Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 19, 1979)
. 3 'J ' 1 19 " T t .,3 1 BESS IS VntTZiLL V OF ORE i;EV."5 PAPER L I 3- i- m r- - :- ' o 7 ; r 7i Court asked to Seliange hospital administration The Morrow County Court was asked to consider a change in administration at Pioneer Memorial Hospital during the court's regular Wednesday meeting July 11 at the courthouse. When discussing recom mendations made by the hospital's professional assoc iation about the budget, Hos pital board member Dan Sweeney read to the court their feelings about the ad ministration as stated in the first session; then said, "I think there is a large number of people who support a change in administration." Sweeney told the board the recommended change might affect 200 votes cast in the June 26 election against the levy in the south end of the county and reflect favorably in the third levy election in August. "I do think a change in personnel might affect 200 votes," Sweeney said. County Judge D.O. Nelson said after remarks about the numerical voting pattern in the last election by board members Ed Dick and Fred Martin that "We have had lots of comments from people. There is a general concern over the administration." Relating the comments of a man in Heppner who has,, worked in support of the hospital levy and said he ' would decline future duties , because of his support of the I hospital administration, Nel-, son stated, "I think it's a big ; factor and will be in the next election." Pioneer Hospital Admin istrator Bob Byrnes had "no comment" Thursday, July 12 on the proposed "change in administration" when the Gazette-Times contacted him at the hospital. During the July 11 session, Hospital Board Chairman Fred Martin responded to the call for a change by insisting that the current administrator had the expertise to follow through with planning on the new hospital expansion pro gram. "Things have been bungled because of changes of admin istration," Martin said. Judge Nelson responded : "That's another problem" and noted that it took Wallowa 10 months to get another admin istrator. "We are mainly concerned about the budget today," Nelson said. County Court and hospital board members talk ed about the necessity of Conf. on page 3 The Heppner Morrow County's Award Winning Weekly Newspaper VOL. 97, NO. 29 HEPPNER, OREGON THURSDAY, JULY 19. 1979 12 PAGES 20 cents Byrnes resigns hospital post Pioneer Hospital Administrator Bob Byrnes resigned his position at Tuesday's Hospital Board meeting, effective October 31, 1979. Byrnes cited "a complex political situation" and "it would appear that I am at this time, a political liability" as reasons for his resignation. The move came late Tuesday evening after the Gazette-Time's deadline, however, a full story on Byrne's resignation appears on page three. grt xVFH ' mmm) f rTTf m!l Miinniiiii tmum n i y '7" 1 j FT v-: v) Ma1: LW' 'i h if I . t v k h V 4 ' " H i , 'I ! VI M Waiting for a uinnerl The Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Court inspected the saddle Monday donated by the Kinzua Corporation to be given away to the winner of calf roping at the County Rodeo August 24, 25 and 26th. Admiring the saddle on display at Gardner's Men's Wear in Heppner were (left-right) Princesses Jennifer Wenholz, Irrigon, Lori Edwards, Lexington and Queen Debora Palmer, lone. The fair and rodeo court was hosted to lunch by the Heppner Chamber of Commerce. Chamber treated to royal visit, program on natural resources Heppner Chamber of Com merce members were hosted Monday to a program by the Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Court and a Grant County slide show on the environment. Morrow County Fair -and Rodeo Queen Debora Palmer introduced herself and her Princesses, Jennifer Wenholz, Irrigon and Lori Edwards, Lexington and told Chamber members she had just com pleted two years at Blue Mountain Community College and was now working at her father's ranch in lone, pulling rye and getting ready for harvest. Relating the many grand entries, parades and rodeos the court has participated in this summer, Queen Debora thanked local banks for the presentation of belt buckles and the Edwards family for the belts. The court, has won two first places among other courts, at the Spray parade andjrt the Condon oarade,. At Saturday's Crook County Par ade in Prineville, the court was second out of 18 courts and only bested by the Crook County Court. They have also received a gift of necklaces and earrings from D.O. Nelson and their pictures will appear in a special window display at Gardner's Men's Wear. On July 21-22, they will attend the Elgin Parade, August 11, Hermiston Parade, will do radio taping at KUMA, Pendleton; on September 8, they will ride in the Boardman Harvest Parade, according to Princess Lori Edwards. Morrow County's Fair and Rodeo events will be the high point of their year of activi , ties. On July 29 is the County 4-H Horse Show at the Fairgrounds; on August 18 is the Fifth Annual Fun Night at the fairgrounds featuring Michele Colette, a chicken dinner, coronation of the Pioneer King and Queen and the Colette's show and dance; county fair week with exhibits from August 17-22, the parade on Saturday, August 25 and rodeo, August 24, 25 and 26. Mary Ann Palmer, the court's chaperone and mother of the Queen also attended the luncheon meeting. The court and their guests were thanked for coming by Chamber President Ernie McCabe. Bill Farrell, a member of the Blue Mountain Resource Council and an extension agent in Grant County for many years, presented a special program on resource planning and showed slides of Grant County's resource management. "It's high time that we pay more attention to our re sources," Farrell said, telling of his county's efforts to enhance water and wildlife quality in the John Day area. The slide show noted that in 1946, Grant County stopped gold dredge mining to prevent erosion of stream beds, on the rangleands, experimental nursery plots were established grasses and one of the first local efforts in the nation made in Grant County to affect federal land manage ment. Rip-rap or large rock boulders were installed along river banks to stop bank erosion and control flooding. "Our future depends on our resources," Farrell added. Farrell was introduced by Mike Sweeney, a member of the chamber's watershed committee. Grant County has a resource committee, appointed in 1977 by the County Court to oversee land management policies. Next week's chamber pro