Boardman clinic payments increased
3 I E
imes
VOL. 114
NO. 24
8 Pages Wednesday, June 7, 1995,
Morrow County Heppner, Oregon
HAM radio expands kids knowledge of US
By April Sykes
The Morrow County Health
District, at their regular
meeting Monday night, June 5,
voted to increase monthly
payments to Dr. Robert Boss,
operator of the Boardman
Health Care Center, by $2,000
a month. The board also ap­
proved an increase of $6,000
per year for clinic and capital
expenses. The action is an ad­
dendum to Boss' current four-
year contract, which will expire
May 1, 1996.
The increase will put the
district's annual payment to
Dr. Boss at $154,000, wijh an
additional $26,000 to be put in­
to a reserve account for clinic
and capital expenses.
The board tagged a provision
on the increase that would re­
quire a comprehensive audit of
the clinic's funds to be com­
pleted by March 1, 1996. The
addendum specified that the
health district would pay for
the audit, which would be com­
pleted at the center, and Dr.
Boss would pay for any addi­
tional staff time for completion
of the audit.
The health district owns the
clinic and Dr. Boss is paid a sti­
pend to operate it.
The former medical board
had requested an audit of the
clinic's operations for several
years and the current board
maintains that the figures sup­
plied by Dr. Boss are not com-
stitute an audit, especially con-
cerning public funds.
lone swimming
pool to open,
list swim lessons
The lone Swimming Pool will
open on June 13. Swimming
lessons have been scheduled
for two sessions, June 20 to 30
and July 11 to 21.
Session I schedule is as
follows: level IV, 9:30 to 10:30
a.m.; level III, 10:30 to 11:30
a.m.; level II, 11:30 a.m. to 12
p.m.;; level I, 12 to 12:30 p.m.
Session II: levels VI and \hl, 9
to 10 a.m.; levels IV and V, 10
to 11 a.m.; level III, 11 a.m. to
12 p.m.; level II, 12 to 12:30
p.m.; level I, 12:30 to 1 p.m.
Costs are $15 per student for
lessons, $1 per individual for
daily swims, and $20 for an in­
dividual or $50 for a family for
a season pass.
Stop by the pool to sign up
for lessons or call Brandi Ball,
instructor, 422-7583.
Class m em bers are Katie Ham s, Cyd Tullis, Natalie McElligott, Tim Doherty, Til Tullis, Jason
Zinter, Curtis Thom pson, Emily Key, Billy Gates, Sarah Barrow, M eghan M cCabe, Johnny
Collin and teacher Barbara Collin.
By April Sykes
The third grade class of Barb
Collin at lone Elementary
School has discovered a novel
way to learn geography-HAM
radio.
Collin says that her third-
grade class each year studies
the United States, but usually
writes or calls to receive infor­
mation about the states. This
year however, Collin's combin­
ed third-fourth grade class has
a HAM radio operator in its
midst, Til Tullis. Til, a fourth
grader, and his mother, Becky,
have passed the HAM radio
operator's exam and have a
HAM radio at home. Til's
sister, Cyd is a third grader.
The process of receiving
messages is much like a tele­
phone modem, except the
HAM radio is hooked up to a
computer and the messages
come over the radio waves. The
messages are then typed out
through the computer's print­
er. The messages can include
graphics, such as one message
that included a printout of the
Simpsons cartoon characters
and another which was a prin­
tout of Mickey Mouse.
The whole thing started out
when the Tullises received a
message from third graders in
Arizona asking about other
states. The lone third graders
then decided to send out a re­
quest for information them­
selves.
So far, they have received
messages from 33 states and
three Canadian provinces. One
man not only sent them a huge
amount of information, but also
went to the capitol building for
a photo of the governor to send
them. A man from Petaluma,
CA. cut out newspaper articles
for them. Another man, now
living in California, said he
grew up in Arlington and re­
members playing in the lone
gym and another, who also
lives in California, grew up in
Irrigon. One operator said he
had a daughter teaching at
Mosier, which is near The
Dalles. One man sent the kids
pictures of his children and
another said he lives in Florida
near "Banana George", a fa­
mous barefoot waterskiier, who
is said to have been included in
the Guinness Book of World
Records for skiing on all con­
tinents. Apparently if you met
Banana George he would give
you a banana.
"It's really personal," said
Collin. "W e were impressed
that people took that much
time and money to send stuff
to us. We've had so much
fu n."
The kids, who have been
working on the United States
since right after spring break,
have each done a packet on a
different state. They know the
details on their states, down to
the names of the governors.
There is a huge map in the
hallway at the school with the
postcards the kids have receiv­
ed from the radio operators
pinned to the appropriate place
on the map. Becky Tullis even
made a HAM radio postcard
with the kids' picture on it,
which they sent out.
Besides learning about the
states, Collin says that the ex­
ercise also incorporates lang­
uage arts, writing skills,
geography and social studies,
with a little bit of HAM radio
lingo thrown in. The kids say
that 73 means 'best regards',
BBS-bulletin board system,
CUL-chat with you later, and
88-love and kisses. A QSO is a
conversation and a QSL card is
confirmation of a conversation,
which, says Becky, are col­
lected for fun and for HAM
radio contests.
Becky adds that Til is the
youngest HAM radio operator
in Morrow and Umatilla coun­
ties and in the youngest group
of operators nation-wide. Cyd
is learning. The Tullises plan to
attend a HAM radio field day
on June 24 at Frazier, which is
near Ukiah. At the field day
operators camp out and com­
municate using solar panels for
power. This duplicates the con­
ditions of a real emergency,
when power would be down.
The operators then try to com­
municate with as many people
as possible. The event is open
to the public.
