TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, August 23, 2000
The Official Newspaper
of the City of Heppner and the County of Morrow
Heppner
GAZETTE-TIMES
U S P S. 240-420
Morrow County’s Home-Owned Weekly Newspaper
Published weekly and entered as penodical matter at the Post Office at Heppner, Oregon
under the Act of March 3,1879 Penodical postage paid at Heppner, Oregon Office at 147
W WillowStreet Telephone(541 >676-9228 Fax(541)676-9211 E-mail gt@heppnernet
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the Heppner Gazette-Times, P O Box 337, Heppner, Oregon 97836. Subscriptions S22 in
Morrow County , $16 senior rate (in Morrow County only; 62 years or older), $29 else
where
David Sykes...............................................................................................................Publisher
April Hilton-Sykes .................................................................................................... Editor
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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 G-T reserves the right to edit. The G-T is not
responsible for accuracy o f statements made in letters.
Has heard it all, but still
shows up with smile
To the Editor:
Fair comes and goes,
bodies are energized and
exhausted. Faithfully, I have my
volunteers who maintain the
main gate each year. Excitedly
enough for me, 1 didn't have to
go look for these wonderful
people.
They came to me!
These people stand at the gate
and gladly accept to take your
money for a worthy cause.
Remember when you pay at the
gate, this money goes toward
children's premiums.
Fair wouldn't be the
same without the children. For
they are "growing" to be our
future. At all times, we try to
give m^py warm welcomes.
With a smile on our face and a
frustrated human being digging
in their pocket for $2 makes a
long shift of three or 12 hrs. But
the people who come through
v^th a smile
"tipw qo you
do?” make it all the worth while.
I've hear it all from, "I
just need to talk to...." or "I'm on
litter patrol..
(R.H. Owes) or
even "I've never had to pay
before!" Where is the honesty in
this? What does it teach your
children.
I believe without a doubt
that Morrow County Fair doesn't
charge an arm and a leg and the
Fair Board has your community
fair in its best interest.
Do you really think that
you shouldn't have to pay? What
fair is free? What would fair be
without children who participate
each year? What really does it
do to your pocket book?
No matter what the
situation it to be, I will be back
with my brightest smile and
energized body waiting for you
to gladly give to the community.
After all "fair" is "fair".
(s) Merry Brannon
jeeks info for school project
To the Editor:
My name is Yolanda. I
am a student at John F. Kennedy
Learning Center in Dallas, Texas.
We are studying about our
country. I would like readers of
this newspaper to send me
postcards telling about your state,
maps, pictures or other cool stuff
to help me with my project.
Yolanda Alanis
J.F. Kennedy Learning Center
1802 Moser
Dallas, Tx. 75206
1949 saddle bronc winner returns to Heppner rodeo
Old cowboys may ride off
into the sunset, but they never
lose the love of the rodeo.
Roy Barger, 69, the winner of
the saddle bronc event at the
Rodeo Cowboys Association
rodeo in Heppner in 1949, made
a trip back to Heppner this year,
over 50 years after his win.
Barger says that the horse he
drew for his 1949 nde hadn't
been ridden all year. "He was a
chute-fighting
horse,"
says
Barger. "Everyone had been
kicked off him. He usually
fought in the chute. But, I just
got everybody back, was real
quiet and just nodded for him.
And then I stuck my spurs in his
shoulders and he went into a
spin. He was good with me. I
didn't give him any reason not to
be. I was 20 years old at the
time."
Barger stayed on for the ride,
but his hat didn't. "I never had a
hat stay on me for the whole
eight seconds," he laughs.
He didn't have his own chaps
with him, but instead borrowed
from a friend, Eddie Akndge.
(Eddie's name can be seen on the
borrowed chaps in the 1949
photo above.) According to
Barger, Akridge was a former
world champion bareback rider
who became an entertainer on the
Las Vegas strip after he quit the
rodeo circuit. Akndge not only
"sang real good," but his birthday
was only 10 days apart from
Barger's.
That year, besides winning at
the Heppner rodeo, Barger also
won the bronc riding at Arlington
and Umatilla. At Arlington that
year there were 64 bronc riders,
each paying a $10 entrance fee.
He said at the time, many of
his friends rodeoed at Salem and
couldn't figure out why he would
come all the way out to Heppner
and the other rodeos in eastern
Oregon.
Barger says the biggest
difference between rodeos then
and now is the prize money.
Back then the prize was only
around $300.
On the circuit Barger was
friends with Deb Copenhaver,
two-time world champion saddle
bronc rider. Copenhaver sent
Barger a picture of him on Miss
Klamath, ridden by only one
other rider by the name of Billy
Ward.
By the time Barger made that
1949 ride he had had a lot of
experience with horses growing
up as a kid in Eugene. He
worked on area ranches, riding
and breaking horses, worked for
a riding academy after school
and also for horse traders. His
dad also always had horses. He
joined the RCA in 1948.
Before returning to Eugene,
where he has lived for the past 20
years, Barger lived for quite a
while in Roseburg, where he
owned a business. He used to
sponsor the bronc riding event at
the rodeo there. He remembers
good friend Bob Chambers, a
saddle maker at Hamley's and an
announcer at the Pendleton
1949 Heppner rodeo saddle bronc winner Roy Barger (right) and his friend Louis De Moss pause for a
photo with 2000 Morrow County Fair and Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo Queen Tracy Rankin (right) and
Princess Rachel Faber. Not pictured is Princess Salli McElligott.
