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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (May 31, 2017)
News Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, May 31, 2017 A3 MEMORIALIZING THE FALLEN Veterans and civilians remember those they have lost By Rylan Boggs Blue Mountain Eagle D Ed Heiple plays trumpet during the Memorial Day ceremony in the Prairie City Cemetery on Monday, May 29. “It’s a special day to remember those people who contributed so much to our country,” Heiple said, “and to remember my son who passed away in the military.” ozens gathered at the Prairie City Cem- etery to honor fallen military personnel on Monday. The American Legion Post 106 performed a ceremony and gun salute for Memorial Day. Trumpet player Ed Heiple said he takes part in ceremonies on Memorial Day and Veterans Day to honor those who have served. “I believe a lot in what the military has done for us,” Heiple said. He has played the trumpet since grade school and taught music for years. Playing at the Me- morial Day ceremony is a way for him to com- memorate those who have died. “It’s a special day to remember those people who contributed so much to our country,” Hei- ple said. “And to remember my son who passed away in the military.” Retired Capt. William Campbell also took part in the ceremony. “My stepdad saw combat, I saw combat and my son saw combat, so it means a lot to me,” Williams said. “A lot of my friends don’t make it back, and they’ll be forever young.” Williams is one of four brothers who all served in the military. He served in the Navy for almost 36 years and was stationed in New York when the twin towers fell, spent 13 months at the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea with the Third Marine Division and took part in the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. “I feel fortunate to come back,” Williams said. “I did my job and relied on the other mili- tary personnel to do theirs.” Eagle photos/Rylan Boggs Members of American Legion Post 106 salute the flag during the annual Memorial Day ceremony in the Prairie City Cemetery on Monday, May 29. Retired Capt. William Campbell stands for a photo on the Bridge Street bridge following the annual Memorial Day ceremony in Prairie City on Monday, May 29. “My stepdad saw combat, I saw combat and my son saw combat, so it means a lot to me,” Williams said. “A lot of my friends don’t make it back, and they’ll be forever young.” Members of American Legion Post 106 stand and sit before the annual Memorial Day ceremony in the Prairie City Cemetery on Monday, May 29. 81 DAYS: Total Solar Eclipse countdown is on Cities prepare for flock of visitors By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Tammy Bremner opened the May 17 total solar eclipse planning meeting asking if anyone knew the number of days left until the big event. Prairie City city recorder Taci Philbrook’s hand shot up with the correct answer — 95 days. As of Wednesday, May 31, the countdown is 81 days. That’s less than three months for county and city offi cials and local residents to plan for the expected hordes of visitors to the area. Bremner, who is the Grant County Chamber of Com- merce offi ce manager, said they don’t know how many people to expect — it could be 10,000 or 100,000, she said. She said some local resi- dents are looking forward to the event and visitors while others are not. Whatever the feelings are, she said there needs to be a “focus on local understanding” to stock up on supplies such as food, water, medication and pet food early, fi ll fuel tanks on vehicles, don’t count on the in- ternet and have some cash on hand. She noted ATMs could be down, and businesses may have to handle credit cards manually. She suggests residents have these things taken care of more than a week before the eclipse, which takes place at approxi- mately 10:22 a.m. Monday, August 21. “Be prepared,” she said. “The highways are going to be packed,” she said. “Local people are going to be incon- venienced.” She said if property owners are concerned about visitors trespassing, they should post signs indicating private prop- erty and no parking. “Take the initiative,” she said. Bremner said some visi- tors will stay for the three-day weekend, Saturday through Monday, and others will stay for a week. She called on city offi cials and others who are helping prepare for the infl ux of tour- ists to share their plans. Angie Jones, the transpor- tation manager at the People Mover in John Day, said they are planning on having eight routes with stops in John Day, Mt. Vernon, Prairie City and Dayville. In John Day, they will have two loops to the Industrial Park, one on West Bench Road and another on Adam Drive. The People