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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2022)
OFF PAGE ONE Thursday, April 21, 2022 East Oregonian country. People were thrilled. Each aircraft had a story of derring-do, skill, courage and patriotism, of 80 volunteers willing to take the fight to the enemy.” Doolittle: Continued from Page A1 Erick Peterson/East Oregonian Diners congregate at the Hermiston Food Pod on Friday, April 15, 2022. Food: Continued from Page A1 “If we can play music and have a place for people to go, maybe they won’t get into so much trouble,” he said. Customers enjoy the pod Rosa Alonzo, Umatilla resident, made a special trip to eat at the food pod April 15. She said she likes Magui’s the best but will choose different trucks. While she eats at one, the people who accompany her often get food from other trucks before sitting down at one of the benches at the pod. “We come out here quite a bit,” she said. “We enjoy the variety of foods.” Hermiston residents Shay Godden and James Wiggins were at another table. They heard of the Filipino food at the pod. Though they only rarely came to the pod previously, they dined there April 15 to try lumpia. They also said they were enjoying the atmosphere. “It’s kind of like the fair,” Godden said. Wiggins, who has worked at various fairs, agreed. Like the fair, the pod is lively, they said. Vendors tell their stories Godden and Wiggins obtained their Filipino food from Maureen Dickens, owner of Twisted Filipino Variety Cuisine. Dickens said she is from the Philippines, where her family operated restaurants. It gave her experiences with food and a love of the restau- rant business. “Ever since I was little, we had a restaurant,” she said. Three weeks in business, she said this is her first restau- rant in the U.S. She offers foods from her native country, Hawaii, America and more. Her American offerings, she said, include chicken tenders, which are popular. Her husband, she said, is retired, and she is semi-re- tired, which is why she said she prefers food truck work over opening a regular restau- rant. It is easier, though still hard, she said. Tim Wilson, Krack Burger owner, was taping a menu to his truck on Friday, his first day of operations. Foods, such as burgers, hotdogs, shakes and ice cream, were all on that menu. “I’m new to the food truck industry, but not to the restau- rant business,” Wilson said. He said he had a restau- rant in the Tri-Cities that was bought out by his ex-wife. “She didn’t want a partner, and I totally understand,” he said. Now a Hermiston resi- dent, he said he is excited for this business venture. Restau- rants are fun, he said, and food trucks are booming. He said he expects to do well. Berenice Rodriguez, of Alma’s Express, said she is optimistic, too. She serves smoothies, nachos, breakfast burritos and more, and she said business is good. “We wanted to have our own business and not work for anybody else,” she said. Having worked for others at restaurants and other trucks, she said she has long wanted to have her own business and not be beholden to someone else. Kalani Morales works at Bobablastic, which offers orange chicken, churros, boba tea and more. She said this business is good for her. She also has a job at Panda Express in Hermiston and working at the pod means she can earn extra income while enjoying herself, too. “I like it, I really do,” she said. “It’s fun.” Dalene Hadley operates the Grizzly Grill, offering grilled cheese sandwiches, corn dogs, fries and more. She said she has had the business for around 10 years but frequently moved during. Now, she said, she plans to stay still, with the exception of a few upcoming events. “I like it,” she said. “The people here are really good, and it’s less work.” Being in a fixed location, she does not have to bother much with hooking and unhooking utilities. Throughout the renova- tions, Tacos Garcia was the lone truck able to stay open because it operates on the other side of a short fence from the other restaurants. Rigo- berto Garcia is its owner. Garcia said he is happy to see a filled pod. Yes, they are within a short distance of his food truck. And, yes, he said, some customers may choose to eat at other food trucks instead of his. Still, Garcia said, the pod attracts many customers, bringing many diners to his truck for his wide selection of tacos, burritos and more. “There’s enough for all of us,” he said of the custom- ers. “And I like my neighbors. There’s business for every- body.” More changes to the pod are coming, Hunt said. According to Hunt, live bands will perform starting in the middle of May. The pod is open seven days a week, 11 a.m. to around 7 p.m., though not all vendors are open each day. Some vendors might expand to offer breakfast, Hunt said. The Army in February 1942 reassigned the B-25- equipped 17th Bombard- ment Group at Pendleton Field to Columbia Army Air Base, South Carolina, where Doolittle formed volunteer crews to train for the raid. To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the daring exploit, the Oregon Army National Guard flight facil- ity on the west end of the Eastern Oregon Regional Airport dedicated new plaques for the Guard’s B-25 exhibit. And the Pendleton Air Museum that evening held a fundraising dinner with auctions at the BackFire Station also in remembrance of the raid, complete with senior members of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 922 presenting the colors. A7 Memorials on display East Oregonian, File A B-25 bomber from the 17th Bombardment Group takes