A2
NEWS
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Benefi ts set to help John Day woman
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
MT. VERNON — Two
fundraisers are being held
over the next two months for
a John Day woman waiting
for a new kidney.
At 5 p.m. on Friday, April
1, students from Grant Union
Junior-Senior High School’s
Class of 2026 will hold a taco
feed and bingo night at the
Mt. Vernon Community Hall,
640 Ingle St., with a por-
tion of the proceeds going to
help Jaclyn Clarry get a new
kidney.
The eighth-graders had
previously scheduled the
event to help fund a class trip
to Lincoln City, according to
organizer Heather Rookstool.
However, when the students
learned about Clarry, whose
daughter Natalee is a member
of their class, they told Rook-
stool that they had already
earned enough to cover the
cost of the trip.
“The kids are the ones who
Tanni Wenger Photography Studio/Contributed Photo
The Clarry family: Jaclyn and husband Justin, seated at center,
surrounded by their children, clockwise from top, Tristan, Na-
talee, Ginny and Gavin.
came to me and said, ‘We
want our next fundraiser to go
to them,’” Rookstool said. “It
was a neat moment.”
The proceeds from the
taco feed are going to help the
Clarry family with medical
expenses and related costs,
and the money from the sale
of bingo cards is going to the
Class of 2026.
Grant County residents
Patty Ross and Bonnie Cearns
are organizing a benefi t din-
ner, auction and raffl e for the
Clarry family at 5 p.m. on
May 7 at the John Day Elks
Lodge, 140 NE Dayton St.
For more information or
to donate auction items, call
Cearns at 541-571-3284 or
Ross at 541-620-4841.
In the meantime, Clarry
is still searching for kidney
donor, someone with Type A
or O blood. To fi nd out if you
might qualify, visit mayoc-
linic.org/livingdonor.
Clarry said the community
in Grant County “works mir-
acles” when someone needs
help.
“They are extremely sup-
portive,” she said. “No matter
what the issue is.”
Clarry, a mother of four,
said she was completely taken
aback by the gesture by the
youngsters.
“I was fl oored that they
had even thought about me to
do something like (the bene-
fi t),” she said. “It made me
cry for hours that, you know,
there’s such amazing people
in this community that are
willing to do that for me.”
The family has also started
a GoFundMe account to
help with expenses. Those
who wish to make a dona-
tion can go to https://tinyurl.
com/2yf2whxa.
Street fair mixes business and pleasure
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — Grant
County kicked off the spring
season with the fi rst Friday
Street Fair of the year in down-
town John Day on Friday,
March 25.
The event, held on Dayton
Street just south of Main, was
one of a monthly series of street
fairs that the Oregon Regional
Accelerator & Innovation Net-
work will host in Grant County
communities over the next sev-
eral months.
Zach Denney, the Grant
County venture catalyst for
Oregon RAIN, said the street
fairs will be held on the last
Friday of each month through
September and will rotate
between John Day, Prairie City
and Canyon City.
The next fair will be from 3
to 7 p.m. on April 29 in down-
town Prairie City, followed by
one in the same time slot on
May 27 in downtown Canyon
City, and then it’s back to John
Day in June.
Oregon RAIN is a nonprofi t
organization that goes into a
community and hires a venture
catalyst, a local entrepreneur
February 20, 1952 - January 6, 2022
Steve McKern, age 69 of
Sumpter, Oregon passed away
suddenly at his home on Jan-
uary 6, 2022. A celebration of
life will be held on Friday, May
27th 2022 starting at 1pm at the
Grange in Mt. Vernon (across
from Holiday Park). Food and
coffee will be provided courtesy
of the Snaffle Bit. Come join us
and share some stories.
  Steve was born February
20, 1952, to Melvin (Shorty)
and Marilyn McKern in Canyon City, Oregon. Steve grew up in Mt.
Vernon along with his brother Duane. After graduating from Mt.
Vernon High School, he joined the National Guard, and alongside
his parents built and opened the Arco gas station, which went on
to become McKern’s Texaco. This was known as the hub of Mt.
Vernon, where you would go to get the morning gossip, drink
some coffee and share hunting stories!
Steve was an avid hunter with not only a full curl ram’s head
to show for it, but countless elk and deer stories. He had many
passions; he was at greatest peace in the mountains, just sitting
on a mountain ridge gazing into open mountain space. He loved
jumping on the 4-wheeler and going for a ride just to cut a load of
fire wood or build fence. In the spring you could always find him
out looking for morels!
He loved to go fishing with his buddy Doug or his brother, and
though his granddaughter Raychelle would always out-fish them,
he would always want to go again.
