Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2006)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, August 16,2006 - FIVE Protect yourself from identity theft Bv Linda K. LaRue, EVP, Chief Operations Officer, Bank of Eastern Oregon In the course of a busy day, you may write a check at the grocery store, charge tickets to a ball game or concert, rent a car, change service providers for your cell phone, or apply for a credit card. Chances are you don't give these transactions a second thought. But an identity thief does. Identity theft is a serious crime. People whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years and thousands o f dollars cleaning up the mess the thieves have made of a good name and credit record. In the meantime, victims of id en tity theft lose jo b opportunities, are refused loans for education, housing, or cars, and even get arrested for crim es they did not commit. Humiliation, anger, and frustration are among the fe e lin g s victim s experience as they navigate the process of rescuing their identity. Working with other government agencies and organizations, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) w w w .ftc.g o v /id th eft has produced inform ation to help you remedy the effects o f an id en tity th eft. It describes what steps to take, your legal rights, how to handle special situations you may encounter on the way to clearing your name, and what to watch for in the future. If y o u 'v e lost p ersonal info rm atio n or identification, or if it has been stolen from you, taking the following steps quickly can lessen p o ten tial o f identity theft. Financial accounts: Close accounts, like credit cards and bank accounts, immediately. When you open new accounts inquire about a ssig n in g p assw o rd s to them . Avoid using your mother’s maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits o f your S ocial S ecurity n um ber (S S N ) or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers. D riv e r’s lic e n se / other governm ent-issues identification: Contact the agency that issued the license or o th e r id e n tific a tio n d ocum ent. F ollow its procedures to cancel the docum ent and to get a replacement. Ask the agency to Hag your file to prevent someone else from getting a licen se or any o th er id e n tific a tio n docum ent from them in your name. S ocial S ecurity number: Place a fraud alert on your credit reports and review your credit reports. An “Initial A lert” will be active on your credit report for 90 days. Use this if someone has gained access to personal information such as your S ocial S ecu rity number or your date of birth that could be used to open accounts in your nam e. Once an initial alert is in place, potential creditors will need to verify your id e n tific a tio n p rio r to extending credit. You should provide them with a phone number where you can be easily reached. The “Extended A lert” is recommended if your identity has been stolen. With this alert, your credit file will remain guarded for seven years. In addition, your name will be removed from marketing prescreened credit offers for five years. In order to qualify for an extended alert, you will need to provide proof of identity theft, such as a police report. The alert will help to ensure that you are the only one opening accounts in your name. Once you place the fraud alert in your file, you are entitled to order free copies of your credit reports, and if you ask, only the last four digits of your SSN will ap p ear on y o u r cred it reports. Once you get your credit reports, review them carefully. Look for com panies you h a v e n 't contacted, accounts you didn't open, and debts on your accounts you c a n ’t ex p lain , and assure information, like your SSN, address (es), name or initials, and employers are correct. If you find frau d u len t or inaccurate information, get it removed. Continue to check your c red it rep o rts periodically, especially for the first year a fte r you discover the identity theft, to make sure new fraudulent activity hasn't occurred. Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity thief from opening accounts in your nam e. Use the to ll-fre e numbers of any of the three ---- n -------- re p o rtin g co su m er companies listed below to place a fraud alert on your credit report. The company you call is req u ired to contact the other two, which will place their versions of your alert, too. Equifax: (800) 525- 6285, w w w .equifax.com ; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241 Experian: (888) 397- 3742, www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013 TransUnion: (800) 6 8 0 - 7 2 8 9 ; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790 Once you've taken these precautions, watch for signs that your information is being misused. P ro tect your information by following these suggestions: -Do not give information to anyone over the telephone or internet, even though they claim to be a tru sted g o v ern m en tal agency, your bank, or other business. Unless you make the call to a number for those entities, that inform ation may fall in the hands of an identity thief. -Your bank does not give out your information in any form unless you make a request for the bank to do so. Even if the caller claims to see your information on their com puter screen, do not believe it. Hang up and call your bank immediately. The bank may recommend you call your local law enforcement. -P ro tect your incoming and outgoing mail. Keep a close watch on your bank account statements and credit card bills. Report an y th in g unusual or suspicious to your bank and/ or Credit Card Company immediately. To view our Identity Theft Fact Sheet, go to the Bank of Eastern Oregon w eb site at www.beobank.com and click on the link. Identity Theft Fact Sheet. BEO Bancorp is the holding company for Bank of Eastern Oregon, which operates 11 branches in six eastern Oregon counties. B ranches are located in Arlington, lone, Heppner, Condon, Irrigon. Boardman, Burns, John Day, Prairie City, Fossil and Moro. Bank o f E astern O regon also o p erates a m ortgage division, has loan production offices in Hermiston and O n tario , and offers brokerage services through BEO Financial Services. The b a n k ’s w eb site IS www.beobank.com. Cant Ranch h i s t O T V D r012T«U Y l J ^ ® to be held John Day Fossil Beds National Monument will offer a ranger-conducted program at the h isto ric James Cant Ranch. This one- hour program will feature aspects of the human history of the ranch and John Day region. The program will begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19, at the James Cant Ranch house and museum, located on Highway 19 two m iles north o f the intersection with Highway 26. There is no fee and participants should bring walking shoes and clothing suitable for the outdoors. For fu rth er inform ation, please call 987-2333. W e Print Business Cards I Heppner G azette We have... 6 7 6 -9 2 2 8 I I I I Jt DftNNON & IYOCREAM* F R O Z E N • YOGURT i 'Premium Loutfat frozen yogurt ^ Miuttuj'j D aiu )~ * 217 North Main • Heppner 676-9158 • 676-9426 (Floral) Serving the Willow Creek Valley Heppner. Lexington A lone \ » \ n a Fair and Rodeo court work to promote Morrow County Queen Heather Yocom, Princess Josie Miller and Pennant Bearers Jarreid Miller and Jessica Hamilton talk while waiting for coffee hour to begin at the KUMA studio. Queen Heather Yocom and Princess Josie Miller at an interview. On Saturday, Aug. 5, the C ourt en jo y ed the U m atilla County C o u rt's aftern o o n tea and then participated in the parade, one of their only night ones. It was rem arked how the group was one of the few courts to smile throughout the parade. The Q ueen and Princess have been busy doing interviews and cutting commercials for the Fair and OTPR. On Friday Aug. 4. they traveled to The Dalles to do the live show for Y 102 and recorded some ads. They reco rd ed commercials in Hermiston Morrow County Behavioral Health offers insight on addiction W hat is an addiction? How can you tell if you have a problem with addiction? These are some of the questions that have been debated for years by the experts on addiction. The best an sw er to these questions is if your use of a substance or mood altering behavior is causing you problems then it may be a problem. A d d ictio n is a psychological or physical co m p u lsio n to use a substance or an activity in o rd er to ex p erien c e an altered state. The W orld Health Organization defines this c o m p u lsio n as “ a pathological relationship to a m ood a lte rin g e v en t, experience, or thing that has life . d am aging consequences.” People can become addicted to alcohol, drugs, gambling, shopping, sex, anger, and work. It is the excessive use of a substance or activity that produces harm ful e ffe c ts. T hese harm ful e ffe cts can be p h y sical. so cial, p sy ch o lo g ica l, a n d /o r spiritual. A ddictions can be responsible for a variety of p ro b lem s. T here are consequences such as the loss o f a jo b . health problems, or legal troubles. T here are re la tio n sh ip problems such as marital and i s B U C K N U M ’S C A T E R IN G presen ts th e 5th A n n u al W in e-T astin g D in n er at the M .C. Fairgrounds Thursday, A uq . 17 at 6 p.m. q fe a tu r in g K R A /Y KABOBS O Y ST ER S G A LO R E!* " A Murray 'j and (inchnatter ( o-Production family fights. There is a loss of control such as spending m ore tim e or m oney or consum ing m ore o f the substance then expected. The addiction may cause the addict to suffer from shame and despair. People who are a d d icted to su b stan ces develop a "tolerance” which means an ability to tolerate m ore and m ore of the substance. For example, an ordinary dose for an addict may be a lethal dose far a non-user. Addicts do not have a normal relationship with the behavior or substance that they are addicted to. Addicts are unable to get their needs met in a. healthy and re sp o n sib le way. Addicts are generally very self-centered people who ignore or are oblivious to the feelin g s o f others. As a c o n se q u e n ce , th eir relationships suffer. With substance ad d ictio n , the g e ttin g , using, arid reco v erin g from the substance becomes the focus of their existence. The addict may miss work or important social obligations because of this behavior. Many people addicted to substances arc unable to have fun without abusing substances. Addicts tend to say that they do not have a problem , blam e others for their problems, and make up excuses for a problem that is obvious to everyone except themselves. How do you know if you have a problem? The best way is to ask your health care provider or your local m ental health professional for help in making the determination and for treatm en t if necessary. Recognizing and taking responsibility for a problem can be the first step towards a more productive and satisfying life. To make arrangements to sec a local m ental health specialist, please call Heppner at 676- 9161. Boardm an at 481- 291 l,o r Fossil at 763-2746. (KOHU/KQFM) and did the Odds and Ends show from the Umatilla County Fair on Aug. 8. A fterw ards, the H erm iston H erald interviewed them about what all they have done this summer. On Thursday, Aug. 10, they traveled to the Tri- Cities for the morning show and commercials on K.ORD. Their last stop before Fair week was on Aug. 11 in Pendleton up to KWHT/ KUMA studios to do coffee hour and more commercials. They then headed to the East Oregonian for an interview and photos. The c o u rt's final parade before the Morrow County Fair and OTPR was in Fossil at the W heeler County Fair on Aug. 12. Deadline nears for Heritage Station’s History tour H eritage S tatio n M u seu m 's P o tp o u rri o f History Tour, Sept. 26 and 27, offers an itinerary chock full of history. Don’t miss the bus. The d ead lin e for reserving your seat is Aug. 31. P a rticip a n ts w ill travel by c ru ise r to Heppner’s Morrow County M useum , the John Day Fossil Beds N ational M onum ent, Kam Wah Chung and C om pany M useum and the G rant County Historical Museum in John Day and the Prairie City Museum. The overnight trip is $170 for Umatilla County Historical Society members and $210 for non-members. Included are two lunches, dinner, lodging (double occupancy), transportation and all museum fees. Call the M useum. (541) 276-0012, for more information or to reserve your place by credit card. Reservations may also be sent by mail to the Umatilla County Historical Society, P.O. Box 253, Pendleton, OR 97801. S t Patrick’s Senior Center news Many people in town have brought items in for the Senior Center rummage sale being held in the dining room on Aug. 19 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Proceeds from the sale are being used to help cover co sts, not co v ered by insurance, created by recent flood damage. The menu for the Aug. 23 noon meal includes spaghetti and m eatballs, tossed green salad w ith tomatoes and cucum bers, garlic bread, fruit juice and ice cream bars. Serving will be v o lu n teers from the Seventh Day A d v en tist church. i
