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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 10, 2013)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 10,2013 CITY WATER TANK HUMAN TRAFFICKING ADVOCATE •Continuedfrom PAGE ONE of 635 bill payers currently pay late. She said if payers were given until the 15lh, it would not work with the city’s billing system, as the city starts reading meters on the 2\" of the month and then sends out bills on the 25lh. “If we move it to the 15lh it is too tight,” she said. She also made it clear that the city does not post any payments after 3 p.m., so people need to get their payments in before then on the due day or their pay ment would be considered late. She also said that she is working with the Bank of Eastern Oregon to set up an auto bill payment system so people can have their water and sewer bill automati cally withdrawn from their accounts. The council voted unanimously to raise the late fee to $5 and also left open the possibility this may increase later if it does not cause more prompt pay ment. “We can change this from five dollars to $7 or $7.50 later,” Mayor Joe Perry said. S h eriff re p o rt for the month of June Traffic- There were four traffic stops with no citations. There was one driving complaint. A deputy made contact with the driver and warned them. A person reported a possible intoxicated driver of a red scooter. A deputy located the driver at his residence. A juvenile was warned for not wearing a helmet. -Continuedfrom PAGE ONE post cards signed by Or resulting in the freeing of A diver from LiquiYision Technology Diving Services of Kla math Falls prepares to enter water tank #3 for cleaning and inspection. -Contributedphoto Code Enforcement- Fourteen animal calls were reported resulting in three citations. One cat was taken to Pet Rescue. Deputies worked on four locations regarding code enforcement issues. Theft Complaints- MCSO investigated two thefts. A person reported an attempted fraud via the telephone. Two gas drive offs were reported. The fuel was later paid for in one of the cases. A person reported an employee had their keys and would not return them. A deputy responded and the keys were returned. A firearm was reported stolen from a residence. All Other- One welfare check was completed. Deputies investigated two reports of restraining order violations There were four suspi cious person complaints. A person contacted a deputy about another per son following her around. A deputy located an open door on a residence. The homeowner was not home at the time. Deputies arrested an adult male for Disorderly Conduct and Criminal Mis chief. He was booked into Umatilla County Jail. Deputies dealt with two mental health patients, one who escaped from Lakev- iew Heights and the other who overdosed on medica tion. A person reported he has a restraining order against him and the other person keeps driving by his house yelling at him. A person reported be ing in a disturbance with their spouse. A deputy re sponded and resolved the issues. A fight was reported. A deputy was unable to locate those involved. MCSO assisted OSP with an investigation in Heppner MCSO responded to three alarm calls. MCSO responded to a fight call. A deputy was unable to locate any people fighting. Earn While You Learn Program At Community Bank we recognize the importance of education and would like to encourage our student-customers in their academic success. • • Pays $l directly into an open Youth Savings Account for every "A” (or top grade') that our l st through 12th grade students receive on their end-of-the-year report cards.2 Reports cards3 must be presented at the local Community Bank branch during the months of June or July of the same year of the dated report card. (Community BANK Local Money Working For Local People www.communitybanknet.com 1 Top grades include any grade of an "A" (A-, A, or A+). Bonus paid once per main school subject per grading period Top grades should be noted on report card and could include "S+" for above satisfactory, 'E" for excellent, or any other grade explained on report card to be the top grade for that grading system. $25 minimum balance required to open the account and obtain the Annual Percentage Yield and the bonus. The Annual Percentage Yield (APY) on a Youth Savings account is 0 05%, effective May 29, 2013 and is subject to change at any time Bonus will be deposited on the same business day that the report card is reviewed 2 Up to $50 annually per student 5 Report cards must be originals, no copies please Member fdic It's almost fair & rodeo time! The Heppner GT will be publishing its fair edition August 7th! J - SEVEN Get your fair tab ads and articles to megan by July 31! 541-676-9228 or megan@rapidserve net Ì Stillman, the sole Or egon representative, ad vocated for passage of the “Human Trafficking Pri oritization Act," which el evates the authority of the State Department's Traf ficking in Persons Office, a U.S. government agency dedicated to combating hu man trafficking. Stillman said U.S. citizens' interest in eradicating slavery has kept the issue high on the politi cal agenda in Washington for the past decade. In re cent years, the existence of proven anti-slavery models has equipped advocates with data and success sto ries to encourage members of Congress from across the political spectrum to support increased invest ment in anti-trafficking programs. “1 became aware of the global human trafficking problem and the U.S.’s role in both fighting and sup porting the trade while in high school. I was amazed at how large a problem it was and disgusted that such a crime exists in my country that claims to stand on val ues of freedom, liberty, and justice all while unwittingly supporting the trade in hu mans,” Stillman said. That led Stillman to become passionate about advocacy, which she said is “.. the calling and purpose” that drives her life. “As a Christian, 1 also believe that I cannot stand by while such injustice exists and affects the most vulnerable in our world. While I was in high school and delivering an oratory on present-day slavery, I was amazed at how often the information I presented was greeted by looks of sheer unbelief and even doubt. 