E AST O REGONIAN
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2021
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By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
A12
COACHING
U
MATILLA
COUNTY —
Frustration.
Heartbreak.
Limitations.
Safety. Confusion.
Those and more words
came from area coaches
discussing what it is like to
keep their teams on the fi eld
or court during the COVID-
19 pandemic.
It’s been more than 18
months since the fi rst wave
of COVID-19 shut down
sports in the spring of 2020.
Athletes lost their entire
baseball, softball and track
and fi eld seasons.
Come fall, Friday nights
were missing football. High
school sports were shuttered
until after the new year.
When they were allowed to
return, there were limita-
tions, mask mandates and
contact tracing.
“It hasn’t been easy, and
it has been frustrating,”
said Dennis Stefani, who
coaches football and boys
basketball att Ione/Arling-
ton. “It’s almost taken me
down a couple of times.
It’s been hard to stay posi-
tive. Last year, the kids got
deprived so badly. You do
what you can do. The state
(1A basketball) tournament
in Baker was nice. We didn’t
go with all of our start-
ers because parents were
worried, but every team was
like that.”
Football got moved to the
IN COVID-19
AREA COACHES ARE DOING THEIR BEST
TO KEEP TEAMS PLAYING
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Hermiston head coach David Faaeteete celebrates Samuel Cadenas’ punt block touchdown and calls out a plan for the point after attempt Friday, Oct. 8,
2021, during a 27-14 loss to the Southridge Suns in Hermiston. Faaeteete is among the Umatilla County high school coaches to get vaccinated as a way to
protect his players.
were forced to do most of
the school year on Zoom,
which wasn’t an easy task
in small communities with
limited internet access.
“Last year was hard,”
start of spring, and tradi-
tional spring sports fi nished
off the school year, with
some teams playing deep
into June.
On top of that, students
said Hermiston football
coach David Faaeteete, who
also teaches social studies at
the high school. “I was just
glad this year we were able
to start in the building. This
is the most participation
we have had whether it be
groups, clubs or sports. Kids
desire to be social. COVID,
as a coach and as a teacher,
was tough for everyone. You
are trying so hard to do stuff
for the kids because they
need it. The mental health
of kids took a huge dive.”
See Coaching, Page A13
SPORTS SHORT
Portland Trail Blazers reportedly decline trade deal for Ben Simmons
By AARON FENTRESS
The Oregonian/OregonLive
PORTLAND — The Portland
Trail Blazers have turned down a
trade proposal that would have sent CJ
McCollum and multiple draft picks and
pick swaps to Philadelphia for disgrun-
tled All-Star forward Ben Simmons,
according to a report from Shams
Charania of The Athletic.
According to Charania, the 76ers
off ered up Simmons for McCollum,
three fi rst-round picks and three pick
swaps but the Blazers said no.
Simmons, upset by how he
perceived the way the 76ers treated
him following his performance during
the team’s Game 7 loss to Atlanta in
the second round of the NBA playoff s,
has declared that he will not report to
training camp, which began last week.
Simmons has been a no-show to
camp and has demanded a trade. For
much of the summer, Simmons was
linked in trade rumors with Portland
either for Damian Lillard or McCollum.
Neil Olshey, Blazers president of
basketball operations, has made it
clear that he has no intentions of trading
Lillard. McCollum, on the other hand,
Five vie for four city council
is believed to be more attainable but
only in the right deal.
Simmons would certainly be an
interesting fit with the Blazers. He
would provide defense, size (6-foot-
11), playmaking ability, rebounding
and would elevate the team’s transition
game. However, Simmons’ shooting
issues are well-documented.
McCollum, on the other hand, is one
of the league’s best all-around scorers
and was on an All-Star trajectory for
the fi rst time in his career last season
before a broken foot sidelined him for
25 games.
Sean Meagher/
The Oregonian
CJ McCollum
looks on as
the Portland
Trail Blazers
open the
preseason
on Monday,
Oct. 4, 2021,
against the
Golden State
Warriors at
Moda Center,
Portland.
