LOCAL Wallowa.com Wednesday, April 27, 2022 A7 Local stockgrowers to host Lane County group County votes to help fund agritourism eff ort By BILL BRADSHAW Wallowa County Chieftain ENTERPRISE — The Wallowa County Stock- growers Association plans to host an “exchange” with their counterparts from Lane County next month and the county commissioners voted Wednesday, April 20, to help fund it. “Twenty years ago, the Lane County cattlemen came up here and had a tour with the Wallowa County Stock- growers Association and they had a good time,” said Com- missioner Todd Nash, who is a rancher. He said he met with a representative of the Lane County group to discuss the possibility. “At fi rst blush, he said that proba- bly 80 peo- ple would come,” Nash said. “Now he thinks it’s somewhere between Nash 20 and 40. Maybe fuel prices had something to do with that; I’m not sure, but at any rate, they want to come up here again. He’s been coordinating with the stock- growers leadership there. … Anyway, they are interested in coming up.” The commissioners agreed to grant $1,620 to help pay for bus transportation to take the group — both Lane Wallow County Chieftain, File An aging loading chute reminds visitors of the long connection of people and cattle with the Zumwalt Prairie’s working landscape. An exchange the Wallowa County Stockgrowers Association will host next month for their Lane County counterparts will focus strongly on the Zumwalt. County stockmen and locals who wish to attend — to var- ious sites around the county. “We’ve encouraged peo- ple from this area to come along,” Nash said. He said the plan is for the Lane County group to arrive May 20. The next day, there will be a breakfast at the Clo- verleaf Hall in Enterprise, sack lunches for the bus tour and a steak dinner that eve- ning at the Cloverleaf. The tour will visit the Zumwalt Prairie where the discussion will focus on rangeland grazing there. Then, they’ll head for Buck- horn Lookout where they can view the Imnaha Canyon lands and hear about ranching there. The tour will conclude with a stop at the Dorrance barn on Crow Creek where they’ll hear from a member of the Dorrance family who will talk about his family and some of their history in the area. “It should be a really won- derful day,” Nash said. “We’ll have a sack lunch to go on the bus and a steak dinner at the Cloverleaf that night and all for the low-budget price of $70.” Commission Chairwoman Susan Roberts recommended the funds come out of the county’s Economic Devel- opment Fund since the tour promotes economic devel- opment in the county, as the Lane County group will take advantage of restaurants and motels here. Nash said providing the funds for the bus transporta- tion falls right in with encour- aging local agritourism. “Agritourism is talked about a lot, but it’s rarely sup- ported, so this is a way to sup- port that, and maybe we can do more in the future,” he said. Anyone interested in par- ticipating in the tour is urged to RSVP by May 15 to OSU Extension/Wallowa County Stockgrowers at 668 NW 1st St., Enterprise, OR 97828, by phone at 541-426-3143 or by email at Peter.Schreder@ore- gonstate.edu. JCS drama troupe returns to the stage First post-COVID play written by school senior By BILL BRADSHAW Wallowa County Chieftain JOSEPH — The Joseph Charter School Drama Club made a return to the stage, Thursday, April 21, with a performance of “Matthews Manor,” written and co-di- rected by JCS senior Piper Larison. Danielle Weaver, the JCS teacher who heads the club and the drama program, said the event marks a revival of the program after years with- out one. “Although the drama pro- gram at Joseph Charter was kickstarted by Weaver and seniors Jacob Gross and Chase Murray in (the fall of) 2020, this play was the fi rst performance for a live audi- ence due to COVID-19 pan- demic restrictions,” Weaver said in a press release. Weaver said about 60-70 people turned out for the per- Danielle Weaver/Contributed Photo The cast of “Matthews Manor” performs Thursday, April 21, 2022, at Joseph Charter School. The performance was the school’s fi rst return to the stage since the COVID-19 pandemic. formance about a wealthy, dysfunctional family who attend a dinner party put on by a self-centered daughter- in-law who plans to mur- der her father and mother-in- law for an inheritance. This doesn’t go as planned and the plot fails, but someone else murders the targeted couple. Weaver said the perfor- mance brought out several factors. “This performance was a great way to not only intro- duce the new program, but to showcase the talent of young Wallowa County actors and actresses as well as the clever writing and skilled directing of Larison,” Weaver said. “This has been such a great opportunity and the community has helped sup- port us from the begin- ning,” Larison said April 22, regarding the previous night’s turnout. “I am just in awe of how hard each of these students have worked to put on a great show,” Weaver said. She said the troupe plans its next performance for this fall, although no ideas for a script have yet been drafted. “We want to maintain the course where students and instructors write plays to help keep them original and creative,” Weaver said. She expressed her pride in and appreciation to all involved and particularly the students being recognized for their work in front of a group. “I am constantly in tears from laughter; these folks are amazing to work with,” she said. “They have been so patient and resil- ient throughout the years of obstacles, and it’s all paying off for us now.” THANK YOU FROM THE WALLOWA COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY TO THE BUSINESSES WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE EASTER AND MOTHER’S DAY BASKET RAFFLE BARGAINS OF THE Michael’s, Wild Carrot, Arrowhead Chocolate, Antons, The Sheep Shed, Copper Creek Mercantile, The Book Loft, Safeway and Central Copy MONTH ® While supplies last. YOUR CHOICE 8.99 Wallowa County Humane Society 119 E Main St. Enterprise, Oregon 97828 Duracell® 8 pk. AA or AAA Alkaline Batteries www.wallowacountyhumanesociety.org E 137 898 899 4 pk. C, D or 2 pk. 9V Alkaline Batteries, 9.99 The Oregon Hunters Association Union/Wallowa Chapter would like to thank the following participants and donors for their contributions in support of our 2022 Online Fundraising Events E 192 096; 193 042; 196 615 M-F 8AM-5:30PM • SAT 8AM-5PM • SUN 9AM-3PM Hurricane Creek Road Enterprise, Oregon 541-426-3116 Sale Good Thru April 30th 2022 Online Banquet Donors List nty Your Wallow p a ap C e o r u S ! 4 8 8 1 e c in s New SUBSCRIBE TODAY 209 NW First St., Enterprise Oregon • 541-426-4567 Anthony Lakes Ski Area Aquarium of Boise Arrowhead Chocolates Avista Corp. Baker City Frontier Express Beamers Hells Canyon Tours Buffalo Peak Golf Course Chad Carlson Cheyenne Cafe Coastal Farm & Ranch D + B Supply Eagle Cap Chalets Gerry Funk Goodwood Barbeque Great Wolf Lodge Hells Canyon Adventures Hines Meat Co. 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