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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2022)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 6, 2022 -- SEVEN Hughes wins first 2022 yard of the month A View from the Hill By Kay Proctor The first Yard of the Month honors for 2022 goes to Patricia Hughes at 280 S. Court Street. The charming house has been home to Patricia since the fall of 2000 and she has continued to “add to or take away from,” putting her own personal touches to the established landscaping since then. A major project was new fencing on all four sides, done in stages, with the goal to deter deer visitors to the yard. A necessary project was the removal of two large and shade providing Elm trees in the front yard that were, unfortunately, past their time. Those were quickly replaced with two other shade trees. A large side yard patio is Patty’s favorite place outdoors that her son-in- law, Tom Gregg, added a lower part to, making the step down to the yard easier. Future plans are to replace some aged boards in the decking. A stamped concrete front walk was put in place a few years ago by Frank Jones. A backyard kitchen garden is full of herbs, berries and vegetables in- cluding Jerusalem artichoke which has grown well for her. Sprinkler systems on a timer irrigate the gar- den and the grass lawn which includes bee friend- ly white clover, all thick and healthy. Pat does the mowing and weeding, but good naturedly shares that all the trimmings and yard debris are hauled off by Mark Schlichting for him to get rid of. Mark, nearby, chuckles, and emphasizes that Patricia does all the work. A gentle slope contin- ues from the back garden, Above: Patricia Hughes with Mark Schlichting (left) at her Yard of the Month home and her cat, Munchkin. -Photos by Kay Proctor. past the back covered pa- tio, to the northeast side yard where fruit trees and a quince grow. Along the way are seedless grapes, rasp- berries and strawberries. Other plantings include foxglove, garden phlox, iris, larkspur, forsythia, bleeding hearts, honey- suckle, roses, boxwood, hydrangea, peonies, pop- pies and hardy geranium. Planters around the yard are full of annuals including a red geranium that Patty has wintered over. Patricia grew up in eastern Oregon as part of the Hughes Ranch of Little Butter Creek. She retired this past April from her job at the Morrow County Assessor/Tax Department where she had worked since 1998 with part of her plans being to work more on her yard and garden. Other plans for Patri- cia’s retirement are more time with the families of daughter, Amber Peck Gregg, and son, Chris Peck, and her five grandchildren. Her family also includes mother, Gail Hughes, whose previous Heppner home received the Yard of the Month recognition in August 1999, and who gave Patricia her hydrangea and some peonies from that yard. Yard of the Month is co-sponsored by the Hep- pner Volunteers, MCGG/ Green Feed and Seed Store, and the City of Heppner. By Doris Brosnan The Community of Willow Creek Terrace might view as ironic that this sunny month of July began with the “National Stay Out of the Sun Day” on the third. The change in the weather is such a welcomed opportunity to get outside for some Vita- min D. Sitting outside in the evenings, enjoying the many blooming plants, is especially inviting. And everyone was wel- come to get comfortable on the front lawn for their small fireworks show on the 4 th . Fried chicken is a favorite menu item whether eaten inside or on the patio, so that specially marked day on the calendar today could be enjoyed anywhere. Of course, advice on “Make Your Own Sundae Day” on the 8 th will be to stay out of the sun for the ice cream social everyone is invited to. And everyone will be invited to try a virgin pina colada on that designated special day, the 10 th . While waiting to wel- come a new resident, Alex Camarillo, later this month, residents will be enjoying some morning discussions, along with the morning exercises. A mystery right now is what might be ex- pected chatter on the “Dif- ferent Colored Eyes Day” on the 12 th , but on the 17 th , the anniversary of the open- ing day of Disneyland in 1955, memories might be plentiful. Baseball might take center stage on the 19 th , the day of the MLB All-Star Game. And, appropriately, the very next day, on the 20 th , the Hot Dog gets its day of celebration on the menu. All the “Gorgeous Grandmas” at the Terrace will be honored on the 23 rd . Discussing cousins will surely be interesting on the 24 th , but it is also designated “Tell Old Jokes Day,” so laughter and groans could dominate. “Parents Day” on the 25 th will probably elicit a wide variety of memories and comments. Bugs Bunny will turn 82 years old on the 27 th , another entertaining topic to discuss. What might lunch look like on the 29 th , “Mad Hat- ter’s Day,” as residents remember the tea party scene in Alice in Wonder- land on the movie’s 71 st anniversary? At least one item on the menu on the 30 th is now known, for that is “Cheesecake Day.” It also happens to be “Fa- ther-in-Laws Day,” another enticing