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P F S S I F
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VOL. 117
NO. 11
Pages
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WFTZf! !
Il
Wednesday, March 18, 1998
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Heppner welcomes back favorite son for 13th year
It just wouldn't be the W ee Bit
O'
Ireland
St.
Patrick's
celebration without Heppner's
favorite son and Ireland's too—
Bill Mitchell.
Mitchell, who at 6 feet, 5 inches
is affectionately called "B ig
W illy" by his friends in Heppner,
has returned without fail for 13
years to attend the festival. In
fact, he wouldn't miss it, despite
some
complicated
travel
arrangements. "Here I am again
in 1998," said Bill. "And, the
good Lord willing, I'm hoping to
journey north many more years
to come."
B ill was bom on a small farm
in Cloone, County Leitrim,
Ireland, on Novem ber 3, 1918.
His parents, John Mitchell and
Rose O' Bnen Mitchell, sold
their family farm and left Ireland
in June o f 1925 to m ove to N ew
Westminster, British Columbia,
Canada. The fam ily lived there
for over a year and then came to
Little Buttercreek in August o f
1926.
Bill enrolled in school at Pine
C ity that fall and the follow ing
year the fam ily m oved up the
creek and he spent one year at
the Pleasant Point School. At
Pleasant Point he was taught,
says Bill, by the "brilliant
teacherage o f Juanita Leathers
Carmichael." The Pleasant Point
school
was
a
one-room
schoolhouse,
where
Bill's
schoolmates included the Dalys,
the
Cunninghams
and
the
Swaggarts.
The M itchell fam ily m oved to
Heppner in the fall o f 1928 and
lived in the Phil Hirl house. The
Hirls are the festival's honored
Irish fam ily this year. Mrs. Phil
Hirl was the grandmother o f
current
M orrow
County
Commissioner Raymond French.
In Heppner, B ill attended school
at the schoolhouse on the hill
from fourth through eighth grade.
Some o f his classmates included
Kathryn Hoskins, Riley Munkers
and Lloyd Burkenbine.
The fam ily left Heppner and
m oved to Pendleton where Bill
attended St. Joseph's Academy,
graduating in 1937. T w o years
later, the whole family moved to
California where Bill has lived
ever since. Although he has lived
in Daly City, C A , for the past 59
years. Bill says, "I've always
considered Heppner, with its
great people and sprinkling o f
Irish, as my second home." He
says what he treasures most are
his many friends here, including
Jim Farley, Dean Gilman, Bill
Kenny, Jack Healy, Raymond
French, Dan Brosnan, Howard
Bryant and "others too numerous
to mention".
"I remember the old days o f
Heppner," says Bill, "with all the
Irish sheepmen-the Kilkennys,
Kennys, O'Briens, Monahans,
Farleys and Healys, among
others. There was a large influx
o f young Irish who came over
Bill Mitchell
and tended sheep. A t that time
the town had a real Irish flavor
and many were native bom
Irishmen." Bill says that Pete
Lennon was the last native
Irishman o f the early immigrants
to pass away.
Bill's father John worked in
construction, helping build the
Heppner-Spray
Road
and
assisting Father Thomas Brady in
construction o f the Catholic
Church
in
Boardman.
He
continued construction work
after the fam ily moved to
Pendleton and then to California.
Bill's mother, Rose was a
homemaker. Rose's brother was
Tom O'Brien, who is the father
o f Gordon O ’Brien o f Heppner.
Her sister was Kate Campbell o f
Condon.
B ill says that his parents
"dabbled" in Gaelic, but spoke
mostly English at home. Bills'
brother, James, who has passed
away,
and
sister
Kathleen
Mitchell, now o f Walnut Creek,
C A , were also bom in Ireland.
Youngest
sister,
Margaret
Pnndle,
now
o f the
San
Francisco Bay area, was the only
sibling bom in the U.S. She was
delivered by Dr. McMurdo in
January o f 1927.
B ill and his w ife, Claire,
celebrated their 50th wedding
anniversary in Novem ber 1997.
They
have
three
grown
daughters, Joan Thomas, Cindy
Mitchell and Maureen Mitchell,
all o f the Bay Area, and two
grandchildren, Tyler and Emily
Thomas. Bill was in the freight
transportation field in operations
and sales, working for truck lines
and
railroads
before
his
retirement in 1984. Bill and his
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Waterpark plans Bucknum's Tavern opens in
family swim day time for drinking o' the green
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w ife bought their three bedroom
home in Daly City in 1950 for
$15,000. N ow , says Bill, the
house could be put up for sale at
over a quarter o f a million
dollars.
Besides his annual trek to
Heppner, which entails flying to
Portland, renting a car and
driving from there, Bill has been
to Ireland six times since 1980.
