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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 9, 1979)
TWO The Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon. Thursday, August 9, 1979 r i V I 1 The Heppner GAZETTE-TIMES Editorials o Columns WDinPDDOcL? Letters From Readers Amtrak depot at Hinkle reeds some attention That Amtrak may continue to operate the Pioneer, the passenger train that runs between Seattle, Portland and Salt Lake City, is good news for Eastern Oregon. The train is popular among travelers and in recent months, its traffic has gained because of the energy crisis and the shortage of gasoline supplies. Train travel provides a very satisfactory alternative to buses and the private automobile. The cars are comfortable, people can move about, and there is food and bar car service available even it it's not in the dining-car elegance of old. The Pioneer, in particular, has developed into an important trans portation link connecting Morrow and Umatilla County communities with other regions. On many runs this summer, every seat on the train has been filled. For the confirmed rail traveler, it may be enough that the Pioneer is even 'operating. As many people realize, Amtrak is often an un welcome tenant- of the privately owned railroads over whose tracks the trains operate. On some routes, Amtrak has been able to utilize existing depots with their waiting rooms, ticket offices and other conveniences for the public. Along the Pioneer's route, Amtrak has installed prefabricated shelters, such as the glass-enclosed waiting room at Hinkle. According to a posted notice, the waiting room doors have been electronically timed to unlock one hour before the train's arrival time, and then be locked again one hour after the train's departure. In the event of power outages, the timing may be off and passengers must wait outside the shelter. This has happened this summer. If a similar malfunction should occur in the winter, the exposure to weather could be very uncomfort able for the unsheltered waiting passengers particularly if the trains should be running behind schedule. Perhaps Amtrak or its landlord, Union Pacific, could keep a 'more constant eye on the waiting room at Hinkle .for the protection of those eager to ride the Pioneer. "A. i i . ' W V t .4' V 1.1 . jT Mil 4 t 1 t i w ' Sheriff himself shows up at fairgrounds picnic Ullman gets a question from 'the other side9 A surprise visitor at the Sheriff Clarence Bauman Appreciation Day Sunday at the Morrow County Fairgrounds was the Sheriff himself. The Morrow County Search and Rescue Unit transported the long-time Sheriff to the picnic from the Pioneer Memorial Nursing Home where he was greeted by VFW Commander Jim Launer and helped by a niece. The event, sponsored by the American Legion, VFW and County Sheriff's Posse drew about 200 friends to the chicken dinner in his honor. Congressman Al Ullman, an Oregon Democrat who was to be in Heppner on Friday, is the subject of a news release from "the other side" that is intended to put him on the spot. The item concerns his vote in the House of Representatives last month not to consider expelling a Michigan Democratic congressman, Rep. Charles Diggs, who had been convicted of taking salary kickbacks from his staff. The story emanates, in fact, from the National Republican Con gressional Committee. Its heading, "From the Other Side," refers no doubt to the G.O.P.'s position on the other side of the political aisle from the Democratic majority. But it brings a curious sense of deja vu of Editor's Notebook A man now living in Salem is looking for family roots in Morrow County. He is H.R. Muhs, who wrote to the Gazette Times that his parents were divorced in Sheridan County, Wyoming, sixty years ago. After his mother remarried, he adopted his stepfather's name. His family refused to divulge any informa tion about his real father, he said, partly because he was "considered quite a 'rounder'." The only records that Muhs has for his father are a marriage license (1913) and a divorce certificate (1919), both issued in Wyoming. These records show that the father was 25 years old on Nov. 1, 1913, and his birth to have been in Heppner, Oregon. His name was Richard N. Wade. Does it sound familiar to any of the families that go back three or four generations in the area? With his subscription renewal comes a note from Glenn A Ball of Yakima. He is 86 years old and enjoys the news of Morrow County, where he was born. He moved to Yakima in 1934. With his current renewal, he'll be receiving the Heppner Gazette-Times until May of 1981. Thank you, Mr. Ball. the sad era of American conflict in Vietnam when the Administration in Washington would refer to "the other side" since there was no official enemy in an undeclared war. Of course. Republicans aren't the enemy but the loyal opposition. However partisan the issue, it seems a valid question to ask of Congressman Ullman: Why did he vote to table debate on Diggs's possible expulsion, when he was convicted of taking more than $40,000 in kickbacks from his staff to pay personal expenses. Diggs was re-elected following his conviction, and in June of this year pleaded guilty to some of the charges against him. Diggs agreed to accept censure