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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 2022)
SIX - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, November 23 , 2022 ~ Letters to the Editor ~ A View from the Hill By Doris Brosnan October ended with enjoyable Halloween activities at Willow Creek Terrace. With appropriate door decora- tions and the carved pumpkins the residents had created, they awaited and then greeted the brave trick-or-treaters who ventured up to the hill community. Numbers of little ghosts, goblins, princesses, heroes and others were higher this year, and the residents who sat by their apart- ment doors with treats were delighted with the parade of revelers. With that holiday that is geared toward the young- at-heart behind them, the residents turned their thoughts toward Thanksgiving. They have now been working on the painting of Thanksgiving-themed wall signs. A festive day to look forward to, as well as the traditional feast they will enjoy. As the community discusses reasons for giving thanks, they always think of their neighbors nearby. So, the kitchen staff is preparing for the “Tie One On” activ- ity enjoyed each November, this year on the 23 rd . Each neighbor receives a loaf of the Terrace bread with a note thanking them for being such good neighbors. Of course, the residents and staff will be thankful when some new employees join their ranks, hopefully in time for these two months of holiday festivities. Interested individuals are encouraged to contact the Terrace at 541- 676-0004 or to come by with their questions. Everyone is glad the “Welcome” mat is serving a purpose: On Monday, they welcomed Sandi Hanna, a long-time Heppner resident who has recently returned to join the community. And they expect to welcome another familiar face this week. As some wise person probably said in the distant past, “There’s always room for one more,” which seems to hold true at the Terrace. One more apartment is presently available. Interested persons can inquire by calling or coming by. An added bonus this month is that Flossie Watkins will close out the month of November with her birthday celebration on the 30 th , to which all her neighbors will be invited. As the weather changes to chilly, the Community on the Hill can stay toasty while still socializing at the various in-house activities and games, and they seem to view this fact as a definite bonus to life at the Terrace. How MCSD decides about closures -Continued from PAGE ONE support of the resources weather, the district consistently checks for updates to help determine school delay/closure deci- sions. -Oregon Department of Transportation—the district has regular communication with ODOT to receive spe- cific road updates. These start as early as 3 a.m. and provide specifics regarding the state roads. -County Road Depart- ment—MCSD is contact with the county road de- partment to get updates be- fore 5 a.m. to decide about full-day cancellations and before 8 a.m. for potential cancellations after a three- hour delay. They provide specifics on county roads, which can vary by geo- graphical location. “What we have discov- ered over the past couple of years is that there is a vast difference in a 2-Hour Delay and a 3-Hour Delay,” the website states. “The 3-Hour Delay is a tremen- dous benefit, allowing us to assess the situation and make decisions after there is more daylight, with the listed above. Also, we have found that the additional hour makes a significant difference in temperature.” Ultimately, the district collaborates with Mid-Co- lumbia Bus Company to make a final decision, with advisement from all of the crews out driving the roads, most of which include bus routes. “Lastly, the Morrow County School District understands that if our fam- ilies are worried about the safety of their children, we support your decision to do what you think is best for your children,” MCSD concludes. When a delay or clo- sure occurs, the most accu- rate sources from which to get information are: - Morrow County School District website: https://morrow.k12.or.us/ - MCSD District Face- book page: https://www. facebook.com/morrow- countysd/ - Automated call/text messages sent via the auto- mated calling system. BEO announces dividend for 2022 “I am pleased to an- nounce that the board of di- rectors of BEO Bancorp has voted to declare a one dollar per share dividend for 2022. The dividend will be paid to shareholders of record as of December 9, 2022; payable on or before December 15, 2022,” said President and CEO Jeff Bailey. According to Board Chairman Brad Anderson, “BEO Bancorp has paid a dividend 36 of the past 37 years. Dividends reflect the financial stability and profitability of the bank. We are very happy to be able to provide this dividend to our shareholders.” “The dividend of one dollar per share is equal to the dividend paid in 2021. The board of directors and employees work hard to im- prove the overall strength of the bank, add value to our shareholders, as well as provide the brand of banking that our customers appreciate and expect from Bank of Eastern Oregon,” said Bailey. He concluded by saying, “The support of our shareholders, commu- nities and employees have made it possible for us to continue to be successful.” Justice Court Report Morrow County Justice of the Peace Glen Diehl has released the following report: -Jacob B. Roy, 40, of Heppner was cited for Violating the Basic Rule and fined $165. -Michael D. Lynch, 64, of Heppner was cited for Dog as a Public Nuisance and fined $265. -Chris A. Jackson, 34, of Heppner was cited for Dog as a Public Nuisance and fined $265. -Continued from PAGE THREE these qualities every single day, and as Morrow Coun- ty’s commissioner she has done more of the same. To me these qualities are the reason she was elected to serve in the first place. Since day one as commis- sioner, I have seen first- hand her overwhelming dedication to the county. Now that doesn’t mean she always made the decision that pleased everyone—in some cases, the opposite. But that dedication to the county and her voters meant she had to weigh many el- ements and make the hard decisions. Through those hard decisions and instanc- es where she faced back- lash, one thing has stayed the same. The county has always come first and will continue to come first given the opportunity to serve out the remainder of the term. My mother has done nothing but serve the coun- ty to the best of her ability and a recall of this nature sets a bad precedent that’s damaging to the future of this county. As Melissa’s son and one of her biggest supporters, I ask that we as a county let our original vote