-degree disor-
derly conduct.
The Hermiston Police Department arrested Luizinho Marti-
nez Penaloza, 27, on one felony count of fourth-degree assault.
The Umatilla Tribal Police arrested James Brian Halfmoon Jr.,
23, on one count of resisting arrest and one count of danger-
ous drugs.
The Hermiston Police Department arrested Hunter Gregory
Nettles, 27, on two counts, including one felony count of the
unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and one count of failing to
appear in court.
DEATH NOTICES
John K. Hoffman
Walla Walla
April 12, 1959 — March 17, 2021
John K. Hoffman, 61, of Walla Walla died Wednesday,
March 17, 2021, in Milton-Freewater. He was born April
12, 1959. Arrangements are with Munselle-Rhodes Funeral
Home of Milton-Freewater.
Brian T. Holmes
Hermiston
June 22, 1963 — March 23, 2021
Brian T. Holmes, 57, of Hermiston died Tuesday, March
23, 2021, at a local care facility. He was born June 22, 1963,
in Pendleton. Arrangements are with Pendleton Pioneer
Chapel, Folsom-Bishop.
Vernita Herburger
Pendleton
March 14, 1946 — March 22, 2021
Vernita Herburger, 75, of Pendleton died Monday,
March 22, 2021, at her home. She was born March 14,
1946. Arrangements are with Pendleton Pioneer Chapel,
Folsom-Bishop.
Sharon L. Kennedy
Ione
July 4, 1948 — March 20, 2021
Sharon L. Kennedy, 72, of Ione died Saturday, March
20, 2021, in Richland, Washington. She was born July
4, 1948, in Medford, Oregon. At this time no service is
planned. Arrangements are with Sweeney Mortuary of
Heppner.
What happened to the trees in Til Taylor park?
By BILL ANEY
Pendleton Tree Commission
PENDLETON — Folks
have been noticing all the
work going on at Til Taylor
park this winter. The heavy
excavation equipment and
yellow hazard tape makes
the park look like a new
construction site. This is a
major renovation of the park,
with some exciting new water
and playground equipment
that will provide countless
hours of fun for the younger
residents and visitors to
Pendleton.
Another big change this
winter is the felling and
removal of some large trees
that have been providing
shade to visitors for decades.
Why did these trees have to
be removed?
Last fall, the Pendleton
Tree Commission met with
Parks and Recreation staff
at the park to talk about a
problem. Several of the large
trees had been shedding huge
branches, creating an obvious
and repeated safety problem
each time several hundred
pounds of limbs and branches
came crashing down. The
Tree Commission evaluated
the trees and found obvious
signs of decay hidden inside
about half of the largest ones.
We recommended these trees
be removed before someone
in the park was injured or
worse.
This points out one of the
challenges of caring for trees
in the urban environment.
When we want to create
pleasant public or private
spaces we plant trees for
shade, cooler midsummer
conditions, wildlife habi-
tat, and beauty. We often
plant fast-growing trees that
can provide shade quickly,
because who wants to wait 60
years for a slow-growing oak
tree to grow into a shade tree?
Unfortunately, fast-grow-
ing trees tend to have rela-
tively short life spans,
reaching old age (for a tree) in
less than 100 years. We esti-
mate that the larger trees in
Til Taylor park were planted
80-100 years ago, and among
these trees were Siberian
elm, black locust and ailan-
thus, or tree of heaven. They
did serve their purpose by
Milton-Freewater
April 30, 1946 — March 24, 2021
Elizabeth E. Lira, 74, of Milton-Freewater died Wednes-
day, March 24, 2021, at her home. She was born April 30,
1946. Arrangements are with Munselle-Rhodes Funeral
Home of Milton-Freewater.
Umatilla
July 10, 1944 — March 19, 2021
James Patrick “Pat” Meagher Sr., 76, died surrounded
by his family Friday, March 19, 2021, at his home in
Umatilla. He was born July 10, 1944, in Portland. At his
request there will be no service. Arrangements are with
Burns Mortuary of Hermiston. Please share memories of
Pat with his family at www.burnsmortuaryhermiston.com.
Wayne E. Rietmann
Ione
May 13, 1937 — March 22, 2021
Wayne E. Rietmann, 83, of Ione died Monday, March
22, 2021, in Hermiston. He was born May 13, 1937, in Hood
River. A private family celebration will be held. Arrange-
ments are with Burns Mortuary of Hermiston. Please share
memories of Wayne with his family at www.burnsmortu-
aryhermiston.com.
Virgie B. Schiemer
Pendleton
March 8, 1919 — March 22, 2021
Virgie B. Schiemer, 102, of Pendleton died March 22,
2021, in Pendleton. She was born March 8, 1919, in St.
Francis, Kansas. Arrangements are with Pendleton Pioneer
Chapel, Folsom-Bishop.
CHRIS
HANKEL
LIVING ON PURPOSE
T
he human body’s
natural reaction to
pain is to protect
itself. We have all experi-
enced that moment of recoil
when licking an envelope
and got a paper cut or the
panic when we sliced a
finger while working in the
kitchen. I know that many
of us have experienced pain
over the past year.
Some of it physical, but
much of it emotional. I
wonder if, more than simply
enduring our pain, we can’t
somehow allow it to help
us grow and maybe even
thrive. How could pain ever
be good? What could pain
ever teach us?
