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Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 11,1997 - FIVE
Sowing the seeds o f wisdom
more political" he adds. "From
the national level down, it seems
like education is being held
hostage. The teachers and the
school board have a real job
ahead of them before it all settles
out."
He says that educational reform
tells them what a student should
know to meet benchmarks, but
"not how to get there". "It's just
hard to know what they want,"
says Gunderson.
"It
has
demanded a lot more of teachers.
You're doing more with less
money and the demands are just
so much greater."
Dave Gunderson
The lunch pail that long-time
teacher
Dave
Gunderson
received last week from the
Heppner Elementary School
Student Council bears the
inscription, "Forever Sowing the
Seeds of Wisdom".*
Gunderson, who has been
teaching and coaching for 21
years, 16 of those years in
Heppner, will be sowing seeds of
a different kind starting this
summer. Gunderson, who has
worked on area farms in the
summers for many years, has
decided to change careers—from
teaching to farming. He has
accepted a position with Mark
Cutsforth as a hired hand on
Cutsforth's wheat ranch as of
June 11. "I'm going to be
learning a whole bunch of new
stuff," said Gunderson. "I'm
going to be learning new things
and it's going to refresh me."
Gunderson says he had wanted
to be a teacher since he was in
the sixth or seventh grade,
inspired by teachers Tom
Hughes, Clint Agee and Don
Clark, whom he admired. But,
he says that "burnout" is a factor
in his decision to leave the
profession. "Burnout is a big
thing," he said. "That's part of
why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Thirty-eight years of my life has
been in a school. The daily stress
can kind of get to you."
Despite the stress, however,
Gunderson still obviously loves
teaching. He says that one of the
most rewarding parts of teaching
is watching his students grasp an
idea. "When you see the smile on
a student's face when the kid
finally gets it. You see the bulb
go off in his head. That really
makes my day."
"I think the best thing,
especially
at
our
level,"
continued Gunderson, " is the
growth you see in a kid, not only
in skills, but in attitude."
Gunderson, who was recently
chosen as honored guest at the
Heppner High School graduation
and at the Heppner eighth grade
banquet (and has received those
honors more than once) has
developed a rapport with his
students not too many have been
able to achieve. "You kind of
have to be a kid yourself," said
Gunderson. "You laugh with
them and cry with them if
something happens in their
families. It's really rewarding
when they graduate from high
school and then from college and
come back and talk to you."
Gunderson stresses the
importance
of
teaching
communication to his students.
"The most important thing now is
how to get along with people.
There's so much to know about
how to deal with so many
different kinds of people. You
can't put those down on a piece
of paper. That's part of a
teacher's job, to knock down
those barriers. It's a tough job."
Gunderson said that he has
especially liked the camaraderie
he has developed with other
teachers, "the closeness you get
with your fellow staff. You go
through a lot with them."
Another aspect of teaching
that he loves is coaching. He
started coaching his first year of
teaching and plans to continue
coaching seventh and eighth
grade basketball and football
even after he resigns from his
teaching position. The first year
he taught he coached four sports-
football, basketball, track and,
for the first and last time, girls
volleyball. "I'd always played
sports in school and then had the
opportunity to coach," said
Gunderson. "Coaching is a
special thing. Our goal is
participation. I've never had a
problem with a parent because
you try to play everyone. The
goal is to teach and have fun.
Wins and losses don't mean
anything—although I can think
back when we were really
pumped about winning a game.”
"But," he hastens to add, "that's
never been a priority."
He says that the reason that
coaching is such a pleasure is
because "The kids who are out
for sports are really motivated.
So it makes my job easier. It's
like teaching driver's ed. Every
kid wants to learn to drive."
Gunderson says, however, that
he has not enjoyed "budget
problems, paperwork and relying
more and more on testing."
"Education has become so much
Dave Gunderson definitely has
roots in Heppner. His dad, Eddie,
grew up in North Dakota, but
graduated from high school here,
as did his mother, Bev. She came
to Heppner to live with her aunt
and uncle after her mother died.
Eddie and Bev were married in
the same house they live in now.
Dave was
bom at Camp
Hanford, WA. His family lived
in Heppner, but his dad was in
the Korean War at the time.
Dave graduated from Heppner
High School in 1971 and went to
Oregon State University where
he received a bachelor of science
degree in elementary education.
He got his first job teaching at
Roseburg in 1976. The same
week he started work, he also
married his wife, Tricia."We got
married on Saturday and I had to
report to Roseburg for in-service
stuff on Monday."
While the two were not high
school sweethearts, they had
known each other at Heppner
High School. They met later at a
friend's wedding in Heppner and
dated about a year before they
got married. She had attended
Umpqua Community College at
Roseburg, while living with her
aunt and uncle, before getting a
job with a doctor there. In 1976
he also got a job in Roseburg
teaching fifth grade. He had
taught there five years when he
came home one summer to paint
his parents’ house. While he was
in Heppner, Don Cole, then
principal at Heppner Elementary
School, called him up, told him
he had a position open and asked
if he would take it.
"I'd always wanted to come
back to Heppner and by then
both of our kids were bom, so I
resigned
my
position
in
Roseburg." he taught fifth grade
another five years in Heppner
before moving to the sixth grade
in 1986. This last year he has
taught combined fifth and sixth
grades.
"Heppner's a great place,"
continued Gunderson. "The main
reason is that it's a great place to
raise your kids. (Son Brent
graduated from Heppner High
School this year and son Derek
will be a junior there this fall.)