stand and show up in support at the upcoming vote. Jacob Lindsay Lexington, OR Doherty and Lindsay have done the right thing To the Editor: First of all, I’d like to thank commissioners Jim Doherty and Melissa Lind- say for doing their jobs. It’s why we voted for them in the first place. I’d like to address Corol Mitchell and Ann Spicer-Kuhn for start- ing a petition to get these two recalled. They did this because the commissioners were responsible for firing the former county admin- istrator, Darrell Green, be- cause he didn’t do his job. The commissioners did the right thing, getting rid of him. As previous Gazette articles have shown, Dar- rell Green was forewarned numerous times to change his actions and he inten- tionally didn’t. This is all publicly recorded. Now, the county is looking at a $750,000 lawsuit from someone that didn’t do his job and was rightly fired. It doesn’t make any sense. Of course, we have already paid his wife, who also didn’t do her job correctly. In the private sector, if you don’t do your job, you don’t have a job and you don’t get paid. Maybe the county/ governmental sector ought to follow the same suit quickly. I would also like to point out that Commission- er Lindsay has done more for the community than the two women who led the recall petition have ever done. As a matter of fact, I’ve never seen these two do anything at the commu- nity-level outside of this recall, which is costing the county between $15,000- $20,000. Commissioner Lindsay has brought a multitude of funds to the county and specifically to Heppner. I would have wished that prominent recall figures, who gathered pages of sig- natures for the recall, under- stood the profound impact that Commissioner Lindsay has had in Heppner before letting personal and self-in- terested bias cloud his judg- ment. We are now recalling the two commissioners who are not implicated in a larg- er ethics investigation. It seems that the recall group mentioned above— Ann and Coral are pawns who are either blindly or intentionally distracting Morrow County citizens from the larger issue of other elected officials’ cor- ruption. Vote no on the recall. Support commissioners Melissa Lindsay and Jim Doherty on a job well done. It just makes sense. Jay Coil Heppner, OR Russell will gain from recall No one has more to gain from this county commis- sioner recall than Com- missioner Don Russell. Russell is chair of the Co- lumbia River Enterprise Zone (CREZ 2) which de- termines who receives the $10,000,000 yearly tax abatement from Amazon. CREZ 3 is in the process of establishing the new tax abatement for the six new Amazons coming to Mor- row County. The CREZ 3 board, all from Boardman (two from the Port, two from the city of Boardman, and two from the county commissioners) have with- out precedent stalled all negotiation with Amazon until Missy Lindsay is ei- ther recalled or off the board of commissioners Jan. 1, 2023. This is unacceptable. Commissioners Lind- say and Doherty have pub- licly stated they will require a better deal from Ama- zon, which includes bond- ing, something Umatilla County has already been granted, largely because of Lindsay’s uncompromising stand for Morrow County. Lindsay and Doherty have also confronted Russell over continual conflict of interest decisions votes he makes for the benefit of himself (CEO of Windwave for instance, that continues to contract all Amazon fiber optics) and those that bene- fit from his political power. This is the reason Rus- sell orchestrated the re- call frenzy. If Doherty and Lindsay are recalled, Rus- sell will control Morrow County. His buddy Darrel Green will get a massive settlement at taxpayer ex- pense. Boardman Fire Chief Hughes will get the Am- bulance Transport License that he has publicly refused to apply for through the required Established Doc- umented Need. Amazon will get another sweetheart deal and county taxpayers will be stuck with the bill. Why go through the proper channels when Hughes can use his public position to convince the public lives will be lost without this license? Hughes and those that support his agenda will ruin the funding for the Morrow County ambulance service, putting all Morrow County in jeopardy of am- bulance service. Make your voice heard. Our way of life and liberty is at stake. Stuart Dick Irrigon, OR volunteer making sure the citizens of Morrow County have the best quality of life to live and work in. Melissa educates herself and asks deep questions to get to the core of the issue. Some of these questions may not set well with others, but that’s why she is elected—to ask the hard questions. We respect that as part of her duties. We should be focusing on all the good she has brought to the table. For us, one that stands out is how she cares for local small businesses and their successes. She was instru- mental in putting together a partnership with Tillamook for business grants for those effected by COVID. This is what she does; she hears the needs and finds solu- tions. We appreciate her hard work at accomplishing what’s best for the citizens of Morrow County. We believe both Melissa and Jim Doherty have been completely transparent in disproving the allegations of this recall. Please join us today in voting no on the recall. Mark and Jan Hud- dleston Heppner, OR Vote no on recall To the Editor: The letters (to the ed- itor) are indicative of the support of Jim Doherty and Melissa Lindsay. They’ve worked hard and deserve better that what they’ve got. Missy has lived here her whole life. She follows through with what she says she’s going to do. I’m voting “no” on the recall. Kelly Boyer Lexington, OR WWW.HEPPNER.NET Submit News, Advertising & Announcements Letters To The Editor Send Us Photos Start A New Subscription FREE PICKUP Bagged clean leaves NO WALNUT Leave message at (541) 989-8117 with phone number & address Will pick up at curb Heppner Thanksgiving Day Closed Friday, Nov 25 12pm- 6pm Boardman From the Murray Family & Staff Thanksgiving Day Closed Friday, Nov 25 1:30pm-6pm Heppner Boardman (541) 676-9158 (541) 481-9474 www.MurraysDrug.com Focus on the good Lindsay has done There are many quality traits to describe Melissa Lindsay, but one that sticks out foremost at this time is integrity. Melissa has lived by this standard her entire life, built on family roots. She gives more than 100 percent in doing what is right for our county and communities. She is one of the hardest-working people we know, who dedicates countless hours as a public servant and as a community HEPPNER ELKS 358 "WHERE FRIENDS MEET" 541-676-9181 142 N MAIN ST Print & Mailing Services *Design *Print *Mail Sykes Bros Printing 541-676-9228