TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, October 17, 2001
Letters to the Editor
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o f the City o f Heppner and the County o f Morrow
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H ep p n er
GAZETTE-TIM ES
U.S.P.S. 240-420
Vote no on recall election
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A p ril H ilton-S ykes
.............................................................................................. Editor
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Board doesn’t play by the rules
one overwhelm ing obstacle. The
To the Editor:
I would like to applaud the obstacle is that the school board does
petitioners o f the Morrow County not play by the com m on rules o f
School Board recall effort. 1 know decency and fairness. In fact, they
that they all have families and jobs have received a citation by the state's
and have made sacrifices in order Government Standards and Practices
to present the people o f M orrow Commission for holding a clearly
C ounty with the option o f illegal meeting. Theirs is the culture
determ ining the make up o f our o f "good old boys and smoke-filled
current school board.
back room politics". This must end.
These citizens have spent the last
Join me and support free and open
five years attending school board
school board proceedings. Please
m eetings and being elected or
vote yes to recall school board
members Rietmann, McNamee and
appointed to school district positions.
T ney have gone many extra miles
Fredenckson.
(s) Ed Fullm er
in order to positively influence school
Heppner
board decisions but have met with
Mark ’no’ on recall ballot
To the Editor:
More challenges than ever before
face Oregon school districts -
declining enrollment, inadequate
fundyig and aging facilities, to name
a few. Have you seen the schedule
for a school board member? Our
ever-changingeducahon environment
requires these unpaid volunteers to
take hundreds o f hours away from
their families andjobs annually for
the meeting and training sessions
needed to keep current.
Over the past few years our school
board m embers have been called
upon to make som e very tough
decisions. Striving to do what is best
for the education o f all children
within our district, they have handled
these often painful choices with
professionalism, vision and fortitude.
Join us in showing our
appreciation and support for the
M orrow County school board
members by marking "no" on the
recall ballot.
(s) Gary Neal
(s) Kathy Neal
Boardman
Send a different message
To the Editor:
Voters who are against the recall
o f the three Morrow County School
Board members are sending a clear
message:
- It is okay to hold illegal private
meetings in order to hide facts from
the public and make decisions
without public input. (They were
cited for and adm it to this.)
- It is okay to disregard public
option expressed in packed school
board meetings, not unlike the one
in Boardman with over 400 people
in attendance or a recent m eeting
in Lexington with over 100 people
in the audience.
- It is okay to rubber stamp
requests from an administrator which
it should be overseeing.
- It is okay to discontinue
important programs, such as FFA,
yet still maintain a private fleet o f
autom obiles for use by the
adm inistrators.
Please send a different message
by voting "yes" to recall these school
board members.
(s) A. Kim Cutsforth
Heppner
lone JVs lose to Helix
lone's junior varsity volleyball
team was allowed only one game
against Helix on Saturday, October
13, because o f a lack o f players for
Helix. lone lost that game, 6-15.
Tracy Griffith scored five points,
accepted three passes and delivered
four hits. Caitlin Orem, the only other
person to score, had one point and
delivered four set assists. Jamie
VandenBrink served 100 percent
and controlled one pass. Macarena
Esposito accepted two serve-receives
and Kim Moms accepted one pass.
Katie Hams accepted one pass,
delivered three hits, one block and
three set assists. Barbara Holland
accepted two passes and delivered
one hit. Sara Peck had one pass, two
hits and one block. Eva Chitty had
one save and delivered one hit.
The Cardinal junior varsity served
80 percent for the game.
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lot« of Cagùg aaù ©ecoration«!
Watch for our upcoming Christmas Open House!
T h u rsd a y, N ov. 20 ( l i g h t Parade O a y l I In o lig li S a tu rd a y , P o r. I
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217 North Main • Hoppnor • «76-9 1M
Serving Heppner. Lexington A loop
CoHtdry Rot*
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233 N MairrHappnof
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676-9426
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To the Editor:
Patrons o f the Morrow County
School District will be asked to vote
in a recall election very soon on
Directors Rietmann, McNamee, and
Fredenckson. When you receive your
ballots, please consider this issue
carefully and I urge you to vote "no"
on this recall.
The entire board o f directors of
the Morrow County School Distnct
continues to be challenged by growth
in our schools in the north end o f
Morrow County and continued
decline in our populations in south
Morrow County.
Because o f these issues, the board
has had to make difficult decisions
regarding staffing at all o f our
schools. Because a small but vocal
group of distnct patrons was not able
to convince the board o f directors
last year that teachers should not
be reassigned and programs cut, they
decided the board was unresponsive
and did not consider its point of view.
Add to that the discovery that
two o f the current board members
were not living in the distnct which
they represented and you have the
makings o f a recall election when
the board acted to declare those seats
vacant.
