REGION
Thursday, September 9, 2021
East Oregonian
A3
Hermiston Assembly looks to future
Church adapted to
pandemic, readies
itself for remodel
By ERICK PETERSON
East Oregonian
HERMISTON — The people of
Hermiston Assembly are working
toward a renewal.
Terry Haight, lead pastor of the
church, said this renewal comes at a
time when people are in need.
Haight, who has been Assem-
bly pastor for more than 23 years,
averages 120 attendees for Sunday
service in his Hermiston church. Last
week, he drew 150 worshipers. He
also had a regular online viewing
audience of 30 to 50 people.
Relaunching Sunday, Sept. 12,
he said Hermiston Assembly has
not actually ever been closed. It had
church services for five months last
year, reopened for three weeks in
June and then shut down in-person
services again during a new spike
in COVID-19 cases. While their
in-person services have been closed,
they have broadcast services online,
including YouTube.
During the online days, the church
shifted from social media as a form
of advertising to a primary form of
communication. Haight and his team
also developed a shorter, abbreviated
service, called Church on Demand, a
20-to-25-minute church experience.
In October 2020, when the church
brought back its in-person congrega-
tion, Haight and his team continued
their work online, but they believed
more changes were necessary. So
they moved their congregation down-
stairs the following month, which is
where they have remained.
Downstairs, they could space their
chairs as needed. The pews upstairs
could not, of course, be moved,
which made social distancing diffi-
cult. The downstairs also is a smaller
area, which was more appropriate,
Haight said, to a smaller congrega-
tion. Fewer people had returned to
church since before the pandemic.
They were hopeful people would
come back but only half of people
did, Haight said, adding people prob-
ably were worried about COVID-19
infection.
He understands people’s worries.
He has had members of his church
contract COVID-19. A spouse of
someone who attends, he said, died,
though Haight does not link the death
to church attendance. He said he does
not know anyone who died as a result
of attending his church.
People on his ministerial team
have contracted COVID-19, he said.
He said he makes announcements
to wear masks, though he does not
police the practice. Maybe 25% of
people wear masks, he said.
Starting Sept. 12, volunteers and
staff are working on a remodel of the
church. Built in 1976, the remodel
is not the first or even the largest. In
2004, new pews were installed and
new carpeting was placed. The latest
revisions include window cover-
ings, which will block sunlight and
allow the church to control light-
ing. This will be better for filming.
Also, the church will have improved
sound-proofing.
And though the stage also is
being renovated — the iconic Jesus
sign is being replaced — there will
be no change in theology. In fact,
the church is changing some of its
language to clarify their Jesus-cen-
tered beliefs. A new mission state-
ment proclaims, “We exist to make
Jesus famous in our lives, homes and
cities.
He is planning a new sermon
series. Starting Sept. 12, the series
will continue eight to 12 weeks with
messages that follow one another.
A right time for renewal
and house parties
During the pandemic, Haight said
he has had to “go back to the draw-
ing board” to meeting people’s needs.
Online offerings were one major
change, which has been embraced.
His congregation has gotten
younger, he said, and their spirit
is different. Whereas prior to the
Kathy Aney/East Oregonian
Daniel Sandoval and Betsy Jones, of the Hermiston Assembly, clean doors on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2021, during a
work day at the church.
pandemic many people were going
to church out of habit or obligation,
many people now are appearing
with greater interest. After having
felt loneliness and depression from
the isolation of lockdowns, they are
returning to church with a hunger.
They want to worship and gather
with fellow believers.
He said his young worship team,
with members in their 20s and 30s,
are able to relate to new families,
made up of people of similar age.
Their presence keeps services active
and creative, and they even manage
to keep him young, he said.
Haight’s son, Clayton Haight,
is part of the youthful renewal. As
Hermiston Assembly strategy and
development pastor, Clayton is guid-
ing the church outside of its building.