Pain can be a fantas-
tic teacher. As a working
farrier for several years, I
am well acquainted with
unexpected pain. The
moment when an unhappy
horse reaches down with his
teeth to remind you who is
Sponsor List:
NIE
Newspapers In Education
Pendleton Parks and Recreation
These trees in Til Taylor Park were cut down recently after being deemed safety hazards be-
cause of hidden decay.
Pendleton Parks and Recreation
Some trees in Til Taylor Park with rotted-out centers were cut down recently after being
deemed safety hazards.
shading the park and moder-
ating the wind, but their
internal rot shows they had
reached a point where they
were no longer safe.
The answer to this prob-
lem is planned succession.
Good management of public
open spaces includes a plan
for planting trees periodically
so that as older trees reach the
end of their lifespan there are
well established trees ready
to take over as dominant
shade trees. Look at many of
the parks around town and
you will see plenty of small-
to medium-sized trees as the
city looks to keep a steady
succession of trees well into
the future.
As members of the Pend-
leton Tree Commission, we
get much enjoyment from
seeing new trees planted
and we mourn a bit when
an old, large tree must come
down. Til Taylor park will
be different next year, not
only because of the fantas-
tic improvements that the
Parks and Recreation folks
are putting in place, but also
because of the loss of the big
Reframing our experience with pain
Elizabeth E. Lira
James Patrick ‘Pat’ Meagher Sr.
Thursday, March 25, 2021
A & G Property Management &
Maintenance
Barton Laser Leveling
Blue Mountain Community College
Blue Mountain Diagnostic Imaging
CHI St. Anthony Hospital
CMG Financial
CMG Financial
Columbia Point Equipment Company
Corteva Agriscience
Davita Blue Mountain Kidney Center
Desire For Healing Inc
Duchek Construction
Hill Meat Company
Jeremy J Larson DMD LLC
Kirby Nagelhout Construction Co.
really in charge was always
an unwelcome surprise.
But pain helped make me a
better horseman and taught
me how to read a horse’s
mood and reassure a skittish
horse when I picked up his
feet.
How would a child
ever learn not to touch a
hot stove if it were not for
pain? CS Lewis said, “God
whispers to us in our plea-
sures, speaks to us in our
conscience, but shouts in
our pains.” Is it plausible
that God may use the pain-
ful moments of our lives to
speak to us, teach us, and
grow us? James, the brother
of Jesus, writes in James 1
that when we experience
pain, we should know that
God is working to produce
endurance and maturity so
that we will lack nothing.
When we are experienc-
ing the hardest, most pain-
ful things in our lives, God
is taking those events, if we
allow Him, to create some-
thing stronger, and better.
Most often, I have found
it is only in my pain that I
find the desire to change,
learn and grow. It is also a
great comfort to know that
God does not abandon me
Kopacz Nursery & Florist
Landmark Tax Services
McEntire Dental
McKay Creek Estates
NW Metal Fabricators Inc
Pendleton KOA
RE/MAX Cornerstone
Rob Merriman Plumbing & Heating Inc
Starvation Ridge Farming, LLC
Sun Terrace Hermiston
Tum-A-Lum Lumber
Umatilla Electric Cooperative
Umatilla Electric Cooperative
WalMart
in my pain.
Ps. 34:18 says, “The Lord
is near the brokenhearted;
he saves those crushed in
spirit.” I am reminded of the
old poem, Footprints in the
Sand. It is about a man who
has a dream and encounters
Jesus. In looking back on
his life with Jesus he notices
only one set of footprints
during the most difficult
time of his life. The man
asks Jesus why he aban-
doned him during that time.
Jesus responds, “When you
saw only one set of foot-
prints, it was then that I
carried you.”
Our first reaction to our
pain is always to recoil and
run. We often ask God,
“Why?” Maybe the better
question to ask is, “What?”
What am I learning in my
pain? How am I growing
through it? God, what are
you doing to show me your
grace in my pain? Refram-
ing our pain with those
questions can change even
the most difficult circum-
stances, bringing beauty
from the ashes of our pain.
———
Chris Hankel is the lead
pastor at New Hope Commu-
nity Church in Hermiston.
old shade trees.
Take heart, the trees were
removed to keep us all safe.
There are more trees in
place, and even more will be
planted at Til Taylor Park to
provide shade for generations
to come.
The Pendleton Tree
Commission is appointed
by the city council and
helps guide the city’s tree
management program. Part
of this work includes advis-
ing the Parks and Recreation
program about management
of the trees in our city parks.
COMMUNITY
BRIEFING
OSEA seeks
scholarship
applicants
H E R M I ST ON —
The deadline for a pair of
scholarships that Chapter
10 of the Oregon School
Employee Association
(OSEA) offers annually is
Tuesday, April 20.
Both scholarships are
for $500 each. The Herm-
iston chapter encourages all
members of OSEA Chap-
ter 10 who plan to further
their education by the fall of
2022 to apply for the OSEA
Member Scholarship. The
High School Senior Schol-
arship the chapter offers
is for any graduating high
school senior residing in the
United States who is related
to an OSEA Chapter 10
member in good standing.
Completed applications
should be sent to Michelle
Kane, scholarship chair,
at Desert View Elemen-
tary School in Hermiston.
For an application or more
information, contact Kane
at michelle.kane@hermis-
tonsd.org.
— EO Media Group