Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 28, 2017
GRAND MARSHALS
-Continued from PAGE ONE has to clean up the school a lot of money…and have
reflects a history of giving
back to their community
without asking anything in
return.
Arlynda Gates has
spent her entire life in the
Ione community, but hus-
band Tom wasn’t far be-
hind, moving here when he
was in the seventh grade.
They met at Ione school and
married after high school
in 1978. While their lives
have had ups and downs,
they always chose to stay
in Ione and raise their chil-
dren here. Their daughter
Charissa graduated from
Ione in 2001 and is now a
registered nurse, while son
Billy graduated in 2004 and
got a degree in journalism,
and has worked at The Or-
egonian in Beaverton.
Throughout that time,
they’ve been heavily in-
volved in the community
they know and love, in
church, school and “just
about anything that crops
up,” Tom says.
“It’s the way we were
raised,” he explains. “To
help out not because you
have to but because you
want to. It’s nice to help
other people.”
Tom went to work for
the railroad pretty much
right out of high school.
After 11 years there, he
was laid off and worked for
area farms for a year before
starting at the Kinzua Mill.
He stayed there for 13 years
before the mill closed, and
then spent the next nine
years at the Walmart Distri-
bution Center in Hermiston,
some time at Collins Pine
tree farm, and is now work-
ing at the Ione school.
“I’ve kinda come full
circle,” he quips, while Ar-
lynda teases that, “Now he
he used to help mess up.”
In that time, he also
found the time and en-
ergy to serve on the Ione
Fire Department and coach
Little League for about 12
years.
After high school, Ar-
lynda spent a couple of
years at Blue Mountain
Community College before
going to work at Bristow’s
Market in Ione for 10 years,
followed by 20 years with
Dobbins Pest Control. She
now works for the Bank of
Eastern Oregon.
Throughout those busy
years, Arlynda also found
time to serve on the United
Church of Christ (now Ione
Community Church) coun-
cil, be a church trustee,
teach Sunday School, serve
as a founding member of
the Creative Care Preschool
board, serve on the Ione
school site council, and be
a part of the Ione Cardinal
Booster Club. She served as
Little League secretary and
helped coach along with
Tom, and is a member of
the Ione American Legion
Auxiliary. In 2007 she was
Heppner Chamber of Com-
merce’s Woman of the Year.
And, of course, most people
know her work keeping the
community informed over
the years through what
came to be known as “Ar-
lynda Mail” emails.
Both Tom and Arlynda
have helped for many years
with the Ione Education
Foundation dinner, most
recently cooking fish and
prime rib for the dinner af-
ter the Foundation decided
to stop having it profession-
ally catered.
“We found out we
could save the Foundation
food that was even better,”
says Tom.
As for the couple’s in-
volvement with the Ione
Fourth of July celebration,
“We’ve been doin’ some-
thing with it as long as I
can remember,” says Tom.
Their involvement officially
started back in 1982, when
Tom was on the Ione Fire
Department. They contin-
ued to be heavily involved
through Little League ac-
tivities, running many of
the kids’ games over the
years. Arlynda got pulled
onto the planning commit-
tee after a while, and also
did public relations for the
growing event, while Tom
donned his chef’s hat again
to cook for the annual poker
tournament. As daunting as
that list is, it may not even
be the whole story.
“I don’t remember a lot
of things I do, because I just
do it. It’s such a good com-
munity. Everybody helps
everybody in this commu-
nity,” Tom says.
“We have a lot of peo-
ple in this community who
do that,” adds Arlynda. “It’s
what keeps us going. It’s
what keeps us together as a
community.”
And that, it seems,
is what lies underneath
Tom and Arlynda Gates’s
work in their hometown
of Ione—giving back to
the community that has
given them so much over
the years.
“The community’s al-
ways here for us if we need
it. They’ve done a lot for
me over the years, and I
can’t repay it,” says Tom.
Arlynda nods in agreement.
“Pay it forward and
don’t look back,” she says.
Ione hosts ‘Gold Medal’
volleyball camp
Participants at the Gold Medal Squared volleyball camp June 19-22 at Ione Community School.
