MyEagleNews.com
‘Buckaroo’ benefi ts
local senior center
By RICHARD F.
LAMOUNTAIN
For the Blue Mountain Eagle
MONUMENT — Some
200 attendees kicked off
autumn on Saturday, Sept. 24,
at the Monument Senior Cen-
ter’s Buckaroo Festival and
Harvest Auction with raffl es,
live and silent auctions, and
an elk and salmon dinner.
The event netted the center
$17,000 — enough, said Judy
Harris, the event’s fundraising
chairman, to fund its opera-
tions for an entire year.
The money came not a
moment too soon. The Buck-
aroo, held annually between
2016 and 2019, had been scut-
tled for two years by COVID.
As a result, senior center vol-
unteer Soo Yukawa wrote in
last week’s Eagle, “we were
running in the red.” The funds
raised Saturday will go toward
the center’s general opera-
tions, which, according to
fundraising committee mem-
ber Jeanne Strange, include
“heat, insurance, maintenance
and keeping the lights on.”
Despite its name, the Mon-
ument Senior Center is not
just a facility for the elderly.
It long has served, said Har-
ris, as the vital “hub of the
community,” hosting events
as diverse as “bingo, bridal
showers and funeral services.”
Saturday’s event began
at noon. On the center’s sun-
bathed back lawn, members
of the North Fork Commu-
nity 4-H Club served a taco
lunch. Face painters adorned
children (and the occasional
adult) with colorful designs.
Silent Wave Horse Rescue
— a nonprofi t organization
whose mission, according
to its brochure, is “to res-
cue horses, mules, and don-
keys from neglect, abuse, and
abandonment” — distributed
literature and sold clothing.
Richard F. LaMountain/For the Blue Mountain Eagle
A volunteer with Silent Wave Horse Rescue talks about the
group’s work at the Monument Buckaroo Festival and Harvest
Auction on saturday, Sept. 24, 2022.
Music was provided by local
singers and guitarists who
spontaneously dubbed them-
selves “Jimmy and Tom and
the Cover Girls.”
After lunch came the
fast-moving live auction.
Eager bidders landed, among
other items, a copper fi re pit,
craft and kitchen baskets,
ATV gun cases, fi rewood —
and even bales of triticale hay.
Inside, silent-auction items
fi lled the center’s foyer and
library. They included ear-
rings, necklaces, paintings,
sculptures, scented soaps and
picnic backpacks.
Auction items donated
Individuals and compa-
nies donating auction items
included Breanna Skeem of
Mandala Farms, Todd Lyche
of Desert Moon LLC, Matt
Allen of Apricot Apiaries,
artist Lynn Bean, Thomas
Orchards of Kimberly, Mosi-
er’s Home Furnishings, Len’s
Pharmacy and Russell’s Cus-
tom Meats and Deli.
At 5:00 p.m., in the cen-
ter’s dining room, attendees
were served a volunteer-pre-
pared meal of elk (donated
by Harris and her family) and
salmon (caught by Native
American fi shermen near
Celilo Village on the Colum-
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
NEWS
bia River). A dessert auction
followed.
Named as the Buckaroo’s
honorary “grand marshal”
was Jimmy Cole, a long-
time Monument resident who
passed away earlier this year.
“His life revolved around the
senior center,” said Harris.
“It was like a second home
to him.” Though stricken
with crippling arthritis and
other maladies, Cole “always
looked on the bright side of
things,” remembered Julie
Erickson, Harris’ daughter
and an event volunteer. “He
was always laughing.”
Also honored were Bob
Cockrell, president of the
Monument Senior Cen-
ter board, and his wife Syl-
via. “They put their heart and
soul into our community and
senior center,” remarked Har-
ris, who presented the couple
a gift basket.
The Monument Senior
Center is one of three in
Grant County; the others are
in John Day and Prairie City.
On Tuesdays at noon, the cen-
ter sponsors an all-ages lunch
that routinely draws 30 and
more diners.
Richard F. LaMountain
is chairman of the Grant
County Senior Citizens
Advisory Council.
A3
Mobley loses police certifi cation
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
SALEM — Abigail Mob-
ley, the former Grant County
sheriff’s deputy at the heart
of the “sex talk” scandal,
has been stripped of her law
enforcement certifications
for 10 years by the Oregon
Department of Public Safety
Standards and Training.
According to draft min-
utes from the DPSST’s Aug.
