Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (June 18, 2003)
TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 18, 2003 The Official Newspaper o f the City o f Heppner and the County o f Morrow Heppner G A Z E T T E -T IM E S U S P S. 240-420 Morrow County’s Home-Owned Weekly Newspaper P ublished w eekly and en tered as periodical m atter at the Post O ffice at H eppner, O reg o n under the A ct o f M arch 3, 1879 Periodical postage paid at H eppner, O re g o n O ffice at 147 W W illow Street. T elephone (541) 676-9228. Fax (541) 676- 9211. E-mail: g t@ h ep p n er net o r gtfa rapidserve net W eb site: w w w heppner net. Postm aster send ad d ress changes to the H eppner G azette-T im es, P.O. Box 337, H eppner, O reg o n 97 8 3 6 Subscriptions. $24 in M orrow C ounty, $18 senior rate (in M orrow C ounty only; 62 years o r older); $30 elsew here. D avid S y k e s .............................................................................................................. Publisher K atie W a l l....................................................................................................................... Editor Nawa and Advertising Deadline it Monday at S p.m. For Advertising advertising deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Cost for a display ad is $4 75 per column inch Cost for classified ad is 504 per word Cost for Card of Thanks is $7 up to 100 words. Cost for a classified display ad is $5.35 per column inch. For Publc/legal Notices public/legal notices deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Dates for publi cation must be specified Affidavits must be required at the time of submission Affidavits require three weeks to process after last date of publication (a sooner return date must be specified if required) On the HEPPNER WEBSITE: www.heppner.net • Start or Change a Subscription • Place a Classified Ad • Submit a News Story • View Real Estate for Sale • City Council & Planning Minutes • Local Businesses • County Park • Willow Creek Park Reservations • Free Digital Postcards • Senior Housing • and more! Obituaries Vashti Geneva “Jean” Didier Vashti Geneva “Jean” D id ie r, 8 3 , a lo n g tim e H e rm is to n a n d Irrig o n resident, died Friday, June 6, 2 0 0 3 , a t O re g o n H e a lth Sciences University Hospital in Portland. A funeral was held J u n e 11, w ith b u r ia l at Hermiston Cemetery. Didier was bom April 13, 1920, at R olla, KS, to C o n ra d and B e rth a G ann Sullivan. She m oved with her fam ily to Fay, OK, when she was 10 and completed school at Fay. O n M ay 25, 1939, she married Hinson W. Didier at Watonga, OK. They moved to H erm iston in 1950. There she worked in agriculture for a tim e, as a cook at M cCabes Restaurant in Herm iston and at what is now the Crossroads Restaurant in Um atilla. She and h er h u sb an d had a produce stand in Hermiston on the comer o f Highland Avenue and Hwy. 395 from 1958- 1969. Then they m oved to Irrigon where they owned and operated Riverview fruit stand on Hwy. 730 from 1969 until retirement in 1996. They were w e ll k n o w n fo r D id ie r tomatoes. Didier’s husband died in 1998 and in 2002 she m oved to Portland to be near family. She was a member o f the Trinity Lutheran Church in H e rm isto n and a 51-y ea r m em ber o f Hermiston Eagles Lodge 2909. She enjoyed cooking, s e w in g , r e a d in g , fa m ily g a th e r in g s a n d p la y in g pinochle and loved dancing. S u rv iv o rs in c lu d e sons, Bill Didier ofVancouver, WA, Tony D idier o f Sedalia, M O, and Conley D idier o f Fallon, NV; daughter, Lucille H aynes o f Portland; sister, Jennie Van Slyck o f N orth Bend; 14 grandchildren and 14 g r e a t- g r a n d c h ild r e n . Besides her husband, she was p rec e d e d in d eath by her parents, a daughter, Pat Didier R eece, a grandson, D avid D a rre ll B ra se l, b ro th e rs, Ernest, Carl, Earl, George and Wayne; a sister, Mae, and an infant sister. M e m o r i a l contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society through B um s M ortuary o f H erm iston, P.O. Box 289, Hermiston, OR 97838. Joshua Charles Daniel Jenson Joshua Charles Daniel Jenson, 16, o f Pendleton, died Thursday, June 5,2003, as the resu lt o f a m o to r v eh icle accident near Helix while he was on his w ay to sum m er league basketball practice. A funeral was held for him on June 12 in Pendleton, with burial following at Olney Cemetery. He w as b o m Sept. 20, 1986, at P endleton to C harles D. and Patricia A. Devine-Jenson. He had ju st completed his sophomore year at Helix High School where he w as in v o lv e d in s tu d e n t government, publications and was a m em ber o f the Helix basketball team. In addition to school activities, he had a voracious interest in film, editing and com puters. His goal was to attend University o f Southern C alifornia Film School. He enjoyed travels with his family throughout Europe and the United States and it inspired much ofhis creativity. Survivors include his parents, Chuck and Patti Jenson; sister, Jessica Jenson; grandparents, R ep. R o b e rt and E v e ly n Jenson and Pete and Betty K eating, all o f Pendleton, B a rb a ra B lo o d s w o rth o f Heppner and Vickie Gibson- Devine o f Culver; and m any o th e r r e la tiv e s . H e w a s p r e c e d e d in d e a th by grandfathers, Jim Devine o f Culver and Jim Bloodsworth