Merchants offer up
many things Irish
Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Library
University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403
ette
VOL. 132
NO. 11 8 Pages
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
School board postpones
decision on school start
date; district urges
August 19 start
By April Sykes
The Morrow County
School Board M onday
night decided to postpone a
decision about the district’s
school student fall start
date until the April 8 board
meeting. Board member
Brian Kollman, Heppner,
requested that the district
receive additional input
from s ta ff and parents
concerning a proposed
early school start date of
August 19 before making
a decision. Kollman said
that parents in the south end
have told him that starting
back to school the day after
fair concludes can be a
hardship for the students.
Board member Barney
Lindsay, Lexington area,
concurred and also asked
for more input.
Superintendent Dirk
Dirksen recommended that
school begin at a record
early date, August 19, the
Monday after the Morrow
County Fair & Rodeo closes
in Heppner. The fair will be
August 15-18 this year.
D irksen encouraged
the board to adopt the early
start date so that students
have more instructional
time before the state OAKS
(O regon A ssessm ent o f
Knowledge and Skills) tests
in reading/literature and
mathematics occur and also
so that the entire semester
would end prior to the two-
week Christmas break.
H ep p n er P rin c ip a l
Matt Combe volunteered
that he hoped the decision
would be made with more
regard to education than
convenience.
Dirksen said that the
last opportunity, out o f
two, for schools to conduct
the OAKS tests is May
22, although he said the
district generally has the
tests wrapped up by May
16.
He said that the state
mandates 990 instructional
hours for high school
students and the district
schedules 990 hours for
elementary students as well.
Morrow County students
attend school 150 days, he
said.
The ad m in istra tio n
offered three options:
-O p tio n A, w h ich
received 65 votes from
administration and staff,
calls for an early start with
teachers beginning August
12, a week earlier than
Option B and two weeks
e a rlie r than O ption C;
students beginning August
19; the end o f the first
semester on December 19;
spring break from March
24-28; students ending May
29 and teachers ending
June 3.
-Option B, which came
in a close second with staff,
receiving 64 votes, calls for
a pre-Labor day start with
teachers beginning August
19; students beginning
August 26; the end o f the
first semester January 9;
spring break from March 24-
28; students ending June 4;
and teachers ending June 6.
-Option C, which used to be
the norm, but has not been
selected for some time, has
been taken off the table as
an option, receiving only 31
votes. Option C called for a
post-Labor Day start with
teachers beginning August
26, students beginning
September 3; the end of
the first semester January
16; spring break March 24-
28; students ending June 11;
and teachers ending June 13.
All three options
called for a tw o-w eek
C h ristm as b reak from
December 20-January 5,
with school starting back
on January 6.
In o th e r b u sin e ss,
th e b o ard : -a p p ro v e d
a reso lu tio n to accep t
unanticipated revenue as
follows: $500 to Heppner
Elementary for the Over
the Counter Prescription
Education Program for the
Time Out Reading program,
$420 for the Heppner music
program from the United
Methodist Church; $500 to
Windy River Elementary
School from the Northeast
O re g o n A re a H e a lth
Education Center to help
fund a trip to the John Day
Fossil Beds; $2,120 to WRE
and HES for fourth-sixth
grade students to attend a
half-day writing festival;
$2,500 from Monsanto to
Barney Lindsay, who in turn
named the Heppner FFA as
beneficiary; $3827.15 to
A.C. Houghton Elementary
School from Wal-Mart to
purchase iPads.
-approved a resolution
to accept no non-resident
s t u d e n t s , b a s e d on
enrollment projects, staffing
and available resources.
-approved staffing as
follows: (Heppner Schools
only listed) 2012-2013
p ro b atio n ary te ach ers-
Jeremy Rosenbalm,
-Continued on PAGE
EIGHT
Steppin’ out with 5K walk
Residents and visitors
in Heppner are invited to
start their day with a wee
bit o ’ fun by joining the
St. Patrick’s Day Walk &
5K Run on Saturday at
9:30 a.m. Friends Helping
Friends, which hosts the
event, will gather at 8:30
a.m. in the Heppner United
Methodist Church for a re
membrance social hour and
registration. The five-dollar
donations requested for the
walk/run will help to start
the funding of an antiquated
heating and cooling unit at
St. Patrick’s Senior Center
building. The committee is
encouraging all who have
not pre-registered to please
arrive early and sign-up.
Three lucky Leprechauns
will be awarded the donated
door prizes of Twenty-five
dollar gas cards from Devin
Oil and Hatt’s Fuel Stop and
a large pizza from Howe’s
About Pizza. Everyone is
encouraged to wear green
or pink for the festivities.
