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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2017)
BASKETBALL SEASON UNDERWAY Enterprise, Oregon See Page 13 Wallowa.com Issue No. 34 December 6, 2017 $1 Dunn steps up for commissioner slot By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain Bruce Dunn, a forester for R-Y Timber and chairman of the county’s Natural Resources Advisory Council, has filed for the county commissioner post soon to be vacated by commis- sioner Paul Castilleja for health reasons. Dunn was born in Mich- igan, where he grew up and attended college, earning a for- estry degree at Michigan Tech. He went to work for the U.S. Forest Service in eastern Idaho. He quit the USFS for a private sector job but ended up back at Health clinic in Enterprise ready to roll By Paul Wahl Wallowa County Chieftain All systems are go for con- struction of a $6.5-million inte- grated health services building in Enterprise. The project is a coopera- tive venture between Wallowa Valley Center for Wellness and Winding Waters, a nonprofit community health center. Supporters of the project recently received an update from a fundraising consultant who has been determining the level of community appeal for the clinic. Additional money is expected from major founda- tions and the state. Mike Wilson, senior asso- ciate with Westby Associates in Vancouver, Wash., spent months interviewing around 90 county residents regarding financial support. He believes between $364,000 and around a million can be raised from local donors. He is in the process of securing those donations this week. A total of around $3.5 mil- lion total is anticipated from all three sources, leaving roughly $3 million to complete the clinic. Wilson said the funding plan was a three-legged stool –– money from state govern- ment, private foundations and the public. Two-thirds of the remaining costs would fall on the wellness clinic and the other third on Winding Waters –– roughly $2 million and $1 million, respec- tively –– representing the per- centage of the building each would plan to utilize. “We’ll do this through local fundraising, applying to large foundations, applying for any federal grants that may or may not become available, and as a last resort by taking on a limited See CLINIC, Page A10 the forest service when a dam failure destroyed the mill where he worked. “My job washed away,” Dunn said with a laugh. He found his way to Ore- gon in 1986 when a former sawmill manager suggested he apply at Sequoia Forest Indus- tries in Joseph. Dunn was given the forester position at the mill, which eventually became R-Y. It closed in 1995. Everyone lost their jobs except Dunn. “I stayed there to manage the land, which I’m still doing,” he said. Dunn kept a steady inter- est in the county’s manage- ment, partic- ularly land managment. He joined the planning com- mission and stayed until Bruce 1999. Among Dunn his accom- plishments was the creation of the Wallowa County and Nez Perce Tribe Salmon Recov- ery Plan to preclude the endan- gered species listing of chinook salmon. The plan was later made into Article 36 of the coun- ty’s ordinances. Because much technical input was needed to implement the plan, the com- missioners formed the coun- ty’s Natural Resources Advi- sory Committee, which has two facets: A technical committee that reviews projects and makes recommendations, and a stand- ing committee that develops recommended policy on natu- ral resource issues for the board of commissioners. “I’m the chairman of both committees,” Dunn said. “I was chairman of the technical com- mittee from the beginning and chairman of both committees since 1998.” Dunn said he’s running for commissioner because he’s been asked a number of times to do so. But until a year ago, his employers didn’t like the idea. Eventually, the company relented because Dunn isn’t as busy anymore. With Castilleja soon out of the picture, Dunn said the time is right. “I think it has to be done, and I’m willing to do it.” he said. Because of his NRAC posi- tion and attendance of many of the meetings, Dunn said he’s familiar with the commissioner duties and issues. He also has some ideas of his own. As an example, Dunn said he’d like to see the county form an ad hoc committee of self- made entrepreneurs like Tyler Hays, Brian Coughlan and Deve Wolfe to brainstorm ideas to bring in as many businesses as possible that will employ 5-15 people. “We help ourselves move forward,” he said. “We don’t look for another government program or money.” Dunn added that the employees of these businesses will increase the tax base and alleviate problems such as Joseph street repair and library funding. See DUNN, Page A18 THE EYES HAVE IT Courtesy photo Kathleen Ellyn/Chieftain All that remains of Kathy Jenkins sight is scant peripheral vision in one eye. It’s difficult for her to read even a text on her phone. The eSight glass- es gave her 20/20 vision and the illusion of looking straight ahead. TOP IMAGE: Kathy sees her sister-in-law, Sharon Grote, across the room and Sharon captures the event during a recent trial run. Fundraiser underway to purchase vision device for Joseph resident By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain K athy Jenkins of Joseph has risen above tragedy continuously through- out her life. When she was five, her father was killed and her sister Eliza- beth Grote permanently handicapped in a car crash. Throughout it all, Jenkins survived and made a life in Joseph as a hairdresser operating her own business, Kathy’s Korner Beau-Tique, for the past 25 years. The latest challenge, however, has nearly proven to be a knockout punch. Jenkins is blind, suffering from both macular degeneration and a rare genetic condition called pseudoxanthoma elasticum or Grönblad–Strandberg syndrome. As a result, she can only see very poorly through a tiny area in her peripheral vision. “I can’t read anything. I have a 10x magnify- ing loop and that’s about the only way I can read a phone text right now,” she said. She first learned she had the rare disease when she went to optometrist and specialist Doc Peterson in Enterprise in 1980. “He looked in my eyes and said, ‘Oh, boy, Kathy. Do you have a problem,’” she recalled. Unfortunately there was no treatment for the disease at the time. So, Kathy just went on with life. She lost vision in her right eye in 2006. She lost vision in her left eye in 2012. “I gave up driving and gave up my business,” Kathy said. “It was one of the hardest things that I had to do because I loved going to work every day. I loved all my clientele.” Her vision deteriorated to the point where she could no longer live alone and in 2013, her sister, See EYES, Page A8 Boggan’s Oasis may be rebuilt Insurance settlement will make the determination By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain Kathleen Ellyn/Chieftain Boggan’s Oasis is at the junction of Dreamz Road and the Grande Ronde River. Just up the private road, the Vails live and manage cabins and camping spots. Up on Dreamz Road, off to the left before you cross the bridge over the Grande Rhonde River between Enterprise and Clarkston, Wash., Bill and Ferrel Vail have just returned from a trip to Lewiston. Bill has made his way slowly into the couple’s dou- blewide trailer, feeling for the support handles a friend recently installed throughout the house to help him main- tain his independence. Ferrel Vail is opening a new bag of catfood on the porch to feed the plush, out- door cat. She and Bill have just completed an exhaust- ing day of chasing down insurance details in the after- math of a fire that destroy their café, Boggan’s Oasis, Nov. 18. More appointments are set for the next day. When it’s all said and done, the Vails may rebuild. That’s fabulous news for three generations of custom- ers, many of whom have been mailing and calling the couple since the news of the fire spread. “It was such a special spot for them. Everybody thought it was just a special place,” Ferrel said. But what will it mean to Bill and Ferrel Vail, who in their early 80s and were plan- ning to retire to Palm Springs? “We don’t know, yet,” said Bill. “It depends on a lot of things. But that’s going to See BOGGAN’S, Page A18