ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
PHIL WRIGHT
News Editor
SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 2021
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Backing
up words
with action
t will be a tall order to find a better
feel-good community story in the
near future than the decision by the
Hermiston School District to pay for
all school supplies for elementary and
middle school students for the start of the
school year.
The district will also waive pay-to-play
fees for grades six through 12.
All supplies will stay in the classroom,
so parents will need to buy some school
items for homework, but the move by the
district is an extraordinarily decision.
The funds for school supplies comes
from federal COVID-19 relief funds,
while the district will use its own general
fund to take care of the fee waiver.
The federal money was crucial for the
district to be able to cover the expense
of the school supplies but the district, its
leaders and school board members should
be lauded for thinking outside the box to
help our youth.
Providing school supplies can be, and
often is, a stressful episode for many
families. The cost can be high, and if a
family has more than one or two children
the final tally can be prohibitive.
That’s why this decision by the district
is so important to so many families. To
have a potential challenge like purchas-
ing back-to-school supplies termi-
nated means some families will not be
burdened at a time when events — such
as the COVID-19 pandemic — are
already creating more stress than normal.
Actions by school officials — such as
board members, administrators or teach-
ers — often only see the light of day if
there is some type of controversy. Their
consistent hard work is also often forgot-
ten or overlooked.
Yet, this decision by the district shows
a degree of excellence and community
care that is outstanding. The district
made the right decision, and its officers,
teachers and board members deserve to
be lauded.
The district officials did a commend-
able and honorable thing by these two
decisions. They clearly put the care of
students — and, to a degree, their parents
— to the forefront. That shows a group of
people who not only say the right things
about students and education but also
back it up with action.
Nowadays that is a rare circumstance.
The Hermiston School District
deserves a great deal of credit for its
actions on this one. We applaud it.
I
EDITORIALS
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East
Oregonian editorial board. Other columns,
letters and cartoons on this page express the
opinions of the authors and not necessarily
that of the East Oregonian.
LETTERS
The East Oregonian welcomes original letters
of 400 words or less on public issues and public
policies for publication in the newspaper and on
our website. The newspaper reserves the right
to withhold letters that address concerns about
individual services and products or letters that
infringe on the rights of private citizens. Letters
must be signed by the author and include the
city of residence and a daytime phone number.
The phone number will not be published.
Unsigned letters will not be published.
SEND LETTERS TO:
editor@eastoregonian.com,
or via mail to Andrew Cutler,
211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801
YOUR VIEWS
Take responsibility
for COVID-19 actions
I really hate having to mask up
again, but I also hated flak jackets when
I was in Vietnam. But I wore one, and
it saved my life. The mask, although
from several accounts it isn’t considered
effective, apparently does save lives. I
got the vaccine, no problem.
I was in Safeway, Hermiston,
today. Straw count, 60% of the people
unmasked. If you’re going to mandate,
enforce it. If you don’t want to mask
up or get inoculated, fine. I think that’s
called suicide; it’s your life.
The problem is, because of your
self-centered inconsiderate actions,
you will infect others — and that, my
self-righteous friends, is called murder.
John Carter
Irrigon
Brown’s support of
Simpson plan is misplaced
It’s encouraging to read Gov.
Brown’s continued support for remov-
ing the lower Snake River dams. These
dams have caused profound harm to
salmon populations in the Columbia
River Basin and the Southern Resident
orcas that depend on them to survive.
But it’s as if Brown forgets that for
decades, lawmakers in her state and
Washington all but ignored the plight
of the Columbia River Basin. Those
years of inaction created a void into
which Idaho Rep. Mike Simpson, R,
tossed a $33 billion “solution” for the
region.
Yes, this plan would bring the dams
down — a long-overdue step needed
to save salmon now on the knife edge
of extinction. But Simpson’s proposal
also includes 25-year exemptions to
the Endangered Species Act and Clean
Water Act, provisions no public official
should consider.
So much of the fate of the Colum-
bia River Basin would not be in the
hands of the courts if state lawmakers
and federal agencies had taken proper
action sooner. Brown’s amnesia is polit-
ically convenient, and casting Simp-
son’s deeply flawed proposal as the
sole solution is a disingenuous failure
of leadership. There are more effective
paths forward than Simpson’s proposal,
and we welcome Brown’s leadership
in crafting a regional solution to get
the dams out as soon as possible while
upholding our core environmental laws.
Quinn Read
Center for Biological Diversity
Portland
Pendleton business
community wows
entrepreneurs
On behalf of our group of entrepre-
neurs who recently spent a day in Pend-
leton learning from your community
of makers, thank you. Each year over
the past decade we choose a different
region of the U.S. to explore the entre-
preneurial ecosystem, gain insight into
the challenges of starting and grow-
ing companies, and seeking to learn
the “secret sauce” of building not only
strong enterprises but great communi-
ties.
Our experience in Pendleton was
amazing. Kristen Dollarhide and her
colleagues at Travel Pendleton went
above and beyond to help us connect to
the amazing makers of Pendleton. We
were enthralled by the stories of your
entrepreneurs, their dedication to crafts-
manship and their genuine openness
to share advice, insight and wisdom
with our aspiring entrepreneurs. What
we came to understand is the power
of a community that works together,
that values and invests its energy in the
legacy of a place while forging a hope-
ful future through passion, hard work
and vision. From legacy companies to
those in earlier stages of development,
we saw a commitment to excellence,
integrity and service that was inspira-
tional.
Pendleton and Eastern Oregon are
special — we could sense it in every
interaction and conversation. We have
never felt as welcomed as we did during
our time in your wonderful community.
Please accept our thanks and apprecia-
tion for an exceptional experience.
Tom Field, director
Engler Agribusiness Entrepre-
neurship Program
University of Nebraska
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
U.S. PRESIDENT
Joe Biden
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
GOVERNOR
Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, OR 97301-4047
503-378-4582
U.S. SENATORS
Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
La Grande office: 541-962-7691
Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753
Pendleton office: 541-278-1129
REPRESENTATIVES
Bobby Levy, District 58
900 Court St. NE, H-376
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1458
Rep.BobbyLevy@state.or.us
Greg Smith, District 57
900 Court St. NE, H-482
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1457
Rep.GregSmith@state.or.us
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE
Cliff Bentz
2185 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6730
Medford office: 541-776-4646
SENATOR
Bill Hansell, District 29
900 Court St. NE, S-415
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1729
Sen.BillHansell@state.or.us