TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, May 6, 2020
The Official Newspaper
of the City of Heppner and the County of Morrow
Heppner
GAZETTE-TIMES
U.S.P.S. 240-420
Morrow County’s Home-Owned Weekly Newspaper
SEARCH OLD COPIES OF THE HEPPNER GAZETTE-TIMES ON-LINE:
http://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/
Published weekly by Sykes Publishing and entered as periodical matter at the Post
Office at Heppner, Oregon under the Act of March 3, 1879. Periodical postage paid
at Heppner, Oregon. Office at 188 W. Willow Street. Telephone (541) 676-9228. Fax
(541) 676-9211. E-mail: editor@rapidserve.net or david@rapidserve.net. Web site:
www.heppner.net. Postmaster send address changes to the Heppner Gazette-Times,
P.O. Box 337, Heppner, Oregon 97836. Subscriptions: $31 in Morrow County; $25
senior rate (in Morrow County only; 65 years or older); $37 elsewhere; $31 student
subscriptions.
David Sykes ..............................................................................................Publisher
Bobbi Gordon................................................................................................ Editor
Giselle Moses.........................................................................................Advertising
All News and Advertising Deadline is Monday at 5 p.m.
For Advertising: advertising deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Cost for a display ad is $5.25 per
column inch. Cost for classified ad is 50¢ per word. Cost for Card of Thanks is $10 up to
100 words. Cost for a classified display ad is $6.05 per column inch.
For Public/Legal Notices: public/legal notices deadline is Monday at 5 p.m. Dates for pub-
lication must be specified. Affidavits must be required at the time of submission. Affidavits
require three weeks to process after last date of publication (a sooner return date must be
specified if required).
For Obituaries: Obituaries are published in the Heppner GT at no charge and are edited to
meet news guidelines. Families wishing to include information not included in the guidelines
or who wish to have the obituary written in a certain way must purchase advertising space
for the obituary.
For Letters to the Editor: Letters to the Editor MUST be signed by the author. The Heppner
GT will not publish unsigned letters. All letters MUST include the author’s address and phone
number for use by the GT office. The GT reserves the right to edit letters. The GT is not
responsible for accuracy of statements made in letters. Any letters expressing thanks will
be placed in the classifieds under “Card of Thanks” at a cost of $10.
~ Letters to the Editor ~
The Heppner Gazette Times will print all letters to the Editor with the following
criteria met: letters submitted to the newspaper will need to have the name
of the sender along with a legible signature. We are also requesting that you
provide your address and a phone number where you can be reached. The
address and phone number will only be used for verification and will not be
printed in the newspaper. Letters may not be libelous. The GT reserves the
right to edit. The GT is not responsible for accuracy of statements made in
letters. Any letters expressing thanks will be placed in the classifieds under
“Card of Thanks” at a cost of $10.
Elect Joel Peterson
To the editor:
As a former Morrow
County Commissioner, I
am asking that you give Joel
Peterson the opportunity to
bring Morrow County back
to a place where we can all
be proud to say is “home.”
Mr. Peterson has the hon-
esty, conviction of his val-
ues, intelligence, “common
sense,” leadership qualities
and integrity to do what he
thinks is best for Morrow
County, not what is best
for me/I which is what is
currently happening.
I had the opportunity
and privilege of working
with Joel Peterson on the
Morrow County Planning
Commission for several
years. Joel always came to
the meetings well prepared
and willing to listen to ad-
ditional information when
presented. He always asked
pertinent questions, so he
was fully informed before
making final decisions.
Joel has had the oppor-
tunity to serve on a variety
of boards and commissions,
so he understands that his
job as a county commis-
sioner is to set policies
and not to micromanage
every decision made by the
Board of Commissioners.
The county has employed
a county administrator,
whose responsibility is and
should be to follow up on
the commissioner’s direc-
tives. Currently, that does
not seem to be the way the
Board of Commissioners
are functioning. With Joel’s
maturity and management
skills, I believe that will
change.
Therefore, I am asking
you to join me by voting to
elect Joel Peterson.
Thank you,
Leann Rea
Glen Diehl lives in
Morrow County
ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE:
MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.
To the editor:
I have been hearing
that a few people are ques-
tioning my husband’s resi-
dency. As his wife, let me
assure you that Glen Diehl
The Morrow/Gilliam crop tour and
drill demo day and social, scheduled
for May 15th at Starvation Farms has
been postponed until September.
Details will be posted at a later date.
lives in Morrow County full
time and not with me at our
other residence in Pendle-
ton. I have been married
to Glen Diehl for nearly
26 years. Since he was
employed by the Morrow
County Sheriff’s Office,
he has been living on our
property south of Heppner.
Though not ideal, we
are luckily secure enough
in our relationship that we
are able to live apart. We
are extremely grateful for
the progress and today’s
technologies that allow us
to communicate on a daily
basis. We often joke about
how our relationship started
and we’ve gone full circle.
When I met Glen I lived in
Newport, OR and we com-
muted to see each other. I
am now commuting to see
him on the weekends. We
also paid MA Bell an entire
fortune for our telephone
calls, as long-distance calls
weren’t free in those days.
Seven years ago we
purchased the mountain
property that his father
purchased when Glen was
a teenager. All I have heard
from my husband is how
he wants to retire to our
family’s mountain property.
I still have a few years left
before I can retire, so we see
each other on the weekends.
It is my dream to retire and
live fulltime with my hus-
band in Morrow County. To
anyone who is faced with
circumstances that neces-
sitates you to live apart,
communication is key.
