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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (May 23, 2018)
Wallowa County Chieftain News wallowa.com May 23, 2018 A13 EHS ranks 12th in state By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain Enterprise High School is the 12th best high school in the state. The U.S. News and World Report “Best Schools of 2018” list has released its rankings after studying the reports of more than 20,000 schools nationwide. Enterprise once again won a silver medal. The 12th place in top Oregon Schools was in comparison to schools of all sizes in the state mostly larger. The number one school in the state, one of five winning a gold medal, and ranking 24th in the nation, was The Woodburn Acad- emy of Art, Science and Technology in Woodburn with a college readiness score of 100 percent. The top silver medal school, ranking 6th place in the state, was Laker- idge High School in Lake Oswego with a graduation rate of 93 percent and a col- lege readiness score of 52.6 percent. Enterprise High also had a graduation rate of 93 per- cent, but the college read- iness score was 36.1 per- cent. The district won state and national recognition in part because students have the opportunity to take Advanced Placement course work and exams and 56 percent of Enterprise students participated with 53 percent passing. Last year, Enterprise ranked 11th on the list of top schools in the state, but the numbers this year reflect more intense com- petition nationwide. Enter- prise stood at 1,555th place nationwide this year, an improvement from the 2017 placing of 1,617th. More than 70 percent of schools tracked nationwide do not make the medal list. Enterprise Supt. of Schools Erica Pinkerton praised the continued work of teachers for the ranking. “Our hard work contin- ues to lead our students to be the best they can be in all areas of their academics. Our graduation rate contin- ues to stay in the 90th per- centile and our students are transitioning into society as positive and productive cit- izens,” she said. Joseph Charter School won a bronze medal in the ranking with a graduation rate of 86 percent. Steve Tool/Chieftain An excavator tears pieces off the roof of the Wallowa Lake Pack Station office to allow fire- fighters to douse the flames of a flue fire on May 17. Firefighters got a quick handle on the blaze, and no injuries were reported. Fire damages pack station building By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain Dog walk raises funds, awareness for heart worms Future animal sanctuary to be highlighted By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain A dog named “Buddy” was the first canine in Wallowa County diagnosed with heart worms, a disease spread pri- marily by mosquitoes. Once prevalent in the south, it has spread to all 50 states, includ- ing Oregon. The Wallowa County Humane Society is sponsoring a dog walk fundraiser to bring attention to heart worms Sat- urday, June 2. The fundraiser will also call attention to plans for the society’s future animal sanctuary. The walk is called “For the Love of Buddy Walk.” Buddy had been a humane society dog adopted out to a loving family. During a checkup, a severe case of heart worms were discovered. The family was worried they would have to put the dog down because the price for treatment was more than $2,000. Carol Vencill, president of the Humane Society, said the community rallied to support Buddy. With the help of Dou- ble Arrow Vet Clinic owner Randy Greenshields and the pharmaceutical company that manufactures the treatment, Buddy was treated and is recovering. He will be moni- tored for the remainder of his life. As Buddy has not com- pletely recovered from the dis- ease, he will ride in an Enter- prise Fire Department truck along the walk route. “We wanted to have a spe- cific fundraiser for the sanc- tuary,” Vencill said. “Because of Buddy’s story, we thought we’d include it as a second interest because it’s something that needs to get out there.” Registration for the walk is $10 while children under 12 can participate free. The walk is a bit more than a mile long and starts at Enterprise City Park. Walk hours are from 9 a.m. until noon. Registrants will receive a free doggie bag, which includes a raffle ticket and gift certificate and items donated by local merchants. Double Arrow veterinary clinic will participate by answering ques- tions pertaining to heart worm. THANK YOU... To the more than 1000 voters who marked their ballots YES for Wallowa County Libraries. An enormous group of people worked for the entire last year in hopes of making Wallowa County an even better place to raise our families, work, retire and to pass on to our children. A flue fire in the office building of the Wallowa Lake Pack Station caused serious damage to its roof and sent local firefighters scrambling to the location May 17. Units from Joseph and Enterprise fire departments, Wallowa County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon State Police and U.S. Forest Service responded to the blaze. Joseph Fire Chief Jeff Wecks said firefighters responded within minutes. The fire presented some diffi- culties as it was in the rafters between a vaulted ceiling and the roof. “It made it a real joy to try and fight,” Wecks said. The wood ceiling of the structure initially made it difficult to access the fire. However, owner Brian Sanders had a small excava- tor onsite and was asked to put it to use. Sanders readily agreed and as rain poured and immense amounts of smoke billowed from the structure, the operator quickly tore off great chunks of roof metal, which allowed firefighters to access the blaze with water. Wecks estimated that the fire was well under control within a half-hour. “Once we started getting the roof pulled off, we started spraying some water in there, and it was under control pretty fast,” he said. The chief noted that while there was roof damage as well as water and smoke damage inside, firefighters managed to save the majority of the structure. No personnel were injured. Sanders said that it isn’t yet clear if the building can be rebuilt. Despite the fire, it’s still business as usual at the pack station. “We’re still open seven days a week,” he said. “Obvi- ously, we have to work around the fire, but it won’t keep us from giving rides.” The incident was the 29th emergency call that Joseph crews have responded to this year, well ahead of last year’s record of 54 for the entire year. Wecks encour- aged home dwellers to rou- tinely have their chimneys inspected and maintained. Public Service Announcement Veteran’s Home Improvement Grant Program Community Connection is assisting veterans who are in need of home repairs such as adding ramps and widening doorways, emergency repairs to roofs and gutters, and repairing substandard electrical, plumbing, siding, insulation, heating systems, water heater, and mold or rot issues. Income limitations apply. If you are a veteran who owns or is buying your home and you are interested in the Veteran’s Home Improvement Grant Program please call Community Connection at 541-963-3186 A Library District, or a comparable solution in support of lifelong literacy, is something we’ll just have to keep working toward. To the Volunteers, Librarians, Candidates and all other Advocates of the Ballot Measure: Thank You! Librarians & Staff Susie Polumsky Debbie Lind Denine Rautenstrauch Eric Shoudel Kieth Kirts Jill Dougherty Library District Board Candidates Olivia Losby Nora Hawkins Mike Crawford Tammy Crawford Jim Fanning Karen Patton Library Foundation Development of Feasibility Study Establishing Boundaries Public Meetings City Council Meetings Political Action Committee (PAC) Website & Materials FAQ Development Volunteer Recruitment Data Entry Public Speaking & Presentations Event Planning Business Canvassing Neighborhood Canvassing Phone Banking Facebook Fundraising All 66 “Why I Love my Library” Essay Contestants Consultants 209 NW First St., Enterprise • 541-426-4567 wallowa.com Memorial Day, May 28 EARLY SPACE RESERVATION DEADLINE for advertising is 5pm Thursday the 24th. Ad copy is due on Friday the 25th at 10a.m. Ads must be approved by Tuesday the 29th at 12pm. Authors of Opinion Editorials, Letters to Editor Campaign Donors Organizational Endorsements Contact Jennifer today for all your advertising needs! jpowell@wallowa.com 541-805-9630