SATURDAY, MARCH 20, 2021
BAKER CITY HERALD — 3A
OTHERS ALLEGED COACH ENCOURAGED ATHLETES TO COMPETE IN IDAHO TOURNAMENTS
Wallowa basketball coach resigns
after complaints from football team
By Ellen Morris Bishop
For the Wallowa County Chieftain
WALLOWA — Wallowa
High School Principal David
Howe resigned his position
as the school’s girls basket-
ball coach Monday night,
March 15, in the face of an
offi cial complaint fi led by the
school’s football team with the
Wallowa superintendent of
schools March 2.
The outcome of the com-
plaint is pending and still in
review.
Head football coach Matt
Brockamp, Wallowa Super-
intendent of Schools Tammy
Jones and Wallowa School
Board Chairman Woody
Wolfe all declined to comment
or provide the Chieftain with
the text of the March 2 com-
plaint or a second complaint
fi led with the school board on
March 8.
“My duties as principal
and my duties as the girls
basketball coach seem to
be in confl ict with each
other and therefore I will be
resigning my position as girls
basketball coach, effective
immediately,” Howe said in
a prepared statement to the
Wallowa School Board on
Monday.
Howe’s resignation was
precipitated by the complaint
as well as allegations of
encouraging and supporting
Wallowa High School athletes
to participate in high school
tournaments in Idaho earlier
this year.
Under Oregon School
Activities Association (OSAA)
rules, participation in out-of-
state sports events requires
student athletes to self-quar-
antine for two weeks after the
out-of-state games. Brockamp
had protested Howe’s action,
out of concern that students
who participated in the Idaho
basketball games would
Ellen Morris Bishop/For the Wallowa County Chieftain
David Howe, Wallowa High School’s principal and girls
basketball coach, reads his letter of resignation to the
Wallowa School Board on Monday, March 15.
not be able to play the fi rst
and possibly other games in
Wallowa’s short, fi ve-game
football season.
“As a head coach, I made
my concerns known to WHS
about unsanctioned, out-of-
state basketball tournaments
jeopardizing our opportunity
to play an OSAA-sanctioned
football season,” Brockamp
stated at an emotion-charged
school board meeting March
8. At that meeting he called
for “a fundamental change in
Wallowa High School.”
The concerns about Idaho
basketball games are coupled
with controversy over Wal-
lowa High School’s failure to
schedule a replacement game
for the canceled Elgin contest,
which had been scheduled for
March 6.
“I was instructed to tell
my football team, which
has worked hard preparing
for a month outside in the
snow, that WHS would not
schedule them another home
game with another team,”
Brockamp said at the March
8 meeting.
Howe’s resignation in-
cluded an apology.
“I am deeply sorry for
any hurt I have caused
my students, coaches and
community members, staff
members or board members,”
Howe said in his prepared
remarks. “That was not my
intent. It was never my intent
to undermine other sports
programs or coaches. If that
occurred, I apologize for that.”
Six parents and Wallowa
School District staff at the
meeting spoke during the
public comment period. Most
expressed support for the
school, and for Jones, who
came under fi re at the March
8 meeting, as a competent
and caring administrator.
Wallowa fi rst-grade teacher
Kelsey Layton praised Jones
for “inspiring, encouraging
and working alongside of us
to build relationships with
(teachers) and families during
this unprecedented year.”
“Students are the No. 1
concern,” said Melissa Lowe,
who teaches Title 1 classes.
“We need to remember in our
community that education
safety and well-being of our
students, your children, and
education should be fi rst and
foremost, not sports.”
But parent Joe Miles
criticized the school board
for a lack of community and
educational leadership.
“I support you guys, but
at the same time I do have
a higher expectation of any-
body in a leadership posi-
tion,” he said. “There’s a lot
of frustrated people in this
community.”
Those thoughts echoed
some of the comments made
to the school board at the
March 8 meeting. They
included concerns about lack
of respect for students, stu-
dent athletes and Wallowa’s
rural culture.
At the well-attended
March 8 meeting, the entire
WHS senior class presented
a letter regarding parts of
the school’s mask policy.
Specifi cally, the seniors were
speaking against them being
the ones called on to enforce
the school’s mask mandates
rather than administrators.
They also spoke on concerns
that this year’s senior trip
might be canceled due to the
seniors’ lack of enforcement
of mask-wearing by all stu-
dents in the high school.
But the trip still is on,
Jones said.
