SIX - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 23, 2025
A-May-Zingers
ready for Lexington
May Day celebration
Pioneer Memorial Hos-
pice is taking yard tributes
to a whole new level, of-
fering a unique way to cel-
ebrate the amazing individ-
uals in our lives. With the
simple gesture of sending
A-May-Zinger to a friend
or loved one in Lexington,
people can now express
their appreciation in a tan-
gible and memorable way.
Pioneer Memorial Hos-
pice is extending its mission
beyond traditional bound-
aries by introducing this
innovative program ahead
of the Lexington May Day
celebration. The idea is sim-
ple yet profound: transform
ordinary yards into extraor-
dinary displays of love and
admiration.
Zingers are a 3’ x 4’
painted sign that, for a sug-
gested donation, are placed
in yards to bring attention to
an individual or family that
is simply ‘A-May-Zing.’
The Zinger will be
placed in the yard for three
days and then moved by
dedicated hospice volun-
teers to the next yard. Pi-
oneer Memorial Hospice
will be scheduling these
beginning April 21 through
May 3.
“Imagine the delight on
your friend’s face as they
wake up to find their yard
adorned with a colorful
sign and uplifting message,
celebrating their uniqueness
and impact on those around
them,” says hospice vol-
unteer coordinator Jackie
Alleman. “It’s a powerful
reminder of the positive
influence we have on each
other’s lives.”
Scheduling a hospice
Zinger yard sign is a mean-
ingful way to honor some-
one special. Call the hos-
pice office, 541-676-2946,
to schedule a Zinger for
your friend.
Giefing shines at Cove with
triple gold performance
The small but talented
Ione High School track
and field team delivered a
strong showing at the Cove
Charter School 1A-2A-3A
Regional Invitational Sat-
urday at Eastern Oregon
University’s Banner Bank
Track. Junior Henry Gief-
ing led the charge with a
dominant performance,
capturing three individual
titles in a standout day on
the track and field.
Giefing sprinted to vic-
tory in the 100 meters,
clocking a time of 11.49
seconds. He followed that
up with a win in the 200
meters, finishing in 23.75
seconds. In the long jump,
Giefing soared to a sea-
son-record distance of 20
feet, 1.5 inches, earning his
third gold of the meet.
In the throwing events,
junior Carter Eynetich rep-
resented Ione across three
disciplines. He placed sev-
enth in the shot put with a
mark of 37 feet, 2 inches.
Eynetich also took 11 th in
the discus with a throw
of 103 feet, 6 inches, and
matched that placement in
the javelin with a toss of
112 feet, 2 inches.
On the track, sopho-
more Leo Lemus ran a per-
sonal-best time of 2:28.22
in the 800 meters, placing
15 th overall.
In the girls’ competi-
tion, sophomore Phegley
Padberg competed in the
javelin, throwing 77 feet, 7
inches to finish 25 th .
NC clothing
donations
paused
through
June
The Neighborhood
Center will be pausing
clothing donations for a
couple of months, Neigh-
borhood Center Coordi-
nator Nikki Clark has an-
nounced. The center will
stop taking donations of
clothing from May 1 to
July 1.
Staff and volunteers are
using this time to process
the current donations and
clean up the center.
“The Neighborhood
Center of South Morrow
County would like to thank
the generous people of our
community here in Morrow
County for your continued
support and giving to our
center,” says Clark, “Your
clothing donations are al-
ways appreciated.”
Clark said they are only
closing clothing donations
at this time; all other ac-
ceptable donations are still
being accepted.
L-R: Heppner FBLA Advisor Jean Collins with FBLA members Lita Nelson, Lily Nichols,
Claire Lindsay, Aden Lathrop, John Lindsay, Mason Orem, Jackson Coiner, Caleb George
and chaperone Ken Grieb. -Contributed photo
A group of eight stu-
dents from Heppner High
School competed at the
Future Business Leaders
of America (FBLA) State
Convention held at the
DoubleTree Hotel in Port-
land earlier this month. Led
by FBLA Advisor Mrs. Jean
Collins and chaperone Ken
Grieb, the students spent
three days immersed in
competitions, leadership
workshops, and networking
events.
Heppner students Aden
Lathrop, John Lindsay, Ma-
son Orem, Caleb George,
Jackson Coiner, Lily Nich-
ols, Claire Lindsay and
Lita Nelson participated in
workshops and competi-
tions on Thursday and Fri-
day. The event wrapped up
with an awards ceremony
Saturday morning.
Several Heppner com-
petitors placed in the top 10
in their respective events,
earning the opportunity
to compete at the FBLA
National Leadership Con-
ference in Anaheim, CA,
from June 29 to July 2.
In Agribusiness, Aden
Lathrop placed seventh and
John Lindsay took fourth.
In Entrepreneurship, Lita
Nelson and Claire Lindsay
placed eighth, while John
Lindsay placed third. In
Hospitality and Manage-
ment, Lily Nichols and
Claire Lindsay secured fifth
place.
Willow Creek Reservoir fish habitat
improvement underway
ODFW staff prepare to an-
chor a juniper tree to the
bottom of Willow Creek Res-
ervoir. -Contributed photo
ODFW staff are work-
ing to improve fishing op-
portunities at Willow Creek
Reservoir by anchoring
The meeting will be held at woody structures, such as
430 W Linden Way.
juniper trees, to the reser-
Meetings of the Hep- voir bottom to create more
pner Cemetery Mainte-
nance District are open
to the public according
to ORS 192.640(1). For
questions or to attend by
phone please contact Janet
Greenup at 541-561-6768.
