MAGNIFICENT MOMS
Celebrate
them on
Mother’s Day:
Sunday, May 10
– PAGE A7
Grant County’s newspaper since 1868
W EDNESDAY , M AY 6, 2015
• N O . 18
• 22 P AGES
• $1.00
www.MyEagleNews.com
New chief picked for hospital
Randall Mee will start
work June 15 in JD
By Scotta Callister
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY – Blue Mountain Hos-
pital is getting a new CEO who brings
both regional and international experi-
ence to the job.
Randall Mee of Hillsboro will be-
gin his duties June 15, taking the helm
from interim CEO Margie Molitor.
Jack Southworth, chairman of the
Blue Mountain Hospital District board,
announced the hire Tuesday. The board
picked Mee from among three candi-
dates interviewed for the job.
Southworth noted Mee’s extensive
background in rural and critical access
hospitals, as well as his familiarity
with Northeast Oregon and its hospi-
tals.
Mee was president and CEO of
St. Anthony Hospital in Pendleton
from 2008-2011, and previously
was CEO of Cottage Grove Com-
munity Hospital in Cottage Grove.
Earlier in his career, he worked in
rehabilitation and geriatric ser-
vices at a hospital in Great Falls,
Mont.
More recently, he has been a
member of CURE Management Ser-
vices’ International Team, as admin-
istrator of a hospital in the United
Arab Emirates.
At Blue Mountain Hospital, Mee
will be employed by HealthTech
Management Services, the manage-
ment company for the hospital dis-
trict, with a salary of $185,000.
He succeeds Bob Houser, who re-
tired in December after 15 years with
the district.
Southworth said Mee’s hire was a
unanimous decision of the board and
ON THE MOVE
TO SUPPORT
HOSPICE
also had the support of staff and provid-
ers at the hospital.
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for his leadership style, as a team
player who puts a priority on en-
suring the quality of care and
operations.
The board lauded the contributions
of Molitor in the interim, with South-
worth saying she did “a spectacular
job guiding the hospital forward over
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Student designs
on countdown
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Two county
students win
art competition
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Contributed photos
Walkers in the May 2 Strut, Stride, Straddle and Stroll fundraiser round the bend in the highway headed
into John Day.
Crowd turns out for sunny May 2 fundraiser
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Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY – Last Satur-
day was a beautiful day to be
outdoors – Just ask the 111
participants in Blue Mountain
Home Health and Hospice’s an-
nual Strut, Stride, Straddle and
Stroll.
The robust turnout more
than doubled last year’s num-
ber.
The event offered a variety
of activities to suit people of all
ages and abilities: 13-mile bike
ride, from Prairie City; 10K run
from Holliday Ranch; a 4-mile
run/walk from just past Dog
Creek Road; or a 1.5-mile stroll
at Seventh Street Complex.
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See STRUT, Page A10
A quartet of ladies, with a youngster in tow, stride together along the
highway.
S TUDENT ART
Space patch design by
Jasmine Martin, grade 7
Space patch design by
Ben Henry, grade 6
During the judging process,
the artwork was set out with the
designers’ names hidden from
view.
Winners were chosen March
30.
Collier said seven of the
eight judges chose Martin’s
patch, and Henry’s patch was
neck and neck with another stu-
dent’s patch.
“The entries were fantastic,
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she added.
Students, parents and others
can watch for the countdown to
launch of Mission 7 online at
http://ssep.ncesse.org/commu-
nities/mission-patches/.
The science experiments and
mission patches will be returned
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a symbol of the adventure into
space.
SSEP is a program of the
National Center for Earth and
Space Science Education and
the Arthur C. Clarke Institute
for Space Education.
All aboard … in Monument
People Mover
expands into
Monument area
Blue Mountain Eagle
Amaya Zweygardt
Grade 12
Prairie City School
Teacher: Raymond Field
JOHN DAY – Space patches
designed by two Grant County
students have been cleared for
lift off.
Grant Union Junior-Senior
High School seventh-grader Jas-
mine Martin and Humbolt Ele-
mentary sixth-grader Ben Henry
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competition.
The art contest was held in
conjunction with a countywide
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Experiments Program (SSEP)
competition, with the winning
experiment and space patches set
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in June.
Grant Union science teacher
Sonna Smith spearheaded the
science competition, and Grant
Union art teacher JJ Collier co-
ordinated the art contest with
help from sixth-grade teacher
Lorie Croghan.
Other students throughout
the U.S. also participated in
SSEP contests in their commu-
nities.
Participating in the art con-
test were 76 Humbolt students
in grades 3, 5 and 6 and 120
students in grades 7-12 at Grant
Union.
Students from the participat-
ing schools were asked to create a
design which would represent an
embroidered space patch which
astronauts wear on their voyages.
The entries were judged on
artistic merit and neatness, with
the required information includ-
ed and written legibly.
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County towns, including artists
and art teachers, selected the
winners.
JOHN DAY – The Peo-
ple Mover public transpor-
tation service, based in John
Day, is expanding its cover-
age area to include routes to
and from Monument.
The
Grant
County
Transportation District an-
nounced the new service
will begin Tuesday, May
12.
Here’s the schedule:
• Tuesdays: Monument
to Walla Walla, Wash., de-
parting at 6:30 a.m. Reser-
vations are required.
• Wednesdays and Fri-
days: Monument to Bend.,
departing at 6:20 a.m. Res-
ervations are required.
• Thursdays: Monument
to John Day, departing
Monument at 9:30 a.m.;
from Long Creek at 10:10
a.m., and Mt. Vernon at
10:46 a.m. Reservations
are requested.
The pick-up and drop-
off location in Monument
for all routes is the Monu-
ment Senior Center parking
lot.
Pick-up and drop-off in
Long Creek on Thursdays
is at the general store, and
in Mt. Vernon, the Blue
Mountain Mini Mart.
Once in Walla Walla or
Bend, people can make con-
nections via other public
transit services, to airports,
Amtrak and other locations.
For connection details,
fares, reservations and
complete schedules, con-
tact The People Mover at
541-575-2370, or email
peoplemover@outlook.com.
Visit The People Mov-
er at www.grantcounty
peoplemover.com or on
Facebook.