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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 2022)
REGION Saturday, January 29, 2022 East Oregonian A3 ¡ Andy Nicolais/East Oregonian Umatilla County Public Health in the last seven days reported 1,124 new COVID-19 cases. The seven-day average of new cases dropped after peaking at 240 on Jan. 17 down to 206 on Jan. 27. The county’s test positivity rate fell from a record high last week of 37.4% to 35.6% this week, which still indicates COVID-19 is circulating widely in the area. Community mourns passing of former principal, NFL player By ERICK PETERSON East Oregonian HERMISTON — When the word went out about the death of a former Hermiston High School administrator, many people expressed their sorrow. Philip “Buzz” Brazeau Jr. died Jan. 12 at the age of 72. Locals are talking about the man they describe as both a “giant personality” and an “intellectual.” “Buzz was more than just a great administrator,” Tricia Mooney, Hermiston School District superintendent, said. “He was a great human. The Hermiston School District and our community are fortu- nate that we had the opportu- nity to have Buzz on our team. His legacy is in the lives he touched and the people he impacted. We are all better because of him.” According to the Hermis- ton School District, Brazeau was employed as a Hermiston High School assistant princi- pal 2004-07 and principal 2007-12, and he was the 2011- 12 Hermiston School District Administrator of the Year. Outside of Hermiston, he was known as a football player for Washington State University, the Los Angeles Rams, the Green Bay Pack- ers and the Portland Storm. After his football days, he worked as a teacher, a coach and a school administrator at diff erent school districts. His obituary praises him as a family man, a loving husband to wife Kathy, and a beloved father, uncle and grandfather. Umatilla County Commis- sioner Dan Dorran is among those who said they grieve over Brazeau’s death. Dorran was at Brazeau’s memorial service, which was Jan. 22 in Salem. Dorran said he consid- ered Brazeau a “really good friend.” Dorran said the memorial service was heart-felt. Several people were there, he said, and they spoke of their disappoint- ment about the man’s death. Based upon the outpouring of emotion from funeral attend- ees, Dorran said it was obvi- ous how people felt about the East Oregonian, File Former Hermiston Principal Buzz Brazeau gives a hug to senior quarterback Faafi aula Ena after the Bulldogs on Nov. 7, 2009, held on to beat Pendleton on its home home fi eld. Brazeau died Jan. 12, 2022. He was 72. former principal: They loved him, Dorran said. The two worked together on several projects, Dorran said. In addition, Brazeau was principal when Dorran’s chil- dren were students at the high school. They also attended church together, he said. As such, their families got to know each other well. “If you knew Buzz, you had a friend,” Dorran said. “You always came away from him a little smarter, a little kinder, with a little diff erent view of the world after every conversation with him.” He was an intellectual as well as a bigger-than-life personality, Dorran said. Over at Hermiston High School, Principal Tom Spoo expressed many of the same feelings and insights. He worked in the school district alongside Brazeau and described him as as a smart and powerful individual. Spoo said he was an agri- cultural science teacher at the school when Brazeau began working as the assistant prin- cipal. When Brazeau became principal, Spoo took the job as assistant principal. The pair worked together for four years before Spoo left to be princi- pal of Armand Larive Middle School. As co-workers, they spoke daily and constantly, Spoo said. Both morning people, the pair frequently met early in the day. Still at work into the evening on some days, they had multiple conversa- tions throughout work hours. Spoo said they did not always agree with one another, but he always felt impressed with Brazeau. The former principal, according to Spoo, always put students fi rst. He credited Spoo for an excellent and impressive atti- tude toward students. Spoo also holds young people in A Mystery by GOING OUT OF BUSINESS CLOSEOUT SALE! 80 high regard, just like his old boss, he said. Still, Brazeau had a special way about him that made him diff erent, he said. “He was a big, old teddy bear,” Spoo said. “That is, until you got him fi red up. Then he’d turn into a grizzly bear.” Spoo said the old bear would get very excitable while watching his school’s teams play sports. At games, Spoo recalled, Brazeau would lead fans in cheers, which endeared him to the students. “I think a lot of kids saw him as a grandfather, in some regards,” Spoo said. As for Spoo, he said he saw Brazeau as both a mentor and a friend. The commissioner and the principal said they are not alone in missing Brazeau. His impact was felt by a generation of people not only through the high school but also through Brazeau’s community service. He served on boards for the Umatilla County Fair and the Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center. Agatha Christie % through Monday, OFF FEB. 7th PILOT ROCK HARDWARE 181 NW Birch St., Pilot Rock, OR 541-443-2241 Directed by Produced by Jeremy Reed Barbara McKinney JAN. 28, 29, FEB 4, 5, 11 & 12 AT 7:30 PM. FEB. 6 & 13 AT 2 PM. Box office hours: 6:30-7:30 pm Friday and Saturday and 1-2 pm Sunday during the weeks of the shows only. By permission of Samuel French | 1130 E. Sumach | 509-529-3683 | Tickets: $20 | Reserve yours online at LTWW.org