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Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Lynn Tompkins, the co-founder and di-
rector of Blue Mountain Wildlife, paus-
es alongside a pen Wednesday, Dec.
1, 2021, at the rehabilitation center’s
Pendleton headquarters. The organi-
zation recently received a $45,000 gift
from a trust.
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Randy Severe’s sons Ryan Severe, left, and Jarad Severe look up as they lift their father’s casket atop a horse-drawn carriage Tuesday, Nov. 30,
2021, following his funeral service at the Pendleton Convention Center.
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
REMEMBERING
in the world. Nearly everybody
remarked on his infectious laugh
and smile.
PENDLETON — Blue Mountain
Wildlife’s weekly newsletter ran through
the normal humdrum of the nonprof-
it’s work before making a signifi cant
reveal: The bird rehabilitation center
was brought a screech owl that had been
trapped in a chimney, a rescued Cooper’s
hawk died before reaching the group’s
facility south of Pendleton, and the orga-
nization just received a $45,000 check
from a trust.
The latter item is big news for Blue
Mountain Wildlife, which has been reha-
bilitating wild birds from across Eastern
Oregon since 1990. Compared against
the nonprofi t’s $200,000 annual budget,
the $45,000 gift will provide a signifi -
cant boost to the rehabilitation center.
According to Lynn Tompkins, the
co-founder and director of Blue Moun-
tain Wildlife, all of this happened with-
out her meeting the surprise benefactor.
The $45,000 is being provided by
the Leona B. Ambrose Living Trust,
an entity created to carry out the will
of the late Ambrose. While Blue Moun-
tain Wildlife may not have connected
with her during her lifetime, Ambrose
decided to donate signifi cant amounts of
money to the organization and to other
bird sanctuaries in Oregon.
Tompkins said Blue Mountain Wild-
life’s annual budget should be higher, but
she isn’t planning on using Ambrose’s
money for operational expenses. Instead,
she expects Blue Mountain Wildlife to
work with the Blue Mountain Commu-
nity Foundation to use the gift as seed
money for an endowment she hopes her
organization can grow and withdraw
from for years to come.
Tompkins said she’s recommending
these moves with the future in mind.
“My goal is to make it sustainable
past me,” she said.
See Mr. Round-Up, Page A7
See Center, Page A7
MR. ROUND-UP
‘When people thought of the Round-Up, they thought of Randy Severe’
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — The two sons
of Randy Severe led the pallbear-
ers as they loaded their father into
the back of a horse-drawn carriage
for the procession through Pend-
leton. Atop his casket, adorned by
fl owers, rested Severe’s favorite
black cowboy hat.
It was an overcast Tuesday,
Nov. 30, outside the Pendleton
Convention Center, where at least
500 mourners gathered for the
funeral service of the 70-year-old
saddlemaker and former president
of the Pendleton Round-Up Board
of Directors.
Severe contracted COVID-19
shortly after attending the Pend-
leton Round-Up. His family does
not wish to disclose whether he
was vaccinated, daughter Darla
Phillips said. He spent nearly two
months on a ventilator at a Port-
land hospital before succumbing
to the disease Nov. 21.
“He was so loved and cher-
ished by all,” Phillips said. “He
knew so many people and touched
so many lives. And this shows the
respect that he gained. There’s so
much love for him.”
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
The cortege for the funeral of Randy Severe proceeds up Southgate on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021, en route to
Olney Cemetery in Pendleton. Severe, 70, died Nov. 21 following a monthslong battle with COVID-19.
Mourners gathered at the
service to comfort one another
and share their memories of
Severe. Many of the men wore
cowboy hats, which they tilted
low as somber country music
fi lled the room. They told stories
of Severe’s kindness, selfl essness
and how he made you feel like you
were the most important person
Pendleton
bird rehab
center hopes
$45K gift will
set up future
Levy proposes $1 million for wolf-livestock compensation
State has confi rmed
wolves injured or
killed 87 animals
so far in 2021
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
SALEM — An Eastern
Oregon legislator wants to
significantly increase state
funding to reimburse ranchers
for dead and missing livestock
caused by wolves.
State Rep. Bobby Levy,
R-Echo, plans to introduce
a bill in the 2022 Legisla-
ture that would provide $1
million during the next bien-
nium for the Oregon Depart-
ment of Agriculture’s Wolf
Depredation Compensation
and Finan-
cial Assis-
tance grant
program.
The bill
comes on
b eh a l f of
Levy
the Oregon
Cattlemen’s
Association, Oregon Farm
Bureau, Oregon Sheep Grow-
ers Association and Oregon
Hunters Association.
“(Producers) didn’t ask for
these wolves to be brought
in,” Levy said. “It’s a very
emotional thing, and it’s
getting more costly by the
day.”
The Wolf Depredation
Compensation and Finan-
cial Assistance program was
created by the Legislature
in 2011, and provides grants
to counties where wolves
are present. Grants may be
awarded to cover the losses of
dead, injured or missing live-
stock, as well as non-lethal
prevention.
Ranchers, however, argue
the program is underfunded.
For 2020, ODA awarded
$130,164 split among 12 coun-
ties, covering just 37% of all
grant requests. In 2019, coun-
ties were awarded $251,529, or
58% of all requests.
State Sen. Bill Hansell,
R-Athena, requested $800,000
for the program in the 2021
Legislature. Lawmakers
instead approved a one-time
allocation of $400,000, on top
of what already is provided in
ODA’s budget.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife/Contributed Photo
A trail cam photo from May 30, 2021, of one of the two year-
ling wolves in the Lookout Mountain Pack in Baker County.
State Rep. Bobby Levy, R-Echo, plans to introduce a bill in
the 2022 Legislature to increase state funding to reimburse
ranchers for livestock losses that wolves cause.
Jonathan Sandau, a special
assistant to ODA Director
Alexis Taylor, said the agency
anticipates having a little
more than $800,000 total to
compensate producers for
wolf-livestock confl icts during
the biennium, including
federal grants from the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
See Wolves, Page A7