Starting a few months ago, he
said, Hermiston Assembly has been
promoting “house parties.” These
are gatherings of people inside of
homes, focusing on prayer, family,
and fellowship.
Dress-Up Parade
returns Saturday
Electric scooters
in Pendleton going
into storage for the
week of Round-Up
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — The
first major event kick start-
ing the week of Pendleton
Round-Up rolls out Satur-
day morning. And Pendle-
ton police as usual will close
access to Court and Dorian
avenues and call the tow
truck to clear the way.
T he Main St reet
Cowboy’s Dress-Up Parade
gets rolling Saturday, Sept.
11, starting at 10 a.m. in
front of Pendleton City Hall
on the 500 block of South-
west Dorion Avenue and
heads east, takes a turn north
on Southeast Fifth Street on
the back side of the Umatilla
County Courthouse and
then a turn east onto Court
Avenue, where it trucks
along until the finish past
the Pendleton Round-Up
Grounds.
Local start claiming spots
early to catch the parade, and
city crews and police start
shutting down access to
Court and Dorion at 7 a.m.
Pendleton Police Chief
Chuck Byram said managing
the Dress-Up and the West-
ward Ho! Parade are among
the Round-Up elements that
are most demanding on his
24-officer department.
That stems from folks
who try to drive past barri-
cades and express their ire to
officers just doing their jobs
to calling for a contractor to
tow vehicles off the route.
In spite of advisories
about not parking vehicles
on the route Saturday morn-
ing, Bynam said every year
10-15 cars end up hitched to
a tow truck.
Rather than impound the
rides, he said, the company
leaves them in a nearby lot,
where their owners can walk
to get them for free.
Byram also said no
one gets to ride around on
the electric Bird scooters
that dot the town. Those
are going into storage for
Round-up starting Sept. 11
and coming back out Sept.
19.
The Pendleton City
Council in March approved
a local law allowing electric
scooters on city streets. The
electric scooter company
Bird of Southern California
brought 55 scooters to town.
Pendleton’s population
booms during Round-Up,
and the police chief said with
the extra traffic and pedestri-
ans, adding scooters to that
mix creates the potential for
conflicts and accidners.
“I think it’s best for the
safety and health of the
public to put the scooters
away for the week,” he said.
He said, the world is a different
place now. Businesses have changed.
Many of those businesses that have
not changed, have failed. Churches
also must change to meet new situ-
ations.
Bible studies in homes always
were a thing, Clayton said. People
have long gathered in the homes of
other believers to pray and discuss
scripture. The difference between
house parties and Bible studies is that
the house parties are fuller services.
People who partake in them recog-
nize their place in their religion as
leaders and ministers in their own
right.
It is a small-group model which
can continue, even if new rules are
created to govern action in the larger
church building.
“With house parties, even if we
see more limitations, in place, like
before, these house parties can
continue to thrive in small groups,”
Haight said.
Clayton added, he wants a church
that is resilient, that “leans into where
culture is at.” He also wants to find
the best way to serve the community.
To date, Haight said, there are
six homes that have served as house
parties. They have filled to capacity,
with 20 to 30 people.
Haight provides the parties with
guides. As a licensed and educated
minister, he said his role is to equip
believers. He provides some order,
though he does not their gatherings
to be ritualistic, but people to make
Jesus their centerpiece and to bless
one another.
He hopes the suicide, pornogra-
phy, loneliness and despair that have
grown during the pandemic will be
reduced by increased faith in God.
Austin Naillon, Assembly family
pastor, said he likes the changes.
“We’re excited,” he said. “It looks
like God is doing something big, and
we couldn’t be more excited.”
Hermiston Assembly meets at
10:30 am for Sunday service.
LOCAL BRIEFING
Umatilla County
reports 118th
COVID-19 death
PEN DLETON
—
Umatilla County reported
its 118th COVID-19 death
on Tuesday, Sept. 7.
The victim is a 31-year-
old woman, according to
a press release from the
county public health depart-
ment.