"I had two very delightful trips
with the number one Heppner
Irishman, Jim Farley," laughs
Bill. "It was the highlight o f his
life to go back to County
Longford and locate the ancestral
home o f his mother and father."
Bill says he has a number o f
cousins scattered throughout
Ireland and really enjoys the
socializing there and "a sampling
or two o f a pint o f Guinness,
which is so nice and easy on the
draw." He says that more and
more o f his Irish relatives have
come over to visit. His cousin,
Brede Lyons, was the grand
marshal for the 1989 honored
Irish family, the O'Briens.
Bill says that he has noticed a
change for the better this year in
Heppner. "The town looks good
with the g o lf course, the up-to-
date hospital, the new swimming
pool and the newly renovated
Main Street," he says. W hile
those things are all very nice, it's
clear that what Bill really loves is
the view from his favorite park
bench in front o f the Heppner
Post O ffice, sitting and visiting
with his dear, longtime friends.
The W illo w Creek Waterpark
is planning a special fam ily swim
day on Friday, March 27. The
multi-use spa w ill be open for use
from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. and no ap
pointments are necessary. The
charge is $2.50 per person or $6
per fam ily (im m ediate fa m ily
members only).
“ W e want to encourage those
who have never used the spa to
come try it out for exercise or
fun,” says Waterpark manager
Sarah Carlson. “ The spa is kept
at 90 degrees which is a com fort
able temperature for people o f all
ages. However, exercising in wa
ter o f this temperature does have
its risks. W e suggest that indi
viduals and families lim it their
exposure to 30 minutes. W e have
deck chairs set up for spectators,
or for those who need a break
from the water. The room tem
perature is kept at a comfortable
75 degrees,” adds Carlson.
Parents w ill need to accom
pany and supervise their children.
Oregon State Health law prohib
its anyone under the age o f 14
years to use a spa unless accom
panied by an adult. The law also
does not require a lifeguard to be
on duty at a spa. “ W e feel fam i
lie s should kn ow that w h ile
Waterpark personnel are a vail
able anytime the spa is open, there
is no certified lifeguard on duty
in the spa,” says Carlson.
The multi-use spa is usually
open every Friday-M onday by
appointment from 9 a.m.-9 p.m.
Anyone may make an appoint
ment by calling the Waterpark,
676-5752, and leaving a message
as to the desired date and time o f
use, preferably 24 hours in ad
vance. Waterpark personnel w ill
call back to confirm appoint
ments.
Aquatic exercise classes are
given in the spa on Mondays,
Wednesdays and Fridays for four
weeks. There are four times dur
ing the day when those classes are
taught: 8-8:30 a.m., 12:15-12:45
p.m., 1:30-2 p.m. and 6-6:30 p.m.
The last session, o f these aquatic
exercise classes w ill start M on
day, April 6. A session o f lessons
costs $35.
“ These are great classes for
anyone o f any age and fitness
level to participate in. Those who
have taken the classes have been
amazed at the benefits they have
received just by exercising in the
water for 30 minutes. These are
the types o f classes that you can
participate in and not even get
your hair wet,” says Carlson.
T h e W aterpark has season
passes at discounted prices until
W ednesday, A pril 1. A fam ily
pass at the discounted rate is $ 150
and the individual pass is $60.
These w ill go up to $160 and $75
after April 1. Season passes or spa
punch cards are available at the
Waterpark or may be purchased
by sending a check payable to the
W illo w Creek Waterpark, P.O.
Box 291, Heppner, O R 97836.
Corps changes flow
The U.S. Arm y Corps o f
Engineers
increased
water
releases March 11 from the
W illo w Creek Dam in Heppner,
water regulators have announced.
Flow s were increased from the
level o f nine cubic feet per
second to 30 cfs to help regain
some flood control space in the
lake follow ing a recent period o f
rain.
Saturday, March 15, the Corps
decreased flows to nine cfs to
settle the creek prior to the
O'Ducky Race.
The race ran
from 3-5 p.m.
The flow adjustment is done
each year to facilitate the race,
part o f the city's annual St.
Patrick's Day celebration.
Follow ing the race, flows w ill
be increased again, and held at
15 cfs.
The alteration in the flows for
this event w ill not affect the
flood control capability o f the
dam, said Russ Davidson, Corps
hydraulic engineer.
.1
Patty Dean and John Gochnauer
A familiar place is back in
operation in Heppner and what’s
best o f all is that it's now owned
by a familiar face.
Yes, Bucknum's is open and
made its debut just in time for the
W ee Bit O'lreland celebration in
Heppner last weekend.
N ew owner is John
Gochnauer. John and his w ife
lived in Heppner for 10 years,
leaving in 1978 to move to
Davenport, W A , and then to
North Bend seven years ago.
