TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, January 25, 2023
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.
Chris Sykes ...............................................................................................Publisher
Andrea Di Salvo ............................................................................................ Editor
..................................................................................................................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 publi-
cation must be specified. Affidavits must be requested 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.
Obituaries
Gayla Lee
Hodson Kelsey
Snell Jones
It is with a heavy heart
t h a t
we an-
nounce
t h e
passing
of our
beloved
mother,
Gayla
Lee Hodson Kelsey Snell
Jones. She passed away
peacefully on Jan. 17, 2023,
at Pioneer Memorial Hospi-
tal in Heppner at the age of
88. A celebration of her life
will be held at a later date.
Gayla was born on Oct.
1, 1934, in Greybull, WY,
daughter of Willis and Pearl
Hodson. She was raised
in Burlington, WY and
graduated from Burlington
High School, where she
was active as a majorette,
cheerleader and choir mem-
ber. After graduating, she
volunteered as a candy
striper at the local hospital.
Gayla met and mar-
ried her husband, Robert
Kelsey, in 1954. They lived
in Montana and built their
life until his passing in
1969. She later met and
married Clifford Snell in
1971 in Lovell, WY. He
passed after 32 years of
marriage in 2003. She later
moved to Heppner, where
she met and married Robert
Jones in 2007, who was by
her side until her passing.
Throughout her life,
Gayla worked many profes-
sions, ultimately working
as a senior citizen director.
She was dedicated to her
profession and was respect-
ed by her colleagues and
the senior community alike.
She retired in 1991 and
moved from Lovell, WY to
Corvallis, OR.
But her greatest accom-
plishment in life was her
family. She was an amaz-
ing mother to her children,
Gordon Kelsey and Lola
Milburn, and a devoted
grandmother to her grand-
children and great-grand-
children. They were the
light of her life. She passed
on her love of creating mu-
sic, gardening and sports to
her family. We will always
think of her when listening
to a choir, smelling an iris
or watching a touchdown
celebration.
Gayla was preceded in
death by her parents, Willis
and Pearl Hodson; brothers
Guy Hodson, Al Hodson
and Wayne Hodson; sister
Gwendolyn Richardson;
and grandson Tyler Kelsey.
Gayla is survived by
her loving husband Robert
Jones; children Lola Kelsey
Milburn and Gordon Kelsey
(Joni); grandchildren Jason
Milburn, Tobey Milburn
Garrett (Mike), Whitney
Kelsey Haley (BJ), Colton
Kelsey (Sammie) and Paige
Kelsey Orth (Declan); and
great-grandchildren Lauren
Garrett, Kaitlin Garrett,
Alexis Garrett, Clarine Gar-
rett, Justin Milburn, Jeffrey
Milburn, Wyatt Milburn,
Hunter Milburn, Lucy Ha-
ley, Ada Haley, Callum
Kelsey, Graysen Kelsey and
Kinley Orth; brother Gor-
don Hodson (Maryanne);
and sister Joan Gamble
(Ronnie).
We will miss her dear-
ly and she will always be
in our hearts. In lieu of
flowers, donations may be
made in her memory to
a charity of your choice.
Gayla’s memory will live
on through all of us, and
we will always cherish the
memories we have of her.
E. Joan
Hudson
E. Joan Hudson, 81, of
Hep-
pner
died
Fri-
day,
Jan.
2 0 ,
2023,
at Pi-
oneer
M e -
morial Hospital in Heppner.
A graveside service will
be held at 1 p.m. Saturday,
Jan. 28, 2023 at the Hep-
pner Masonic Cemetery. A
reception will follow at the
Heppner Elks Lodge.
Joan was born on
March 7, 1941, at Spokane,
WA, the daughter of Elmer
and Rosalie Nulf Moe. She
was raised and attended
school in Heppner, gradu-
ating from Heppner High
School in 1959. After high
school she was honored
as a Morrow County Fair
and Rodeo Princess and
Morrow County Fair and
Rodeo Queen.
On October 4, 1961,
Joan married Jay Dee Hud-
son in Heppner, where they
raised three daughters, San-
dra, Cindi and Jacki.
When her children were
young Joan did childcare in
her home. As they got older,
she was a waitress at local
restaurants and at the R&W
Drive In.
Her hobbies included
dancing, playing cards, and
especially spending time
with family and her dog.
