Where did the money, go?
Morrow County received $37.5
million in fed stimulus money in 2010
Eugene, OR 9740:
From a $14,000 fence project to a $25 million grant to
ZeaChem, federal spending created 14 jobs
VOL. 130
NO. 2
8 Pages
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Morrow School Board to hire
Dirksen as superintendent
Mendoza tabbed for assistant job
The Morrow County
School Board Tuesday
night voted to direct cur
rent Superintendent Mark
Burrows to schedule pub
lic meetings concerning
the proposed hiring of Dirk
Dirksen as district superin
tendent. Dirksen has been
with the district his entire
career, first as a teacher
and currently as Riverside
High School Principal.
Burrows, who has been
with the district seven
years, has announced his
retirement effective this
year.
Also at the meeting,
held at Heppner Elemen
tary School, Burrows said
that the district plans to
hire George Mendoza, cur
rent RHS vice-principal, as
assistant superintendent,
replacing current Assis
tant Supefintendent Phyllis
Danielson, who has also
announced her retirement
effective this year. Daniel
son has also been with the
district her entire career, as
a teacher, a principal and
then as assistant superin
tendent.
By David Sykes
B oardm an, H e p
pner, Irrigon and lone, as
well as the Port o f Morrow
and other entities, received
a total o f $37,452,866 in
Federal Stimulus funds dur
ing 2010, creating about 14
jobs, according to a govern
ment website that tracks the
funds and subsequent job
creation.
The biggest recipi
ent o f funds in the county
was ZeaChem, a Colorado-
based ethanol company that
received a $25 million grant
to build a prototype pro
cessing facility in Board-
m an. Z eaC hem said the
funds w ould create 2.17
jobs.
Congress approved
The A m erican R ecovery
and Reinvestm ent Act o f
2009 (which authorized the
stim ulus funding) to dis
tribute $787 billion across
the United States with the
purpose of creating jobs.
T h is is how the
fu n d in g broke dow n in
Morrow County.
Spending in
Heppner
$14,813-R em oval
of Elk fences in the national
forest. Jobs created - 1.
$1,507,639 - New
highway project from Court
Street to the Morrow Coun
ty Fairgrounds. This project
was originally funded under
the state highway budget,
but was switched to stimu-
ZeaChem, a Colorado based company, received a $25 mil
lion stimulus funds grant to build a digester similar to this
one in Boardman. The grant was part of the $37.5 million
in funds given out in Morrow County in 2010
lps funding when the money
became available from the
federal government. Jobs
created - 1.65.
$ 5 0 9 ,2 1 1 - 2.3
miles o f paving on Upper
Rhea Creek Rd. Jobs cre
ated - 0.
$117,800-W eath-
erization at county court
house. Jobs created - not
reported.
$121,737-N o rth
west Trails, Inc., received
the funds to develop forest
tfails and facilities.
Housing, LLC, o f Enter
prise, Oregon, to develop
low income rental housing
in Boardman.
$341,840- T o Co
lumbia River Community
Health Services to purchase
an electronic medical re
cords system. Jobs reported
-
1 . 1 .
$131,146-T o Co
lumbia River Community
Health Services to expand
its dental and x-ray pro
gram. Jobs - 1.5.
$1,454,400 - To
Spending in
Port o f M orrow to add
Boardman
new track and turnouts and
$25,000,000 - To improve crossing safety.
ZeaChem to build ethanol Jobs - 0.
prototype facility. Jobs -
Spending in Irrigon
2.17.
$1,527,962 - For
$5,315,678 - To
construction o f First Street
S a g e b ru s h A f fo rd a b le
-Continued on page 6
Chamber elects 2011 officers
Nolen arrested on sex charges
M o rro w C ou n ty degree. The charges stem
D istric t A tto rn e y
from a January 1,
Ju stin W. N elson
2011 incident in Ir-
recently announced
rigon.
the indictment and
Nolen was
a rra ig n m e n t o f
arraigned on the in
Russell Lee Nolen,
dictment on January
7 by Judge C hris
31, on charges o f
topher Brauer. The
U n la w fu l S ex u al
court kept bail set
Penetration in the
Russell Lee
at $150,000. A pre
first degree and Sex Nolen
trial conference was
Abuse in the first
set for January 13, trial
readiness fro February 10,
and trial for February 24
in Morrow County Circuit
Court.
The case is being
investigated by the Morrow
County S h eriff’s Office.
Anyone with information
should call the sheriff’s of
fice at 541-676-5317.
Pioneer Memorial Clinic in
Heppner participates in study
Pioneer Memorial
Clinic in Heppner is one o f
four Oregon Rural Health
Clinics that is participat
ing in a study through the
O regon R ural P ractice-
Based Research Network
(ORPRN) through Oregon
H ealth & S c ien ce U n i
versity. The study, called
Shared D ecision-M aking
in R ural P rim ary C are,
explores the best ways to
’use informative materials to
help patients make complex
m edical decisions about
their care in partnership
with their physicians.
