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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2015)
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2015 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9 HISTORY Different sort of school violence in news 23 years ago dren asked to join gangs and then harassed if the answer was no. Other parents said their chil- dren were afraid to go to Junior High about school school. It was fear for students’ violence that no one cares about the schools or kids safety and education that motivated a group of four anymore. Those parents do care parents — Rene Gutier- and told each other about rez, Karen Smelser, Mary ¿JKWV LQ WKH KDOOZD\V DQG Hamilton and Val Hender- cafeteria. They told about son — to call a meeting threats to their children’s yesterday evening. They safety and about rumors asked George Anderson, of guns and knives on a local attorney, to be the moderator. campus. ‘Yes, I do believe we ‘If we don’t approach this as parents now, I’m have a gang problem,’ said afraid we are going to end school Principal Shannon up with guns and knives Gorham. ‘It’s not like the loose in the halls,’ said problem in Portland, but Rene Guiterrez, one of we do have the beginning the parents organizing of a problem.’” The Oct. 27 story was the meeting. ‘We’re not Portland or Seattle but we followed by another on Nov. 3, 1992, titled “Par- need to stop it now.’ Parents told about chil- ents patrol at junior high.” Concerns about gang violence in Hermiston reached an all-time high in October 1992 By JADE McDOWELL Staff Writer A rise in school shoot- ings has put discussions of school safety in the news recently, but years before Columbine High School became a household name Hermiston parents were already concerned about violence in local schools. Their concerns came to a head during an Oct. 26, 1992, meeting that drew 150 parents. From a story in the next day’s Herald titled “Parents concerned over violence, gang activity” comes the following: “Never tell the 150 parents who came to a meeting at Armand Larive The article stated that about 40 parents had got- ten together after the meet- ing to organize volunteer patrols in the mornings and after school to help teachers “calm outbreaks of violence” that were ex- acerbated by overcrowded conditions that required assigning students three to a locker. The parents also took the initiative to double up on chaperons for the high school’s Halloween dance. The concerned parents took matters into their own hands after feeling frustrated with the Herm- iston Police Department’s response to perceived gang problems. In an Oct. 6, 1992, ar- WLFOH WLWOHG ³*UDI¿WL VLJ- nals gang activity, says detective” then-Chief Grant Asher was quoted as saying he didn’t be- lieve Hermiston had a gang problem, despite an assertion by Oregon State Police Detective Dick Stein that increasing graf- ¿WLVD\LQJ³1RUWH´DQG “13” around the commu- nity signaled that students moving to the area from Portland and California ZHUH EULQJLQJ JDQJ DI¿OL- ations with them. Asher disagreed. “We have a bunch of people running around, but I don’t see a gang problem,” he told the Her- ald. “You’ve got a case of the white kids calling the Hispanic kids names and they get tired of it, get a JURXS WRJHWKHU DQG ¿JKW back. Is that a gang? In my GH¿QLWLRQQR´ Parents weren’t taking any chances, however, which is why they called a community meeting later in the month to come up with a plan for combat- ing school violence. Lat- er in the year they invited Stein, a gang expert, to educate parents about pos- sible signs their children were in a gang. Hermiston History will be a regular feature in the Hermiston Herald. If you have something to share about the history of the greater Hermiston area, send your submission to editor@hermistonherald. com with “Hermiston History” in the subject line. If you have a ques- tion about the area’s his- tory you would like the Herald staff to look into, you can send your ques- tions to the same email address with “Hermiston History question” in the subject line. Umatilla seeks fire bond in Nov. 3 election By SEAN HART Staff Writer The Umatilla Rural Fire Protection District board hopes a new bond effort on the November ballot will help the agency procure safer equipment, replace 30-year- ROGYHKLFOHVDQGLPSURYH¿UH stations. District residents will soon see ballot measure 30- 107, which would generate about $1.8 million from a general obligation bond. If passed in the Nov. 3 election, the bond is estimated to cost tax payers an additional 54 cents per thousand dollars of assessed property value for 15 years. The owner of a $100,000 home would see a tax increase of $54 per year. The total amount gener- ated from the bond would be similar to the amount expect- ed from a 10-year local op- tion tax that was voted down last year, but property own- ers would pay less each year. Lt. Steve Potts said the dis- trict is in the same position it was in last year. “The need that we have hasn’t gone away,” he said. “We need to have the equip- ment, and we haven’t been able to get the resources or the funds ... because, over the years, costs have gone up, DQGZH¶UHDWD¿[HGSURSHUW\ tax rate. We have enough to operate day to day, but that’s just about it.” 7KHGLVWULFWKDVLGHQWL¿HG about $3.2 million in needed equipment replacements and upgrades in the next 10 years — far more than this bond would provide. Potts said the list was cut down to “must have” equipment. “The air packs are 19 years old, and these are what RXU ¿UH¿JKWHUV DUH XVLQJ WR go into deadly atmospheres and conditions, and they’re relying on that equipment for their safety,” he said. The packs are recommended for replacement at 12 years. “We really need those air packs. That’s the number one pri- ority we have at this point because it deals directly with ¿UH¿JKWHUVDIHW\´ The funding would also be used to replace a 1977 water tender, or tanker truck, and a 1979 heavy rescue ve- hicle and refurbish or replace a 1986 ladder truck and pos- sibly a 1997 brush truck and a 1997 engine, according to information from the district. Potts said if the district’s equipment suffers a cata- strophic failure similar to its last ladder truck and it cannot afford replacements, residents may end up having to pay more to insure their homes. He said some of the vehicles are already starting to show their age. “In the last month, two of the vehicles we are look- ing to replace have been in the shop for repair,” he said. “These apparatus are start- ing to cost us money from a maintenance perspective. It’s not to say that new vehicles don’t have these issues, but the likelihood is much, much less. And we’re not saying we’re going to go out and buy brand new, but we’re certainly going to get newer WKDQ\HDUROG¿UH¿JKWLQJ vehicles).” ,IIXQGLQJDOORZVWKH¿UH stations would also be up- graded to include automatic doors and living quarters for quicker response times, ac- cording to information from the district. For more information about the bond, visit uma- WLOOD¿UHRUJ RU FDOO 3718. GUARANTEED to beat VERIZON & AT&T PLUS, YOU’LL GET A $150 PROMO CARD INSTANTLY. Just bring in your bill and we guarantee we’ll beat the price on your current Verizon or AT&T plan. If we can’t, you’ll get a $50 Promo Card. 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