You know who your friends are,
where your kids are."
Gunderson says that the
support of family and friends
enabled him to make the decision
to change careers. "I couldn't
have made this decision without
their support-Tricia, my parents,
her parents and my kids. A lot of
people have come up to me and
said, 'We're going to hate to see
you go, but we understand where
you're coming from.' It's so
overwhelming—the people who
have talked to me, the cards I've
gotten, the things the kids have
said. That's the special thing
about teaching. You can make a
difference in a person's life. I'm
going to miss that, there's no
lone presents awards
Tennis letters were presented to
The lone High School spring
tennis
team members by coach
doubt. At the same time I'm sports and academic awards
Cathy
McCabe. Kelly Swarat.
going to be looking forward to a ceremony was May 20 at the
social
studies
teacher, gave Mark
new challenge."
school cafeteria.
McElligott
the
global studies
*(Inscnption by colleague
Following the welcome by
award
and
Katie
Tworek
the l S
Principal Dick Allen, Del LaRue
Jannie Allen.)
history
award.
presented the Big Sky Academic
LaiRee Anderson and Kara
Awards. In order to receive an
HHS students'
Miller
were recognized for their
award a student must be on the A
work
on
the yearbook. Dale
honor roll for three nine weeks
work published
Holland
recognized
the Honor
and have lettered in at least one
Society
members.
He also
sport.
in book
presented
the
math
award
to Luke
Certificates went to freshman
Several Heppner High School Mark McElligott; sophomores Swanson and the science award to
students have been included in Ryan Bennetto, Jessica Krebs, LaRee Anderson
Both the Language Arts and the
the Rural Readers Project, Niki Sullivan, Katie Tworek, and
"Student Writing from Rural Tori Odinet; juniors Nathan Spanish awards were given to
Oregon", recently published.
Rietmann, Jenny Sullivan, and Niki Sullivan by teacher Jim
Besides Heppner High School, Kara Miller; and seniors LaRee Raible. He also presented the
student writers were included Anderson, Jory Crowell, Jon drama award to Dawn Sheirbon
from Klamath Union, Bend,
Allen presented the 1997
Garrett and Luke Swanson.
Central Linn, Chiloquin, Dufur,
LaRue then presented track team Citizenship Award to seniors
Sherman, Sisters, Taft, Waldport
members with certificates and Kelly Morgan and Brenda Holtz
and Yamhill-Carlton schools.
The Grant Rigby Award was
Heppner students published in letters.
President Jacob Taylor, vice presented by Jim Swanson to Del
the book include: Amber Flaiz,
LaRue
who wrote, "Midnight Train"; president Kelly Morgan, and
Suzy
Jared Wilson, "Rodeo"; David secretary-treasurer
Piper, "You're Mine"; Seth Heideman were presented with
Givens Goodell, "For Various student body officer pins.
Reasons"; Tom Wickel, "The
Loss"; Kim Pointer, "Hunger";
l T O ALL OUR HEPPNER AREA FRIENDS
and Ben Hubert, "Kasey".
W .C .C .C Golf
Ladies' Play, June 3
Low gross of the field: Karen
Morgan 42.
Flight A: low gross tie Karen
Wildman and Susan Atkins 43;
low net Suzanne Jepsen 30; least
putts tie Carol Noms and Jan
Paustian 16; long drive Karen
Morgan.
Flight B: low gross Alene
Rucker 44, low net Luvilla
Sonstegard 28; least putts Shirley
Martin 15; long drive Deborah
Kendrick.
Flight C: low gross Sandi
Hanna 46; low net Doll
Campbell 31; least putts Jenny
Reynolds 17; long drive Lorrene
Montgomery.
K.P.: Karen Wildman 6T1",
Deborah Kendrick 33'8"; Jean
Ball 10'11".
Chip in: Luvilla Sonstegard
#17.
Justice Court
Report
-Birthday Celebration-
O u td o o r
576-2080
Main Street
Hermiston
20 %
ALL MERCHANDISE
! No Guns, Ammo
LAYAW AYS O.K.
FREE DRAWING !
1st prize - .22 Rifle New
2nd prize - Custom Knife
3rd prize - BH Gold Ring
Pop Free
Hotdogs 2 5 c
Viea/MSTR
★
June 13-14-15th ★
The look of a
winner for
Father’s Day
The Justice Court office at the
courthouse annex building in
Heppner reports handling the fol
lowing business during the past
week:
Ronald Onn Harr, 54, Eugene-
Violation of the Basic Rule, 72
mph in a 55 mph zone, $101 fine;
William Donald Greenup, 45,
Lexington-Violation of the Basic
Rule, 81 mph in a 55 mph zone,
$167 fine;
Dorla F. Hahn, 66, Hermiston-
Insufficient Number of Flotation
Devices, $57 fine;
Lannette M arie Stone, 30,
Heppner-Violation of the Basic
Rule, 78 mph in a 55 mph zone,
$122 fine;
Pamela H enderson, 42,
Gresfiam-Driving while License
Suspended, Driving Uninsured,
$454 fine. Failure to Appear, 180
days in jail, $620 fine, $400 and
jail sentence suspended with two
years probation with no further
violation of law;
Tara Leanne Cossitt, 20, Hepp-
ner-Violation of the Basic Rule,
75 mph in a 55 mph zone, $77
fine.
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