Cutsforth back as interim
city manager
HEPPNER
G T
50¢
azette
imes
VOL. 138
NO. 5 8 Pages
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Has 3-month agreement during search
By David Sykes
Former Heppner city
manager Kim Cutsforth has
been hired to serve as in-
terim manager. Mayor Jim
Kindle appointed Cutsforth
last week to fill the position
while the council takes ap-
plications for a permanent
manager.
Cutsforth previously
served in the position from
Sept. 2012 to March 2017.
Her contract is for three
months. “I am grateful that
I am able to help the city
out during this transition. I
enjoyed my previous time
there. I appreciate the city
workers and I understand
the importance of keeping
our current projects on
track,” Cutsforth told the
Gazette-Times.
Under the agreement,
Cutsforth will work a max-
imum of 20 hours per week
Monday through Thursday
for a salary of $25.96 per
hour. Additional hours may
be added with the approval
of the mayor. The agree-
ment terminates March 15,
2019.
On January 11 the
council fired former man-
ager Edie Ball with a 6-1
vote, citing her mishandling
of the city’s budget process.
Ball had worked less than
two years for the city.
In other staffing issues
the city is in the process of
hiring a new treasurer. The
Kim Cutsforth back as city
manager.
Neighborhood Watch program
divides the town
11 th annual Remembrance
Walk will be held again this
St. Patrick’s Day
A Neighborhood Watch
program has been start-
ed in Heppner, with the
town divided into two sec-
tions. Center Street is the
line dividing the north and
south districts. Residents
are urged to first call the
Morrow County Sheriff’s
Office at 541-767-5317 if
there is suspicious activity
on their street
There are neighborhood
watch captains assigned to
each district who should be
called after calling MCSO.
Captains and their phone
numbers in the north district
are Ron Brisbois, 541-561-
6831; Kay Proctor, 541-
676-9827; Janet Greenup,
541-561-6768; Doris Bros-
nan, 541-676-5382 and Glo
Lesperance, 541-676-9810.
South district captains are
Ray DeLoe, 831-578-6451;
Jason Patterson, 541-429-
0580; Dana Wilson, 970-
620-6588; John Edmund-
son, 541-676-5177 and
Alan Scott, 541-676-5151.
Calling one of the captains
will let others know what
to look for.
Neighborhood watch
will be working closely
with the sheriff’s office
and the city hall. They are
looking into getting funding
to install security cameras
throughout the town to help
curb vandalism and other
North District
Participants of the 2016 St. Patrick’s Day Remembrance Walk gather in front of the Methodist
Church.
South District
crimes. The goal is to get
citizens involved to help
keep the town a safe place
to live.
Residents who have a
security camera that faces
a street are asked to contact
Glo Lesperance at 541-676-
9810 or email heratglore-
newright@hotmail.com.
Information will remain
anonymous and will only
be shared with the sheriff’s
office. Anyone interested
in joining the group should
also contact Lesperance.
Men stuck in snow rescued
Phillip Mullins and
Kim Martz, Heppner, con-
tacted the Morrow County
Sheriff’s Office about 8
p.m. on Jan. 24 to report
they were stuck in the snow
approximately six or seven
miles up Shaw Grade Rd
and were unable to free the
vehicle or walk to safety.
Due to limited cell phone
coverage, dispatch received
very little information from
Mullins. Dispatch contact-
ed family members and
found they might have been
going to the lookout at
Chicken Springs.
current treasurer has turned
in her two-week notice.
Morrow County Emer-
gency Management was
activated and MCSO per-
sonnel started organizing a
search and rescue mission.
Sergeant Nathan Braun
and Sergeant Todd Siex
began searching on snow
machines.
According to the press
release, Mullins was able
to get through to dispatch
again around 10:30 p.m.
reporting it was bad all the
way. Their rear differential
was plowing snow and they
didn’t realize it. They ad-
vised they didn’t have any
food and ran out of water,
but were able to stay warm
in the pickup.
Near midnight, Braun
and Siex located the pickup
and the two men, but were
unable to bring them out
on the snow machines due
to waist deep snow and
road conditions making it
unsafe. Heppner resident
Thomas Wolff respond-
ed with his tracked snow
UTV to assist in the rescue,
bringing Mullins and Martz
to safety around 3 a.m.
Heppner man arrested on
multiple charges
JD Easley, 35, of
Heppner, was arrested
Jan. 24 by the Mor-
row County Sheriff’s
Office and lodged at
the Umatilla County
JD Easley
Jail on charges of un-
lawful possession
of meth, DUII-alco-
hol, reckless driv-
ing and harassment
following an inves-
tigation.
