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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 2015)
A2 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015 LOCAL WEATHER Today's Weather Local 5-Day Forecast Wed Thu 1/7 Fri 1/8 43/30 Sat 1/9 38/31 Sun 1/10 38/30 1/11 41/27 39/30 Partly cloudy skies. High 43F. Winds light and variable. Considerable cloudi- ness. Highs in the upper 30s and lows in the low 30s. Morning clouds fol- lowed by afternoon sun. Morning clouds fol- lowed by afternoon sun. Afternoon showers. Highs in the upper 30s and lows in the low 30s. Sunrise Sunset 7:38 AM 4:28 PM Sunrise Sunset 7:37 AM 4:30 PM Sunrise Sunset 7:37 AM 4:31 PM Sunrise Sunset 7:37 AM 4:32 PM Sunrise Sunset 7:36 AM 4:33 PM Oregon At A Glance Portland 53/38 Salem 53/35 PHOTOS COURTESY OF KAREN HUTCHINSON-TALASKI Karen Hutchinson-Talaski took this photo of the Lingering Garden in Suzhou China on a trip last fall. CHINA: Eugene 53/37 continued from page A1 was to go to the Great Wall,” Hutchinson-Talaski said. “I knew we were in China, but it didn’t really hit me until I saw the Great Wall.” She said the wall is the only man-made structure visible from space and see- ing the “huge undertaking” in person was exciting. “It was so incredible to be there and walk on those steps and walk where peo- ple have been walking for centuries,” she said. “It was an incredible thing to see.” 'XULQJWKHGD\JXLG- ed trip, the group visited Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou. Hutchin- son-Talaski said the “hou” VXI¿[ VLJQL¿HV WKH FLW\ LV near water, and a canal ride through Suzhou provided a chance to see people per- forming everyday tasks. She said it was “interesting and fascinating” to see the different culture. The group visited a mar- ket that she described as a large shopping mall in a very small area with people offering a wide variety of items. “They had everything from stainless steel pots and pans to live frogs and chickens,” Hutchinson-Ta- laski said. “There was a guy making blankets. Another guy was sell- Medford 58/44 Pendleton 42/30 Hermiston 43/30 La Grande 43/31 Bend 50/37 Ontario 35/28 Burns 44/29 Klamath Falls 56/27 Area Cities City Albany Ashland Astoria Baker City Bend Brookings Burns Coos Bay Corvallis Eugene Hi 52 57 60 37 50 63 44 63 52 53 Lo 35 45 41 26 37 47 29 45 36 37 Cond. sunny sunny sunny mst sunny sunny sunny mst sunny sunny sunny sunny City Florence Grants Pass Hermiston John Day Klamath Falls La Grande Lakeview Lincoln City Mcminnville Medford Hi 61 58 43 48 56 43 55 64 54 58 Lo 44 40 30 32 27 31 29 47 37 44 Cond. sunny sunny pt sunny sunny sunny sunny sunny sunny sunny sunny City Newport Pendleton Portland Redmond Roseburg Salem Springfield The Dalles Tillamook Vale Hi 61 42 53 50 59 53 60 46 66 35 Lo 46 30 38 29 42 35 42 34 42 28 Cond. sunny pt sunny sunny sunny sunny pt sunny sunny mst sunny sunny pt sunny City Houston Los Angeles Miami Minneapolis New York Hi 52 77 79 -3 25 Lo 29 54 55 -7 9 Cond. pt sunny mst sunny pt sunny pt sunny windy City Phoenix San Francisco Seattle St. Louis Washington, DC Hi 76 68 52 8 27 Lo 48 49 39 1 12 Cond. sunny sunny pt sunny windy windy National Cities City Atlanta Boston Chicago Dallas Denver Umatilla Chamber of Commerce Director Karen Hutchin- son-Talaski poses on the Great Wall of China during a recent trip with other chamber executives to promote tourism in the country. ing household goods like brooms and mops. Scooters are beep-beeping their way through these narrow little alleyways — and people with carts. It was just so in- credibly cool because that’s how people live there.” She said the people were “warm and friendly” and “very generous.” She said she was surprised how Karen Hutchinson-Talaski poses in front of a temple that was built over a warlord’s tomb at Tiger Hill in Suzhou on a recent trip to China with other chamber of commerce executives. HOMELESS: continued from page A1 Smith said the district doesn’t want those students to have to change schools every time they move, so the busing arrangement gives them some consistency in their lives. “We bus from wherever they are to the school to accommodate what can be a chaotic lifestyle,” he said. Smith said the district also provides homeless students who qualify with free and reduced lunches and breakfasts. The dis- trict also collaborates with area faith-based groups on their back- pack programs, which provides students with food and other items in backpacks over the weekend. “For some of these kids, they many people spoke