Committed to excellence for our readers
seats in Hermiston | REGION, A3
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1,
First Place Awards
2020
News Photo -"Embracing Disaster" by Ben Lonergan
A large crowd of Black Lives
Matter
protesters link arms and march
through downtown Pendleton
on
Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020.
144th Year, No. 191
WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA
Proactive
approach
pays off
N
BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTE
$1.50
ST
200 march through
streets of Pendleton
in peaceful Black
Lives Matter protest
THE WEEK
IN PHOTOS
Stuart
Roberts met five
HANDED
UMATILLA COUNTY SENTENCE WALLA times with organizers
IN
RESIDENTS WANTED DOWN MURDER prior to Aug. 29 march
A
By ALEX CASTLE
FOR COVID-19 STUDY WALL A2
East Oregonian
NORTHWEST,
AWARD
Protest draws a crowd
TIO
EDI
Pendleton
WEEKEND
Police Chief
REGION, A9
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
GENERAL EXCELLENCE
LIFESTYLES, A10
By ALEX CASTLE AND
ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
P
ENDLETON — Pendleton
Police Chief Stuart Roberts
praised the proactive safety
planning of organizers with the
Black Lives Matter protest on
Sat-
urday, Aug. 29, as a key in keeping
the event peaceful.
And aside from a few minor
incidents between some protesters
Counterprotesters watch from
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
and counterprotesters, the plan-
across the road as Black Lives
Matter protesters lay down
Park in Pendleton to pay tribute
ning paid off.
at Roy Raley
to George Floyd on Saturday,
Aug. 29, 2020.
“I think what really gave us an
$1.50
opportunity to prepare to the
best LENCE AWARD
of ONPA
our ability
GENER
was the AL EXCEL
WINNER OF THE 2019 on the part of the BLM willingness
organizers
to communicate,” Roberts said
on
Aug. 31.
5REHUWVVDLGKHKHOG¿YHPHHW
ings with the protest’s organizers
new
— Briana Spencer, Nolan Bylenga
OHA also reported 396
each had two deaths. The cases of COVID-19 on July 24,
and John Landreth — in the
days counties
is 282. The 28
could be up ebbing.
leading
to
the event, show
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that state’s death toll
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with the
By GARY A. WARNER
transmissi
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Sidelinger said that
which
he noted came
as
optimism”
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and ZHHNEHIRUH+HDOWK to be 5% or
being The
more “cautious
loosely Oregon Health behind reports of infections
said they need the rate
day that the organized.
on a addition
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tions, and the spike in
the In
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11 Pendleton
some stark hospitaliza
lower to keep the pandemic
SALEM — On a day when
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cases on and
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Roberts
said there
deaths the Fourth of July is likely to
nine were
19 set a new record, Oregon
reported
Oregon
toll
two
also
deputies
See Hope, Page A12
one-day the daily death
the Uma-
— a new
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24 from
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climb higher.
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forecasting offers a “glimmer RI¿FHUV
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hope” that the rise in infections
Police Department and 10 troopers
from Oregon State Police provid-
Budtender Iverson Winter
cards
ing assistance on Aug. 29.
checks identifi cation
y in
While police had a number of
at Kind Leaf Dispensar
y,
JULY 25-26, 2020
144th Year, No. 175
PENDLETON
Downtown
association
director
resigns
Chamber to take
a bigger role in
QRQSUR¿W¶VIXWXUH
e’ on COVID trends
Oregon has a ‘glimmer of hop
ID,
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
See Approach, Page A8
Pend-
PENDLETON — The n is
leton Downtown Associatio
execu-
now looking for its third g the
tive director since establishin
position in 2017.
W
2Q -XO\ WKH QRQSUR¿
Direc-
announced that Executive resign-
tor Wesley Murack was
“personal
ing immediately for
reasons.”
was
A Texas native, Murack late
in
hired by the association
nt
2018 for his tourism developme
lly and
experience, both domestica
abroad.
Murack replaced Molly Turner,
intern to
who was elevated from
Q¶V ¿UVW
EHFRPH WKH RUJDQL]DWLR Turner
executive director in 2017. take a
to
quit less than a year later
Commu-
job with Blue Mountain
the posi-
nity College, adding that a busi-
tion needed someone with
ness background.
