TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, January 23, 2002
______ Letters to the Editor______ Merle Cowett named Police Chief
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H ep p n er
G A Z E T T E -T IM E S
U S P S. 240-420
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............... Publisher
April H ilton-Sykes................................................. ...................................................
Ed,,or
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town and country continued from page one
said presenter and HHS Principal
Dick Allen. “Steve sets high ex
pectations for himself and his
students-no exceptions. His dedi
cation is second to none and he is
usually the first to arrive and the
last to leave school.”
Brownfield founded the Out
door Club at HHS and on week
ends takes students skiing, snow
boarding or rafting. He has been
involved in selling Christmas
trees, in clean-up projects in and
around Willow Creek, selling
tickets at the Morrow County
Fair and Rodeo and numerous
food drives. He is a member and
past president of the Nordic Club
for cross country skiing and has
spent many hours clearing trails
in the mountains preparing for
winter skiing.
He is a member of the Ore
gon Education Association and
the Morrow County Education
Assdciation. He is a current
member of the Heppner High
School Site Council. He and his
class provide the National
Weather Service current time
information to help them predict
severe weather patterns.
Brownfield is the HHS junior
class advisor and every weekend
is responsible for concessions at
home games. He is also respon
sible for preparing and decorat
ing for the annual prom and for
organizing the senior breakfast.
He is a member of the Hope
Lutheran Church since he moved
to the area and has participated in
numerous events involving the
church, particularly associated
with youth.
Student of the Year Julie
Proctor, a senior at Heppner High
School, has been extremely ac
tive in 4-H. A member of 4-H for
eight years, she is a 4-H ambas
sador and leads a 4-H Club. She
is the HHS student body public
ity director, a STARS teen
leader, a president of the
OSSOM Club and a member and
secretary of the National Honor
Society. She is an HHS cheer
leader and starred in the recent
HHS musical. She is an active
member of St. Patrick’s Catholic
Church and oftentimes serves as
a substitute teacher for Sunday
school. She is also a princess on
the Morrow County Fair and
Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo Court
this year.
She also has a part-time job
at the Bank of Eastern Oregon in
Heppner.
Presenter Bill Kuhn com
mented, “This student’s concern
for others is what sets her apart
from her peers. She volunteers
for any project without com
plaint, with a cheery disposition
and with all her energy. She is a
source of inspiration to her
school mates, to the adults she so
quietly helps and to the entire
community.” “She is a sensitive
caring individual who makes us
all proud,” continued Kuhn. “1
hope she regards herself as a
hero.”
Proctor is the daughter of
Kay and Mike Proctor of Hepp
ner.
Booster Club discusses tennis court
By Jeri McElligott
The Cardinal Booster Club
met Monday, Jan. 7, at the lone
High school library. Eighteen
members were present. A thank
you note from the lone Elemen
tary staff for the purchase of the
new die cut machine was read.
Debbie Morgan was given a gift
certificate to the Hermiston Cin
ema in appreciation for organiz
ing the concessions at the two
December tournaments.
The construction of the new
elementary school will destroy
the lone Schools tennis court.
The architect's plan to put a new
court at the end of the high
school will not work due to
sewer and water lines. The bus
yard will be measured to see if it
is large enough, although it was
agreed the new tennis court
probably would not be included
in the new construction project.
The club is still seeking spon
sors for the new track area, but
will not go ahead with the project
until the elementary construction
is finalized. The estimated cost
for the track area and storage is
$ 10,000. The club agreed to con
tact additional sponsors for that
project.
The new Dairy Farmer's aca
demic championship sign for the
boys' football team is ready to be
put up. Dean Robinson noted the
OSAA Gold Cup Award now
includes sportsmanship along
with academics, athletics and
activities. lone High School is
currently in the lead for the
award for the 2001 -2002 school
year A sign will be made for the
OSAA Cup Award the school
received the last two years.
The club agreed to order two
dozen pro-back Cardinal hats the
next time they are needed. Shiloh
Svetich inquired about Cardinal
sweatshirts for the lone fans.
Club members discussed having
a list of academic awards printed
on shirts, or having "Leaders in
Academic Excellence” printed on
them. Svetich will >ook into de
signs, prices and cc rs.
The club received a $1,000
donation for the boys' basketball
program. The money will be used
to buy new varsity uniforms,
with the old uniforms going to
the boys'jumor varsity team. The
club voted to buy a new, larger
junior varsity uniform for one of
the players.
Donkey basketball will be
March 14 at 7 p.m.
The club voted to give $200
to the school assembly account
and to transfer $3,000 from the
checking account to the Eastern's
Best Account.
Only paid booster club mem
bers will be in the district bas
ketball program lone team page.
Anyone wanting to be included
should pay dues as soon as pos
sible. A list of paid members will
be at the home basketball games.
The basketball coaches paid
for the charter buses to Enter
prise and Helix. The club voted
to pay the extra for charter buses
to Dufur and Cascade Locks.
The next meeting of Cardinal
Booster Club will be Monday,
Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. at the lone High
School library.
