A2
NEWS
Blue Mountain Eagle
LOCAL BRIEFING
ODFW opens stamp art contest
Blue Mountain Eagle
SALEM — The Ore-
gon Department of Fish and
Wildlife is putting out a call
to artists for its 2023 wild-
life art contest.
Artists are invited to sub-
mit artwork to be used in
producing collectible stamps
and other promotional items
that will be sold to bene-
fi t Oregon fi sh, wildlife and
habitat.
There are three catego-
ries, and the winner in each
one will receive a $2,000
prize. Detailed information
on contest rules is available
online at www.dfw.state.
or.us/.
Entries for the habitat con-
servation stamp should depict
an eligible species from the
Oregon Conservation Strat-
egy in its natural habitat.
Waterfowl stamp entries
must feature the greater scaup
in its natural habitat, and
entries for the upland game
bird stamp must feature the
mountain quail in a natural
setting.
ODFW will begin accept-
ing entries for the 2023
stamp contest on Aug. 26,
with the deadline to submit
at 5 p.m. Sept. 30. Entries
may be mailed or hand-de-
livered to Oregon Depart-
ment of Fish and Wildlife
headquarters, 4034 Fairview
Industrial Drive, Salem, OR
97302.
Deadline Feb. 4 for NRCS easements
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — The
Natural Resources Con-
servation Service, a U.S.
Department of Agriculture
program, is accepting appli-
cations for agricultural land
easements.
The easements apply to
cropland, rangeland, pas-
ture, grassland and non-in-
dustrial private forest lands
and are intended to preserve
productive agricultural lands
from non-agricultural use.
Applications
are
accepted on an ongoing
basis, but to be considered
for fi scal year 2022 funding,
they should be submitted by
Feb. 4.
For more information,
see the NRCS Oregon web-
site at or.nrcs.usda.gov or
visit the program’s John
Day offi ce at 721 S. Canyon
Blvd.
Student earns bachelor’s degree
Blue Mountain Eagle
FREDERICK,
Mary-
land — Destiny Fair-
less of John Day gradu-
ated from Hood College in
January with a bachelor’s
degree in history, the college
announced.
Hood College is an inde-
pendent liberal arts institu-
tion in Frederick, Maryland.
DEATH NOTICES
Thomas Lee Griffi th
Thomas Lee Griffi th died Jan. 21, 2022, at his home in The
Dalles, with family by his side. Tom was born March 1, 1940,
and was 81 years of age at the time of his passing. Arrange-
ments are under the direction of Anderson’s Tribute Center
Celilo Chapel, 204 E. Fourth St., The Dalles, OR 97058. Visit
www.AndersonsTributeCenter.com to leave a note of condo-
lence for the family.
Thelma “Beth” Elizabeth Dunkelberger
December 4, 1944 ~ January 10, 2022
Thelma “Beth”  Elizabeth Dun-
kelberger, 77, of John Day, Ore-
gon, passed away on January 10,
2022, at her residence in Valley
View Assisted Living.  A private
family service will be held in the
spring or summer of 2022 in
Summerville, Oregon.
Beth was born in Prairie City,
Oregon, on December 4, 1944,
to George “Mick” and Lucille
“Lucy” (Justice) Dougharity.  She
had three siblings, Keith “Mick”
Dougharity, Sharon Dougharity,
and Patty Dougharity-Bingaman. 
The family moved to Summerville,
Oregon, and built the house they
all lived in.
Beth was a rodeo princess and graduated high school in Im-
bler, Oregon, in 1964.  After high school, she studied business in
college.  While in college, she met Ray Dunkelberger, and on July
10, 1965, they married.  Beth and Ray had two children, Kelly and
Ken Dunkelberger.
In 1990, Ray and Beth divorced, though they stayed friends.
After the divorce, Beth went back to college and trained to become
a paralegal.  She had a few careers during her life; working at
First Interstate Bank, Standard TV & Appliance,  Bend Memorial
Clinic, and as a paralegal. Beth’s most interesting job was a pri-
vate investigator; she got to wear disguises, and her sister-in-law,
Charlotte Dougharity, got to go on a stakeout with her, and they
had a blast!
