NEW COACH NEEDED SERVICE SMITH BRINGS EXPERIENCE TO HHS VOLLEYBALL TEAM MEMORY CARE HOMES BREAK GROUND SPORTS PAGE A7 PAGE A4 WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2015 YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER HERMISTONHERALD.COM Early results: People want to elect judge EOTEC board OKs BMCC measure passing Election results center design BY JADE MCDOWELL EO MEDIA GROUP The details are in place for a major piece of the Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center after the project’s board approved a design for the event center Tuesday. Choosing a final de- sign this week kept EO- TEC on track for a March 2016 completion date. The building will include a more than 12,000-square-foot ex- hibition hall, three large meeting rooms, a board- room, a kitchen, offices and storage. After examining plans drawn up by LRS Archi- tects and G2 Construc- tion, the authority did make a few changes while trying to stay within the building’s $2.7 million budget. Vijay Patel convinced the other board mem- bers that a long hallway stretching the length of the exhibition hall need- ed to be expanded from 12 feet to 15 feet wide so the hall could be used to locate vendors, displays, buffet tables or other SEE EOTEC/A2 TODAY’S WEATHER Partly cloudy High: 82º Low: 55º OUTLOOK • THURSDAY Partly cloudy High: 84º Low: 57º • FRIDAY Partly cloudy High: 84º Low: 53º A complete weather forecast is featured on page A2. Find the Hermiston Herald on Facebook and Twitter and join the conversation. FOR LOCAL BREAKING NEWS www.HermistonHerald.com cial results indicate 45 percent were in favor of the amendment, with 55 percent opposed. The city decided to update its BY JESSICA KELLER City Charter last year after deter- HERMISTON HERALD mining the document, which had $FFRUGLQJ WR XQRI¿FLDO VSHFLDO not been amended since it was election results posted by Umatilla created 60 years ago, needed to be County, Hermiston residents will modernized. In some cases, provi- continue to elect their municipal sions in the new document were re- court judge. vised to make them constitutional. As of 8:03 p.m., Hermiston res- 2IPRUHVLJQL¿FDQFHWKHQHZFKDU idents overwhelmingly supported ter changes the mayors term from updating the city’s charter, 73 per- two years to four years. cent to 27 percent, but they were The item that drew the greatest not in favor of an amendment to attention was that of the munici- allow the City Council to appoint pal court judge, with some people the municipal court judge position, questioning why the council want- currently held by Thomas Creasing. ed to set a new precedent by ap- They vote tally was not as close as SEE ELECTION/A2 WKDWRIWKH&LW\&KDUWHUEXWXQRI¿ Note: Results are unoffi cial and are the latest Umatilla County results as of the Herald press time Tuesday evening. For more, go to www. HermistonHerald.com or see the Umatilla County Elections Division website at www. co.umatilla.or.us/Elections HERMISTON HERALD A bark can be a warn- ing, it can be a greeting. It can mean stay away or let’s play. And it may also help ¿QG QHZ WUHDWPHQWV RU D cure for cancer. Bark For Life organizer Jennifer Pittam began the HYHQW¿YH\HDUVDJRWRUDLVH money for cancer research and recognize the role dogs play in their owners’ bat- tles with cancer. “The presence of a dog is so lighthearted and warming,” Pittam said. “I think they contribute to people’s general health tre- mendously.” She said Bark For Life honors canine caregivers, including service, therapy and diagnostic dogs, while advocating for people who have survived or are ¿JKWLQJFDQFHUDQGUDLVLQJ money for cancer research. She said Bark For Life not only raises money for the American Cancer Society, it is a precursor for Hermis- ton’s Relay For Life event, which will take place June 26-27 at the Armand Lar- ive Middle School track. “It helps get awareness out there for that and raise more money for that pur- pose,” Pittam said. Pittam said people can still donate to Bark For Life or to various Hermis- ton Relay For Life teams. $OO SURFHHGV EHQH¿W WKH American Cancer Society. JESSICA KELLER PHOTO Jennifer