Remembrance Shamrocks
will be in place around town
on Friday and will remain
for everyone’s enjoyment
until Sunday.
}
By Patty Nance
It’s the biggest week
end of the year - four days
o f food, fun and festivities
when people come from all
over the Northwest to expe
rience a touch of the lepre
chaun - it’s a St. Patrick’s
Day celebration in Heppner.
It all begins with fabric on
Thursday morning when
one local business kicks
off its annual Leprechaun
Hat Hunt.
Each year, workers at
Quilter’s Roundup, located
on the corner o f Willow
and Main Sts., hide little
leprechaun hats throughout
the store. Find the hat - win
a prize. Cynthia Wenberg,
who works at the store, said
the event is very popular
and lots of fun. “We love all
things Irish,” she said. Wen
berg said the store carries
“Irish” fabric throughout
the year. “We always have
it in stock. Whenever we
see a St. Pat’s collection we
always try to bring it in”.
Just up the street, Pe
terson Jewelers offers many
beautiful jewelry and gift
ideas in the Irish tradition.
Randall and Marlene Peter
son have owned and operat
ed the store since 1959. His
father, John Oscar, opened
the store in 1928.
Across the street from
Quilter’s Roundup is one
of Heppner’s busiest stores.
Murray’s Drug Store is all
that and more. Sure you can
get a prescription filled, but
Local m erchants, C yn
thia Wenberg, Jodi Bris-
bois and R andall and
M arlene P eterson are
ready for Heppner's St.
Patrick’s Day festivities.
-Photos bv Pattv Nanace
you can also enjoy a latte or
lunch, buy a great bottle of
wine or good Irish whiskey,
a bouquet o f flowers or
cards and a whole lot more.
During St. Patrick’s Day
weekend, however, Murray
Drug may be best known
for their St. Patrick’s Day
sweatshirts. The sweatshirts
and ball caps have an all
new look this year and are
available in most sizes.
For a complete list o f events, see pages 5 and 6 in this week’s paper.
Coyotes on the prowl during
birthing season
By Patty Nance
Crocuses and daffodils
are peaking through the
ground, robins are returning
and the days are getting a
little longer. It’s springtime
in south Morrow County.
For many area ranchers,
springtime means rebirth
and renewal of their herds.
For one area rancher,
this year brought sorrow
along with the joy of calv
ing season at the family’s
ranch in Clark’s Canyon.
Bob Mahoney said last
week coyotes have been a
deadly problem this year,
especially for newborn
calves.
“Wolves aren’t the only
predators livestock grow
ers have to contend with,”
he said. “The coyote has
always been high on the
livestock producer’s list.”
He explained that dur
ing calving season, most
ranchers have a 24-hour-a-
day job.
“We work all day and
then must check the herd
at night. We check several
times each night to ensure
any calves born are up
and going and healthy,”
he said.
When things don’t look
right or when the nights are
really cold like they were
in December and January,
This calf, owned by local rancher Bob Mahoney, was attacked
by coyotes immediately after its birth, the rancher said. Coyotes
have always been a nemesis for area farmers and ranchers, and
this year proves no different. -Contributedphoto
Mahoney said the calves
are taken to a warm room
where they aré dried off.
“The days are long and
the nights are longer for
cattlemen during the winter
months," he said.
In January, Mahoney
found a calf that was bom
between midnight and 5:30
a.m. that had been attacked
by coyotes before it even
had a chance to stand up.
The calf was found close
to their home on Clark’s
Canyon Rd.
According to local trap
per Mark Angelí, coyotes
are numerous in that area.
He traps the animals in
the Social Ridge and Rhea
Creek areas, and said he has
trapped 25 this year in the
Social Ridge area alone.
Mahoney said the loss
o f a calf is bad enough but
the loss becomes greater
when you look at the whole
picture.
“Besides the calf dying,
the young cow went dry
and had to be sold. That’s a
$ 1,000 loss at a time when
every dollar counts,” he
said. “Not only did we lose
the cow and calf, we lost the
income from this cow pro
ducing calves for the next
seven or eight years.”
Mahoney is also a bit
philosophical about the
issue. “The coyotes have
been the ranchers' nemesis
for many years and will
probably always be so,”
he said.
Area pastors invited to submit
Easter messages
Easter is March 31. The Heppner Gazette-Times invites area pastors to sub
mit Easter messages to be published in the March 27 edition. The deadline is Friday,
March 22, at 5 p.m.
Messages can be dropped off at the Gazette office, emailed to editor@rapid-
serve.net, or faxed to 541 -676-9211.
V