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FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, October 8, 2008 ~ Letters to the Editor ~ The Heppner Gazette Times will print all letters to the Editor with the following criteria met: letters submitted 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 printed 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 o f $10. Pleased to endorse and support Sample An open letter to Morrow County voters To the editor: I have known, supervised and worked closely with Larry Sample for many years. 1 personally did the back ground investigation on Larry when he was hired by the Morrow County Sheriff’s Office and was very impressed by what his peers and other agencies had to say about him. During the time 1 worked w ith Larry 1 learned that he is a man o f integrity; that he is a man dedicated to the kind of hard work and professionalism that is absolutely necessary to lead an organization like the sheriIT’s office. He is highly respected by his peers and is very approach able and accessible leader. As undersheriff he supervised, and was responsible for, the daily operation o f the sheriff’s office. He was highly respected and looked up to by the office employees, which is so important to retaining experienced and professional deputies working in the county. He treated employees with the respect and professionalism they deserved. While undersheriff Larry fostered an efficient and professional work environment in the sheriff's office. Larry has had considerable experience in working with tight budgets and making do with less during times o f limited resources. He is careful with the tax payer’s dollars and does not condone spending them in frivolous ways. Larry cares a great deal about the county as a whole and its people. It was my privilege to serve Morrow County in the sheriff’s office for 21 years and in my opinion Larry Sample will make an excellent sheriff for the county. 1 am very pleased to endorse and support Larry for Mor row County sheriff and would encourage others to do so as well. Verlin Denton, Sheriff, Ret. Pendleton Dear Editor: Ken Matlack is a law man and a gentleman. I served on the Irrigon City Council w ith Ken and I know him to be deserv ing o f another term as Morrow County sheriff. Ken is ideal for this job. He does not flaunt his au thority w ith arrogance. He treats people with the courtesy and respect they deserve. He practices a participative style o f management wherein he seeks the adv ice and counsel o f others before deciding on a final course o f action. Ken spends much o f his time as he should out on the roads and streets o f the county, sharing some of the patrol and enforcement duties with his deputies. He does not stay cooped up in his office while delegating every thing to subordinates. This keeps him well informed on the needs and issues affecting Morrow County residents. He stays abreast o f advances in technology and constantly looks for better ways to get things done. Here in Irrigon we cannot afford to fund our own police force and Ken provides the kind o f public safety protection that we need at a very economical cost. I sleep better at night knowing that Ken and his deputies are providing skilled and able law enforcement for our com munity. I wholeheartedly endorse Ken Matlack for another term as Sheriff o f Morrow County and I urge you to do the same. Arnold J. Theisen Former Irrigon Mayor Pro-Tern Re-elect Ken Matlack for sheriff of Morrow County Dear Editor: When 1 first met Ken Matlack, he was an OSP of ficer and my impression then and now, is that he is a very caring individual when it concerns someone’s welfare, as well as an effective law officer. That was approximately 12 years ago. Presently, as sheriff of Morrow County, 1 have had the pleasure o f working with Ken and his deputies on several animal abuse cases. This rarely happened prior to Sheriff Matlack’s tenure. He has developed a reputation around the county that the sheriff’s department is watching for abuse situa tions. 1 consider Ken Matlack to be a man o f great char acter, very well qualified for the job as sheriff, a caring person, a family man, and I am proud to call him my friend. I highly recommend him for re-election as sheriff o f Morrow County. Dr. James A. Burgess, DVM Country Animal Hospital Hermiston A pleasure to support Larry Sample Letter to the editor: It is my pleasure to support Larry Sample for Mor row County sheriff. I have known Mr. Sample for nearly 15 years and hold him in the highest regard, both personally and professionally. While working together with Larry on a daily basis for over five years. I’ve experienced first hand his honesty and integrity, strong work ethic and commitment to his profession. Mr. Sample is a highly experienced law enforcement officer and administrator, yet remains ap proachable and down to earth. Larry has been a resident of Morrow County for many years, and has a long history of community serv ice as well. I believe that Mr. Sample has the best interest o f the citizens o f Morrow County at heart, and they would be very well served in electing Larry Sample as their next sheriff. Jim Littlefield, Detective Pendleton Police Department A proud Larry Sample supporter To the editor: My pet peeve, when it comes to political campaign ing, is that we rarely get the opportunity to vote for the candidate we feel is best qualified for the job. Instead of telling voters what he believes and hopes to accomplish, the candidate spends the entire campaign trying to convince us that he isn’t as bad as the “other guy.” This leaves me with the feeling that I am casting my vote for the lesser o f the two evils. However, in the race for Morrow County sheriff, the voters o f Morrow County will not be faced with this dilemma. We have the rare opportunity to cast our vote for the best man for the job. And that man is Larry Sample. No mud-slinging, no finger-pointing, to coin an old phrase - “no brag, just fact.” It goes without saying that Larry is a great cop. He brings 34 years o f law enforcement experience to the job. He has held positions at every level o f law enforcement from reserve officer, to patrol sergeant, to Morrow County undersheriff. He served on the drug task force (BENT) for 10 years. Larry knows the duties o f each position and