5<K
HEPP
Mustangs advance to
state semifinals
B essie W etzell N ew sp ap er Librarv
University of O regon
^
/E u g e n e , O R 97403
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ette
Mustang Senior Jordan Bailey avoids a tackle during the quarterfinals game in Heppner last
Saturday. The victorious Mustangs advance to the semifinals in Hillsboro this weekend. -Photo
by Sandy Matthews
VOL. 132
N O . 45
10 Pages
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
-See the fu ll story on PAGE SIX.
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Pioneer Memorial
Hospice to present
‘Lights of Hope’
As Cover Oregon crumbles,
health district works to help
consumers pick up the pieces
* W Y NO W FOR C O V E R A G E STARTING JA N U A R Y 1ST
The much-publicized Cover Oregon website remains at zero
enrollments since its Oct. 1 launch.
By Andrea Di Salvo
A month and a half after
the much-touted launch of
Cover Oregon, a healthcare
exchange website designed
to help Oregon residents
navigate the new healthcare
m a rk e tp la c e u n d e r
Obamacare, the website has
yet to enroll a single person.
C over
O re g o n
enrollment remains at zero
not because there have
been no ap p licatio n s—
there were around 25,000
applications as of Tuesday
according to Michael Cox
o f C over O regon— but
because the website itself
does not work.
C over O regon was
largely a result of Oregon
Governor John Kitzhaber’s
“grand vision” in response
to the Affordable Care Act
(A C A ), or O bam acare.
W h ile s ta te s had the
option to use the federal
g o v e r n m e n t’s h e a lth
insurance exchange website
or create their own, Oregon
lead ers d ete rm in e d to
create a “one-stop shop”
for residents to sign up for
insurance, whether they
qualify for M edicaid or
need commercial insurance.
M ost states opted for a
s e p a r a t e e n r o ll m e n t
process for people who
appeared to qualify for
Medicaid. Despite technical
difficulties, though, Oregon
officials have stuck to their
vision of a single healthcare
portal.
However, the Cover
O regon w ebsite, w hich
launched Oct. 1, has failed
to live up to expectations.
According to the Associated
Press, Cover Oregon’s risk
consultant firm, Maximus,
warned months ago that
the project was in danger of
missing the Oct. 1 deadline
to go live. Despite concerns.
the program launched, only
to grind to a halt. The online
system still doesn’t work,
and the exchange has yet
to enroll a single person in
health insurance.
Oct. 31, Cover Oregon
released a statement that
Oregonians who want to get
health insurance coverage
by Jan. 1,2014, will still be
able to get it through Cover
Oregon.
“We’re going to make
sure that every Oregonian
who wants coverage at the
beginning of the year gets
it,” said Kitzhaber. “There
have been ch allen g es.
There often are when new
ideas are put into action,
but we’re going to get this
done.”
For many Oregonians,
however, the situation has
become less a “want to”
than a “need to.” According
Those whose loved
ones have passed away in
the past year will have a
special way to remember
them this Christmas season,
thanks to Lights of Hope,
a new project by Pioneer
Memorial Home Health and
Hospice.
On Dec. 5 at 6 p.m.,
-See COVER OREGON
shortly
after H eppner’s
CR UMBLES/PA GE FOUR
tree-lighting ceremony on
Main Street, the hospice
will conduct a tree-lighting
ceremony of its own at St.
County school district hears of
school conference success
By April Sykes
The Morrow County
School D istrict heard a
presentation by Heppner
H igh S chool te a c h e rs
co ncerning the new ly-
im p lem en ted plan for
conferences for all HHS
freshmen and their parents
at their regular meeting held
Nov. 12 at Heppner High
School.
HHS head teacher Greg
Grant and language arts
teacher Jeannie C ollins
touted the success o f the
p la n , w h ich in c lu d e d
inform ation on diploma
requirements, state testing
for diplomas, including the
PSAT, SAT, SVAB and ACT
tests and how to prepare,
e d u c a tio n , co n ce rn in g
potential career interests
and direction, sophomore
year schedule planning,
the Eastern Promise plan,
whereby students can earn
college credits while still
in high school, and the best
communication practices
for student success.
Grant also informed
the board o f junior high
acad em ic co n fe re n c e s
and s e n io r tr a n s itio n
conferences, both scheduled
for Nov. 7.
The board also heard
details of the Ag students’
trip to the national FFA
c o n v e n tio n fro m Ag
teacher Beth Dickenson
and students Kenzie Gumb
and Kaelyn Lindsay.