Roy Barger during his winning ride in 1949.
Round-Up and the
rodeo.
On this year's trip to Heppner
Barger was accompanied by his
friend, Louis DeMoss, 71, also
originally from Eugene, now
living in The Dalles. The pair
have been friends since Barger
was 12 or 13 years old.
Also a cowboy back in the day,
DeMoss rode bulls and bareback.
"We always talked that when we
retired we would go back to
some of the rodeos," said
DeMoss, who is now retired.
Barger is still working and owns
his own roofing business in
Eugene. He roofed Hamley's
Saddle Shop in 1989 and went to
the Round-Up. His roofing
clients
also
include
the
Emporium stores.
While in Heppner Barger had a
good time visiting with Floyd
Jones and also Darcy Robinson
and Mary Ann Munkers with the
Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo. Barger
adds that the pair really enjoyed
returning to Heppner, "except for
I can't find a room," he laughed.
St. Patrick7; Senior Center
Bulletin Board
*
The new event this week will be an Extension workshop August
28 at 1:30 p.m. in the dining room. Taught by Alice Voluntad,
"Along Came a Spider " will focus on developing social networks,
HOST FAMILIES NEEDED
Make n new lifelong friend
from abroad. Enrich your
family with another cul
ture. Now you can host an
exchange student (girl or
boy) from Sweden, Germany,
Franco. Spain, England.
Japan, Brazil. Italy or other
countries. Becoming a host to
a young international visitor
is an experience of a lifetime!
Piriyu, 15 yrx
Engagement
Temple-Coombs
Klaus. 17 y n
Call for information or to choose your own exchange student. Large
variety o f nationalities, interests, hobbies, etc. now available (single
parents, couples with or without children may host). Call us now.
C a t h y a t (5 4 1 ) 4 2 2 -7 1 0 7
Sara at 1-800-733-2773
www.aase.com
rounded
1976
Q
exploring the importance of one's own social network, how
networks change, the consequences of losing key people from
them and finding ways to strengthen individual networks. The
group activities promise to be fun as well ai> informative. Prizes
and refreshments add to the mix. It's free and all are welcome.
Seniors from Boardman plan to join us. Call the office 676-9030
Friends at the center were delighted by a brief visit from Mem
Reamer Saturday August 19. Mem was the area agent from
Pendleton when this center opened in 1988 and is now a specialist
in the Stuhr Center, a senior center of 12,000 members in
Beaverton. She promised to return soon on a Wednesday for more
visiting.
The meal menu for the birthday dinner Aug 30 will be Chicken
James, Lyonnaise Potatoes, broccoli, rolls and cake. All Saints'
Episcopal Church will assist with the serving. On Wednesdays at
11 a.m. Home Health takes blood pressures.
hlUty Accredited
¡n rtm o tio n a l
O rganization
A W ORLD O f I NI I t a v i ANDINI» THROt bM CRUVW 4 ILTt RAL AND EDTCATKW UI. m o » . * AMS
Dr. Richard and Karen Temple of Lexington announce the
engagement of their daughter. Laurel Sabra, to Joel Christopher
Coombs, son of Derrol and Rose Coombs of Prairie City.
Laurel is a 1995 graduate of lone High School, lone, and a 1999
graduate of Pensacola Christian College in Pensacola, Florida, with
a B.S. in pre-med. She is employed by Providence Portland
Medical Center in Portland as a health unit coordinator.
Joel was home schooled and then attended Prairie Baptist Church
School, Praine High School, and is a 1998 graduate of Baker
Valley Christian School, Baker City. He is employed by Glenwood
Apartments in Portland as an apartment renovator.
A September 2, 2000, wedding in Heppner is planned.
The
Umatilla-Morrow
Education Service District will
provide hearing screenings to
public
elementary
school
students
including
all
kindergarten, first and third grade
students, new students to the
county, and parent/ teacher/
principal referrals of students in
the other grades. These students
will be screened on the dates
listed.
The hearing screening is done
by the Umatilla-Morrow ESD for
public school students of
Umatilla and Morrow counties. It
is cooperatively sponsored by
local
school
districts.
Approximately 4000 children
will be seen. Children who fail
the initial screening will be re
screened within d three-week
period.
Parents who do not want their
child's hearing to be screened
should notify the school as soon
as possible. If you have any
questions regarding the hearing
screening
program,
please
contact your school principal, or
contact the audiology department
at the Umatilla-Morrow ESD,
966-3138.
Screenings will be conducted on
the following schedule:
-Tuesday, Sept. 19-Heppner
Elementary School, at 8:45 a.m.;
-Wednesday, Sept. 20-Sam
Boardman Elementary School,
Boardman, at 8:30 a.m.
-Thursday, Sept. 21-lone
Elementary School at 8:30 a.m.
-Monday, Oct. 2-A.C.
Houghton Elementary School,
Irrigon, at 8:30 a.m.
-Thursday, Oct. 5-IES
(recheck), at 8 a.m.
-Thursday, Oct. 5-HES
(recheck),
at
9:30
a.m.
(approximately).
Wednesday, Oct. 11-SBE
(recheck), at 8:30 a.m.
-Monday, Oct. 23-ACH
(recheck), at 8:30 a.m.;
Pappas wins
gun safe
James Pappas, Heppner, was
the winner of the gun safe raffled
off by the Heppner Chamber of
Commerce. The drawing was
held at the Morrow County
Rodeo Sunday.