Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 8, 2020 -- THREE
Community
Counseling to
provide Frontline
Program
In an effort to provide
support during the cur-
rent COVID pandemic,
Community Counseling
Solutions has announced
a pilot program offering
free counseling services
to medical workers and
first responders who live
or work in the counties of
Morrow, Wheeler, Grant
and Gilliam.
The Frontline Program
provides up to four free
counseling sessions. There
is no lengthy assessment
and no diagnosis required.
The Frontline Program is
based on the idea of offer-
ing brief supportive ther-
apy. If further referrals or
more in-depth treatment is
Ione Community
Church to hold
outdoor worship
desired, the clinician will
work to make those con-
nections.
Employees of any clin-
ic or hospital, firefighters,
emergency medical re-
sponders, law enforcement
officers and dispatchers all
qualify. This program is
open to all volunteers or
paid staff. To access, call
one of the offices and ask
for the Frontline Program.
Office phone numbers are
Boardman Office – 541-
481-2911; Heppner Office
– 541-676-2961; John Day
– 541-575-1466; Condon
Office – 541-384-2666;
and Fossil Office – 541-
763-2746.
COUNTY COVID
ISSUES
-Continued from PAGE ONE Emergency Operations
is probably forthcoming,”
she added. Commissioner
Don Russell said it was
probably up to the business
owner to inform people of
the health benefit to wear-
ing a mask, and he urged
businesses to tell people
“It’s the governor not us”
making the requirement.
Business owners are not
expected to “wrestle them
and get them out of there
and then call the police on
them,” Russell added.
In an earlier public
statement released in May,
Morrow County Sheriff
Ken Matlack said county
law enforcement is follow-
ing the safety recommen-
dations of the Governor’s
executive orders but is not
taking law enforcement
action against businesses.
“The Sheriff’s Office may
warn and educate but we
should not be the agency
that is primarily responsible
for closing businesses,” he
said at the time.
With the mention of
state agencies doing en-
forcement, however, it was
inferred businesses with
licenses issued by those
agencies could be in jeopar-
dy of losing their license for
not enforcing the mandate.
Directions from the state
are unclear and commis-
sioners also lamented the
short notice the governor
gave when issuing the mask
mandate. “You can’t throw
this out one day ahead of
time that it goes into ef-
fect tomorrow, without
informing your local public
health authority or giving us
education and enforcement
processes you want us to
follow,” Lindsay said.
Request to stay in
Phase II
In other action, the
c o u n t y ’s C o r o n a v i r u s
Team Monday sent a let-
ter to Governor Brown
requesting that the county
be left in phase two and not
moved back to the more re-
strictive phase one. Brown
recently put the county on a
watch list of eight counties
that have shown “alarm-
ing levels” of COVID-19
increase. The counties in-
clude Jefferson, Lake, Lin-
coln, Malheur, Morrow,
Umatilla, Union and Was-
co. The state says data from
the Oregon Health Author-
ity shows that the number
of cases per capita in these
counties has increased sig-
nificantly, so now Morrow
County officials are worried
the governor may shut the
county down again through
increased restrictions. Mor-
row County is now report-
ing 107 positive cases, with
the increases mostly in the
north end of the county.
Boardman reports 52 and
Irrigon has 49.
The letter to Brown said
Morrow County continues
to do “amazing work with
our COVID-19 efforts,”
and outlined all the county
is doing to fight COVID-19,
concluding with: “Mor-
row County has been suc-
cessful in following the
protocols and guidance of
OHA and the CDC (Center
for Disease Control) to
keep positive cases low.
Increased testing, contact
tracing and efforts in our
agricultural sectors have
been successful in locating
positive cases and isolating
those at-risk promptly. Our
aggressive approach has
led to increased numbers
but should be recognized
in its proactiveness. We
want to use partnering and
not punishing to keep our
businesses and delicate
infrastructure of our main
street stores open.
The Ione Community
Church Council, at their
meeting held Monday, June
29 via Zoom, approved a
new Covid-19 plan and
policy that will provide in
person worship for those
who would like to attend.
