FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, December 28,2011
That’s one colossal
stocking
Letters to the Editor
Fhe Heppner Gazette lim es 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 of $ 10.
Wind turbines harmful
on several levels
Give thanks for
volunteers
Music on Main Street, lights, wreaths, merchant
displays, the Parade of Lights, Greens Workshop, and
Christmas Is...they all make one feel warm, cheerful and
in the Christmas mood.
These are not the doings of elves. These things are
done by volunteers who give their time to make them hap
pen. Hats off to the city crew and Chamber of Commerce
for the putting up and taking down of lights and decora
tions, to Gary and Sherrie Clark and Rosemary Bums for
the gathering of greens, and to the Willow Creek Valley
for Christmas Is. These are just a few of the reasons we
should feel proud of our community and very fortunate
to live here. Let’s be thankful for these people.
May this year be a little brighter, and a happy
New Year to all.
Joanne Burleson
Heppner
Hey, brother can you
spare a dime, because
the wolf is at the door
The winner of this year’s Colossal Christmas Stocking was
Donna Smith (pictured above left) of Heppner. Presenting the
stocking to her was Jessica Peterson, manager of the Heppner
Mini Mart, which gives away the stocking to some lucky shop
per each year. “Boy my grandkids are sure going to enjoy this,”
said Smith on accepting the Christmas-goodies stuffed prize.
-Photo by David Sykes
Area singers invited
to sing Handel’s
Messiah
Regional singers
are invited to join rehears
als of Handel’s “Messiah,”
the Easter Story, with the
Oregon East Symphony
Chorale (OES).
The Messiah wil.
be performed as part of the
O E S’s “Celebrate E ast
ern O regon” concert on
Saturday, April 14, 2012,
conducted by Dr. Anthony
Spain. Soloists include Em
ily Muller Callender and
Marianne Sadee of Pendle
ton, soprano Molly Holle-
ran of Richland, WA, tenor
Ross Hauk of Issaquah, WA
and bass Jonathan Silvia of
Kent, WA.
Weekly, Monday
evening rehearsals begin
January 9. They will take
place from 7 to 9 p.m. in
the sanctuary of the First
P resbyterian Church in
Pendleton. They will be led
by Justin Raffa, conductor
of the Mid-Columbia Mas-
tersingers.
The OES Chorale is
not auditioned and is open
to all singers with a desire
to create beautiful music
and the ability to commit to
the rehearsal schedule. Vo
cal scores are available for
$ 10. Rehearsal CDs are also
available from OES at 345
SW 4th Street in Pendleton,
and at rehearsal. Car pools
can be arranged.
For m ore in fo r
mation, and to register to
sing, visit www.oregoneast-
symphony.org, email pro-
grams@oregoneastsypho-
ny.org or call the OES office
at 541-276-0320.
Hey, brother can
you spare a dime, because
the wolf is at the door
To the Editor:
Well not
exactly right at our door,
yet, but wolves have be
come a critical problem in
Wallowa County, causing
thousands o f dollars in
damage to cattle ranch
ers there and also causing
devastation in the deer and
elk populations. Consider
ing how rapidly a wolf can
cover ground, it is only a
matter of time until these
killing machines will be
here in Morrow County and
at our back door.
This is a
very complex issue that
involves several entities.
So far there has not been an
easy answer or quick fix to
the problem. The more time
that elapses the larger the
problem becomes and the
greater the losses incurred
by the livestock growers
and wildlife herds.
More is at
stake here than cattle loss.
Consider the impact on lo
cal economies when hunt
ing is no longer possible
because the game no longer
exists. If ranchers are forced
out and hunting disappears,
we are facing the possibility
of drastic life style changes
here.
This is what you
can do.
1. Spend a few
minutes at the excellent
web site called oregon-
wolfeducation.org. Watch
the video and listen to the
constantly updated “Wolf
Reports” put together by
the above named organiza
tion. The video was filmed
on privately owned ranches
and illustrates how serious
the problem is and the frus
tration ranchers are facing
in dealing with government
agencies like The Oregon
Department o f Fish and
Wildlife for example.
2. F orw ard the
oregonwolfeducation.org
website to others and en
courage them to get in
volved. Education is o f
utmost importance. Please
help spread the word.
3. Last but not
least: Can’t you please spare
a dime? If possible please
send a donation to:Oregon
Wolf Education, P.O. Box
514, Joseph, OR 97846
Jack Meligan,Sec.
