News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
A3
Prairie City kids celebrate Dr. Seuss Day
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
They did not eat them in a house. They did not
eat them with a mouse. But the elementary students
of Prairie City School did try green eggs and ham
for breakfast March 1 in honor of Dr. Seuss’ birth-
day.
It was a daylong celebration with lessons incor-
porating Dr. Seuss and 100th day of school themes.
Superintendent/Principal Julie Gurczynski said
all the elementary teachers and staff helped make
the day special for the preschool through elemen-
tary students.
There were eight stations in the afternoon with
games and crafts, and the day ended with over 100
balloons for the students to pop in the school gym.
Second-grader Colbie Howard said she had
green eggs and ham for breakfast that morning, and
the Dr. Seuss book “Green Eggs and Ham” is her
favorite.
“It’s fun to read,” she said.
Fourth-grader Eric Rausch said it was a great
day.
“I liked all the fun stuff we were doing,” he said.
“I liked the balloons and making snacks, and we
read Dr. Seuss books.”
His top pick for Dr. Seuss books was “Fox in
Socks.”
Rylee Workman said her favorite part of the day
was popping balloons.
“It made a loud sound,” Workman said.
Third-grader Colby Anderton said he enjoyed
playing Dr. Seuss bingo.
His classmate Nick Perez said he especially
liked making squishy, green “oobleck” — a sub-
stance made of one part water and two parts corn-
starch, based on the Seuss book “Bartholomew and
the Oobleck.”
Fourth-grader Tamara Judd said the celebration
made the school day fun.
“It made it the best day ever,” she said, “even
though every day is awesome.”
Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter
Prairie City Elementary students walk through bubbles in
the hallway March 1 during Dr. Seuss Day.
Prairie City School fifth-grader David Sharpe
pops a balloon during the Dr. Seuss Day
and 100th Day of School celebration. There
were over 100 balloons, which the preschool
through sixth-grade students popped in the
school gym.
Sabrina Howard sweeps the 100th Day of School balloons to a spot
for Prairie City students to pop. Howard, a Smart Reading and Title 1
teacher, helped organize the day’s activities.
Prairie City Elementary students run out
into a circle of balloons to celebrate Dr.
Seuss Day and the 100th Day of School.
Prairie City School’s Jill Brown helps
Tanner Kinsey March 1 as he puts
together a goodie bag. There were
eight activity stations, which all the
elementary students visited. Brown, a
Title 1 and preschool teacher, helped
organize the day’s celebrations.
Former John Day doctors
will Skype home from Africa
Lake Creek Youth Camp will close after
season unless new members join board
Rural healthcare
challenging but
rewarding
Unless new members join
the board of directors, Lake
Creek Youth Camp will close
after this summer.
Board member Vicki
Heckman said, if people in
the community do not step
up to help to fill in for retir-
ing members, the camp will
be liquidated. The board has
set a June 1 deadline for new
members to join to allow for
training and transition.
“The current board have
been devoting every summer
for years to insure the smooth
running of Lake Creek,”
Heckman said. “Most of us
are beyond retirement age by
any measure and cannot con-
tinue.”
The nonprofit organiza-
tion manages the camp with
cabins under a special use
permit in Logan Valley on
the Malheur National Forest
near the Strawberry Moun-
tain Wilderness Area. The site
hosts annual youth camps,
By Rylan Boggs
Blue Mountain Eagle
CANCER AWARENESS
Two former John Day doc-
tors now working in Ethiopia
have planned a Skype visit
to update the community on
their work.
Drs. Andrew and Andrea
Janssen will be calling in from
Africa at 7:30 p.m. March 10
to the Corner Cup at 100 E.
Main St. in John Day.
“Our community is proud
to share with the world the op-
portunity to be updated direct-
ly by the Janssens via Skype,”
local pharmacist Greg Arm-
strong said in an email.
In a blog, the Janssens de-
scribed the hospital at which
they work as “another world.”
It has two delivery beds, six
labor beds and 2,500 annual
deliveries, staffed almost en-
tirely by midwives and gener-
al practitioners.
They wrote, when peo-
ple have seizures, sometimes
family members think “it
might be bad spirits.”
