Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (May 23, 1963)
2 HEPPNEH GAZETTE IIMMMMIMM MHItMllltll GAZETTE-TIMES MOBROW COUNTY'S NEWSPAPER PHONE 676-9228 The Heppner Gazette, established March 30. 1883. The Heppner Times established November 18, 1897. Consolidated February 15, 1912. WESLEY A. SHERMAN HELEN E. SHERMAN Editor and Publisher Associate Publisher niwsfami ruiiiiNitt aIiooatiom Subscription Rates: Morrow and Grant Counties, $4.00 Year; Else where $4.50 Year. Single Copy 10 Cents. Published Every Thursday and Entered at the Post Office at Heppner, Oregon, as Second Class Matter. OFFICE HOURS: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Achievements of the Chamber One would think that if any organization would blow its own horn, the Chamber of Commerce would. But the Heppner Morrow County Chamber of Commerce has been a little back ward about extolling Its own virtues and probably a great many persons in the area do not realize the amount of good that it does. Fred Gimbcl, president last year, reported on the 1962 activities at the recent annual banquet, and this Is reprinted in this issue as a record of accomplishment that the reader can evaluate for himself. But we feel that the former president, perhaps because he was the leader during that year, painted a pretty modest picture of the work of the organization. He told of some of its work on legislation that would be of benefit to this area, some of which has been successfully culm inated. He mentioned some of its sponsorship and assistance of youth groups, some of the merchants' promotions, some of the contests sponsored for community betterment, the Cham ber's work with the rodeo, its part in urging the Highway Com mission to improve highways in this area, and the work being done towards development of the Willow Creek project. These were among highlights of last year, but the work of the organization extends much farther. It answered hundreds of letters of inquiry about Morrow county, many of which were from school children but also many from adults in all parts of the country; it provided street decorations for Christmas in Heppner; it published and distributed a brochure advertising the entire county; it devoted considerable time and effort to wards advancement of recreational facilities in the county; it cooperated with farmers on various programs and again joined the ASCS office and the county agent's office in sponsorship of the Farm banquet. These are a few things that come to mind spontaneously. There are many more. In fact, there have been very few things of community-wide interest of a civic or service nature in which the Chamber has not had a hand. It has Just finished paying for the field light bonds at the rodeo grounds after making a substantial payment last year. It isn't uncommon to hear someone say, "The Chamber of Commerce doesn't do anything." But the record speaks for itself, as shown in ex-Prcstdent Gimbel's summary, plus a great deal more. If the Chamber were non-existent, the public would realize what a void it would leave. Often it is taken for granted, and often it is the subject of cynicism, but the Heppner-Morrow County Chamber of Commerce is a very active organization that has fine regular attendance) and interest. Virtually every member serves on some committee and most share in some of the work: throughout the year. It deserves the community's highest commendation and support. And President Gimbel, who did such a good job last year, deserves a belated pat on the back, too. Beware of the Gyp Artists It seems as if the gyp artists are getting more and more brazen, and they always seem to be able to find a gullible victim. The Itemizer-Observer in Dallas recently reported a case where an elderly woman was bilked out of $1000 bv some men who represented themselves as pest control experts. Fortunately we haven't heard of similar cases in this area, but this is spring season, and there will be those in our county ripe for the picking when some of these bunco birds come around. There are rackets in connection with the building trades where transient peddlers come in and offer to install siding, roofing or insulation at outlandish prices. They get the home owners to sign contracts before they realize what they are signing, only to discover later that the prices are exorbitant. We remember a case years ago in Dallas when the paper pub lished a story warning of such rackets. A home owner had just signed a contract but noticed the story. She went to the district attorney and got $750 refunded. Another similar racket is from outfits who install home fire warning systems. They instill fear into the hearts of parents by showing gruesome movies of burning homes, and then get the residents to sign contracts for systems that cost far beyond their value. Not all visiting concerns are racketeers, of course. Some come to perforin services at going rates. But these concerns will give references and are open in their