EIGHT - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 22,2012
WIND JOBS
-Continuedfrom PAGE ONE
"$1 million lab” to do the
training, so have not offered
anything to students.
“ I am g o ing to
try and create more jobs,”
O'Connell told the crowd.
Patricia Pilz says
the Shepherds Flat project
will put up 338 towers when
completed and is a project
she has been working on
for almost 10 years. It is
the biggest wind farm in the
world and spans both Mor
row and Gilliam counties.
She said the entire project
should be com pleted in
August o f 2012 and will
actually be operated by
General Electric.
Pilz says in the be
ginning GE is going to
have to bring people in to
operate the towers because
“you just don’t have the
trained people here now.
And we have a wind farm
to operate.”
There will be 37
full-time technician-type
jobs available when the
wind farm is completed,
which will consist of people
who are able to climb the
200-plus foot towers and
have the skills to fix the
towers when they break
down. Pilz said the repair
work will be somewhat
like an auto mechanic, as
parts are not repaired on site
but are diagnosed and then
swapped out and sent back
to the factory for repair.
“It is heavy diag
nostic, heavy computer,
and you have to be able to
climb a tower and be agile,”
she said in describing the
work.
However, Pilz also
brought up some o f the
other jobs required to put
in a wind project. “There
is a biology side of this.”
She said there are environ
mental-type jobs like bird
counting and identification,
environmental impact state
ment and other types of jobs
that do not require a person
to climb towers.
Pilz reiterated that
on Shepherd Flats all the 37
jobs will through GE. “You
will be an em ployee o f
General Electric, and they
are the ones you need to see
about employment.”
Also at the meeting
were representatives of the
Morrow County School
District, who said the dis
trict is gearing up to prepare
students for careers in the
wind business.
“I want to build a
program that will try and
bring people back to this
area. We are working on
options now,” said Heppner
High School Principal Daye
Stone.
He said he is w ork
ing with the International
Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers on some program
funding opportunities, and
is also coordinating with
technology teacher Dave
Fowler about setting up a
preparatory program to give
students the required math
and science skills.
“We have devoted
a half-time teaching posi
tion to develop a renewable
energy program ,” Stone
said.
“Our population
[in the community] is get
ting older and we need to
give kids an opportunity to
come back here. It breaks
my heart that a lot of kids
want to come back here but
can't,” Stone added.
School Superinten
dent Dirk Dirksen said the
jobs should also provide a
boost to the schools. “As
we get 37 people moving in
here they will have kids that
w ill be going to school,” he
pointed out.
There were also
four members of the IBEW
(International Brotherhood
o f Electrical Workers) at
tending the meeting, who
said they are preparing
training help for the wind
farm jobs. “We have every
thing in place but we have
not had the job yet. We have
it ready to go,” said Eric
Hayes with the IBEW.
Joint county & city planning hearing
scheduled on Heppner land partition
The Morrow Coun
ty and City o f Heppner
planning commissions will
hold a combined meeting
next Tuesday, Feb. 28, to
hear a land partition re
quest on a 109-acre parcel
located near Rock Street in
Heppner.
Kyle Robinson of
Heppner is asking to divide
the parcel into three parcels.
A portion of the property is
located within the city lim
its of Heppner and a portion
is located within the urban
growth boundary. Some of
the property is also located
outside the urban growth
boundary, which requires
action by both the city and
county planning commis-
siohs.
Also on the agenda
is a request by Wade Smith
to site a dwelling at Penland
Lake subdivision.
Marriage Chamber Chatter
Heppner
Every em ployer should
Friday,
February
go
or send someone; your
Licenses 24: Guest speaker Patrick company
will benefit. Con
The Morrow Coun
ty Clerk has issued the fol
lowing marriage licenses:
F e b r u a r y 14:
-Eric Jam es H ausinger,
25, of Boardman and Ash
ley Paige Crowell, 28, of
Boardman.