Mover’s eight The Eagle/Angel Carpenter A crowd of about 50 Grant County residents were in attendance at the latest monthly solar eclipse meeting, where Chamber of Commerce office manager Tammy Bremner spoke about preparations being made and answered questions. vehicles have a total of 108 seats, and they plan to add to that by possibly leasing one to three Prairie City School bus- es, one Dayville School bus and a Burns Paiute Tribe bus. They also plan to hire extra drivers. About 250 parking spots will be available, during the time of the event, at the old Hudspeth Mill at “Mill Corner Pond,” with space on the east side, near Mills Building Sup- ply, and to the west, in a paved area. John Day city staff mem- ber Julie Larson said their 286 camping spots at the Industrial Park are fi lling up. At last check on Friday, there were 40 spots left. The Industrial Park has a total of 160 dry camp tent sites with potable water access and 126 RV sites with water and sewer. One resident, who lives on West Bench, said she has rent- ed 12 campsites to visitors who are from Russia and Germany. Bremner said activities in John Day include the Moon- LIT Music Festival at the Grant County Fairgrounds on Satur- day, Aug. 19, featuring fi ve lo- cal acts with a variety of talent. Some cities will have mov- ies and yard sales. In Mt. Vernon, property owned by Mike Kilpatrick behind city hall will be used for a venue called the “Solar Slam,” solarslam2017.com, with 400 dry campsites, in- cluding RV spots, with live music, helicopter tours, sou- venirs and a beer garden, and will also have food, water and ice available. Prairie City city recorder Taci Philbrook said property owners on County Road 60 said they would open parking space. “It’s going to be a congest- ed area,” Philbrook said, not- ing that Prairie City is a hot spot to experience the totality. “Parking is going to be a big deal,” she said. In Monument, a dry camp called the Off the Grid Eclipse Festival, offthegrideclipse.com, includes spots by the river and live music. The local RV park and mo- tel will have extra campsites, and some accommodations are also available in Kimberly. In Long Creek there are 13 acres for parking. Several areas of concern were discussed at the meeting, including fi re and lightning safety, EMT services, highway traffi c congestion and safety, air traffi c and even garbage dispos- al and port-a-potties. State Fire Marshal Dave Fields and Irene Jerome with Firewise talked about light- ning and fi re safety. Fields said they’re working on public safety announce- ments. Tom Davis, ODOT’s Re- gion 5 operations coordinator, said they are organizing emer- gency services operations with crash teams. “If there is a crash in the Gorge, we’ll be able to re- spond from both sides,” he said. He stressed tripcheck.com will be important for travel- ers as information is updated live. There will be no highway construction during the time of the eclipse, and they are bumping up resources, he said. The Grant County Re- gional Airport in John Day will be closed to eclipse traffi c — pilots can fl y in, if they have a hangar to park in, otherwise the airport will be used for fi re and medical emergencies. Bremner said the cham- ber rented 150 port-a-potties, which are now diffi cult to fi nd without driving a great dis- tance. Chamber volunteers are trying to locate all the RV and garbage dump sites. “We’re trying to encour- age people to pack it out,” she said. Bremner added they’re still adding to the list of prop- erties for rent in the county. “It would make it easier if we knew how many to pre- pare for,” she said. “You can only prepare the best you can, and hope it goes well.” Last week, Bremner said they’re looking for volun- teers, including parking at- tendants, help at the chamber offi ce, garbage pick up, etc. For more information, call the chamber at 541-575-0547. Hannah Brandsma Jessica Carter James Clay Johnson Jamie Waltenburg 05681 Hearing Clinic Schedule an appointment today Debbie Ausmus 245 South Canyon Blvd. John Day, OR 97845 OPEN WED. & THUR. 9 am - 5 pm 541-575-1113 24 hrs/7 days wk debbie.ausmus@ countryfinancial.com (541) 382-3100 Thursday, June 8 th • 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Serving all of your hearing care needs: • Hearing Evaluations and Screenings • Hearing Aid Sales • Hearing Aid Service and Repairs • Tinnitus Counseling • Custom Hearing Protection Blue Mountain Hospital Visiting Specialists Plaza 135 Ford Road, John Day, OR 97845 HEARING AID CENTER www.centraloregonhearingaids.com Dennis Sell, HIS • The very latest hearing aid technology • Affordable pricing with financing options • Backed by our commitment to serve the needs of our patients and the community
