TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 27,2008
The O fficial N ew spaper
o f the City o f Heppner and the County
~
of Morrow
Heppner
GAZETTE-TIMES
U.S.P.S. 240-420
M o r r o w C o u n ty ’s H o m e -O w n e d W e e k ly N e w s p a p e r
Published w eekly and entered as periodical m atter at the Post O ffice at Heppner,
O regon under the A c t o f M arch 3, 1879 P eriodical postage paid at Heppner,
Oregon. O ffice at 188 W W illo w Street. Telephone (541) 676-9228. Fax (541)
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$20 senior rate (in M orrow C ounty only, 62 years or older); $32 elsewhere; $26
student subscriptions.
D avid S yke s........................................................................................................ Publisher
A utum n M o rg a n ...................................................................................................... Editor
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Obituaries
Francis Byron
Nickerson
Francis Byron
Nickerson,
D. Ed.,
91, di e d
Thursday,
F eb ru ary
21, 2008,
of com
plications
following
Francis Byron
a stroke.
He Nickerson
w as born
in Suisun City, CA in 1916,
spent his school years in
Heppner and graduated from
the University of Oregon in
1939.
A d e c o ra te d v e t
eran o f World War II, he
participated in behind-the-
lines reconnaissance as a
U.S. Army Ranger in New
Guinea and the liberation o f
the Philippine Islands from
the Japanese.
In 1943 he married
Peggy Bauman of Chicago,
IL. In 1996, following his
first wife’s death, he moved
from Kerrville, TX to Phoe
nix, AZ where he married
Peggy Jane Peebler Decker
o f Scottsdale, AZ.
He worked in higher
education administration for
the state systems o f higher
education in Oregon and
South Dakota, as well as for
the Universities o f Oregon
and South Dakota. He was
ordained an Episcopal priest
in 1976 in South Dakota
where he provided volunteer
services to mission churches
of the Lakota Sioux. He was
an Eagle Scout and served
the Boy Scouts for over 50
years, earning the Silver
Beaver.
H e is s u r v i v e d
by: his wife, Peggy Jane;
daughters Lisa Nickerson o f
Washington, DC and Alice
Pickel o f Phoenix, AZ; sons
Eric Nickerson o f Fallston,
MD and Patrick Nickerson
o f Eugene; stepsons David
and Ted Decker o f Phoenix,
AZ; 10 grandchildren; and
one great-grandchild.
Funeral services will
be held at C hrist Church
o f the Ascension, 4015 E.
Lincoln Drive in Phoeniz,
AZ on Thursday, February
28, at 1 p.m. followed by a
reception in the parish hall.
The family is deeply
grateful to the Pueblo Norte
Hospice o f Arizona and sug
gests donations in lieu o f
flowers be sent to Hospice of
Arizona, 2222 W. Northern
Ave., Suite A -100, Phoenix,
AZ, 85201.
Heppner Garden Club to
meet March 3
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The Heppner Gazette Times will print all letters to the Editor with the following criteria met: letters submined to the newspaper will need to have the
name of the sender along with a legible signature. We are also requesting that you provide your address and a phone number where you can be reached.
The address and phone number will only be used for verification and will not be primed in the newspaper. Letters may not be libelous. The GT reserves
the right to edit. The GT is not responsible for accuracy of statements made in letters. Any letters expressing thanks will be placed in the classifieds under
“Card of Thanks" at a cost of $ 10.
Consider carefully who will
distribute tippage money
Letter to the Editor:
The Morrow County Livestock Growers Associa
tion would like to appeal to all residents o f Morrow County
to consider carefully who will distribute Finley Buttes
tippage money most fairly.
On one hand you have the County, whose officials
everyone voted into office, whether they lived in town or in
the country. On the other hand are the 5 cities o f Morrow
County, who are not a party to the contract between Mor
row County and Finley Buttes Landfill, and who represent
their particular cities only.
At a December 4th meeting last year, the cities
admitted that there is nothing that entitles them to these
funds.
Each city may have an agenda, but it isn’t likely
that would include spending a dime outside the cities, and
as former commissioner Ray Grace put it, there seems to
be no legal mechanism in place for any city to fund outside
its boundaries.
That said, all o f us have valid concerns over future
funding for Morrow County Fair, for example, since it
serves both town and country. We should be proud that our
children have opportunities to show their talents and test
their skills at our Fair’s diverse exhibits each year. These
children, many of whom get valuable training through 4-H
and FFA programs will be future community leaders. The
list goes on for the services supported directly by tippage
fees o f $248,985.00 for 2007 - 2008.