When she wasn’t taking care of her family or working, Beth
liked to paint and make quilts.  She also took pride in volunteer-
ing at Toy-n-Joy in Portland for 20 years.
Beth adored her grandchildren, Cody, born in 1992, and Ka-
trina, born in 1997.  They called her Gram or “G.”
She is survived by her children Kelly (Dereck) Dunkelberger
Ivey of Bend, Oregon and Ken Dunkelberger of Portland, Oregon;
grandchildren Katrina Ivey and Cody Ivey of Bend, Oregon; sis-
ter Patty (Russel)  Dougharity Bingaman; sister-in-law Charlotte
Dougharity. She is also survived by her nieces and nephews, Mick
Dougharity, Keith Dougharity, Cindy Dougharity-Spencer, Shaun
Bingaman, Cheryl Bingaman, and Austin Bingaman.
Beth was preceded in death by her parents, George “Mick” and
Lucille “Lucy” Dougharity, and two of her siblings, Mick Doughar-
ity and Sharon Dougharity Stace.
To leave an online condolence for the family of Beth, please
visit: www.driskillmemorialchapel.com. Paid for by the family of
Thelma Dunkelberger.
S278662-1
County modifi es tracing policy
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — The Grant
County Health Department
is modifying its contact trac-
ing procedures for COVID-
19 exposure.
In the face of soaring
positive test results from
the omicron surge, the state
recently changed its guide-
lines. Instead of tasking con-
tact tracers with notifying
everyone who may have been
exposed to someone who has
COVID-19, they are now
being asked to reach out only
to close contacts who are edu-
cators, frontline workers,
workers in congregate care
centers and health care staff .
While acknowledging the
reason for those changes,
Grant County has chosen to
continue reaching out to other
close contacts as time per-
mits, according to County
Judge Scott Myers.
The goal of contact trac-
ing is to limit the spread of
COVID-19 by identifying
people who may have been
exposed to the disease and
advising them on the need
to get tested and possibly
self-quarantine.
Kimberly Lindsay, the
county’s public health admin-
istrator, told the Eagle part of
the reason why the county is
choosing to go in a diff erent
direction is that most people
24/7 F ORECAST
A UTOMATED : 541-575-1122
R OAD CONDITIONS : 511; TRIPCHECK . COM
NOAA W EATHER R ADIO FOR J OHN D AY
162.500 MHz
Steven Mitchell/Blue Mountain Eagle, File
Jessica Winegar, Grant County Health Department’s clinic manager, works on her computer in this
2020 photo.
would want to know if they
were a close contact of some-
one who tested positive for
the virus before visiting their
99-year-old grandmother.
Myers said if the increase
in positive cases continues,
it would only make sense to
focus limited contact tracing
resources on frontline work-
ers, educators, health care
staff , and congregate care
workers and then — as time
allows — reach out to others.
In the meantime, Lindsay
said, the abuse, uncooperative
behavior and open hostility the
county’s contact tracers experi-
enced back in November had
largely died down.
While Lindsay was not sure
what to attribute the shift in tone
to, Myers said he believes peo-
ple in the community are likely
becoming more aware that the
virus is real and that they could
become infected or exposed and
want to hear what the Health
Department has to say.
Maybe the abusers felt that
they spoke their minds and did
not need to repeat themselves,
Myers added. Or perhaps the
contact tracers stopped calling
the homes of the abusers.
“Maybe they made note
that (calling an abusive per-
son) was not a pleasant experi-
ence, and they probably won’t
call them back,” he said. “I
don’t know how (Health
Department workers) fi gure
out who they’re going to call
again. Some people appreciate
it, and some people don’t.”
MNF makes fi rewood for personal use free
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — Cutting
fi rewood for personal use
is now free on the Malheur
National Forest.
Under new rules that took
eff ect Jan. 18, area residents can
now obtain free permits to cut
up to eight cords of fi rewood
per household as long as it’s
not for resale, Malheur offi cials
announced in a news release.
Participants in the free use
program must have a valid
permit, fi rewood tags, a map
and a copy of forest regula-
tions on hand when collecting
or transporting fi rewood on
the forest.
Commercial permits will
still be available for individ-
uals who wish to resell fi re-
wood. The regional minimum
rate for commercial use per-
mits remains unchanged at
$5 per cord, with a four-cord
minimum and an eight-cord
household maximum.
