INSIDE SPORTS
BULLDOG BOYS BASKETBALL STAYS UNBEATEN
Hermiston
Herald
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2016
HermistonHerald.com
$1.00
INSIDE
REUNITED
HERMISTON CLASS OF 1942
GATHERS FOR A REUNION.
PAGE A2
WINTER FESTIVAL PROVIDES
HOLIDAY SPIRIT
ECHO LIGHTS UP THE SEASON
WITH HOLIDAY EVENTS.
PAGE A2
TWO FIRES IN
TWO DAYS
By JADE McDOWELL
Staff Writer
A 32 foot spruce tree draped in
5,000 LED lights is the centerpiece of
Hermiston’s Winter Festival down-
town.
The festival kicked off last Thurs-
day with a tree-lighting ceremony
and visit from Santa Claus, but a reg-
ular light show and four more nights
of live entertainment are on the calen-
dar between now and Christmas.
Some downtown business are also
featuring extended hours during the
festival, including special deals for
Men’s Night on Dec. 15, which fol-
lows Ladies Night that took place
on Dec. 1. Country musician Zac
Grooms will perform from 6-8 p.m.
that night at the stage next to the tree
on Northeast Second Street next to
the former RoeMark’s building, now
owned by Simmons Insurance Group.
Hermiston Parks and Recreation
director Larry Fetter said when the
tree went up that the event, in its sec-
ond year, has served as a “dress re-
hearsal” for the city’s planned festival
street.
The fi rst phase of the festival street
will cover Northeast Second Street
between Gladys Avenue and Main
Street, converting it into a pedestri-
an-friendly, curbless area with dec-
orative brickwork, landscaping and
other features. The street would fea-
ture gates to close it to traffi c during
activities like the Winter Festival or
Eastern Oregon Arts Festival. Con-
struction is expected to start in the
summer of 2017.
During last Thursday’s tree light-
ing event, hundreds of people fl ocked
downtown to enjoy the business
deals, food vendors, cookie decorat-
ing booth, fi re and a performance by
Hermiston-grown band BBPD.
“Isn’t this a great event?” Mayor
David Drotzmann asked the crowd to
cheers. “How awesome is this?”
He said the city was excited to
bring life and vitality to the down-
town area during the holiday season.
The Parks and Recreation Depart-
ment put up a tree and light show
last year, but after its inaugural run,
Drotzmann said, they listened to
feedback that it needed to be more
impressive.
“This year we made sure to put
more lights,” he said.
The festival area, located on the
corner of Main Street and Southeast
Second Street, will feature a light
show and live music each Thursday,
Friday and Saturday evening starting
at 5 p.m. until Christmas.
See LIGHTS, A7
FIRES DESTROY A HOME AND A
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE.
PAGE A3
WINTER
TRACTION
IT’S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THE
RIGHT TREAD — ON YOUR
SHOES AND YOUR TIRES — IN
WINTER WEATHER.
PAGE A4
HELPING HAND
GROUP PROVIDING HOPE FOR
THE HOMELESS GETS HELP.
PAGE A4
EVENT SCHEDULE
STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS
Five thousand LED Christmas lights illuminate the
32-foot tall spruce tree that is the centerpiece of the
Winter Festival in Hermiston.
The light show runs for 10 minutes at
the top of each hour from 5-8 p.m. on
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Dec. 9 Hermiston Jazz Band and Choir
6:30-7:30 p.m.
Dec. 15 Zac Grooms 6-8 p.m. and
Men’s Night downtown
Dec. 16 Severe Family 6-8 p.m.
Dec. 23 6-8 p.m. To Be Announced
STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS
People gather around a fi re pit to warm their hands Thursday during the Winter Festival in
Hermiston.
Farm Fair expands in 43rd year
More space at EOTEC means
more seminars, vendors
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Staff Writer
STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS
Juan Salamanca, left, and Antonio Echeverria, both of Hermiston, look at the
front bucket on a Case tractor Wednesday at the Hermiston Farm Fair.
The 43rd annual Hermiston
Farm Fair debuted last week at
its new home at the Eastern Ore-
gon Trade and Event Center with
a series of lectures on potato re-
search in the Columbia Basin.
And despite setting out more than
200 chairs in two meeting rooms,
space was still limited to stand-
ing-room only.
It is a testament to how much the
event and trade show has grown over
the decades.
See FAIR, A7
BRIEFLY
Wildhorse
Foundation
announces grant
allocations
Hermiston Herald
The Wildhorse Foun-
dation recently announced
its third quarter grants, in
which $210,896.91 was
disbursed to 30 recipients
— including a maximum
allocation to Windy Riv-
er Elementary School in
Boardman.
The school will pur-
chase new equipment
and instruments as well
as repair instruments for
its beginning band pro-
gram. This is the fi rst grant
Windy River has received
from the Wildhorse Foun-
dation.
Other local entities re-
ceiving grants include:
Hermiston
Warming
Station, $8,000 for op-
erating expenses; and
Umatilla-Morrow County
Head Start in Hermiston,
$10,000 to purchase a Toy-
ota Corolla to be used by
the Healthy Family home
visiting staff.
The foundation man-
ages a community benefit
fund established by the
Confederated Tribes of
the Umatilla Indian Res-
ervation. The board con-
siders quarterly grant ap-
plications in the areas of
public health and safety,
education, the arts, his-
toric preservation, gam-
bling addiction services,
salmon restoration, envi-
ronmental protection and
cultural activities. The
next application deadline
is Jan. 1.
For more information,
visit www.thewildhorse-
foundation.com or contact
Tiah DeGrofft at 541-966-
1628 or tiah.degrofft@
wildhorseresort.com.