KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Editor/Senior Reporter
TuESdAY, dECEMBEr 28, 2021
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Closing
the final
chapter
on PGG
t is usually difficult to find an upside
when a once proud organization
decides to fold, but the last chapter of
the Pendleton Grain Growers story will
resonate even as the firm fades.
Five years ago, members of the locally
renowned cooperative voted to dissolve
the business, putting the exclamation
mark on a rich history that began in 1929.
For nearly 100 years, PGG was a vital
part of the regional community and an
economic force. PGG signs became part
of the landscape of Eastern Oregon as the
organization sponsored events in towns
up and down the Interstate 84 corridor.
Since the members voted to shutter the
organization, PGG stayed in operation
as it endeavored to pay back debts and
secure the best price for its assets.
The co-op was truly a success story,
and the fact it was able to avoid bank-
ruptcy, pay its debts and sell its properties
in a methodical fashion says a lot about
its leadership.
Last week, PGG announced it had
distributed more than $12 million to
more than 1,000 of its members, one of
the final steps before the organization
dissolves totally.
That’s a far cry from where the co-op
was in 2014 when its debts exceeded its
assets.
The co-op board deserves a lot of
credit for its diligent effort to get money
back to its members. It is an impressive
show of gratitude and dedication to its
1,000-plus members.
Even now, as most of the co-ops oper-
ations are permanently closed, its board
can, at every least, look back on this final
move as a positive occurrence that wasn’t
necessarily preordained.
For most of us, the decline and fall of
PGG will resonate as a wistful repre-
sentation of the past. For the people
who were members of the cooperative,
though, the history of PGG will linger.
Yet, instead of a negative perception, the
actions by the co-op’s board at the end of
a long road to give back to its members is
admirable.
The Pendleton Grain Growers board
closes the final chapter on a storied
history on a good note. The firm will
fall into the pages of history now but its
legacy — of pride and a commitment to
its members — will not fade away.
That says a whole lot about the co-op
we grew to know and to believe was as
much a part of Eastern Oregon as the
mountains, rivers and wheat fields.
I
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Something special about those local eggs
REGINA
BRAKER
ANOTHER MILE
t was an early Sunday afternoon,
getting together for lunch with
friends, when I noticed a text
message that just arrived. It was from
my egg friend, letting me know that
he and his family were in town, and he
had eggs for us. Yes, when, and where
were in the next messages, and once
his family had finished their Sunday
lunch at another restaurant across
town, he stopped by my location and
we completed the transaction out in the
parking lot.
Most of our text communication is
about eggs, but there are hints of what’s
going on in their family, too, busy with
events around school activities for their
kids and getting to family events around
our region. Juggling their day jobs, farm
obligations and the many interests that
keep a family happy and healthy, this
young one is an inspiration to me. And
they remind me of what it was like to
get around our eastern part of the state
when our kids were growing up, follow-
ing their passions with extra-curricular
activities and connecting with kids from
all kinds of backgrounds.
One egg text exchange was about
coming back from a cross-country
meet, with a son who also plays basket-
ball. No apologies necessary, I replied,
as I’m just happy to get some of those
eggs advertised on their carton as “heir-
I
loom fresh, free range, laid on small
family farms, blue and brown, (with)
rich amber yolks,” and yes, we really
can “taste the difference.”
To me it’s actually about more than
that description. Supporting the small
family farm, and recognizing the face
of someone who nurtured the plants and
animals that provide daily sustenance
is in the mix, too. And appreciating the
hours of commitment to getting that job
done. I’ve learned so much about what
goes into putting food on our tables by
connecting with our local providers.
For many who grew up in farming,
today’s reality includes having a day
job and carrying on the family legacy
as hobby farmers. That’s true of this
family, as they have long generational
roots in working on the land, and they
are passing on those traditions to their
two sons as well. Their daily routines
are about an early start to the day,
getting to work and school and sports
practice, before getting home to care for
the animals and early to bed. Chores for
the kids are divided by age-appropriate
care for their chickens, dogs, sheep and
horses.
