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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 9, 1994)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 9, 1994 - THREE Letter to the Editor Editor’s note: The following letters to the editor were submit ted by the Heppner Middle School students o f Jannie Allen's sixth grade class.) Dear Editor: I think Tonya Harding is guil ty. But even if she is guilty I think she should go to the Olympics because she is a good skater. Then after the Olympics she can deal with the authorities. If Tonya Harding doesn’t go to the Olym pics America might not get the gold medal. Sincerely, ___________(s) Darrin Ployhar Dear Editor: Lately the fairgrounds has been changed and it seems to me it’s crowded. The rodeo grounds had been tom down and rebuilt. I lik ed the way the grandstands were behind the announcer and have the grandstands go all the way around the arena. The 4-H beef projects have been growing and it has been crowded the last couple of years. The same is true of the sheep and pig barns. I also think there should be more fun activities^or the kids at the fair. We could have cool games and make more rides like the Hermiston fair. Sincerely, (s) Clint William Bellamy Dear Editor: Our town has a very small ac tivity rate, for teen and pre-teens. We used to have a swimming [ttol and a roller skating rink. Now the pool is broken down and during the summer we roast. Peo ple say “ Just go to the lake,” but who knows, the lake may be disease infested. Others say, “ Go to the pool in lone,” but that’s the catch, lone is 18 miles away and some parents don’t have time to go and watch their children. The roller skating rink was fun for all ages. It also gave children things to do and to stay out of trouble. Now all we have is the arcade. Some people don’t let kids to there because in larger cities most gang activity is found in arcades, and it may happen here. I suggest we keep trying to raise money for the pool. Hepp ner doesn’t have enough money but with the participation of citizens and children we just might have more activities for people of all ages. Sincerely, ______ (s) Laurie Ann Michael Dear Editor: I think the hospital employees should be recognized more than they are for their efforts. The aurses and doctors are very nice and helpful. Often times people don't even say thank you. These ’men and women put in countless hours just to help us nice folks from Heppner and surrounding areas. Many people, don’t even think what it would be like without the hospital. We would have to go to Hermsiton or Pendleton just to get blood taken or have a checkup. For instance if a person from Blake Ranch became seriously ill, and needed medical attention fast, one hour and forty- five minutes is a bit far to go in a life or death situation. Heppner would be the closest and that per son could get medical attention there, and prevent his/her situa tion from getting worse. If the Heppner hospital wasn’t there that person’s condition could get very bad. Thank you Pioneer Memorial. ____________ (s) Corey Miller Dear Editor: I think this stuff on Tonya Har ding is getting old. I think she should be forgiven and they should let her on the team. The reason she is the way she is, is because her mom abused her when she was young. She did not know about the at tack until after and did not tell the police right away because she thought her ex-husband would beat her as he did before. All Tonya wants is for people to believe in her and stand by her side. She hopes to become a friend as well as a team mate with Nancy Kerrigan very soon. All she is looking for is a little respect. Most sincerely, (s) Casey Ingraham Dear Editor: Gang activity is growing today. People in Heppner are naive about gangs coming to this com munity. They are not all aware of what our youth is doing. Not that all of our youth is doing anything wrong. I don’t really think that there is a gang, but just a lot of kids hanging out together. If one does come, be aware. Sincerely, __________ (s) Mitch Mathews Dear Editor: I am concerned about ESPN being taken off. It is an expensive channel but also one of the most watched. It gives you 24 hours of sports each day and all the sports scores and highlights you can handle a day with Sports Center. They most nights have double headers for baseball. Big Mon day, Super Tuesday and on some nights triple headers. If you are not going to keep ESPN then hook us up to another station that gives us the same coverage. Give us the same kind of coverage around the world. Try to get a station that gives you sports like ESPN. I don’t think that you will find one, so let’s keep ESPN. Sincerely, ___________ (s) Ben Goodyear gangs lately. Well, if we have more teen and pre-teen activities then if gangs do move in to town not so many kids will join, or maybe none at all. And you know that if kids keep busy they are less likely to get into trouble. Sincerely, ______________ (s) Abby Kahl Dear Editor: On January 14 the sixth graders threw me a party. It was very ex citing. I got balloons and stuffed animals. The reason they threw me a party was that I was going to Seattle for radiation treatments for two weeks. I want to give thanks to all the sixth grade and to the people who gave me cards and balloons. Sincerely, ____________ (s) Heidi Turrell Dear Editor: I’m dearly