In a press release, association
high-
President Angela Thompson nts
developme
the
of
some
lighted
including
in Murack’s tenure,
Oregon
obtaining a grant from the
ren-
Parks and Recreation to cover
Audito-
ovation costs at the Vert
Lodge.
rium and the old Eagles Murack
One of the last events
departure
organized before his
concerts
outdoor
of
was a series
help stoke
on South Main Street to
but
business during the pandemic,
COVID-
the series was cut short as
Umatilla
19 cases rose throughout
County.
Murack could not be reached
and
for comment, but Thompson
Commerce
of
Pendleton Chamber
about
CEO Cheri Rosenberg talked future
’s
the downtown association
Develop-
at a July 21 Pendleton
ment Commission meeting. th gap
Given the three-mon
predeces-
between Murack and his
it would
sor, Thompson anticipated a new
take three months to hire mean-
executive director. In the exec-
time, she planned to assume she
although
utive director duties,
please
Masks complicate
businesses asking
for identification
from customers
Pendleton on Wednesda
A truck fl ying a “Trump 2020”
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
July 22, 2020.
fl ag drives by a line of counterprote
ter during a protest at Roy
sters and shouts at Black Lives
Raley Park in Pendleton
by Ben Lonergan
Mat-
Staff
on photo
Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020.
KLP¿JKWLQJIRUKLVOLIH7KH
EUDLQ
bleed resulted from a congenital
abnormality called arteriovenou
malformation (AVM), a tangle s
of
abnormal blood vessels connect-
ing arteries and veins in the
brain.
By KATHY ANEY
The knot of vessels impedes normal
East Oregonian
EORRGÀRZ
The
abnormality
is rare in chil-
LEXINGTON — Kelly Boyer
dren. People with AVM sometimes
doesn’t see her grandson
much go their entire lives
without a rup-
these days. COVID keeps the
Lex- ture. The average age
ington woman away.
of diagnosis
It’s a frustrating reality, espe- is 31 and the risk of hemorrhage for
cially since this spring 5-year-old untreated AVM is between 2% and
4% yearly.
Evan Kates suffered a brain
aneu-
rysm and several strokes that
left
See Grandmother, Page A8
Contributed photo
Brothers Cole, left, and Evan
Kates pose for an undated
photo. Evan, who
is now 5 and has a rare congenital
brain abnormality called AVM,
ering after a ruptured aneurism
is recov-
and several strokes this spring.
Feature Photo - "Comet NEOWISE" by Ben Lonergan
2020 Oregon Newspaper
Publishers Association
Better Newspaper Contest
Awards
Sports Photo - "Pickup Men" by Ben Lonergan
Local Column - Kathy Aney
Special Section - "Sidelined"
Third Place Awards
General Excellence
Feature Story - "At the brink: Local COVID-19 survivor
remembers how close virus came to killing him" by
Antonio Sierra
Spot News - "Community mourns: Colleagues mourn
Pendleton city councilor" by Antonio Sierra, Kathy
Aney
Photo Essay - "Banjo Man" by Ben Lonergan
Enterprise Reporting - "Stuck in the middle: Police
officers of color describe experiences in law
enforcement" by Jade McDowell
Small size belies big
COVID-19 problem
See Problem, Page A12
Business or Economic Story - "A reopening plan 173
years in the making" by Antonio Sierra
Page One Design - Andy Nicolais
See Director, Page A12
when it
the pair are neck-and-neck .
comes to the virus’ prevalence took a
Morrow County’s surge
the county
twist on July 15 when
at the pub-
announced that a worker
had tested
lic health department
, and two
positive for COVID-19
presumed
other staff members were
positive after falling ill.