Wildlife Services could disappear if not funded by
the county. (Who will you call next time you have a skunk
or raccoon roaming your city streets?)
Morrow County Extension is another service for
everyone, and the same can be said o f the South County
Neighborhood Center.
Morrow Soil & Water Conservation is very impor
tant to the entire agricultural community. I say agricultural
community because that is what we truly are.
Morrow County produces six out o f the top seven
top Oregon commodities (cattle and calves, grass seed,
hay, milk, wheat and potatoes) and that in turn supports our
economies. Gross farm and ranch sales in Morrow County
were $249,871,000.00 just one year ago.
Ranches and farms spend large amounts o f money
in surrounding towns o f Morrow County and certainly
need to have vital services preserved and funded as they
have been in the past.
We feel that the county has done a good job so
far handling the tippage fees, so please follow your con
science, let reason prevail and join Morrow County Live
stock Growers in a “no” vote March 11th.
Pam Wunderlich, President, Morrow County Livestock
Growers and
Board o f Directors, Morrow County Livestock Growers,
Dave Riekkola, Mark Rietmann, Kyle Robinson, Kevin
Hughes, Matt Clark,
Jean Bennett, Bill Van Schoiack, Hank Howard, Jamie
Helfrecht and Marc Orem
Are you wiHing to take the chance?
Letter to the editor:
As a voter, who lives in the city limits, I strongly
believe Morrow County tippage fees would be more ben
eficial to all o f Morrow County residents if left under one
leadership o f Morrow County instead of five different cities
with their own agendas.
If the Tippage Fee referendum passes, the cities in
Morrow County could use the money for new sidewalks,
street lights, a city hall or whatever they want without
regard to anyone outside the city limits. This is a far cry
from the services all Morrow County citizens could lose.
Morrow County may be forced to cut many com
munity programs as well as essential services that serve
everyone in the county. One such service that could be
cut, could very well be, Morrow County Sheriff’s Depart
ment.
Out o f the five communities in Morrow County,
Boardman is the only one with a full time police force with
Heppner contracting for part time police coverage while
Lexington, lone and Irrigon rely on Morrow County for
all their police protection.
Crime is the number one problem our county faces.
It costs taxpayers not only money, ruins lives, causes inju
ries and death and is devastating to all our communities.
What would you rather have a new sidewalk in your
city or Morrow County Sheriff’s Department protecting
your property and life? I am not willing to take the chance,
are you? Please vote No on the Morrow County Tippage
Fee referendum.
Marcia Kemp
Heppner Garden
Kay Proctor will be
Club will m eet M onday, sharing a video o f Garden
March 3, at St. P atrick’s o f Europe. She was able to
Senior Center at 7 p.m.
visit nine countries includ
ing Ireland, Italy and France
and has many interesting
get a
stories to share along with
the pictures.
flawless look
P ro cto r is a H ep
Mary Kay" Mineral Powder
pner G arden Club m e m
Foundation goes on with
ber, former nursery owner,
the sweep of a brush.
OSU Master Gardener and a
It gives you buildable
member o f the City o f Hep
coverage and makes
pner Parks Committee.
lines, wrinkles and other
H ostesses for this
imperfections seem to
meeting are Ida Ferra and
disappear. Call me today
Bebe Munkers.
to discover the beauty for
Heppner Garden
yourself.
Club works to beautify the
Margo Sharer
city o f Heppner. Meetings
Independent Beauty Consultant
are usually held on the first Lexington
www marykay com/msherer12
Monday o f the month and
Full Inventory - Call 422-7428
are open to the public.
MARy
Letters to the Editor
KAy
\\ t h e MCGG GREEN FEED STORE in Heppner:
I n s u la te d B ib s and Coveralls • Flannel Shirts
W in te r P a c B o o ts • W inter Insulated Gloves • Stocking Caps
20 %
Morrow County Grain Growers Green Feed & Seed
242 W. Linden Way, Heppner • 676-9422 • 969-6221 (MCOO main office»
Holly Rebekah
Lodge to hold
monthly card
party
Misinformation has been circulated
To the Editor:
Morrow County Judge Terry Tallman is absolutely
right, there has been much misinformation circulated about
the tippage fee initiative. Most, if not all o f it, is coming
from past and present members o f the County Court.
