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The Heppner
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Morrow County's Award-Winning Weekly Newspaper
VOL. 96 NO. 38
HEPPNER, OREGON
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1978
TWO SECTIONS 18 PAGES
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Learning
CPR
Ciaool iDoaFdi iiie to
relieve crowded classroom
Frances Williams of Lexington, right, and Fr. Francis Herbert of Heppner work as a
team during their final class in CPR training at the Heppner Christian Church, as instructor
Linda Connor looks on. Nearly 20 area senior citizens took part in the cardiopulmonary
resuscitation training program.
Emergency steps to relieve
overcrowding in classroons
and school buses in northern
Morrow County were taken
during Monday's meeting of
the Morrow County Board of
Education. 1
The board authorized Super
intendent Matt Doherty to hire
two new teachers, a full-time
and a half-time bus driver,
and to buy a new school bus.
The new teachers will be
assigned to A.C. Houghton
Elementary in Irrigon, which
has experienced a 20 per cent
increase in enrollment from
last year. As many as 39
students have been assigned
to a single classroom at the
Irrigon school this year.
Classroon space will be estab
lished in the old Irrigon school
building when the new teach
ers arrive.
The new bus drivers and
new school bus will also serve
the North Morrow area, main
ly in the Boardman vicinity. A
group of North Morrow par
ents appeared at Monday's
meeting to complain about
crowding and discipline pro
blems on the bus routes. One
parent said that students were
crammed four to a seat on one
bus.
An additional bus had been
added to the Irrigon area fleet
earlier this month.
Doherty was authorized to
purchase the new North End
bus on an emergency, non-bid
basis, to speed delivery.
Money for the vehicle is
already included in the cur
rent budget. Money to hire the
new teaching personnel, how
ever, will have to be drawn
from the school board's con
tingency fund.
In other developments Mon
day, Ed Glenn, a spikesman
for Many Against Drugs, a
Boardman-based anti-drug
organization asked the board
to continue "with renewed
interest" the school district's
policies against drug usage on
school grounds. '
School officials admitted
that drug usage among stu
dents was a problem at most
county schools. "The problem
is a concern to us," said
Doherty, who noted that drug
education is part of the
in-service training program
for county teacher. Due to
legal questions, however, "no
thing much can be done unless
a student is caught with the
stuff on school property," the
superintendent added.
The board postponed action
on establishing a new tax
base, since the Oregon Legis
lature recently approved a bill
would not require a new tax
base election until 1980.
The board did adopt a new
budget calendar, which calls
for preliminary hearings on
the 1979-80 school budget to
begin on Oct. 16, with an
official public hearing to be
held on Feb. 19. On April 3,
voters will decide whether or
not to approve the amount by
which the school board plans
to exceed the six per cent
limitation on spending. Seve
ral school board offices will
also be up for election during
the April 3 polling.
Appointed to the board's
budget committee Monday
night were Jerry Hollomon of
Heppner to a two-yeat term,
Bob Stevens of Hardman to a
three-year term, and Judy
Currin of the Butter Creek
area to a three-year term. '
In another potential money
matter, the school board
decided to meet in executive
session with school adminis
trators on Sept. 26 to discuss
strategy for collective bar
gaining matters with county
teachers.
The school board voted to
hire Monica Swanson as a
half-time -. home economics
teacher at lone High School.
Extra duty contracts were
approved for Tom Forsythe,
as head tennis coach at lone
High ; Vaness Thew, assistant
volleyball coacb at lone High;
Jerry Martin, high school
baseball coach at lone; Linda
Schellenger, Riverside Junior
High cheerleader adviser; Pat
Campbell assistant basketball
coach at Riverside High;
Kevan Pratt, assistant foot
ball coach at Riverside Junior
High; Mary Benedict, assis
tant junior high basketball
coach at Heppner; Andrew
Clark, Heppner Junior High
track coach ; Kathryn Miller,
Heppner Junior High cheer
leader adivser.
Ruggs-to-Ione
bike ride slated
for Saturday
Cyclists of all- ages are
getting their bicycles ready
for this weekend's giant Mil
lion Dollar Bike Ride as part
of the fight against leukemia
and other dreaded diseases
that take the lives, of thou
sands of children each year.