gram will feature Rod Aho of Columbia Basin Co-op with a special program on the Pio neer Amtrak system, threat ened with elimination by Transportation Secretary Brock Adams. Flood repairs underway at lone schools; school board accepts more resignations Flood repairs are underway lone schools and IHS Principal Chuck Starr told the Morrow County School Board Monday night that about $27,293 in damage remains to be completed. Items on the repair schedule include repairs to the elemen tary school basement, sand ing, painting, and refinishing the gymnasium floor, repair and resealing the damaged (parking area (estimated to cost $8,270 from a $13,300 bid and $5,030 budgeted) and replacement of tile in the high ' school halls and cafeteria! The school system has already repaired $9,888.75 of the estimated $41,100 of dam age from the flood waters last winter. One hundred and fifty feet of fencing has been installed, gravel work has been replaced around the shop, thermofax has been replaced, the physical educa tion activity file has been replaced, kindergarten desk replacement and athletic and physical equipment replaced. Also replaced were an auto harp, box springs, mattress, blanket, pillow, assorted kin dergarten testbooks, septic tank and mud cleanup, miscel laneous motor repairs, repair of teacher's room equipment, teacher's chair for kinder garten, panel screen for a sick bed, a host of other expenses and the $948 expense for reseeding the damaged foot ball field. Starr reported the reseeding effort has produced a beauti ful stand of turf on the football field and should be ready for the beginning of the football season. He was asked what meas ures have been taken by the city of lone to prevent future flood problems. Starr said the city is still in the process of obtaining flood control meas sures and that the state plans a new bridge which will act as a dam and straighten out the creek. Board member Jim Wishart urged the flood control work. "Now is the time to do it when the creek is down." Supt. Matt Doherty said engineers are currently as sessing the damage and the new bridge may materialize. Lexington Board Member Irvin Rauch ran into opposi tion from a member of the Morrow County Teachers As sociation, Marshall Hesla, when he proposed a motion accepting two teachers' res ignations with the stipulation that they reimburse the dist rict if there was any inconven ience in obtaining replace ments for their positions. Under the annual contract language, teachers in the state are required to give 60 days notice of their intention not to ': seek the position for the coming school year. Two , teachers, Louise Schmidt and ' Ken Lemley tendered their resignations from Heppner Elementary School after the July 1 cutoff date. Hesla said the board should 5 abide by the contract lan- guage if it felt the two teachers' late notice was based on "unreasonable" motives. Under the contract, i,failure to announce their .. intentions on time could result in a year's suspension under the TSP (Teachers Standards and Practices.) Said Rauch: "I don't want to get into a hassle with the Morrow County Teachers As sociation." Although concurring with Hesla's argument that the board abide by the teaching contracts, Supt. Doherty said the district would probably be able to fill the positions. Outgoing School Board Chair- "If man Pauline Winter disagreed with the motion because she felt it was singling out the two teachers from the rest who tendered resignations. Rauch's motion carried. The board accepted an easement request from Cliff ord Peck of Boardman Cable T.V. to install a coaxial cable on Boardman Avenue on high school property in order to reach a subdivision. In ex change, the district received Peck's promise to link the school with his cable televi sion system. Doherty said he would check with the architect and deter mine whether the new high school and elementary schools in the area have television hookups in the classroom in response to questioning by Peck. The superintendent was op posed to an alternative for the cable television line running across the high school's foot ball field, noting that the district might experience problems if it had future construction in mind. A debate ensued when the board discussed action on bid-letting for a new car for the District Superintendent. Wishart urged the board in a motion to accept the bid from Farley Motor Company of Heppner for purchase of a Pontiac Catalina for $6,987 because the dealer pays taxes in Morrow County and ser vicing would be available locally. Wright Chevrolet of Fossil submitted a lower bid with the same specifications at $6,800 but board members Wishart and John Matthews felt the cost of transporting the car to Fossil would nullify the lower initial costs. Rauch was con cerned about what taxpayers would feel if the board accepted a bid other than the lowest submitted. Supt. Doherty said new laws specify that if the low bid is not accepted, justification is required such as will it result in a cost-savings to district? The board accepted the bid from Farley, accepted a tire bid from Hermiston Tire Center, fuel oil bid from McCall Oil, gasoline bid from an Arlington Chevron distri butor and received no bids for antifreeze. Supt. Doherty plans to purchase the anti freeze at the lowest cost possible. Ken Broadbent is recuper ating from an injury to several ribs when a tree limb struck him in the back but despite his absence from Monday's ses sion, board members elected him School Board Chairman and John Matthews as Vice Chairman, designated Bob Abrams as district attorney, retained the firm of Whether all, Morrison and Fife as the school auditor, designated Alice Vance as District Clerk and budget officer, adopted the Gazette-Times as the newspaper of general circula tion for legal publications and authorized the Deputy Clerk to borrow funds. ESEA Title I and Title IV applications were approved. The District's meeting schedule was approved with Cont. on page 3 l ll'V.Tl'UA9r&g.AwtUrtAi'?. i nn mm nl' il ' inn - -n Hi nun i mi ..mi 'i n iliim-n in iiritiniiri 1 Oi.'l.... nMliiaauaai3 Willow Creek cleanup Members of the Lions Club worked most of the day Saturday cleaning up the Willow Creek Channel to provide a straight channel in times of high water. Using chainsaws, manpower and trucks, Club members removed about 10 truckloads of natural materials from the stream banks. This is the first year a club had done the work and the Lions hope to continue it in the future. h r 'Wife-s Tj,'
