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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (July 24, 2019)
OPINION Blue Mountain Eagle A4 Wednesday, July 24, 2019 Volunteers save lives T he incident had all the earmarks of a daring rescue. A woman fell off a cliff. A group of emergency re- sponders just happened to be near and quickly de- ployed to save the day. That scenario played out recently when Jacki Mulhair fell from Indian Rock Over- look in Union County. Mulhair stepped too close to the edge of a cliff and then fell 86 feet, suffering numerous serious injuries. Luckily, about two miles away personnel from the La Grande Rural Fire Protection District and Union County Search and Rescue were wrapping up training when Mulhair fell. The search and rescue team eventually res- cued Mulhair. She is now in a Richland, Washington, hospital recovering from serious injuries, including broken ribs and nose and a broken leg. But she is alive, thanks to the quick action of the search and rescue personnel. Granted, a lot of things had to go right in this incident and it was very fortuitous that the search and rescue squad was relatively nearby and could react quickly. The incident appears to be one of those “what ifs,” where a lot of things could have gone wrong but didn’t. The incident, though, also highlights one of those key facts about our emergency service personnel that often is overlooked. The members of the Union County Search and Rescue team are volun- teers — as they are here in neighboring Grant County. They were not getting paid to go out and rescue an indi- vidual who was in a life- and-death situation. They were there because each one feels a sense of duty to the larger community. Volunteers are a key strand in the fabric of all our communities. Without them many events and other com- munity enhancement efforts simply would not occur. Without dedicated men and women who choose to take time out of their own busy lives to give back, some- one like Mulhair might have ended up in a far worse situation. Mulhair’s case is signifi- cant and out of the ordinary. Someone trapped and seri- ously injured after falling off a cliff isn’t a day-to-day event. However, when such emergencies do occur it is up to people who volunteer to help. We are all busy and we all have other priorities — jobs, children, etc. But volunteer- ing your time for any event or agency — such as search and rescue — isn’t just the right thing to do but a noble endeavor. Communities across the region need more volunteers, more people that choose to step forward and help out their communities. Sure, devoting a chunk of time to the community isn’t easy. It takes commitment and courage. But, in the end, volunteering is a rewarding act that pays off. GUEST COMMENT Rural advocacy calls for creativity I n 1900, roughly 60 percent of Americans lived in a rural set- ting. The results of the most recent U.S. Census, conducted in 2010, show that number has sunk to less than 20 percent. A recent study from the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire found that of 746 counties across the nation experi- encing depopulation, 91 percent of them are rural. When the results of the next decennial census (just around the corner) are in, we’ll likely see that the trend of rural population decline continues. These changing rural demo- graphics underscore how import- ant it is for rural residents — farmers, ranchers and others — to engage with their legislators and build relationships. In the legisla- ture itself, fewer and fewer law- makers represent the interests of rural communities. That is why they sometimes band together in voting blocs to ensure that the concerns of their rural constitu- ents are addressed. For grassroots advocates in rural America, engaging with urban lawmakers who have lit- tle or no rural ties is challenging. There is no perfect solution, but some organizations have made great progress. One example is the University of Arizona’s “AdvoCats” program (the school mascot is the Wildcat). As the state’s land-grant institu- tion, the traditional base of sup- port in the state legislature came from rural lawmakers who were farmers and ranchers. In recent years, there have been just a hand- ful of such legislators at the state capitol in Phoenix. That is why the AdvoCats got creative a few years ago when engaging lawmakers who weren’t their typical base of support. Most grassroots associations host one advocacy day a year at the legislature. The AdvoCats hosted one every week. Each Wednesday became known as “Wildcat Wednesday” at the state capitol, during which a handful of trained advocates accompanied government relations staff to tar- geted meetings with lawmakers. The AdvoCats didn’t rely on the same people either, but instead built each week around a specific constituency who could deliver the same message, but from a dif- ferent perspective. One week included AdvoCats who were par- ents of students. Another was stu- dents, then alumni and finally community partners. The AdvoCats were success- ful in 2016, when university offi- cials made plans to start the state’s first public school of veterinary medicine. The AdvoCats deep- mined their network to find out- side voices to express support at the capitol, including a pediatri- cian who visited with legislators and discussed the intersection of animal-borne diseases and human medicine. By the end of the session, more than 100 advocates had completed 500 volunteer hours in legislative meetings during nine consecutive weeks at the state capitol. But the work didn’t begin during the legislative session. In the summer and fall of 2015, the AdvoCats hosted a series of backyard barbecues to meet with legislators in their hometowns. Through this series of events, they found supporters who would