The event, scheduled for
Saturday, Sept. 23, is sponsor
ed by the Beta Omega chapter
of lone and Alpha Theta of
Heppner, ESA Women Inter
national for benefit of St. Jude
Children's Research Hospital
in Memphis, Tennessee. The
Ride will originate at Ruggs
about 10 a.m. and registration
begins at 8:30 a.m. Forms for
securing sponsors are avail
able in Heppner at the R & W
. Drive-In . and lone at the
school, Bank of E.O., Brenda
Ekstrom and Linda LaRue.
Cyclists will pedal under
close supervision by the Mor
row County Search and Res
cue Possee for a 22 mile trip
from Ruggs to the lone City
Park. Those needing rides to
Ruggs from Heppner can be
picked up at Wayne's Diesel
and Auto Repair at the corner
of Main and K. May St. at 8:30
a.m.; from lone you can be
picked up at the lone City
Park at 8:30 a.m.
Numerous prizes will be
awarded to riders raising
funds for the Hospital. A
stereo will be awarded to the
cyclist who turns in the most
money. Second prize for the
second largest amount of
money turned-in is a portable'
8-track player. Other prizes
will go fo the oldest rider,
youngest rider and the largest
family group riding.
As a special feature this
year, all cyclists will be
eligible to earn t-shirts, back
packs and nylon jackets.
Individuals raising $25-$75 will
receive a t-shirt; those collect
ing $75-$150 will receive a back
pack and t-shirt; and those
raising,, over $150 for the
Hospital will receive a nylon
jacket and t-shirt. All prizes
will be awarded according to
the amounts of money turned
in by October 7.
Sponsor sheets and money
can be turned in to Rita Harris
at the R & W Drive-In in
Heppner, Brenda Ekstrom,
corner of Main and "B" St.
(yellow house), lone and Lucy
Ann Tworek, 2nd and "E" St.
(single-wide mobile home),
lone.
Anyone may particiapte by
riding, pledging financial
support, or volunteering assis
tance. , Interested persons
should contact chairman Lin
da LaRue at 422-7468.
Funds received from the
Bike Ride are sent to St. Jude
Children's Research TTospirai
for use in the research and
treatment of leukemia and
other childhood cancers. The
Hospital was founded in 1962
by entertainer Danny Thomas.
SitnTag Farms produces
record wheat crop here
SimTag Farms near Board
man this year has produced
what is believed to be the
largest wheat crop ever pro
duced by a single farm in the
United States.
SimTag 's winter wheat
yield totaled 1,082,000 bushels,
averaging 104 bushels per
acre on 10,405 acres carved
out of the semi-desert land and
irrigated with water pumped
from the nearby Columbia
River.
"So far as we have been able
to determine, this seems to be
the first time an individual
farm in the U.S. has exceeded
one million bushels," said
Peter J. Taggares, SimTag
co-owner.
While the SimTag acreage is
not unusually large compared
with many western wheat
ranches, it does include a
larger than average percent
age of irrigated land. All
totaled, SimTag has some
25,000 acres under irrigation.
About 10,000 of these acres are
devoted to potatoes, producing
nearly two per cent of the
nation's annual potato yield.
The potato and wheat crops
are rotated annually.
The crops are planted in 100
and 150 acre circles, irrigated
by center pivot sprinkler
systems. Liquid fertilizer is
added to the system at the
pivot.
SimTag's crops are grown
on land subleased from Boeing
Agri -Industrial Co., a subsi
diary of the Seattle-based
Boeing aerospace firm. The
SimTag acreage is part of a
100,000-acre parcel held by
Boeing under a long-term
lease from the state of Oregon,
obtained in the mid-60s for
testing rockets for the nation's
space program. The tract
includes 8,300 acres originally
developed by Boeing to de
monstrate the feasibility of
farming the arid terrain.
SimTag Farms is jointly
owned by Taggares, of Oth
ello, Wash., and Jack Simplot
of Boise.