At least four Umatilla
County residents under
the age of 40 have died
after contracting COVID-
19 amid the delta crisis
that has swept through the
county and state during the
past month, according to
the health department. A
35-year-old Morrow County
woman and a 19-year-old
Union County woman died
in August after contracting
COVID-19.
Young people are getting
sicker and are being hospi-
talized more often from
the delta variant surge
than at any other point
in the pandemic, county
health officials and hospital
employees have said.
T he latest repor ted
victim tested positive
Aug. 25 and died Sept. 3
at a private residence, the
county reported. She had
underlying health condi-
tions.
The disclosure comes
as the county reported 91
COVID-19 cases on Sept.
7, showing another slight
decline in cases after six
consecutive weeks exceed-
ing 400 cases, a total
that shatters all previous
pandemic records, accord-
ing to state data.
Since the pandemic
began, Umatilla County has
reported 11,884 COVID-
19 cases, according to the
county health department
Back to Work Day
to be held Sept. 15
PEN DLETON
—
Several Eastern Oregon
towns are sites for Work-
Source Oregon’s statewide
scavenger hunt for Back to
Work Day.
The purpose of the event
is to promote employ-
ment and support busi-
ness customers, according
to the announcement from
Eastern Oregon Workforce
Board.
The event is Wednes-
day, Sept. 15, 9 a.m. to
5 p.m. WorkSource Eastern
Oregon is seeking employ-
ers in the Pendleton and
Hermiston areas who are
interested in visiting with
job seekers at worksites to
discuss your hiring needs.
For more information, call
541-276-6542 or email
Rebecca Flores at rebecca.j.
flores@oregon.gov or Yuri
Madrigal at yuri.madri-
gal@oregon.gov.
Job seekers can obtain
mor e i n for m at ion or
register for the event by
emailing worksource_east-
ern_oregon@oregon.gov
or visiting WorkSource
Oregon-Pendleton, 408 S.E.
Seventh St., Pendleton; or
WorkSource Oregon-Herm-
iston, 950 S.E. Columbia
Drive, Suite B, Hermiston.
Baker City, Canyon City,
La Grande and Ontario also
are sites for Back to Work
Day events. The first half
hour of each event will be
reserved for veterans.
Visit www.eowb.org for
details of the hiring event,
including times for each
location.
— East Oregonian
The family of
RICHARD BONDURANT
GET THE NETWORK
Would like to give a
THAT WORKS
GREAT BIG
THANK YOU
AS HARD AS YOU DO
To the following:
Hermiston Police Department
Umatilla County Officials
First Christian Church Family
Guardian Angel Home Staff
Family, friends and all the other volunteers
that helped us locate our husband,
father and uncle.
Again, to all a GREAT BIG
THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Our Lifeline Calling Plans bring discounted wireless service
to participants in certain government-assisted programs.
Visit uscellular.com/lifeline or call 1-800-447-1339 for more information.
To find out if you qualify for the Lifeline program, contact the Oregon
Telephone Assistance Program at rspf.org or 1-800-848-4442.
starting at
at
Plans Plans
starting
$ $
25
34 25
34
before
Lifeline
before
Lifeline
discount.
discount.
Things we want you to know: Lifeline is a federal government benefi t program and only qualifi ed persons may participate. Lifeline service may not be
Things we want you to know: Lifeline is a federal government benefi t program and only qualifi ed persons may participate. Lifeline service may not be
transferred to any other individual. Applicants must present documentation of household income or participation in qualifying programs. Lifeline is only
available for one phone line per household, whether landline or wireless. The Lifeline Calling Plan/Lifeline discounts are only available to residents in
states where UScellular is an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC). Eligibility to receive Lifeline discounts will be verifi ed annually. Lifeline
Calling Plans support all of the federal universal services provided for in 47CFR Sec. 54.101. Additional terms and conditions apply. See store or
uscellular.com for details. ©2021 UScellular