TV personality to perform in Heppner
HEPPNER
50 <
te
imes
VOL. 114
NO. 11
Dallas McKennon
Radio, television, motion pic
ture and cartoon personality
Dallas McKennon will descend
on Heppner for the annual St.
Patrick's weekend celebration.
McKennon will intersperse
his own show with scenes of
"Erin Came to Morrow Coun
ty” , a play written by Hepp-
n er's own Jane Rawlins.
McKennon will be in the play's
bar and church scenes and will
narrate for the production
scheduled Saturday, March 18,
at 7:30 p.m. at the Heppner
Junior High School auditorium.
McKennon is a veteran actor
who had parts in several
movies, including "The Birds",
"Clambake" and the "Seven
Faces of Dr. Lao", and televi
sion shows, "Daniel Boone",
"Wagon Train", "Gunsmoke"
"Rifleman", "Bonanza", "Big
Valley", "Ben Casey", "Dick
Van Dyke" and "M y Three
Sons". He has done the voices
for many Walt Disney, Walter
Lanz, Will Vinton, Filmation
and Gumby cartoons. McKen
non also did the voices for the
Kellogg Rooster, the original
Tony the Tiger, the Kleenex
sneeze and Snap, Crackle and
Pop. He also has many record
albums, musicals, theater pro
ductions, commercials and
theme park voices and songs to
his credit.
McKennon and his wife, Bet
ty, live near Haystack Rock at
Cannon Beach. They have
eight children and 18 grand
children.
McKennon says that he first
performed in the area for a Lex
ington Grange function as a
favor to a friend in Baker City,
whose cousin is Delpha Jones
of Lexington. McKennon says
that his decision to come to this
year's event was influenced by
his love of "anything with
heritage", his meeting with
Jane Rawlins and Claudia
Hughes and local musicians
Sharia Erich and Bob Sagely.
McKennon's wife and his
daughter, Gayle, from Hyan-
nis, Mass., will accompany
him. He will also be singing on
the KUMA coffee hour Satur
day morning.
10 Pages Wednesday, March 15, 1995.______ Morrow County Heppner, Oregon
How budget committee works
School district to contract bus services
The Morrow County School
Board, at their regular meeting
March 13, voted to negotiate a
contract with Mid-Columbia
Bus Company for district-wide
bus services.
Mid-Columbia's bid for bus
services with $5 million in
surance was $655,390, a $69,804
savings over the district's bus
services proposal of $725,194.
According to Shirley Landauer,
business manager, the district
estimates its costs for providing
bus services at $1.957 per mile.
Mid Columbia bid $1.74.
Mid Columbia provided an
alternative bid with $2 million
in insurance for a total cost of
$629,162. This plan would pro
duce a savings of over $96,000.
High bidder was School Bus
Services, Inc. with an estimated
cost of $1.82 per mile. This op
tion would have saved over
$50,000. A third company,
Mayflower, which had indica
ted interest, did not submit a
bid.
Morrow County School Dis
trict bus drivers expressed
dissatisfaction with the board's
decision, commenting that the
company that they preferred,
Mayflower, said that they did
not have enough time to pro
perly submit a bid. However,
Superintendent Chuck Starr
said that Mayflower did not re
quest an extension for submit
ting proposals.
Bus driver Rita Britt said that
Mayflower offered the drivers
the best benefit package and
added that many of the drivers
work for the benefits, not the
wages. "If I have no benefits,
it's not worth it for me to
drive," she said.
The board decided to go
ahead with contracting bus ser
vices because of the amount of
money saved. Commented
board member Gary Frederick-
son, "All the districts around
us have gone to contracting and
there's a reason. They're sav
ing money. If you can save
close to $100,000, the only
question is, why didn't we do
this sooner?"
Other districts contracting
with Mid Columbia include
Condon, Umatilla, Fossil, Sher
man Co., Rufus, Pendleton,
LaGrande, Union Co., Milton-
Freewater, Long Creek, Elgin,
Athena-Weston and Stanfield,
according to Landauer.
Landauer said that the dis
trict specified that all current
bus drivers be rehired by the
contractor if the drivers choose
to be.
Landauer said that the dis
trict won't sign a contract with
Mid Columbia until after nego
tiations with the classified
employees bargaining unit.
In other business, the board:
-approved a four-day student
week for next year, with board
members Bill Doherty, John
Rietmann and Dwayne Carrol
voting against the four-day
week and board members Scott
Bauska, Molly Rill, Marcia
Kemp and Gary Frederickson
voting in favor;
-approved a 1995-96 school
calendar which will have
students starting school on
August 28, with Christmas
break beginning Dec. 21 and
school ending May 30;
-approved resignations of
Lois Conner, Riverside High
School assistant cook, effective
March 1; Krysta Marlow, A. C.
