Lexington council
-Continued from PAGE ONE
quest.
Miller said she didn’t
think the gutters were a bad
thing and that the quotes
weren’t “horrible,” but re-
quested that the gutters be
put on the budget agenda
for the next fiscal year.
“I think they need to
wait and go through the
proper channels on some
of this,” she said, adding
that the fire department
had a lot of expenditures
lately, notably a truck and
a new $23,000 door for the
fire hall.
“It’s a nice door, but
it’s a very spendy door,”
Miller said.
Miller also pointed out
that, while there might be
room in the fire depart-
ment’s budget, some pro-
jected fire department in-
come was from anticipated
grants they had not actually
received.
Imes said she under-
stood what Miller was
saying. Imes said she had
a similar issue with the
town’s general fund budget.
“We have a budget that
we adopted, but there’s not
enough money in our gener-
al fund to do all those things
that are in that budget,” said
Imes.
The council also tabled
action on hiring a surveyor
for the water line reroute
easement. Lexington Town
Maintenance Director Larry
Hess said he sent out seven
requests but only received
one quote. There are also
additional fees included in
the process, so Hess said he
would work on firming up
the actual cost before the
council’s February meeting.
Imes gave a brief up-
date on the newly-formed
Lexington Community De-
velopment Group (LCDG).
Advertising had been done
and applications were open,
she said, and people seemed
excited about it.
“They think it’s great,”
she said. “We’ll see how
many applications we get.”
The application dead-
line for the committee was
Jan. 24. A subcommittee
will review applications
and give the council rec-
ommendations, with fi-
nal appointments made
by the council. Imes said
she hoped to have the first
LCDG board meeting in
March.
The council also heard
an update on the door-to-
door income survey that
had been conducted in or-
der for Lexington to seek
funding for its new water
system.
Crumpton said they
didn’t get the responses
they were expecting and
that there were still 24 peo-
ple who had not responded.
The survey was fund-
ed through a grant, but
Lemmon said he was dis-
appointed in the company
hired to do the income
survey.
“They have really
dropped the ball,” he said.
Miller questioned
whether participation by
the council wouldn’t have
had a better result.
“They’ve tried every-
thing that they said they
were going to try. They ha-
ven’t gotten it,” said Miller.
“I thought it was drawn
out way too long, and the
communication level was
not good,” agreed Imes.
Imes also said the city
needed to reach out to An-
derson Perry with an update
because the grant funding
cycle for the water system
would be coming around
again soon.
Crumpton reported that
the billing update went live
Dec. 18, but everyone’s
bills were wrong because
the system didn’t take into
account December pay-
ments.
She said the billing part
had been straightened out,
but not everything switched
over smoothly.
“I’ve been working
through everybody’s ac-
counts and making sure
that they’re correct,” said
Crumpton.
May Day preparations
are moving forward, and
Crumpton said the town had
received the grant funds for
the celebration. Miller said
she would like to have shirts
made for council members
and staff so people could
identify them at the cele-
bration.
“I think that way people
know a little better who to
go to,” said Miller.
Lexington Assistant
Fire Chief Josie Miles re-
ported no calls for the last
month.
“It’s been quiet,” she
said.
Meanwhile, the fire
department is working on
recertification and accred-
itation training, as well as
training agreements with
Ione and Heppner.
Heppner is fully ac-
credited to provide their
own instructors and in-
house training, Miles said,
so Lexington will have
more opportunities to train
there instead of having
to travel to Hermiston or
Pendleton.
The departments are
also doing large structure
walk-throughs jointly to
create emergency plans for
all three communities. The
main structure identified
in Lexington was the old
school, though the Holly
Rebekah Lodge might also
be a good candidate.
“It would be a good
one to put on our list,” said
Miles.
She also reported two
new firefighters for Lex-
ington, Bria Wright and
Jeremy Cimmiyotti, bring-
ing the total volunteers to
seven.
Hess reported that he
spent a good chunk of the
previous month working
on the development permit
for FEMA/ESA. He hopes
to have a draft before the
council this month.
Miller asked about a
plan for spraying weeds
and mowing for the coming
year.
“Because the more our
town looks like a park, the
more the people in the town
think things are getting
done,” she said. “The less it
looks like a park, the more
they think that none of us
are doing anything.”
There is room in the
town’s budget to hire tem-
porary help, and Hess said
he was thinking of ap-
proaching Scott Lamb to
help. He is also working
on certification to use the
motorized pump on the
four-wheeler.
In other town business,
the council:
-passed resolutions
removing previous coun-
cil members from town
accounts and authorizing
councilors and staff on
accounts;
-authorized a transfer
of funds to cover a Silver
Creek invoice;
-reviewed Lexington’s
annual report for the Co-
lumbia River Enterprise
Zone (CRE) II meeting; and
-approved the budget
calendar and discussed
ways to find people for the
budget committee.
The next meeting of the
Lexington Town Council is
scheduled for next Tuesday,
Feb. 11, at 6 p.m. at the
town hall.
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FIVE- Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 5, 2025
Spiritually Speaking
PUBLIC NOTICE
Father Thankachan Joseph
-Continued from PAGE FOUR
Called to Be His Ministers
This week’s readings deal with three different great
persons called by God: the prophet Isaiah, Paul, and Peter
and his coworkers. How did these people respond to the
call of God? They all felt unworthy. Isaiah said, “Woe is
me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live
among a people of unclean lips!” (Isaiah 6:5). Paul felt
himself unfit to be called an apostle because he persecuted
the church of God. (1 Corinthians 15:9). And Peter fell at
Jesus’s feet and said, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a
sinful man!” (Luke 15:8). Humility is said to be the first
and primary virtue in authentic spirituality.