G-T deadline
enforced
The deadline for news stories
for the Heppner Gazette-Times
will be strictly enforced starting
Monday, June 5. No stories will
be accepted after the deadline
which is 5 p.m. Mondays.
"You don't want to know all
this," said Boss. "You don't
need to know all this. You are
contracting with me to do a job
for you."
Boss, in a letter to the health
district, said that he had
directed his accountant "to
provide the necessary financial
information on clinic expenses
and receipts," but the audit
"has been going on for 18
months and has accomplished
little". Boss claims that "any
further information is unwar­
ranted" and blames the im­
passe on a personality conflict
between him and Kevin Erich,
Pioneer Memorial Hospital ad­
ministrator and district CEO.
Boss says that he needs ad­
ditional monies because of his
expansion of services the clinic
offers and inflation. He says he
hasn't received an increase
since 1990. The board, how­
ever, maintains that they can­
not justify an increase unless
they have a complete financial
picture of the clinic's opera­
tions. "If the clinic has grown,"
said board member Norma
Stahl, "why is it operating at
a loss?"
Erich stressed that no one
wanted to see services decrease
in Boardman. "W e want to in­
crease services," he said.
Boss concluded the letter to
the board saying that if the mat­
ter w asn't brought to a
reasonable conclusion in the
coming month, he may seek
formal independent arbitration.
He added that he would re­
main available to meet with the
board to resolve the impasse.
However, after a brief ex­
change of words between Ed
Glenn, Boardman, a supporter
of Dr. Boss, newspaper colum­
nist and former lawyer and
board member Meg Murray,
Glenn and Boss abruptly walk­
ed out of the meeting. After
Boss and Glenn left the meet­
ing Murray said she would
write a letter of apology to
Glenn "for getting personal".
Murray had admonished
Glenn for not confining his
comments to the first 10
minutes of the meeting.
In a separate matter, the
board voted to include a line
item of $150,000 in the district's
budget for establishing a clinic
in Irrigon.
The board also approved con­
tracts with Dr. Ernie Atkins,
Doctor of Osteopathy, a new
physician who will be working
in the Heppner area; and Dr.
Paul Marshall, a dentist who
will be working in both the
Boardman and Heppner dental
clinics.
Dr. Atkins, who is most re­
cently from an eastern Wash­
ington town near the Canadian
border, will receive $110,000 a
year for three years under the
contract. Dr. Marshall, a grad­
uate of Oregon Health Sciences
University, is finishing a res­
idency program. Under the
contract, Marshall will earn
$65,000 a year for three years
with a bonus potential if the
clinics show a profit.
Gunderson coach of the year
Dave Gunderson
By April Sykes
Heppner Middle School
teacher and coach Dave Gun­
derson has been selected the
state coach of the year out of all
the schools in the state. The
award was presented in a cer­
emony in Eugene, but Gunder­
son was unable to attend.
Gunderson, who grew up in
Heppner and graduated from
Heppner High School in 1971,
has been teaching and coaching
for the past 19 years. He has
taught "ju st about every­
thing", but the past few years
has taught math, science and
reading.
Gunderson graduated from
Oregon State University in 1976
with a bachelor's degree in
elementary education. He
taught at Eastwood Elementary
School in Roseburg for five
years, from 1976 to 1981. Once
on a visit back to Heppner to
paint his parent's house,
Gunderson received a call from
then-H eppner Elem entary
principal Don Cole, who asked
him if he wanted to return to
teach fifth grade.
" I hadn't thought about it,"
said Gunderson, "but I'm glad
I did. It's a good place to raise
kids. You always know who
they're with and where they're
a t."
In Roseburg he coached
volleyball, basketball, football
and track and in Heppner he
has coached football, basketball
and baseball. He has also
coached T-ball, minor league
and Babe Ruth baseball and
Colt basketball. "It's pretty
easy to coach here because the
kids are so committed," said
Gunderson, adding that the
staff is "great" and the parents
supportive.
Bank of Eastern Oregon to offer $600 scholarship
The Bank of Eastern Oregon
is offering a $600 scholarship to
a second, third or fourth year
college student majoring in
agriculture or business, bank
President George Koffler has
announced.
College students who have
graduated from either lone or
Heppner high schools are eligi­
ble to apply.
Applications may be picked
up at the Bank of Eastern
Oregon in Heppner and lone.
The deadline for application is
July 5.
County conservation tour set at Kemps
The 1995 Morrow County
Conservation Farm Tour and
potluck barbecue will be held at
the Stan Kemp farm, Lex­
ington, on June 16, beginning
at 4 p.m.
According to Morrow Coun­
ty Wheat League president,
Judy Rea, Kemp was given the
conservation award for "a
lifetime of stewardship. " Kemp
began farming in 1947. He
Delta
quickly realized that wind ero­
sion was his biggest problem.
He has remedied this problem
by leaving residue and clods on
the surface of his tilled ground,
and by spreading straw on very
erosive spots in his fields.
Kemp serves on the Lex­
ington Blow Control District,
Morrow County Grain Grow­
ers board, and is a member of
the Elks.
Kemp has three grown child-
D
ren, Sherry Kemp, Pendleton;
Steven Kemp, Patterson, WA.;
and Gary Kemp, who lives in
Lexington with his wife Marcia
and their two daughters.
Community members are in­
vited to the tour and potluck.
Steaks, hamburgers, hot dogs,
beans, and beverages will be
provided by local sponsors.
Call the Morrow SWCD, 676-
5452, for coordination of salads
and desserts.
All Delta
Pickup Boxes
10% off
Morrow County Grain Growers
Lexington 989-6221
1-800-452-7396