Mulhollan, left, Kennewick, ties a Bark For Life bandanna around the neck of her Cavalier King Charles spaniel Shir- le\, held b\ Miranda Hunt, Hermiston, at the À fth annual Bark For Life fundraiser for the American Cancer Societ\ Saturda\ at McKenzie Park in Hermiston. Although Saturday’s event at McKenzie Park in Hermiston failed to gen- erate the $4,000 to $5,000 Pittam was hoping to raise, she said, between the $2,600 garnered through Bark For Life and the oth- er fundraising she and her Team Bud-Rich members are doing for Relay For Life, she thinks they will be able to hit their target. Pittam said she became involved in Relay For Life HERMISTON HERALD © 2015 EO Media Group Hermiston judge appointment Yes 45% √ No 55% √ David W. Smith (67%) Rob Lovett (33%) BY JESSICA KELLER BY SEAN HART Hermiston charter revision √ Yes 73% No 27% Hermiston School Board √ Joshua Goller (58%) James T. Leach (41%) Fundraiser leads into Relay For Life in June Hermiston pastor met British monarch during an internship in Scotland BMCC Bond Umatilla County votes √ Yes 52% No 48% BARKING FOR A CAUSE with her mother, Sher- ry, and the Bark for Life event was organized to raise money for their team. Pittam said she and her mother became involved because one of Pittam’s grandmothers is a breast and lung cancer survivor, while another died from cancer. “So it’s something that my family, we’ve been af- fected by cancer in more than one way,” she said. Sometimes it’s good to be last Hermiston Herald $1.00 Port of Umatilla Joseph Franell (38%) √ Jerry Imsland (61%) In a humble position last in line, a Hermiston pastor had the chance to spend 15 minutes visit- ing with Queen Elizabeth II. During a one-year internship as an assistant minister at Dundee Parish Church St. Mary’s in Scot- land in 1991, Bruce Sexton as- sisted with the festivities for the church’s 800th anniversary, in- cluding a visit from the queen. Sexton, who is now the pas- tor of Faith Presbyterian Church in Hermiston, said dignitaries, including city and other church leaders, lined up outside the church to greet the queen as she arrived. Sexton said he and his wife were last in line to meet Queen Elizabeth and her hus- band, Prince Philip, so they were standing inside the entryway to the building. Members of the queen’s secu- ULW\WHDPKDGQRW¿QLVKHGVZHHS ing the building when she arrived in the entryway, so Sexton and his wife had a private audience as the queen waited there for about 15 minutes. “My wife and I were the only two inside the building,” he said. SEE SEXTON/A10 Including dogs in the event not only recognized the value canines play in their owners’ health, it also attracted people to Bark For Life, if only as a way to socialize their animals. Andrew Barthel, Herm- iston, attended with his family and his Irish setter/ golden retriever mix Red Baron. Barthel said he has come for the past few years as a way to remember his friend Ryan Sherman, who died of lung cancer at the age of 29. Barthel said Sherman frequently ac- companied him and Red Baron on hunting expedi- tions even as cancer over- took his friend. “Dogs, I believe, are a very essential part of a hu- man’s life,” Barthel said. “They have so many things to offer.” Other people stopped by SEE BARK/A10 Committee opening doors for Latino students New Hispanic scholarship foundation to seek tax-exempt status BY SEAN HART HERMISTON HERALD Hermiston businessman Eddie De La Cruz’s family did not have the resources to send him to four years of college, and he hopes a scholarship foundation he is help- ing form will provide the oppor- tunity to the younger generation. De La Cruz, chairman of Herm- iston’s Hispanic Advisory Com- mittee, announced the formation of the Eastern Oregon His- panic Scholarship Foundation at the Monday meeting. “When I wanted Caption to go to school, my folks didn’t have the dollars,” he said. “... It’s a decision that, if you can afford it, you go, but if your parents cannot afford it, you just hang around and hope there is some money coming over from somewhere.” The scholarship foundation has been a longtime goal for the SEE FOUNDATION/A10