We Print Business Cards
¿Ufíe¿ & coúnj. fo c A mmc ¿ uhh
Heppner Gazette-Times • 676-9228
Cut CAM, scale back CIM to
avoid teacher cuts
To the Editor:
There is no question that the
Oregon Legislature and the Gov
ernor will have to cooperate to
make the best use of available
funds. In times of reduced fund
ing. the purpose of the public
school system, grades K-12,
should be to a basic education for
students, and then let on-the-job
training, tw o-year or community
colleges, and four-year colleges
build on that foundation. I wish
to suggest places to cut funding
without cutting teachers.
Years ago, the Certificate of
Advanced Mastery (CAM) was
planned as a way to build on the
skills students had demonstrated
in the Certificate of Initial Mas
tery (CIM) process. The first
CIM areas assessed were the ba
sics-reading, math computation
and problem solving, and written
composition. The CAM was
planned as high school experi
ence in an area of interest that
could provide a student with job
skills at graduation.
Oregon can be proud of the
quality of the Statewide Assess
ment Program, but it has come at
a cost. Developing test items;
checking validity and reliability;
and printing and distributing the
tests are all very expensive and
time-consuming. Training and
paying teachers to score essays
and multi-step math problems
also take time and money.
The CIM is important and
should be kept, but it could be
scaled back. Tests have been de
veloped in other curriculum
areas, such as science and social
studies, but teachers can, and
should, be doing assessment in
those fields. In an era of reduced
funding, Oregon should continue
to test and certify that students
have met state standards in the
basic skills. Students who pass
CIM criteria at 10th grade have
all the basic skills necessary fora
job or further education; students
who do not show mastery of
these skills by 10th grade still
have two more years in high
school with teachers trained to
work with students who need
more help.
I'm in favor of cutting the
CAM program requirements
completely. Universities, com
munity colleges, job training cen
ters, and employers can provide
that training and experience.
The goal should be to do eve
rything possible to avoid cutting
teachers.
(s) Linda A. Shaw
Heppner
Transportation Comm. To fund
Eastern Oregon project
The Oregon Transportation
Commission (OTC) selected 25
transportation projects for East
ern Oregon at their Jan. 16 meet
ing. Franklin Grade near Heppner
and Juniper Canyon Road in
north Morrow County were in
cluded among the projects. The
new Oregon Transportation In
vestment Act (OTIA) will fund
the projects. They account for
$65.46 million out of $400 mil
lion total in OTIA funds avail
able statewide. Construction on
some projects will begin as early
as this summer.
Of the 25 OTIA projects in
Eastern Oregon, four will be
modernization projects for new
construction ($14 million), four
will be preservation projects in
tended to extend the life of exist
ing highways and structures
($7.77 million), and 17 will be
for repairing or replacing bridges
($43.69 million).
"Eastern Oregon's share of
this funding, $65 million, is in
addition to the estimated $195
million already scheduled to be
spent on transportation projects
here over the next three years.
Considering it can cost over $10
million to buildjust one highway
interchange, the OTIA funding
doesn't solve all our transporta
tion needs, but it certainly helps,"
said ODOT Region 5 area man
ager Mary Martini.
Transportation
projects
should also help with improving
Oregon's high unemployment
rate. "This list represents a sig
nificant boost to the state econ
omy. Designing and building
these projects will support hun
dreds of family-wage jobs in
Oregon," said Steve Corey. OTC
chair. "After the projects are
completed, they will continue
strengthening our economy by
allowing people and products to
move more efficiently.”
ODOT plans to start many of
the OTIA projects this year,
however those that don't require
a lot of complex engineering
work or the purchase of right of
way will be first. For Eastern
Oregon, the Franklin Grade and
Thielson Road Preservation pro
jects will go to bid this year.
"ODOT is committed to getting
as much of this funding as possi
ble on the road in the next two
years," Martini said.
The project selections made
by the OTC mark the end of a
public involvement process that
started last July. Since that time
ODOT's Region 5 has worked
closely with Area Commissions
on Transportation (ACTS), city
and county officials, and other
stakeholders representing com
munities throughout Eastern
Oregon. "The modernization and
preservation projects selected for
OTIA funding are the projects
the local communities put high
on their priority list. Now that the
selection process is over, we will
start working to get these built in
partnership with local govern
ments, who will be doing some
of the work," said Martini.
Local projects that the OTC
approved for OTIA funding in
clude:
Juniper Canyon Road re
alignment ($500,000)-will re
align the county road through the
Juniper Canyon area to improve
traffic safety and movement of
commerce through northern Mor
row County. Local funding will
provide an additional estimated
($295,575 for this project.
Oregon Highway 74/Franklin
Grade ($l,676,920)-will widen
highway and reconstruct pave
ment with new asphalt (overlay),
install guardrails, drainpipes and
drain inlet boxes. Projects will
extend approximately 10 miles,
from milepost 55 to 66.
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Merle Cowett
Long-time Heppner Police
Officer Merle Cowett took over
as Heppner Police Chief offi
cially on November 29 of 2001.
Cowett had been named the in
terim chief following the retire
ment of Chief Doug Rathbun in
June.
