Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 30, 2008)
Nichols joins Morrow County Health District lliliilinliliilllimi||l|lll|| Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Library University of Oregon Eugene. ÒR 97403 VOL. 127 NO. 31 8 Pages Wednesday, July 30, 2008 By Autumn Morgan Russel Nichols says he has always wanted to live and work in Heppner. Now he does as a new doctor with the Morrow County Health District. Dr. Nichols was bom in Portland and raised in the Gresham area. He received his degrees from Oregon State University and Oregon Health Sciences University. Nichols completed his resi dency training in Spokane. For the last year Dr. Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon Fair & Rodeo Princess Torri strives to be like her mom By Autumn Morgan Torri Lovgren wants to be like her mother. Step number one involves being a Morrow County Fair and Rodeo princess. Step num ber one can now be checked off that list as Torri has been named a princess for the 2008 Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Court. Torri was born in Pendleton and raised in Hep pner. She is the daughter of Pat and Bobbette Lovgren. Bobbette was on the Mor row County Fair and Rodeo Court as a pennant bearer for two years and a princess for one year. Torri has enjoyed her reign as a princess. She has attended many parades and luncheons. Her favorite event so far has been the Elgin Stampede, but she is especially looking forward to the Morrow County Fair and Rodeo events. “ I t ’s a lot o f fun meeting new people," said Torri. “It’s fun advertising the fair and rodeo.” Torri attended a fashion show in B oardm an. She e sp e cially remembers attending the Morrow County Grain Growers election o f new of ficers, the first event where the court was announced. Torri is riding a horse named Bob that she is bor rowing from a neighbor. She is planning on buying him. “Bob has a little bit o f an at titude,” said Torri. “But he is still sweet.” Torri originally planned to ride her horse Roper. But plans had to be changed when Roper pulled a muscle and could not be ridden. The fair and rodeo court has a few different outfits that they wear. Torri's favorite is a black pair o f pants and a red shirt. Torri, who will be a junior at Heppner High School next school year, plans on attending Eastern N ichols has been has been filling in playing golf and is planning working in em er w hen n e e d e d in on joining the Willow Creek gency in c en tral Heppner for the last Country’ Club. O re g o n . B e fo re nine years. Nichols and his wife, th a t, he w o rk ed Dr. N ic h Toni, have three children: for seven years in ols says he enjoys H unter, seven, M adelyn, his ow n practice in the outdoors, espe live, and Trevor, three. They John Day. “ 1 have cially hunting and are also ex p ec tin g th eir alw ays wanted to fish in g . N ic h o ls fourth child in August. come to Heppner,” said his first deer He s p e c ia liz e s in said Nichols. “ 1 like Russel Nichols h unting trip was fam ily m edicine but also the community. It’s when he was one enjoys sports medicine. just what 1 expected.” He month old. He also enjoys County Court says no to health district loan request By April Sykes The Morrow County Court, at their regular meet ing July 23, did not approve a construction loan for the Morrow County Health Dis trict to remodel the hospital. O f the county ju d g e and tw o county com m issio n ers, Judge Terry Tallman, Boardman, abstained from voting on “advice o f coun sel” because o f a conflict of interest—his wife works for the health district; Commis sioner Ken Grieb, Heppner, made a motion to approve the request, but the motion died for lack o f second from the o th er com m issioner, John Wenholz, lrrigon. The health district had asked for $ 250,000 from the county equity fund to remodel the hospital to accom m odate long-term sw in g bed p a tie n ts and thereby retain five to seven jobs. According to the loan application, the health dis trict proposed to finance the $925,000 hospital renova tion with a $540,000 bank loan, $73,885 in donations and grants, $61,115 from the health district, the $250,000 equity loan from the equity fund. The loan request had earlier received 4-1 approval from the equity fund's bank ing committee, said Vander Does. According to Wen holz, the equity fund was created in 1993 when Or egon Veterans Department land in north Morrow Coun ty was sold to RDO (Of- futt) and then subsequently purchased by the N ature Conservancy. Wenholz said that at that time $500,000 was set up as a loan fund for gap financing. The fund has since grow n to over $600,000. He said that the loan asking cap, original ly $50,000, was raised to $90,000 and then only last week eliminated. Since the fund’s ori gin in 1993, however, only one loan has been made from the fund— to Morrow Development for $50,000 to leverage a $500,000 USDA loan. Another loan, $90,000 to Miller Manufacturing in Heppner is currently