open their homes as hosts and help iden- tify alumni, unaffiliated individ- uals and local elected leaders in the community. Legislators were invited as the guests of honor. The university president gave a short talk about what the insti- tution was doing in the commu- nity (as a land grant, this primar- ily centered on the Cooperative Extension mission), then the law- makers gave brief updates on their work. Guests were able to spend time mingling in a relaxed set- ting, far from the distractions of the capitol. These events served multiple purposes. First, they allowed the university to build relationships with lawmakers outside of the capitol setting. Second, they gave lawmakers a chance to engage with constituents who had a stake in the future of the univer- sity, despite minimal ties between that district and campus. Finally, advocacy staff from the univer- sity were able to network with and identify new individuals to become future advocates. This is just one example of how an organization with an advocacy program is thinking out- side the box to meet the challenge of increasingly urbanized legisla- tive bodies. There will never be a silver-bullet solution, but as urban populations swell, rural advocates at Farm Bureau and other orga- nizations who dedicate their time and innovate as they build grass- roots coalitions will be successful. Michael Sistak is director of grassroots program development at the American Farm Bureau Federation. Michael Sistak is director, grassroots program development, at the American Farm Bureau Federation. GUEST COMMENT Coordination ordinance must be modified to be legal T La Grande Rural Fire Protection District Photo Union County Search and Rescue and La Grande Rural Fire Protection District used illumination from car headlights to rescue Jacki Mulhair, who had fallen 86 feet at Indian Rock Overlook on top of Mt. Emily outside of La Grande. Blue Mountain EAGLE USPS 226-340 Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper Email: www.MyEagleNews.com Phone: 541-575-0710 John Day, Oregon he Grant County Court should publicly address two matters as it readies its “coordination ordinance.” First, the court should clearly describe how this ordinance falls within the “matters of county concern” state law permits it to exercise authority over (ORS 203.035). This will include mak- ing county counsel’s opinion about the matter public. Chances are that as drafted the ordinance is legally invalid because federal law preempts it. Or legally useless because it doesn’t add anything new to existing law to avoid fed- eral preemption. Hence the court should explain how the ordinance is legally valid and useful. Second, as required by state law, the court should explicitly address county ordinances that pertain to the subject matter under consideration. Measures 10 and 12-38 are two such measures. Measure 10 was approved by voters in 1995. It refuses “to rec- ognize federal authority over any land not listed in Article I, Sec- tion 8, Clause 17 of the U.S. Constitution.” U.S. Forest Ser- vice and BLM lands are not listed therein. Therefore, the pro- posed ordinance cannot legally “establish coordination between the county and federal agen- cies” until the court recognizes the authority of these agencies to manage Forest Service and BLM lands within Grant County. The court will have to invalidate or otherwise amend Measure 10 to permit this. Measure 12-38 was approved by voters in 2002. It authorizes citizens to “participate in stew- ardship of natural resources on public lands within the county” per Grant County’s Custom and Culture document. As described therein, this “participation” is not subject to county court, USFS, or BLM authority. Therefore, the proposed ordinance cannot legally “establish coordination between the county and federal agencies” until our stewardship rights have been extinguished or modified by the county court. It will have to invalidate or otherwise amend Measure 12-38 to permit this. Addressing these matters responsibly will put the county court in a better position to approve the proposed coordina- tion ordinance. It will also instill greater confidence among the public that it is putting county resources to good use rather than catering to a misinformed and vocal minority. Mark Webb Resident Mt. 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No part of this publica- tion covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, taping or informa- tion storage and retrieval systems — without written permission of the publisher. www.facebook.com/ @MyEagleNews LETTER TO THE EDITOR Grant County warm and welcoming To the Editor: My daughter Tammy and her husband, David Hoherz, moved from North Dakota and purchased their new ranch just three miles east of Dayville and are raising Black Angus cattle. David is a real cowboy, and Tammy is a rancher’s wife, sci- ence teacher and photographer. As her father, I travel the coun- try in my RV filming and photo- graphing wildlife and landscapes. Recently I filmed and photo- graphed Dayville’s Fourth of July celebration from the ground and the air to help promote the town as I did for the small town I lived in North Dakota. This 18 minute video/pho- tos can be seen on my web- site at americaalloveragain. com/oregon-1 and at vimeo. com/346544305. Since July 13, the video has been viewed over 900 times in 16 different states indicating that the people in and around Dayville have a following. I have found the townfolk, including those in Grant County, warm and have welcomed my kids into their community with grace and overwhelming friendliness. On a lighter note I came from Grant County, North Dakota — small world. I will leave soon but will be back for sure as I can now call Grant County and Dayville, Ore- gon, my new home. Gregory Bruce Dayville