The board members who are the
subject o f this recall are intelligent,
thoughtful and w ell-m eaning
individuals. They have considered
the welfare o f all o f the school
students in making decisions in the
past. They have not pandered to the
desires of small groups but have kept
the big picture o f educating all o f
our kids in mind. They spent long
hours deliberating on difficult
choices to make in an atmosphere
o f declining revenues and increasing
costs.
They have done a good job and
they deserve your support. Vote "no"
on the recall election com ing up.
(s) George Koffler
Heppner
Keep Frederickson, McNamee
and Rietmann
To the Editor:
For those o f us who have devoted
many hours to attending m eeting
with the M atrix Group, Inc., the
Morrow C ounty School Board,
Superintendent Bruce Anderson and
the district staff, it is virtually
impossible to understand the charges
leveled at the superintendent and
three board members. Bruce
Anderson and the Morrow County
School Board have created, and the
people have passed, a construction
bond that will fulfill the needs o f
every community in this county. And,
I might add, at the unbelievable price
o f $ l .37 per thousand. Compare this
price to those o f surrounding
communities.
To suggest that they have "free
rein" to spend bond m oney is
ludicrous. Oregon State Law decrees
that bond money must be spent
exactly as stated in the issue
presented for the people's vote.
M eetings are now begin held
throughout Morrow County between
architects,
teaching
staff,
adm inistration and the public
concerning designs for the new
elem entary schools.
Under most circumstances, the
board ignores "anonymous letters";
however, when the legality o f the
election o f two board members was
brought into question, they had to
investigate. Upon learning that the
allegations were true, they devised
a plan to resolve this matter in a most
affordable matter. They hired a
retired judge to listen to the case.
At the June hearing concerning
the Lindsay/Lewis zone dispute,
everyone present heard both
gentlemen admit that they do not
live in the zones they were elected
to represent. What more needs to
be said?
At this hearing, Lindsay and
Lewis' attorneys announced that they
would not honor the judge's decision
and would take the case to court.
It would have been much less
expensive for both the district and
the individuals if they had just
resigned.
The remaining board members
never attem pted to prom ote the
notion that the judge's findings in
that hearing were binding. I am quite
certain they hoped that Mr. Lindsay
and Mr. Lewis would heed his advice
and resign, saving the district and
them selves the expense o f going
to court.
Most o f the citizens o f Heppner
understand that with the decreasing
population they have suffered in the
last few years, the teaching staff in
their schools had to be reduced.
Because o f the rapid growth in
Irrigon and Boardr.ian, the opposite
is true. To guarantee each student
in this county the best educational
possibilities, changes had to be made.
Mr. Armato and his group repeatedly
complain that "they took teachers."
They never admit that their schools
enjoyed one o f the lowest
teacher/student ratios in Oregon and
are still far below the state average.
The children in the north part o f the
county should not be burdened with
overcrowded classrooms so that the
Heppner schools can m aintain a
teacher/student ratio o f only 12
students per teacher.
Mr. Anderson should be
commended for leading the way.
He has made a mark on this school
district that will not soon be
forgotten. He had earned the respect
and admiration o f every person in
this county that recognizes the equity
o f providing every child with the
possibility o f being the best that they
can be.
It is imperative that we keep Gary
Fredenckson, Pat M cNam ee and
John Rietmann on the school board.
They are only guilty o f doing
everything in their power to create
a school district, that despite funding
problems, will provide our children
with a quality education.
(s) M erideth De Haven
(s) Barbara Huwe
(s) Billie Griffin
(s) Sarnie Griffin
(s) LaVelle Partlow
Irrigon
There is help in Jesus
To the Editor:
There is much being said about
unity in this hour. W e must
understand that true unity is unity
o f the faith, which we know comes
by a hearing ear. May God give us
ears to hear what the Spirit is saying
to the church today.
I see Christians and Moslems
standing together proclaiming that
we serve the same God. But I say
unto you. Let God's W ord be true
and every man a liar. How can two
w alk together except they be in
agreem ent? And who is a liar?
Who is a liar but he that denieth
that Jesus is the Christ? He is anti
christ, that denieth the Father and
the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son,
the same hath not the Father... I John
2:22-23
Jesus is the C hnst. Jesus is the
Word. Jesus is God. If we deny that,
then how can we say that we serve
the same God? If you deny the Word
you do not serve the same God I do.
Jesus said, if you have seen me, you
have seen the Father. May God open
up the eyes o f our understanding.
No man can com e to the Father
except through Jesus Chnst. There
is no m ediator betw een God and
Let's all work together
To the Editor:
I'm part of thè "Gray Group" who
have lived here all their lives and
find all the discord about our schools
very disturbing. Does it matter what
happened in the past? O ur world
was changed on Sept. 11 and will
never be the same. Let's all work
together after this recall election and
keep our eyes on the prize. The pnze
as I see it is the student we must
prepare to live in this complex and
dangerous world.