pend ing until some "h u rd les” can be resolved, said Tall man and Wenholz. Wenholz told the Gazette-Times that they “may not have done a good enough job in getting the info out” about the loan fund. Wenholz said that he did not second the motion approving the loan to the health district because he believes the health district "has other means o f financ ing” and objected to using h alf the fund m onies for only one loan. “ I would like to see several small busi nesses have the opportunity to use this money, especially with the way the economy is slowing. If we loaned out half the money, pretty soon the loan money is gone,” he said. "We are trying to stim u late sm all business through grow th in our com munity.” “ I ’m not negative about this, but I believe this money needs to go to small businesses. I have a problem with $250,000 of this fund going out in one chunk,” Wenholz reiterated, stressing that "this isn't a “political issue.” W'enholz was defeated in his bid for another term as com m is sio n er by Leann Rea o f Boardman. Tallm an said that Wenholz "did leave the door open to reconsider the issue in the fall.” Wenholz and his son Jeff, speaking with the Ga zette-Times Monday, sug gested an alternative loan source for the health dis trict through a rural utilities loan program and Columbia Basin Electric Co-op. Jeff Wenholz, a member of the U m atilla E lectric C o-op Board, said that the Umatilla Electric Co-op approved a $300,000 zero-interest loan to Good Shepherd Commu nity Hospital in Hermiston through REDLG, a USDA rural economic development loan program. Hospital remodeling should be finished by fall Bv David Sykes Construction at the Pioneer Memorial Hospi tal in H eppner should be wrapped up by October, the Morrow County Health Dis trict Board o f Directors was told Monday night. The remodeling has made it so noisy in parts of the hospital some staff have been forced to change of fices. Administrator Victor Vander Does told the board the remodeling was going pretty good so far w ith only a few problems. He said the contractor has been easy to work with and most prob lems are being worked out. The project will enable the health district to better ac commodate long term care patients. The clinic is also set for rem odeling with new exam room s, new equip ment and upgraded office space. In other business the board discussed their disap pointment with the Morrow County Court not approving their loan application from the county equity fund (see related story in this week’s G azette). The board was disappointed in that it will cost the health district over $50,000 more in interest. The district will find other sources o f funds but will have to pay a higher inter est rate. The board also dis cussed the upcoming vote to extend a tax levy for the health district. An action committee to work on pas sage o f the levy has been formed and so far David Sykes and B arbara Hays o f Heppner have agreed to serve on the committee. The election will be held N o vember 4 with ballots to be mailed out in mid-October. O ther business in cluded a report that the d istrict w ill hire Palm er Roofing to fix the hospital roof for $62,725. The board also dis cussed an upcoming effort by the city o f Boardman to establish an urban renewal district. If passed the board was told each county-wide taxing district would lose a percentage of its tax income. The health district's portion would be $6,535 per year for 22 years. The board also passed a resolution to bor row $790,000 from the Bank o f Eastern Oregon for 15 years at 4.5 percent interest The loan includes an original $540,000 and the $250,000 it did not receive from the county equity fund. M eeting to be held for proposed treatm ent facility Top photo is Princess Torri Lovgren. Bottom photo is Torri with her sister. Manna. O regon U n iv ersity after high school. She wants to pursue a degree in agricul- ture education to become an ag teacher. She would also like to play college basketball. Torri plans to be rop- ing at rodeos next year. She also is planning to apply to be the queen of the Morrow C ounty F air and Rodeo Court, A meeting is set for the community to hear about the secure treatment facility proposed for Heppner today, Wednesday, July 30, at 6:30 p.m. at St. Patrick's Senior Center. Presenters w ill be Tim Mahoney, manager o f the Umatilla Treatment Facility; Kimberly Lindsay, director o f Community Counseling Solutions, formerly Morrow-Wheeler Behavioral Health; and Rod E. Estes, development specialist with Lifeways. A question and answer session will be held after the presentations. rZ|port*a«cool. p I p o rta b le evapo rative coo ling units 16” 1/2-hp HD Cooling Unit with cart & tank S A L E : $959.00 36" Belt-Driven Cooling Unit Sale limited to Mock on hand ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M. S A L E : $2,000.00 Morrow County Grain Growers Lexington 989-8221 * 1-800-452-7396 For farm equipment, visit our web site at www.mfKK.net