dealings. But in view of the fact that gyp artists are at work else where in the state, it Is a good time to sound a warning here. A good plan is to contact your local outlet first. If it's pest control, check with our reliable local firms first (and we have some good ones); If It's something to do with roofing, siding or insulation, go to your local builder's supply house for advice and recommendation. These people will play fair and give you honest help. They plan to stay here for a long time they don't hit and run. If someone wants to sign you up for a fire alarm system at a high price, contact Fire Chief Charles Ruggles before you sign. He can give some good pointers to advise you. To realize how some of these gyp artists operate, read this pathetic true tale from Dallas as reported by Editor Earle Richardson there: Three men came to the door of the home of an elderly woman and stated they were from Oregon State Pest Control and had come to make a termite inspection. She assumed they were connected with the State (if Oregon on official business, WHERE TO GO FOR BETTER CAR SERVICE FOR ONE STOP SERVICE TAKE YOUR CAR TO Wayne's Chevron STATION At Heppner Ford Open Daily 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturdays 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. - TIMES. Thursday. May 23, 1963! HEPPNER NATIONAL EDITORIAL lASRbCMTItfN V W U SnnnBiiiinia Tin in iinni ill Chaff and Wes EVEN IF we didn't catch an oc casional glimpse of a big league game on TV, we would know that baseball season has come with the warm weather because of the time we've had to spend batting flies In the liv ing room. THE FACT that the following tale is somewhat vague and hazy in detail makes it none theless true. Some of the infor mation may not be quite ac curate because the principals in volved apparently made every effort to keep it hushed up. We stumbled on to it quite innocently. Happened to see a photo showing some big bones protruding from the ground, and inquired of Gar Swanson and Nels Anderson, who happened to be together at the time, just what the story was. The red of their faces, upon hearing the question, was caused from no sunburn, which is un derstandable, as you will see. They were reluctant, but we pried a few succinct bits of in formation from them. Seems that Gar was doing some excavating work in a gully on his wheat ranch last fall, and he unearthed these big bones. Somehow Nels Anderson got in on the act, and they care fully uncovered them, like true paleontologists. It was quite obvious to them that they were from some ex tinct species, probably in the dinosaur family. After they re moved the soil carefully from around the bones, they took the picture and carefully extracted some to send ,in for classifi cation and identification. When the report came back, it identified the bones as belong ing to a large, solid-hoofed herb iverous mammal, all right Equus caballus more common ly known as "horse." THPT MOMENT nf truth has ar- rived again for high school con nrc Afrpr rniflrninfT rneir middle names caretuiiy irom schoolmates for years, they go on the record on their high school diplomas, and generally are read right out loud at grad uation. We notice that the full names are listed on the lone commence ment nrncrnms. hut someone has been a little more merciful n the Heppner system. . OHrtlv enniiph. sometimes it is the first name that is dis guised, since the youngster dis cards some proud family selec tion and assumes me mioaie name as the lesser of two evils. It is nuite a nararlnx how Dar- ents can select a name in which thmr tnkfl nrirle. onlv to have a growing child criticize his name unlocked the hook on her screen, and they came in. One of them was a medium tall blonde man, another a shorter man with a pronounced cleft chin, the other a darker man with black mustache and black hair. They had driven up in a red pickup with white canopy. While the cleft chin man talked with her, the other two went upstairs and inspected the attic. Later they had come up and told her they had found evidence of wood beetles and it would be necessary to use poison gas on them. Then they moved the truck to the side of the house and while the cleft chin man remained in the house and talked, one or both of the other men crawled under the house. The entire procedure took about 45 minutes, she estimated. She asked them what she owed them and they said $1000! Not $10, not $100 but $1000. The woman, who is 76 years old and has lived alone in her modest home since her husband died almost five years ago, was bowled over. But her thoughts centered more on how she was going to pay their bill (all three were in the house at the time and while they didn't threaten, she was apprehensive). She had $60 in her purse, she told them, and they said she could pay the rest in installments. In the meantime she decided to go to the savings and loan office and draw the money needed out of her savings. At first they were going