Steve was a jack of all trades, and could fix anything, from
big rigs and lawn mowers to chainsaws and fishing reels; nothing
was too complicated for him. His greatest accomplishment was
building houses and he would always make his home so warm
and inviting, which is exactly what he wanted.
Steve loved to yard sale, rummage sale, and estate sale.
Anything sale-related he was there! He loved to make a deal. He
would buy the strangest things and get the biggest kick out of it.
Steve was an excellent mechanic and a fantastic log truck driv-
er. He loved every aspect of logging. Especially the slash piles he
could burn come spring!
Steve and his ex-wife Denise raised two children, which has
given him five granddaughters and three great-granddaugh-
ters. He is survived by his brother Duane (Lilliana) McKern,
Redmond, OR; daughter Mindy (Ray) Ross, North Pole AK; son
Dusty (Ellen) McKern, Hamilton MT; five beautiful granddaugh-
ters, Alyssa, Raychelle, Haylee, Ashlynn, and Kassidee, and three
great-granddaughters. Nephews Seth, Luke and Gabriel McKern
and two great-nephews. He was a great man, father and friend,
he is greatly missed   
Those who would like to make a donation in memory of Steve
may do so to either the Mt. Vernon (Grant County) or Sumpter
Quick Response Units through Tami’s Pine Valley Funeral Home,
PO Box 543 Halfway, Oregon 97834.  Online condolences may be
shared at www.tamispinevalleyfuneralhome.com. Paid for by the
family of Steve McKern.
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who will connect other entre-
preneurs to various resources,
such as access to capital or
training programs.
The fair, which featured 14
vendors and included a food
truck, saw roughly 200 visitors,
according to Denney. While
music played over a PA system,
people browsed the vendor
booths, sat down at tables to eat
and drink, or played cornhole
in the closed-off street.
Denney said the fair went
better than he had anticipated,
given that events scheduled for
March in Eastern Oregon stand
a chance of having a couple of
inches of snow on the ground.
Denney said the most sig-
nifi cant impact of the Friday
Street Fair is to get people out
in the community to spend
money at local businesses.
Denney said all of Ore-
gon RAIN’s services are free
BIRTHS
Rylan Edward Hicks
Rylan Edward Hicks was born at
5:54 a.m. March 20 in John Day to
Eddy and Jordyn Hicks of Mt. Vernon.
He weighed 6 pounds, 9 ounces, and
measured 19½ inches. Grandparents
are Dean and Barbara Hicks of Can-
yon City and Jason and Becky Johnson
of Butte Falls. Siblings are Paige, 12;
Taylor, 10; and Everleigh, 11 months.
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Applications open for MV scholarships
MT. VERNON — The Mt. Vernon Scholarship Fund is
accepting applications from area students who will finish
high school this year and plan to attend an accredited voca-
tional/technical school, college or university.
Applicants must live within the former Mt. Vernon
School District, bounded by Laycock Creek on the east,
Fields Creek on the west, Malheur National Forest on the
north, and Harper and Ingalls creeks on the south.
The scholarship was established in 2003 by the Mt. Ver-
non High School classes of 1955-59.
Application forms are available from area high school
counselors or by writing Rick Hehn, 7827 Mountain Aire
Loop SE, Olympia, WA 98503.
May 1 is the deadline to apply.
Students can apply for Idaho Youth Rally
BAKER CITY — Applications are being accepted from local
high school students to attend the Idaho Youth Rally, a
summer leadership camp on the campus of the College of
Idaho.
Sponsored by the Idaho Consumer-Owned Utilities
Association, the weeklong camp brings together high
school sophomores from seven Western states to learn
about leadership, government, drug and alcohol issues and
the electric utility industry.
The Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative will provide
scholarships for up to four students from its service terri-
tory in Grant, Baker, Harney and Union counties.
The Idaho Youth Rally will be held July 11-16, and
the deadline to apply is May 9. Applications are available
online at otec.coop/Idaho-youth-rally.
Time to take off those studded tires
SALEM — Thursday, March 31, is the deadline to
remove studded tires, the Oregon Department of Transpor-
tation announced.
Studded tires are allowed in Oregon from Nov. 1
through the end of March, but ODOT says they’re hard
on roads, causing by $8.5 million in damage annually. The
agency recommends other types of traction tires or tire
chains instead.
Drivers with studded tires on their vehicles after the dead-
line can be cited for a traffi c violation.
EOU slates Entrepreneur Day April 19
LA GRANDE — The Eastern Oregon University Small
Business Development Center will host Entrepreneur Day
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on April 19.
The free, virtual event will feature a half-dozen speak-
ers presenting on a variety of topics.
