Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (March 12, 1986)
Widow tells of journey to Heppner T W O - l b e H r p p n r r G a i r l t r T im e * H rp p n rr Sen Vinh and infant son Nha Boo Sen Vinh. 24, arrived in the United Stale« July 24, I960 Her former home \aaa Vmh l-ong. a city about the «ire of Hermitton located in South Vietnam She recall« that when «he wai three year* old. her family moved to LongKanh where her parent« had a printing buaine«« which they ran until 1975 when the government changed and everything was taken from the family After losing everything to the new government, they returned to Vinh l» n g where the family acquired one acre to farm sugar cane and rice They »old »ome of the sugar cane, but did not make much money The rice was used for fond She graduated from high school in l>ong Khanh where she went to school six days each week instead of five as in the United Stales She studied Knglish among her other studies She recalls that she wanted to come to the United States because it wax a land with more freedom and opportunities She and her cousin, l.ai Dang, who is now in California, left South Vietnam together The government in power.she said could not know that they were going to escape They contacted the owner of a boat who had promised to smuggle them out of the country Cost of the passage was 30 or of gold, which Sen's mother gave her One hundred ten people were crowded below the deck of the wooden boat The trip from Vietnam to Thailand, which she said would normally lake two to three days look them about six days because they were lost at sea There was no fond on the boat, but because she was sea sick, she was not hungry during the voyage Before they could land in Th a i land. pirates boarded their boat and threatened to throw those who did not turn over all of their money overboard Sen says that she was so scared at this point that she gave them all of the money and jewelry she had brought with her to sell in order to have money in Thailand and to buy her passage to the United States In Thailand, she and cousin 141 Dang stayed with some other cous ins in bamboo huts and tents at a refugee camp Everybody shared, she said Those who did not have money stayed with relatives or others who did While at the refugee camp, she learned that her cousins who 'had been smarter' had hidden their money from the pirates When she left Vietnam, she did not expect pirates or "no house" in Thailand She stayed in Thailand for six months before arranging for a cous in who had immigrated to Seattle in 1978 to sponsor her passage to the United Slates and getting clearance from the U S Government for im migration After arrival in Seattle, Sen ami l-ai Dang stayed with their cousin for a couple of days before renting their own apartment They paid their rent with money from a welfare program that also allowed them to attend school Sen attended Central Community College where whe studied Knglish as a second language and typing and other sec retarial skills Not until after her arrival in Seattle was Sen able to write to her mother and let her know that she had arrived safely in the United States Her father died two months after she left Vietnam She said that she hopes that her mother will one day he able to join her and her brother in the United States While in Seattle. Sen wrote to Son Vmh w hom she had seen at her home village in Vietnam and who was on the same boat from Vietnam to Thailand He remained at the refugee camp because it took longer for him to arrange sponsorship and passage to the United States He had no relatives here, but found a sponsor in Minnesota and arrived there in October. 1980 He made hi« way to Seattle where they were married in a Vietnamese ceremony The couple was later married again in a civil ceremony in Hcpf-ner Kighteen months after arriving at Seattle. Sen left with her husband for Houston. Texas, where Son, who was looking for a job, had a friend He got a job as a cashier at a conven lence food store and later became the maintenance manager Sen worked in the inventory department of the same company The couple then moved to Hermis ion where Sen's brother had a Job at O rrg e e W r d n r .d s y . M a rc h 12. I «Mt Lexington woman learns office skills while working at Courthouse Simpiot Sen had arrived in the United States before her brother left Vietnam Son Vinh found a job at Simpiot company and when he was laid off. was hired at Lamb-Weston She also was hired at Lamb Weston After Son was called back to work at Simpiot. she said he worked both jobs for awhile until they bought the Chevron station in Heppner, Novem ber 27. 1964 She continued to work for la m b Weston and Son drove bark and forth until they moved to Heppner in December Sen said that she had decided to continue working for la m b Weston until they were established "We knew that if we worked hard enough we could make our money by ourselves and support our family " Sen Vinh. pregnant with the coup le's first child, was on medical leave from LambWeston when Son was shot while working in the service bay of the Heppner service station Novrmbcr 30, 1965 Larry H ou r Westerling. 