Permits and tags for both
the free and commercial
fi rewood programs can be
obtained by calling any Mal-
heur National Forest offi ce
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Monday-Friday. The number
is (541)-575-3000 for the John
Day offi ce, (541)-820-3800
for Prairie City or (541)-573-
4300 for Hines.
Eagle fi le photo
The Malheur National Forest’s proposed Cliff Knox Project aims
to make 40,000 acres of forest in Grant and Harney counties
more resistant to catastrophic wildfi res.
Eastern Oregon workers commuting more
By ALEX WITTWER
EO Media Group
EASTERN OREGON —
Over a third of Eastern Ore-
gon’s workforce commuted
across county lines for their
jobs in 2019, according to fed-
eral census data.
In some areas, that percent-
age is even higher.
“It’s a product of the econ-
Michael Frank Harer
May 24, 1949 ~ January 14, 2022
Michael Frank Harer was born May
24, 1949, up the North Fork of the John
Day River near Ukiah, Oregon to Frank
Stephen Harer and Edith Rose Harer. He
joined an older sister, Stephanie Rose.
The family lived on the river many years
prior to moving to Dale, Oregon.
Mike graduated from Ukiah High
School in 1967. In July of 1968 he en-
listed in the U.S. Army and served until
1974. Mike loved his county, he served 3
tours in Vietnam. Mike attained the rank
of Sp-5. He was awarded the Bronze Star
and the Army Commendation Medal.
Mike was a cowboy all his life, even competing in area rodeos
riding bareback horses. He loved horses and mastered many. He
always had a pitch stump burning in the woods whether he was
hunting, camping or fishing.
Mike worked cattle for many years on ranches in Oregon and
Nevada. He also spent many years working in the woods, cutting
logs and driving log truck.
In 1980, he married Holly Jo Beers and adopted her two small
sons, Kelly and Jaime. They also had one son together, Christo-
pher. They later divorced.
Survivors include sons, Kelly Harer (Sherry) of Oklahoma, Jai-
me Harer (Valerie) of Oregon, and Christopher Harer (Bekky) of
Texas. Six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
Memorial contributions may be made to Ukiah Rodeo or a lo-
cal VFW.
A memorial service will be held at a later date. Paid for by the
family of Michael Harer.
S278946-1
Last Week’s Temps
John Day ...........................................................HI/LO
Wednesday ..................................................... 42/35
Thursday .......................................................... 46/34
Friday ............................................................... 41/28
Saturday .......................................................... 46/28
Sunday ............................................................. 48/30
Monday............................................................ 48/31
Tuesday ........................................................... 46/31
Wednesday, January 26, 2022
omy,” said Christopher Rich,
regional economist with the Ore-
gon Employment Department,
“and places people are and the
jobs that are available, and the
housing market that’s available.”
Roughly 38.5% of Union
County residents commute
for work in a diff erent county,
while 41% of Grant County res-
idents commute for work. In
Umatilla County, 35.8% of res-
idents commute across county
lines for work, while 24.4% of
Wallowa residents commute to
other counties for work.
A staggering 58.7% of Mor-
row County residents work in
other counties, according to the
data.
According to Rich, the data
does not distinguish between
commuters who travel between
counties on a daily basis and
those who might travel for sea-
sonal work such as nurses or
wildland fi refi ghters.
“There’s likely to be some
more long-term commuters
that come in for maybe a sea-
son,” Rich said. “The data
doesn’t specifi cally say that.”
Most of the workers who
cross county lines commute to
neighboring counties, though
a fair few will skip more than
one county, such as living in
Baker and working in Pend-
leton, but that could be due to
imperfect data, according to
Rich, who has been updating
articles on Oregon’s economic
data website, qualityinfo.org,
with data from 2019.
“I think in general, peo-
ple are looking for jobs that fi t
with the skill sets and their life-
style,” Rich said. “They’re also
looking for homes that fi t the
same thing, so in some cases,
you end up having to commute
a little longer.”
S275587-1
W EATHER F ORECAST FOR THE WEEK OF J AN . 26-F EB .1
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cloudy
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cloudy
PM snow
showers
AM snow
showers
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24
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