FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 26, 2000
Vote for Lundquist
The Official Newspaper
of the City of Heppner and the County of Morrow
To the Editor:
You will soon be receiving
your ballot in the mail for the
May 16 primary election. On it
you will find Representative
Lynn Lundquist's name. He is
running for Secretary of State. I
would like to encourage your
vote for Lynn Lundquist.
Lynn has served Eastern
Oregon
as
our
state
representative for many years.
When he was speaker of the
house in 1997 he and his wife
Barbara worked extra hard for us
to return equity in funding lost to
us because of measure 50. He
knows our community well
because of his many trips here to
meet with our community
H eppner
GAZETTE-TIMES
U S P S. 240-420
Morrow County’s Home-Owned Weekly Newspaper
Published weekly and entered as periodical matter at the Post Office at Heppner. Oregon
under the Act o f March 3 , 1879 Penodical postage paid at Heppner, Oregon Office at 147
W Willow Street Telephone (541) 676-9228J a x (541)676-9211 E-mail gt@heppner net
or gt@ rapidserve net. Web site: www heppner net. Postmaster send address changes to
the Heppner Gazette-Times, P O Box 337, Heppner, Oregon 97836. Subscriptions $22 in
Morrow County; $16 senior rate (in Morrow County only; 62 years or older); $29 else
where
David S y k e s..................................................................................................................... Publisher
Apnl Hilton-Sykes .......................................................................................- .................... Edllor
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Letters to the Editor
Editor's note: Letters to the Editor must be signed. The Gazette-Times w ill not
publish unsigned letters. Please include your address and phone number on all
■ letters for use by the G-T office. The C-T reserves the right to edit.
Levy not in best interest of County
To the Editor:
As a Morrow County School
District graduate, parent, former
teacher and present board
member I have long been a
strong supporter of our schools.
As a board member I have a
duty to do what is in the best
interest of our children and
district patrons. As a public
official I am very concerned
about the proposed school levy
being put before the voters on the
May 16 ballot.
This proposed levy is not in
the best interest of the public of
Morrow County. It does not
restore programs and teaching
positions eliminated at the Feb.
14, 2000 school board meeting.
When members of the public
asked the school district to
consider a levy for a shorter time
frame (two to three years) instead
of the current five years, the
district refused.
When the public asked the
district to be specific and to
name programs and teaching
positions the money would be
spent on, the district refused,
stating the need for "flexibility".
They do not want to tell the
public as to where and how the
levy will be spent, but they are
asking the public for a blank
check.
Contrary to public wishes
clearly expressed at the February
board meeting, the district has
refused to share budget shortfall
and
include
cuts
to
administrative staff, choosing
only to reduce certified and
classified staff. However, we
have
continued
to
add
administrative positions such as
vice principals, while reducing
teachers. They have refused to
give up administrative expenses
and perks to help with shortfalls,
stating they would be "too small
to make a difference" yet the
district has turned down requests
for field trip funding for lack of
money.
Did you know that at the
upcoming May school board
meeting, the district is asking the
public to pay for the entire cost
of receiving "Administrative
License Education" for district
employees
which
the
superintendent deems worthy of
scholarship? This memorandum
proposed by Supt. Anderson at
the April meeting proposes to
pay for full tuition and expenses
at a private college (Lewis and
Clark) if the employee spends
three years in an administrative
position following licensure
along with transportation support
up to $1,500 and meals/lodging
up to $1,000 per year. This is
deemed necessary by Supt.
Anderson so we can have the
qualified administrative staff that
he chooses. Currently this
program may include up to four
candidates per year.
In a time of budget shortfall the
district tells the public that our
children's class sizes will have to
go up, that programs and
electives must fall to the side, yet
for any special project the
superintendent wants, funding is
approved.
If this is the best proposal Mr.
Anderson can come up with, then
his best is not good enough to
ensure quality education.
By voting no you ensure that a
levy which better meets the
needs of the public can be
approved at a later date rather
than being locked into one for
five years.
The current majority of the
board has refused to accept
requests the public has made and
passes
anything
the
superintendent, proposes.
Public relations and
communication with the district
site council, advisory board,
county court, recVpark district
and Chamber of Commerce is at
an all-time low. Instead of
fostering county-wide unity, the
actions of this superintendent is
resulting in North vs. South and
community vs. community
sentiments.
You should not blindly support
any levy put before you. The
public has the right to ask
questions and take actions to
ensure that public funding is
spent wisely and in ways that
most directly benefit our
children. Do not give a blank
check to a district that wants to
maintain "flexibility" in spending
for the next five years.
The district blames Salem and
everyone but the district for our
current financial problems.
