OFF PAGE ONE
Tuesday, June 7, 2022
PHS:
Vets:
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“We could not have done
this without you,” he told the
crowd.
Liscom said seniors
earlier in the week visited
their former elementary
schools, where teachers and
students lined the halls to
greet them and wish them
well. The moment also gave
seniors the opportunity to
thank the teachers from their
past.
“It was a great way to be
able to see one more time
some of the teachers that had
a lasting impact on us,” he
said, then thanked families
as well for their support and
understanding
Cramp took to the lectern
next. Today is about celebra-
tion and hope, she said.
“Hope for a bright and
beautiful future that may
bless all us graduates as we
step forth into our next jour-
ney,” she said.
The PHS Class of 2022,
Cramp continued, is resilient,
determined, hard working,
compassionate and compet-
itive.
“The Class of 2022 has
persevered through numer-
ous obstacles,” she said,
“including the obvious
COVID-19 pandemic, but
also awkward homecom-
ing dances, challenging
AP tests, unwanted middle
school drama, unbeatable
late-night homework assign-
ments, online school, tedious
college applications and the
demolition of two former
elementary schools.”
Change, she said, has
been the consistent element
in their lives, and simulta-
neously one of life’s greatest
lessons.
Cramp recalled numer-
ous fun moments classmates
have shared, from “over-the-
top dress-up days” to long
bus rides to sporting events
to “very competitive boys
dance team performances.”
The graduation class is full
of young business owners,
athletes, artists, livestock
showers, car enthusiasts and
more.
“Our diversity as a class
Staffing at center
of delays
Kathy Aney/East Oregonian
Pendleton High School senior Muriel Jones-Hoisington col-
lects her diploma on Saturday, June 4, 2022, during com-
mencement at the Pendleton Round-Up Arena.
will always be our strength,
as it has shown us all of our
diff erences and similarities
over the years,” she said,
“and allowed us to connect
in so many diff erent ways.”
Cramp encouraged her
fellow graduates to take a
slow down now and then to
enjoy life and she urged them
to embrace failure, overcome
obstacles, dream big and treat
others with respect.
When senior Lucy Oyama
took the mic, she stressed
how quickly this day arrived.
Just two days ago with fi ve
minutes left in her last class,
she said, did she fully real-
ize she would not be coming
back to high school.
Today is a bittersweet
moment, she said, reflect-
ing back on years of shared
moments and memories with
classmates, but also one to
build on. The Class of 2022,
she said, made it through
online learning and brought
back Mud Wars, held a home-
coming and a prom.
“Now we’re ready to take
that come-back attitude and
apply it to the rest of our
lives,” Oyama said.
And while this change
feels big now and “appears
to be grander than anything
we have imagined,” one day
it will feel small. The swift
passage of time, she said,
should teach us “never take
the moments for granted.”
She urged the class to
cherish the moments they
have coming before they
embark on new adventures.
“I already miss all of
you,” she said, “my peers, my
friends, my incredible teach-
ers and role models.”
Dutcher again took the
mic to call out the names of
honor students. More than
two dozen students gradu-
ated with high honors, mean-
ing they had a high school
GPA of 3.5-3.75. More than
50 students graduated with
highest honors, meaning a
high school GPA of 3.75-4.0.
And 15 students graduated
with honors diplomas, mean-
ing they meet all the usual
graduation requirements
plus earned seven credits in
the school’s highest classes.
For the 98th year, PHS
presented seniors with
Lantern Cups — the award
veteran teachers vote on
noting students with signif-
icant personal development
and high academic achieve-
ment. The 2022 Lantern
Cups went to Liscomb,
Oyajma, Keri Kunz and
Andy Oja.
Dutcher also said 98
seniors earned more than 340
scholarships. Local groups
and organizations provided
almost $208,000 in scholar-
ships, he said, and the grand
total for all scholarships, was
more than $4.45 million.
“ P r e t t y i m p r e s sive
number,” he said.
After that, students one by
one strode to the platform and
accepted their diplomas. And
of course the Class of 2022
did one last thing en masse:
They moved the tassels on
their graduation caps from
the right to the left.
Softball:
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Continued from Page A1
Check out coverage of the game and photos on Page A10
and online at www.eastoregonian.com.
Taber said. “You dream of
that since Little League. It’s
crazy we got there and did it.”
In an eff ort to make sure
the seniors did not miss out
on the local graduation fun,
it was set up for them to fl y
to Eugene and back the night
of June 3 so they could enjoy
their class graduation party.
They flew back after the
game to celebrate with family
and friends.
“We were all excited to go
home and celebrate with those
who couldn’t make it,” Taber
said. “Get some love and hugs
from everyone who supported
us all season.”
Daisy Jenness, who drove
in the Bucks’ fi rst run with a
double in the bottom of the
fourth inning, said the season
was special after missing last
year with a knee injury.
“It’s so cool,” she said. “I
am super grateful. It has been
an amazing experience. It was
terrible to have that happen to
me, but I’m just glad I was
able to get back and finish
my season with a bang with
all my friends. We have been
playing together since the
third grade.”
It was the fourth state title
for Pendleton in 10 years. The
Bucks also won in 2012, 2014
and 2018. Coach Tim Cary
said it never gets old.