knows what it takes to get the job done. Beyond the fact that he is an outstanding officer, Larry is a man o f character: -He is a man o f his word - he will not make prom ises he may not be able to keep. -He is a man o f integrity - his handshake is as reli able as any legal document. -He is a man o f conviction - he recognized a need and decided to do something about it. Rather than sit back and wait for someone else to fix the problem, he stepped forward and offered his form o f leadership to the citizens o f Morrow County. Larry, himself, will be the first to share that public speaking is not his strong suit. But if you have or will attend any o f the public forums, I invite you to listen to his answers. See the look o f sincerity on his face and in his eyes. Hear the determination in his voice. Feel the confidence he conveys with his straight forward answers. I think you will then believe, as I do, that Larry Sample is the best man for the job o f Morrow County sheriff. I am proud to be a Larry Sample supporter. I hope you will join me in casting your vote for Larry Sample for Morrow County sheriff. Robin Huxoll Irrigon More Letters to the Editor can be found on Page FIVE. Email your Letters to the Editor to: editor@rapidserve.net Heppner Booster Club Annual Steak Feed & Auction Bank o f É Eastern Oregon Oct. 18th, 2 0 0 8 Support Ken Matlack To the editor: I came to Morrow County in 1989 as a patrol deputy with the Sheriff’s Office. Since that time, I have been involved w ith Morrow County emergency services in one capacity or another. 1 have also had the unique oppor tunity to be involved with several national level disasters as a responder. I have been deployed to the World Trade Center, the Olympics, and numerous hurricanes around the US, most recently to Hurricane Gustav in Louisiana. The point to all o f this is quite simple. In all o f my travels, and with all o f the administrators that I have worked with and/or around across this great nation, none o f them have impressed me as much as Ken Matlack. In late 2004 when Ken won the election for Mor row County Sheriff, he came to me and asked me to be his undersheriff. While 1 had worked with Ken before, I was not completely sure what to expect. I accepted his offer and started as his second in command on January 3,2005. What I have found as I have worked with Sheriff Mat- lack these past four years is a man that is deeply involved in the county. He cares about the issues that concern all o f us as citizens o f the county. I am very proud of the fact that over the past four years we have accomplished a number o f significant goals. We have updated a lot o f the equipment to current stan dards, sent deputies to more updated training, put more offenders in jail, and increased our ability to respond to specific problems. All o f this has been accomplished while actually slowing the rate o f growth in the budget from 20+% in 2003 to less than 5% last year. Throughout the process, Ken has been instrumental in guiding the path o f the sheriff’s office as we have dealt with various issues. During this entire time, I have learned to both re spect and admire his thought process and dedication to the citizens. His decisions are not guided purely by what the law says, but also by “what is right.” In addition, he has another quality that I can personally relate to in that he is a “workaholic.” It is not at all unusual for him to work an entire shift, go home for a few hours and then come back out on patrol for a few more hours. Both he and I believe strongly that administrators have a duty to be on patrol at least some o f their time. In fact, both he and I wear uniforms every day and perform a minimum o f a couple hours o f patrol duty per shift. The average call volume per deputy in Morrow County is approximately 400 calls for service. Last year, Sheriff Matlack had over 400 and 1 had just under 400. This means that, in effect, we added two more positions to the patrol division just with our activities. As a side note, we totaled up all o f our hours for 2007 and found that we had both put in the equivalent to three full months o f “extra” time to our jobs. This means that while we got paid for 40 hours per week for 52 weeks, we actually put in an ad ditional 12 weeks worth o f time above and beyond. As the time to mark the ballot comes closer, please take time to review the facts and make an informed deci sion. There are a number o f persons who will ask you to vote a particular way on any given issue or candidate based solely on a friendship. I think that is an incorrect way to approach an important decision such as this. Use your heart and your head to do research, ask questions, and finally make an informed decision. A number o f you have approached me on the street and asked two questions. First, you have asked me if I will still be here after the election. Sadly, no, I will not be. The opposition has stated publicly that one o f his first acts as sheriff would be to replace the undersheriff. It’s just a guess mind you, but I think that means no! Secondly, a number o f you have asked me for my opinion regarding the sheriff’s election. I appreciate the fact that you value my judgment and input into this decision. I recommend you visit the following web site www.aworkingsheriff.com and use it to help you make a decision. If you still just want to rely on my suggestion, then it is very simple. Sheriff Matlack believes in doing the job right. He uses the very best o f his abilities to increase the livability of the County for the betterment o f all persons. I believe whole-heartedly that he is the right man for the job and I encourage you to support him in his re-election campaign. Please help Sheriff Matlack and I by allowing us the honor o f serving you for another four years. Steven L. Myren Boardman Mortgage Division Dinner at 6 :0 0 p.m. Member FDIC Call Melissa Lindsay, Mortgage Manager, BEO Mortgage Division, for: ✓ N ew H o m e P u rch a se Real Estate Wanted I have qualified buyers looking for the following property: R e fin a n c in g Y o u r H o m e H o m e E q u it y L o a n s o r - / Live Auction at 8 p.m. Also Raffle Items 81 Silent Auction Some Auction Items: Italian Supper, Tasco Binoculars. Bird Hunt, Hamburger, HHS Fan Items. 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