Cemetery district to meet
The Heppner Cemetery
Maintenance District will
hold its monthly meeting
on Thursday, May 1, 2025.
The regular meeting will be
held at 5:15 p.m.
Agenda items include
minutes of the previous
meeting, financial report
and cemetery operations.
Heppner FBLA students qualify
for nationals at state convention
cover for fish.
The goal of the pilot
project is to increase the
survival of native redband
trout, stocked trout, bass,
crappie, and other warm
water species by improv-
ing the otherwise sparse
habitat and fish cover in the
reservoir.
In partnership with the
U.S. Army Corps of Engi-
neers, which owns and op-
erates the reservoir, ODFW
fish biologists will install a
map onsite showing where
the structures have been
anchored. Anglers and boat-
ers should take measures
to stay safe while recreat-
ing on the reservoir. The
woody structures will be
in areas where they will
be submerged for much of
the year.
Neighborhood Center the
winner in donation contest
“There is a lack of fish
habitat in the reservoir due
to the fluctuating water lev-
els, and this will hopefully
help increase survival by
increasing cover for fish,”
said Taylor McCroskey,
Umatilla District Fish Biol-
ogist. “This method is used
in reservoirs in the southern
U.S., and has shown to be
an effective tool,” McCros-
key added.
ODFW will continue to
monitor fish populations in
the reservoir to determine
if the woody structures
improve habitat over the
long term.
Willow Creek Reser-
voir, located in Heppner, is
a man-made reservoir im-
pounded by Willow Creek
Dam. It was built to control
the risk of flooding, provide
for irrigation, recreation
and environmental stew-
ardship use.
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NC closed May 1-2
The Neighborhood
Center of South Morrow
County will be closed for
business May 1 and May 2
for scheduled maintenance.
177 N. Main
P.O. Box 337
Heppner, OR 97836
Chris@sykesrealestate.net
Neither the food pantry nor
the thrift store will be open.
The center staff apologizes
for any inconvenience
2 Lots
Approx 38 acres
Heppner Youth Baseball
home game schedule
Heppner Youth Base-
ball players are well into
their 2025 season. Coach-
es report that they had a
wonderful turnout for their
opening ceremonies.
Below is the upcoming
schedule for home games.
(Games are always subject
to change depending on the
weather.)
April 23: Juniors soft-
ball at Bob Kilkenny field, 6
p.m. Minor baseball (Hep-
pner vs Heppner) at Hisler
field, 6 p.m.
April 24: Majors soft-
ball at Bob Kilkenny field,
5:30 p.m.
April 25: Coach Pitch
(John Britt Logging) at
Hisler field, 11 a.m. Major
softball at Bob Kilkenny
field, 6 p.m.
April 28: Juniors soft-
ball at Bob Kilkenny field,
6 p.m. Tee ball (White vs
Blue) at HES lower field,
5:30 p.m.
April 30: Minor soft-
ball at Bob Kilkenny field,
6 p.m., Major baseball
(Gray) at Waterland field,
6 p.m., Coach Pitch (Miller
& Son’s vs John Britt Log-
ging) at Hisler field, 6 p.m.
May 1: Minor baseball
at Hisler field, 6 p.m. Tee
ball (Yellow vs Gray) at
HES lower field, 5:30 p.m.
May 2: Minor baseball
(Heppner vs Heppner) at
Hisler field, 6 p.m.
May 3: Major base-
ball (Gray) at Waterland
field, 10 a.m., Heppner vs
Heppner at 1 p.m. Major
softball at Bob Kilkenny
field, 11 a.m.
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Broker
Chris Sykes
541-215-2274
Pictured are (L-R) Blattner Energy representatives Jaden
Court and Joel Ramirez with Neighborhood Center volunteers
Gary Clark and Debbie Stanely and NC Coordinator Nikki
Clark. -Photo by Cindi Doherty
Blattner Energy’s Safe-
ty Manager Joel Ramirez
and administrative team
member Jaden Court pre-
sented the Neighborhood
Center of South Morrow
County with donations they
collected during a com-
pany contest run between
the office and field teams
recently.
The Blattner field team
won and, locally, their team
came in third place. The
Neighborhood Center was
presented with $854 as well
as a box of nonperishable
food items collected by
Blattner Energy employees.
Ramirez said that their
company does this contest
every year and the whole
company really enjoys
raising the money to give
to local nonprofits in the
areas they are working in.
Blattner Energy is based
out of Avon, MN and is here
installing turbines northeast
of Lexington.
“The Neighborhood
Center is grateful for this
generous donation from
Blattner Energy,” said
Neighborhood Center
Coordinator Nikki Clark.
“Thank you, Blattner.”
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The City of Heppner will be offering vouchers for 1 free dump, per account, at the
South Morrow County Transfer Station ($15.00 maximum value.) Vouchers are
redeemable for the period beginning April 19, 2025 and valid through May 18, 2025.
Must be a current customer of the City of Heppner (water or water/sewer account,)
and your account must be in good standing. Customers must request their voucher
in advance at City Hall and present it to Transfer Station attendant at time of
redemption. No rain checks.