“It’s priceless,” Cary said.
“Just looking at their faces
when that last out was made.
They are absolutely deserving
of being state champions. We
are ready to gear up and get
another one next year.”
Taber, along with Jenness,
Sauren Garton, Faith Broad-
foot, Jaden Samp and Brie
Youncs, played their last game
in green and gold.
“It’s a very special group of
seniors this year,” Cary said.
“We will miss them dearly
next year. They have a great
work ethic, great attitudes
and are great to be around.
Faith has mud on the front of
her jersey every game. It may
never come clean. It goes to
show the work she puts in.”
Bet ween t he d i r t y
uniforms and tears of joy,
the Bucks accepted the state
trophy and their champion-
ship medals before donning
their graduation gowns and
caps.
“Everyone was crying,”
Taber said. “That’s the last
game we are all going to play
together. It’s cool to have that
last moment with everybody.”
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Veteran Ken McCor-
mack, chair of the veteran
advisory council for the La
Grande community-based
outpatient clinic, or CBOC,
was fi rst up with several
matters.
Community care in La
Grande can mean wait-
ing on the phone 20 to 30
minutes for someone to
answer because of short
staffi ng, he said, and reim-
bursement for travel is
backed up to last summer.
He also said the call center
in Walla Walla seems to
drop messages and has to
handle a larger area than
in the past. He also said
it took six months for the
La Grande facility to hire
a registered nurse and
another month for the new
hire to learn the system.
Kelter said most delays
are due to staffi ng issues.
“We have been trying
every hiring f lexibility
that is available to recruit
staff ,” he said, but the VA is
competing with employers
who can off er better pay and
incentives. And coaxing
people back to work after
learning to work remotely
due to the pandemic is
another challenge.
Catching up on travel
reimbursements, he said,
also is about staff ing
and could come down to
contracting that out.
“Obviously that will be
at higher cost to do that,
but we are committed to
getting those claims down,”
he said.
Recruiting registered
nurses “is challenging
across the board,” Kelter
said, and while the VA
has made hiring incen-
tives, applicants might
pass because they can get
on somewhere else faster.
The VA also has cut down
its on-boarding process, but
the VA still has the obli-
gation to ensure someone
East Oregonian
treating vets is safe.
A question f rom a
Umatilla County resident
also brought up delays.
Shanna — no last name
available — said her father
is a vet and has hearing loss,
so telehealth does not work
for him. But she was not
able to get him an appoint-
ment in person until the end
of July. She said she was
concerned about moving
his care even farther away.
“We’re almost driving
two hours round trip to get
him seeing providers in
Walla Walla,” she said.
Kelter said as a veteran
himself and with a son and
daughter in the military
now, he is keenly interested
in access to veteran care,
and the delay in his care is
a concern. He said he would
follow up and look into the
situation. He also said her
father or whoever is with
him can record appoint-
ments to review later to
help him understand what
a provider said.
Discussion on
AIR Commission
recommendations
Boyd and Kelter also
addressed concerns on
the Asset and Infrastruc-
ture Review — AIR —
Commission to modernize
and realign the VA health
care system. Boyd said at
this point, changes to Walla
Walla and other places are
just recommendations, and
implementation will take
years. Between now and
then, she said, there are
going to be numerous steps
for more input.
“It’s going to take all of
us to come to a good imple-
mentation plan,” she said.
Kelter said the question
comes down to how do we
take the recommendations
of the AIR Commission
and make sure they have
positive results, including
balancing the use of tech-
nology and in-person care.
He noted this process
does not take the place of
smart decisions in the fi eld,
and when the recommen-
dations ultimately come
down, the VA is looking
at some matters that will
affect Eastern Oregon
veterans.
The VA is looking at
more telehealth care in
Boardman and Enterprise,
and Kelter said he wants to
see a provider at those loca-
tions more often as well as
a nurse.
“The staffi ng model that
we’re pursuing there I think
will help in those areas in
particular,” he said, adding
the VA also is looking at
how it can best staff the La
Grande clinic to meet veter-
ans needs.
The AIR Commission is
recommending to increase
services in the Tri-Cities
because the need is there,
he said, but it remains to be
seen what that means for
Walla Walla.
“Ju s t b e c a u s e we
increase it in the Tri-Cities
does not necessarily mean
the demand decreases in
Walla Walla to where
we won’t support those
services any more,” Kelter
said.
He stressed the AIR
Com mission is about
providing more and better
care to veterans, not about
cutting costs. And he said
shifting Walla Walla’s
rehabilitation treatment to
Spokane is what is on the
plate, but not other services.
One questioner pointed
out Boise is closer to Union
County than Spokane,
so could Union County
become part of veteran care
out of Boise if changes in
Walla Walla go through?
That seemed to pique
the interests of Boyd and
Kelter. Boyd called the
suggestion an “interesting
thought” and worth look-
ing over. Kelter said this
fi ts with the AIR Commis-
sioners looking at aligning
service areas.
Wyden at the end said
details will be forthcoming
on the next two meetings,
but his point in all this is
making the government go
the extra mile for veterans
rather than making veterans
go extra miles for their care.
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