4 Corrections Policy Com-
mittee meeting, Mobley’s
case came under review
after the agency received
an amended report that
documented Mobley had
resigned from Grant County
Sheriff’s Office due to the
21-month investigation into
allegations of misconduct.
Mobley quit her job in
December 2020 in the wake
of the investigation, which
found she had committed
no fewer than eight vio-
ley misused her position
of authority as a public
safety professional to carry
on a relationship with an
inmate at the Grant County
Jail. Mobley’s relationship
with the inmate, the min-
utes radd, threatened the
efficient operations of the
sheriff’s office and put her
coworkers at risk.
The committee also con-
cluded that Mobley’s con-
duct violated the Prison Rape
Elimination Act. Addition-
ally, the committee found
that Mobley’s behavior put
her family members — which
include her husband, Grant
County Undersheriff Zach
Mobley, and her brother, Sgt.
Danny Komning — in a “bad
position” because of hostility
from their peers due to her
conduct.
The vote to take away
Mobley’s public safety cer-
tification for 10 years was
unanimous.
lations of
the depart-
ment’s code
of
con-
duct rang-
ing
from
abuse
of
Mobley
her position
to conduct
unbecoming an officer and
neglect of duty.
DPSST had initially
opened up a professional
standards case after receiv-
ing notification that Mobley
had been arrested for driving
under the influence of intox-
icants in February of 2020.
Mobley resigned before the
case concluded.
The committee found
Mobley had committed a
number of moral fitness vio-
lations, including dishon-
esty, although the minutes
do not include specifics of
her deception.
In addition, the com-
mittee found that Mob-
Eagle announces staff changes
job, Chiotti has written for a
number of publications over
the years (his first published
article appeared in 1998 in
the Buffalo Chip Gazette, a
periodical associated with
the Sturgis Motorcycle
Rally in South Dakota).
“I’ve always had a bit
of a romantic notion (about
being) a small-town news-
paper reporter,” he said.
“Growing up in a small
town, I have a sense of how
important the paper is to
small town life.”
Chiotti’s interests include
fly fishing, camping and
photography.
“That’s one thing I’m
excited about, coming back
(to Oregon), is to go camp-
ing and find some fly fishing
around here,” he said.
Chiotti joins reporter Jus-
tin Davis, who has been part
of the Eagle newsroom since
March.
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — This edi-
tion of the Blue Mountain
Eagle marks a changing of
the guard as the newspaper
welcomes one reporter while
saying goodbye to another.
Tony Chiotti joined the
newspaper on Wednesday,
Sept. 21. He succeeds Steven
Mitchell, whose last day on
the job was Tuesday, Sept.
27.
Mitchell started with the
Eagle in January 2020 and
covered a wide variety of
assignments for the paper,
including sports, county
government and natural
resources. He is moving to
Southern Oregon to be closer
to family and will be work-
ing remotely as a reporter for
the Malheur Enterprise.
Chiotti brings a bache-
lor’s degree in journalism
from the University of Ore-
Chiotti
Mitchell
gon and a master’s of fine
arts in creative nonfiction
from Portland State Univer-
sity to his new position.
Originally from St. Hel-
ens in Columbia County,
Chiotti has a varied resume
that includes work for sev-
eral small community non-
profits in the Portland area
and stints as a wildland fire-
fighter, cab driver and pin-
ball machine repairman.
For the past fi ve years he
has lived in Europe, primar-
ily in the United Kingdom,
working as a freelance writer
and live events producer.
While this will be his
first full-time newspaper
WHAT’S HAPPENING
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 28
Business Oregon Finance
Committee
• 8-11 a.m., Grant County
Regional Airport, 72000 Air-
port Road, John Day
The committee will dis-
cuss development funding for
Heritage Brand and industrial
development bonds for Kreft-
ing Properties and the EPCOR
foothills water project, then go
into a retreat.
W HAT’S
HAPPENING
Instructors Ashley Ste-
vick and Amanda Moss of
Namaspa Yoga Community
lead this free yoga class for
people of all skill levels.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 29
FRIDAY, SEPT. 30
Parks and Rec board
meeting
• 4 p.m., Parks and Rec
offi ce, 845 NW Bridge St.,
John Day
The John Day/Canyon City
Parks and Recreation District
board will hold its regular
monthly meeting.
Yoga in the Park
• 6 p.m., Canyon City Park,
Highway 395 North at Park Street
John Day Street Fair
• 3-7 p.m., Pit Stop, South
Canton and Main streets, John
Day
Oregon RAIN will hold its
last street fair of the year at the
new John Day Pit Stop.