The keynote speaker will be Ian Galloway, vice presi-
dent and regional executive of the Portland branch of the
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Other speakers
and their topics will include:
• “A State of Flux,” Mark Gregory, director of the Ore-
gon Small Business Development Network.
• “How to Start a Business and Understand Cash Flow,”
Greg Smith, director of the EOU Small Business Develop-
ment Center.
• “Digital Marketing,” Sarah Frink, Real Marketing
Solutions.
• “Hiring, Motivating and Retaining the Right Staff,”
Shari Carpenter, EOU marketing and business professor.
• “Opportunities for Women and Minorities in Business,”
Irene Gonzalez, U.S. Small Business Administration.
• “Making the Numbers Make Sense: Understanding
Basic Financial Statements,” Yvonne Robers, Connected
Professional Accountants.
To register and obtain the Zoom link for Entrepreneur
Day presentations, call the center at 541-962-1532 or email
eousbdc@gmail.com.
— Blue Mountain Eagle
SERVICE NOTICES
Daniel Lee Smith
Clay Claughton
July 4, 1946 ~ March 20, 2022
Daniel Lee Smith passed away
at his home in John Day, Ore-
gon on March 20th  2022 at 75
years old. Daniel was born July
4th  1946 to Lenora and Garland
Smith in Portland, Oregon. He
had three siblings.  
Daniel married Vaughn Ford
in 1979, and they raised three
daughters together in the Port-
land area, until moving to central
Oregon in 1991. 
Daniel did many things in his
career life but the bulk of it was
driving for United Grocers/Uni-
fied for over 30 years until he
retired. During his retirement, he
and his wife Vaughn spent time traveling to Alaska and enjoying
fishing. They kept their home in central Oregon as a home base
to be close to their kids and grandkids. In the last few years they
spent their winters in Quartzite, Arizona, exploring the area with
friends. Daniel enjoyed hunting in the Strawberry Mountains, fish-
ing, exploring on the side-by-side ATV, and spending time with
family and friends. He loved classic cars and old western movies.
Over his lifetime he loved to share his knowledge and skills with
others. Daniel had a great big heart and loved many nieces and
nephews as his own.  
Daniel was preceeded in death by his father, mother and sister. 
He is survived by his wife, Vaughn Smith, daughters, Candy
Sutton, Rebecca Smith and Julanne Shafer, brother, grandsons
and many nieces and nephews.  
As per Daniel’s wishes, there is no service planned. A celebra-
tion of life will be held at a later date in Redmond, Oregon.  Paid
for by the family of Daniel Smith.
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Last Week’s Temps
John Day ...........................................................HI/LO
Wednesday ..................................................... 70/40
Thursday .......................................................... 62/39
Friday ............................................................... 68/42
Saturday .......................................................... 66/42
Sunday ............................................................. 58/47
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of charge, including having a
booth at one of the upcoming
street fairs in Prairie City, Can-
yon City and John Day.
He said Oregon RAIN had
been invited to those Grant
County cities to help busi-
nesses. Denney emphasized
that even though government
dollars back RAIN, he and oth-
ers from the organization are
entrepreneurs themselves.
“You’re not having some
government guy that doesn’t
know the fi rst thing about start-
ing a business trying to help
business owners,” Denney
said. “You’ve got actual entre-
preneurs that have done it.”
Those interested reserv-
ing vendor space at an upcom-
ing street fair or learning more
about RAIN’s services can
reach Denney by phone at
541-589-5565 or via email at
zach@oregonrain.org.
LOCAL BRIEFING
A celebration of life for Clay Claughton will be held at
11:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 2, in Keerins Hall at the Grant
County Fairgrounds, 411 NW Bridge St. in John Day. Claugh-
ton, 91, passed away on Dec. 4, and a graveside service took
place at that time. Driskill Memorial Chapel is in charge of
arrangements.
CORRECTION
A story about a legal challenge to a pool bond measure that
appeared on page A3 of the March 23 edition incorrectly identi-
fi ed the court affi liation of Union County Circuit Judge Wes Wil-
liams. The Eagle regrets the error.
Beverly Ann Curtis
February 20, 1946 ~ March 18, 2022
Beverly Ann Curtis, age 76, of Prairie City went to be with
her Lord on March 18, 2022. She was born in Portland, Ore-
gon on Feb. 20, 1946 to Mr. & Mrs. Robert Skiens of Seneca,
Oregon. I would like to thank all the people at Blue Mountain
Hospital and Hospice that gave Bev such good care…Clayton
C. Curtis.
No memorial services are planned at this time. To light a
candle in honor of Beverly, or to offer online condolences to
her family, please visit www.driskillmemorialchapel.com Paid
for by the family of Beverly Curtis.
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