Effective leadership does not
exist when a board "rubber-
stamps" every proposal the
superintendent puts before them.
The only way in which things
will change is the power of the
vote. Let the district know you
are not happy with the way they
are conducting business. If this
levy fails then they will have to
come back to the public and
respect their wishes.
(s) Barney Lindsay
Morrow County School District
Board Member
Lexington
leaders. He would find out our
needs, then go to work to help us.
Secretary of State is the
second-highest
leadership
position in the state of Oregon.
Lynn Lundquist is a CEO in agri
business, a holder of a master's
degree in economics and a
former
college
economics
professor at George Fox
University. He is a leader. He
seeks to build bridges while
others seek to bum them.
These are just a few of the
many reasons why we know
Lynn Lundquist will serve us
well as secretary of state.
(s) Mayor Bob and Suzanne
Jepsen
Heppner
No on measure 81
To the Editor:
I saw the movie "Erin
Brockovich” recently and I
enjoyed it very much. The movie
showed me how our civil justice
. system can hold powerful
wrongdoers accountable for their
irresponsible actions.
Oregonians are now under
threat of losing the power of the
civil justice system that was so
wonderfully illustrated in "Erin
Brockovich." Ballot Measure 81,
on the May primary ballot, would
let the politicians in Salem limit
Garden Club
postpones meeting
The Heppner Garden
Club, will not meet Monday,
May 1, due to a conflict with the
Catholic ladies having a dessert
and speaker at the same time.
The club will instead
meet Monday, May 8, at 5:15
p.m. at the St. Pat's Senior
Center.
A tour of Green Feed at
Connne's Greenhouse is planned.
Obituaries
the damages people can recover
in any civil case. If the measure
passes, the legislature will have
the power to assign a one-size-
fits-all limit on damages, rather
than letting a jury decide what is
reasonable on a case-by-case
basis.
I want Oregon jurors to decide
what is reasonable after listening
to the facts of cases involving
their communities. That's why
I'm voting "No" on Ballot
Measure 81.
(s) Mary Louise Rowe
Pendleton
Yes on measure 81
To the Editor:
In rural communities
throughout Oregon, medical care
for some people can be more
than 100 miles away. Doctors,
nurses and emergency medical
personnel go wherever they're
needed - in a field, on a back
road or in a farmhouse. They roll
up their sleeves and do their best
to help. That's how it should be.
Now, trial lawyers have found
a loophole that would eliminate
existing laws that protect
emergency medical personnel
from being sued.
Ballot Measure 81 will close
the lawyers' loophole - and shut
out the threat of reduced access
to health care.
In an emergency people look to
medical professionals for help -
right there and then. No "Good
Samaritan" should have to
consult a trial lawyer before
lending a helping hand.
Please join the Oregon Rural
Health Association and vote yes
on Ballot Measure 81.
(s) Tim Martinez, president
Office of Rural Health
OSHU L-593
Portland
Stand up fortunes
of citizen juries and place it in
the hands of politiciamK and
legislators. The lobbyists and
lawmakers in Salem don't like
what they can't control, and they
can't control juries.
When you receive your ballots
in the mail, read the explanation
of Constitution Amendment 81.
The language was approved by
the Oregon Supreme Court. It
says, "Under the Oregon
Constitution, the right to jury
trial restricts the legislature's
authority to limit recovery of
some kinds of damages in some
civil actions. This measure
overrides that restriction by
adding a new constitutional
provision expressly allowing the
legislature to impose limits on
damages that may be recovered
in any civil action."
Who is behind this power grab?
The powerful special interests of
HMOs, big insurance companies
and the tobacco industry. These
corporate superpowers don't want
to be held responsible by citizen
juries. They'd much rather you
give up your right to trial by jury
and give it to the Legislature.
The big money special interests
know they can control the
lawmakers in Salem.
Once you give up a basic right,
it's very hard to get it back.
Citizen juries are a powerful tool
to hold out-of-control businesses
accountable. Please join me in
voting "No" on Constitutional
Amendment 81.
(s) Anne Hughes
Portland
To the Editor
A campaign is being waged in
Oregon this spring to take away a
basic constitutional right. The
proponents of Constitutional
Amendment 81 are throwing
around words like "lawyers,"
"lawsuits," "insurance rates," and
"loopholes." When you get past
the rhetoric and find out what the
campaign is all about, there is
one word you ought to focus on,
"jury." The proponents of this
May 16 ballot measure would
take away our right to trial by
jury.
Juries are something that I
know about. I was the foreman of
the jury that last year awarded
$17.8 million to a Tigard woman
who suffered terrible brain
damage after a routine surgical
procedure went awry. Our
verdict against Providence St.