The board received
the following report from
S u p e r in te n d e n t D irk
Dirksen:
-“the Morrow County
Education Foundation will
be providing some money
to the school district in the
foreseeable future” with
the tim ing and am ount
currently unknown. He
said the m oney w ould
“ g re a tly im p ro v e our
ability to address our lack
o f wireless infrastructure
district wide”;
- th e d i s t r i c t h a s
met with Western Land
Consulting, a subcontractor
working with American
Tower, which would like to
-See SCHOOL DISTRICT
MEETING/PAGE EIGHT
City considers ordinance allowing
liens for unpaid utility bills
By David Sykes
The city o f Heppner
is considering adopting an
ordinance allowing liens
to be placed on properties
with overdue w ater and
sewer bills, the Heppner
City Council was told at its
monthly meeting Monday
night. Other cities have such
an ordinance. If adopted it
would give the city a chance
to recover unpaid water and
sewer bills that sometimes
run more than $ 1,000, City
M anager Kim Cutsforth
told the council. Cutsforth
said it gives the city a tool
to collect bills when owners
sometimes leave town with
unpaid bills. If the home
has a lien on it, the unpaid
bills will be paid when the
property is sold. She said
the ordinance should also
help with collections even
when not enforced.
The council authorized
Cutsforth to meet with the
city attorney to work on the
new ordinance.
In o th e r b u s in e s s
the council was told that
the city’s street sweeper
is back in service after
having repairs done over
the last couple of months,
and is doing a good job. The
sweeper, which originally
cost the city $40,000, was
sent to Portland several
months ago for an estimated
$20,000 in repairs. The
repair company, however,
revised the repair estimate
once the sweeper was in
shop up to $32,000. That
amount was subsequently
negotiated down to $28,000
and the sweeper is now
back in Heppner “doing a
great job,” says Cutsforth.
The city uses the sweeper
about twice per month, she
told the council.
In o t h e r a c t i o n
th e c o u n c il to o k th e
recommendation of Barnett
& M oro PC, the c ity ’s
auditor, and changed the
way checks are signed at
city hall. In their annual
audit report the accounting
Firm recom m ended that
“the employee preparing
an d p r o d u c in g b a n k
Robanai Disque and Carmelo Di Salvo of Pioneer Memorial
Home Health and Hospice sit in the spot where the Lights of
Hope tree will stand as they discuss details of the upcoming
ceremony. -Photo by Mallorie Jones
checks should not also
be an authorized check
sipner or reconcile bank
accounts.” The accountant
found no e v id en ce o f
mismanagement, and made
the recommendation only to
strengthen the city’s internal
accounting controls.
After hearing the report
the council voted to remove
the city treasurer Judy
-See CITY COUNCIL DIS
CUSSES LIEN/PAGE FIVE
Patrick’s Senior Center in
Heppner.
While the tree in the
senior center lobby will
already be decorated as
usual with multi-colored
lights and a variety of
ornam ents, D irector of
Pioneer Memorial Home
Health and Hospice Robanai
Disque and Home Health
and H ospice C haplain
Carmelo Di Salvo say the
-See LIGHTS OF HOPE/
PAGE FIVE
County programs
among 30 to receive
Wildhorse grants
Pendleton, OR—The
W ildhorse Foundation,
a co m m u n ity b e n e fit
fund established by the
C onfederated Tribes o f
th e U m a tilla In d ia n
Reservation (CTUIR) to
support organizations in
northeastern Oregon and
southeastern Washington,
announced th e ir grant
awards for the third quarter
of 2013 last week.
A total of $ 176,476 was
awarded to 30 recipients,
bringing the total for 2013
to almost $630,000. Of that,
$17,000 was awarded to
Morrow County recipients,
with another $12,636 to
program s that work in
Morrow County.
Local organizations
fu n d e d in th e th ir d
q u a rte r for 2013 are:
Neighborhood Center o f
South Morrow County in
Heppner, to reconstruct
the old, d isin teg ratin g
cinder-block building on
site, $10,000; Irrigon Little
League in Irrigon, OR
for a youth sports field
com plex ex p an sio n to
include backstop, chain
link fe n c in g , d u g o u t,
benches and a scoreboard,
$7,000; Inland Northwest
Musicians, Hermiston, OR
for music education and
performance opportunities
for youth o f U m atilla,
M orrow and W allow a
C ounties, $3,000; and
SMART of Portland, OR
for Umatilla and Morrow
C ounty SM ART PreK
program expansion, $9,636.
The W i l d h o r s e
Foundation Board consider
grants that cover the areas of
public health, public safety,
education, the arts, historic
preservation, gam bling
addiction services, salmon
restoration, environmental
protection, and cultural
activities.
Hie quarterly deadlines
for applications to thé
foundation are Jan. 1, April
1, July 1 and Oct. 1.
For more information
on Wildhorse Foundation
guidelines or to receive
an application, visit www.
wildhorseresort.com or call
Tiah DeGrofft at 541-966-
1628.
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