According to
information provided by the
sheriff’s office, all charges
against Easley were consid-
ered misdemeanor charges
and total bail was set at
$20,000.
Arbuckle club draws skiers
Seven skiers participat-
ed in the Arbuckle Nordic
Club’s trip Saturday, Jan.
26. The group parked at the
junction of Highway 207
and Colvin Creek Road and
skied west across the head-
waters of the Porter Creek
drainage. They returned by
way of FS Road 099.
The group plans to con-
tinue skiing on Saturdays
through the first Saturday Pictured (L-R): Steve and Luanne Brownfield, Dan VanLiew,
Tripp and Jacob Finch and Dave and Bryce Fowler.
in March.
By David Sykes
The Friends Helping
Friends Remembrance
Walk and Run will once
again be held during this
year’s St. Patrick’s Day
Celebration March 16 in
Heppner.
Started in 2009 to hon-
or Donna Schonbachler
who died of cancer in 2008,
the run has grown every
year. Proceeds from the
event are given back to the
community and again this
year the event will take spe-
cial notice of Asher Schon-
bachler, Donna’s grandson
who has come down with
a life-threatening disease.
As part of the walk and
run over 350 shamrocks
will be adorned with the
names of loved ones who
participants have lost over
the years. The shamrocks
are placed around town on
the walk route and a large
number of them on the wall
of Two Old Hags Pizza on
Court Street.
One of the main orga-
nizers and the driver behind
the walk is Susie Hisler,
whose family has felt loss
themselves when their
15-year-old son was killed
in a ranching accident. But
Hisler has many others
helping her. Original com-
mittee members were His-
ler, Patty Matheny, Peggy
Fishburn, Kathi Dickenson
and Janelle Ellis. Ellis, an
active runner herself, han-
dles the 5K run part of the
event. Additional commit-
tee members now include
Sandy Matthews, Shelly
McCabe, Mary Haguewood
and Kirsten Harrison.
Others who have helped
with the walk over the years
include Barb Watkins, Kel-
ly Boyer, Mary Ann El-
guezabal and Jan Stroeber.
Petra Payne organizes Hep-
pner High School student
leaders to assist at the walk.
Many individuals help put
up and take down the 350
memorial shamrocks along
the walking route.
The tradition is that
participants walk or run in
the name of a loved one who
has died, honoring them
with a personalized brightly
decorated shamrock created
by Hisler and Haguewood.
The shamrocks have the
names, photos and an an-
ecdote line of the loved one
being honored. Cost to be a
participant is $5 for adults
with accompanied children
free. Dogs are welcome on
a leash. Additional money
donations are also accepted.
In the past Pioneer
Memorial Hospital Home
Health and Hospice, where
Donna worked, has received
funds from the walk. The
local St. Patrick’s Senior
center received funds for
a new roof. Willow Creek
Terrace assisted living, St
Patrick’s Day Celebration
Committee, Heppner Day
Care, Heppner Lady Elks
and South Morrow County
Fire and Ambulance have
all been helped with pro-
ceeds from the event.
Participants are en-
couraged to preregister so
shamrocks can be made for
their loved ones. To reg-
ister for the walk, contact
Susan Hisler at 541-676-
5878 or Kathi Dickenson at
kathidickenson@hotmail.
com. For the 5k run contact
Janelle Ellis at origanelle@
hotmail.com. Make checks
payable to Friends Helping
Friends (FHF) and mail
them to Friends Helping
Friends, c/o Kathi Dicken-
son, PO Box 566 Heppner,
OR 97836. Participants are
encouraged to wear pink or
green on the day of the walk.
The walk begins Saturday,
March 16 at 9:30 a.m. at the
Methodist Church. Friends
Helping Friends will gather
at 8:30 a.m. at the church
for a remembrance social
hour and also registration
for the walk can be done at
that time.
This year’s sponsors
are: Community Bank,
Community Counseling
Solutions, Windwave and
Bucknums. For those who
would just like to make
donations, those checks
can be mailed to Friends
Helping Friends “Our Pot
of Gold” c/o Kathi Dicken-
son, PO Box 566, Heppner,
OR 97836.
Seniors to be auctioned
A fundraiser for Project
Graduation for 2019, the
drug and alcohol free grad-
uation party, will be held at
the BEO wrestling tourna-
ment on Saturday, Feb. 2
which begins at 10 a.m.
Two senior wrestlers
who are participating in the
“Watch me Work” auction
will be auctioned off to the
highest bidders in between
matches at the tournament.
Bidders will have the option
to place bids and help sup-
port the drug and alcohol
free night for the class of
2019.
The senior athletes
have chosen to participate
in this fundraiser in hopes
of drawing more support
for the wrestling program,
honoring senior wrestlers
and also raise funds for
their class.