IF YOU
HAVE-
Been on a trip
Entertained
guests
Celebrated a
birthday
Married your
secretary
Caught a big fish
Moved
Had a baby
Sold your cows
Had an operation
Bought a car
Painted your
house
Had company
Been married
Cut a new tooth
Died
Sold out
Been robbed
Been shot
H. M cGaughey, will be
speaking on “Excellence
in the W orkplace” from
1:30-4:30 p.m. at the Port
o f Morrow R iver Front
Center. Some o f the top
ics he will address will
be “Celebrating our best
employees and inspiring
the future; New attitudes to
ward work and customers;
Build new chemistry within
your team; Coping with
difficult customers; How
service can increase sales
(and lower thefts).” The
cost is $35 per person but
well worth the investment.
He has a wealth of informa
tion and demonstrates it us
ing humor and enthusiasm.
tact the Boardman Chamber
of Commerce to RSVP at
541 -481 -3014. You can also
pay at the door.
Please take a mo
m ent to check out the
C om m unity Health Im
provement Partnership of
Morrow County Website
at http://ww w .ohsu.edu/
MCCHP. There are some
good health information
resources, details about
the Biggest Winner Weight
Loss and Healthy Lifestyle
Program and a county-wide
calendar listing physical fit
ness opportunities. “Like”
or “share” them on Face-
book at “M.C.CHIP”
Valentine dinner,
hypnosis show success
On February 6, a
“Popcorn Extravaganza”
was held at Heppner El
ementary School.
Pam Norton and
Mary Ann Elguézabal held
the event to explain their
Title I and ELL programs
to more than 50 students
and parents. Norton gave
some details about the Title
I Funds at HES and how
they pay for a half time
Title I teacher, Bringing
Up Grades (BUG) Friday
School Program, Bench
mark Boost Friday Pro
gram , and the Summer
School Program.
Elguézabal shared
Morrow County School
District’s goal for students
to develop English com
petence for effective par
ticipation not only in school
but also in society.
After that, partici
pants decided it was enough
of the “boring stuff.” Those
taking part in the grand
event tasted six different
kinds o f popcorn, voted
on their favorite popcorn,
read a book about popcorn,
took an AR quiz, did some
popcorn math problems,
and heard some popcorn
jokes. The participants were
This group of helpers stayed lat to clean up and put tables
and chairs away after the popcorn extravaganza. Back (L-R):
Madison Combe, Jordan Sweeney, Isabel Cegueda and Kaden
Combe. Front (L-R): Manuel Cegueda and Mariah Combe.
-Contributed photo
given a popcorn recipe
book, including some secret
popcorn recipes.
“One and all en
joyed munching and learn
ing about popcorn,” said
Elguezabal. “A memorable
time was had by all, and
we decided that only corny
people didn’t attend.”
IMESD offers trauma training
InterMountain Ed
ucation Service District will
offer two upcoming courses
on dealing emotions and
trauma.
The first, sched
uled for Thursdays Feb. 23
through March 22, offers
training for those who live
and work with traumatized
children. Each training will
take place from 5-7 p.m.
at the IMESD at 2001 SW
Nye Ave. in Pendleton.
The trainings will
include a video from Dr.
Bruce Perry of the Child
Trauma Academy on the
Neurosequential Model of
Therapeutics, as well as ac
companying materials, and
then there will be a group
discussion.
Additional train
ing dates could be offered
following these scheduled
sessions, depending on de-
mand. Online registration
is encouraged by going to
the IMESD's Web site at
www.imesd.kl2.or.us and
clicking on Professional
Development.
This train in g is
open to school person
nel, social service agency
personnel, foster parents,
parents of traumatized chil
dren, and anyone interested
in using trauma-informed
practices with the children
in their lives who have ex
perienced trauma.
The second, an
“emotional first aid” course
from the Trauma Interven
tion Program of Portland/
Vancouver, Inc., seeks to
provide people with the
specific skills necessary to
come to the aid of friends,
neighbors, coworkers, cli
ents, family members and
strangers immediately fol
lowing a tragedy.