En- glish and how excited they were to see Americans. She said people approached the group asking to have their picture taken with the tour- ists. “When I think of China, I think of very austere peo- ple all dressed the same, a lack of food, all these things,” she said. “It wasn’t like that. It’s very Western- ized. These people have embraced that with open arms.” Hutchinson-Talaski said the food in the country was not like Chinese food in the United States. She said it was not deep fried and always fresh with rice and vegetables. Soup was served at the end of the meal, and fruit was served for dessert, she said. “I was pleasantly sur- prised because I wasn’t sure what the food would be,” she said. “I’m kind of a picky eater, but there was nothing I couldn’t eat.” She said another high- light of the trip was the Lingering Garden in Su- zhou. She said the three- or four-century-old Chinese garden had coy ponds and a large collection of bonsai, artistically trimmed minia- ture trees. “It’s a beautiful garden,” she said. “It was so peace- ful. I could have stayed there all day.” may only get two square meals a day when they eat breakfast and lunch at school,” Smith said. “The weekend backpacks provide sustenance for throughout the rest of the week.” Smith said the district can also waive all student fees, which en- compasses more than just aca- demic costs. “We can cover all of the fees associated with school- ing,” he said. Smith said the district also partners with the Hermiston Sports Boosters to help cover the costs for items like sneakers or jerseys so a student who doesn’t have money for those things can still participate. “Those can weigh very heavi- ly on a family,” he said. “We are trying to take away some of those things so the student has less to worry about.” Hi 38 26 0 35 34 Lo Cond. 13 windy -2 windy -13 windy 19 windy 28 pt sunny Moon Phases UV Index Wed Full Last New First Jan 5 Jan 13 Jan 20 Jan 27 ©2010 American Profile Hometown Content Service Thu Fri Sat Sun 1/7 1/8 1/9 1/10 1/11 1 Low 1 Low 1 Low 1 Low 1 Low The UV Index is measured on a 0 - 11 number scale, with a higher UV Index showing the need for greater skin protection. 0 11 Karen Hutchinson-Talaski took this photo on a canal ride in Suzhou while on a free trip to China designed to promote tourism in the country. Smith said the district also of- fers students support from coun- selors and other staff, who can help with them cope with the weight of their situation. He said the district uses community re- source specialists to work with the students and the families as it can be a very sensitive topic. Lisa Depew, grants and curric- ulum manager for the district, said the stigma associated with being homeless can be a huge barrier for families. She said, although the GLVWULFWKDVLGHQWL¿HGVWXGHQWV as homeless, the number could be greater, so having counselors and support staff, such as secretaries, is vital in communicating and supporting those families who are struggling with homelessness. “Counselors and secretaries are RXU¿UVWOLQHRIFRPPXQLFDWLRQLQ establishing a relationship with those families,” she said. “There is a stigma attached, so these fam- ilies may be embarrassed about their situation that has occurred due to circumstances that are be- yond their control.” Depew said families having to repeat their circumstances four or ¿YHWLPHVWRYDULRXVSHRSOHFDQDOVR be another huge barrier for them. “Secretaries and counselors are made aware of the situation so they are able to communicate ZLWKWKHVHIDPLOLHVZLWKFRQ¿GHQ- tiality and discretion,” she said. Smith said teachers and coun- selors help identify homeless students based on what they see, adding they are trained to look for signs of homelessness, such as when students stop coming to school, they show signs of need- ing a bath or wearing the same clothes multiple days. “Those are typically some of the things that peaks the attention of a classroom teacher, who then will report it to the school coun- selor,” he said. Depew said the whole process LVFRQ¿GHQWLDOKRZHYHUIDPLOLHV do have to meet certain criteria to UHFHLYHEHQH¿WVXQGHUWKH0F.LQ- ney-Vento law. ³:KDWZH¿QGLVWKDWLWLVRQD case-by-case determination,” she said. Depew said what makes Herm- iston’s program a success, in par- ticular, is the partnerships with neighboring school districts and WKH0LG&ROXPELD%XV&RPSDQ\ which provides the transportation for students. “We have our challenges being very rural, but we work closely with the surrounding districts and we make it work,” she said.