Joan is survived by
daughters Sandra Patton
(Mike Gorman) of Heppner,
Cindi Roberts (Bobby) of
Pendleton and Jacki Paulus
(Rick) of Heppner; brother
Jack Ployhar of Hermiston;
six grandchildren; and five
great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in
death by siblings Peg Mar-
tin and Darrell Ployhar.
Memorial contributions
Obituaries
may be made to Heppner
Fire and Rescue, PO Box
743, Heppner, OR 97836.
You may sign the on-
line condolence book at
www.sweeneymortuary.
com.
Walter L.
Manley Sr.
Walter L. Manley Sr., 80,
of Heppner died Saturday,
Jan. 14, 2023, at his home
at Blake Ranch. There will
be no official ceremony, but
his family will spread his
ashes on top of the hill by
Judy Manley’s.
He was born December
26, 1942, at Enumclaw,
WA.
Walt was born in Wash-
ington but spent the major-
ity of his life in Oregon.
His passions in life were
hunting, fishing, family and
lifelong friends. He will be
missed by many. Rest in
peace, Mad Dog Manley.
He was preceded in
death by his daughter, Ju-
lie Manley; son, Walter L.
Manley Jr.; and the love of
his life, wife Judy Manley.
He is survived by
his children, Betty Shan-
non, Gary Manley and
Jerry Manley, as well as
many grandchildren and
great-grandchildren.
Sweeney Mortuary of
Heppner was in charge of
arrangements. You may
sign the online condolence
book at www.sweeneymor-
tuary.com.
Boardman
council to
hold
planning
session
The Boardman City Coun-
cil will hold a planning ses-
sion at 8 a.m. on Saturday,
Jan. 28, at Boardman City
Hall.
Boardman mayor, city
councilors, and staff will
meet for a planning ses-
sion. The topic is general
discussions regarding city
council goals and direction.
The meeting is open to
the public, but no specific
deliberations or decisions
are planned, and there may
not be time for public com-
ment.
The session will also be
available on Zoom.
AARP
offers
free tax
prep
The AARP Foundation
Tax-Aide is offering free,
in-person tax preparation
in Boardman and Hermis-
ton this year.
The free tax preparation is
open to anyone of any age
but is geared especially
toward taxpayers who are
50 or older or who can’t
afford paid tax preparation.
The tax service is available
by appointment only by
calling 458-300-3974.
The Boardman tax prepa-
ration will be at the Port
of Morrow on Mondays
from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Feb. 6 through April 10.
The Port of Morrow is lo-
cated at Two Marine Drive
in Boardman.
Tax prep services will also
be available at New Hope
Community Church in
Hermiston, located at 1350
S. Hwy. 395. Hours will be
Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday from 8:30 a.m.
to 3 p.m. Feb. 1 through
April 12.
First Morrow County community
recognized as Firewise
By Andrea Di Salvo
One Morrow County
community is officially a
Firewise community, and
another may not be far
behind.
The Blake Ranch com-
munity out of Heppner
received official notice of
their Firewise USA approv-
al last week. While there are
other Firewise communities
scattered around neighbor-
ing counties, Blake Ranch
is the first community in
Morrow County to receive
such recognition. Penland
Lake residents have also
started the process with an
informational meeting this
week.
Heppner man Stacy
Lauritsen, who is a forest
officer with the Department
of Forestry and a firefighter,
said Firewise is a program
that helps make properties
more resilient to fire. He
told the Gazette that resi-
dents of Blake Ranch and
Penland Lake reached out
to him about the program
and, since then, he has been
serving as a liaison between
the communities and other
agencies involved in the
process. He has also been
trying to gather interest
from other communities in
the county for what he sees
as a worthwhile effort.
“Firewise is a program
that helps neighbors help
neighbors,” Lauritsen said.
“It goes back to the commu-
nity coming together.”
Firewise is a national
recognition program that
provides a “collaborative
framework” to help neigh-
bors in a particular area get
organized, find direction
and take action to increase
the fire resistance of their
homes and community,
according to the National
Fire Protection Association
(NFPA) website. It begins
at the neighborhood level,
encouraging local solutions
for safety by involving
homeowners and showing
them how to take individual
responsibility for protecting
their homes from the risk of
wildfire.
At the same time, it
also spurs public agencies
to be good neighbors when
the communities are proac-
tive in their efforts to clear
underbrush and take other
steps to reduce wildfire
ignition.
