News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
A3
Longtime music director receives prestigious award
Vidourek
recognized
statewide for
exemplary
service
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Recently retired music di-
rector Mary Ann Vidourek
has traveled far and wide with
her students — oftentimes
behind the wheel of a Grant
School District No. 3 bus.
She was recognized by the
Oregon Music Education As-
sociation for her Exemplary
Service to Music Education at
a Dec. 14 awards banquet in
Eugene, held during the All-
State conference. Only one
such award is given to a music
educator each year in Oregon.
Vidourek taught junior
high and high school band
and choir at Grant Union and
also led the music program
at Humbolt Elementary with
choir and a sixth-grade band.
Grant School District No.
3 Superintendent Curt Shel-
ley said Vidourek is deserv-
ing of the association award.
“Our district has been for-
tunate to have a music direc-
tor of her caliber,” he said.
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
The Eagle/Rylan Boggs
Mary Ann Vidourek stands for a photo with a plaque for
Exemplary Service to Music Education she received from
the Oregon Music Education Association in recognition
for her service as a music teacher. Only one such award
is given to a music educator each year in Oregon.
was hired for the position in
December.
The award recognizes in-
dividuals who significantly
contribute to their students’
music education through ser-
vice, leadership and advoca-
cy.
Comments from col-
“Personally, I need to thank
her publicly for assisting us
in keeping our music program
intact while we searched for
her replacement.”
Vidourek retired last
school year after 25 years
with the district, but stayed
on as director until Lori Hart
Grant Union freshman Samantha Floyd, left, participated
in an All-State symphonic wind band in Eugene at the
Hult Center, playing trombone. She was selected for
the opportunity through audition. The new Grant Union
music director Lori Hart poses for a photo Jan. 20 with
Floyd at the school.
leagues who nominated Vi-
dourek were shared during
the award ceremony.
The accolades for Vi-
dourek included her organi-
zational skills, hard work and
professionalism, behind-the-
scenes work at the All-State
conferences and enabling
hundreds of students to
New drug take-back box available in John Day
By Rylan Boggs
Blue Mountain Eagle
A new drug take-back box
is available to the public
outside the John Day Dis-
patch Center.
A former Blue Mountain
Eagle newspaper box, retro-
fitted and painted by John
Day Police Sgt. Damon
Rand, sits outside the door
by the dispatch center, 450
E. Main St., John Day. The
box is secure and monitored
day and night by security
cameras at the center.
The ef-
fort, spon-
sored
by
the police
department
and Grant
County
Safe Com-
munities
John Day
Coalition,
Police Sgt.
aimed
Damon Rand is
at keeping
danger-
ous, addictive drugs out of
the wrong hands, reduc-
ing the drug diversion and
abuse.
“The ease of access for
the community is a huge
benefit,” Safe Communi-
ties Coalition Director Russ
Comer said.
Collected drugs are sent
to the DEA for incinera-
tion as part of a national
program. Incineration is
a better way to dispose
of medications because
throwing them in the trash
or down the toilet can
eventually pollute the wa-
ter supply, according to
Comer.
Nationally, over the life
of the program, 7.1 mil-
lion pounds of prescription
drugs have been removed
from medicine cabinets,
kitchen drawers and night-
stands by citizens around
the country, according
to the Drug Enforcement
Agency.
“Take back programs of-
fer a safe, simple, and anon-
ymous way to keep danger-
ous prescription drugs out
of the wrong hands and pre-
vent substance abuse,” said
Chuck Rosenberg, acting
DEA administrator.
smoothly transition to honor
groups.
One person said she sin-
gle-handedly kept the music
program alive through bud-
get cuts and the difficulties of
a small school population.
“Her music students have
enjoyed all the advantages of
larger schools in more popu-
lated areas — participating in
All-State band and choir, per-
forming at the State Band and
Choir Championships, honor
groups, solo and ensemble
contests — usually because
she drove them there. And
made them believe they could
be successful,” one colleague
was noted as saying.
