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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2021
145th Year, No. 151
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Forecast: Case levels to remain elevated throughout holidays
Oregon won’t return to
pre-spike COVID-19
levels until near year end
By GARY A. WARNER
Oregon Capital Bureau
SALEM — A recovery from the
record-breaking spike in COVID-19
cases has been pushed from Hallow-
een to Christmas, according to an
Oregon Health & Science University
forecast released last week.
Longer hospital stays for those
with severe infections from the
delta variant and signs of public
weariness with pandemic safe-
guards have delayed the expected
pace of a rebound.
The premature dropping of
mask-wearing and limits on
socializing, along with a return to
tepid rates of vaccination, could
slow the rebound further.
‘We’re in a moment right now
where we’re going to see what
happens as fatigue sets in,” said
Peter Graven, Ph.D., lead data
scientist on the OHSU forecast.
In mid-August, OHSU accu-
rately predicted a sharply rising
spike in cases from 200 hospi-
talizations per day in early July
would top-out at nearly 1,200 by
early September.
But the forecast that the numbers
would drop at roughly the same rate
as they rose proved overly optimis-
tic.
The earlier forecast showed daily
COVID-19 hospitalizations dipping
below 200 by the end of October.
The data at the time showed
the numbers falling under 100
by the time the holiday season
kicked-off with Thanksgiving at
the end of November.
EARNING
THEIR
JOSEPH CHARTER
SCHOOL
NEW HEIGHTS
AVIATION PROGRAM
Aviation program again ready to soar
Photos by Bill Bradshaw/EO Media Group
Lexi Rindfl eisch, left, the new aviation instructor at Joseph Charter School, discusses a Subaru engine in an experimental aircraft with aviation
student Jett Peterson on Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021.
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
JOSEPH — Joseph Char-
ter School’s aviation program
is about to take off again, after
nearly being grounded. The
school has hired Alexis “Lexi”
Rindfl eisch as the new instruc-
tor.
“They can call me Mrs. R.,”
she said. “It’s easier.”
The young woman from
Riggins, Idaho, recently took
over the 5-year-old aviation
program, one of few such high
school programs in the country.
See Cases, Page A7
New road
plans signal
readiness
for housing
development
FOUNDED 2016
WINGS
In the forecast released Sept.
30, pre-spike hospitalization levels
won’t be reached until the last half
of December. Case levels will
remain elevated throughout the
holiday season, with 600 hospital-
izations per day forecast on Nov. 1.
Rates below 50 cases per
day wouldn’t be realized until
mid-March 2022.
Joseph Charter
School aviation
instructor Lexi
Rindfl eisch re-
trieves a piece of
artwork made in
a metal fabricator
in her classroom
Tuesday, Sept. 28,
2021. The fabri-
cator can be used
to make airplane
parts that are
missing or dam-
aged, she said.
“That’s one of the things I
found so exciting is that I get
to teach kids and be involved
in aviation,” she said. “I didn’t
even know programs like this
existed.”
Neither she nor district Super-
intendent Lance Homan knew
the number of high school avia-
tion programs in the country, but
they’re certain there aren’t many.
“It’s growing in popularity,”
Homan said. “I’ve gotten emails
from superintendents wanting to
know about it.”
See Flight, Page A7
City public works boss
estimates area could
hold up to 2,100 homes
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — The city of Pend-
leton is fi nalizing a deal with several
property owners that could lead to a
new road between Highway 11 and
Highway 30, potentially opening
hundreds of space for thousands of
new houses on the east side of South
Hill.
At a Tuesday, Oct. 5, meeting, the
council unanimously agreed to start
the process of acquiring easements and
a property that will allow the city to
build a road and utilities at the site. In
the city’s plans, the road would extend
Southeast Kirk Road eastward, even-
tually connecting it with Goad Road
and Highway 30. The plans also call
for a new road entrance off of Highway
11 between Kirk and Southeast Isaac
Avenue, and extending Southeast 11th
Street and Franklin Grade to meet the
new road. In an interview after the
meeting, Public Works Director Bob
Patterson said the roads could be built
in phases based on demand.
Going into the meeting, the coun-
cil only was scheduled to approve
the previous meeting’s minutes and
review some staff reports. But after
quickly running through the agenda,
the council recessed to meet privately
in executive session. After 15 minutes,
the council resumed the public session
and unanimously voted to sign agree-
ments with the Rees family, Goad
Family LC and the Indian Hills Invest-
ment Co.
The three groups have all agreed to
provide easements to the city to build
the road, while Goad Family LC also
is selling up to an acre east of Goad
Road to the city for $720 so the city
can build a water booster station on
the land. While the road can be built
in phases, Patterson said the booster
station and water lines need to be built
for the project to work.
“Water is the primary issue,” he
said.
See Homes, Page A7
Eden’s Kitchen struggles to stay afl oat
Former employee
Kayla Henshaw now
owns the business
and is looking to
build its brand
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — Kayla
Henshaw said she hasn’t paid
herself in three months.
When the 29-year-old
lifelong Pendleton resi-
dent took the reins from the
previous owner of Eden’s
Kitchen back in June, the
small restaurant on South-
west Sixth Street lost virtu-
ally all of its employees. Tax
issues and supply shortages
and prices only compounded
the struggle to get her new
business off the ground.
“It’s been tough to keep
up,” said Henshaw, who has
worked at Eden’s Kitchen
since 2015.
Though federal COVID-
19 relief funds provided some
help, three months later, she
has started a GoFundMe
campaign, hoping to raise
$5,000 and keep the business
afl oat. The account has raised
just $170.
Businesses throughout
Pendleton have struggled
amid the workforce short-
age that has swept the nation
during the pandemic. Eden’s
Kitchen is no exception.
Henshaw works 10-hour
shifts starting at 5:30 a.m., in
between taking her 4-year-
old son back and forth to
school. Some days she logs
extra hours to make dough
and ensure the cinnamon
rolls are ready. To keep labor
costs down, she works as
many hours as she can.
“I’ve sacrificed a lot of
family time and free time to
be here as much as possible,”
she said.
The restaurant makes
between $800 to $1,000 per
day, barely enough to break
even.
See Kitchen, Page A7
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Kayla Henshaw, owner of Eden’s Kitchen in Pendleton, pre-
pares ingredients for a chicken salad Wednesday, Oct. 6,
2021, at the Pendleton sandwich shop. Henshaw, who was an
employee at the establishment, took over ownership of the
business in June and has not paid herself in three months.