It’s too bad that oth-
ers have chosen to spread
innuendos and falsehoods
regarding his residency. If
you have any questions, I
urge you to just ask him.
My husband is a straight
shooter and would be happy
to answer any question you
may have.
It has been great to see
my husband as happy as
he has been since he was
appointed to the Justice of
the Peace position. This
position has been the pin-
nacle of his 35-year law
enforcement career.
I am excited to see my
husband continue to pur-
sue his service to the good
people of Morrow County.
I urge you to vote for my
husband as he holds this
position near and dear to
his heart.
Thank you,
Tracie Diehl
Heppner
Spiritually Speaking
Are you a shepherd?
Then lead, feed and
protect
By Fr. Thankachan Joseph SDB, St.
Patrick Church
Usually the fourth Sunday of Easter
is known as the Good Shepherd Sunday.
Good shepherd here reminds us of Jesus F r. T h a n k -
as the Good Shepherd. He gave us a good achan Joseph
example of leading, feeding and protect-
ing his flock that was entrusted to his care. We are all
called to be shepherds in the present time.
In the news, we have seen that human beings world-
wide have fallen prey to COVID-19 after long survival
tactics. I have closely followed the lock-down stories
of the area in India from which I hail. I have seen how
the religious communities, the priests, religious and the
consecrated persons turn out to be caring shepherds in
their own localities. The daring stories of altruistic service
and ultimate sacrifices have proven once again that the
virus can kill but cannot kill the compassion, empathy
and caring nature of mankind to others.
Who is a good shepherd? I was checking the dic-
tionary meaning of “shepherd.” It explains like this: “a
person who protects, guides, or watches over a person or
group of people.” In the Christian term, shepherd mostly
refers to pastor, a member of the clergy, etc. Shepherd is
not limited to clergy alone. All those who provide the care
and protection of someone else are generally doing shep-
herding. For example, parents, teachers and employers are
all shepherds. Shepherding is nothing but self-giving for
the sake of someone else, a sacrificial love, dedication,
commitment towards the flock that is in one’s care.
The fourth Sunday of Easter the Catholic Church
keeps as Good Shepherd Sunday as it focuses on the
characteristics / tasks of a good shepherd. St John in his
gospel explains it as mainly three tasks: 1) who guides
the sheep, 2) who feeds/provides for the sheep, and 3)
who protects the sheep from all dangers of life. Those
of you reading my article I am sure are in one way or
another a shepherd.
Guide the sheep: It is the duty of the shepherd to
show the sheep greener pastures to graze. How do you
lead the flock that is entrusted to your care? As we are
going through this lock-down period due to the threat
of COVID-19, we have lots of time to spend with our
families. Today the sheep under your care are looking for
good models. There should not be a disparity in our doing
and talking, for dichotomies are actually confusing. When
you spend time with the family together these days, try
to be a good example to your family members.
Feed the sheep: Psalm 23 begins with, “The Lord is
my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not
lack.” I am sure all of you are working hard and spend-
ing time to earn enough so that you can provide better
things to your family. Like the psalmist, “But He would
feed Israel with the best wheat. ‘I would satisfy you with
honey from the rock’” (81:16). Or again in prophet Isaiah
we see: “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd” (40:11).
Are you only worried about providing material things?
Do you pray together with your family? Do you provide
for the spiritual growth of your sheep which are under
your care? I know many parents will look for the best
school, best sports centers, and other matters pertaining
to this world. How many of you really spend time with
children to impart spiritual matters these days when you
have so much time to spend with the family? Have you
ever asked your kids to lay aside the electronic gadgets
and asked them to spend a little more time in prayer?
Protect the sheep: the third task of every shepherd is
to protect the sheep from all harms and dangers. Jesus
says in John (10: 11): “I am the good shepherd: the good
shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.” I am sure this
is true of every parent. Recently, I have seen a picture
on Facebook that struck me very much. A young deer
goes to drink water from a lake. As it is gulping water,
a crocodile comes to eat up the young one. Noticing the
danger, the mother deer comes across the younger one
and becomes the prey to the crocodile. A good example
for laying down one life for the sake of someone else. It
is the case of every parent.
The Good shepherd Sunday theme invites every one
of us to be like Jesus, who declared himself to be the
Good Shepherd who has come “that they may have life
and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). He is the Good
Shepherd who lays down his own life to protect his flock.
In those days, shepherds guarding their flock by night
would gather their flocks into an enclosure and sleep by
lying across the entrance so that before a wild beast would
attack the sheep it would have to attack the shepherd first.
We need to ask ourselves two important questions:
1) Am I a faithful member of God’s flock? Only those
sheep who follow the guidance of the shepherd could ever
hope to arrive at the green pastures or be safe from the
greedy wolves. 2) How could I participate more closely
in the work of shepherding God’s flock in my family?
On account of the infidelity of the shepherds to their
divine calling, God made this promise to his people that
He Himself was going to be their shepherd, their good
shepherd (Ezekiel 34:15-16). This promise was prophe-
sized by Ezekiel: “You have not strengthened the weak,
you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the
injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have
not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have
ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was
no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the
wild animals” (34: 3-4). Like the Good Shepherd, let’s
try to lead, feed and protect the sheep that are under our
care with dedication, commitment, and, above all, un-
conditional love of Jesus Christ. You can listen to me on
Sundays. through this live streaming link: https://video.
nest.com/live/IfhQzFC9Yl.
ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE:
MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.