ofHeppner. M e m o r i a l contributions may be made to the Joshua Jenson M emorial Scholarship Fund through Bishop Funeral Chapel, P.O. B ox 325, 131 S.E. B yers, Pendleton, O R 97801. BURNING BAN Effective June 23, 2003 T h e F ire C h ie f o f th e C ity of H eppner is im posing a CLOSED SEASON for open b u rn in g based on local fire safety concerns. This b u m b an is for the City ofHeppner. Remeber: O pen b u rn in g also in cludes b u m barrels. The closed seaso n will rem ain in effect until fu rth e r notice th is fall as per ORS 4 7 8 .9 6 0 t Letten 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. (Any letters expressing thanks w ill be placed in the classifieds under "Card of Thanks’ at a cost of 1 7.) lone Schools9 excellence more dependent on teachers, community, rather than unified district To the Editor: T he lone S c h o o l’s fight to regain its independence has attracted , th rough the A s s o c ia te d P ress a rtic le , interest in papers throughput our country. We have had calls from friends and relatives in Roseburg, Red Bluff and New York that they had read the story o f their old hometown. Unfortunately the tenor o f the s to ry s e e m s to be th e e c o n o m ic lo ss o f o u r businesses which one version listed as only a bank and restaurant. O f course we do not want to lose our eight small businesses, but most o f all we do not want to lose one o f the prem ier small schools in our state. The lone school has been in existence for over 120 years. For the first 60 years it was the town district then the o n e -ro o m d is tr ic ts w ere in co rp o rate d , th en as the school for southwest Morrow C o u n ty a n d s e rv e d th e students from the town plus a thinly populated rural area about 16 m iles w ide by 26 m iles long. Until the m id twenties some o f the families with high school-aged children living in the more remote areas m oved to town or boarded them there during the school year. With the advent o f better roads it was feasible to run buses north and south and up and down the creeks and serve its present boundaries. E ven in its ea rlie r years the school has claimed many distinguished graduates, am ong them the en g in eer designer o f the G olden Gate bridge, a the long time Oregon chancellor ofhigher education a n d a h o s t o f r e s p e c te d professionals and successful farmers. Almost 50 years ago the district set some goals, the first being that every graduate o f the high school would have the opportunity to take all the required courses for admission to S ta n fo r d . W ith th e consolidation o f the sixties, goals were changed but the com m unity’s dedication and support for better education h a s n e v e r d im in is h e d . H o w e v e r th e p re s e n t re p u ta tio n for e x c elle n c e depends m ore on the labors o f its dedicated teachers rather than the support o f the unified district. Twice prior to this last attempt to abolish this school a similar effort was proposed, the plans were dropped when it was discovered that the possible savings in instruction were offset by increased cost o f transportation. Where now som e o f our children were transported as m uch as 40 m iles a day, the new plan w ould require as m uch as 80 miles a day for a few. Then o f course, if only the middle and high school w ere m oved we w o u ld have h a d tw o bus systems. Last o f all, about half th e s tu d e n ts w o u ld be excluded from participation in extra curricular activities at the combined school. An a d d itio n a l com plaint is that when local administrators were no longer responsible to a local board som e n ever had enough interest in the children to even attend school activities. For e x a m p le one recen t adm inistrator had so little interest that he never bothered to a tte n d th e s e n io r s ’ baccalaureate services. But probably the m ain feeling o f the patrons is that a local board will hire an administrator who will teach some classes. And while they will always support an education that will prepare th e ir stu d en ts for careers beyond the hills o f M orrow C o u n ty , th e y w ill n e v e r to le ra te w a ste fu ln e ss nor policies that will hurt children from other districts. (s) Donald C. McElligott lone Turner Tops in Elks horseshoe tournament K en T u rn er o f H eppner took top honors in the Elks Lodge H orseshoe P itching T ournam ent held recently in conjunction with their annual F a th e r’s Day Picnic at Cutsforth County Park. Sim on W inters earned the second place award, with Joe K enny capturing third place. In th e d o u b le s c o m p e titio n , the team o f K elw ayne H aguew ood and Joe K enny took first place, Brian H aguew ood and Matt K enny took seco n d , w ith C u rtis C u tsfo rth an d J e ff C u ts fo rth n a b b in g th ird . Twenty-two players took part in the tournament. In other activities at th e a n n u a l p ic n ic , T o d d Lindsay recaptured his title in th e c o v e te d fo o tb a ll-to s s accuracy competition. Families e n jo y ed so ftb a ll, a three- legged race, sack race, egg toss and coins-in-the-straw events. The potluck dinner was well attended and visiting was done by all. The various adult events raised $94, which w ill be d o n a te d to th e M eadowwood Speech Camp maintenance fund. Little things create identity To the Editor: Last week, A1 Beck took