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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 14, 2015)
Hermiston Herald HermistonHerald.com Stanfi eld takes on Heppner Page A10 $1.00 Senior pictures in 7-Eleven make student #TWITTERFAMOUS INSIDE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2015 SHOT AT GOLIATH HOME IMPROVEMENT & CAR CARE FALL 2015 SPECIAL SECTION ABOUT TOWN School district plans facility forums Twitter fame To see Stefano Peiris’ original Twitter posts and some of the reaction online to his photos, check out the following link: http://bit.ly/1RGsfNQ STAFF PHOTO BY SEAN HART Hermiston High School senior Stefano Peiris enjoys a Slurpee by the machine at his parents’ 7-Eleven franchise in Hermiston Tuesday. More than 27,000 people retweeted Peiris’ Twitter post with his senior pictures taken at the store by 60 Minute Photo owner Tammy James. HHS student’s pictures shared about 28,000 times By SEAN HART Staff Writer When Hermiston student Stefano Peiris posted his senior pictures on Twitter, he never ex- pected to become an Internet ce- lebrity. Of course, they weren’t the typical senior portraits. Peiris in- vited the photographer to shoot the stills at his parents’ 7-Eleven franchise — in the parking lot, behind the counter, at the Slurpee machine. The content went viral, and Peiris said he was shocked. With- in a few days of his Oct. 11 tweet, “So I took my senior pictures at 7-Eleven,” his Twitter followers jumped from about 200 to more than 900. More than 27,000 peo- ple have retweeted the post, and more than 46,000 clicked “favor- ite” as of Tuesday evening. See PEIRIS, A18 PHOTO COURTESY TAMMY JAMES PHOTO COURTESY TAMMY JAMES Hermiston High School senior Stefano Peiris gained many followers on Twitter after posting his senior photos taken at his parents’ 7-Eleven franchise in Hermiston. One of Stefano Peiris’ senior pictures featured 7-Eleven’s frozen beverage Slurpee machine in his parents’ store on Highland Avenue and Highway 395. City to hire pro tem municipal judges Facade grant also approved for Hermiston Herald building on Main Street By JADE McDOWELL Staff Writer The Hermiston City Council initiated a search Monday for a substitute to ¿ ll in when the city’s municipal judge has a conÀ ict of interest. In the past, the judge — current- ly Judge Thomas Creasing — has asked various licensed attorneys to step in when he has a conÀ ict. %ut language in the city’s new charter that took effect in January states that the City Council can hire an of¿ cial pro tem judge when neces- sary. City Manager %yron Smith said court staff estimated the pro tem judge would be needed for about an hour and a half each month and would be paid $200 an hour, total- ing about $3,600 a year. He suggested appointing two judges so if the ¿ rst isn’t available the city could continue to “keep those cases moving.” He said Creasing supported the idea of the council appointing of¿ cial pro tem judges. “He thought it was a good idea for transparency reasons,” Smith said. On Monday the council also ap- proved an agreement with the Ore- gon Department of Transportation. The department plans to grind up and repave Highway 395 through Hermiston next year, and the city will be responsible for paying about $23,000 to take care of man- hole covers and utilities in the right of way. The project is budgeted for $6.3 million. In about two weeks ODOT plans to put up temporary traf¿ c medi- ans at the intersection of Highway 395 and Elm Avenue, which will “When the temporary barriers are up, if we want to ask for something diff erent that’s the time.” — Byron Smith City Manager be replaced by permanent medi- ans during the 2016 project. The medians are meant to prevent left turns onto the highway to decrease the number of collisions at Herm- iston’s most crash-prone intersec- tion. “When the temporary barriers are up, if we want to ask for some- See JUDGES, A18 Hermiston School District will hold two community forums in the coming weeks to discuss district facilities and student growth challenges. The community meetings will be at 5 p.m. Oct. 22 at Rocky Heights Elementary School and 5 p.m. Nov. 10 at Desert View Elementary School. Spanish translation services will be available, and anyone interested in learning more about the district’s capacity challenges is encouraged to attend. After record enrollment this year, district of¿ cials will discuss initial plans to address continued strain on school facilities. Attendees will learn about previous bond outcomes, the work of the Facility Master Planning Committee, current issues in the district and potential next steps. An opportunity for feedback will also be provided. These forums are part of the second phase of a ¿ ve-phase approach to a potential capital construction bond planned for May 2017. Opportunities for community feedback will continue through January 2017 when the school board will begin considering placing the bond measure on the ballot. Library program highlights early Oregon suff ragist A special community program portraying the life and accomplishments of the nationally-recognized Oregon suffragist Abigail Scott Duniway is planned. Duniway was an American women’s rights advocate, newspaper editor and writer whose efforts were instrumental in gaining voting rights for women. In 1912, she authored the Oregon Woman Suffrage Proclamation, and her tireless work as an activist played an important role in later passage of the 19th Amendment, which granted the right to vote to all U.S. women. The free event is at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the Hermiston Public Library, 235 E. Gladys Ave. The program is presented by Judy Allen of Wallowa County, a historian and career researcher. For more information, contact judy.allen.joseph@ gmail.com. For details about the Hermiston presentation, call the library at 541-567-2882.