Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 17, 2005)
FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, August 17,2005 National monument celebrates grand Former exchange student opening of paleontology center returns for a visit Brothers bring in the summer catch I • n _. . f Nation Park Service Director Fran M ainella (left) and National Park Service Regional Director Jon Jarvis cut the ribbon on the new Thomas Condon Paleontology Center. N ational Park S erv ice D irector, Fran M ain ella, and over 500 v isito rs and scie n tists celebrated the opening of the T hom as C ondon Paleontology C enter in a ribbon cutting cerem ony Aug. 13 at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. D irecto r M ainella was accompanied by National Park S ervice R egional D irecto r Jon Ja rv is and monument superintendent Jim Hammett. The Thom as C ondon P aleo n to lo g y C en ter was d esig n ed to break the barrier between the g en eral public and the science of paleontology. It a cco m p lish es th is by allo w in g the pub lic to observe through a glass w indow w hile the paleontologists prepare the fossils they found. Each of the microscopes in the lab has a digital video camera attached to it so visitors can watch a television screen located in the lobby and a ctu a lly see w hat the paleontologist sees and does. V isitors eagerly awaited the opening of this center and seemed fascinated as they w alked into the exhibit room. The exhibits contain eight murals, which correspond to the more than 400 fossils on display and the various ages of the deposits. The fossils rest on actual casts of the rock localities from w hich they were ex cav ated . T he e x h ib its d e m o n strate how p a le o n to lo g ists use the fossils they find as pieces to a puzzle. Each piece gets them a little closer to finding out exactly what the plants, animals and even ecosystems looked like over 40 million years ago. The center is not only visually stimulating, but it also contains a sound system , w hich produces audio of what the animals may have sounded like. T he Thom as C ondon P aleo n to lo g y C e n te r is not only a masterpiece in itself; it is surrounded by hundreds of miles of hills of all shapes, sizes and even colors. The different layers of the hills vary in color depending on their mineral composition and the type of weathering they experienced. D irector M ainella displayed her enthusiasm for the new c e n te r in her remarks, “Visitors are able to see fossils representing the most complete sequence o f plant and anim al populations from the Age of Mammals in the entire world here at John Day Fossil Beds N ational M onum ent. We know the sc ie n tific community also shares our excitem ent that the new paleontology center will serve as a catalyst for their w ork — and that m ore researchers are likely to be drawn here.” P aleontologists at the center are working daily to better understand these ancient plant, animals and ecosystems, but recognize they will never solve all the mysteries. Accordingly, this new center was designed w ith the in ten tio n o f updating the exhibits as new d isc o v e rie s are m ade. Paleontologist Ted Fremd reminds himself to “see and then th in k .” The paleontologists at the center look at what the evidence is telling them and revise their theories accordingly. So, for years to com e this new T hom as C ondon Paleontology C enter will help the paleontologists and the public better understand what took place here over 40 million years ago. DON’T MISS OUR 9th ANNUAL M ICROBREW BEER & WINE TASTING! THURSDAY, AUG. 18th 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. MORROW COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS A il W in e s A r e From Ita ly (Back Row): Willy Gentry; (Front Row L-R): Jerry Gentry,Tate Gentry and Vera Pawlowsky. A German exchange student who spent the 2003- 04 school year w ith the Gentry family in Heppner came back this past week for a visit. Vera P aw low sky, who is now 18 years old, spent some time in California and then came up to visit Terri and Jerry Gentry and Baker County horse tests positive for West Nile virus The O regon Department of Agriculture announced Aug. 10 that a horse from the Richland area in Baker County has tested positive for West Nile virus (W N V ). T he horse demonstrated symptoms of in c o o rd in a tio n and had stopped eating. The Baker County horse had not been immunized against WNV, but is still alive. In 2004, half o f the 32 Oregon horses diagnosed with West Nile virus died or w ere euthanized. A cco rd in g to Oregon State Veterinarian Don Hansen, it is important to note that the virus is passed by mosquitoes, not by horse-to-horse, or horse-to- human contact. “Mosquitoes, however, can pass the virus to hum ans,” says Em ilio D eB ess, p u b lic h ealth veterinarian for the Oregon D ep artm en t o f H um an Services. The virus has also been reported in birds from Jack so n and M alh eu r counties, demonstrating the statewide presence of this disease-causing virus. Drs. Hansen and DeBess urge the following actions to help prevent the spread o f the disease. V accinate h o rses. For