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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2015)
A10 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15, 2015 FROM PAGE A1 BERGSTROM: continued from page A1 stitute teacher assistant and then was hired four years later as a temporary, full- time special education as- sistant, which later became a full-time position. Eight years ago, the physical edu- cation teacher retired and new P.E. instructor Todd Sprong advocated hiring a female assistant, who would be able to supervise the girls in their locker room and help address their needs. Bergstrom as- sumed that role. “Back then, you knew all of the kids. You knew most of their parents,” Bergstrom said. As physical education as- sistant, she monitors student attendance, helps with dis- cipline, helps lead activities and records physical testing results on a spreadsheet. She is also a valuable liai- son to the girls who may not feel comfortable discussing certain things with Sprong, such as female issues. “I think I’m more counsel- or, too, than anything,” Berg- strom said. “You know, I’m just there for them. If they need something, I usually have it.” Bergstrom said she enjoys CENTER: continued from page A1 ence center while also help- ing fund the Eastern Ore- gon Trade and Event Center when it opens. Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan said the city currently pays the chamber $64,350 to operate the con- ference center and about $25,000 in utilities and in- surance costs, for a total of $90,000 each year. After adding in the revenue gen- erated by the center, he said the facility has been operat- ing with an average net loss of about $50,000 annually. Morgan said the city is committed to paying at least $50,000 toward the operation of EOTEC when it opens in spring of 2016, DQGFLW\RI¿FLDOVPXVWFRQ- sider whether or not to sub- sidize two separate event spaces. Mayor Dave Drotzmann said Monday’s decision was only to extend the sta- tus quo for now to allow for further deliberation. “We’ve had a couple brief meetings with the Chamber of Commerce now to talk about the future of the Hermiston Confer- ence Center, and it’s just still in its infancy stages,” he said. “We’re still trying WRÀHVKRXWWKHGHWDLOVEXW it was our belief that they needed a little reassurance that there was going to be that aspect of her job. “Because sometimes they still need that at this age,” she said. “The need someone to help them out.” Bergstrom said a down- side of current physical ed- ucation classes is they are electives, so not all students take P.E. On the other hand, Bergstrom said, the children who are there generally want to be there and enjoy coming. “Here, we see kids in a different light than the teach- ers do,” Bergstrom said, add- ing classroom teachers have different expectations. “We want the kids to move and be active. The kids get to kind of cut loose with us.” Of course, Bergstrom said, students are a lot different now than they were 25 years DJR ZKHQ VKH ¿UVW HQWHUHG the classroom. First, she said, students are a lot more open about the kind of things they say to her and Sprong. “They share a lot of things with us that we don’t neces- sarily want to hear,” she said. “Too much information. On the other hand, I’m glad they share that with us because we know that we’ve made a connection that they want to share with us.” Of all the jobs she’s had in the school district, she’s an opportunity for them to continue as the operator of the Hermiston Conference Center, as they’re trying to book events at least a year in advance.” Councilwoman Jackie Myers agreed more deliber- ation is needed to determine D¿QDOSODQIRUWKHIDFLOLW\ “There’s a lot of moving pieces to this, and we just don’t have a good recom- mendation for it yet,” she said. “We need to do a lot more research and gather the facts before anybody can make a good decision on it.” enjoyed her current one the most. She said she has always had a good relationship with Sprong, and they enjoy what they do. “We treat each other like brother and sister,” she said. She said she and Sprong laugh all day long and have fun with the students. She said they try to arrange activi- ties students don’t usually get to participate in during physi- cal education classes, such as archery. “If we’re not having fun as instructors, then they’re not having fun,” Bergstrom said. Sprong said Bergstrom has been extremely valuable through the years as an assistant and working with the students. “You can’t even put a price on it,” he said. “She gets ath- letics and activities, which is cool.” He said, while she acts like a second mother to the girls, she cares about the boys just as much, adding she’ll spend her own money to get them things they need, such as shoes. She also will go to their athletic events. He said just recently she attended a few of her students Little League games and then congratulated them when she saw them in class. “She’ll do anything,” Sprong said. Bergstrom said one of the best parts of her job is seeing the enjoyment school brings to students who don’t have a lot to look forward to at home. “They’ve made me look at life a little differently,” she said. Bergstrom has also en- joyed watching her students grow and seeing them when they are in high school and in college, which is rewarding to her. Occasionally, Bergstrom said, some of the college stu- dents come to her house in the summer and play cards. Others have children in her classes. Bergstrom said, howev- er, that she has been with the school district long enough and is old enough that she has decided to retire. She VDLG ZKHQ VKH ¿UVW VWDUWHG as Sprong’s assistant, they agreed they would retire the same year, and the time has come. She said she wants to spend more time with her granddaughters, as well as working in her yard, but she will miss many aspects of her job. “I’m gonna miss the kids when I retire, that’s for sure,” she said. “Whoever gets my job is going to have the best job ever,” she said. Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Chair- man Joe Franell said ex- tending the current contract will reassure not only the chamber, but also the mem- bers of the community who utilize the center. He said he appreciated the thought- ful approach proposed. “The Chamber of Com- merce board applauds the idea of being deliberate about ‘What do we do with this facility?’” he said. “... It’s not a City Council as- set. It’s a community asset, and (we applaud) engaging the community in discus- sions about ‘What happens with that? What’s the best use of that facility? Do we keep it up? Do we keep it going? Do we sell it? Do we repurpose it?’ And we’re excited to be part of that discussion.” Morgan said the city purchased the entire cur- rent site for about $550,000 in 1994, and after, a city committee raised $600,000 from the community for renovations. Drotzmann said he re- spected the time and money the community has invest- ed in the “great community center.” He said, although the city would research all options, including selling the property, the commu- nity will be involved in the process. In other City Council news, City Attorney Gary Luisi recommended chang- es to a proposed contract to name Anderson Perry & Associates, La Grande, as the city’s engineers of re- cord. The council did not approve the agreement, and City Manager Byron Smith said he would look into modifying the contract and bring something back at a future meeting. JESSICA KELLER PHOTO Armand Larive Middle School physical education assistant Michele Berstrom watches as stu- dents play volleyball during class Tuesday. Bergstrom will end her 25-year career in the Hermis- WRQ6FKRRO'LVWULFWRQDKLJKQRWH6KHZDVVHOHFWHGDVRQHRIWKHVFKRROGLVWULFW·VFODVVLÀHGHP- ployees of the year last fall and recently learned she will be honored with a Crystal Apple Award. When they say “It Looks Like Spring!” and you say “You Bought Me A Ring?!” Sound Advantage Hearing Aid Center 541-567-4063 - C ONCLUDED 405 N. 1st St., Suite #107, Hermiston 541-215-1888 Ric Jones, BC-HIS 246 SW Dorion, Pendleton Verna Taylor, HAS Take Home Bleach Kits just $40 in April! - C ONCLUDED D r. H ibbert D ental 1100 Southgate, Suite 3 Pendleton, OR 97801 www.drhibbertdental.com • 541-612-3707 Saturday, April 18, 2015 Hermiston Conference Center 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Our Annual Meeting theme “Homegrown” will recognize an array of products grown and processed in our local area. Learn about UEC accomplishments in the past year, and what we expect in the year ahead. As always, attendance is free to UEC members. We hope your will join us! Featured Speaker J Judy Hill Lovins of Aspen Colorado, a A fine art photographer and “homegrown” native of Hermiston, will share her life story. sign up for our email newsletter Get news from the Hermiston Herald delivered to your email Monday - Friday. Sign up for our email newsletter at hermistonherald.com for more information 1-800-522-0255