1 knew then that I needed to take part in educating the public in Oregon on the is sue,” she said. Stillman said commu nity support in events like “reverse trick-or-treating” and in helping her get to the University of Puget Sound, as well as the continued interest in her work, tells her that advocacy for vic tims of human trafficking is something residents of rural Eastern Oregon care about. While in D.C., she also was able to give the congressional delegation egon residents. “That kind of informa tion tells our legislatures that it matters to us and sup plies me all the more with encouragement to pursue my work. My belief in the work of organizations like 1JM and my desire to do all 1 can to advocate for survivors of this crime has motivated me in a number of my choices, including where I attend college and w hat I plan to do after grad uation next year. More than likely my senior thesis will be on human trafficking following a research paper that I wrote for school this past year. 1 hope at some point to be able to return to Oregon and Lexington periodically to continue the job of educating the public about human trafficking,” said Stillman. All government agen cies have faced budget cuts in the face of sequestration, making citizen support for U.S. government programs to combat slavery more important than ever, Still man said. “ When it comes to fighting human trafficking, a relatively small amount of money goes an extremely long way,” said Holly Bur- khalter, vice president of government relations at 1JM. “The State Depart ment’s Trafficking in Per sons office makes grants that save lives and build international capacity to end human trafficking. The office should be made a full-fledged State Depart ment Bureau, in order to best represent the inter ests of the most vulnerable people in the world—slaves and trafficking victims.” Organizations like IJM say they are seeing signifi cant improvements in pub lic justice systems protect ing the poor and preventing slavery, even over short periods of time. In just four years of collaboration with local authorities in Cebu, the Philippines, IJM has seen the number of minors available in the commercial sex trade reduced by 79 percent. Private investment by Google.org for IJM’s anti-slavery work in India has enabled a dramatic expansion of the organiza tion’s work there from 9 to 50 states in the country, nearly 1,000 bonded labors in just 10 months. “The trafficking of hu mans is an issue that will require dedicated individu als to combat its prevalence both abroad and the issue which exists domestically in the U.S., including a large, growing problem in Oregon. Eradicating hu man trafficking means that there is still much more work to be done, but it is a task worthy o f the U.S. government’s support and the attention of every freedom-loving American. For that reason, I chose to come show my support at our nation’s capitol for H.R. 2283 (the number of the bill mentioned above),” said Stillman. Stillman organized a slave-free reverse trick-or- treat after writing an oratory for her school’s speech and debate team, and became an active member of IJM’s citizen support team while still in high school. Apart from attending IJM’s advo cacy day, during her time at Puget Sound, Stillman has helped put on Freeset events on campus, an organization that helps support women who have been freed from sex slavery in India. She is currently working on starting an advocacy or ganization in Tacoma that will connect her campus to the Seattle/Tacoma anti trafficking movement. This summer, Stillman said she will be arranging trafficking awareness events, meeting again with both Oregon and Washington congres sional delegations, attend ing an IJM student leaders conference in Atlanta, GA, and working with Tacoma organizations to help de velop her advocacy orga nization, all while working full time and participating in an internship at the Ta coma Rescue Mission, an organization that focuses on providing effective help to survivors of homelessness who are trying to get back on their feet. In the past year alone, IJM said it has brought rescue to more than 2,400 victims o f violence and injustice. For more information about International Justice Mission, visit www.ijm. org. ODF tightens fire prevention restrictions Rapidly increasing wildfire danger has prompt ed Oregon Department of Forestry to tighten public fire prevention restrictions in its Central Oregon Dis trict effective Thursday, July 4. These restrictions apply to private and non- federal public forestlands in 12 counties including Morrow County. Assistant District For ester Tracy Wrolson said the current hot weather is drying vegetation quickly and, as a result, fire danger levels are increasing dra matically. “ Last w eek’s rains helped delay the onset of se vere burning conditions, but this heat wave has erased those benefits,” Wrolson said. “Fine fuels like grass and brush will easily ignite now. People need to be ex tra careful when recreating or working in the forests.” The following activi ties are restricted or pro hibited: -Smoking is prohib ited while traveling, except in vehicles on improved roads. -Open fires are prohib ited, including campfires, charcoal fires, cooking fires and warming fires, except in designated areas. Por table cooking stoves using liquefied or bottled fuels are allowed. Open fires are al lowed if in compliance with a valid burning permit. -Chainsaw use is pro hibited between the hours of 1 -8 p.m. Chainsaw use is permitted at all other hours if the follow ing equipment is present with each operat ing saw: one ax, one shovel and one eight-ounce or larg er fire extinguisher. Also, a fire watch is required at least one hour following the use of each saw. -Cutting, grinding and welding of metal are pro hibited between the hours of 1-8 p.m. All other times the area is to be cleared of flammable vegetation and the following fire equip ment is required: one ax, one shovel and one 2-Vi pound or larger fire extin guisher in good working order. -Use of motor vehicles, including motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles, is pro hibited, except on improved roads and except for vehicle use by a landowner and em ployees on their own land while conducting activities associated with their liveli hood. -Possession of the fol lowing firefighting equip ment is required while traveling in a motorized vehicle, except on federal and state highways, county roads and driveways: one shovel and one gallon of water or one 2-'A pound or larger fire extinguisher, except all-terrain vehicles and motorcycles, which must be equipped with an approved spark arrestor in good working condition. -Mowing of dried grass with power driven equip ment is prohibited between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. except for commercial culture and harvest of crops. -Use of fireworks is prohibited. -The release of sky lan terns is prohibited. -The discharging of exploding targets or tracer ammunition is prohibited. • Blasting is prohib ited. -Any electric fence controller in use shall be: 1) Listed be a nationally recognized testing labo ratory or certified by the Department of Consumer and Business Services; and 2) Operated in compliance with m anufacturer's in structions.