According to the Na-
tional Interagency Fire Cen-
ter (NIFC) and the National
Fire Incident Reporting
System, an “overwhelm-
ing” number of brush, grass
and forest fires—between
87 and 96 percent—are
caused by people. While
some are intentional, most
are accidental. Regardless
of how they start, though,
they can be devastating.
The NIFC also reports that
local fire departments in
the U.S. responded to an
average of 356,800 such
fires annually between 2004
and 2008.
“With just the right
conditions—a dry, hot,
windy day—and an igni-
tion source—a spark from
a vehicle, machinery, or
a carelessly tossed ciga-
rette—your home could be
in fire’s path faster than you
might imagine,” the NFPA
website states.
Most homes that burn
during a wildfire are ignit-
ed by embers or firebrands
landing on the roof, in gut-
ters or on other surfaces
or openings. Other homes
burn from small surface
fires that can touch the
house, such as from dry
grass that allows a fire to
run right up to the siding.
Many of the commu-
nities in the highest danger
also have the least chance
of outside help reaching
a fire in time. First, a re-
mote location means a lon-
ger response time, even
if the fire is spotted right
away—which it may not
be. Second, 85 percent of
fire departments rely on
volunteers, who may not be
able to respond as quickly
as they would like.
That’s why Firewise fo-
cuses on reducing wildfire
risks at the local level. The
Firewise program is geared
toward smaller communi-
ties; a Firewise community
needs to have a minimum
of eight dwellings and a
maximum of 2,500. How-
ever, there can be multiple
Firewise communities with-
ing a larger town or city.
Any community that
meets a set of voluntary cri-
teria on an annual basis and
retains an “In Good Stand-
ing Status” may identify
itself as being a Firewise
Site. Residents who have
USAA homeowners in-
surance may also receive
a discount for living in a
Firewise community.
To begin the process,
community members create
a committee of volunteers
that includes both resi-
dents and partner agencies.
In Morrow County, those
partners include agencies
like the county road depart-
ment, sheriff’s office, fire
departments, forest service,
soil and water conservation
district and the state fire
marshal’s office.
“We go in and get all
the agencies together that
have a stake in it,” said
Lauritsen.
The committee will
then work with experts to
make a plan for education
and risk reduction. They
complete a wildfire risk
assessment for the com-
munity, focusing on areas
of successful wildfire risk
reduction and areas where
improvements could be
made. They also pay at-
tention to the condition of
neighborhood homes and
the ignition zones around
those homes.
Sites also need to put
in the equivalent of one
volunteer hour per dwelling
annually in efforts to reduce
wildfire risks. Once a site
has Firewise status, the
community needs to renew
it yearly by reporting their
activity.
For now, the focus is on
forest communities, since
those have traditionally
been at higher risk from
wildfires. However, Lau-
ritsen said he’s willing to
engage any community that
shows an interest.
“By all means, if we
had other communities at
lower elevations who were
interested, we would make
that happen for them,” he
said.
Area communities out-
side of Morrow County that
are Firewise sites include
Ritter and Middle Fork in
Long Creek, which have
been Firewise sites since
2016. Top Road in Hamil-
ton has been with Firewise
since 2021.
Ladies Night
February 2nd
Dinner at 6pm
Meghan Golden will be preparing a
Taco Bar with all the fixings.
HEPPNER ELKS 358
"WHERE FRIENDS MEET"
541-676-9181 142 N MAIN ST
M o r r o w C o u n t y B o a r d o f C o m m i s s i o n e r s
Morrow County has a vacancy for Commissioner, Position 1
Board’s Purpose:
The Board of Commissioners act as the governing
body for the county, various service districts,
councils, and committees. It is responsible for
county administration, management, and policy. The
board prepares and adopts county and service district
budgets and provides administrative services, support, and liaison to
service districts, cities, public agencies, organizations, the Oregon
Legislative Assembly, and federal and state officials. It is responsible for
conducting public meetings, hearings, road vacations, private and public
land sales and exchanges as well as enacting ordinances, orders,
contracts, leases and other legal agreements.
Information:
Morrow County will be accepting applications from Jan. 12 th to Jan 31 st .
SEL 101 Candidate Filing forms are required and Letters of Interest may
be included. All documents included will be considered public record.
$4,737 /month plus excellent benefits.
P l e a s e v i s i t h t t p s : / / w w w . c o . m o r r o w . o r . u s / c l e r k f o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n .