For more than three
months, the building has
been closed and worship
has been provided on-
line. Moving forward, the
council approved a plan to
continue online worship
for those who do not yet
feel safe with “in person”
gatherings. In addition, an
outdoor worship service
will be held at 10 a.m. at
the Ione City Park. It is the
aim of the church to provide
worship experiences that
meet the needs of everyone
who wishes to participate.
As was stated in the
opening paragraphs of this
policy: “Our Church, as a
community of faith, has
always been ‘open’ - as God
provides love, grace and
hope to each of us where
ever we are, or however
we gather to worship. We
always remain ‘the church’
as we extend love, care,
communication and hope to
each other and those around
us. Keeping this in mind,
and acting in Christian love,
the following policies have
been adopted, as we con-
sider returning to in-person
worship together.”
To accomplish these
aims the plan has three main
areas of emphasis:
-In order to provide
a more accessible online
experience, the church has
hired Steve and Renee Al-
len of Big Horn Press in
Condon, to design a new
church website. In addi-
tion, they are installing a
new computer, camera, and
monitor set-up to allow live
DEADLINE:
MONDAYS
AT 5PM
“Again, we request you
allow Morrow County to re-
main in Phase II Reopening
and ask that we be given the
opportunity to discuss this
matter with you directly, in
detail, before action is taken
otherwise.”
The letter was signed
by the County’s Emergency
Response Team members,
Melissa Lindsay, chair of
the Board of Commission-
ers, Diane Kilkenny, Public
Health Interim Director and
John Bowles Emergency
Manager.
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
streaming of the services.
Anyone wishing to view the
service will be able to go
to the website and click on
a link. The service may be
watched live at the time of
worship or it will be avail-
able to watch at any later
time. It is hoped that this
service will be available
both at the outside service
and later when worship
begins in the sanctuary.
-Worship will be held
each Sunday in July and
August at 10 a.m. in the
Ione City Park. Worshipers
are asked to please bring
their own chairs and their
own simple elements, if
they wish to participate in
communion. Also, every-
one is asked to respect the
social distancing guidelines
of six-12 feet between fam-
ily groupings. Children are
welcome always but must
stay with their family. We
encourage everyone to be
respectful of distancing
from other groups while
finding a space and leaving.
Singing in the park will be
limited to one person who
may provide music for
others.
-At this time, it is
planned to begin worship
in the sanctuary at 11 a.m.
in September. All will be
asked to wear a mask. Fur-
ther updates will be pro-
vided later. It is planned to
resume children’s Sunday
School on Wednesdays in
September, outside or in the
Fireside Room. Additional-
ly, the Council approved a
detailed cleaning checklist
for appropriate cleaning of
all touch surfaces following
each use of the building.
Current information says
that virus transfer will be
significantly reduced after
72 hours of use, so the in-
tent is to leave this type of
space between each use of
our facilities.
The Ione Community
Church has always been
welcoming in sharing its
space with other organi-
zations. Therefore, it is
with regret that the Council
decided that the church
building will be unavail-
able for non-church or-
ganizations and activities
and the building will be
locked between uses of the
congregation. This is only
during these difficult times
of virus transmission. It
is hoped that the day will
come when this policy can
be rescinded.
Ione Community
Church welcomes every-
one to participate in person
or online in worship with
their community of faith.
Every effort is being made
to make this a safe and
meaningful experience. It
is hoped that no one will
consider these policies a
burden, but rather a chance
to lovingly care for and
protect others. As the apos-
tle Paul told the Galatians
(6:9-10) “Let us not lose
heart in doing good, for in
due time we will reap if we
do not grow weary. So then,
while we have opportunity,
let us do good to all people,
and especially those who
are the household of faith.”
Spiritually Speaking
Come to me and learn
from me
By Father Thankachan Joseph, St. Patrick Church
Last Sunday’s readings welcome everyone to unload
worries and overburdens at the feet of the Lord. He invites
every one of us to have the rest He provides. At times
we all find life difficult. We become overburdened with
problems and worries, especially now when the whole
world is in the grip of COVID-19. Many are anxious,
frightened, jobless, quarantining in their homes. We often
use these situations as a reason not to turn to Christ. In
today’s Gospel, however, Christ tells us to bring all our
burdens to Him and He will give us comfort, peace and
strength. Let us pay attention to his loving invitation to
go to him with love and trust.
