A6
Blue Mountain Eagle
COMMUNITY
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
WHAT’S
Community HEALTH BEAT
HAPPENING
Quality Healthcare Close To Home
170 Ford Road, John Day • 541-575-1311 • www.bluemountainhospital.org
Contributed photo/Tanni Wenger Photography
February is American Heart Month
Ty Sharp and his daughters Jade and Tyra are dressed with
the disco theme in mind at last year’s Daddy Daughter Dance
at the John Day Elks Lodge. The event is planned for Feb. 9
this year.
7 Easy Steps for Heart Health
As you probably know, your heart is the blood-pumping organ located in your chest.
Unoxygenated blood is pumped by the right side of the heart into the lungs where it is
loaded with oxygen for your tissues. From your lungs, the oxygen-rich blood flows into
the left side of your heart where it is pumped by your heart, out to your body. This
month we focus on keeping this vital organ happy and healthy! Taking good care of
our cardiac system can be broken down into 7 simple easy steps:
ONE: Maintain a healthy blood pressure. Measure yours at home, at the drug store or
with a friend’s cuff. If you find that your blood pressure (BP) is consistently over 150 on
the top number, it may be time to talk to your doctor. Keeping a proper blood pressure
reduces your risk of heart-related complications like strokes and heart attacks.
TWO: Watch your cholesterol. Make sure your arteries don’t get clogged with fatty
build up, especially those arteries that feed the heart muscle itself. To keep your arteries
clean and open eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and fiber and limit
your fried foods and red meats to reasonable and balanced portion sizes. Ask your
doctor to test your cholesterol levels.
THREE: Quit smoking! If you aren’t ready to quit, consider cutting back. This one risk
factor drastically impacts your body’s ability to maintain your health. Smoking and
other forms of tobacco use increase blood pressure, harden arteries and inhibit your
body’s ability to fight off germs and infections. If you need assistance in quitting, your
doctor can help you get connected with a support group, behavioral counseling and/or
medications that can help curb cravings. Talk to your doctor today!
FOUR: Get regular exercise. This can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Exercise
can be enjoyable and free! If you haven’t found a program that works for you, try a 30
minute brisk walk each day. Even walking can improve your heart function and provide
benefits to your heart, attitude and health. Try it. Start today!
FIVE: Reduce stress. Stress increases cortisol in our bodies. Stress can also negatively
affect blood pressure, eating habits and other factors that impact heart heath in
significant ways. Find ways to reduce stress. Talk to a friend or discuss stress-reducing
techniques with a professional. Get a massage. Exercise can help and is one of the most
effective tools we have in stress reduction, thanks to our body’s natural endorphins
which are released by exercise. These endorphins can even assist in reducing pain.
SIX: Reach and keep a healthy weight through heart-friendly eating and regular
exercise. Keep your heart in mind, as you plate your meal. Reach for more fruits and
veggies to replace some carbs, starches, and meats on your plate. Reduce sodium by
cooking at home as often as you can. When you grocery shop, try to get the bulk of
your diet from the outside walls of the grocery store, instead of the aisles. This will
ensure that you fill your cart with good, whole foods, and decrease consumption of
processed foods that are higher in sodium and other preservatives. Talk to your doctor
about appropriate weight goals and other means to achieve them.
SEVEN: Consider your colloquial heart, too! Gratitude and kindness provide health
benefits to both those who give and receive them. Give back to your community
through volunteering, mentoring or simply completing a “good deed for the day”.
Participating in goodness can enable a healthy heart.
So, for American Heart Month, consider trying a few (or all!) of these 7 easy steps for
heart health and you’ll be on your way to a happier, healthier heart!
April Bieber
Physician Assistant
Strawberry Wilderness Community Clinic
The deadline for What’s Happening items is 5 p.m. Friday.
Call the Eagle, 541-575-0710, or email editor@bmeagle.
com. For meetings this week, see our list in the classifi eds.
Wednesday, Feb. 6
Grant County Little League sign-ups
• 6-8 p.m., Grant Union Junior-Senior High School library
Sign-ups will be held for softball and baseball players
ages 7-14. A copy of the birth certifi cate and three proofs
of residency are required (unless the player has played on
an All-Star team). Online registration is available at eteamz.
com/grantcountylittleleagueOR, and required documents
can be delivered to Ace Hardware, attention Robbie Copen-
haver. A late fee will be assessed for sign-ups after March 1.
For more information, visit Grant County Little League on
Facebook.
Thursday, Feb. 7
Road Advisory Board meeting
• 2 p.m., Grant County Road Department
The Grant County Road Advisory Board will hold a
meeting at the road department. For more information, call
541-792-9002.