Beyond the feeling of unworthiness, these three
individuals called to do God’s work have something in
common, mainly availability, readiness to do God’s will
and follow His directives. As soon as Isaiah hears the
voice of the Lord asking, “Whom shall I send, and who
will go for us?” his immediate response was, “Here am
I; send me!” (v.8). In the case of Peter and his partners,
“they left everything and followed him” (v.11) without
looking back. And Paul threw himself with so much zeal
into God’s work that he worked harder than all those
who were called before him, though as he is quick to
point out, “it was not I, but the grace of God that is with
me” (v.10). We must be available and willing to do as the
Lord directs us.
In the first reading, the vision that the prophet de-
scribes (6:1-2a, 3-8) is so awesome, the prophet believes
a curse has fallen on him: “Woe is me! For I am lost.”
His awareness of “being lost” comes from his sense
of unworthiness: “I am a man of unclean lips, living
among the people of unclean lips!” We understand that
the prophet had yet to learn that the vision of glory must
burn deep and cleanse him. So, he must go through a
process of purification. Thus, the seraph flows to him
with a “burning coal.” Isaiah feels the intense burning in
his mouth, which must be cleansed first if he is to speak
the messages of God. And only after purification are the
prophet’s ears opened to hear the call of God. Only after
he is freed from his sins is he able to hear and comprehend
the word of God: “Whom shall I send, and who will go
for us?” The prophet is ready for his mission: “Here am
I! Send me” (v.8).
Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (15:1-11) de-
scribes the call of Paul. Even though Paul did not meet
Jesus face-to-face in his lifetime, his certitude that he was
passing on the authentic teaching of Christ is based not
on the many visions of Christ that he enjoyed but on the
teaching he received from the apostles before him. “For,
I handed on to you as of first importance, what I in turn
had received” (1 Cor. 15:3). Paul understood his ministry
as essentially that of passing on the message. To succeed
in this, two things are most important: how one receives
tradition, and how one passes it on.
The Gospel reading from Luke (5:1-11) illustrates
the call of Peter and his co-workers, the first disciples.
It happens in the context of the miraculous catch of the
fish, which illustrates that when we follow the guidance of
the Lord in our lives, we achieve results that will change
our lives. Peter and his friends toiled all night long and
caught nothing. Relying on their competence as seasoned
fishermen resulted in failure. But when they followed the
Lord’s guidance, which did not make much sense (fisher-
men did not set the net in broad daylight), the result was
an astounding success. Jesus said to Peter, “Do not be
afraid; from now on you will be catching people” (v.10).
We see that their qualification for the work of God does
not come from them but from God. It is not their personal
achievement; it is God’s grace. That is why Paul could
say, “But by the grace of God I am what I am” (v.10). The
one who calls us for His mission will surely provide us
with necessary qualifications to do His apostolate. Are you
ready and willing to be a minister at the service of Christ?
YOUR AD
COULD
BE
HERE!
County Clerk Heppner,
Oregon 97836 FILING
DEADLINE FOR OPEN
POSITIONS – 3/20/2025
Date: January 29, 2025
Publication
Website
1/31/2025; The Gazette
Times 2/4/2025 Published
pursuant to ORS 255.075
Published February 5,
2025 affid 1c
declaration of candidacy
or petition for nomination
for office with the County
Clerk of Morrow County,
100 S. Court St Ste 102,
Heppner, Oregon no soon-
er than February 8, 2025,
and not later than 5:00
p.m. March 20, 2025.
Bobbi Childers Morrow
PUBLIC NOTICE
PUBLIC NOTICE
MORROW COUNTY LAND USE HEARING
THE MORROW COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION will hold the following hearings of public interest
on Tuesday, February 25, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. at the Morrow County Government Center located at 215
NE Main Ave, Irrigon, OR 97844. For information on meeting participation via Zoom please visit the
Planning Department website https://www.co.morrow.or.us/pc and click on Agenda and the Zoom link will
be located within the agenda dated for this hearing.
Conditional Use permit CUP-N-378-24: Victor Calvillo, Applicant, and Owner
Conditional Use Permit to allow the storage and operation of a commercial trucking business on a
residential property. The property is described as Tax Lot 5800 of Assessor’s Map 4N25E20A. The
subject parcel is zoned Suburban Residential (SR) and is located inside of the City of Boardman Urban
Growth Boundary (UGB). Criteria for approval include Morrow County Zoning Ordinance (MCZO) Article
3 Section 3.050, Suburban Residential, and Article 6 Section 6.050.G, Standards Governing Conditional
Uses, Home Occupations.
Conditional Use permit CUP-N-385-25: Eudoro Cardenas Herrera, Applicant, and Owner
Conditional Use Permit to allow the storage and operation of a commercial trucking business on a
residential property. The property is described as Tax Lot 403 of Assessor’s Map 5N26E22D01. The
subject parcel is zoned Rural Residential (RR) and is located outside of the City of Irrigon’s Urban
Growth Boundary (UGB). Criteria for approval include Morrow County Zoning Ordinance (MCZO) Article
3 Section 3.050, Suburban Residential, and Article 6 Section 6.050.G, Standards Governing Conditional
Uses, Home Occupations.
Copies of the staff reports, and all relevant documents will be available on or before February 18, 2025.
For more information, please contact Tamra Mabbott, Planning Director by email at
tmabbott@morrowcountyor.gov or Kaitlin Kennedy, Code Compliance Planner at
kkennedy@morrowcountyor.gov or by phone at (541) 922-4624.
DATED this 30 th day of January 2025
MORROW COUNTY PLANNING DEPARTMENT
Publish Date: EO – February 5 th , 2025; Gazette Times – February 5 th , 2025
Published February 5, 2025 affid 1c
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