Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 27, 2019)
NEWS Blue Mountain Eagle Officer Continued from Page A1 to help people at difficult moments in their lives. “When we get called, a lot of times people are having the worst day or worst month pos- sible, and it ends with us being called,” Stinnett said. During his start at JDPD, he received a call of domestic violence. Since he was new at the time and he was told ter- rible stuff about the situation, he sought advice from Chief Mike Durr and asked for somebody from Oregon State Police to accompany him for the interview. “There were a lot of crimes that had happened in that household, and we had proof that these crimes happened,” Stinnett said. “I remember we were at the door, we were get- ting ready to go in. My mind was racing on the scenarios. Does he have a knife? Is he going to open the door? Does he have a gun? Will he take off?” They knocked on the door, and to their surprise, the sus- pect let them in with no alter- cation. They arrested the sus- Scams Continued from Page A1 and she told me that she was living with an abu- sive uncle in Florida and wanted to leave him,” Kalteich said. “She wanted me to buy her a bus ticket so she could leave her uncle in Florida and live with a cousin in Savannah, Georgia.” Kalteich sent $220 to the woman. A majority of the money that he sent was through gift cards from Amazon, Ebay and iTunes. As time went on, Kalte- ich and Flourence mes- saged each other daily and built a trust. At one point, they planned on meet- ing at a Greyhound station in Savannah, Georgia, he said. pect and then sent him to jail while the victim began a new life out of an abusive relation- ship that went on for 12 years. “There is a lot of train- ing we go through for domes- tic violence because it’s a dif- ferent mindset that someone gets in,” Stinnett said. “When people say, ‘You should just leave,’ it’s not that simple. For us to get there and help a vic- tim get out of an abusive rela- tionship they can’t get out of themselves is great.” That was the first case of domestic violence he worked on. He sometime sees the per- son he helped on that call, and she always gives him a big thank you. Another part of the job Stinnett enjoys is trying to keep the community clean and keep drugs out. Metham- phetamine seems to be the most popular illegal drug in the city, according to Stinnett. While the efforts of JDPD, OSP and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office have made the issue less prominent, it’s still a problem. In the year and a half that Stinnett has served JDPD, he has dealt with one case of meth. Kalteich bought a plane ticket and traveled to meet with Flourence. Flourence never showed up and mes- sages sent to her were ignored. Kalteich returned home knowing he was scammed. Soon after he returned home from Geor- gia, he received a message from Flourence explaining why she couldn’t make it to the Greyhound. “She told me that she was at a wedding in another town and couldn’t meet me,” Kalteich said. “I don’t know why I believed her, but this woman had me convinced that she was going to marry me. So I gave her money through Amazon gift cards so she can fly to Portland from Savannah and I would pick her up. She never showed up.” One of the toughest parts of the job is dealing with people who are in a mental health cri- sis, he said. “You have to say things just right,” Stinnett said. “It’s not like someone on drugs or someone who is drunk, but that is why we have have the fantastic people from CCS who can help us out.” Toward the beginning of his career in the JDPD, they received a call from some- one who was attempting to cut their own wrists. Driving to the scene, he was think- ing about what might happen. “Hope for the best and expect the worst,” he said. “We get there and we had already called an ambulance to head up in that direction,” Stinnett said. “The owner of the house opens the door and said, ‘She’s in there,’ and she runs out. The suicidal per- son had a knife on her, and that right there was a tough situation because she has a weapon but she is not being threatening.” The officers talked her down and convinced her to drop the knife. She was taken to the hospital, and Stinnett rode in the ambulance with Leslie Traylor, a new account customer service representative who works at the Bank of Eastern Oregon in John Day, advises people to avoid giving any kind of information to these scam- mers. Any information will help them access more per- sonal data. “Never give any infor- mation such as bank account numbers, card numbers, social security or any per- sonal information whether (they claim to) be the IRS calling you or Social Secu- rity,” Traylor said. “(The actual agencies) usually send letters to get in touch with people and won’t be calling.” Traylor also mentioned how important it is for card- holders to check their bank statements every month to make sure there are no sus- picious activities or money Wednesday, November 27, 2019 her. They assessed her to see what would be the best way to help her. “It’s a long process after that experience to get some- one healthy,” Stinnett said. While tough, dark moments can happen while serving in the JDPD, Stinnett makes sure he keeps his sense of humor to continue working with a posi- tive mindset. “It’s not a requirement, but you need to have a sense of humor because you can go through some dark stuff in this job,” Stinnett said. “You gotta still think positive because otherwise things are just dark and bleak. Dealing with a suicide is a hard thing to deal with, but you gotta stay focused and do your job and do what has to be done.” As the ride along was ending, nobody was pulled over and there were no calls to report to, but Stinnett expressed his joy in his job and the time he has to serve the community. “It’s an awesome job with awesome people,” he said. “I’ve lived here forever, and it’s good to see that the county is being upgraded, and I like all the change that’s happening.” missing from their account. “If you notice that any money is missing from your account, immediately