AUGU ST
WWW.GOEA
11–18 , 2021
STER
oots
Grassr iv
l
Fest a
COM
NORE GON.
AU G. 14
WALLOWA COUNTY FAIR LOOP RAWLINS PUTS ON A SHOW
GETS UNDERWAY FOR CJD CROWD
, UN IO N
LOCAL, A16
Cruise
d Shine
Show an
$1.50
LOCAL, A7
PAG E 3
History
Dr. asar
Balth
PAG E 7
Music
ock
Wheatst
PAG E 14
us.
delicio or
vably
other
unbelie
each
rced and y-cats of
Oregon
ally sou
not cop iew, Bend.
h, loc
clearly
Rev
d is fres
t and
- Yelp
“The foo s are distinc NW IPAs.”
97850
g
IPA
makin
Their
nde, OR
else
Gra
La
anyone
Ave •
THE
O
T
K
C
BA
ROOTS
)
S
S
A
R
(G
SIDE
s of Union
Aug. 14.
street
ver, fi le
s to the
The Obser Festival return
Grassroots
ton
ashing
eer.com
.sideab
IN GO!, IN
137th Year, No. 18
WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Unprecedented spike in coronavirus
COVID-19 cases increasing in Wallowa County at fastest rate of pandemic
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
Joey
Haskins
Joseph
ENTERPRISE
—
COVID-19 cases are
increasing in Wallowa
County at a rate that hasn’t
yet been seen during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The Oregon Health
Authority has reported
seven new cases over the
weekend, and as of Mon-
day, Aug. 9, and the total
number of cases is at 264.
The number, and case
rate, is among the lowest
in the state, with Wallowa
County checking in with
the fourth lowest rate at
just under 3.7%.
But the number of cases
is increasing. Since the
start of July, the county has
seen the highest (10 cases
on July 30) and third-high-
est (eight on Aug. 5) one-
day counts during the pan-
demic. In the past 11 days,
there have been 36 new
cases.
The confi rmed case
count in Wallowa County
is climbing at a rate faster
than it has at any other time
during the pandemic. It
wasn’t until Oct. 30, that 50
cases total were reported in
the county. Since then, it
has been between about 2
to 3.5 months for an addi-
tional 50 new cases to be
added. The 100th case was
reported Jan. 26, and the
150th was reported April 2.
The 200th case came in
on July 19, but the most
recent 50 came in 2.5
weeks, with the 250th case
reported Aug. 5.
COVID-19 hospitaliza-
tions are also increasing
throughout the state, and in
Eastern Oregon. Accord-
ing to OHA data, Saturday,
Aug. 7, and Sunday, Aug
8, saw the highest one-
day total of COVID-19
See Spike, Page A10
Joseph
native says
he wouldn’t
live
anywhere
else
JOSEPH — Joey Haskins has lived all
of his 36 years in Joseph and wouldn’t
want to live anywhere else.
“I was born and raised here,” he said.
Engaged and the father of an 8-year-
old son, Kane, he works construction.
He likes it here because of the lack
of traffi c, the mountains and the fi shing
and hunting that are available.
He recently shared his thoughts
about living in Wallowa County.
What’s your favorite thing about
Wallowa County?
I like being up at the lake and troll-
ing around trying to get some kokanee.
Ronald Bond/Wallowa County Chieftain
Are you concerned about
another coronavirus spike?
Youths skate in the halfpipe at the newly upgraded Enterprise Skate Park on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021. A grand opening event was attended by
at least 200 people.
No. (He hasn’t been vaccinated and
doesn’t plan to.)
What did you think of this year’s
Chief Joseph Days?
Skateboarders set to ride
It was pretty cool. My son loved it. We
went down for family night and went to
both parades. He just had a blast. It was a
little hard for me because of all the traffi c
on the road. It was a madhouse.
What did you think of all the
Ronald Bond/Wallowa County Chieftain
Building Healthy Families,
and students in the alternative
education program who fund-
raised and promoted the proj-
ect since late 2020.
“This project, without the
community support, with-
out everybody’s involvement,
would not have happened,”
Pickens said during a pre-
sentation to the crowd of at
least 200 people. “We thank
the community for coming
together.”
Pickens shared the details
that fell in place in the past
nine months that resulted in
the skate park getting all new
metal ramps — including a
halfpipe — to replace wooden
ones that had been there for
about two decades.
“This is all student driven.
Theadore Noble skates in the halfpipe as others look on, waiting
for their turn.
See Skate, Page A10
Updated Enterprise
Skate Park reopens
to a happy crowd
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
traffi c?
We actually went out toward Crazy-
man (Creek) and went huckleberry pick-
ing to get away from it.
Are you going to the fair?
I’m not sure yet; it depends on if I
have to work or not. I haven’t been to a
fair in a long time, to be honest.
What’s your advice for people
who are thinking about moving
here?
You’re going to want to fi sh and
hike, because otherwise, there’s not a
whole lot to do. Watch out for the traf-
E
NTERPRISE
—
The
upgraded
Enterprise
Skate
Park is offi cially
open for use.
The park was full of young
and young-at-heart skate-
boarders, bike riders, scooter
riders and rollerbladers break-
ing in the recently fi nished
park during a grand opening
Saturday, Aug. 7.
The project was the culmi-
nation of close to nine months
of work spearheaded by Ron
Pickens, drug and alcohol
prevention coordinator at
fi c in the summertime. During the win-
ters, it’s nice and peaceful. That’s when I
like it the most.
Reluctant compliance with school mask orders
Wallowa County
schools will
go along with
state mandate
A mask hangs on the
fence outside Enterprise
Schools on Tuesday,
Aug. 10, 2021. Masks
will again be required in
the classroom in Oregon
this fall, and although
school administrators
are seeking local
control, they will
comply with the rules
from the Oregon Health
Authority.
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
ENTERPRISE — Wal-
lowa County schools are
continuing to advocate for
local control when it comes
to masking requirements.
But starting this fall,
they all will be in compli-
ance with the newest man-
date to wear the face cov-
erings that have become
the norm for almost 18
months.
On July 29, Gov. Kate
Brown mandated that all
K-12 students wear masks
indoors at the start of the
Ronald Bond/Wallowa County Chieftain
school year.
Joseph School Dis-
trict Superintendent Lance
Homan, Wallowa Superin-
tendent Tammy Jones and
the board of the Enterprise
School District — along
with Superintendent Erika
Pinkerton — all have writ-
ten or said to residents
in their districts that they
want decisions on masking
to stay local.
“(W)e, the board and
administration, do not sup-
port this move and will
strive to keep our local
control,” Homan wrote.
“I believe we can provide
the safest learning envi-
ronment using our data
to assess the danger of
COVID in our district.”
The Enterprise board,
meanwhile, voted in July
to have no masks and no
social distancing in the
2021-22 school year.
And Jones off ered the
same take in a letter posted
to the district’s Facebook
page.
“Our
preparations
for the school year was
predicated on us having
local control of decisions
impacting
COVID-19
spread in our school dis-
trict,” she wrote. “I believe
we can provide the saf-
est learning environment
using our data to assess
the danger of COVID-19
in our district. My position
and the board’s position is
to stand for local control
of decisions impacting the
health of our students.”
See Masks, Page A10