Conservation District meeting
tonight on water quaility
The draft copy of the Soil
and Water Conservation Com
mittee's sediment reduction
project on non-point or "no
fault" pollution control will be
discussed during a meeting at
7:30 p.m. Sept. 21 in the
Morrow County Courthouse.
Comments on the draft
proposal must be collected for
consideration no later than the
first week in October. The
proposal will then be submitt
ed to the Oregon Department
of Environmental Quality.
Local control over the
enforcement of the program
will be maintained in Morrow,
Umatilla, Gilliam, Sherman
and Wasco counties, under the
terms of the draft proposal.
Local control will be possible
through an agreement be
tween the local Soil and Water
Conservation Districts and the
county courts with the Depart
ment of Enviromental Qual
ity. According to Ben Mouchett,
resource conservationist for
the SWCC, the sediment
reduction is "at the signing on
the dotted line stage."
Motor Vechile Division
requests Heppner office
A permanent field office for
the State Motor Vehicles
Division will open in Heppner
early next year, if the Oregon
Department of Transportation
and the State Legislature
approve the move.
RobbRush joins G-T
as columnist
A new columnist has joined the ranks of the
Gazette-Times sports writers. Robb Rush, a standout high
school running back for the Crook County Cowboys and
manager of Les Schwab Tire Center in Heppner will be
writing the weekly column "Bleacher Seats."
At 135-pounds Rush was a leading ground-gainer for the
Cowboys when Crook County was playing Triple-A ball back
in the mid-60's. After his senior year of play for the Cowboys,
jersey number 27 was retired from the active ranks.
An avid sports fan with knowledge of the game, Rush will
be commenting on the finer points of football and volleyball
for Heppner and lone schools. Bleacher Seats appears on the
front of this week's second section.
The Gazette-Time's new sports columnist, Robb Rush of
Heppner, is shown here in jersey number 27, retired from the
Crook County Cowboy roster after the fleet running back
completed his senior year. The column appears on page nine.
The Motor Vehicles Division
on Tuesday requested per
mission to establish a Heppner
office from the Department of
Transportation. If the DOT
approves, the question will be
submitted to the Legislative
Emergency Board next month
for final approval, according
to an MVD spokesman.
MVD studies showed that it
would be more cost-effective
for Motor Vehicles examiners
and area licensees to locate a
permanent facility in Hep
pner rather than to serve the
community with the MVD's
mobile facility, the spokes
man said.
If the approval program
proceeds without hitch, the
Heppner office could open as
early as March of next year.
Until that time, Heppner
will continue to be served by
the mobile examining station.
The Motor Vehicles Division
van will makes stops in
Heppner on Oct. 18, Nov. 15,
and Dec. 13, at Heppner City
Hall.
Health District will
not be on November
election ballot
The proposed Morrow Coun
ty Health District will not be
on the November general
election ballot as previously
announced, County Judge D.
O. Nelson told the Gazette
Times this week.
Nelson said proponents of
the district have failed to
obtain and turn in to the
county resolutions of support
from the incorporated cities in
Morrow County.
Before the county court can
schedule hearings on the
proposed district, city coun
cils from each of the cities
within the county are required
to act on a resolution indicat
ing whether or not they choose
to participate in the district.
As of this week the court had
received nothing from health
districts proponents although
the City of Heppner approved
a resolution supporting the
district at its Sept. 18 meeting.
The City. of Irrigon has
decided not to be included in
the district' and the City of
Boardman will bring up the
matter at its Oct. 3 meeting.
"At this time we hope to
have public hearings on the
district within 30-50 days and
follow with a special election
on formation of the district,"
Nelson said.
Nelson emphasized the cou
nty court will not establish a
district without taking it to a
vote of the people.
Concerned Citizens meet
to talk Pioneer Memorial
problems
A group calling themselves
Concerned Citizens to Save
Our Hospital has been formed
and held their first public
meeting Monday, Sept. 25 with
about 18 people present.
Jewell Hager of Heppner,
one of the group's organizers
opened the Monday night
meeting saying the group "is
very concerned about losing
our hospital (Pioneer Memor ial)."
Mrs. Hager went on to
. Cont. on page 6