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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 2020)
LOCAL Wallowa.com Wednesday, November 18, 2020 A3 Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation/Screenshot Wallowa Memorial Hospital CEO Larry Davy speaks during the fi rst virtual Healthy Futures Dinner Auction, which was broadcast online Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020. Healthy Futures Dinner Auction goes virtual By RONALD BOND Wallowa County Chieftain Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain ENTERPRISE — For the fi rst time in its existence, the 25th annual Healthy Futures Dinner Auction took to an online format when it was held virtually on Saturday, Nov. 14, during the COVID- 19 pandemic. There wasn’t an auction as in years past, but instead a raffl e. There also was a message of optimism for the future, one that showed the Wallowa Memorial Hospital in a good fi nancial position and that was full of gratitude to those who had donated more than $1.35 million to the Wallowa Valley Health Care Foundation during the previous 2½ decades the event had been held. “It’s amazing as you look back 25 years, the impact this event has had over the years,” Larry Davy, Wallowa Memorial Hospital CEO, said during his pretaped State of the Hospital address, which was part of the Satur- day night event. Many who spoke praised the efforts of those who raised money through the years and talked about what the funds had helped to bring to the hospital, includ- ing new equipment such as a medication dispenser, imag- ing equipment, a bone-den- sity unit and an ultrasound machine, among others. “The goal of the foun- M Thrive Organics, the only marijuana dispensary in Wallowa County, is expected to be the sole business aff ected by the city of Joseph’s new 3% tax on marijuana sale. Use of marijuana tax proceeds up in the air Joseph has wide latitude on how to use it By BILL BRADSHAW Wallowa County Chieftain JOSEPH — The recent voter approval of a 3% tax on marijuana in the city of Joseph leaves some questions to be answered, including just what the pro- ceeds will go toward. City Administrator Larry Braden said the mea- sure allows several ways it can be spent: on infra- structure, parks, education of the public and city staff, education at the schools if school offi cials desire it and “enhancing the livabil- ity of the community.” This latter item is quite open for interpretation, Braden said Thursday, Nov. 12. “It’s pretty general on IN BRIEF Josephy Center plans book group meeting Dec. 1 JOSEPH — The fi rst November book for the book group at the Josephy Cen- ter for Arts and Culture is “Indian Horse” by Richard Wagamese, to be previewed at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 1. The book is about Saul Indian Horse, a child when his family retreats into the woods. Among the lakes and cedars, they attempt to reconnect with half-for- gotten traditions and hide from the authorities who have been kidnapping Ojib- way youths. But when win- ter approaches, Saul loses everything: His brother, his parents, his beloved grand- mother — and then his home itself. Book group members receive 15% off “Indian Horse,” available for pur- the purpose, so the city has the freedom to spend money how it sees fi t,” he said. “That could mean sky’s the limit under that language.” Although the ballot measure 32-004 said the 3% tax will be imposed on “marijuana items,” that only includes consumable items with marijuana such as straight marijuana or marijuana extracts, edibles and tinctures, said Mark Pettinger, a spokesman for the Oregon Liquor Control Commission in Pendleton, which regulates marijuana in the state. “It applies to anything in which the marijuana fl ower has been turned into a val- ue-added item,” he said. The only marijuana dis- pensary in the county is M Thrive Organics in Joseph. Owner Getty Pollard did not respond to several email requests for com- ments and employees at the chase at the Josephy Center now. Call 541-432-0505 or visit online at https://jose- phy.org/book-group/. Lostine council meets after skipping October LOSTINE — The Lostine City Council met for the fi rst time in two months, Thurs- day, Nov. 5, having skipped the October meeting due to illness, city Recorder Toni Clary said. At the November meet- ing, Clary reported Tuesday, Nov. 10, the council agreed to continue to seek a new location for the local post offi ce. The owner of the cur- rent building has declined to renew the lease, which expires in August since the owner wants to reclaim use of the property. Also at the meeting, two