Center for the Arts, 118 Wash-
ington St., Canyon City
Free parenting program
that combines four evening
sessions with personal phone
calls to help with individual
implementation. Sponsored
by Families First, Commu-
nity Counseling Solutions and
Frontier Early Learning Hub.
Free dinner and free child care
available. Register online at
https://tinyurl.com/bdevzm6s.
For more information, call
541-575-1006.
Washington St., Canyon City
Free parenting program
that combines four eve-
ning sessions with per-
sonal phone calls to help
with individual implementa-
tion. Sponsored by Families
First, Community Counsel-
ing Solutions and Frontier
Early Learning Hub. Free
dinner and free child care
available. Register online
at
https://tinyurl.com/
bdevzm6s. For more infor-
mation, call 541-575-1006.
THURSDAY, OCT. 13
THURSDAY, OCT. 20
Triple P Positive Parent-
ing Program
• 5:30-8 p.m., Painted
Sky Center for the Arts, 118
Triple P Positive Parent-
ing Program
• 5:30-8 p.m., Painted Sky
Center for the Arts, 118 Wash-
ington St., Canyon City
Free parenting program
that combines four evening
sessions with personal phone
calls to help with individual
implementation. Sponsored
by Families First, Commu-
nity Counseling Solutions and
Frontier Early Learning Hub.
Free dinner and free child care
available. Register online at
https://tinyurl.com/bdevzm6s.
For more information, call
541-575-1006.
THURSDAY, NOV. 10
THURSDAY, OCT. 6
Triple P Positive Parent-
ing Program
• 5:30-8 p.m., Painted
Sky Center for the Arts, 118
Washington St., Canyon City
Free parenting program
that combines four eve-
ning sessions with per-
sonal phone calls to help
with individual implementa-
tion. Sponsored by Families
First, Community Counsel-
ing Solutions and Frontier
Early Learning Hub. Free
dinner and free child care
available. Register online
at
https://tinyurl.com/
bdevzm6s. For more infor-
mation, call 541-575-1006.
Do you have a commu-
nity event you’d like to pub-
licize? Email information to
editor@bmeagle.com. The
deadline is noon Friday for
publication the following
Wednesday.
Cut it out and save it
Triple P Positive Parent-
ing Program
• 5:30-8 p.m., Painted Sky
SEPTEMBER
Open Studio Ceramics Monthly Pass
Full month access
Full-Time Art Club 2022
August 29 – June 16
Sunflowers and Butterflies
(Paint Party)
Thursday, September 01,
6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Custom Hey Dudes (Leather)
Fridays, September 09 - September 30,
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Are you taking full advantage of your
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Make a Breast Collar (Leather)
Mondays, September 19 - October 31,
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Introductory Japanese for kids (8-18)
Mondays, September 12- November 14,
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Beginning wheel and hand building
Mondays & Thursdays,
September 12 - October 06,
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Introductory Japanese
Adult class
Thursdays, September 15 - November 17,
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Black Light Paint Party
Friday, September 16, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
Or schedule your
your FREE
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consultation
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Phone: 541-575-3518
Autumn Lanterns (Paint Party)
Saturday, September 24, 1:00 PM – 3:30 PM
FALL TERM
CLASSES
OCTOBER
Pumpkin with Burlap Flowers
(Paint Party)
Saturday, October 01,
6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Baby Moccasins (Leather)
Tuesday, October 04,
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Coco-inspired Couple (Paint Party)
Friday, October 07,
6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Pumpkins with Holly Berries
(Paint Party)
Wednesday, October 12,
6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Macrame and Leather Tote Bag
October 14 – October 15,
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Soft Macramé Leaves (Fabric)
Tuesday & Wednesday,
October 25 & October 26,
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Pop Art Pup Black Light Paint Party or
"Caticorn Jack O'Lantern"
Friday, October 28,
6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Beginner Wheel Throwing
Saturdays, October 29 - November 12,
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
NOVEMBER
Thanksgiving Mandala Flower
Friday, November 04,
5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Hanging with the Gnomies
(Paint Party)
November 05,
1:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Christmas Tree Gnome or
Votive Christmas Tree
(make-and-take ceramics)
Saturday, November 12,
1:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Highlander Christmas Cow
(Paint Party)
Wednesday, November 16,
5:30 PM – 8:00 PM
Wool Appliqué
Christmas Gnome
Saturday, November 19,
1:00 PM – 4:00 PM
SCAN TO
LEARN
MORE