amazed that kids join gangs when they know it is not very safe or responsible. Haven’t they seen some real life stories on gangs? I realize that some of that stuff isn’t real, but it scares me enough that I won’t join one. Why do kids want to be in a gang? Because they think it might be cool or something. The reason I think they join them is because of their home lives or that their parents don’t care enough to tell them the dangers of gangs. We all should be aware that gangs are moving to smaller towns and we shouldn’t think that it could never happen here either. ___________ (s) Amy Papineau Dear Editor: What has happened to our teen and pre-teen activities? That is the question many kids have been asking since the pool closed and also the roller skating rink. Some people complain that kids have been getting into trou ble a lot lately. Probably about half the kids that do get into trou ble would behave if they had an activity to do. I understand that things like a pool is so expensive Heppner can not afford it. Well I was thinking that if anyone had an activity in mind for the kids of Heppner to enjoy, speak up. Tell someone if you do have an activi ty Heppner can afford. You might want to try contacting the school or the Parent’s Club. _________ (s) Kimberly Hansen Dear Editor: The pool is a problem we can’t ignore. Now we have to travel 18 miles to lone to go swimming. The people of the pool are do ing a great job raising money. We needed $1.2 million dollars for the pool they have selected and we have collected $11,000 already. The people of the pool have a donation bucket at Central Market. They are working on grants. They also want to thank people for the money that has been donated. The pool is a four lane, 25 yard lap pool. It has a water slide and zero deep fan. The pool is located outside but there is a therapy pool that is 20 by 20 feet that is located inside. It is two to three feet deep. The main pool will be open in just the summer, but therapy all year around. The location of the pool is still undecided and they hope Dear Editor: to have it done by the summer of The seventh and eighth grades '95. are moving up to Heppner High If you have any questions or School. The details of this issue donations get a hold of George have not yet been totally decided Naims, Skip Mathews or Kay but it will not happen until the fall Proctor. Donations are needed. of 1995. There is also a bond ______________ (s) Macy Rhea issue that is to be voted for in March. In this issue there is Dear Editor: money to build onto the grade I am writing this letter to tell school. They still do not know if you what probably needs to be they are going to tear down the done for kids’ benefit. For in middle school or not. When the stance, I asked most of the kids seventh and eighth grades are I know and all of them said they moved to the high school a new wanted something to do. gym and cafeteria will be built in If we could all work hard the middle school area. The high together we can maybe get school was built to hold people enough money to start on the with the seventh and eighth swimming pool. There is going grades we will have only about to be a long time before we save 85 more people. If the seventh enough money to get it started and eighth grades are moved they again, but the longer we wait the will be kept apart from the ninth longer it waits, right? So why not and 12th grades. start right now. I feel that this will be very ex From, citing and I’m looking forward to ______ (s) Kimberly L. Marvin the change. Dear Editor: Sincerely, I would like to thank all the ____________ (s) Trisha Adams coaches and referees for Dear Editor: volunteering their time to help In Heppner very little is issued Colt basketball. I think it was nice for kids to do. of them to give up their Saturdays Fixing the pool is a great idea. to help pre-teens have fun while With our old pool every day it promoting team work, physical was packed full of kids and fitness and improving skills. I ap adults. A new pool would give preciate them all. kids something to do and in the Sincerely. future keep them off the streets. _______ (s) Matthew Van Liew Roller skating is another activi Dear Editor: ty that is no longer available. It seems that there are not as R oller skating is fun for many teen and pre-teen activities everybody, kids and adults. anymore. Ever since they closed Kids in H eppner need the pool, there is a hole in kids’ som ething to do. Any summer activities. I, for one got suggestions? bored this summer. But when the Sincerely, pool was still open I was not ________________ (s) Jake Roy bored. Sure a summer camp will keep the ones who can afford to go busy for a week or so. But Dear Editor: The down town sidewalks need when that is over what do we do? to be made more handicapped ac The sooner we can build a new cessible. By the B.P. station there pool the better. is a curb. I always go to the car Roller skating was something ramp but that’s dangerous. There that all of my friends and I all should be a ramp. By Coast to looked forward to almost every Friday. Since they are talking Coast there is another curb, only about remodeling the fairgrounds there is no car ramp close by. Sincerely, then why don’t they build a new ______________ (s) Eric Rollis exhibit hall and then use the old one for rollerskating? People have