The seminar will
be held March 2 froçi 8:30
a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Tu-
cannon/Palouse Room at
Wildhorse Resort.
This training is in
tended for people who work
in education, social ser
vices, faith-based helping
community, public agencies
and public safety person
nel.
The training semi
nar is free, but lunch is not
provided. To register, please
visit the IMESD web site,
www.imesd.kl2.or.us, and
click on the “Professional
Development” tab.
For more informa
tion, please contact Ruth
Clark at 541-966-3127 or
e-mail ruth.clark@imesd.
kl2.or.us.
Three arrested on drug related
charges
M orrow C ounty
Sheriff’s Office deputies
were involved in the drug-
related arrests of three sus
pects in the Hermiston area
last week.
Rolando Estrada-
Guadarrama, Jessica Gray
and Daniel Walchli were
all arrested as part o f an
investigation the MCSO
conducted jointly with Blue
M ountain Enforcem ent
Narcotics Team (BENT) on
Gun Club Lane in Hermis
ton. BENT detectives and
Morrow County deputies
also seized methamphet-
amine from the property
and recovered a stolen
trailer.
Estrada-G uadar-
rama, 37, was arrested on
drug-related charges, war
rants, identity theft, resist
ing arrest and frequenting a
place where drugs are kept
or sold. Walchli, 37, and
Gray, 24, were arrested for
frequenting a place where
drugs are kept or sold. All
three were transported by
MCSO deputies and lodged
at Umatilla County Jail.
The investigation
is ongoing.
Snowpack remains below
average for Oregon
NRCS February water supply outlook released
Or done anything
Telephone, email,
come in, or in any
convenient way
inform the
Heppner Gazette-
Times
541 - 676-9228
editor@rapidserve.
net
Popcorn extravaganza held at
Heppner Elementary
Top: Michelle Stone, Joe Lindsay and Zech Hintz provide en-
tertaiment during a break in the evening's program during
the Valentine's Day dinner and comedy hypnosis show held
as a fund raster for Sober Grad Night 2012. Bottom: Love-for
lasagna—was in the air as atendees dug into dinner before the
show. -Photos by Megan Futter
O regon’s meager
snowpack has significantly
, improved as a result of the
mid-January storms, but
still remains below normal.
The latest information on
O regon’s snowpack and
streamflow forecasts can be
found in the Water Supply
Outlook Report released
by the USDA Natural Re
sources and Conservation
Service (NRCS).
Snowpack condi
tions have rebounded as a
result of heavy mountain
snowfall. In fact, the state
wide snowpack increased
from 38 to 71 percent of
normal in less than a week.
In addition to mountain
snow, precipitation across
most of the state was well
above normal for Janu
ary. However, despite this
boost, most of Oregon re
mains below average for
both snowpack and water
year precipitation.
“Though January
storms brought much need
ed moisture across the state,
we still have room for im
provement,” said Jon Lea,
the NRCS Oregon Snow
Survey team supervisor. “It
is still relatively early in the
season and a lot can change
between now and April
1, when peak snowpack
accumulation typically oc
curs.”
According to the
February 1 NRCS Water
Supply report, snowpack
conditions ranged from 52
percent of average in the
Lake County area to 87
percent o f average in the
Mt. Hood area. In Oregon,
snow measurements were
collected from 80 auto
mated snowpack telemetry
(SNOTEL) sites, 33 manu
ally measured snow courses
and 25 aerial markers.
Statewide, the wa
ter year precipitation in
creased from 62 percent
of average to 83 percent of
average. Despite this boost,
all basins remain below
normal for water year pre
cipitation as of February 1.
As a result, streamflows are
still expected to be below
normal for the summer of
2012. Summer streamflow
forecasts in the southern
and eastern basins remain
significantly lower than the
basins in the northern and
western parts of the state.
“State meteorolo
gists are calling for contin
ued weak to moderate La
Niña conditions this spring,
which often bring below
normal temperatures to Or
egon,” said Lea. “If model •
predictions are correct,
cool mountain temperatures
-See SNOWPACKJPAGE
TEN