The study is fund
ed through grants by the
Boston-based Foundation
for Informed Medical De
cision Making. According
to a press release issued by
the foundation, each year it
funds organizations that it
believes have the greatest
co m m itm en t to p atient-
centered care and the infra
structure to make decision
aids part o f daily medical
practice. Each grant covers
demonstration site activities
for three years. The deci
sion aid materials consist of
booklets and DVDs that are
created with the assistance
o f medical experts in each
specialty and thoroughly
review a patient’s options
and include real patients
discussing their choices.
Pioneer Memorial
Clinic began participating
in the two-year study last
year under the direction of
Dr. Betsy Anderson, with
the clinic’s other providers
and staff also taking part.
Sue Thompson, RN, is serv
ing as the data coordinator
for the study at the clinic.
The three areas of Decision
Aid study at the clinic for
2011 are Depression, Knee
O steoarthritis and Grow
ing Older - Staying Well.
Patients with a diagnosis
o f one o f these conditions
are asked if they would like
to take part in the study.
Those who agree watch a
DVD and read a booklet
on their diagnosis topic that
provides information about
the condition and discusses
various treatment options.
They then decide if they
want to follow up with a
doctor to discuss the treat
ment options or not. The
patient also com pletes a
survey about the materials
and those survey results are
compiled into reports along
with data from participants
at the other ORPRN clinics
at Winding Waters Clinic in
Enterprise, Bayshore Fam-
ily Medicine in Pacific City
and Lincoln City Medical
Center. The Oregon results
will then be compiled with
those from participating
clinics across the country.
As o f mid-July, 24
Pioneer M emorial Clinic
patients had participated
in the study. O f those pa
tients, 45 percent reported
their overall rating o f the
m aterials was Very Good
.while 35 percent said it
was Good, 18 percent said
it was Excellent and five
percent rated it as fair. The
remaining three percent left
the question blank. “People
have been happy with the
information in the booklets
and the DVDs. Everyone
usually learns som ething
new, and it’s a great oppor
tunity to talk to the doctor
again about any new infor
mation or questions,” said
Dr. Anderson.
The Oregon Rural
Practice-B ased Research
N etw ork (O R P R N ) was
founded in 2002 and is
a collaboration betw een
Oregon Health & Science
University, the participating
primary care clinicians and
their practices. The mission
o f ORPRN is to improve the
continued on page 8
A L L N E W S A N D A D V E R T IS E M E N T D E A D L IN E :
M O N D A Y S A T 5 :0 0 P .M .
The Heppner Chamber of Commerce at its annual meeting last week elected new officers for
the 2011 year. Pictured above are (left to right) Lisanne Currin Treasurer, Nancy Snider and
Jeff Bailey board members, Claire Sponseller outgoing president, Les Paustian President,
John Gould, Michael Blauer, Kay Fowler and Ann Murray board members, and not pictured
Daye Stone Vice President. Shervll Bates is employed by the Chamber as it Executive Direc
tor. -Photo by David Sykes
New med student on clinical
rotation with health district
Val Riss, 26, from the smallest o f all the rural
Portland is the new face that choices. She began her rota
you might see if you make tion last Tuesday.
As part o f
a trip to P io n eer
the
H
eppner
rota
M e m o ria l C lin ic
tion
Riss
works
in
or Pioneer M emo
the clinic, covers
rial Hospital. Riss
h o spital p a tie n ts,
is medical student
and is on call for the
from Oregon Health
rm erg en cy room .
and Sciences Uni
She is c u rre n tly
versity working on a
pursuing a medical
clinical rotation.
Val Riss
doctorate and will
As a third
d ecide next year
year m edical stu
dent, Riss is required to what to specialize in.
When deciding on
participate in rural clinical
rotations. Each rotation is a career, Riss knew she
five weeks long. Riss chose wanted to do something she
H eppner because it was was passionate about, and
ì
i
briefly considered going
into politics. But she enjoys
the one-on-one interaction
that practicing m edicine
provides, and she is good
at science.
“ I like Heppner,”
said R iss. “ The doctors
take time w ith you to teach
you."
But it hasn’t been
all work and no play for
Riss since arriving in town.
She has been enjoying the
snow and has been cross
country skiing. “I'm having
a fun tim e in H eppner,"
states Riss.
M orrow County Schools closed Jan. 13th, 14th, and 17,h
Morrow County Schools will be closed on Thursday and Friday, January 13
and 14 for teacher work days. Schools w ill also be closed on Monday, January 17, in
observance o f the Marlin Luther King, Jr. holiday. School w ill resume on Tuesday.
January 18.
GREEN FEED & SEED IN HEPPNER:
C old w e a t h e r clothing
•Insulated Coveralls
•Jackets,
ALL WINTER
PAC BOOTS
15% OFF
Morrow County Groin Growers Green Feed A Seed
242 W. Linden Way, Heppner * 676-9422 • 989-8221 (MCGG main office)
i
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