from the House and to repay $40,031.66, a compromise which the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct agreed to accept and recommend as his punishment. Censure would carry no penalty other than the member must stand before the House while the censure is read. It sounds like hardly more than a slap on the wrist. We hope Rep. Ullman will stand up and be counted on this issue. He won't be in Heppner because of a knee injury but his aides may heed the question. LETTERS FROM JOUR READERS Lawmaker asks to hear voter's concerns Editor: The 1979 legislative session is over. With the passage of over 950 measures, I am sure that you may have concerns over the issues or others that may arise. Even though the next session will not begin until January of 1981, I am available to assist with problems or concerns that the people of District 55 have during the interim. My address is Rt. 1 Culver, Oregon and my phone number is 546-6911. I am very willing to help with your concerns. Please contact me if I can be of assistance. . The property tax relief program was one of the major pieces of legislation to come out of the 1979 session. Many of you have' filled out the application from the county assessor's office and will receive the property tax relief directly in November through your property tax assessment and billing. If you did not get the application into the assessor by August 1 you will still be eligible for the property tax relief. However, you will receive a check from the State Revenue Office, instead of an offset on taxes owed. You can get the necessary form from the county assessor's office or the Department of Revenue in Salem. This will need to be done by December 31, 1979. I hope that I will have the opportunity to visit with you during the next 18 months. Sincerely, Billy C. Bellamy State Representative District 55 Court 'runs scared9 on hospital issue Editor: Wednesday, August 1, I visited with Morrow County Court re hospital problems. I wish to share that visit with you and your readers. First: I asked about the rumor that the hospital board might re-hire Mr. Byrnes as administrator as soon as the hospital levy passed. Judge Nelson said that the board could not do this. I asked what was to stop them. Judge Nelson said the County Court would not allow it. I asked how the Court would stop the board, as the Court does not feel it wants to replace any of the present hospital board? To date the Court has been very much for doing nothing about the hospital. The hospital did get an excellent survey from Northwest Medical, which oriPA Oregon Newspaptr Publnhsrs Association The Official Newspaper of the City of Heppner and the County of Morrow The Heppner GAZETTE-TIMES Morrow County's Award-Winning Weekly Newspaper U.S.P.S. 240-420 Published every Thursday and entered as second-class matter at the Post Office at Heppner, Oregon under the Act of March3, 1879. Second-class postage paid at Heppner, Oregon SUBSCRIPTION RATE $8.00 In Morrow, Unatilla, Wheeler & Gilliam County; 110.00 elsewhere Jane H. Sheldon, Co-Publisher Jerome F. Sheldon, Publisher Terry M. Hager, General Manager Eileen Saling, Office Manager Melissa Scoll, Composition Justine Weatherford, locol Columnist Jim Hackett, News Editor Gayle Rush, AdvertisingComposition Cindi Doherty, Office seems to have antagonized Chairman Martin and board member Alice Bartlet. The Court has sat back and taken the abuse and criticism for its action in requesting this survey instead of following up on same. I feel this is one reason our hospital is in trouble. My impression during my visit with the Court was that Commissioner Krebs and Judge Nelson are running scared at the idea of the hospital's being closed. They asked me what we would do if it closed? My answer was that we now have so much more than when we built the hospital. Example: We have many excellent nurses that live in our community, we have an experienced ex -administrator that is a resident of our community, etc.. etc. I feel we are so fortunate to have so many resources in our own community for having a good healthy hospital. We need more doctors. We had four practicing doctors when we built the hospital. We do not want to overburden our Dr. Tibbies and Dr. Wolff, as we want them to continue to be a part of our community for a long time to come. Neither do we want to kill off Dr. Gifford just because he is young. He is carrying entirely too heavy a load and we want him, his wife, Linda, and their two adorable children to be a part of our community for a long time to come. Dr. Carpenter did tell Jim and me when he was filling in for Dr. Gifford that he and his wife would like very much to come back to Heppner to live and set up practice. If we once again have a hospital board that will be responsive to doctors, hospital employees, hospital patients and care, I feel confident we will once again have good health care in our community. I agree with the people of Irrigon and Boardman. I do not see why they should be asked to support Pioneer Memorial Hospital when they have hospitals so much closer that will be the hospitals they will use. I did ask the Court why we could not cut off the tax request at the baseline for the hospital levy. I feel this would be much more' realistic. I