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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (May 16, 2018)
A6 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, MAY 16, 2018 NEWS Training program ramps up for National Guard By JADE MCDOWELL STAFF WRITER Changes to the Army National Guard are result- ing in more days that sol- diers are away from home for training and deployment. A Department of Defense agency known as Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve is reaching out to local employers to help them understand the changes, which mean that in some years soldiers will be required to train for at least 63 days instead of 39. “Right here in Herm- iston, it’s very important because of the increased tempo of training that we have a good relationship with employers, because they take part of that heat when soldiers are gone,” said Jack Johnson, area chairman for ESGR. Johnson said the all-vol- unteer ESGR helps with out- reach to employers and has ombudsman power to work through “misunderstand- ings of the law” surrounding EO FILE PHOTO Oregon Army National Guard soldiers salute as the national anthem is played during a mobilization ceremony for their deployment to Kuwait October 3, 2015 at the Pendleton airport. duties to employees who are in the National Guard or the reserves for other military branches. Since the National Guard was created in 1903, John- son said, to replace the state- by-state militia system, fed- eral law said soldiers in the Guard must train at least 39 days a year and could only be deployed by the federal government for war (the governor, on the other hand, can utilize Guard units to respond to natural disasters). That has usually been accomplished with drills one weekend a month and for two weeks during the summer. But in 2016 the law was amended so that the president could mobilize Guard units to non-combat situations. In response, Johnson said, a new “National Guard 4.0” was implemented, cre- ating a four-year training cycle for many units that includes a standard 39-day training minimum in the first year, a 54-day minimum the second, 60 in the third and 63 days in the fourth year, with units also more likely to deploy and on shorter notice than in the past. In practice, said local bat- talion commander Major J.W. Lundell, that means a “weekend” training will sometimes be Thursday through Sunday instead of Saturday and Sunday, requiring days off work for some soldiers. It also means a four-week training period in the summer, although Lundell said they are try- ing locally where possible to break it up into two separate two-week periods. “What we’ve gotten back (from employers) is that they can handle an employee being gone for a two-week timeframe, but any more than that is hard,” he said. Next year, however, the 62-person Hermiston unit will be required to spend a 30-day training period in Fort Irwin, California. “There’s nothing I can do about that,” he said. The Guard operates on a “year” that runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, so in order to help local employers out Lundell said he is trying to get the next year’s training schedule directly to local employers of soldiers by June or July. Hermiston-area employers of soldiers — who range from Auto Zone to Subway to the Hermiston School District — will also have opportunities to visit the base in Idaho by helicop- ter while their employees are training there in order to have a better understanding of what they do. Jerry Carlson, the Herm- iston-based military out- reach coordinator for ESGR, said soldiers are also being encouraged to nominate their employers for ESGR-spon- sored awards for being sup- portive of their service in the National Guard or other mil- itary reserves. Last week no employers showed up for an informa- tional meeting at the Herm- iston armory, but Carlson said it was too far for some employers, who live as far away as Portland and the Tri-Cities, and noted that his one-on-one conversations with employers have gone well. Carlson, Lundell and Johnson said while there are cases for the ESGR to medi- ate on the east side of the state, it was very rare for an Eastern Oregon employer to be anything but highly supportive of their employ- ees who have to leave for days, weeks or even months at a time for trainings and deployments. In some cases, Johnson said, employers even go the extra mile by doing things like continu- ing health insurance for the soldier’s family while they are on a lengthy deployment overseas. “You would be surprised by how supportive many of them are,” he said. County paying $43,000 for election WORSHIP COMMUNITY By PHIL WRIGHT STAFF WRITER Ballots, envelopes and mailing for Tuesday’s elec- tion cost Umatilla County almost $43,000. That money was split between payments to private businesses and the United States Postal Service. The county owes: $17,379 to Ryder Election Services, Bend, for printing 53,557 ballots for the elec- tion; $5,521 to BMS Tech- nologies, Bend, for printing, filling and delivering enve- lopes for the election; and $20,000 to the United States Postal Service. The elections division used to handle this work in-house, said Dan Lonai, administrative services director for the county. “And no matter what, I always ended up with errors,” he said, “... stuffing errors, human errors. That was a big part of it. We want to make sure the right ballots are stuffed in.” Even a 1 percent error rate with 30,000 ballots means there can be 300 errors. And the state’s motor voter reg- istration law boosted the county’s voter total to more than 40,000. As of April, the county had 42,519 voters, about 2,400 more than the same time last year. All told, the county owes $42,901. That includes $5,570 to Elections Sys- tems & Software, Chicago, for maintenance of the bal- lot reader. The costs are in the coun- ty’s 2017-18 budget and are Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church 565 W. HERMISTON AVE. DAILY MASS: Monday-Friday .......................................... English 7:00 am Thursday ....................................................Spanish 6:00 pm SATURDAY: .............................................. English 5:00 pm ....................................................................Spanish 7:00 pm SUNDAY:................................................... English 9:00 am ................................................................Bilingual 11:00 am ....................................................................Spanish 1:00 pm Offi ce ..................................................................... 