A2
FAMILY
Blue Mountain Eagle
GRANT UNION STUDENTS OF
THE MONTH — NOVEMBER
OTEC member-owners to receive
$3.5 million in capital credits
Blue Mountain Eagle
Grade 12
Cierra Wyllie
Parents: Layton
and Kari Wyllie
Grade 11
Noah Blood
Parents: Will and
Dorothy Blood
Grade 10
Paige Weaver
Parents: Jarrod
and Janine Weaver
Grade 9
Amelia Hall
Parents: David
and Alicia Hall
Grade 8
Aliciana Archibald
Parents: David and
Camilla Archibald
Grade 7
Heidi Jackson
Parents: Layne and
Janelle Jackson
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Oregon Trail Elec-
tric Cooperative’s board
of directors has approved
the retirement of $3.5 mil-
lion in capital credits to its
members, the second-high-
est amount OTEC has ever
returned.
“I am extremely pleased
that OTEC has financial
strength to be able to retire
capital credits for the 23rd
consecutive year,” said
Anthony Bailey, OTEC’s
chief financial officer.
“Co-ops exist to make sure
the needs of their members
are being met, not to make
a profit.”
member-owner’s
share
of margins earned during
the year. At the close of
the year, after all operat-
ing expenses have been
paid, remaining margins
are allocated to each mem-
ber’s capital credits account
based on the amount of ser-
vices purchased during the
year.
These capital cred-
its become each mem-
ber’s “owners’ equity” and
investment in OTEC.
Capital credits reduce
the cooperative’s need to
borrow for plant upgrades
or additions. OTEC uses the
capital credits for a period
of time before returning
Capital credits retire-
ments are one of the more
visible benefits of member-
ship in an electric cooper-
ative. Returns of less than
$15 are applied to the mem-
ber’s account to reduce
their December bill. Mem-
bers with greater amounts
receive a check in the mail.
Since OTEC first began
retiring
capital
cred-
its in 1996, the co-op has
returned $43 million to
member-owners. The $3.5
million returned to mem-
ber-owners beginning in
December equates to more
than 4% of all the capital
credits balances on file.
Capital credits are each
them back to the members.
By maintaining an equity
level recommended by our
lenders, OTEC benefits
from lower borrowing rates
and ensures the cooperative
remains financially stable
into the future to serve its
member’s needs.
Since the 1990s, OTEC
has returned capital credits
when financially possible.
Unlike an investor-owned
utility, which returns a por-
tion of profits back to their
stockholders,
nonprofit
cooperatives like OTEC
allocate and periodically
return those funds back to
the member-owners of the
cooperative.
BEO Bancorp announces dividend for 2019
Blue Mountain Eagle
Prairie City honor roll
— first nine weeks
Seniors
Freshmen
Honor roll (3.5-4.0
GPA):
JoLynne
Ash-
ley, Shaelynn Bice, Aleah
Johns, Johna Long, Kaden
Madden, Madalyn Way,
Cole Deiter and Rilee
Emmel.
Honorable
mention
(3.0-3.49 GPA): Shaine
Madden, Carson McKay,
Emily
Ennis,
Jacob
McClung, Opie McDan-
iel, Lucas McKinley,
Abby Winegar, Jacob
McHatton and Austin
Catron.
Honor roll: Kaitlynne
Ashley, Laken McKay, Leif
Rausch and Paige Shaw.
Honorable
mention:
Cole Teel, BettyAnn Wil-
son, Boe Workman and
Dalli Girvin.
Juniors
Honor roll: Brandon
Horrell, Caitlin Willet,
Declan Zweygardt, Aries
Bice, Katie Hire, Jayden
Winegar and Samantha
Workman.
Honorable
mention:
Abbey Pfefferkorn, Tan-
ner Way, Tristan McMa-
han, Jesaka Culley, Jayda
Dubois and Kevin Duvall.
Sophomores
Honor roll: Marcus
Judd, Seth Moore and Han-
nah Wall.
