INSIDE THIS WEEK
FARM-CITY PRO RODEO SPECIAL SECTION
FOR COWBOYS
Hermiston
Herald
ld
HermistonHerald.com
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 2, 2017
INSIDE
THREE MINUTES
WITH...
MEET JAYSON PAKULAK, THE
OWNER OF BRICKHOUSE COFFE
AND BISTRO.
PAGE A2
BY COWBOYS
AUG. 9-12
2017
IN HERMISTON
$1.00
FAIR-LY READY
HEAT IS ON
NEW RECORD HIGH TEMPS
COULD BE SET THIS WEEK.
PAGE A3
SHUTDOWN
CONTROVERSIAL STANFIELD
DEHYDRATION PLANT CLOSES
TEMPORARILY FOR REPAIRS.
PAGE A3
CHURCH OPENS
DINER
DESERT ROSE OPENS A
RESTAURANT TO PROVIDE
JOBS FOR PEOPLE GETTING
BACK ON THEIR FEET.
PAGE A8
BY THE WAY
Moose award
two scholarships
Stanfi eld Lodge No.
920 Loyal Order of Moose
awarded $1,000 scholar-
ships to Laci Wiggins and
Ryan Bailey.
Wiggins, who graduated
from Echo High School,
plans to attend Blue Moun-
tain Community College to
study agriculture and busi-
ness. Bailey, who graduat-
ed as valedictorian of his
class at Stanfi eld Secondary
School, will continue his
education at Eastern Ore-
gon University with a focus
on economy and politics.
Members of the Stan-
fi eld Moose Lodge con-
gratulates the two youths
and wishes them the best as
they pursue future plans.
• • •
A Hermiston physician
was surprised this past
spring, as he was presented
with a Quilt of Valor.
Dr. Bruce Carlson re-
ceived the quilt after Tina
Newson, one of his patients,
made arrangements for the
presentation after contacting
J. Marie Norris, Oregon
state coordinator for Quilts
of Valor. Newson was on
STAFF PHOTO BY KATHY ANEY
Volunteer Ryan Myers lays sod Saturday at the Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center arena. The facility’s fi rst major event, the Umatilla
County Fair, will kick off next week.
Volunteers
adding
fi nishing
touches
FAQ about
new fair
and rodeo
facility
Contractors get help
from community in
fi nal days before fair
Eastern Oregon Trade
and Event Center gears
up for fi rst fair and
rodeo next week
Rivera
offered job
as interim
manager
By JADE McDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
Roughly 300 volunteers donned
work gloves Saturday to help en-
sure Hermiston’s Eastern Oregon
Trade and Event Center is ready
for the Umatilla County Fair and
Farm-City Pro Rodeo.
They fi lled black garbage bags
with brush and weeds. They painted
Thousands of Umatilla Coun-
ty residents are about to get their
fi rst look at the Eastern Oregon
Trade and Event Center next week
as the project hosts its fi rst Uma-
tilla County Fair and Farm-City
The candidate for interim man-
ager of the Eastern Oregon Trade
and Event Center has been iden-
tifi ed — but he has yet to accept
the job.
During a special meeting called
for Monday afternoon, the proj-
ect’s board unanimously approved
a motion to hire Hermiston Energy
Services superintendent Nate Ri-
vera to act as manager for a period
“not to exceed” six months, and
authorized board chair and Herm-
iston City Manager Byron Smith
to work out the terms with Rivera.
See VOLUNTEERS, A4
See FAQ, A6
See RIVERA, A4
By PHIL WRIGHT
STAFF WRITER
By JADE McDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
See BTW, A4
Annual Portland watermelon giveaway Friday
Several Hermistonians
will head west this Friday
for a spitting contest —
watermelon seed-spitting,
that is.
Mayor David Drotz-
mann will face off against
Portland
Mayor
Ted
Wheeler in this summer-
time favorite, as part of
the two cities’ annual wa-
termelon giveaway on Fri-
day at 11 a.m., at Pioneer
Courthouse Square, 701
SW Sixth Ave., Portland.
The event dates back
to the 1991, when former
Hermiston Mayor Frank
Harkenrider
challenged
then-mayor of Portland,
Bud Clark, to a watermel-
on seed-spitting contest.
The event became an an-
nual tradition that lasted
until 2008. In 2015, the
two towns revived the
event, with Hermiston rep-
resentatives returning each
summer with truckloads
full of produce to give to
eager Portland residents.
Local farms donate
produce for the event, in-
cluding Bellinger Farms,
Walchli Farms, and other
farms that chose not to be
named. This year, Drotz-
mann, Hermiston council-
ors Jackie Myers and Rod
Hardin will have dinner
on Thursday night with
Wheeler and Seraphie Al-
len, the assistant for poli-
cy and community affairs
for the city of Portland.
The group will discuss
ways for the two cities to
work together.
The next day, the
group, including council-
or Lori Davis, and sev-
eral representatives from
the Hermiston Chamber
of Commerce, including
the group’s executive di-
rector, Debbie Pedro, will
gather at Pioneer Court-
house Square for the
seed-spitting contest, re-
marks from both mayors,
and to distribute produce.
“This is a great event
that continues to build
on our relationship with
our partners in Portland,”
Drotzmann said.
CONTRIBUTED BY THE CITY OF HERMISTON
Mayor David Drotzmann and other members of the
Hermiston delegation pass out watermelons in 2016 during
the annual watermelon giveaway at Portland’s Pioneer
Courthouse Square. Hermiston offi cials return to Portland
for the traditional event on Friday to promote Hermiston
watermelons and other locally grown produce.