Face it -- the money is just not
there at the local, state or federal
level, for anything new. Leadership
is the key and we must try to direct
it in the following ways:
Attend scoot board meetings when
held in your area and offer support
and suggestions as appropriate...
know what's going on.
Volunteer an hour each week in
your child's classroom. With the size
o f our classes, our teachers need all
the help they can get. Nothing works
better to help the education process
more than one-on-one contact, no
m atter what your age.
Serve on the advisory or school
board. As a past member, I can tell
you it's a thankless job, but also very
rewarding. W hen I served on the
school board I once received a
threatening call toward my daughter’s
welfare. 1 recognized the voice and
after issuing my own threat, invited
him to participate by running for
the school board. He now has
grandchildren attending our schools
and I'm still waiting for him to do
so.
W e are going to have super
facilities when the building process
is complete so let's try to ensure we
have education at the same level.
Support our fine teachers, even the
few clunkers, as they all need all
the help they can get.
I'm sure w rongs have been
com m itted, but how long are we
going to dwell on them? We only
have one shot at those little formative
minds, so let's all join together and
give them all we've got. I'd like to
see 25 applications for the vacated
board seats as we need a choice. I
feel four days a week is okay if it's
quality time. I agree leadership is
the key so let's make sure we have
the best we can afford. Attend the
board m eetings and volunteer for
the selection com m ittee.
(s) Pat W right
Lexington
Line of reasoning interesting, troubling
To the Editor:
they had not spent thousands o f
A recent letter to the Editor started dollars on a retired judge whose
an interesting and troubling line o f decision both sides said was not
reasoning that I would like to discuss. legally binding and thus not to be
The com m ent, "Can you im agine adhered to; or if they had given
how much better we could have made fellow board members adequate and
life for some disadvantaged kids if equal time to prepare for the board
the proponents o f the recall had m eeting where this was first
devoted their energy to helping them discussed? Go ahead, add your own
instead o f the direction they took." endings. Unfortunately there are
Please form your own opinion with plenty more examples on this issue
a few m ore such statem ents.
alone.
Can you imagine how much better
Can you imagine how much better
we could have made life for all kids we could have made life for all kids
if the school board had considered if the school board would have
other options instead o f accepting discussed board business in open
the superintendent's proposal o f meetings with all board members
cutting 17 teachers in one year and present; or came to board meetings
the subsequent gap to the curriculum with an open mind and not a pre
and programs with no consideration worded motion typed out for them
o f w hat w ould be left to offer by district staff?
students? Scheduling is difficult to
Can you imagine how much better
accommodate requirements and fill we could have made life for all kids
the schedule with the small number if the proponents o f the recall had
o f electives that are available, rh e . devoted their energy to attend parent-
curriculum is lacking for both teacher conferences, or attended
college-bound and vocational-minded school board meetings, site council
students.
meetings and advisory committee
Can you imagine how much better m eetings to voice our concerns or
we could have m ade life for all been an active m em ber o f these
students if the superintendent had councils and committees, or attended
used the grant from the state's small musical, scholastic and sporting
school funding (which they received events or spent time mapping our
but have not used) to hire a teacher kids' future class schedules and
as the state intended?
college requirements. Oh wait! We
Can you imagine how much better did! We are not a "small but vocal
we could have m ade life for all group o f district patrons"; we are
students if the school board would parents with kids in this school
have followed its own policies on system. Vote "yes" on the recall.
accepting anonymous letters, or if
(s) John M urray
Heppner
W illows Grange # 6 7 2
Fund R aiser To R ep lace H eating System
S a tu rd a y, October 27th
SPA G H E T T I F E E D at 5 :3 0 p.m.
and
B L U E M m O L D T IM E F ID D L E R S at Tp-m.
Music and Meal:
Adults $8 • Seniors & Students $7 • Ages 6-12 $2.50 • 6 & under free
Meal Only: Adults 12 and older $5 • Ages 6-12 $2.50 • 6 & under free
Music Only: Adults $4 • Seniors and Students $3
T e r f i r e
a
Z o v e rs
man except Jesus Chnst. Jesus and
the Father are one.
In this hour o f darkness, we must
allow the W ord to be a lamp unto
our feet and a light unto our path.
We must hear His voice. May God
give us understanding in all o f these
things.
A dear brother said these words
to me on the phone recently, "We
must hear and obey Him to be kept
out o f harm's way." How true that
is. He is an ever-present help in the
time o f trouble. He is our hiding
place. There is help m no other name.
His nam e is Jesus.
(s) Lynda Crane
Heppner
Men's breakfast
A com m unity m en’s breakfast
will be held on Sunday, Oct. 2 1, at
8 a m. at Christian Life Center, 535
W. M organ Street, Heppner.
The breakfast is sponsored by
the First C hristian C hurch, the
Nazarene Church and Christian Life
Center.
After breakfast a devotional will
be led by John Marvin, missionary
to Antigua.
All men are invited to attend.
f