issue w ith statem ents attributed to me in a recent AP article in a rather lengthy letter to the editor. R ather than apologize to everyone and their brother, I will instead attempt to put my com m ents in the proper context. As I am rather quickly learning, the problem w ith talking to a reporter is, w ell, talking to a r e p o rte r. A n h o u r o f conversation is boiled down to a q u o te or tw o. To be perfectly frank, in the big scheme o f life I care not much about hom ecom ing queens a n d o th e r su c h m a tte rs . H ow ever, the point I was m aking w as that there are a million little things including traditions that our kids would give up if they did not have a school in lone. They would be asked to put them all away and ad o p t th o se o f th e ir new school. All those little things add up to give lone its identity, and that is som ething the community has said over and over again that they do not care to lose. As for the com m ent pertaining to athletics, I have no w o rrie s th at the lo n e athletes could find their way on to just about any team. It was not the stars I was thinking about; rather the kids at the other end o f the spectrum (hence the use o f the term “benchwarmers.”) I spent my fair share o f tim e riding the bench at a small high school. Had I been eliminated from a JV team in my early years, I may never have discovered the athletic aptitude waiting to be d e v e lo p e d . D e s p ite M r. Beck’s attempt to make it so, that com m ent had nothing to do with coaches or rivalries or put-downs. It had everything to do with opportunity. S elf-determ ination, local control and preserving the school and community are the driving forces behind this secession effort. It has not been easy or pleasant. It has required an inordinate amount o f time and energy on the parts o f many. The past six months have been devoted to doing w hat m any experts said was impossible. So flog me if you m u st M r. B e c k , b u t th e apologies are going to have to wait until I do som ething to warrant them. (s)A nne Morter lone Weary of competition To the Editor: T h e re a re fo u r elem entary schools in the M o rro w C o u n ty S c h o o l District. In the recent district wide math competition five of the 10 top students were from Heppner. Why then do we keep reading in print that another school in the district is simply the best? Competition between students keeps them interested and w orking hard, but I am w e a ry b e y o n d b e li e f o f competition between towns, (s) M eg Murray lone CHAMBER CHATTER By Claudia Hughes, Exec. Dir. T his past w eekend the w eather cooperated. No thunder, no lightening, no rain or hail. Sun shone on visitors fo r th e 1 0 0 -y e a r com m em oration o f the 1903 F lo o d . T h e y c a m e fro m M o n ta n a , C a lif o r n ia , W ashington, and W estern O regon to rem em ber their ancestors who perished in the historic flood o f 1903. For m any it w as great or great- great grandparents who were lost. There w ere tears, there was laughter and there were new friendships made. Some were in period costume, some were old, som e were young, and some traveled in collectors cars. The commemoration started June 13, with around 200 experiencing “The Flood: We R e m e m b e r” . On Saturday, June 13,100 years la te r, so m e a tte n d e d th e dedication o f the weekend at the park; others trooped to the cemetery to see the unveiling o f the m em orial and hear the congressional record sent by Representative Greg Walden. Som e attended the Cascadia Folk Q uartet and heard the historic Heppner Flood song while tapping their feet to a variety o f period music; others w a lk e d th e V o lk sw a lk , Hardman Hall Com m unity Sale following the Flood Guide and stopping to view the flood room at the museum. The grand finale o f the day included “D inner at the C em etery” w ith lam b and p o ta to e s , a s ta p le o f the 1900’s “Ghosts o f the past” came from their gravesites to share memories and letters o f that historic day w hen 247 people lost their lives 100 years ago. “ Les M atlock and Bruce Kelly” even rode past on their horses as those old Heppner hills turned all shades o f pink and the sun set on a m em orable day. People left with history to carry forward into future generations. Historic Heppner, the place we are lucky enough to call hom e; the place where people come together to cause events to happen in order to carry on history and leave lasting m em ories. We are about the same size we were in 1903. Some things change, some things remain much the same and we keep caring. Life goes on. Births Christian Anthony DuBry-A so n , C h ristia n Anthony DuBry, was bom to Star la Fay A nn K erns and Chet Alen DuBry o f lone on M ay 2 6 , 2 0 0 3 , a t G ood S h e p h e rd H e a lth C a re System in Hermiston. Kyle Reed Wheeler-A son, K yle Reed W h e e le r, w a s b o rn to Elizabeth and Philip Wheeler o f Irrigon on M ay 29,2003, at G ood Shepherd H ealth Care System in Hermiston. Marco Antonio Barrera-A s o n , M a rc o Saturday, June 28 8 a.m .-3 p .m . V3 Refreshments: Hot Dogs, Polish Dogs, Soda Pop, Coffee and Potato Chips Antonio Barrera, was bom to M a ria E m m a a n d S ix to Alvaro Barrera o f Boardman on June 5, 2003, at Good S h e p h e rd H e a lth C a re System in Hermiston. Order Magnetic Deer Signs HERE Heppner Gaiette-Times