567-5812 STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS Mail-in ballots wait to be counted at the Umatilla County Courthouse on May 9, 2018. about the same as what the county allocated for a part- time surveyor or improve- ments to the Stafford Hansell Government Cen- ter, Hermiston. The county board of commissioners plans to approve the pay- ments during its meeting Wednesday morning start- ing at 9 at the county court- house, 216 S.E. Fourth St., Pendleton. It wasn’t just a concern for accuracy that caused the county to outsource the work — the election costs began mounting for the county a few years back. First the Postal Service stopped using Pendleton as a distribution center, which for a long time allowed the county to receive a discount. “If I want to drive my ballots down to Portland, I can get still get a good dis- count,” Lonai quipped. And the county no lon- ger has its own print shop. So the county pays Ryder Election to handle the pre- cise printing on card stock that ballots require. Lonai said Ryder also services the county’s election machines. Ryder also is “right next door to Bend Mail Ser- vices,” he said, which prints the envelopes and makes sure the right ballots go inside. “That’s still a bit more than in-house,” Lonai said, “but everybody gets the right ballot.” Well, almost everybody. Some voters move and don’t update their registration, he said, and the ballot goes to the address the county has. That’s most common when someone moves out of a family home, he said. The county in those cases can mail a second ballot. Lonai explained serial num- bers on the envelopes allow the county to keep track and make sure someone does not vote twice. He said keeping this all under the county’s roof would be nice, but East- ern Oregon lacks the volume to make that work. Grand Alaskan First Christian Church “Proclaiming the Message of Hope, Living the Gospel of Love” Sunday School 9:15am Worship Gathering 10:30 am Children’s Church 10:30 am 567-3013 775 W. Highland Ave., Hermiston CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Worship Service 10:30 AM Sunday School 9:00 AM Pastor J.C. Barnett Children’s Church & Nursery Available 700 West Orchard Avenue P.O. Box 933 Hermiston, Oregon 541-567-8441 Departs Aug - Sept 2018 SUMMER CAMP Inviting all female high school students age 15-18 AUG. 5-11, 2018 KLAMATH FALLS, OR OIT.EDU/GIRLS-STEM 2018 POLK 2018 POLK COUNTY COUNTY BAZAAR Friday & Saturday May 18 & 19 • 9 am - 4 pm • Handmade Crafts • Home Decor • Private and Commercial Vendors 12 days from $ Episcopal Church Promo code N7017 1,399 TM TM * 1-766-771-0353 Join Us On Our Journey With Jesus. EOU IS EOU officially breaks ground CONNECTED on the Stadium-Track Project POLK COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS & WVWNT CWNTWR 520 S. PACIFIC HWY W. RICKRWALL, OR 97371 Gift s for Graduates Candy Bar Bouquets Balloons • Gift s & more! Put a smile on the heart with the power of flowers. HWY 395, HERMISTON 541-567-4305 Mon-Sat 8am-6pm • Sun 12pm-5am www.cottagefl owersonline.com Join Us On Our Journey With Jesus. Family service 9am Sunday N.E. Gladys Ave & 7th, Hermiston t. PH: 567-6672 We are an all inclusive Church who welcomes all. ll. Grace Baptist Church 555 SW 11th, Hermiston 567-9497 Nursery provided for all services Sunday School - 9:30 AM Worship - 10:45 AM 6:00 PM Wed Prayer & Worship - 7:00 PM “Proclaiming God’s word, growing in God’s grace” at a special ceremony on Saturday, May 5 Travelin Taphouse will have wine, beer & cider • Free Admission • Free Parking • Food Available Onsite St. Johns Episcopal Church Scripture, Tradition and Reason Prices are per person, double occupancy and exclude taxes & government fees of $ 299. Prices shown are after 2for1 offer is applied. Cruise prices based on Inside Cabin. Free onboard credit with Ocean View or Balcony cabin purchase. All special offers apply to new bookings only made by 5/30/18 and are subject to availability. Lowest season prices shown; seasonal charges and single supplements may apply. Add-on airfare is available. Additional terms and conditions apply, ask your Travel Consultant for details. Great things are happening! Campus librarian Shirley Roberts earns Distinguished Service Award from the Oregon Library Association Senior hurdler Matt Kirkendall broke a 235 SW 3rd Phone 567-7678 Rev. Ed Baker - Rev. Nina Baker Sunday: Sunday School........10:00 am Worship...................11:00 am Evening Service........7:00 pm Wednesday Service..7:00 pm “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” 1 Pet. 5:7 NEW BEGINNINGS 2 FOR 1 SAVINGS Cruise & Tour The Full Gospel Home Church 1520 W ORCHARD AVE Sunday Worship Service 10:30 am Classes for Kids @ 9:15 am SEEKING JESUS, SHARING LIFE, SERVING PEOPLE www.hermistonnazarene.org LANDMARK BAPTIST CHURCH 125 E. Beech Ave. • 567-3232 Pastor David Dever Sun. Bible Classes...................10:00am Sun. Worship Service..............11:00am Sun. Evening Worship..............6:00pm Wed. Prayer & Bible Study......6:00pm www.hermistonlmbc.com First United Methodist Church Hermiston 191 E. Gladys Ave , Hermiston OR Sunday Worship 11am • 541-567-3002 Nursery available Check us out on Face Book Worship Livestream at herfumc.com Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors Rev. Dr. Jim Pierce, pastor Seventh-day Adventist Church Saturdays Sabbath School........9:30 a.m. Worship Service......11:00 a.m. English & Spanish Services 567-8241 855 W. Highland • Hermiston 55-year-old school record in the 110-meter hurdles For more information visit eou.edu/connected To share your worship times call 541-278-2678
