OCTOBER IS BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
Enterprise, Oregon
www.wallowa.com
Issue No. 27
October 21, 2015
$1
INSIDE TODAY
The NRA banquet
was a success. Hun-
dreds came out, and
hundreds of thou-
sands were raised.
Page A11
No jail
time for
batterer
By Kathleen Ellyn
Wallowa County Chieftain
An Imnaha man has been
sentenced to 40 days on a
work crew and 36 months of
probation in connection to an
assault on his girlfriend.
Scott Lee Fouste, 53, was
sentenced in Wallowa County
Circuit Court Oct. 14 by Judge
Brian C. Dretke after pleading
guilty to assault in the 4th de-
gree, constituting domestic
violence; menacing, constitut-
ing domestic violence; and un-
lawful use of a weapon against
another, a class C felony.
See FOUSTE, Page A9
Giving Day
adopted by
Joseph City
Council
By Steve Tool
I INVITATION
TO INVEST
Group saves lodge, looks for like-minded partners
Wallowa County Chieftain
Joseph became the ¿ rst
city in the state to pass a res-
olution proclaiming Dec. 1 as
#OregoniansGive on #Giv-
ingTuesday at the Oct. 8 city
council meeting.
#GivingTuesday started in
2012 and celebrates and en-
courages the collective power
of philanthropy and giving. The
day is observed annually the
Tuesday after Thanksgiving.
See GIVING, Page A3
Kathleen Ellyn/Chieftain
Dolores and David Bridges and
one of several fawns resting
near the Wallowa Lake Lodge,
enjoy the view. The Bridges are
two of the early investors in
the bid to gain control of the
lodge and preserve it’s natural
resources from development.
By Kathleen Ellyn
T
Wallowa County Chieftain
wo fawns rest along the porch railing
at the back entrance of Wallowa Lake
Lodge. Further out on the grounds the
rest of the small herd grazes peacefully.
Standing at the foot of the porch steps, Lodge
investors Dolores and David Bridges of Joseph
silently enjoy the view. This closeness with
nature is one of the reasons they love this place.
But the Bridges are ready to share this hidden
jewel. They are looking forward to meeting new
investors and seeing more people enjoying what
they hope will be “their” lodge in the coming
months.
“It’s important that the lodge be saved,”
David Bridges said. “We come here because we
love the area and what it has to offer, including
the history it represents. This lodge has been
an important piece of contact (with history and
nature) for over a hundred years and it has a
vital future in front of it.”
The future of the lodge was in danger earlier
this year when it went up for bid in a national
auction.
See LODGE, Page A6
“
I wouldn’t get
into this if I
thought I was
losing money.
Fishtrap director brings passion to the job
‘I
’m used to being behind the
scenes, now that I’m out in
front of everyone, it’s like, “Oh,
I have to comb my hair.”
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
After a search of several
months, Fishtrap, a local or-
ganization devoted to writ-
ing about the west, has hired
a new executive director,
Shannon McNerney. The new
director hails from Portland,
where she was executive di-
rector of the Portland Sym-
phonic Choir.
“I’m used to being be-
hind the scenes, now that I’m
out in front of everyone, it’s
like, ‘Oh, I have to comb my
hair,’” McNerney said with a
laugh.
The new director is a
product of the Willamette
Valley who spent her forma-
tive years moving with her
family.
Shannon McNerney
Fishtrap director
McNerney
“By the time I started
high school, it was my 10th
school, sixth state and 13th
house – a lot of moving
around,” McNerney said.
She got her start in
non-pro¿ t arts management
through majoring in music
in college at the Universi-
ty of Oregon where she was
trained as a classical singer
and a practicing À autist.
“The arts were always in
my head. I grew up like that,”
McNerney said.
In college, McNerney
started teaching but soon
realized she was meant for
something else.
“I loved the teaching part,
but I didn’t like the routine or
the predictability of someone
dictating your schedule. It
wasn’t the right thing to do,”
she said.
McNerney
eventual-
ly transitioned into an en-
try-level secretarial/market-
ing position with Oregon
Catholic Press.
See DIRECTOR, Page A3