Vincent Medical Center was one
of the most difficult decisions
any of us on the jury have ever
had to make. We, the citizen
jury, ruled in favor of Denisa
Christine Jennison, a 44 year old
woman who entered the hospital
for a relatively routine surgery
and left with such severe brain
damage that she will require 24-
hour care for the rest of her life.
It was not a slip of the scalpel
that left Denisa so damaged. It
was a slip of the system that
should be in place to support the
excellent professionals on the
staff at St. Vincent.
In Denisa's case, the system
broke down. The blunders
committed were atrocious and
the result horrible. The business
side of the hospital had expanded
so quickly that the patient care
system buckled under its own
weight.
I stand by our verdict against
St. Vincent. As a juror, I was in
iwe of my responsibility to hear
all the evidence in a month long
trial and make a very difficult
decision. We held the hospital
accountable for its mistakes and
sent a message to all large
medical businesses to not forget
us, the customers, the patients.
Juries are the target o f the
campaign to pass Constitutional
Amendment 81. The measure,
referred to the ballot by the
Legislature, would take the
power that now sits in the hands
W .C .C .C . Golf
WCCC Ladies’ Play
Tuesday, April 18
Low gross o f the field: Pat
Edmundson.
Low net o f the field: Della
Heideman.
Least putts of the field: Luvilla
Sonstegard, Betty Christman and
Jackie Allstott.
Flight A: low gross Lynnea
Sargent; low net Carol Norris;
least putts Karen Bishop.
Flight B: low gross Lois Hunt
and Joyce Dinkins; low net Carol
Hamilton.
Flight C: low gross Lorrene
Montgomery; low net Barbara
Gilbert; least putts Lucile Peck
and Maude Hughes.
KP: #11 Joyce Dinkins, #15 Pat
Edmundson.
William I. Jewell
William I. Jewell, 84, formerly
of Heppner and Monument, died
Tuesday, April 18, 2000 at the
Evergreen Nursing Home in The
Dalles.
A graveside service was held
Friday, April 21, 2000 at the
Monument Cemetery.
He was bom October 2, 1915,
at Koshkonong, M issouri, to
Albert and Elizabeth Wickins
Jew ell. He was raised at
Koshkonong and attended schools
there. He came to Monument
when he was 18 to work on a
family ranch.
He served with the U.S. Army
during World War II.
On May 25, 1942, he married
Gladys Emery at Vancouver,
Washington. TTie couple lived at
Monument until 1957 when they
moved to Kinzua. In 1978, they
moved to Heppner.
Mr. Jewell enjoyed working on
old cars, spending time in his gar
den and hunting.
Survivors include his wife
Gladys, of Hermiston; daughter,
Nedra Ross of Irrigon; son, Tim
Jewell of Monument; brothers,
Jack of Monument and Ted of
Thayer, Missouri; sisters, Alma
Gillespie of Kansas City, Missouri,
Juanita Rawls in Illinois and Nedra
Hice o f Koshkonong; seven
grandchildren and eight great
grandchildren. He was preceded
in death by a son, Paul; a daugh
ter, LuAnne Roth; sisters, Alice
and Mary; and brother, Richard.
Sweeney Mortuary of Hepp
ner was in charge of arrange
ments.
In 1975, Malcolm and Lillie
began to buy rental propertes,
with Malcolm holding a real
estate license and both of them
active members of the Mid
Columbia Rental Association.
Mrs. O'Brien was a member of
St. Peter Catholic Church, St.
Rose Circle, Meals on Wheels
and the proud grandmother of 17
grandchildren.
She is survived by her children
and their spouses, Kirsten and
Steve Stevens of The Dalles;
Kathleen and Ramiro Gaitan of
Portland; Malcolm and Mona
O'Brien of Lake Charles,
Louisiana; Michael and Alesia
O'Brien, Matthew O'Brien and
Erin and Tim Miller, all of The
Dalles; Celia and Phil Burgess of
Bend; and Patrick O'Brien of Los
Angeles, CA; her grandchildren,
Anthony, Cody and Alyssa
Miller,
Lilliana,
Jeanine,
Gabriela and Catalina Gaitan,
Thomas, Christopher and Tyler
O'Brien, Lena and Rene, James
and Rachael O'Brien, Brandon
and Bridget Burgess and Tommy
Huteson; her siblings, Elsie
Cavette of Silverton, Keith and
Marilyn Nelson of Turner, Linda
Nelson of Salem, Ruth Nelson of
Eugene and Inez and Jack Berkey
of Hubbard.
Memorial contributions may
be made to Hospice of the Gorge,
751 Myrtle St. The Dalles, OR
97058 or St. Peter Catholic
Church, P.O. Box 41, The Dalles,
OR 97058.