topic for morning discussion. Birthdays might be a common topic around the dining room on the 13 th be- cause that will be Dick Tur- rell’s 75 th birthday. Every- one always looks forward to birthday celebrations and will wish Dick many more to come, while they enjoy the menu he has chosen for his special lunch with family and friends. New employees Dako- ta Bond and Nellie Blakley have joined the community on the hill in time to get in on these and future celebra- tions. And Administrator Sammara says, “We are always welcoming new applicants. If you want to make a difference and enjoy serving your community, there are a variety of tasks and shifts available.” In- formation is available on the Terrace website and by calling 541-676-0004. Res- idents view new employees as new “family” and look forward to getting to know all staff members better and better. Boardman, Irrigon continue summer concert series Hughes yard and flowers earn her the Yard of the Month honors.. COUNTY ALLOCATES FUNDS -Continued from PAGE ONE tion in the county, said he agreed. “I don’t disagree,’ he told Russell, but said the first thing is to get the res- idents affected clean water to drink. “I think shifting these folks from the water they have been drinking to clean fresh water does speak to the health care portion of it. Certainly, we have an emergency, and we need to get them good clean fresh water is paramount.” Doherty said he also agreed there needs to be filtration systems put into all the home’s wells to take out the nitrates and get the amount down to a safe lev- el. “We need 1,500 homes with 1,500 filters in them. We have to bridge this (present problem of con- taminated water,” adding that the $100,000 was just contingency funds to get the fresh water out to people and hire a media company to get the word out to peo- ple about the problem, and the county’s efforts so help with it. Gray also echoed the current efforts are only temporary fixes. “In the short term yes, it is about getting the resident’s water. I don’t plan on doing that forever,” said Gray who has been at the distribution stations personally handing out water when there was a shortage of volunteers. “My next step is putting a filter in everybody’s home.” He said later he would be meeting with health author- ity people on exactly what kind of nitrate filters should be used. Gray also pointed out that by the county putting up the $100,000 it would “show the businesses (who are stepping up with fund- ing) we are willing to put money into the pot to get this fixed,” he emphasized. Happy 80th Birthday Al Osmin Your family loves you! Church schedules VBS Heppner Christian Church will host Vacation Bible School July 11-14 for children who are three years of age through 6 th grade. Everyone in the communi- ty is invited to participate from 9:30 to noon Monday through Thursday. Friday, July 15 will be a free fam- ily pool day from 10 a.m. to noon, with a free lunch provided. Children interested in attending VBS should pre-register at https://hep- pner-christian-chruch.my- cokesburyvbs.com. DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5PM Music in the Parks free summer concert series will continue this year at Board- man and Irrigon Marina Parks through August 1. Brady Goss performs on July 11 in Boardman. Goss was described from an early age as piano phenom. Today he is recognized as an electrifying entertainer. Those who have witnessed his live shows are awed by his formidable keyboard speed and soulful vocals, loaded with passion that keep fans of all ages want- ing more. Brass Fire heats the summer evening up on July 18 in Irrigon. Brass Fire’s large ensemble in- cludes saxophones, trum- pets, trombone, piano, bass, guitar and drums. The entire band provide vocal ren- derings. Be prepared for music made popular by a large variety of artists from Chicago to Earth Wind and Fire or Elvis to Santana. Brass Fire spans a musical range from the Big Band era music through blues, soul and on to the rock music of the 70s and 80s. On July 25, Eric Ode comes to Boardman. Ode (pronounced Oh-dee) is a national award-winning children’s singer/songwrit- er, a widely published author and poet and a thoroughly engaging entertainer. His upbeat, high-participation programs are bubbling over with fun, interactive music and include stories, skits, poetry, props and puppets. Cruise Control ends the concert season on August 1 in Irrigon. Cruise Control is a 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s cover band that plays Rock, Pop and Country Rock music. Together with their unique blend of voices, they play everything from hard drivin’ rock and roll to softer melodies. The concerts are free to the public and begin at 7 p.m. on Monday nights. Visitors are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets. The series is funded by the Morrow County Unified Recreation District and Portland General Electric and sponsored by the North Morrow Community Foun- dation. In the event of in- clement weather, Boardman performances will be held at the SAGE Center and Irrigon performances will be held at the Irrigon Senior Center.