residential complaints — fi led by the Zimmerman and Lathrop families — were read dispensary said they are not allowed to comment to the media. The “marijuana items” language brings to mind drug-related parapherna- lia, such as pipes and bongs sold at the Peace Pipe, also in Joseph. Owner Sean Fla- nagan agreed that his prod- ucts are not covered under OLCC regulation. “They never have been in the state of Oregon,” he said Thursday. The tax levy passed on the Nov. 3 ballot with about 73% approval. The City Council had previ- ously approved an ordi- nance authorizing the tax and designating the pre- viously mentioned uses. State law requires such an ordinance. “The City Council was adamant about keeping the funds from the tax to ben- efi t the citizens of Joseph,” Joseph Mayor Teresa Sajo- nia said in October. and dismissed as unfounded. Clary did not elaborate on the nature of the complaints. The next regular coun- cil meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 2. Rotary names Kinzie as Peace Fellow ENTERPRISE — Seth Kinzie, of Joseph, has just been named as a Rotary Peace Fellow and will study at one of seven Rotary Peace dation is to provide qual- ity health care for Wallowa County,” said Terry Jones, foundation board member. Many of the purchases have enabled patients to receive care in Wallowa County that they otherwise may not have been able to. “Your support has made the difference. Over 25 years, giving generously, each and every year had meant the dif- ference between adequate equipment and no equipment at all in some cases, to state of the art equipment that comes with anything you could fi nd in a much larger hospital in an urban or suburban area,” said Stacy Green, Wallowa Valley Health Care Founda- tion director. Davy spoke of a hospital in increasingly solid fi nancial shape, noting that in 2014, the hospital had $19.5 mil- lion in mortgage debt. “As of today the hospital is now under $4 million on its mortgage...with plans to have that paid off in the next 2-3 years,” Davy said. Davy also said the hos- pital had received several high accolades from national companies. “In 2020, the iVantage company did announce that Wallowa Memorial Hospi- tal for the third time in four years is named as a top 20 critical access hospital in the county with a percentile ranking of 99.7, which put us approximately No. 4 in the Centers around the world, according to a press release. Each year, Rotary Inter- national names about 130 Peace Fellows and fi nances their fellowships. Kinzie is a pianist, com- poser, web designer and longtime advocate for peace. His candidacy was spon- sored by the Rotary Club of Wallowa County. Local Rotarian Judy Allen was the head of a two-year-long campaign to have Kinzie named a Peace Fellow. — Chieftain staff nation,” he said. The hospital also received a fi ve-star ranking in patient satisfaction from the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Ser- vices, and in employee satis- faction, it was ranked No. 8 as a health care employer and No. 1 for millennial employee satisfaction by Modern Healthcare. The hospital also received a new accreditation from the fed- eral government. Davy said that in spite of the challenges provided in 2020 and the uncertainty of what lies ahead, he believes the future of the hospital will remain solid. “Our fi nest hour is still in front of us, and I think a reminder, we have stood on the shoulders of giants to get to where we are in health care in this community, but also the remainder of the respon- sibility we have to hand the hospital off to the next gen- eration even better than we found it,” he said. The COVID-19 pan- demic and fallout wasn’t far from minds on Saturday, and a moment was taken as a remembrance for those who had been impacted by the coronavirus. And rather than an auc- tion, the event posted ways to donate to the foundation, either by mailing a check to WVHCF, P.O. Box 53, Enter- prise, OR 97828, or online at https://wchcd.ejoinme.org/ hfda2020. This week’s featured book. Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman 107 E. Main St. Enterprise OR 541-426-3351 bookloftoregon.com • manager@bookloft.org WALLOWA COUNTY Main Clinic 603 Medical Parkway, Enterprise,OR 541-426-4502 519 W. North Street, Enterprise VISIT US ON THE WEB AT: 541.426.3413 www.Wallowa.com Mon-Thurs 9 to Noon/1-5pm; Fri. 9-1 507 S River Street, Enterprise Walk-In Urgent Care & Long-Term Healing Relationships • www.windingwaters.org ADVERTISE TODAY in Wallowa County’s only newspaper! Call Jennifer Cooney today at 541-805-9630 to place your ad Joseph Clinic 401 N Main St, Joseph