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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 6, 2003)
Ione School Board selects Dick Allen as lone interim principal Bessie « e t z e l l U of U Ne'vspaoar Li br ar y Cubane, OH 9«.4 J 3 T h e lo n e S c h o o l B oard has selected veteran principal D ick A llen as the d istric t’s interim principal, effective immediately. Allen will serve as the new ly-form ed school district’s fust principal. T h e b o a rd , at a M onday night m eeting, cited Allen’s experience and proven track record as a previous lone adm in istrato r and his extensive involvem ent in the lone com m unity in selecting him over two other candidates. The interim position is until June 30, 2004. The lone School B o a rd e x p e c ts to b e g in s e le c tio n o f a p e rm a n e n t administrator late this year. A llen, 53, lo n e, is originally from the tow n o f K inzua and graduated from W heeler High School in 1968. H e attended Eastern O regon College, now Eastern Oregon U n iv e rsity , fo r tw o y e a rs b e fo re tra n s fe rrin g to the Oregon College o f Education, now W e s te rn O re g o n U niversity, a t Monmouth. H e g r a d u a te d from O C E w ith a d e g r e e in elem entary education in 1972 a n d m arried his wife,Jannie, that year. Allen worked for two y e a r s a t F a y e W rig h t Elem entary School in Salem before moving to Fossil, where he taught five years. He was then hired as superintendent- principal at Spray, w here he worked for six years. He was h ired as prin cip al o f lone Schools in 1985, w here he rem ained until accepting a p o sitio n as H eppner H igh School principal in the fall o f 2 0 0 0 . A f te r h is o f f ic ia l retirem ent in 2002, he cam e back to serv e as a ssista n t principal at H eppner schools during the 2002-03 school year. Allen was selected the H eppner C ham ber o f Commerce citizen-educator o f th e y e a r in 1993. H e h as previously been involved in the lo n e F o u r th o f J u ly celebration, and, along with his w if e , r e ig n e d o v e r th e celebration in 2000. He is a m em ber o f the lone U nited Church o f Christ. He has been active in the lone Community A gri-B usiness Organization a n d h a s s e rv e d as its p re sid e n t. He serv ed tw o years on the lone City Council and for m any years coached L ittle L eag u e. H e e n jo y s hunting, camping and working on classic cars. Allen and his wife have tw o c h ild re n , S tev e, w ho recently graduated from the U niversity o f O regon with a degree in international studies, and Elizabeth, who is currently a student. Bailey and Lindsay named VPs for BEO VOL. 122 NO. 32 24 Pages Wednesday, August 6,2003 Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon Hospital will continue to operate A story in the July 30 Gazette-Times entitled “Health D istrict w ill need tax levy or ru n o u t o f m o n e y ” w a s erroneous. M o rr o w C o u n ty H ealth D istrict C E O V ictor Vander Does told the G-T that even in the event o f a “worst- case scen ario ” , the district does not plan to close Pioneer M e m o r ia l H o s p ita l in Heppner, as stated in the July 30 article. V ander D oes said that if the district cannot pass a tax levy to increase district revenues, they m ay be forced to close the two district health clinics in Heppner and Irrigon, discontinue support payments to th e B o a r d m a n C lin ic operated by private physician, Dr. R obert Boss, and close P ioneer M em orial N ursing Home. In that event, the district w ould still retain em ergency se rv ic es at the h o sp ita l in H eppner (w ith an urgent care facility), am bulance services for all communities (Heppner, L exington, lone, B oardm an a n d Irrig o n ) a n d P io n e e r M em orial H om e H ealth and Hospice, w hich also serve all communities in the district. “ T here’s no question that w e’re going to need more m o n e y fo r th e d is tr ic t to o p erate at b reak ev en and maintain existing services,” said Vander Does. C losing the nursing home would currently displace 13 elderly residents and could put an estim ated 25 jo b s at risk, V ander D oes said. The nursing home is licensed for 19 residents. Closing the clinics w ould leave the Heppner area w ith n o d is tr ic t- o p e ra te d c lin ic . H o w e v er, one p h