off from the deck of the USS Hornet on April 18, 1942, on its way to bomb the city of Tokyo. Sixteen bombers flew from the carrier on the raid that Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle led. Al- most all of the 80 airmen in the raid trained at what was then Pendleton Field, the military base in Pendleton. Recalling the raid PAM board member, retired Army aviator Col. Tim Kelly, introduced keynote speaker, retired Army Maj. Gen. Fred Rees of Helix, to the sold-out audi- ence. Kelly pointed to photos of the brave bomber crew members adorning the west wall. He noted volunteers for the seemingly suicidal mission served in the 17th Bombardment Group, based at Pendleton Field from June 1941 to February 1942. Its four squadrons were the first to receive B-25s and most experienced in operat- ing them. Of the 80 airmen in the raid, 71 survived. Two crew members drowned. The Japanese captured eight, executing three of them, and four died of starvation and maltreatment. Only Oregon native Staff Sgt. Jake DeShazer lived to return to Japan as a mission- ary. Other Raiders died during the war. Kelly’s fellow Vietnam War veteran Rees graduated from Griswold High School, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, and from the University of Oregon Law School. Rees served four times as adju- tant general of the Oregon National Guard. He was chief of staff of U.S. North- ern Command, director of the Army National Guard and twice acting chief of the National Guard Bureau. After retiring, Rees returned to his family’s ranch. “From my earliest days, the sacrifices of veterans were impressed upon my mind,” Rees said. “Five uncles served in World War II, not in B-25s, but in B-24 bombers in the Southwest Pacific. All had stories to share.” He added, “There was a significant amount of pride in Pendleton’s association with the Doolittle Raiders. As a youngster, the history of the barracks, hangar and guard shacks at the airport made an impression on me.” Rees recalled he was in second or third grade in the early 1950s when he saw the “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo” in a Pendleton movie house. The 1944 film starred Van Johnson as pilot Ted Lawson and Spencer Tracy as Doolittle. It was nomi- nated for technical Academy Awards and won for best special effects. Lawson wrote the book on which the movie was based. He and three other crew members were badly injured while ditching on the China coast. Only one member, engineer/gunner, David Thatcher of Montana, was in good enough condition to help his comrades. He died in 2016, aged 94, the second-to- last surviving Raider. Co-pi- lot Dick Cole died in 2019 at the age of 103. The mission’s flight surgeon amputated Lawson’s leg in China. “The raid was import- ant, so that people knew we could strike back after Pearl Harbor,” Rees said. Just nine days before the raid, Americans and Filipinos surrendered at Bataan. “It was not a great time for the people of the U.S.,” Rees continued. “While the raid didn’t cause a lot of damage, a morale boost swept the Rees was instrumental in building a second Oregon Army National Guard Avia- tion Support Facility at Pend- leton in 1996. “It was in my mind to dedicate the facility to the Doolittle Raiders and Pend- leton Field,” he said. “We collected and displayed memorabilia from the outset. At the dedication, we were honored to host a few Raid- ers.” And he wanted to have a display of a B-25 Mitchell bomber, but that didn’t pan out. The U.S. made thou- sands of the planes, he said, but finding one proved a challenge, “The surviving Doolit- tle Raid plane was rumored still to exist in Vladivostok, but that was too far,” he said. “We found one in (Texas), dismantled, transported and reassembled it. With the help of the air museum and community people, we restored it in the Chinook hangar. It’s now on display at the facility.” T he O regon Mili- tary Department, Rees concluded, would like to make a public plaza around the bomber, and he thanked the crowd for their “enthu- siasm and support for this event tonight to commemo- rate some of America’s great heroes.” Live auctioneer Ford Bonney of Hermiston said, “Growing up here, I didn’t know about this history. So it’s great what you’re doing.” ——— East Oregonian news editor Phil Wright contrib- uted to this article. Win up to $1,000 CASH and your entry to win a 2022 Toyota Tundra! Drawings every Friday and Saturday, 6–9pm Entry Multiplier Win up to 5X Entries every Wednesday! Swipe at an April 30 to activate. Actual truck model and color may vary. Sunday, April 24 Doors Open 9am Warm-Ups 12pm Main Session 12:30pm $1,000 Awarded Per Game! Buy-in at the door $100 - 20 games Paper Only Session For more information, visit wildhorseresort.com. Limited seating available. Phil Wright/East Oregonian Curb and sidewalk improvements remain underway Tuesday, April 19, 2022, along the Southeast Court Avenue side of the Hamley Western Store & Saddle Shop in downtown Pendleton. Upgrades: Continued from Page A1 “We’ve talked with some of them about how they can stay open,” he said. “Visibility is the main problem. A lot of custom- ers don’t see the open signs. We’re trying to make sure that people can see those signs.” Davis added most of the work will wrap up in about two weeks, and after that, “just odds and ends will bring us back.” Taylor on April 19 said she has reached out to officials about the situation. “I talked to everyone,” she said. “The mayor came down. I talked to ODOT and the county commissioners. 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