Honorable
mention:
Masyn Keith.
Eighth-graders
Honor roll: Cliff Bice,
Wes Voigt, Porsche Kite,
Tristen Gibson, Cayden
Howard, Brooke Teel and
Jaycee Winegar.
Honorable
mention:
Cody Reagan, Kyler Shaw,
McKenzie Lawrence, Fran-
cisco Beam, Lane Clark
and Zach Montwheeler.
Seventh-graders
Honor
roll:
Reece
Jacobs, Tamara Judd, Eric
Rausch, Josie Horrell,
Clyde Holliday, Eli Hinkle,
Lilly Rockhill, Addisen
Saul and Gracie Voigt.
Honorable
mention:
Skylar McKay, Zoey Beam,
Hagen Workman and Pres-
ton Davis.
BEO Bancorp has
declared a $0.90 per share
dividend for 2019.
Shareholders of record
as of Dec. 2 should
receive the dividend by
Dec. 16, according to
CEO Jeff Bailey.
Board Chairman Joel
In a Dec. 4 letter to the editor from Dave Traylor, the Eagle
inadvertently made an error while typing that changed the text
to “state cop’s hate” in the last sentence. As submitted, the let-
ter reads “state cop’s hat.” The Eagle regrets the error.
the overall strength of
the bank, add value to
our shareholders, as well
as provide the brand of
banking that our custom-
ers appreciate and expect
from Bank of Eastern
Oregon.”
For more information,
visit beobank.com.
Merkley opens Eastern Oregon field office in Baker City
Blue Mountain Eagle
Oregon’s U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
has opened an Eastern Oregon field
office in Baker City, which will serve
as the local point of contact for Ore-
gonians in Grant, Morrow, Umatilla,
Union, Wallowa, Malheur and Baker
counties.
The move from Pendleton to The
Baker Tower comes after Merk-
ley had a new staffer, Jessica Keys,
join his team as Eastern Oregon field
representative.
“It is important to me that every
region in our state has a local office to
field questions and information, and
local staff to be out and available in
our communities,” Merkley said. “I’m
glad we’re opening our doors to this
new, centrally located office.”
The new office is located at The
Baker Tower, 1705 Main St., Suite
504, Baker City, OR 97814.
The phone number is 541-278-1129. U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley at a Grant County town hall.
Eagle file photo
High Desert Cattle Company joins American Angus Association
Blue Mountain Eagle
CORRECTION
shareholders.”
This year’s dividend
is 5.88% higher than last
year’s $0.85 dividend.
“It is indicative of
Bank of Eastern Oregon’s
strong capital position,”
Bailey said. “The board
of directors and employ-
ees work hard to improve
Peterson said BEO Ban-
corp has paid a divi-
dend 33 of the past 34
years.
“Dividends reflect the
financial stability and
profitability of the bank,”
he said. “We are very
happy to be able to pro-
vide this dividend to our
High Desert Cattle Com-
pany of Canyon City is a
new member of the Amer-
ican Angus Association,
reports Mark McCully,
CEO of the national breed
records include detailed
information on over 19 mil-
lion registered Angus.
The association records
ancestral information and
keeps production records
and genomic data on indi-
vidual animals to develop
industry-leading
selec-
tion tools for its members.
The programs and services
of the association and its
organization headquartered
in Saint Joseph, Missouri.
The American Angus
Association, with more
than 25,000 active adult and
junior members, is the larg-
est beef breed association in
the world. Its computerized
NILS KENNETH AMES
Nils Kenneth Ames, a man of many musical talents, went to join the big band in the sky on December 2, 2019. 
He passed in the presence of his wife and family in his home in Joseph, Oregon. A memorial service will be
held at 2:00 PM on December 14, 2019 at the Thunder Room in Joseph, Oregon.
entities — Angus Genet-
ics Inc., Angus Produc-
tions Inc., Certified Angus
Beef LLC and the Angus
Foundation — help mem-
bers to advance the beef
cattle business by selecting
the best animals for their
herds and marketing qual-
ity genetics for the beef cat-
tle industry and quality beef
for consumers.