The first reading is from the Book of Zachariah,
who was a contemporary of Alexander the Great, who
conquered the known world at the age of 21 and was
known to be brash and arrogant. In sharp contrast to this
emperor, Zachariah sees true greatness in the Messiah,
the King, who would be mindful of the lowly. Whereas
Alexander and the last kings of Judah would ride on
chariots and horses, using their bows and arrows and
instruments of power, the Savior, Christ, would come on
a donkey, not to signify humiliation but humility, serenity
and peaceful intentions. His era would be not one of force
but one of peace established through justice, especially
for the oppressed. We are constantly confronted, at the
business as well as individual level, by the choice of two
opposing lifestyles: one built on the exercise of power,
domination, violence, manipulation and aggression lead-
ing to an unstable impression of peace, or one founded
on justice, mutual respect, reverence for life, gentleness
and compassion leading towards lasting peace.
In the second reading, St. Paul reminds us of our
choices, the dilemma of living according to the prompt-
ings of the flesh or the inspirations of the Spirit. “Brothers
and sisters: you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you
are in spirit, if only the spirit of God dwells in you” (Ro-
mans 8: 9). At the center of the “flesh” principle is power
and pride ending in spiritual suicide, while the Spirit-filled
life is lived in humility and gentleness leading to life in
all its fullness. To experience this humility, Jesus invites
all to take up His yoke, which is meek and humble, in the
Gospel of Mathew.
The Gospel of the day offers two invitations: 1)
Come to me. 2) Take My Yoke and learn from Me. The
Lord welcomes and invites everyone who is burdened,
exhausted, despairing and those who are about to stop
and collapse due to their daily routines. This burden could
be the burden of responsibility that comes from being a
leader, a parent or teacher, one in charge of others. Then
there is the burden that comes from being sick, handi-
capped, widowed, divorced; the burden of coping with
losses – job losses, loss of a relationship, loss of emotional
support. We may also be weary from too much attraction
to pleasures of the flesh and the guilty feelings from that.
Maybe we are not sincere with parents, or spouses. And
there is the burden that sometimes we carry as we look
after others - for instance, care of an aged relative for the
terminally ill, care of the handicapped or slow learners.
Now days we are really tired from the spread of the
coronavirus and the fear it creates. No matter what, the
weariness that we feel, no matter how heavy the burden
we are carrying, Jesus invites us to come to him. “Come
to me all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will
give you rest.”
We need to notice the fact that Jesus does not say “I
will get rid of all that is burdening you.” Rather, He says,
“Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and
humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes,
my yoke is easy and my burden light” (Mathew 11:30).
In the time of Jesus, many people found the law itself
was burdensome and religion far from uplifting. Today,
as well, some people seem to find religion burdensome
and oppressive, so they have given up on religion and
on God, but that does not seem to have freed them of the
burden they are carrying within.
In the Gospel of John, we read, “Peace I bequeath
to you, my own peace I give to you, a peace which the
world cannot give, this is my gift to you” (John 14:27). At
times when I face difficulties, worries of all types, when I
face that I am about to stop and to fall down, where do I
turn for help? I have seen people going to the mountains,
basketball courts, golf courses, going with their friends to
eat, drink and make merry, searching for respite from their
anxiety, sometimes under the influence of intoxicants. At
such times, the Lord is calling us to Him, “Come to me.
Shoulder my yoke...” instead of rushing to man-made
things and friends.
Life is not that hard after all, when we trust in God
and trust only in Him. For only in the Lord can we truly
find rest. Only when we come to Jesus will we find true
freedom from all that oppresses us. Jesus invites us to take
His yoke upon our shoulders. If we discover Jesus in every
burden, in every yoke that is placed on our shoulders then
we will find the burden light and the yoke easy to bear,
for love makes every burden light. As Jesus said, in the
midst of suffering and pain, we follow the Lord and take
the yoke and learn from Him. Our lives will be light and
easy because we keep His word and live by it. When we
follow the Lord, life will be lighter because His yoke is
easy, and His burden is light.