EIGHT - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 2, 2025
CEO resigns from health district CEO Roberts’s message to the
-Approved medical Morrow County community
provement and value based
staff
privileges for regis-
purchasing.
modifications. They also
-Continued from PAGE ONE
appointed Kilkenny and
Ezell to lead the search for
a replacement with Board
member Donna Rietmann
of Ione as an alternate.
The board intends to
hire an interim CEO to
serve until they find a per-
manent replacement for
Roberts.
Also at the meeting, the
board approved a physician
employment agreement
with Christine Seals, MD
as MCHD Chief Medical
Officer. The contract is for
half time. Seals will be on-
site a full week of every
month and available for
telemedicine at other times.
Seals has been working
for the health district since
2021 under various agree-
ments, including clinic
medical director and hos-
pice director, and Roberts
said this contract will roll
all of those into one.
“We’re lucky to have
her,” said Roberts. “I was
really excited that she was
able to make the commit-
ment of a full half time
with us.”
Seals also brings ex-
perience in quality im-
“Ultimately what that
means is better outcomes
for our patients, and our
payers will pay us more be-
cause we’re achieving the
outcomes that we want to
be achieving in our clinics,”
said Roberts.
Specifically, payers like
Eastern Oregon Coordi-
nated Care Organization
(EOCCO) and Moda re-
imburse at higher rates for
better quality measures.
Roberts said 20 percent of
Morrow County residents
use EOCCO.
In other business at
the March 31 meeting, the
board:
-Approved a commu-
nity benefit request for an
AED (automated external
defibrillator) unit for Mur-
ray’s Drug in Heppner.
Roberts suggested includ-
ing an AED for the Condon
store, which the board also
approved.
-Approved a commu-
nity benefit request for
the health district to act as
fiscal agent for the Morrow
Discovery Center until the
fledgling organization re-
ceives its nonprofit status.
tered dietician Christine
Guenther and for a roster
of Oregon Health and Sci-
ence University staff for
TeleStroke services.
-Approved a physi-
cian associate employment
agreement with Amanda
Roy, PA-C. Roy will con-
tinue to provide care at the
Heppner clinic but will also
be working part-time in
the Good Shepherd emer-
gency room. Roberts said
Roy’s intention is to devel-
op emergency skills that she
can bring back to benefit
Morrow County. “She been
totally transparent,” said
Roberts.
-Discussed CDS grant
funds and strategic plan-
ning. Roberts told the board
that the health district has
grant requests in for two
items. The highest priority
is a new CT machine, while
the second is a new six-
bed hospice care facility in
Boardman. Right now, the
nearest hospice care facility
is in the Tri-Cities, while
the nearest Oregon facility
is in Bend.
-Elected Ezell as board
vice chair.
South Morrow scholarships open
to Heppner and Ione seniors
Deadline to apply April 29
College or Trade
The South Morrow
County Scholarship Board
will award scholarships to
Heppner High School and
Ione Community School
Seniors based on academic
achievement and school/
community/work involve-
ment.
Students must have a
2.5 GPA or higher to apply.
Students must be continu-
ing their education at a
community college, trade
school, or four-year college
or university. Funds are to
help students pay for tui-
tion, program fees, books,
supplies, rent and other
expenses.
To apply, please com-
plete the form and attach a
high school transcript and
resume of school and com-
munity activities and work
experience.
Multiple scholarships
will be awarded. If selected,
students will need to submit
their current college class
schedule or verification of
enrollment to receive the
funds.
Applications are due
by 4 p.m. on April 29. To
receive the application link,
contact Brandi Sweeney
at brandi.sweeney@mor-
rowsd.org.
Coach LaRue Schol-
arship
The Coach Del LaRue
Scholarship was developed
in memory of Del LaRue,
a long-time teacher and
coach at Ione High School.
LaRue had a passion
for coaching basketball
and track and loved seeing
students set and achieve
their goals. After retiring
from teaching, he contin-
ued to coach track for 12
additional years. During
that time he helped many
student athletes achieve
their goals and was honored
as National Track Coach of
the Year.
This fund awards one
$1,000 scholarship to a
college-bound Ione High
School senior based on
demonstrated academic
achievement, community
involvement and with pref-
erence given to students
who have participated in
the Ione High School track
program.