Births are sometimes per-
formed without anesthesia
and are often complicated by
scarring from female genital
mutilation, they wrote.
Contiributed photo
Drs. Andrew and Andrea Janssen with their three
children.
They live in Addis Ababa,
a city of more than 5 million.
Over 80 percent of the 100
million people live in rural ar-
eas, according to the Janssens.
Many come from farming
backgrounds, and like Ore-
gon, health care is concentrat-
ed in urban areas, they wrote.
“My two residents quick-
ly became the senior provid-
ers. The one OB/gyn appears
primarily for C-sections due
to commitments at the main
hospital and elsewhere,” the
Janssens wrote. “To quote a
general practitioner, ‘We have
everything. In the rural areas,
it is… difficult.’ For the over
80 million rural Ethiopians
it is difficult. This is another
world.”
The couple and their three
children moved to Ethiopia in
August 2015 after working
as rural family physicians in
John Day for 10 years. Both
had worked in Africa prior to
moving to Ethiopia. Two of
their three children are adopt-
ed from Ethiopia, and all three
were sad and apprehensive to
leave friends, family and the
comforts of rural Oregon.
During their time in the
country the couple have been
mentoring local medical per-
sonnel and working toward a
curriculum for family medi-
cine.
“We knew we would serve
in Africa — it was only a mat-
ter of when, where and how,”
they wrote.
March is
COLORECTAL CANCER
Awareness Month
Dr. Keith Thomas, board-certified general surgeon
at Blue Mountain Hospital, is an experienced
provider of screening and diagnostic colonoscopies.
Located in the Blue Mountain Hospital
170 Ford Road, John Day
541-575-1311
Office Hours by Appointment
IF YOU HAVE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
• An age of 50 or older
• A family history of colon cancer
• Recent changes in your bowel habits
then talk to your primary care doctor to see if a
colonoscopy referral is right for you.
Blue Mountain Eagle
Contributed photo
Youth gather around a bonfire during their stay at the
2016 Natural Resource Camp held at Lake Creek Youth
Camp. Unless new community members volunteer to
serve on the board of directors, this summer’s camps
will be the last.
such as natural resources, 4-H
and FFA, as well as private
gatherings.
People interested in learn-
ing more about the orga-
nization are encouraged to
attend a board meeting at 6
p.m. Tuesday, March 14, at
the Outpost Restaurant. Peo-
ple can also join Friends of
Lake Creek, which assists the
board.
For more information,
contact Heckman, 541-575-
0660, or RoseAnn Palmer,
541-575-2831, email lake-
creekcamp@yahoo.com or
visit lakecreekcamp.org.
Committees are formal public bodies required to comply with
Oregon Public Meetings Law ORS 192.610.
ORS 341.019. Seven members plus three ex-
offico members serve three year terms and meet monthly to promote
local educational opportunities and identify educational needs within
the local community.
Eleven members
serve three year terms and meet semi-annually to provide guidance and
assistance to local OSU Extension staff in planning, developing, and
evaluating balanced educational programs directed to high priority
needs of county residents. Membership is limited to one re-appointment.
Seven members (including two
consumer representatives) serve three year terms and meet no less than
quarterly to facilitate the provision of quality mental health services to
county residents and enhance community knowledge of available
programs and services. Acts as the Local Alcohol and Drug Planning
Commission and Developmental Disabilities Advisory Board.
ORS 215.020. Nine members serve four year
terms and two alternates serve two year terms, meeting as needed to
review land use and zoning applications and discuss city and county
growth issues and the siting of new facilities. Members must be residents
of various geographic areas within the county and no more than two
voting members shall be engaged in the same kind of business,
occupation, trade or profession with agriculture designations of livestock
/ forage crop production and horticulture / specialty crop production.
Commissioners serving in this capacity must file an Annual Verified
Statement of Economic Interest with the Oregon Government Ethics
Commission. Members must re-apply to the County Court before their
term ends if they wish to be re-appointed.
Created by Resolution 1993-29. Nine
members serve three year terms and meet as needed to discuss issues
regarding big game management and make recommendations to
Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, including tag allocation and
hunting season structure as they relate to population and damage of
property.