Willow Creek Tea Party
Patriots
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To the Editor:
Dear Morrow County Court,
As a concerned tax payer & resident of Morrow County
1 urge you all to watch this video from people who live
close to these wind turbines. I live in lone and am less
than 4000 feet from a proposed wind farm that the plan
ning department approved this month. I wouldn’t like to
see these turbines go in as they are not cost effective.
They’re a hazard to wildlife and to us residents living
close to these turbines.
Our way of life will change dramatically when these
turbines go in. My property value will drop and possibly
would not sell. I built my house on this hill because of
the wonderful views of Willow Creek Valley and the
surrounding hills which will soon be gone because of
GREED.
I was very disappointed at the Morrow County Court for
voting not to enforce the state and federal laws for noise
levels that these turbines produce, You are supposed to
be in office to protect the people of Morrow County, not
endanger them because of the almighty dollar.
I know times are tough and the county is looking to get
money any way possible, but it shouldn’t be at the expense
of the residents. Wind companies-they come and go, but
we don’t . . . Heritage is something to be proud of, not
be embarrassed by.
The county court and the planning department need to be
respectful of the people that could be affected by a wind
turbine farm. As I said before, I’m not in favor of these
wind farms and hope that you’ll watch the video & absorb
what is being said in the video. Thanks for your time.
Richard J Sandford III
lone Or 97843
Here is a great w ebsite about property values
around wind turbines:http://ww w .w ind-w atch.org/
w w -propertyvalues.php; http://w w w .w ind-w atch.
org/documents/wind-turbine-setbacks/; http://www.
w ind-w atch.org/docum ents/know -the-facts-before-
you-sign/; http://ww w .friendsofgranderondevalley.
com/; http://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/09/05/
s tu d y - lo o k s - a t- w in d - f a r m - im p a c t- o n - u n io n /
Great websites about the health affects wind turbines
have on us: http://www.wind-watch.org/documents/
evaluating-the-impact-of-wind-turbine-noise-on-health-
related-quality-of-life/; http://www.wind-watch.org/
ww-noise-health.php; http://www.wind-watch.org/video-
meyersdale.php
PGE employees help
local organizations
Portland General
Electric (PGE) employees
and retirees donated $8,377,
including PGE’s 50 percent
match, to Morrow County-
area community organiza
tions during the company’s
annual Employee Giving
Campaign in 2011.
Morrow County-
area contributions include:
-$1,812 donated to
lone School District.
-$1,500 donated
to lone Education Founda
tion.
-$300 donated to
Creative Care Preschool.
-$1,038 donated to
Heppner Day Care.
-$ 6 0 0 d o n a te d
to H eppner Elem entary
School.
-$375 donated to
M orrow County H ealth
District.
-$750 donated to
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
Foundation.
-$390 donated to
Future Farmers o f Amer
ica.
-$ 1,260 donated to
Irrigon-Boardman Emer
gency Assistance Center.
-$277 donated to
Boardman Senior Citizens
Inc.
D u rin g the a n
nual Em ployee G iving
Campaign, PGE’s 2,600
employees and more than
1,000 retirees can designate
any charitable nonprofit or
accredited school to receive
their pledges, and PGE
matches their contributions
by 50 percent.
The 2011 PGE Em
ployee Giving Campaign
totaled $1.6 million, with
59 percent of employees
participating and benefiting
almost 1,000 nonprofits and
schools.
“This year’s cam
p aign speaks volum es
about employees’ dedica
tion to their communities,”
said Dave Robertson, vice
president of public policy,
PGE.
“It’s truly inspiring
to see the generosity of the
PGE family. Regardless of
the state o f the economy,
PGE employees and retir
ees come together every
year to help improve the
quality of life for people in
their communities.”
Since the company
match program began in
1998, PGE employees and
retirees have contributed
more than $14.7 million to
their communities through
the campaign.
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If Y O U have a family member who suffers from
gambling addiction, Y O U can also receive F R E E treat
ment even if the gambler is not receiving treatment.
If you are a resident of Morrow County and you wish
to take advantage of the services abova or desire more
information, Please call any of the following numbers
to set up a L O C A L appointment or just to talk:
Bobby Harris @ 541-676-9925 or 541-256-0175
Community Counseling Solutions (C C S ) @ 541-676-9161
O R 1-877-695-4648 (1 -8 8 8 -M Y L IM IT)
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124 N Main Street, Heppner 541-676-9481
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