y s ic i a n , D r. K e n n e th W enberg, operates a private clinic in Heppner and Dr. Boss o p e r a te s h is c lin ic in Boardman. Irrigon would have no d o cto r’s office at all. V ander D oes anticipates that the district will probably need an additional $ 4 0 0 ,0 0 0 - 5 5 0 0 ,0 0 0 in revenue to retain services at their current level, but the exact am ount p robably w o n ’t be determined until the end o f the year. Vander D oes says that he believes the shortfall exists because the district is not able to generate enough business and also because the state o f Oregon does not reimburse for costs sufficiently. “It costs us m ore to p ay for M ed icaid patients than O regon pays. T h e y d o n ’t p a y th e ir fair share,” said Vander Does. He says that it costs the district $ 1 8 0 p e r d a y to c a re fo r M edicaid patients, w hile the state reim burses the district at a rate o f only $ 111 per day. Vander Does says that leaves the district w ith tw o options-to increase revenue by at least 10 percent or com e up with an equivalent amount b y in c re a s in g ta x e s . T h e revenue the district can expect to generate is lim ited by the population, he added. V a n d e r D o e s s a id previously that the district has a bare bones budget and there is little or nothing left to cut. The board earlier decided that it could no longer afford to have a 24-hour physician on call and has since learned that the state will still allow PM H to retain its Traum a Level IV designation. M o rr o w C o u n ty Health District has around a $4 m illion budget, not including ta x e s , w h ic h b rin g in an a d d it io n a l $ 6 0 0 ,0 0 0 , approxim ately. Vander Does s a y s th a t an a d d itio n a l $400,000 in taxes w ould cost the M C H D taxpayer around 52 cents per $ 1,000 assessed valuation. Vander D oes said that o f all the entities that pay property taxes, only around 15 p e rc e n t o f the tax m onies w o u ld com e fro m homeowners, with the majority o f the tax b u rd en p aid by utilities. To retain a 24-hour physician on call would require another 16 cents per $ 1,000 assessed valuation. Vander Does said that th e fiv e -y e a r lev y w o u ld req u ire a 50 percen t voter tu rn o u t (e stim a te d aro u n d 2,400 voters) with a majority o f yes votes if they put the levy up before voters in May, b e c a u s e o f th e d o u b le majority requirements. If the levy were to be put before the voters in Novem ber it w ould require only a single majority, but by then it w ould be too late and the district would run out o f money. Vander D oes added that M C H D ’s situation is not unusual for rural hospitals. He says that the rural John D ay h o s p ita l is p r e s e n t ly subsidized by $ 1,187,310 in ta x e s a n d d o es n o t ev e n operate clinics or ambulance services, as does M C H D . iailey and Melissa rpfinanrps JeffBailey n stm rtin n refinances nnrl and rn construction Lindsay have been named vice lending over a wide area. p re sid e n ts for the B ank o f D ue Eastern to Bailey’s O regon by relocation, th e B o a rd K a t h y ofDirectors Burres has at its b e e n (Xgpnizaticnal n a me d meeting this branch spring. manager Bailey of t he w as nam ed Condon - v i c e branch. Katl,y Burres p re s id e n t Burres has been with the bank a n d c h i e f Melissa Lindsay since 1995 credit w hen they officer for the bank. Bailey has opened the b e e n w ith th e b a n k s in c e C o n d o n D ecem ber 1996 and has been b r a n c h . a loan officer in Gilliam County. S h e B ailey w ill be relocating to r e c e n t l y H eppner w here the bank has se rv e d as its main offices, and will oversee operations the loan portfolio and have other supervisor lending duties. there. L indsay has been the John mortgage manager in Heppner Qualls will John Qualls for the last seven years. H er m o v e to m ortgage departm ent is a top- producing division o f the Bank o f E a s te rn O re g o n a n d it specializes in hom e purchases, MCSD Board deadlocked over selection of seventh board member lone Preschool registration begins C r e a tiv e C are P reschool in lone w ill be r e g i s te r in g s tu d e n ts on M onday, A ug. 11 from 3-4 p.m . o r 7-8 p.m . C reative C are offers classes for three year olds on M ondays and W ednesdays from 8:30-11 a.m . and for four year olds on Tuesdays and T hursdays from 8:30-11:30 a.m . The c u t-o ff date for the ages is August 31. Classes will begin on Tuesday, Sept. 2. C reative Care follows the lone School D istrict schedule, so classes th a t w o u ld h a v e m et on Labor Day will meet on Friday, Sept. 5 instead. D uring re g istra tio n , parents will be provided with a school handbook, calendar and all necessary enrollment forms. It is also an opportunity to meet C reative C a re ’s new teacher, Betty Rietmann. It is important for parents to attend one o f the tw o reg istra tio n p eriods, if possible. If it is not possible for a parent to attend registration, they m ay receive the handbook, fo rm s a n d c a le n d a r by contacting L isa R ietm ann at 4 2 2 -7 1 8 1 , K ari M organ at 422-7410, or Betty Rietm ann at 422-7120. Missing boater identified The m is s in g individual, now presum ed d ro w n e d , has been identified as 50-year-old Frank Eugene R andle, o f Pendleton, stated M orrow C o u n ty S h e r if f V e rlin D e n to n . R a n d le w e n t m issin g a fte r a b o a tin g accident near B oardm an, Sunday afternoon, Aug. 3. The search continued Tuesday, Aug. 5, with R andle’s body still not h a v in g b e e n f o u n d b y Tuesday m orning. Search and rescue w ill continue ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE: M ONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M. 1 G illiam C ountv ounty to ass assum e duties as a lending officer. Q ualls has been at the bank fo r 15 m onths as a lo a n o ffic er in t h e H eppner branch. Previously, Qualls worked fo r th e O S U Extension Service a n d is a JeffBailey graduate o f Eastern O regon University with a degree in Ag business. The B ank o f Eastern Oregon is an $80 m illion full service com m ercial bank. It h a s b r a n c h lo c a tio n s in H e p p n e r, lo n e , C o n d o n , Irrigon and B oardm an and s e rv e s th e r e s id e n ts o f Morrow, Gilliam and Wheeler counties. looking throughout the day and m ore updates will be received at a later time. “ A b o a t w ith an underw ater cam era has been added to the search in hopes it will enhance the ability o f the s e a rc h e s to s p o t R a n d le ’s body,” stated Sheriff Denton on Monday. The M orrow County School Board, currently a six- m em ber board because o f a vacancy, becam e deadlocked over selection o f a seventh member at its meeting Monday night The board tied three to three over tw o candidates w ho expressed a desire to fill the seventh board position that w as vacated w hen the lone School D istrict w as form ed. D ebbie R adie w as elected to the M CSD Board, but resides in the n e w ly -fo rm e d lone School District and had to step down from her position on the MCSD. She was subsequently selected as a m em ber on the lone School Board. M CSD B o a rd m e m b e rs C r a ig M ile s , H eppner, B arney Lindsay, north Lexington area, and Ken Matlack, Irrigon, voted for Bill K uhn, a H eppner attorney who ran unsuccessfully for the position in the recent election, to fill th e se v e n th b o a rd position. Board members John R e n fro , L e x in g to n , J u lie W eikel, B oardm an, and Pat M cNam ee, Irrigon, voted for Angela Gutierrez, Boardman. A third can d id ate, D ebbie Stratton o f Irrigon, received no votes. M o rro w C o u n ty School Superintendent Dr. Jack C rippen said that he is not sure now how the board will proceed in selecting the seventh board m em ber. He says that he expects that the district will consult its attorney a n d th e O re g o n S c h o o l B o a rd s A s s o c ia tio n fo r assistance in resolving the matter. Pre-fair edition inside A special pre-fair edition has been included in this week's edition o f the H eppner G azette-Tim es. T h e p r e - f a i r e d itio n includes articles about the fair events and 4-H, as well as, feature articles on the various entertainers and the M orrow C ounty Fair and R odeo court. The M o rro w C ounty Fair and O regon Trail Pro R odeo will be held A ug. 13-17, at the M o rro w C o u n t y F a i r Grounds. We’re Back To Our Regular Hours: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday 7 a.m.- 12 noon Morrow County Grain Growers Lexington 989-8221 • 1-800-452-7396 r . r farm *quipm«nt. »t»it « ir w *. »it. « w w w .m cn . I