the best p ro te c tio n , horses need to be given two doses: an initial dose and a booster dose 21 days later. If your horse has already been vaccinated with both d o ses, co n su lt your veterinarian about the need for a booster at this time. If your horse has not been v a cc in a ted you are encouraged to vaccinate now. C ontrol m osquito An open house tour of the St. Patrick’s Senior Center apartments will be held Saturday. Aug. 20 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be d o o r p rizes and The Victorian Rose, refreshments. located on May Street in H eppner, w ill reopen its doors Wednesday, Aug. 17 at 10 a.m., after the business was flooded with 2-‘/2 inches The m em bers o f of water Monday night, Aug. Heppner Methodist Church 8, said owner Marti Luther. are holding a reception on The store’s inventory had to Sunday, Aug. 21 in honor of be rem o v ed from the b u ild in g and sto red for Jim and Cam W ishart. several days while the pipes church members who are were fixed and the floors moving to Hood River. The reception will be held after repainted. church at approxim ately 11:30 a.m. w ill o ffe r tw o ran g er- conducted hikes into the spectacular Blue Basin fossil beds. Each two-hour hike will feature the geologic landscape and fossil history of the basin. The hikes will begin at 10 a.m., both Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 20 and 21. They will start at the Blue Basin trailhead. located three miles north o f the Sheep Rock Unit visitor center, along State Route 19. Participants should bring good hiking shoes, a sun hat, jacket, water bottle and camera. For fu rth e r information, call (541) 987- 2333. Open House to Blue Basin hike be held at senior offered John Day F o ssil apartments Beds National Monument Victorian Rose. reopens after flood Han tut fm m s jä r St. Patrick’s to offer Light Weigh program video. The program draws on the te ac h in g s o f St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Therese of Lisieux, and, of course, the example Jesus gave by o v erco m in g temptation in the desert. E v ery o n e is w elcom e to atten d this program. Farewell reception to be held for Wisharts BACK TO SCHOOL! DRIVERS NEEDED Enrich yimr family with another culture Now you can him a high school exchange \im knt (girl or hoy) from France, (icrmtim. Vambnavia. Spain. I ngUntl Japan. Brazil Hah or other countries Becoming a host to a young intcmationaJ vteti* t* an cx prrtm cc of a hfcrime' ///n C C Û Ü Ubn «tow* Heppner Fire Department extinguishes a grass fire below the high school last Thursday. The fire was reportedly started by work men installing a fire hydrant in the area. It took firemen a little over an hour to completely extinguish the blaze. No damage was reported. For those who are concerned with their weight, or are struggling with diets there will be an orientation presentation of the “Light W eigh” pro g ram at St. P atrick p arish hall on Monday, Aug. 22 at 7 p.m. T his p resen tatio n w ill in clu d e the “ Light Weigh” bible study and a Make a lifelong friend from abroad. Barbecue by John Gochnauer: Serving Italian Lamb & Fried Oysters 217 North Main • Heppner • 676-9158 breeding sites. Help reduce the number of mosquitoes in outdoor areas by draining sources of standing water. In this way, you reduce the number of places mosquitoes can lay their eggs and breed. Protect yourself. The hours from dusk to dawn are peak mosquito biting times. Consider avoiding outdoor activities during these times or take extra care to use an E P A -reg istered in sect repellent such as those with DEET, picaridin, or oil of lem on eu caly p tu s. W ear protective clothing. Observe and report. The virus can infect the central nervous system of horses and cause symptoms of encephalitis. Clinical signs o f encephalitis in horses in clu d e w eak n ess or paralysis of hind limbs, hyper e x c ita b ility , atax ia (in c o o rd in a tio n ) and convulsions. It is im portant to note that not all horses with clinical signs of encephalitis have West Nice encephalitis. C all y o u r v e terin arian immediately if you witness any of the above symptoms in your horses. H o st an E xch an ge Student Today! P I u s, J e t T e a s lo r th e k id s! ^ MtWlUJ'i tku) their two boys Willie and Tate. She spent 10 days in H eppner and then has to head back to Germany in time for school to start. She will be in the 13lh grade this Enjoying the great summer weather, brothers Luke and Kevin year. M urray caught an 18-inch rainbow trout Aug. 15 in Willow H er hom etow n is Creek. Ibbenbueren, which has a p o p u la tio n o f around 60,000. Kkms fm m Grrmanx. I ? yr% Um% r — pm% m* w m I : ----------- Emma at 1 -800-733-2773 (Toll Free) Sandie Steele (541) 922-0*2» & Cathy Halvorsen (541 ) 422-7107 O p e n in g s fo r self-m o tiva ted , team -o rien ted p eop le. Train in g provided. A p p ly in p e rso n or c o n ta c t us at: M id C o lu m b ia B u s Co. 20 H w y 74 E a s t H eppner, O R 97836 541-676-5861 / 1-800-348-8241 An eq u a l o p p o rtu n ity e m p lo y e r W f tm cmathmal l u t im i f.xchanpr P m p u H a (w N k h n u fk . nnn-pmth »uganhaOnn I \ i I