Nils was a man who lived his life to the fullest and had a profound effect on the lives of those around
him.   He was born on June 20, 1930 in Milwaukie, OR.  He graduated from Milwaukie High School in 1948. 
During high school he found his love for skiing and music.  After high school he spent one year at the
University of Oregon as a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity.  He served as a member of the Mt. Hood
Ski Patrol, as well as the ski team.  He enlisted in the Air Force on March 31st, 1949 and served in the Korean
War.  While in the military he spent time stationed in Austin, Texas where he played with Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys.  Once
home from the war he played music with many notable musicians such as; BB King, Rose Maddox and the Maddox Brothers, and
The Drifters.  He shared his love of music with all he met and especially his family. 
While he was a member of The Drifters, he met the love of his life Shelia.  They met and married in six weeks and celebrated
their 51st wedding anniversary this July.  Nils was above all a man who loved his family.  Nils moved to Joseph, OR with his young
family in 1980.  While in Wallowa County he was a member of many bands, including Psalms 150 his family gospel band.   He
served as a member of the Shriners and VFW.  He drove school bus for the Joseph School Dist. and Moffett Bros. Transportation. 
During his time as a bus driver he made an impact on many of the students, teachers, and parents who rode his bus.  Nils was
famous for his shenanigans at the school.  Whether it was short sheeting the beds while traveling to a state tournament or
making surprise announcements over the loudspeaker, Nils infused fun into everything he did.  His smile, jokes, and kindness for
everyone will be greatly missed. 
Survivors include his wife Shelia Ames; brother, Michael Binns; his son, Robert Ames and wife Laurie; his daughters Kimberly
(Ames) McManus and husband Edward, and Kjer (Ames) Kizer and husband Kristopher; and his grandchildren, Emma McManus,
Hollis, and AnnMarie Kizer. 
He was preceded in death by his parents Loretta Elizabeth Kier and Kenneth Ames.  
The family would like to offer special thanks to the EMS crew, the Volunteer Fire Department, Dr. G. Maly and the many others
who have assisted in his care.  In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Joseph Fire Department, Shriner’s Children’s
Hospital, or the charity of your choice through Gray’s West & Company at 1500 Dewey Avenue, Baker City, OR 97814. 
To light a candle in memory of Nils, or to leave a condolence for the family, visit: www.grayswestco.com.
Paid for by the Family of Nils Kenneth Ames.
S158853-1
Last Week’s Temps
John Day ...........................................................HI/LO
Tuesday ........................................................... 49/32
Wednesday ..................................................... 48/29
Thursday .......................................................... 41/28
Friday ............................................................... 44/31
Saturday .......................................................... 44/36
Sunday ............................................................. 42/36
Monday............................................................ 43/35
24/7 F ORECAST
A UTOMATED : 541-575-1122
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Youth Programs Calendar - December Events
Best Christmas Pageant Ever: Friday, December 13, 7:00 PM (opening
night) & Saturday, December 14, 2:00 PM (matinee) at the Canyon City
Community Hall. A cute, funny holiday pageant for the entire family, brought
to you by the Youth Arts Program. Tickets may be purchased at the door.
Music Lessons: See paintedskycenter.com/music-lessons for more info or
to register. Music lesson punch cards available to purchase. Give the gift of
music lessons this holiday season.
Arts After School & Friday Art Club: Ongoing; see more at
Paintedskycenter.com/Kids-Art. Wait lists enabled; with enough interest we
will look at starting additional classes.
Youth Arts Program: Program will continue, with other projects upcoming.
See paintedskycenter.com to enroll, or email
Sponsored by:
grantcountyYAP@gmail.com for more information.
For more info or to register visit paintedskycenter.com
or email paintedskycenter@gmail.com.
S158905-1
W EATHER F ORECAST FOR THE WEEK OF D EC . 11-17
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snow
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sunny
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