Gold Medal Squared sent two coaches, who provided instruction on fundamental volleyball
skills and strategies for game situations. Volleyball players in middle and high school from Ione,
Heppner and Irrigon participated in the four-day camp. The Ione Booster Club, Ione volleyball
and Richard Ladd’s “Slim’s Place” helped to make the camp possible, and Lisa Rietmann
provided a donation, as well as meals and snacks for girls during the week. -Contributed photo
IONE’S 4th of July
ation
Celebr 2017
No Dogs
Allowed in Park
*Bring your own lawn chairs or blanket. Grass amphitheater.
Saturday, July 1, 2017
Volleyball Tournament
Dinner & Poker Tournament
(plus BINGO)
Free Movie in the Park: Sing
Ione City Park
July 1st, 9 am
Legion Hall, Ione
Ione City Park
July 1st, 5 pm
July 1st, Dusk
Monday, July 3, 2017
Golf Tournament
Willow Creek Country Club, Heppner
July 3rd, 9 am
Tuesday, July 4, 2017
Fireman’s Breakfast
Ione Fire Hall
7:00 -10:00 am
Creative Care PreSchool 5k Walk/Run
($10 Registration)
Ione City Park
7 am Reg./Walk starts at 7:30 am
Ken Turner Memorial
Horseshoe Tournament
Horseshoe Pits
9:00 am
3-on-3 Basketball
Tournament
2nd Street, In Front of Legion Hall
10:00 am
Blues Cruise Car Show
Ione City Park
10:30 am
Vendors & Booths
Ione City Park
11:00 am
Fish Pond, Frog Jump, Bike Raffle
Fire Hall/Park
11:00 am
Altar Society Pie Sale
Ione Fire Hall (or Church Basement)
11:00 am
Parade (G rand M arshal : T oM & a rlynda G aTes )
Main Street
1:00 pm
Dunk Tank, Duck Races, Money Pile, Much More!
After Parade
Free Swimming
Ione Swimming Pool
1:30-3:30 pm
L uke B asiLe & F razer W amBeke a mphitheater s tage
2:00-3:30 pm
Bingo
Blues Cruise Awards
Talent Show
Ione Legion Hall
Ione City Park
Amphitheatre Stage
2:00-3:30 pm
3:00 pm
3:30 pm Reg./Show at 4 pm
C orey p eterson B and
a mphitheater s tage
4:30-6:00 pm
Game On! Video Game
Trailer & Laser Tag
Featured Entertainment
Ione City Park
Amphitheater Stage
5:00-8:00 pm
6:30 pm
F rog h oLLoW B and (6:30 pm )
C ountryFied (8:30 pm )
Boat Trip Auction/Raffle Drawings Amphitheatre Stage
Fireworks Display
Visible throughout Ione
All event, times and locations are subject to change.
www.CityOfIoneOregon.com/FourthOfJuly
Music funded in part by Morrow County Unified Recreation District
8:00 pm
Dusk
- THREE
Crowd explores ancient
technology in Ione
A sizable crowd attended the “Engineer It! Exploring Ancient Technologies” workshop put
on by U of O’s Museum of Natural & Cultural History as part of Ione’s summer reading
program. -Contributed photo
Thirty-five children
and numerous adults at-
tended the “Engineer It!
Exploring Ancient Tech-
nologies” workshop in Ione
June 20, presented by the
University of Oregon’s Mu-
seum of Natural & Cultural
History. The program was
held at the Ione Legion Hall
and sponsored by the Ione
Public Library as part of its
summer reading program.
The interactive pro-
gram gave the children a
chance to build a shelter,
design a boat and invent a
fishing tool, in addition to
handling replicas of Native
American innovations that
have been passed down
through generations. The
Ione Topic Club provided
snacks.
The reading program
will continue on Tuesdays
through July 25 in the Ione
Legion Hall; there will be
no program on July 4. Pre-
school children meet from
10-11 a.m.; kindergarten
through grade six meet
from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
FOURTH OF JULY
Free
movies in
Ione City
Park
IONE—Saturday eve-
nings throughout the sum-
mer, families are invited to
grab a blanket or lawn chair
and head to the Ione City
Park for an evening of free
cinema under the stars.
