Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, May 6, 2020 -- THREE A View from the Hill Representative Greg Ione Community By Doris Brosnan “Staying in and stay- ing safe” does equate with boredom for Willow Creek Terrace residents. Thanks to the ability of the staff to adapt to changes the coronavirus has demand- ed, and to their creativity, only minor modifications have become necessary in life on the hill. The weekly volunteers who keep activ- ities interesting are greatly missed by the residents, but the staff have watched and learned and have continued those activities (or close facsimiles). And “Tricky Tuesday” has an added ac- tivity selected by staff. This week is National Walk Week, so everyone is encouraged to add walking to their daily routine, if they weren’t already cruising the halls or the sidewalk as part of their exercise regimen. Yesterday, since the Kentucky Derby is usually run on the first Saturday in May, the residents held their “horse race,” with accom- panying enthusiasm. This large board game is played with dice and much luck. The décor around the hors- ey event featured Cinco de Mayo, as did the luncheon menu. The PGA Champion- ship will begin on the 14 th , sans spectators, and the residents will use that as their cue to sign in for their putting competition on the 15 th . This tradition at the Terrace has been long but nowhere close to the 102 nd year for the PGA. When weather permits, the staff and volunteer res- idents will be adding their sprouted flowering plants and the small plants from the FFA, Green Feed and Market Fresh to the flower beds. With good weather, they can count on some- thing to do on National Wa- ter-a-Plant Day on the 30 th . If weather cooperates on the 25 th , everyone will be invited to participate in outdoor games. The neigh- boring area will be decorat- ed with a myriad of colors, as that is Memorial Day, so residents will be dis- cussing friends and family, especially “brothers,” at the morning discussion session. Other discussions through the month will focus on Coca Cola, intro- duced in 1886, on the 8 th ; nylon stockings (remember those?) on their 80 th anni- versary on the 15 th ; Mount St. Helens’ eruption of 1980 on the 18 th ; blue jeans, introduced in 1873, on the 20 th (remember when they were strictly working or casual clothing?); “Lucky Pennies” on the 23 rd (does anyone stop to pick up a discarded penny today?). Mother’s Day falls on the 10 th this year, and in preparation for that, some staff will volunteer hours on the 9 th to try their hands at styling hairdos for residents who are certainly looking forward to the return of the stylists who usually come to the salon. High Tea will be a feature on the 28 th , so stylish coiffures might again be called for. A big shout-out of ap- preciation is being sounded for Dr. Hambleton and for Danielle Mateleska, both of whom are providing house calls when needed. Other medical appointments are being handled via tele- communications; another adaptation accomplished by providers. Also, church services are available to interested residents and on Sundays, family chats can be ar- ranged via the Zoom pro- gram. Family members and friends who wish to win- dow-visit with residents, are encouraged to do so, and the Terrace offers fold- ing chairs, available near the front door, for the com- fort of the visitors who want to use them. The Frenches might re- ceive more visits than usual later this month when they celebrate their birthdays. Raymond’s will be on the 18 th and Norma’s on the 29 th . So, “happy birthday” will ring out twice this month, and the community on the hill will enjoy discussing and discussing again the values of birthdays as they view the special birthday lunches the guests of honor have chosen. Chamber Chatter Area residents are re- minded to complete their 2020 Census information. This information is kept confidential but makes a difference in the funding that Morrow County re- ceives to help the county, communities and individ- uals. You can do it online at www.2020census.gov and it only takes about five minutes. Appointments are available for the HHS Ag Plant Sale at the green- house. Due to Covid-19, many things have changed, including how the plant sale is done and what it looks like. People are allowed to make appointments for a 15-minute window at the greenhouse. Those in- terested can email Mrs. Dickenson at dickene@ morrow.k12.or.us if they would like a time on Thurs- day, April 30 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Due to restric- tions, only one person is allowed in the greenhouse at a time, but curbside pick- up is available. The group asks that purchasers have a check or exact change, since they are not able to provide change. There are not as many plants this year but beautiful flowers, baskets and vegetables are available. Until further notice the Morrow County Transfer Stations will be open for free dumping on Saturdays Smith receives endorsement from the NFIB The National Federa- tion of Independent Busi- ness has officially endorsed Representative Greg Smith (R-Heppner) for State Rep- resentative of District 57. The NFIB is the nation’s leading small business ad- vocacy organization. In Oregon, thousands of NFIB member-businesses employ more than 60,000 Orego- nians. Small businesses represent an overwhelming majority of the total busi- nesses in Oregon and em- ploy over half of the state’s private sector workforce. Representative Smith has earned this endorse- ment by demonstrating his effort to fight for small businesses in the capitol. These efforts include votes on small business issues that show he really under- stands the importance of small business to our state’s economy. Preserving the ranching heritage one scholarship at a time Pendleton Cattle Bar- ons Weekend scholarship program was thrown in to question amidst the COVID-19 dilemma and cancelation of this year’s May event. However, the ranching heritage and west- ern lifestyle of family sup- port stepped forward to save the day. Seven schol- arships are being awarded for this year. These scholarships are made possible with the help of Cattle Barons partner for this year the American Na- tional CattleWomen whose members made specific donations, even with the combined events of their Region V conference and Cattle Barons cancelled, to support the young adults receiving scholarships. Arm in arm with the Cattlewomen were spon- sors that stepped forward in an amazing way to also support the scholarship ef- fort. “We cannot thank ev- eryone involved enough,” stated Andy VanderPlaat, President of Cattle Barons “It just goes to show you that those in the ranching world are one of kind in from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (or until full) and closed on Sunday. Take advantage of this great opportunity to clean up around your house, yard and dispose of it free. For additional information, please