137th Year, No. 13
Wednesday, July 7, 2021
Andy
Osborn
Joseph
He says slow
down, be
neighborly
ENTERPRISE — It’s been almost
30 years since Andy Osborn moved to
Joseph, where he worked for Joseph
Hardware for 20 years. Now, he works
part time putting together motorcycles
and side-by-sides a couple days a week.
He has kids in Weston and Mil-
ton-Freewater who have produced six
grandchildren.
He recently shared his thoughts
about living in Wallowa County.
Fireworks covered the sky at all
elevations over Wallowa Lake
Sunday night, July 4, 2021,
during the annual Shake the
Lake fi reworks show.
Ellen Morris Bishop/
For the Wallowa County Chieftain
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Independence Day celebrated at Shake the Lake and Wallowa Fourth of July parade
What’s your favorite thing about
Wallowa County?
Just that it’s a small community and
the way everybody is pretty friendly. It’s
not overcrowded, no stoplights, not very
much crime that I know of. It’s a nice,
calm place to live. When I was younger,
I lived in a smaller town and it kind of
reminds me of that.
What are your thoughts on the
beginning of fi re season?
Hopefully it won’t start. But if it does,
I hope it’ll be a small one.
How has the COVID-19
pandemic aff ected you?
Not by much. I pretty much stay by
myself. When I work, I work in an area
where the closest person to me is about
40, 50, 60 feet away. I’ve been isolated,
not because of the pandemic, because
that’s the way it is. When I go home, it’s
just me and my dog. I do a little yard-
work, go to the store, what else do I need
to do? I didn’t get vaccinated because I
think it’s b******t.
What have you learned from
living in Wallowa County?
Slow down and be neighborly.
What’s your advice for people
who are thinking about moving
here?
Slow down and be neighborly. Don’t
bring the big city with you. That’s not
why we’re here.
— Bill Bradshaw,
Wallowa County Chieftain
JOSEPH
Ellen Morris Bishop/For the Wallowa County Chieftain
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
A bystander helps a fl ock of children get their sparklers lit at the
Wallowa County park on Wallowa Lake Sunday, July 4, 2021.
Mr. Liberty Jaxyn Wyatt, left, son of Janae and Dale Wyatt, and Miss
Fourth of July Mila Alexis, daughter of Chesa Alexis, prepare for
Sunday’s 2021 Wallowa Fourth of July Parade. The kids and their
parents all live in Wallowa.
Council
censures
Bingham
Removed as mayor
pro-tem, from
committees, banned
from employee
interaction
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
Ellen Morris Bishop/For the Wallowa County Chieftain
Joshua, who was “almost 5 years old” and was with his family visiting
from Pendleton, experiments with his sparkler at the Wallowa County
park Sunday, July 4, 2021.
Wallowa’s neighbors in Lostine got in on the action Sunday, July 4,
2021, with an entry in the Wallowa Independence Day Parade.
More photos from the weekend’s events on A16
Repairs, expansion planned at Josephy Center
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
JOSEPH — Now that its building
has been purchased, plans are under-
way to improve and expand the Jose-
phy Center for Arts and Culture in
Joseph.
On Wednesday, June 23, Execu-
tive Director Cheryl Coughlan and
Board of Directors President Jeff
Costello signed the paperwork to
purchase the building at 403 N. Main
St. in Joseph, realizing the center’s
long-awaited goal for the sustainabil-
ity of the organization.
“The dream of becoming a per-
manent home for arts and culture in
Wallowa County is now a reality,”
Coughlan said in a press release.
“But like every homeowner knows,
the work is really just beginning.
There’s a long list of repairs and ren-
ovations needed to make the building
safe and accessible for every person
who walks through the doors.”
To get those repairs and renova-
tions started, the Roseburg-based
Ford Family Foundation, a private
foundation that funds programs for
children, families and communities
in rural Oregon, granted the Josephy
Center $230,000. The grant will cover
the cost of an elevator that allows
access to the second fl oor, wheel-
chair ramps, Americans with Disabil-
ities Act-compliant bathrooms, emer-
gency exit doors, an indoor sprinkler
system, fl oor repair and more.
“We are so lucky to have the sup-
port of the Ford Family Founda-
tion,” Development Director Kel-
lee Sheehy said in the release. “They
have supported us from the beginning
and have helped us grow many of our
youth programs. Now they are also
one of the biggest funders of our cap-
ital campaign. We are so grateful.”
Renovation phases
The capital campaign is phased:
Phase One focuses on the build-
ing purchase, critical safety repairs
and accessibility for all. Phase Two
focuses on the renovation and expan-
sion of the building, which will
increase functionality, accessibility
and programming.
In an interview Wednesday, June
30, Coughlan provided more details.
In addition to the purchase of the
building, she said there are repairs
to the log building’s façade that are
needed, including rusted facia and
See Expansion, Page A15
JOSEPH — Joseph City
Councilor Kathy Bingham was
removed from her offi ce as
mayor pro-tem, removed from
her committee assignments and
banned from interaction with
city employees after being cen-
sured by the council after it
addressed complaints against her
Wednesday, June 30.
Five letters of complaint were
submitted to City Hall in recent
months, largely alleging Bing-
ham acted inappropriately in her
role as a councilor.
The council went over the let-
ters individually during a mara-
thon, three-hour executive ses-
sion and gave Bingham the
opportunity to respond to each.
The details of executive sessions
are not privy to public scru-
tiny as long as they are handled
according to Oregon law.
Bingham declined to com-
ment on the council’s action
both in open session and when
contacted by the Chieftain on
Thursday.
Bethscheider complaint
One of the complaints the
council considered was the Feb.
21 claim by local businessman
Gary Bethscheider that Bingham
See Council, Page A15