Vidourek said one col-
league told her she never
used belonging to a smaller
school district as an excuse
to do less.
Although she is now re-
tired and living in Redmond,
Vidourek isn’t slowing down.
She’ll continue as the music
education association hous-
ing chair, and in March she
will direct the MidColumbia
junior high honor band in The
Dalles. This summer, she will
travel to Europe as a chaper-
one with Grant Union student
Nikki Jones, a soprano, who
will sing with the Ambassa-
dors of Music choir. At the
end of summer, Vidourek
will assist with a band camp
in Redmond.
“I’m just totally honored
that my colleagues would
recognize me in this way with
this award, because there are
so many amazing music edu-
cators in our state,” Vidourek
said. “I’ve thoroughly en-
joyed everything I’ve done
(with the students) — I usu-
ally drove them, too.”
R EDNECK HOT TUB
Contributed photo/Amy Stiner
From left, Nick Stiner Jr., Nick Stiner Sr. and Matt Jones
enjoy a dip in their redneck hot tub. “We had a ton of fun
building this,” Amy Stiner said. “The water was too hot to
touch so we had to add chunks of ice from the trough in
the background.”
Grants will upgrade Mt. Vernon, Seneca wastewater facilities
By Rylan Boggs
Blue Mountain Eagle
Both Seneca and Mt. Ver-
non have received sizable
Community
Development
Block Grants from the federal
government.
Seneca received $2.5 mil-
lion, and Mt. Vernon received
just over $1.8 million. The
two cities will be using their
grants to upgrade their waste-
water treatment facilities.
Mt. Vernon’s current treat-
ment facility consists of four
pond lagoons adjacent to the
John Day River. The facili-
ty, constructed in 1979, was
under the National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination Sys-
tem Permit, which expired
Nov. 30, 2016. The current
treatment plant is not up to
code, according to Business
Oregon, the state’s economic
development agency.
Leakage from the lagoons
has been detected and deemed
to be worsening since 2005,
according to Business Ore-
gon, and there may be sub-
surface flow to the John Day
River, despite the city not in-
dicating discharge is happen-
ing. A myriad of upgrades are
needed for the plant including
reduction of infiltration and
inflow, replacement of control
valves and the influent flow
meter device and upgrading
the lagoon system to prevent
impacts to groundwater and
meet the water quality stan-
dards, according to Business
Oregon.
Seneca’s current waste-
water plant was built in 1974
and is in close proximity to
the Silvies River. The project
hopes to combat concerns that
the outdated plant may con-
taminate the river,
The $3.5 million dollar
project will be paid for with
the $2.5 million block grant, a
$500,000 grant and $500,000
loan from the Infrastructure
Finance Authority.
The new plant has been in
the works since 2012 and was
delayed because the city lost,
and later regained, eligibility
for the grant.
“The proposed project will
include design and construc-
tion of the collection system
improvements along with the
construction of a treatment
facility that will include new
two-cell facultative waste-
water treatment lagoons and
Monday - Thursday
7am- 6pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Mendy Sharpe FNP
Apppointments
available
R obbins Farm Equipment
3850 10th St.
Baker City
10218 Wallowa Lake Hwy.
La Grande
1160 S Egan
Burns
86812 Christmas Valley Hwy.
Christmas Valley
541-523-6377
541-963-6577
541-573-6377
541-523-6377
class D recycled water reuse
effluent disposal improve-
ments west of the Silvies
River,” according to Business
Oregon.
The city will be working
with regulatory bodies and
accepting bids for the contract
this year. Work is scheduled
to be completed by 2018, ac-
cording to Seneca City Man-
ager Josh Walker.
A TTENTION G RANT C OUNTY
V ETERANS :
Did you know there may be VA benefits available for you
as a result of your spouses’ military service?
See your Grant County Veteran Services
Officer today for more information,
located at Grant County Court House.
Jeff Wilcox
Call 541-575-1631 for an appointment
Open: Mon, Wed, & Fri 10am-4pm by appointment.
05171