Hermiston
Herald
ld
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2016
HermistonHerald.com
Page 3
Health &
Fitness Day
promotes
wellness
SPECIAL N
SECTIO E:
INSID
$1.00
FALL
2016
& CAR
BULLDOGS SUFFER
FIRST LEAGUE LOSS
CARE
ABOUT TOWN
Umatilla County
ends burn ban
Page 10
Burning is OK again
in Umatilla County.
The county board of
commissioners lifted the
ban.
The change to cooler,
wetter weather prompted
the board to allow non-
agricultural burning to
resume. The change went
into effect Thursday
and excludes any land
under the jurisdiction of
the state of Oregon, the
United States government,
the Confederated Tribes
of the Umatilla Indian
Reservation or a fi re
district.
Farmers and residents
who wish to burn need
to check the Umatilla
County website at www.
co.umatilla.or.us and
click the link for “Burn
Information,” or call the
county burn line at 800-
305-2876 or 541-278-6397.
Open burning in the
unincorporated areas
and outside fi re districts
requires a permit. Contact
the county planning
department at 541-278-
6252 or the county website
for a permit applications.
Open house asks
for ideas on
festival street
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY CLAYTON HAIGHT
Christina Haight, Bekah Tolman and Breena Wadekamper help promote an I Love My City free car wash Saturday at Les Schwab
Tires in Hermiston.
Congregation reacts to tragedy with
acts of kindness for community
By JADE McDOWELL
Staff Writer
T
ragedy can bring a community together or tear
it apart.
After losing a member of their congregation
to a murder-suicide that left three people dead
and shocked the city, parishioners at Hermiston
Assembly of God are doing their part to bring
people together.
On Saturday about 70 volunteers spread across
Hermiston, clad in bright red T-shirts with the words “I
Love My City” emblazoned across their chests. They
held two free car washes, handed out food and drink at
the parks, hosted a block party and went door to door
offering to pray with anyone who needed it.
Pastor Terry Haight said the congregation hopes to
make the I Love My City concept a regular presence
in town.
“We’ve got (the slogan) on our chest, so people can
see it,” he said, “but we want them to feel it, too.”
The idea for the campaign came as the church
helped with a community candlelight vigil and a me-
See LOVE, A16
STAFF PHOTO BY JADE McDOWELL
Kaitlyn Bicknell and Bekah Tollman, both 15, wash cars for free during an
“I Love My City” event hosted by Hermiston Assembly of God on Saturday.
Umatilla hosts health and wellness event
Hermiston Herald
Agencies across Uma-
tilla and Morrow counties
are getting together to host
a town hall they hope will
spark efforts to increase
health and wellness.
The Umatilla Learning
Connection Town Hall
will be Oct. 14 from 10
a.m. to 2 p.m. at Umatilla
High School.
According to a news re-
lease from Umatilla School
District, the gathering will
be based on the premise that
healthy students are better
learners and “will focus
on strengthening local net-
works, stimulating action
and engaging the communi-
ty in supporting the link be-
tween health and education.”
RELATED STORY
Local agencies also recently held a family health and fi tness day event
at Hermiston High School. See related story and photos inside on Page A3.
“I think every one of
us wants to help improve
our schools and neigh-
borhoods, our families
and ourselves,” Umatilla
superintendent Heidi Sipe
said in a statement, “but
we aren’t quite sure where
to start. This is an opportu-
nity to actually step up and
make a positive difference
collectively, for our com-
munity and by our com-
munity.”
A similar event was
held in Tillamook by the
Oregon Dairy and Nutri-
tion Council and prompt-
ed the Tillamook County
Commission to declare
2016 a “Year of Wellness.”
Umatilla’s town hall will
feature presentations and
discussion on research,
success stories and local
needs. Participants will be
asked to commit to school
wellness with time and
resources during the next
school year.
Participants will in-
clude local educators,
farmers, city offi cials, the
Oregon Dairy and Nu-
trition Council, Umatilla
School District, Umatilla
County, OSU Extension
SNAP-Ed,
InterMoun-
tain Education Service
District, Good Shepherd
Health Care System, Uma-
tilla-Morrow Head Start
and Oregon Department of
Education.
The event is free but
space is limited and partic-
ipants must RSVP to Ang-
ie Treadwell by Oct. 7 at
angie.treadwell@ore-
gonstate.edu or 541-
567-8321. Lunch will be
provided. For more infor-
mation contact Rikkilynn
Larsen at larsenr@umatil-
lasd.
Residents who want
input on a new festival
street in downtown
Hermiston are invited to an
open house on Oct. 10.
The event will kick off
the planning and design of
the $1.25 million project,
which will run along
Northeast Second Street
in front of City Hall from
Main Street to the planned
Harkenrider Center. Cities
use “festival streets” as
event spaces that are open
to vehicle traffi c during
normal hours, but can
easily be blocked off and
converted into a public
gathering space for events
such as the Eastern Oregon
Arts Festival.
The Hermiston Urban
Renewal Agency and a
citizen advisory committee
plan to work over the
next 10 to 12 months
designing the project, with
construction beginning in
the fall of 2017.
The open house is Oct.
10 at 6 p.m. at City Hall,
180 N.E. Second St.
Sheriff ’s offi ce
provides ‘Back-
packs for Kids’
The Umatilla County
Sheriff’s Offi ce, in coopera-
tion with the Salem-Keizer
Education Foundation, has
provided 114 backpacks fi lled
with crayons, pens, pencils,
notebooks and other school
supplies to eight local schools.
Foundation Director Krina
Lee, along with her husband,
delivered boxes of schools
supples and backpacks to the
sheriff’s offi ce on Aug. 26.
The idea was thought up by
Lee’s brother, Umatilla Coun-
ty Reserve Deputy Dave
Shotts.
Sheriff’s offi ce staff fi lled
each of the backpacks, which
were delivered recently to
Athena Elementary, Echo
School, McNary Heights
Elementary, Pilot Rock El-
ementary, Rocky Heights
Elementary, Stanfi eld Ele-
mentary and the Pendleton
and Milton-Freewater school
districts.