been talking about Dear Editor: of this, teaching a child to use I have heard that the new Apple He’s is kind of useless ex owners of the Kinzua Mill might cept for the experience in typing. close it. I think this would be a I suggest the school replace bad idea because most of the peo their Apple He’s with powerful ple in Heppner work at the mill. PC’s or Macintoshes. A lot of Also the mill helps with taxes and people like Mac computers school money. If the mill is clos because they are user friendly and ed less kids would go to school don’t have a whole lot of pro here so teachers could ge fired. blems. However the amount and Then the stores would quit an variety of software (programs) Heppner would become a ghost available for Mac computers is town. They could also just lay off much lower than that available some people. I don’t know if for PC’s. Also if you want to that’s true, but if it is, it’s bad copy a program file on a Mac you news. have to buy a special copy pro Sincerely, gram where as on a PC all you ___________(s) Chris Bowman have to do is type the copy com mand. The major downfall of a Dear Editor: PC is their incompatibility with What happened to all of the some programs and different teen and pre-teen activities? Did brands of hardware. A multitude they all just vanish? Will we ever of errors can occur when you buy get them back? An even better new products for your PC. Fix question, when will we get them ing it usually teaches you a lot back? about your computer and when Adults say that kids get into trouble too much. Well, one of you do get them fixed they work very well. the main reasons is because My personal favorite is a PC. there’s nothing else to do. If there I think it would be worth it for was something to do we wouldn’t be getting into as much trouble. the school to spend the money to An example of the vanishing purchase better computers and activities has to do with the roller educate kids to what they really skating parties which used to be will be using as they grow up. I held once a year and now not encourage you to try to persuade even then. It makes money so the school to buy new computers why not have it? for the middle school. After all, Another example is the swim what is the school going to do ming pool. I know that some with all the money they saved on money has been made but let’s the new lunch program anyway? hurry it up and get that pool fix (s)_______ Matt_______Jepsen ed up and open again. It would be nice if somebody Dear Editor: I’m writing to inform people who has some extra time would organize a sporting activity like what will happen when the seventh and eighth grades move tennis, soccer or badminton. All we are asking for are one to the high school. I’ve been told or two activities. So why can’t the work won’t be all finished un people take this into til fall of 1995 or 19%. The mid dle school building will probably consideration? _____________(s) Leah Denton be tom down. The high school is built to hold 250 people. Now Dear Editor: Being a kid in Heppner is pretty there are only 150 people in the boring. Now that the swimming high school. If they move the pool is closed kids have nothing seventh and eighth grades to the to do in the summer. Most of us high school there will be enough are at the age where we’re too room to hold the extra students. young for jobs and too old for The seventh and eighth grades playing with dolls and toy trucks. will be on separate levels than the We are in great need of some fun nine-12 grades. There will be more rooms built activities. on to the elementary school. Also I asked some of my classmates if they tear down the middle if they had any ideas and most of school building they will build a them said we should have roller new gym and cafeteria where the skating back. Some other ideas middle school was. Also fifth and were maybe having a kids' golf sixth grade will have rooms built ing league where we could have on in the elementary building. golf lessons and then games. Lots I think it would be a good idea of people even said we should to move the seventh and eighth have intcrmural sports like grades to the high school because kickball and badminton. One of the middle school is so old it the most liked ideas was to have would collapse if there happen colt volleyball and football like ed to be an earthquake. basketball. Please help because If you vote on this issue in we’re bored. March I suggest you think of our Sincerely, _________(s) Stephanie Clough safety if there happened to be an earthquake. I hope you will vote Dear Editor: on this issue wisely. I am writing concerning com Sincerely, munity safety. This is a problem ____________ (s) Lindsay Greif not only in big communities like Portland but also in small com Dear Editor: The Heppner seventh and munities like Heppner and Lex ington. What I am trying to em eighth graders will move to the phasize and point out is that it high school in 1995 and the gym really is a problem. I think that and middle school knocked this problem exists most at night. down. I have concerns and joys I feel scared to walk home from about this project. My concern is about the money situation, where a friend's house at night hours. Because of there being no one is the school going to get enough around I feel really helpless and money to knock down two that something might happen