It’s all part of the family’s commit-
ment to “taking care of the personal
ecosystem.” When needed there’s reli-
ance on others to help. As this story was
emerging, a few more lambs arrived and
got their start with the help of extended
family. It’s a life of reciprocated aid.
And that, too, is a reason to value food
that is locally produced.
Week nights and weekends devoted
to their sons’ sports competition bring
connection to other families and support
for kids beyond their own household.
Those obligations can be intense as
children learn to deal with success and
disappointment and gain skills in team-
work. I’m not sure we appreciate enough
the incredible social investment made
by parents who are willing to go those
extra miles on behalf of the youth sports
infrastructure largely run by volunteer
efforts.
This give-and-take extends from one
generation to another. Both parents in
this family grew up involved in compet-
itive sports, with mom competing as a
state champion. When the time came to
give back, she answered the call to be a
mentor to the girls’ high school team in
her community.
For her own kids, she and her
husband started and direct their youth
boys’ sports board to ensure non-school
teams have a support infrastructure.
That work has created a connection that
remains when kids show their appreci-
ation years later with a heartfelt hug, or
a return from college to reconnect and
show their gratitude.
This gift of time and caring extends
across our region, touching so many
lives. At this time of celebration and
giving, we all can find inspiration, and
look for ways to give back, or pass on
forward what we’ve received in our own
lives too.
———
Regina Braker, of Pendleton, is a
retired educator with journeys through
many places and experiences who enjoys
getting to know people along the way.
communities. We eight siblings attended
the public school; we all had the opportu-
nity to attend one of the state colleges or
universities. I had a grant from the state
Legislature to attend the state university
to become a teacher.
Looking back and remembering the
hard work on the farm, jobs while attend-
ing school and during summers, I am
grateful for the opportunities that my
state and national governments provided
me. Even now with the advantages of
Social Security and health care insur-
ance, I benefit by living in this country.
I do not discount the advantages of pass-
able roads and highways, police and fire
departments and the many other govern-
ment programs that I seldom think about.
Yes, the united States came out of the
Great depression because the govern-
ment created programs to assist people
getting their basic needs met. Since then,
the country prospered, and some people
have become extremely wealthy and
often passed their wealth from genera-
tion to generation. Others have fared less
well. For many reasons, the middle class
has virtually disappeared, and there are
families struggling to provide necessities
for their survival. We have millions of
people in great need. raising a family for
many is fraught with hardships and barri-
ers. Struggling families need assistance
just as the people at the end of the Great
depression received help to rebuild their
communities and the country.
The whole point of this letter is to say
that I want others to have advantages
such as I had in my 85 years. I remem-
ber the hard work, even physical labor I
endured, but I realize that even then I had
help that is not easily available to every-
one now. My desire is that in this century
people who are disadvantaged have
opportunities, as I had in the last century,
to build productive lives and contribute
positively to their communities. We need
strong families and strong Americans.
We need the programs that will be
available when the bills in front of the
u.S. Senate pass and become law. When
our fellow citizens receive their share of
the good life, my share is not diminished.
It is even better.
Evelyn Swart
Joseph
YOUR VIEWS
Everyone deserves fair
share of the good life
I was born toward the end of the Great
depression. The young couple who
bore me and my siblings had very few
resources, but they took advantage of the
possibilities offered through the govern-
ment programs that edged the country
out of those troubling times.
A new irrigation reclamation project
allowed young farmers like my dad to
change sagebrush desert into produc-
tive farmland. As time went on and my
parent’s family grew, a government
housing administration loaned money
to improve our dwelling and the land.
Of course, we eventually paid off the
financial obligations incurred during the
process. I say “we” because the entire
family worked to make the venture a
success.
I must say that I never heard my
parents complain about taxes. They
were always grateful for the advan-
tages provided by the united States
government. All their children became
productive and valuable citizens of their