notify your bank about the money missing,” Tray- lor said. “There is usually a time limit of 60 days to recover the money that was stolen. The card that is tied to the account will then be canceled.” Unfortunately, people who pay scammers through gift cards can’t get their money back. Kalteich is embar- rassed that he has lost over $25,000 from these scam- mers, but he wants people to hear his story so they avoid losing money like he did. “This is a sad story and I’m not very proud of it, but it’s easy for scammers to hook people and continue on,” Kalteich said. “Never Careers Continued from Page A1 University — Cascades (Bend), Blue Mountain Community College (Pendle- ton) and Eastern Oregon University (La Grande) were also on hand to share their degree offerings in the health care field. Some high school students taking a col- lege-level health class were able to utilize the event toward their college credit. “We hope that we made connections between our youth and careers in the health field available here in our community,” said OSU Open Campus Coordinator Didgette McCracken, who organized the event with Blue Mountain Hospital Public Relations Director Jena Knowles. The organizers said they plan to make the activity an annual event in the fall. Knowles said it was a great success with a majority of the local health care careers represented. “One of my favorite parts of the day was listening to the panel of local grad- uates,” she said. “All their stories about their career paths were so relatable for the students.” “We are really lucky to have so many health care resources here in our community, and everyone is more than willing to let stu- dents pick their brains, job shadow, whatever it takes to help them start thinking about their future,” Knowles said. “I would absolutely encourage students to take advantage of that opportunity.” accept any calls or text mes- sages from people you don’t know or have never met.” Mike Durr, chief of the John Day Police Depart- ment, said that many scam- mers call from different states and countries, which makes them difficult to track down. Scammers also change phone numbers reg- ularly and are always on the move. When contacting peo- ple, scammers will do their homework in learning about the person they are calling. “They do their home- work, especially if you have a Facebook (account) or any kind of social media,” Durr said. “They will use that per- sonal information found on social media to sound legit- imate and gain trust with the person they’re calling.” One factor that motivates scammers to continue call- ing people is the fact that it only takes one person to make a payday. “Scammers only have to get one or two people, and they make a couple hun- dred dollars in an hour,” said Durr. “It’s not about how many people they trick, it’s about how much they can get out of a person.” If a phone call sounds too good to be true or sounds suspicious, then it’s proba- bly a scam. The police department verified that the IRS will never call by phone, and while the Social Security Administration may call under very select circum- stances, it would not call someone on a first attempt who was not expecting communications from the agency. After Thanksgiving REPORTER The Blue Mountain Eagle, a family-owned weekly newspaper in a stunningly beautiful Oregon community, seeks an energetic, dedicated reporter. The Eagle is located in John Day, where seeing deer in front yards is normal and traffic is unheard of, just three hours from Bend and Pendleton. Surrounded by scenic forests and dissected by mountain streams, the location offers year-round recreational opportunities, including fishing, hunting, backpacking, camping, snowmobiling and horseback riding. Despite the picturesque environment, the community is at the center of an evolving natural resource restoration economy, which gains statewide and even national attention. ay One D Only! Despite the small-town charm, the residents are engaged and politically active in local and national debates, and hard-hitting stories are never hard to find. Ongoing topics include state and federal policies, forest health, logging, public lands grazing, water supply, wildlife habitat improvements and wildfire resilience, in addition to coverage of small-town life and local government. The position offers a wealth of breaking news and enterprise opportunities. Serving the community for more than 150 years, the Eagle is the oldest weekly newspaper in Oregon and is part of EO Media Group, an award- winning and innovative news organization with an active family of owners. This position offers excellent advancement opportunities in a company that prefers to hire from within. EO Media Group owns 14 newspapers and journals that provide accurate, fair and timely reporting about the people and issues impacting the communities we serve in the Pacific Northwest, reflecting the responsibility and spirit of a free press. We seek a journalist who is passionate about local news and excited about the opportunity to publish in print, online and through social media. Candidates must be able to develop story ideas, take photographs, develop sources, prepare website and social media updates and work in a cooperative team environment. Journalistic integrity is a must. Journalism education or experience is required for this full-time position offering insurances, a 401(k)/401(k) Roth retirement plan and paid time off (PTO). Send resume, letter of interest and up to five clips to EO Media Group, P.O. Box 2048, Salem, OR 97308-2048; by fax to (503) 371-2935 or by email to hr@eomediagroup.com. 195 N. Canyon Blvd. John Day, Oregon S152140-1 135210 Monday Madness Sale Gift Subscription or New Subscriber ONE YEAR - $10 OFF (Must Mention Monday Madness) DECEMBER 2 CALL 541-575-0710 9 A.M. TO 5 P.M. STOP BY 195 N CANYON BLVD. JOHN DAY Credit card, cash or check payment must be received by 5 p.m., DEC. 2 to receive discount. Not valid with any other offers. This offer is good for NON-SUBSCRIBERS who have not had the Eagle in the last 12 months. Offer expires at 5 p.m. Monday, DEC. 2, 2019 S152745-1 A12