Students must be con-
tinuing their education at a
community college, trade
school, or four-year college
or university. Applicants
must have a minimum 3.0
accumulated GPA and show
involvement in community/
school activities.
Applications will be
accepted and awarded by
the South Morrow Coun-
ty Scholarship Board of
Directors using the Coach
LaRue Scholarship Google
Form Application. Applica-
tions must include a tran-
script and activities/work
experience sheet.
The applications are
due by 4 p.m. on April 29.
To receive the application
link, contact Brandi Swee-
ney at brandi.sweeney@
morrowsd.org.
WWW.HEPPNER.NET
Last week, I made the
difficult decision to resign
from my role as Chief Ex-
ecutive Officer of Morrow
County Health District.
This decision was not made
lightly, but after careful
reflection, I’ve concluded
that it is time to prioritize
and protect my family.
Unfortunately, recent
actions by certain com-
munity members and staff
have crossed boundaries
that challenge both decency
and legality. These actions
have ultimately led to my
decision to step down.
The Board of Direc-
tors and I have agreed to
a severance agreement,
which will be made public
once finalized. Both par-
ties are committed to full
transparency regarding my
departure.
I will remain with the
district in the short term to
assist the board in selecting
an interim CEO and to en-
sure a smooth transition for
the team.
I want to emphasize that
my decision is not based on
concerns about the district’s
financial health or future.
The district is not failing.
In fact, we’ve made signif-
icant strides in improving
patient access, outcomes
and satisfaction. The data
backs this up (healthymc.
org). I have seen our staff do
incredible things over the
past few years and I have
full confidence in the board,
the management team and
the staff to continue provid-
ing exceptional care to our
community.
Certain behaviors by a
small group of community
members have created an
environment where some
staff feel silenced, belittled
and unable to speak openly
about their experiences.
I strongly encourage our
community to stand up
against this kind of behav-
ior. The health district needs
your support to thrive, and
that includes standing be-
hind its board of directors
and leadership team.
Be the change you want
to see.
Emily Roberts
MCHD CEO
Alyssa’s Law passes Oregon House unanimously
Legislation named in honor of Alyssa Alhadeff
moves forward to improve emergency response
times in Oregon schools
SALEM, OR—Last
week, Alyssa’s Law (HB
3083), legislation that re-
quires school districts in Or-
egon to consider installing a
panic alarm system in their
schools consisting of either
a wireless or wearable panic
alarm, passed the Oregon
House 50-0.
Introduced by Repre-
sentative Emerson Levy
(D-Central Oregon), HB
3083 is named in memo-
ry of Alyssa Alhadeff, a
14-year-old student who
lost her life during the Mar-
jory Stoneman Douglas
High School shooting in
2017.
“As a mom, I know it’s
essential that our kids are
safe at school,” said Levy.
“From a student needing an
EpiPen, to a natural disaster
or man-made emergency,
this legislation will give
our schools, faculty and
students the resources they
need to react in the little
time they have and save
lives. In an emergency, ev-
ery second counts.”
The mobile-based
emergency system is not
limited to increasing re-
sponse time in the worst-
case scenario. Schools
around the country that
utilize the system found that
80 percent of alerts have
been utilized for students
having allergic reactions,
seizures and heart issues.
DEADLINE:
MONDAYS
AT 5PM
We’re Growing
GENERATIONS TOGETHER
WITH OUR COMMITMENT TO AG FAMILIES
AMBER SCHLAICH
270 N. Main Street
Through these systems,
teachers or school staff can
immediately connect to
Emergency Medical Ser-
vices and first responders.
Funding for Alyssa’s
Law is available to school
districts through the Or-
egon Department of Ed-
ucation’s School Safety
and Emergency Manage-
ment (SSEM) program.
The Wireless Panic Alarm
Grant is open to school
districts that provide ser-
177 N. Main
P.O. Box 337
Heppner, OR 97836
Chris@sykesrealestate.net
vices to students during the
regular school year.
Applicants may request
grant funds for every school
building used by students
during the school year.
School districts will be re-
imbursed $2,000 per school
in their district.
House Bill 3083 now
moves to the Senate for a
vote. It is currently in the
Senate Committee On Ed-
ucation.
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