It is tentatively planned as
a three-day jaunt either to
the Oregon Coast or Triple
Play Family Fun Park in
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
The fi nal decision on desti-
nation and COVID protocols
will be made as the date gets
nearer, she said.
“I think COVID defi nitely
has placed a lot of stress on
families and the community,”
Jones said. “The more we
can have kids have more
normality, the better off the
kids are.”
L OCAL B RIEFING
Annual cleanup at Mount Hope
Cemetery scheduled for April 12-26
Baker City’s maintenance contractor, Grass Mas-
ters, will be doing the spring cleanup at Mount Hope
Cemetery, including removing deteriorated decora-
tions and fl owers, from April 12-26.
The city is asking people to remove those items
before April 12. They can be replaced starting April
27. Items that are left and that the contractor has to
move will be stored, except perishable items, until Nov.
1, 2021.
A copy of the cemetery rules is available at www.
bakercity.com, and more information is available by
calling 541-524-2047.
Free online training for landlords,
housing providers scheduled April 6
The Fair Housing Council of Oregon (FHCO) and
the Northeast Oregon Economic Development District
are co-hosting a free online training for landlords and
housing providers.
The training will cover current fair housing laws,
COVID-19 and best practices in rental housing and
the Oregon eviction moratorium.
The training will be April 6 from 10 a.m. to noon via
Zoom. Registration is required. For more information
or to receive information about registration, contact
Lisa Dawson at lisadawson@neoedd.org or Glenda
Moyer at gmoyer@fhco.org.
State Sen. Lynn Findley, Rep. Mark
Owens plan virtual town hall March 24
Baker County’s two state legislators, Sen. Lynn
Findley, R-Vale, and Rep. Mark Owens, R-Crane, will
participate in a virtual town hall with another repre-
sentative, Daniel Bonham, R-The Dalles, on Wednes-
day, March 24 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
More information, including ways to participate in
the online town hall, is available at Findley’s Facebook
page, www.facebook.com/senlynnfi ndley.
Free six-week ‘Business Foundations’
workshop series starting March 31
The Northeast Oregon Economic Development
District (NEOEDD) is offering a free six-week work-
shop series designed to help entrepreneurs and small
business owners. The “Business Foundations” series
will take place on Wednesday evenings starting March
31 and continuing through May 5, from 6 p.m. to 8:30
p.m. each evening. Classes are done by videoconfer-
ence, and preference for registration is given to people
with low to moderate incomes.
Lisa Dawson, executive director of NEOEDD, has
been teaching the Business Foundations workshops
for more than a decade. Topics covered include busi-
ness concepts, analyzing fi nancial essentials, sales
forecasting, market research, marketing and present-
ing a business plan.
For information about registering for the workshop
series, call Dawson at 541-426-3593 or email lisadaw-
son@neoedd.org.
OREGON SENATE APPROVES RESOLUTION ASKING VOTERS TO AMEND STATE CONSTITUTION
Voters could make affordable health care a human right
committee in the Senate. If it had
been put on the ballot and approved
SALEM — The Oregon Senate on by voters, it would have been the
Thursday approved a resolution that fi rst constitutional amendment in
would ask voters to decide whether any state to create a fundamental
the state is obligated to ensure that right to healthcare.
every resident has access to afford-
“Every Oregonian deserves access
able health care as a fundamental
to cost-effective and clinically ap-
human right.
propriate health care,” said Sen-
The resolution, whose aim is to
ate Majority Leader Rob Wagner.
amend the state Constitution, was
“Oregon’s Constitution should refl ect
approved along party lines, with
that truth.”
Democratic senators in favor and
If the House passes the bill, voters
Republicans opposed. It next goes
would be asked to consider amend-
to the House in the Democrat-con-
ing the state’s 162-year-old Constitu-
trolled Legislature.
tion.
A similar effort in 2018 was ap-
Republicans said any promise to
proved by the House but it died in
ensure all Oregonians are entitled to
By Andrew Selsky
Associated Press
ADVENTURE
health care lacks fi nancial backing.
“The bill doesn’t fund any system
to deliver on that promise,” Senate
Republican Leader Fred Girod said.
“If Democrats are serious about
giving Oregonians free health care,
they should come up with an actual
plan.”
The resolution says the state’s
obligation must be balanced against
funding public schools and other
essential public services.
Senate Republicans claimed in
a statement that the League of
Women Voters of Oregon has op-
posed this measure “because of its
obscurity.”
But in a Feb. 15 letter, the League
“We actually did a couple of runs just
to pack down the trail,” she said.