24, Heppner has been arrested and arraigned tor the ailed ged murder The couple's son. Nha Hao was bom December 14 at Good Shepherd Hospital in Hermiston He weighed 6 lbs 13 oi A long lime ago Son's ancestors were kings in Vietnam One of the monarch» made a list of the last names that each descendant of the family would have for many genera tions to come. Sen explained The first child of each generation has the same last name and the second children of the generation have the same last name, but different from the name of the first child For example, if Son had had a brother though his last name would not have been Vinh, the brother's first son would share the last name Bao with Son Vinh's son, Nha Sen stayed with her brother in Umatilla for a couple of months after her husband's alledged murder and now she and her son have their own apartment in Hermiston She receives social security now and said that she will stay in Hermiston for awhile and next month plans to go to Stockton. California, where her cousin tail Dang, lives with her husband After Nha is six months old. Sen said that she plans to return to school to learn some more skills so that she will be able to get another job as a stacker. or "sticker person'' she was unable to return to her job or the other types of manual labor which she had worked at previously As a result, workman's compensation is paying her salary as she goes through a re training program at tJie Morrow County Courthouse She has not had any office training or done any office type work before The skills training program is under the direction of Eastern (Jre gon State College and is set up in three month terms the same as the At first state tournament game Mustangs square off vs. Spartans Shirley McCorl After Shirley MeCarl suffered an injury as a result of her former |ob Widow thanks community for support by J tS T IN K W EA TH E R FO R D Sen Vinh. the widow of Son Vinh. came back to Heppner on March 4 and March 6 to express her sincere thanks and appreciation to the people of this community who gener ously gave money and other gifts to her during the difficult weeks after her husband's death Vinh operated the Chevron Station here during much of 1965 On Tuesday noon. March 4. Mrs Vmh and her infant son attended the Chamber of Commerce meeting to thank that group for its helpful gift She came from Hermiston with Anne Doherty and they were accom panied at the chamber luncheon by Kitty Bredemeier On Thursday evening. March C. Shanna t'aullus. Janet Greenup and Kitty Bredemeier arranged a gath ermg of Sen's friends and supporters in the Itecrention Hall of St I’at rick's Church Sen came from Her miston with her small son and with her niece and grandniece to again express her gratitude and apprec iation to the helpful people here To show further support for the petite Vietnamese widow, some of her Heppner friends plan to attend the March IB trial at the Morrow County Courthouse of L a rry West erling who allegedly murdered Son Vinh By Ashley < onklln Heppner s boy s basketball team opens the OSAA U S. Bank Class " A " state tournament at 8 45 p m Thursday. March 13 against the Sheridan Spartans The tournament runs from Wednesday. March 12 to Saturday March IS The Mustangs compete in the Columbia Basin Conference and sport a 14-7 record after wins in the district and regional tournaments Heppner from the Eastern D iv i sion of the CBC, defeated Western Division regular season champion Riverside 70-61 in the district cham pionship game The following week the Mustangs beat the Grant Union Prospectors 55 54 in the championship game of the Region D tournament The Spartans, who compete in the West Valley Conference in District 2, faced a rocky road to reach the state tournament Sheridan finished third in its res pective division with a 9-3 league record But the Spartans finished second at their district tournament to advance to the regional tourn ament In the Regional A tournament last weekend. Sheridan topped highly- regarded Portland Christian 58-52 and then squeaked by Lutheran 38 36 to advance to the slate tournament in the Pendleton Armory Fourth year coach Brent Eggers leads the Mustangs to the state tournament for the first time since 1971 An assistant coach now. John Boyer was a freshman guard on the 1971 team that lost two straight games and made an early exit This will t>e the fourth time since 1962 that lairry Samples will lead the Spartans into the Armory Sheridan captured the state crow n in 1962 w ith a 91 71 bombing of laiPinr Heppner is led by the outside artillery of 6'3" senior Todd Lindsay and 6 0 " junior Wayne Wilgers Each was a first team all league choice as well as being in the league's top five in scoring Lindsay has come alive as of late and has been on fire, averaging 25 points per game over the last four games A pair of 6'2" seniors. Tony Clement and Keith Kenison give the Mustangs added muscle under the boards Ju n io r Tre n t Harrison Come On In! S c h e c k o u r s u p p ly o f W e o d e r P a rts & C u ltiv a to r P oin ts. lon e H ardware M a in of being cut, and “ these needs iproduction1 will be taken care of before Home economics. 4 H. etc he said Oregon Extension has a total budget of $16 million, and under the proposed budgrt would lose about $2 million About 25 percent of the Oregon extension budget is federal, said Lunden. and the rest is state and county funding The president's budget is not final however, and will need to be passed by the Congress, said Lundin You’re invited to the Open House/Retirement Party for Pat Brindle Thurs., March 20 2-6 p.m. Neighborhood Center We admire and appreciate your commitment to your work and home. Thank You! Trisha and Shanny E ve n B ead S ilic o n e G asket M a k e r L o w e r P rice Automatic Dispensing System 100% cured in 24 hours Dispense* an even bead of Silicone every time. Heppner Auto Parts CoytêJ R ig h t H e r e fo r S t s P a t r i c k ’s D a y Green C a b b a g e » ^ _______ 19 Shenson Corn Beef 99 f roien «e «# Banquet Fried Chicken *2" lb Sove $ l Whd* Supply lasts Bes* Food Sove 30* Mayonaise 32 Western Fomity OJ Gold n Soft Save 29* Margarine , Western Family lb Tob Sove 30' Frozen Orange Juice Shot Flavor Save 69" Vanilla Ice Cream Banquet u * Save 46' Frozen C ru m P it u <* Western Family Cottage Cheese ^ ° * °> 89- 79* $r 99* 98* Sour C rum B « . Fresh Asparagus 10 lb Bog No. 1 Potatoes lu n Ground B u t Beef Rib S tu k Diet Peps- Mi Dew Pepsi« pk. 1 2 g* a r t 45* 99*u 69*- $2»- $1?. - Prices Good March 1 3 - 1 7 Open 7 (toys a week, 7 am to 6 p.m. Court S treet M arket Refreshments will be served I UK MCI I VAN MABTfR 422-7211 WHERE S THE BEEF ? 