Houghton Elementary Chapter
I educational assistant position,
effective March 16; Fred Jac
quot, fifth grade teacher at Sam
Boardman Elementary, effec
tive June 9; Nancy Ekstrom,
lone School bus driver, effec
tive March 10;
-approved transfer of Barbara
Broadbent, assistant cook at
SBE to assistant cook at RHS,
replacing Lois Conner;
-approved employment of
Nancy Ekstrom, lone assistant
custodian/laundry person,
replacing Anne Bedortha;
-accepted the following dona
tions: ice machine at Riverside
High School from Don Russell
and the Booster Club; batting
cage materials at RHS from the
Fredericksons, Phillipis, Hux-
olls, Jim Lunders, Bobby Zahm,
Tim Griffin, Dean Mason and
the Northwest Metal Fabrica
tors;
-heard a report from Sam
Boardman Elementary School
students;
-approved a field trip request
for two Heppner High School
marine biology students;
-learned that the proposed
Olex annexation into several
school districts has been
cancelled by Olex;
-authorized Outdoor School
for all sixth grade students;
-accepted a bid for asbestos
removal from low bidder Lin
coln Cristi, Inc., for $28,473;
-set a special board meeting
for action on the bond issue
election results for March 29 at
7:30 p.m. at the district office;
-heard of the following
scheduled events March 16,
creating the future leadership
team workshop, district office,
8:30 p.m.; March 20-24, spring
vacation; March 27, budget
committee work session, lone
High School, 7:30 p.m.; March
28, election day; March 29,
special board meeting, district
office, 7:30 p.m.; April 3,
budget committee meeting,
budget and budget message
presented, district office, 7:30
p.m.; April 6, parent/teacher/
student conferences, 5 to 9
p.m.; April 7, conferences,
morning; April 10, regular
meeting;
-approved employment of
probationary teachers-Vicki
Broden, third year, Heppner
Elementary, Nancy Swarat,
third, Heppner High School;
Tom Logan, first, Jim Raible
and Kellev Swarat, third, lone
School; ACH, two first, one
third; Columbia Junior High-
three first, two second, three
third; RHS six first, two se
cond, three third; SBE two se
cond, three third.
PMH to install
X-ray
equipment
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
will be installing new X-ray
equipment during the next two
weeks. "T he hospital ap
preciates everyones patience
during this inconvenience,"
said a spokesperson. X-rays
will still be offered throughout
the transition period.
Grand jury to consider embezzlement case
The Morrow County Grand
Jury Wednesday, March 15,
was to consider a case of alleg
ed embezzlement from the
Heppner Day Care Center. The
case was brought by the Mor
row County District Attorney
against day care director Kathy
Tellechea.
According to Morrow Coun
ty DA Earl Woods, it is alleged
that Tellechea embezzled ap
proximately $2,400 from Hepp
ner Day Care accounts during
her employment at the day care
center over the last two years.
Woods said that an ongoing in
vestigation is underway to
determine if any other sums
were taken from the center.
By Chuck Starr, superintendent
of Morrow County Schools
In a recent editorial appear
ing in the "North Morrow
Tim es," the writer questioned
the school district's budgeting
process and criticized lack of
specific 1995-96 budget infor
mation available for public
evaluation at the February 27
special budget committee work
session. Can you explain your
budget committee process and
, timelines and can you tell us
why more specific information
wasn't available February 27?
First of all, let me review the
purpose of the meeting held on
February 27 at Sam Boardman
Elementary. That meeting was
designed to be an informational
meeting to provide the budget
committee and the public "big
picture" projections on re
sources, budget requirements,
and recommended cuts for the
next three years. It was design
ed to begin a public discussion
of these projections that will
lead to recommendations for
the budget committee to con
sider as they, and ultimately
the school board, make these
critical decisions over the next
two months. It was never in
tended as a meeting to present
the "budget message" and the
specific 1995-96 budget docu
ment. That meeting will be
April 3, at the district office, at
7:30 p.m.
We have scheduled a second
special budget committee work
session on Monday, March 27,
at the lone School cafeteria, at
7:30 p.m. This meeting will be
very much like the first
meeting. I will provide updated
resource projections, and do
my best to answer questions
generated from the February
meeting, as well as questions
that come up that night.
Members of the public are en
couraged to do the following:
1. Come to the district office,
or go to any of our schools and
review our 1994-95 budget
document. If there is anything
that you don't understand,
please ask.
2. Attend the March 27
meeting, ask questions and
St. P at’s schedule pg. 3
provide suggestions that you budget committee work ses
think will help the district make sion, lone Cafeteria at 7:30
the best decisions for the p.m.; April 3, budget commit
tee meeting for presentation of
future.
3.
Attend the April 3 the budget message and the
meeting, hear the budget proposed 1995-96 budget,
message, and see the specifics district office at 7:30 p.m.; April
of the proposed 1995-% budget 17, second budget committee
document. Provide additional meeting, location to be an
nounced; May 1, third budget
input.
To help you plan for upcom committee meeting, location to
ing meetings related to the be announced; May 15, fourth
budget process, I encourage budget committee meeting, if
you to mark your calendar with needed; June 12, budget hear
the following: March 27, special ing at Riverside High 7 p.m.
Find The Hidden Shamrock
Win Silver Medallions
The popular St. Patrick's Day treasure hunt is back again.
Each week until March 15 a clue for the treasure hunt will
be printed in the Gazette-Times. If followed these clues will
guide treasure hunters to a green shamrock hidden
somewhere in the city limits of Heppner.
The first person to find the hidden shamrock will win a
set of pure silver Oregon Trail Commemorative medallions
worth over $90. The coins are donated by the Bank of Eastern
Oregon and are on display at the bank.
Find this Shamrock...
and win these silver coins
RULES:
1. A new set of clues to guide you to the hidden shamrock
will appear in each edition of the Heppner Gazette-Times.
2. A total of five clues will be given up to March 15.
3. The hidden shamrock is not on private property and no
digging or moving of objects, dirt or other materials is
necessary to find the shamrock.
4. The first person to find the shamrock should bring it to
the Heppner Gazette-Times office to claim the commem
orative silver medallions.
Last Clue
From last week
An address told
On a street
where justice doled
Near a house where no one sleeps
On a crane where no one eats
Above andiron I wait for you
Come and get me, and make it soon!
Follow the clues and may the luck of the Irish be with you. This
contest is sponsored by the Bank of Eastern Oregon and the Hepp
ner Gazette-Times
Big Fencing Sale
See our ad inside
Morrow County Grain Growers
Lexington 989-8221
1-800-452-7396