Continued from Page 1A
When they arrived about noon on
He’s referring to an especially steep
Wednesday, Katie said she was en-
section of the route that he and Katie,
thralled by the view.
who’s 14, traversed on Wednesday, March
“It was amazing,” she said. “You
17 on the west side of the Elkhorns.
could see forever. It was defi nitely a big
Their goal was a saddle on the ridge
moment getting to the top.”
between Lake and Crevice creeks. Both
David’s purpose went beyond the
are tributaries of Deer Creek, which
scenery, however.
fl ows beneath Highway 7 between Union
He also wanted to see how deep the
Creek Campground and McEwen. Lake snow was at the saddle, elevation 7,360
Creek is the stream that drains from
feet, particularly after the epic snow-
Twin Lakes.
storms in mid-February that pum-
David, who lives in Sumpter Valley,
meled the Elkhorns with many feet of
had hiked to the saddle while hunt-
snow.
ing, but he had never visited during
For that purpose he brought along a
the winter, and certainly not aboard a
14-foot pole.
snowmobile.
Which sounds like an awfully
This winter, he said, he and Katie
awkward appendage to strap onto a
made an attempt in January and another snowmobile.
in February before fi nally succeeding
But this pole, which holds up part of
Wednesday. David attributes this to the
a four-person dome tent, is collapsible,
snow becoming more fi rm during the
consisting of seven two-foot segments.
recent mild, dry weather.
Katie plunged the pole into the snow.
Katie slightly contradicts her dad’s
Except for piercing the crust, the
description of the failures that preceded pole slid pretty easily, she said.
the conquest.
After retrieving the pole, father and
of Women Voters of Oregon said it
supports the resolution, and called it
“simply an aspirational bill.”
This year, as the coronavirus
pandemic persists, “will be pivotal
for national and state health care
reforms,” League President Rebecca
Gladstone and healthcare special-
ist Bill Walsh wrote. “It’s time to
continue to do our part in this effort
by involving voters in the process.”
Asked to explain why Senate
Republicans claimed the League
has opposed the resolution, caucus
spokesman Dru Draper pointed out
that the League had opposed it in
2018.
A League president — Glad-
daughter confi rmed that it had gone
all the through, as evidenced by a bit of
damp soil stuck to its tip.
The measurement showed 83 inches
of snow — one inch shy of seven feet.
David said he was surprised. He was
expecting four or fi ve feet.
Although scattered clouds slightly
interfered with the view — it had been
mostly sunny for much of the snowmo-
bile ride, Katie said — it was otherwise
a pleasant day, with calm winds and a
temperature of 38 degrees even at that
lofty elevation.
Katie said she didn’t even need
gloves for the ride.
She said she’s intrigued by the role
that mountain snowpack plays in
Eastern Oregon, as the main source of
water to fi ll streams and reservoirs.
“It’s interesting to learn about the
snowpack in different areas and how it
affects the water supply,” Katie said.
Although David doesn’t plan to ever
return to the saddle to compare this
year’s snowpack with future winters, he
said he might look for a more accessible
spot, at a similar elevation.
stone’s predecessor — had sent a
letter in opposition in 2018, saying
the state couldn’t afford “the added
cost of health care coverage for all
its residents at this time.”
But Gladstone said things are
different this time.
“We are pleased to see provi-
sions added to this 2021 bill that
will balance health care with the
public’s interest in funding schools
and other essential public services,”
Gladstone said in an email late
Thursday. “This seems to be a direct
response to the League’s work on
the 2018 bill, when we advocated for
provisions that would protect fund-
ing of these essential services.”
New At The Library
Patrons can reserve materials in advance online or by
calling 541-523-6419. Drive-in hours at 2400 Resort St. are
Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday
and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.
FICTION
• “A Matter of Life and Death,” Phillip Margolin
• “The Nightmare Feast,” Andrew Klavan
• “Merchants of Virtue,” Paul C. R. Monk
• “Boyfriend Material,” Alexis Hall
• “The Western Wind,” Samantha Harvey
NONFICTION
• “Keep Sharp,” Sanjay Gupta
• “Between Two Kingdoms,” Suleika Jaouad
• “Pandemics,” Christian McMillen
• “The Last Days of John Lennon,” James Patterson
• “Brave Enough,” Jessie Diggins
DVDS
• “Big Little Lies, Season 2” (TV Series)
• “Larry the Cable Guy: Remain Seated” (Documentary)
• “Navy SEALs vs. Zombies” (Action)
• “The Dog Who Saved Easter” (Holiday)
• “Vienna Blood” (Drama)