Chief Cowett first came to
Heppner in 1979 when he was
hired on as an officer with the
Heppner Police Department. Be
fore coming to Heppner, Cowett
had been a deputy sheriff with
the Douglas County Sheriffs
Department as resident deputy at
Loon Lake. Prior to his employ
ment with the Douglas County
Sheriffs Department, Cowett
served as a patrolman with the
city at Jordan Valley, as a pa
trolman for the city of Bums and
as a reserve officer and patrol
man for the city of Lakeside. He
attended the police academy in
1975.
Bom and raised in Selma
California, Cowett graduated
from Selma Union High School
in 1959 and joined the Coast
Guard in 1960, ending up in Ore
gon in 1961. In the Coast Guard
he was a dental technician, trav
eling up and down the Oregon
and Washington coasts in a mo
bile dental unit. His career ex
perience also includes a stint as a
driver for United Parcel.
Cowett and his wife, Judy,
who was bom and raised in Win
chester Bay, were married in
February of 1962 at Rockaway.
They have three grown children.
Sherry Goodboy, who lives in
Fargo, North Dakota, Shawn,
who lives in Spokane, and
Yvette, who lives in Portland,
and four grandchildren. Heather
Cowett, 16, Fruitland, Idaho,
Keeley Goodboy, five, Fargo,
and Dylon Cowett, five, and Ty
ler Cowett, 1-1/2, both Spokane,
WA.
Cowett’s term as chief will
be a short one, however, as he
has announced his plans to retire
as of June 30 of this year. He
says that his retirement plans in
clude traveling, remodeling his
house and working on his prize
1970 Jaguar. “I’ll have enough
things to keep me busy,” said
Cowett, 61. “I’m sure I’ll find
something part-time. I can’t just
quit. I’ve worked since I was 12
and I don’t know how to do any
thing else.”
Gonzaga lists
honor student
Jacob McElligott, a senior
from lone, was among the 629
students named to the president’s
list for fall semester at Gonzaga
University, Spokane, WA.
Students must earn a 3.7 or
better grade point average to be
listed,
O ff T he
B y A /ic rly n R o b in s o n
Keeping those New Year resolutions is almost on par with storing
Christmas decorations, particularly those bulky, tangled-up icicle
lights. Small wonder that so many strings are sold each year, since it's
tempting to pitch them when trying to compact them for storage.
Minus a practical solution, it's time to address the issue of what to
do with all those beautiful Christmas cards. Once the addresses from
cards are updated in address books, I still can't throw them out. In
fact, this past Christmas found me re-reading messages on cards from
the previous year as I determined which ones I could recycle for
family Christmas package labels. It's much easier to pitch out all those
Christmas catalogs that contribute to weight gain lust by inhaling the
pages of Christmas goodies. Seems illogical that a pound of chocolate
can contribute to five pounds of body fat.
But not to worry, if you take to heart all the offers of weight-loss
programs or exercise equipment, as promoted on television and
through ads in the mail. In addition to advertisements, junk mail and
bills, our mail carrier's load would be lighter if it weren't for all the
political propaganda, credit card offers and causes asking for
donations.
As to your weight maintenance strategy when you're sweating
away jogging or slaving on an exercise machine, there appear to be
other options. In my mail is a weight loss offer that says it eliminates
dieting and exercising. That's right! All one has to do is to eat their
specially prepared raisins. Yes, I said raisins, as in dried up grapes. An
extra bonus is their grape anti-wrinkle cream offer.
Prunes maybe, but I don't think raisins are the answer. Plus that
anti-aging cream is in the same class as the next-to-nothing
undergarments offered in Victoria Secret catalogs. It's no secret that I
wouldn't be caught in such an exposed state, since I tend to cover
body sags. As to those exposed character lines, better known as
wrinkles, I prefer to think of them as well-earned mileage markers.
Anyway I prefer my grapes fresh or smashed into some delicious-
tasting wine, supposedly good for your health. The downside is that a
glass of wine w ith the evening meal contributes to a dozy state that
obstructs reading or watching television programs.
Judging from the volume of catalogs sent, sometimes it seems as
if one's name is on every database and mail list in cyberspace. Who
knows who obtains your address when you order anything using credit
cards? As to on-line buying, I'd just as soon revert back to when
everything we ordered came from either Montgomery Ward or the
Sears catalogs and the outdated issues were recycled in the little house
out back. Now get this — the post office is going to raise first class
postage. Meanwhile they are flush enough to pay for expensive ads on
television.
Currently we have the opportunity to update mailing addresses for
the next addition of Century Tel phone books. Though many of us
have lived in the same place for years, those letters with old route
addresses do upset our postal system. Anyway if I have to call local
people to find out their new address, then why bother with a letter?
However one of the positive things about living in this rural area
is that many people tend to stay put and care enough to stay in touch.
Meanwhile it's time to start browsing through the many gardening
catalogs that are appearing like dandelions in summer and forget
about the sore muscles to come.
URGENT NOTICE
Attention: Medicaid Customers
It you have the O R E G O N HEALTH
PLAN for prescription coverage,
please contact us I IMMEDIATELY
(before Thursday, January 31st).
% MURRAY DRUG’S PHARMACY DEPT. '
217 North M ain
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Lexington S lone