Irene I. Perlberg
Graveside services for Irene I.
Perlberg,
Heppner,
were
Wednesday, April 26, at the
Heppner Masonic Cemetery.
Miss Perlberg, 82, of
Heppner, died Thursday, April
Marjorie L. Wright
20, at her home.
Maqorie L. Wright, 85, formerly
She was bom July 26,
of Heppner, died Thursday, De 1917, at Bingen, WA, to Albert
cember 9, 1999, at Everett Gen and
Lenora
Kummerland
eral Hospital in Everett, Washing Perlberg. The family moved to
ton.
Heppner in 1922 where she grew
A memorial graveside service up and attended shcool.
was held Saturday, April 22,2000
The family had a ranch
at the Heppner Masonic Cem near Heppner which she
etery.
continued to own until the time
of her death.
She was bom January 1,1914,
Miss Perlberg enjoyed
at Wasco, to Henry and Vera
her
animals,
nature, and taking
Happold. The family later moved
pictures
pf>qth,
,, j
to Heppner where she grew up >
S
iif*n/iH
r>rg
mqlude several
and attended school. She gradu
distant
cousins.
ated from Heppner High School
Memorial contributions
in 1931.
may
be
made to Pioneer
On August 11, 1934, she mar
Memorial
Hospital,
P.O. Box 9,
ried Oral Wright of Heppner. The
Heppner,
OR
97836.
couple had three daughters and a
Sweeney Mortuary of
special relationship that spanned
Heppner
is in charge of
65 years. Together they enjoyed
arrangements.
hunting, fishing, camping, boating
and visiting with friends.
Death Notice
Survivors include her husband,
Oral Wright; daughters, Lynn
Haguewood of Olympia, Wash Oren Jerry Brace
ington, Nancy Huffman of Palm
Memorial service for Oren
Bay, Florida and Deanna Bellamy Jerry Brace, Heppner, will be
of Bothell, Washington; 11 grand held Saturday, May 6, at 11 a.m.
children; 12 great-grandchildren at the Heppner Elks Club.
and one great-great-grandchild.
Mr. Brace, 61, died April 15,
She was preceded in death by her
2000, at Oregon Health Sciences
parents and a sister, Betty.
University, Portland.
Sweeney Mortuary of Hepp
No additional information was
ner was in charge of local ar
available at presstime. A
rangements.
complete obituary will appear
later.
Lillie Adeline O'Brien
Lillie Adeline O'Brien, 70, a
resident of The Dalles since
1961, died at her home on
Thursday, April 20, 2000.
Recitation of Rosary and Mass
of Christian Burial was held at
St. Peter Catholic Church on
Tuesday, April 25, with the Rev.
James Stephens as celebrant.
Private cremation will follow
with interment of cremains at St.
Peter Catholic Cemetery.
She was bom December 6,
1929, in Crosby, North Dakota,
the ninth of 13 children bom to
Olga (Olsen) and Emil Nelson.
She moved to Woodbum with
her family as a teenager. In 1947,
she graduated from Woodbum
High School and in 1951,
graduated
from
Emanuel
Hospital School of Nursing.
Mrs. O'Brien's nursing career
began on the medical floors of
Emanuel Hospital in 1951. In
1953 she moved to Heppner for a
position as head nurse at
Heppner Memorial Hospital. She
continued nursing at Prineville's
Pioneer Memorial Hospital from
1958-1961, and later in The
Dalles area, including Columbia
Park Hospital, Valley Vista and
Mid Columbia Medical Center.
In 1953, while working in
Heppner, she met Malcolm
Seator O'Brien. They married on
September 9, 1953, in Walla
Walla, Washington. They were
married 43 years at the time of
Malcolm's death in 1996.
Public invited
to Garden
Club meeting
Heppner Garden Club is hosting
a meeting of all garden clubs in
Eastern Oregon on Saturday,
April 29 from 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. at
the St. Patricks Parish Hall.
Following the theme of "Say
Yes to Spring—to Bats, Bees,
Birds and Butterflies," the day
will include a "Welcome to
Heppner" by Mayor Bob Jepsen;
a flower show, "Welcome, Sweet
Springtime"; reports on each
club's activities; exhibits of
garden arts and crafts; children's
gardening posters; conservation
and recycling ideas; the Oregon
Garden; garden songs, raffles,
door prizes; and a country store.
After lunch, the program
features a presentation by Ryan
Munkers on "Agriculture in
Australia,"
based
on his
experiences there as part of his
course work as an ag major at
Eastern Oregon University.
Guests will include officers and
members of the State Board of
the Oregon State Federation of
Garden Clubs.
Everyone is invited to attend
and/or bring exhibits to the
flower show.
For further information call
676-9435.