contact Morrow County Public Works, Monday-Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 541-989-9500. The Heppner Fire De- partment is offering drive by birthdays. With the inability to have the normal birthday celebrations for children, the local fire department is offering fire truck drive-by birthday wishes for local kids. Contact Eric Chick at 541-701-4910 for more information or to schedule this special “gift” from the fire department. heart and kindness.” Van- derPlaat went on to note that title sponsor and na- tionally recognized Protect the Harvest along with the more local folks Northwest Farm Credit Services Pend- leton office, Pendleton San- itary Services, JTI of Walla Walla, WA, and Lucky Acres Fencing of Lewiston, ID stepped forward to keep the scholarships alive in this unusual year. Totaling $10,000 in scholarships, six young adults studying in the field of agriculture will receive the financial support. Lead- ing the way for both the award of the Protect the Harvest and one of the Pendleton Cattle Barons Weekend scholarships was Taylor Ann Skramstad. Taylor of Milton-Freewater, OR is finishing her Agri- culture Science degree at Eastern Oregon University and has set her sights on furthering her education in environmental, water and agricultural law. Receiving Cattle Bar- ons scholarships were Cas- sie Castle of Island City, OR, an Oregon State Uni- versity student in Agricul- ture Science and Natural Resources and a dedicated and valued volunteer to Cattle Barons. Along with Cassie in receiving Cat- tle Barons Scholarships are Cierra Hollevoet of Pendleton, Blue Mountain Community College and another Cattle Barons vol- unteer, Audrey Harwood of Payette, ID studying at Treasure Valley Communi- ty College; Morgan Orem of Heppner, OR attending Oregon State Universi- ty; and Hunter Blake of Pendleton, OR attending Blue Mountain Community College. Pendleton Cattle Bar- ons Weekend is already Church offers online worship Ione Community Church is now providing online resources for those looking for worship and study during the Covid-19 pandemic. On Saturday, March 14, the church’s council met via Zoom (an online method for groups to meet virtually with au- dio and video access) to make decisions about how the congregation would respond to this crisis. It was decided at that time to close the doors for two weeks and to provide worship and pro- grams for the congregation and wider community via the internet. The very next day, Sunday, March 15, Pastor Jeff Clabaugh pro- vided the Sunday morning adult study, “The Wired Word,” via Zoom and his sermon on the church’s Facebook page. Since that time the council has met an addi- tional two times via Zoom, continuing to tend to the business of the church and to search for ways to serve the people of the Ione Com- munity. At the second meet- ing it was agreed that the building should remain closed until further notice. Members of the council called everyone on the mailing list in the first two weeks to check on them, to let them know of decisions made and of the online worship availability. T h e Tr u s t e e s , t h e Christian Education Board, the Mission and Outreach Group, the Diaconate and the Hospitality Group have all met via Zoom. The trust- ees have had the church deep cleaned so it will be ready for use when that time comes. The Christian Educa- tion Board has remained in contact with the children and delivered an Easter gift and other resources to their homes. Pastor Jeff Clabaugh continues to pro- vide morning worship on the church’s Facebook page with music being provid- ed by Yvonne Morter and Anna Ross. Readings have been given by Emma Riet- mann. This week a virtual (Zoom) “coffee hour” was held on Wednesday morn- ing at 7 a.m. led by Gus Peterson as an opportunity to just visit and share life’s ups and downs with one another. Pastor Jeff Clabaugh is available by phone or text at 971-517-0548 for counseling, support and encouragement. Feel free to call him with any needs you may have. He may also be reached at the church phone, 541-422-7530. The Ione Community Church would like to re- mind everyone that there is nowhere that God is not with you. You can depend on Him in these strange times. CONDEMNATION -Continued from PAGE ONE attend the public comment proceeding will not make formal presentations and the commissioners will not take questions. Members of the UEC and the commis- sion staff will be available to answer questions from the public during the public comment hearing. Com- ments made during the pub- lic comment hearing will be recorded and transcribed. The transcript will become part of the public comment record in the proceeding.” The PUC website says that anyone not able to DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5PM making plans for next year. “We are very thankful,” said VanderPlaat, “that we can still support these great young adults in their efforts and we are looking forward to next year to do it again with renewed excitement of an actual event.” More information about the Pendleton Cattle Baron’s Weekend can be found at https://www.cat- tlebarons.net/. hearing may mail writ- ten comments to the com- mission at: Attn.: PCN 4, Administrative Hearings Division, Public Utility Commission of Oregon, PO Box 1088, Salem, OR 97308-1088; via e-mail to puc.publiccomments@ state.or.us; or by telephone to: Consumer Services Di- vision 503- 378-6600 or 1-800-522-2404. The UEC is petitioning the PUC for the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity because in Or- egon developers need the certificate to construct an overhead transmission line which will require the con- demnation of land or an in- terest in the condemnation of land. The certificate lays out a detailed description of the project and the purpose of the proposed transmission line, the estimated cost, the route to be followed, the availability of alternate routes, a description of other transmission lines connecting the same areas, and other information. This information is available for the public to view on the PUC website. We’re Here To Help! In these trying times, if you feel at risk, remember that we offer delivery and mail service. Our goal is to help you stay healthy. Call us! 217 North Main St., Heppner, OR Phone 676-9158 Floral 676-9426 murraysdrug.com www.murraysdrug.com Due to the State guidelines regarding the Coronavirus outbreak, All Wheatland Insurance Offices will be closed to the public. Employees will be working in a secure location in order to continue taking care of business. Please call 541-422-7410 to talk with an agent regarding any of your insurance questions. You will be able to make premium payments during this time by calling 541-422-7410. Payments can be made by credit card or debit card. For cash payment options, please call the 541-422-7410 number to make arrangements. We all are praying this situation will be over very soon. Please be safe.