to take her, but decided not to, so she called the taxi. She remarked something about her dilemma on the way down, but said nothing at the savings and loan office. She drew $910 and cashed it, took the taxi back to her home and paid the men the money. One of the men gave her a simple receipt on a form she provided. The blond man signed the receipt for $1000 which he made out in his own handwriting, "Clarence Chatman." He did not use a firm name. The trio left immediately. The transaction continued to worry the woman, but at least it was over. Two days later she read the story in the May 2 issue of the Itemizer-Observer which warned of the activities of salesmen for aluminum siding, asbestos siding, foundation repair and termite exterminators. She called the police but the information she had to offer was substantially what is given above. The three men were long gone and she had not received a firm name, identification card or anything but the name, "Clarence Chatman." These gyppo artists are considerably more malicious and heartless than the termites. After May 27 We Will Be Located At 234 N. Main St. Our New Phone Number Will Be 676-9123 Heppner Auto Parts Chatter Sherman with disdain. But that's the way the old space capsule orbits. We think it only fitting and nrnnpp that nnr irAiintr mpn flnrt ladies face up to this moment of truth at the time of grad uation and allow their names to be heralded in all their splendor. While a name like "Percival" rnnlrt wpll hrinor titters from the lips, for Instance, it might have tne highest connotation in an other family whose great-great grandfather Percival was in the battle of Bull Run. In running the story of com mencement this week, we've tried to compromise. In the front page story, we record the names as thev aDDear on the programs (although Heppner didn't use middle names). On the identification of the pictures in the second section, we have tried to use the names of the grads as they are generally known. WHEN THE office door opened early Tuesday, and a graying man ctpnnprf irmirle with a smile on his lips, we greeted him with, "It can t ne true. But it was true. The visitor was Ben Maxwell of Salem, writer for the Capital Journal, Salem, and Oregon Journal, Port land, for many years. He's a fellow who has particularly spec ialized on historical articles, and he has developed quite a his torical library. He wasn't in the office 30 sec onds before he spotted the book let, "Yesteryears of Morrow," published by the home exten sion units, and had his dollar out to pay for a copy. In years past, we have had many occas ions to collaborate with Ben on various stories, but never ex pected to see him here. Over a cup of coffee at the Wagon Wheel he and Mrs. Max well told us that they were on their way back from Alturas, Calif., arid Reno. Nev., where they went to see an unprece dented display of historical cars. They went through the Basque country at Jordan Valley and landed in the midst of their Cen tennial celebration. They decid ed to do a storv on towns they visited that had "rock" in them Fort Rock, Arock, Pilot Rock, and now were headed for Lonerock. Thou hnvo visited HODDner several times before and Ben has done articles on Hardman ano other parts of Morrow county. He is now semi-retired but still rluhhlne in historical articles and writes a column for the Capital Journal. In Ben's mind is a storehouse of Oregon history that few could equal. It was good to nave mm orou in. 1962 Chamber Activities Reviewed (Editor's note: The follow ing is a report of the Cham ber of Commerce activities for the year 1962 as presented by Fred Gimbel, president dur ing that year, at the recent annual banquet of the Heppner-Morrow County Chamber. It is reprinted to give the pub lic an insight to some of the work being done by the organ ization to promote this area and work for its betterment. Heppner-Morrow County Chamber of Commerce activities for 1962 started with the Cham ber working on proposed ambu lance laws. Private ambulance operators were supporting reg ulations that would have made it practically impossible for com munity hospitals, such as ours, to operate an ambulance. With support from our Chamber and other civic groups throughout the state, regulations were ap proved enabling communities, such as Heppner, to continue their ambulance services at reas onable cost to the patrons. In February, due to consider able local interest in forest fires during the 1961 fire season, the Chamber sponsored a meeting with the U. S. Forest Service, Oregon State Dept. of Forestry and local people to discuss fire procedures in an attempt to min imize fire losses within the Heppner area. During 1962, the Chamber voted to sponsor the Boy Scout Troop No. 86. The troop started with five boys and at the present time has 12 boys actively work ing in the troop. Bob Dobbs is scoutmaster, and he has been doing a fine job. Other youth activities sponsored by the Chamber Included sending Dick