John, now the district manager
for Farmer's Insurance at North
Bend,
started the Farmer's
Insurance agency here, drove
school bus and worked for
Kinzua. His wife, Judy, who
recently passed away, was a
teacher in Heppner. A ll o f the
Gochnauer children attended
school in Heppner. Daughter
Lynn Guhlke is now a counselor
at Davenport, W A ; daughter
M elody Nuxoll, Spokane, was an
insurance agent, but now is a
stay-at-home mom; daughter
Cindy Gochnauer is an insurance
agent and artist in Spokane; their
son Kenneth passed away in
1984.
John
also
has
six
grandchildren.
John says that he plans to move
to Heppner when he retires from
Farmer’s, but until he does, he
plans to be here " a lot o f
weekends."
N ew manager at Bucknum's,
Patty Dean, worked with John in
the insurance business at North
Bend.
Patty, 28, who was bom in
Connecticut and grew up in
North Bend, moved to Heppner
three weeks ago with her two
daughters, Cortney, seven, and
Macey, five.
Patty says that she loves the
area.
"People
have
been
wonderful to me," says Patty.
"When I came to this town, Sandi
Matthews, who had never met
me, left her door unlocked and
let me spend my first weekend at
her house." Sandi also helped out
at the tavern over the busy St.
Patrick's
weekend.
Sandi's
parents, Don and Jean Bennett o f
Heppner, are close family friends
o f the Gochnauers and Jean was
Kenneth Gochnauer's godmother.
"Suzie
Jepsen
has
been
wonderful, too," says Patty. "She
says she's going to mother me."
Ken Eckman o f Eckman
Construction and Jason Hanna
remodeled
the
tavern.
Bucknum's has been painted and
paneled and it now features a big
screen T V and an anti-smoke
device, which basically sucks the
smoke out o f the building.
"Everyone seems to be excited
about the changes," says Patty. "I
know w e are."
Monday Bucknum's was to
begin serving food, including
taco salads, soft tacos and soup
and sandwiches. Patty says that
they plan to expand their menu
after they get the kitchen
installed and eventually they
hope to have a full service bar.
For now, they have seven beers
on tap, coffee and pop. Peanut
...
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night-where
everyone
eats
peanuts and throws the shells on
the floor- w ill still be a fixture.
Hours w ill be 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
on weekdays; and 8 a.m. to
around 12:30 a.m. weekends,
although they stayed open later
for customers over St. Patrick's
weekend.
-
how the local citizens advisory
commission
represents
the
community in regards to camp
operations and procedure." Judge
Carlson said.
"1 believe that we have a good
shot at getting this worthwhile
facility here in Heppner. The
state committee w ill be taking a
second look at the site again in
the very near future," Carlson
said. "W e recognized that not all
o f our citizens w ill be pleased
w ith the location o f this facility
for various reasons. W e think it
is important that we listen very
carefully to these people and
evaluate their concerns in the
final decision making process."
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A public hearing on the site
w ill be held Monday, March 30,
at 7 p.m., with the location to be
announced.
The other two sites being
considered are both in Union
County—one near the city o f
Union and another next door to
an existing youth facility near
LaGrande.
Try wheat cake samples Thursday
Lexington 989-8221 • 1-800-452-7396
■■
-
Heppner in running
for youth camp
The M orrow County Wheat
Growers League w ill hand out
samples o f this year's Oregon
Wheat Growers League contest
cake on Thursday, March 19,
from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at
Central Market in Heppner.
The event is planned to
celebrate National Agriculture
W eek March 15-21.
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The 1998 contest cake is a
white honey cake. The M C W G L
invites everyone to stope by the
market to try a sample o f the
cake. Recipes w ill be handed out
with the samples for those who
would like to try their hand at
baking the cake.
A recipe for the cake w ill also
appear in the Gazette-Times.
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For farm equipmtnt, visit our web sit* at www mcgg ntt
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M o rro w C o u n t y G r a in G ro w ers
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Heppner has been selected as
one o f three sites still in the
running for locating an Oregon
Youth Accountability Camp,
according to Heppner City
Manager, Gary Marks. Marks
passed this information on to
M orrow County Juvenile Judge
Louis Carlson, last Friday.
"W e want to keep our citizens
informed about the progress o f
this selection process so that
there w ill be no surprises, "Judge
Carlson said. As a result, an
informational forum is scheduled
to be held at the St. Patrick's
Senior Center on Thursday,
March 26, at 3 p.m. and at 7
p.m.
Betsy Leighty, director o f the
Central/Eastem Oregon Youth
Accountability Camp, w ill be on
had to answer questions as well
as Doug Smith, assistant Director
o f the Tillam ook Youth Camp.
"W e also believe that someone
from the Tillamook Youth Camp
Citizens Advisory commission
w ill be in attendance to discuss
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THE SELECTION IS GOOD
Snapper Lawn Mowers in stock!
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