Thanks to a grant from
the Ione Community Ag-
ri-Business Organization
(ICABO), Ione will host
free movies in the park
this summer. The movies
will be projected onto a
16-foot, inflatable, outdoor
movie screen that is ideal
for a lawn audience of 250
people. The movies will
start around 9 p.m. or at
dark for an optimal viewing
experience. Concessions
may be available.
In the case of rain or
winds above 20 mph, the
event will not be held and
may be rescheduled for
another date. Moviegoers
are encouraged to bring
a chair, blanket or even
a blow-up air mattress to
relax and enjoy the show,
and to arrive with plenty of
time to park and get settled
prior to show time. Dogs on
leashes are allowed; owners
are asked to clean up after
them. Admission is free.
The park is located on
Main Street in Ione. There
are some open dates for
local school groups or not-
for-profit organizations to
sell concessions as a fund-
raiser. Contact Heidi Nel-
son at heidi@hen-online.
com for concession details.
Stay up to date on this
and other Ione events at
www.cityofioneoregon.
com.
The 2017 summer
movie line up is: July 1-
Sing (PG); July 8- Back
to the Future (PG); July
15- Harry Potter and the
Sorcerer’s Stone (PG); July
29- Lilo & Stitch (PG);
Aug. 5- Pocahontas (G);
and Aug. 12- Moana (G).
Ione’s Fourth of July celebration is back, with kick-off events
starting this Saturday, July 1. Events for the whole family are
planned in Ione on Tuesday, July 4, in celebration of Indepen-
dence Day. -File photo
-Continued from PAGE ONE Legion Hall from 2-3:30
the prize at the three-on-
three basketball tournament
on 2 nd Street in front of the
Legion Hall beginning at
10 a.m.
The Blues Cruise Car
Show will open in Ione
City Park at 10:30 a.m.,
with vendors and booths
opening for business at 11
a.m. in the park. The park
and fire hall are also the
site of lots of fun activities
for the kids, beginning at
11 a.m.—the fish pond,
frog jump and bike raffle all
cater to the younger crowd.
Folks can also satisfy their
sweet cravings at the Altar
Society pie sale beginning
at 11 a.m.
One of the highlights of
the day will be the Fourth of
July parade, beginning at 1
p.m. on Main Street and led
by grand marshals Tom and
Arlynda Gates.
Park activities begin
after the parade, including
the dunk tank, duck races,
money pile and much more.
The Ione swimming pool
will offer free swimming
from 1:30-3:30 p.m. Bingo
will take place at the Ione
p.m. At the same time, Luke
Basile and Frazer Wambeke
will be providing musical
entertainment on the am-
phitheater stage.
The Blues Cruise
awards will be presented at
3 p.m., followed by talent
show registration at 3:30
p.m. at the amphitheater
stage; the talent show be-
gins at 4 p.m. Following the
talent show, from 4:30 to 6
p.m., the Corey Peterson
Band will entertain from the
amphitheater stage.
New this year is the
Game On! video game
trailer and laser tag in Ione
City Park from 5-8 p.m.
The year’s featured
musical entertainment takes
to the amphitheater stage
at 6:30 p.m., starting with
FrogHollow and followed
by Countryfied at 8:30 p.m.
The boat trip auction and
raffle drawings will take
place on the main amphi-
theater stage at 8 p.m.
Finally, the day will
culminate with the annual
fireworks display at dusk,
visible throughout Ione.
News from the City of Ione
The City of Ione has
announced that the memo-
rial playground at Ione
City Park is up and ready
for summer. The Port of
Morrow set the poles and
finalized the structural engi-
neering side of the process,
BURNING
BAN
The burn ban for the
town of Lexington will be in effect starting
JUNE
30TH.
That means no burning whatsoever
No burning barrels
while many community
members assembled and
set up the structure during
a recent work day.
The city also has an-
nounced that it is working
with the Morrow County
Planning Department to
expand its Urban Growth
Boundary and annex the
Morrow County Grain
Growers property into the
city limits. The county
planning commission and
county commissioners will
attend public meetings at
the Ione American Legion
Hall on July 11 and Aug.
8 to take public comment.
In other business, the
city is working to complete
its budget for the next fis-
cal year, and held a budget
meeting June 13 at Ione
City Hall.