to buildings and rebuild onto the me like what happened to Polly grade school? My joy about this is that the kids will be safer in the Klass. high school if an earthquake I feel that there should be more should happen. police officers driving and walk Sincerely ing the streets at night because ______________ (s) Amy Drake there are people out there that take kids and sadly the people of Dear Editor: My concern is about the teen America finally figured it out and pre-teen activities. What hap when Polly Klass turned up dead. Maybe it sounds like I'm being pened to the pool? The roller really ridiculous about all this and skating? My friends and I were am being paranoid, but Polly saying to each other that “ We Klass did live in a small town like need more activities for kids ours. I know everyone is sick of especially in the summer.” The pool has made about hearing that we need more police. But maybe something can be $7,000 to $10,000. Why can’t we done to protect the people of have some more fund raisers for Heppner and Lexington. And the the pool? The roller skating, why did that law should do something to help shut down? That was something get some of these people off the enjoyed by many kids and like the streets. pool it was something for families Sincerely, _____________ (s) Kim Pointer to do. People say that kids get into too Dear Editor, much trouble. But maybe things I am writing to state my opi will be different if we have more nion about the Heppner Middle activities. School’s computers. The com Sincerely, puter lab upstairs has mostly Ap _________ (s) Kristen Marshall ple He’s. Now these computers weren't that bad about 10 years Dear Editor: ago. Today many o f your I don't think the law really puts children will grow up to use com down their foot to people like puters in their work and they will child molesters, murderers, or be using PC's (IBM compatible) rapists. What I mean by that is or Macintosh computers. Because like Wesley Alan Dodd who kill ed two small children in Van couver, Washington and another one in Seattle, Washington. He had been in trouble all of his life. Or like when 12 year old Pol ly KLass was literally taken from her home and strangled to death. These criminals were both repeat offenders but nothing was ever done to them until they did something terrible to innocent people. Polly Klass’s murderer will probably be let out of prison in about four years and hie will just do it again, and I don’t think that’s right. I mean some of my friends have recently told me they are afraid to go outside after dark for the simple reason of being kid napped, stalked, or even murdered. People don’t realize that that’s what our world is com ing to. Sincerely, _____________(s) Ashely Ropp Dear Editor: The idea of the seventh and eighth graders going to the high school really surprised me at first. I was wondering why the seventh and eighth grades had to leave middle school, then I found out the reason why, to save money. I went to one of the school board meetings where Mr. Starr was talking about the seventh and eighth graders going to the high school. He talked about how this would save money and then he said there would be teachers jobs cut to save money. Just think, the seventh and eighth graders would have no place for recess and they can’t drive down town. The high school teachers might expect more from the seventh and eighth graders since they are used to w orking with high school students. Sincerely, ____________ (s) Justin Nelson Dear Editor: As an Oregonian and a sports fan I would not want Tonya Har ding to represent our country in the winter Olympics. I think Tonya Harding is guilty because she called Kerrigan’s hotel and asked what room she was in. If she goes to the Olympics, I don’t think the judges will forget about the incident when she skates. I don’t think she can live in the same house with her ex-husband and not know what’s going on. It would also be bad for Harding's career to end like this, but it seems the right thing to do. (s) Michael Schonbachler Justice Court Report The Justice Court office at the courthouse annex building in Heppner reports handling the following business during the past week: Richard Dean Baker, Jr., 28, Echo-Truck Speeding, 67 mph in a 55 mph zone, $253 fine; Jam es Earl M orris, 45, H eppner-Sw itched License Plates, $223 fine; Driving Unin sured, $223 fine; Marvin Robert Padberg, 49, Ione-Truck Speeding, 65 mph in a 55 mph zone, $65 fine; Cynthia Faye Poppe, 22, Portland-Violation of the Basic Rule, 41 mph in a 55 mph zone, $37 fine; William Joseph Kuhn, 42, Heppner-Exceeding the Max imum Speed Limit, 70 mph in a 55 mph zone, $97 fine. Births Sh een s L orrissa M oore Sager-a daughter Sheena Lorrissa was born to Vida Melinda Sager of Boardman on January 25. 1994 at Good Shepherd Community Hospsital in Hermiston. The baby weighed 5 lbs. 12 oz. Logan Greer Wanous-a son Logan Greer was bom to Leatitia and Gordon Wanous of Heppner on January 29, 1994 at Good Shepherd Community Hospital in Hermiston. The baby weighed 7 lbs. 4 oz. Aleck Janies Harsin-a son Aleck James was bom to Olivia Gavin and Brad Harsin of An chorage Alaska on February 1, 1994. The baby weighed 8 lbs. 11 oz. Grandparents are Jim and Karen Gavin of Heppner. Great grandmother is Maxine Cox of Lexington. Great-great grand m other is E lisie H uston, Heppner.