Misinformation: 40% o f Morrow County citizens
live in a city, 60% live outside any city, say two former
members o f the County Court.
Fact: M orrow C ounty’s total population as o f
July 1, 2007 has been certified as 12,335. The combined
population o f Morrow County cities is 7, 200 or 58.4%.
You don’t have to believe me, check it out yourself: http://
www.pdx.edu/prc/
Misinformation: Morrow County has struggled
to maintain a cash carryover o f $1 million in its General
Fund according to both Judge Tallman and Commissioner
Wenholtz.
Fact: Fiscal years 2004,2005,2006 and 2007 have
all ended with General Fund balances in excess o f $2 mil
lion. Check it out yourself, audited financial statements are
on file at the County Courthouse.
Misinformation: Tippage fees have helped support
the County Road Fund, say two former commissioners.
Fact: No money has been transferred from the
Findley Buttes Landfill License Fee fund to the County
Road Fund, at least in the last five years. In fiscal year 2004,
$279,670 was transferred from the License Fee Fund to the
General Fund and then $500,000 was transferred from the
General Fund to the Road Fund, perhaps illegally. Refer
to the audited financial statements.
Misinformation: The Tippage Fee Fund has steadily
declined in year-end carry over, “the cushion,” according
to one former commissioner.
Fact: At July 1, 2003 the fund balance was
$277,817. On July 1, 2007 it was $1,026,499. See the
audited financial statements referred to above. (Wouldn’t
any banker like this kind o f money management?)
Misinformation: About $1 million has been
“awarded” to community organizations, including cities,
since 1998 according to Judge Tallman and Commissioner
Wenholtz.
Fact: There’s a big difference between “awarded”
and initially paid. For example, in 2006-07 $135,000
was awarded in the Needs and Issues program but only
$81,686 was actually dispersed. It is also true that some
’06 - ’07 project awards have been carried over and paid
out in ’07 - ’08. As o f December 10, that amounted to
$33,950. But the ’07 - ’08 budget includes no money for
those carried over awards. You can verify this through the
County Treasurer’s office.
Misinformation: The County Court and its budget
committee control the use of the tippage fees including the
Needs and Issues budget.
Fact: The County Court has assigned a committee
the task of determining the Needs and Issues projects to be
awarded. Even the County Court will acknowledge this.
(Can you name more than one o f the six members o f this
committee?)
Misinformation: The tippage fees “belong” to the
county but in context meaning the County Court, accord
ing to even the County Council.
Fact: Indeed, the tippage fees do belong to the
County, and we, the people, are the County. Tippage fees
are our money and we can spend them in any fashion we
choose.
This is also true: If you are satisfied with the misin
formation you have received and the way the County Court
has handled the tippage fees, by all means vote “no” on
the initiative. If, on the other hand, you would like better
information, more local control, some predictability in the
future, a better means o f improving the liability o f your
community, you should vote “yes.”
Gayle Eynetich
Take inventory of your belongings
Dear Editor:
We had our lone shop broken into February 6th and/
or 7th. We lost over $ 15,000 worth o f tools and equipment,
from a welder to radiators, wire, cases o f oil, and tools
w e’ve had for over 30 years. We feel that the more people
that know about this incident, the better, and neighbors can
be watching out for neighbors.
Please take inventory o f all your belongings,
whether you have a shop or not. Serial numbers need to
be recorded. Check to see if your insurance is updated
on purchases. Extra lights and security cameras can help
catch thieves.
Please lock your doors, your vehicles, extra tires,
even children’s bicycles.
Thank you for letting me voice my concern to not
only protect ourselves but our neighbors as well.
Mary Haguewood
Haguewood Ranch, Heppner
HES Parent/Teacher Club selling
raffle tickets for a Nintendo Wii
The HES Parent/Teacher Club is holding a raffle
for a Nintendo Wii. Tickets are $1 each or six for $5. The
H o l l y R e b e k a h winning ticket will be drawn on March 7 during Step-
Lodge o f Lexington will pin’ Out With the Family. You do not have to be present
hold their monthly card par to win. Tickets are available at the HES office and Hair
ty this Saturday, March 1, at Expressions.
the Lodge Hall in Lexington.
The cost is $5 per person and
The Morrow County Circuit Court at the M.C.
the public is invited to come Courthouse in Heppner has released the following re
and join in on the fun. Play
port:
starts at 7 p.m.
-February 20: Andrew Linn Sherman and Donna
Divorces
Marisa Sherman.