Saturday, Feb. 9
Daddy Daughter Dance
• 6-8:30 p.m., John Day Elks Lodge and upstairs ballroom
The theme is “Boots and Bling.” Fathers or father fi g-
ures and daughters can choose a dinner and dance package
for $50 and $5 for each additional daughter, or dance only
for $30 with no charge for additional daughters. The dinner
features hamburgers, hot dogs and a sundae bar. Included
in either price is a 5-by-7-inch photo by Tanni Wenger Pho-
tography. Registration forms are available at schools and at
the Parks and Recreation offi ce at 845 1/2 NW Bridge St. in
John Day. For more information, call Parks and Rec at 541-
575-0110 between 8:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 15
Valentine’s benefi t dinner
• 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., John Day Golf Club
The benefi t dinner supports GIST (gastrointestinal stro-
mal tumor) cancer research. There will be two dinner times
at 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. Dinner includes prime rib, baked
potato, vegetable relish tray, a dinner roll and dessert for $17
per person or $30 per couple. Call 541-575-0170 for more
information or to make reservations.
Tuesday, Feb. 19
Android smartphone and tablet class
• 6 p.m., OSU Extension classroom, 116 NW Bridge St.,
John Day
The class, instructed by Chris Gibson, will cover com-
monly asked questions and provide one-on-one help for
Android devices. The cost is $5 per session. For more infor-
mation, call 541-575-1911 or email mccrackd@oregonstate.
edu.
Saturday, Feb. 23
FEBRUARY February 12, 26: Bend Cardio - Dr. McLellan
VISITING February 14: Bend Ortho - Dr. Lilley
SPECIALISTS February 18: Baker Podiatrist - Dr. Rushton
Donna Wyllie was born to Robert L. Porter and Elma Lavelle Osborne Porter on
Oct. 27th, 1938 in Redding, California. Her and her brother, Robert L. Porter Jr., were
raised in Fall River Mills, California.
Donna married Harry G. Santos and they had two children, Lindsey and Russell.
After their divorce, she married Laurie Wyllie in 1960 and had two daughters, Lori
and Jamie; and a son Layton. Laurie had a young son, Kelly, and Donna loved him as
her own. Donna and Laurie divorced in 1975.
Donna worked as a housewife, a receptionist for PG&E, as a rancher and for the
Blue Mountain Eagle. She also worked for Chaney Asphalt and Pavement, was a
dispatcher at Charlie Brown Trucking, worked at Ace Hardware for 20 years in
Blue Mountain
Nevada and sold mobile homes for Pioneer Mobile Homes. Donna went to work as
Care Center
an aide at Blue Mountain Hospital on the second day it was open; her favorite part
Resident of the Month was working with the mama’s and their babies. While working for the Blue
DONNA WYLLIE Mountain Eagle, she would drive to Prairie City on Tuesday nights to help Ruth Harris
and Jerry Franklin with the Pioneer Press. She put together the Elk’s Bulletin each month and was an Elkette.
Donna has also lived in Nevada and Oregon. She and her family drove from Nevada to Gore, Oklahoma to
visit her aunt; her aunt will be 99 in December. Her favorite place to travel with her family was Burney Falls Park,
California.
Donna now has 14 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. She enjoys collecting teapots and salt and
peppershakers. She also enjoys doing crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles and playing pinochle. She got to see
Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Reba McEntire, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Diamond Rio, Neil Diamond and
many others in concert. She also met Bob Orisson, a stuntman for the movies, and Ron Ely who played Tarzan.
In 1980, Donna was in Portland on her way to the coast when she heard about Mount St. Helens, so she
drove towards the mountain and got very close; she took several pictures. It was a good thing she ran out of film,
as on her way out a police officer stopped and told her that she was only 12 air miles away from the
eruption. There were deer running away from the area as well. “I got home and I knew I had been to Mount St.
Helens as there were ashes in her car’s engine and everywhere.” She had the garage people help her with that.
She kept some of the ashes in a baby food jar and they would sift through the lid if it wasn’t screwed on tight.
Donna came to Blue Mountain Care Center on September 27, 2017.
102908
Mule Deer Foundation banquet
• 5-10 p.m., Grant County Fairgrounds pavilion
The Blue Mountain Chapter will hold its 2019 banquet. A
single dinner with an annual membership costs $70, a cou-
ples dinner with a membership costs $105 and a youth din-
ner for ages 14 and under costs $15. For more information,
contact Oregon regional director Ken Hand at 541-281-2224
or okbs4u@msn.com.
Tuesday, Feb. 26
Apple iOS smartphone and tablet class
• 6 p.m., OSU Extension classroom, 116 NW Bridge St.,
John Day
The class, instructed by Chris Gibson, will cover com-
monly asked questions and provide one-on-one help for
iPhones and iPads. The cost is $5 per session. For more
information, call 541-575-1911 or email mccrackd@ore-
gonstate.edu.
Saturday, March 2
Jr. Miss Rodeo Oregon coronation
• 6 p.m., Grant County Fairgrounds pavilion
Tickets to the coronation of 2019 Jr. Miss Rodeo Ore-
gon Rowdy Israel cost $12, which includes dinner. For more
information or to buy tickets, call Nicole Israel at 541-620-
2624. Tickets will also be available for purchase at the door.
Saturday, March 30
Inland Northwest Musicians Chorale concert
• 4 p.m., Canyon City Community Hall
The Juniper Arts Council will host the 40-singer cho-
rale, performing “Peaceable Kingdom” by Randall Thomp-
son and “Gloria” by Antonio Vivaldi. The concert is free.
A dessert reception will follow. For more information, call
541-932-4892.