do not see any reason that the hospital has to be supported on a county-wide basis, since the Court has taken the hospital out of the county budget. We are "stuck" with a county wide school system, which Mr. Fred Martin supported. Perhaps it is Mr. Martin that is pushing for county wide hospital tax support. I did not receive a satisfactory answer to this question from the Court. The Court did seem very concerned how I planned to vote on the hospital levy. I repeated, as I have so many times, that I did not feel that I or any voter could vote intelligently on the levy until we were given a report on last year's budget that we did vote for the hospital. I have requested this for months from Mr. Fred Martin and the County Court. To date I have not seen same. I am as much in support of Pioneer Memorial Hospital as we were when we worked so hard to get it built. Just a hospital is not the total answer to health care. Doctors have to come first as the hospital cannot give us even an aspirin without it being prescribed by a doctor. I would like to see more of you visit the County Court re hospital. Also, I welcome any and all comments from each of you to me re solutions of our hospital problems. Sincerely, Jewel Hager Heppner Sifting through the TIMES 1929 Fifty years ago, the Gazette-Times reported that the peak of the wheat hauling season had not yet been reached at Heppner and reports were incomplete. The north part of the county is generally through harvest while the south Eight Mile and Hardman sections are just getting well underway. The Blackhorse and Heppner flat districts were now well along and will be finishing inside of two weeks. Averring that diversion of water from Willow Creek for the use of the city of Heppner Water Department had cost them several thousand dollars since the installation of the pipe line from the mountains and the city had failed to make good its contract with some ranchers, Frank Wilkinson, R.I. Thomp son, W.H. Cleveland and Frank Monahan appeared before the council to request the city to leave the water in the creek for a period of 50 years for irrigation purposes. With surfacing underway on six miles of the Heppner-Spray road from the junction with the John Day highway four miles above Spray, the route into the interior began to take on the form of actuality, says Jasper Crawford, who made the trip last weekend on the trip to Bend. J.B. and Miss Bess Huddleston also traveled the highway. On Tuesday, morning, train no. 129 wrecked, leaving the track six miles west of lone. The trouble was caused by a sun-kinked rail. No one was injured. In the Gazette's editorial column, the editor congratulated the O.W. R and N Company for its handling of passengers and mail on the local branch. The sun-kinked rail caused a spread of some 32 inches in the track and repairs were completed in time to allow scheduled connections the following night. 1954' Twenty-five years ago, Jack N. Angel, 37, of Yakima was named by the board of directors of Pioneer Memorial Hospital as the new administrator, succeeding John Ernsdorff . Angel was a former administrator at John Day. The city of Heppner was visited by a distant relative of Henry Heppner, the man who gave his name to the town when it was founded. The visitor, Karl P. Heppner, a manufacturing jeweler and engraver from Richmond Hill, New York and his wife were on a vacation trip into the western part of the United States and extended their trip to look over the town. The Heppner District Ranger Station said it had no forest fires reported so far in the season within its territory but Supervisor Wayne West urged travelers and workers to use extreme care in the woods. Fair buttons went on sale at a special chamber of commerce meeting. The red and white buttons cost $1. County elevators reported this week that the peak of wheat and barley harvest has passed in this section though there were still many farmers in the higher elevations around Hardman, Heppner and Eight Mile who are just getting started. A Spray pilot was forced to make a landing in a wheat field after hitting a power line owned by Columbia Basin Power while spraying grasshoppers on Balm Fork. About 3,400 acres had been sprayed in the county up to August 12. 1974 Five years ago, Police Chief Dean Gilman said it's been difficult finding a police officer to locate in the city because of the housing shortage and asked the city council if he had any jurisdiction to either purchase an older home for a new police officer or if council members knew of any rentals. Kinzua Corporation began produc tion of plywood at its Heppner plant this week. The plant is a - completely new sheathing plywood plant with monthly production goals of 12 million feet of ths inch plywood at a cost of $4 million. One hundred and twenty men and women will be employed in the new facility. The interagency committee has been coordinating a doctor recruitment effort for South Morrow County and settled on the title of Medical Services Committee. Willow Creek Dam cleared one more hurdle in its 40 odd year fight for existence last week when the U.S. Senate cleared it on a voice vote. The matter now goes to the House of Representatives where a push for approval is strongly expected. - m fe. -aiMmtur a