178 W Willow Heppner, Oregon Ad Sponsored By Street, lo ne Dad— Congratulations - 40 years in business! watched them play the preceding "Th e y're a good solid team They night As a dream built on grit and don't make many mistakes and they hustle came to an end. the Fillies went on to play Corbett for a > a v e some players who are very- third place finish, bringing home capable. said Royer Heppner s first-ever state trophy The Fillies don't play to change In 1986, the Heppner Fillies ended their game a bit against Amity the season with a 191 record, only- They are just going to play their being beaten by a AA Mac Hi school normal hassling defense and run the The Fillies headed to the district game tournament as the Columbia Basin Heppner has a good chance at the District 7A first place team After state championship shutting down the Sherman County If we play like we can and if the Huskies. Heppner moved on to the ball bounces our way, our chances regional tournament By beating are good." concluded coach Royer the Pine Eagle Spartans 54 46 in the As the Fillies prepare themselves (lass A Regional basketball tourna for the state tournament, they know ment. March 7. the Fillies earned a that their dream is within reach chance to prove themselves and to With the continuous outstanding make that dream become reality support of the Filly fans, the goal Just under a year ago, the Hepp will soon be achieved ner Fillies were also facing the Amity Warriors in the state tourna ment The Fillies stomped the Warriors 45 29 to advance to the semi finals Amity returns all but three play era including five seniors, two juniors and two sophomores The Fillies and the Warriors will tie pretty evenly matched as far as height is concerned Both teams average 5'S" players Out of the nine Warriors returning some are very capable according to Rover Extension would suffer under proposed ‘87 budget Under uresident Reagen's pro posed 1987 budget, funds for rxten sion service would be cut by 59 percent, according to figures from the Oregon State University in Cor vallis Local impact of the cuts is un clear, but the extension service would lose 30 profession positions stale wide, according to Fred Lun din, M orrow County Extension Agent l.undin said extension services that are not related to agriculture production are in the most jeopardy assists this season Freshman Bry an Padberg has also given Heppner sturdy play off the bench Sheridan is led by 8'2" junior Mike Wise and 6 0" senior Jay Cook, who were both West Valley Conference all-stars Wise plays underneath the basket while Cook is the team s outside threat Another fine play er is junior point guard Jon Martinet. who Eggers describes as an excel lent floor leader Other starters for the Spartans are Jon Linscheid, a 6'5" senior and Kevin Hutchins, a S'9" senior Coming off the bench is 6’0" junior Rob schmidt. who is also capable of lighting up the scoreboard comes off the bench to back up the big men Sophomore Duane Ball runs the team and broke the school record in Fillies again face Amity Warriors By D A N A R E ID Only three basketball games stand in the way of the dream that s been dancing in the Heppner Fillies heads for three years, the class A state championship In 1964. the Fillies advanced to the district tournament, but their season ended there after being defeated first by the Sherman County Huskies and then by the Wahtonka Eagles In 1985, the Fillies made history at Heppner Once again they advanced to the district tournament, only this time the tables were turned around The Fillies won their first-ever district championship by defeating the Sherman County Huskies. 40 36 The win over the Huskies wasn't just any win. it was the first time in six years that Heppner beat Sherman County The Fillies weren't expected to heal the Huskies and they weren't given much of a chance against the much taller Imbler team at the class A regional tournament but they did win. 47-42 The win over the Panthers led to Heppner'» first appearance ever in the state tournament The Fillies knocked down the Amity Warriors, to be able to play the semi finals against the Regis Rams Regis was a much better team against the Fillies than when they EOSC for administering the pro gram MeCarl receives no grade report for the work, but the county files a report of her progress each month MeCarl and her husband Morris who works for Kimua Corp have three grown children She says that office work is much raster physical >y and is an interesting changr At the end of the one-year program. MeCarl will be on her own. but will have gained necessary skills to work university's schedule says a court house spokesperson McCarl's cur rent supervisor is Morrow County (Terk Barbara Bloodsworth while MeCarl is answering phones and learning the private board exchange and typing At the end of three months, she will be transferred to other departments where she will also learn receptionist duties Some non police dispatching, how to doc ket justice court cases, some micro filming and word processing The countv receives 1100 oer month from O r . m il y.—' . U»**. 111 N TAUT -------------- i i n u i I Court hieppner 676-9643 À