Struckmeier to the Forest Ser vice Summer Range Manage ment camp, co-sponsoring with the school annual foot ball awards banquet, and by a do nation from the Chamber, assis ted three local boys to attend the National FFA convention at Kansas City. The annual banquet was held on March 19, with 70 members and guests present. Ken Stan hope, Supt. of Umatilla County Schools, was the s princ i p a 1 speaker. The Farm-City banquet, co-sponsored by the boil con servation Dis t r i c t and the Chamber was held on Novem ber 11 to recognize the Farmer of the Year. Elmer Palmer and Sons won the award for 1962. The merchants comm i 1 1 e e sponsored two programs during the year, the Salute to Spring and the Christmas Opening. The Salute to Spring featured a Queen and her Court and a style show, which was held on Main street and provided entertain ment for a good-sized crowd that came to Heppner to shop and en joy the festivities. The Christ mas Opening was handled by Sold Seat AT Jack's Chevron Station HEPPNER. OREGON STARTING AT 8 A.M. THIS ADVERTISEMENT SPONSORED BY Heppner Branch i L i local merchants with window displays and store window con tests. Randall Peterson, chair man for these two promotions, did an outstanding job in pro moting local sales for business in Heppner. A spring clean-up contest was sponsored in April and Emil Groshens won the first prize. The Christmas lighting contest, with Avon Melby as chairman, was expanded and greatly improved over the previous year's con tests. Awards were given for both indoor and outdoor light ing. Under the direction of Randall Peterson, Orville Cutsforth and Jim Farley, the Chamber pre sented one of the best rodeo pa rades Heppner. has had in many years. Elma Harshman, chair man of the merchants commit tee, did na outstanding job in soliciting contributions for pa rade prizes. A total of $475 was awarded to the various winners in the parade. Elmer Schmidt rode herd on the ticket takers, a chore he has performed ably for a number of years. After the parade, the Old-Timers picnic was held at the Courthouse. Co chairmen Ralph Richards and Oscar Peterson provided the lunch for the rodeo courts, rid ing groups and Morrow County Old Timers. Practically every chamber member was called on to work in one capacity or an other during the rodeo and it was with this willing response from the membership that we were able to present the 1962 Rodeo Parade. Last year, as in previous years, several meetings in Salem with the Oregon State Highway Commission were at tended by Chamber members and county court officials. This project, along with promoting parks and the Willow Creek dam, has kept the members of the Development comm i 1 1 e e quite busy during the year. In connection with promoting Mor row county, a meeting with Gov ernor Mark Hatfield was attend ed by Chamber members and other interested county leaders to discuss the Boardman project and Morrow county Highway problems. Through the efforts of the De velopment committee and the County Court, the Willow Creek dam project has progressed to its present step. Several public meetings were held and consid erable leg work was done by Oliver Creswick to inform the residents in the area of the vnrintw nenprts of the nroiect. The Irrigation feature, without a doubt, was tne least under stood aspect, and it was only thrniiph manv nersonal contacts and meetings with the irrigators tnat a lavorame percentage oi the irrigators made the project fpacihlo TTarlv in 1Q.fvl the Corns of Engineers held a formal pub and Installed At Cost All Day SATURDAY MAY 25 Sponsored ons Lions Clu FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF OREGON lic meeting in Heppner and with a favorable recommendation by local interests, approved the project. The next step will be the hearing with the Rivers and Harbors Congress in Washing ton, D. C. This meeting wiU be attended by Judge Oscar Pet erson, Oliver Creswick and possibly Mayor Al Lamb. Mrs. Oma Cox returned Sun day evening from Walla Walla, Wh., where she had attended funeral services of her uncle, Henry S. Perry on Saturday af ternoon. She had gone earlier in the week to help care for her uncle during his illness. COMMUNITY ) BILLBOARD Coming Events LEGION MOVIES Friday, May 24, 8:00 p.m. "Dondi," starring Patti Page and David Corey. Plus cartoons. HIGH SCHOOL BACCALAUREATE Sunday evening, May 26, 8:00 p.m. Old High school gym. Rev. Melvin Dixon, speaker. Public is invited. RAINBOW INSTALLATION Heppner Masonic hall. Friday evening, May 24, 7:00 p.m. Parents, relatives and friends invited. CIVIC LEAGUE RUMMAGE SALE Friday, Saturday, May 24-25 Old Bakery Building 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. All proceeds to help support the Heppner kindergarten. PIONEER MEMORIAL DAY PICNIC Thursday, May 30, Registra tion starts at 11:00 a.m. Potluck dinner, noon, at Fair Pavilion. SPONSORED AS A PUBLIC SERVICE BY C. A. RUGGLES Insurance Agency P. O. Box 247 PH. 676-9625 Heppner ts By The