11,600
Overseeing a county of
Admin-
people, Morrow County said the
istrator Darrell Green
department
county’s public health
a
isn’t large enough to coordinate
So
itself.
by
virus
response to the
Second Place Awards
Headline Writing - Andrew Cutler
U
More
MORROW COUNTY — have
than 1,400 cases of COVID-19
national
earned Umatilla County Morrow
g
attention, but neighborin
County hasn’t been spared.
as of
Morrow County’s 207 cases to the
n
July 21 pales in compariso but the
Umatilla County case count, means
former’s smaller population
See Crowd, Page A8
CROSSING THE DIVIDE
Jacob Bryant just wanted to
chat —
peacefully, and quietly, with
someone
associated with the Pendleton
Black
Lives Matter protest. Page A8
5-year-old suffers
life-threatening brain
aneurysm, strokes
at
and a plastic sneeze guard lay-
the counter provide other
ers of protection.
lit-
“The masks do make it a
M A T I L L A
XVXDO
— WOH PRUH GLI¿FXOW WKDQ even
COUNTY
we used to not
because
identi-
Checking
sunglasses or hats when
¿FDWLRQ LV PRUH allow came in,” Krenzler said.
complicated when people far, he said, they hav-
So
everyone is wear-
seen anyone trying to use
ing a mask, but en’t
mask to get away with using
local businesses say a
someone else’s ID.
they’re making it work.
For anyone who is opposed
Brandon Krenzler at Kind to wearing a mask or is wor-
peo-
of shop-
Leaf Pendleton said most
from ried about the risk
ple are still recognizable
business now
their ping indoors, the
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
their photo, even with But offers a walk-up window where
in
obscured.
to Kind Leaf Dispensary
mouth and nose
people can be served outside Signage on a plexiglass shield at the entrance
to wear a mask and
if staff do have a question,
that they are required
cus- the building.
Pendleton advises customers
on Wednesday, July 22,
they’re allowed to ask the and
Krenzler said the people be at least 21 years of age to enter the facility
feet
6
back
step
to
tomer
PDVN
ID, Page A12 2020.
EULHÀ\ SXOO GRZQ WKHLU
See
mask
since the employee’s own
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Counterprotesters joined in
chants
of “Blue lives matter,” “All
lives mat-
ter” and “USA” as roughly 200
protest-
ers against police brutality
and
injustice trickled into the park racial
to
to community speeches at 4 p.m. listen
At least one protester on the
Lives Matter side of the street Black
trading barbs with counterprote began
and organizers told them to stop sters,
engag-
ing or leave.
“We will not acknowledge them.
We
will not be them. Ignore them,”
Spencer, one of the protest’s Briana
organiz-
ers, said at the opening of the
event as
attendees donning masks and
carrying
signs circled around the park lawn.
Spencer, a Black, Puerto
Rican
woman of the Confederated
Tribes of
Grandmother raises funds
for her ailing grandson
By JADE MCDOWELL
East Oregonian
Morrow County tries
to navigate its own
way through pandemic
P
ENDLETON — Despite a pal-
pable sense of anger, a Black
Lives Matter march in Pendleton
remained peaceful and unim-
peded on Saturday, Aug. 29.
By 3:30 p.m., about 150 peo-
ple had gathered opposite
of
Roy Raley Park on Southwest
Court
Avenue with an array of American,
Confederate, “Trump” and “Thin
/LQH´ÀDJV2WKHUVFDUULHGVLJQV Blue
LQGLFDW
LQJ WKHLU VXSSRUW IRU SROLFH ZKLOH
RI¿

cers with the Pendleton Police
Depart-
ment stationed themselves at
the street
corners.
Feature Story Personality - "Finding peace: Pendleton
man coming to grips with trauma of Las Vegas
shooting" by Kathy Aney
The Astorian
East Oregonian
Bend Bulletin
Capital Press
LaGrande Observer
Baker City Herald
Wallowa County Chieftain
Blue Mountain Eagle
Hermiston Herald
Seaside Signal
Redmond Spokesman
Chinook Observer
Coast River Business Journal
Education Coverage - "Dashed dreams: $3.6 million in
Oregon Promise Grants revoked" by Kathy Aney
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan,
File
capaci-
to increase its testing
in Boardman is working
Columbia River Health
of a rapid testing machine.
ty through the acquisition
Lifestyle Coverage - "A spike in calls" by Kathy Aney
EASTOREGONIAN.COM