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GAP
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“social capital” via involve-
ment in things like sports
and religious organizations.
Closing the opportu-
nity gap is the main goal for
the aptly named Head Start.
Programs it offers include
parent education classes,
home visits, matching grants
for housing and preschool
classes.
“Our goal is to serve chil-
dren and families to make
sure they’re getting the best
start,” Brenaman said.
There are a lot of families
out there that need help —
according to the OCF report,
47 percent of Oregon’s chil-
dren are being raised in fam-
ilies at or below 200 percent
of the federal poverty line,
which for a family of four is
$48,000 a year. The makeup
of the family unit makes a
difference, too. More than
one in three single-parent
families is in poverty, for
example, compared to less
than one in 10 married-par-
ent families.
Head Start also offers
parenting classes and sup-
port groups open to anyone,
regardless of income. Par-
ents are taught to use their
strengths to deal with things
like discipline and bedtime
routines in a healthy, devel-
opmentally appropriate way
for their children, and can
network with other parents.
Mary Lou Gutierrez
offers cooking classes where
parents and children learn
to cook nutritious, low-cost
meals together.
“I’ll tell them this rec-
BTW
Continued from Page A1
• • •
When the Riverside
High School class of 2018
walks across the stage this
Saturday to receive their
high school diplomas, a
group of nine classmates
will be looking forward to
another milestone.
Less than two weeks
after turning the tassel at
the Boardman high school,
Ruby Barrera, Abby Her-
nandez, Kevin Madrigal,
Misael Madrigal, Fabian
Meza, Luis Olvera, Daniel
Rodriguez, Brock Rosen
and Andrew Sorensen
will receive their Associ-
ate of Arts Oregon Transfer
degrees from Blue Moun-
tain Community College.
“This is a pretty amazing
group of students. They rep-
resent the student body pres-
ident, athletic teams, the-
ater, Key Club — they are
involved in all aspects of our
school,” said David Norton,
Riverside principal.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, 2018
FROM A1
ipe only takes $8 or $10 to
feed a family of six people
and they’ll say, ‘What?!’,”
she said. “Because they’re
spending more than that on
food that’s not even healthy.”
Schools can help fill in
the gaps for children who
aren’t born into a financially
stable home with two mar-
ried, college-educated par-
ents — the ideal, statisti-
cally speaking, for reaching
the middle class.
Melody Bustillos, a coun-
selor at Hermiston High
School, said only about 14
percent of adults over 25 in
Hermiston have a bachelor’s
degree or above, so many
students who are looking
to pursue a college degree
don’t necessarily have a par-
ent who can give guidance
from personal experience.
“We basically assume
all our kids need help,” she
said.
The high school has three
clubs to help with that: Col-
lege Club, which is open to
any student interested in a
post-secondary education;
the College Savers club,
which is income-based; and
Generation College, for stu-
dents who would be the first
in their family to graduate
from college.
Last week the school
brought seniors planning
to study at Blue Mountain
Community College this fall
to BMCC’s Hermiston and
Pendleton campuses, where
students were given a tour
by current BMCC students
who answered questions
about things like placement
tests and online classes.
Bustillos said Genera-
tion College advisors are
unique to most high school
programs because they
stick with students all the
way through their college
graduation.
“It’s not enough to just
get them accepted,” she
said. “You can’t just turn
them loose and figure every-
thing’s OK.”
The OCF found that chil-
dren in Eastern Oregon
counties tend to fare better
than those on the west side
of the state in moving up
the income ladder, but Uma-
tilla County and Morrow
County are the exceptions
to that rule. The report sug-
gests that most Eastern Ore-
gon children may have more
upward mobility in part
because of the social capi-
tal piece. A 2006 study cited
in the report called “The
production of social capital
in US counties” — which
ranked social capital based
on per-capita membership
of civic organizations, reli-
gious institutions and more
— showed Wallowa County
ranked the highest in the
state on the social capital
index. Umatilla and Morrow
counties ranked on the lower
end of the scale for the state.
One organization in
Hermiston created since then
is Made to Thrive, a non-
profit that provides at-risk
children with the money,
transportation, equipment
and support needed to par-
ticipate in extracurricular
activities. Kriss Dammeyer,
the nonprofit’s director, said
she has seen children learn
lifelong skills like anger
management, networking
and honoring commitments
through sports.
The seven boys and two
girls are described as a com-
petitive bunch. They have
been pushing each other
academically for the past
few years.
Norton and counselor
Elizabeth Rosen have
worked closely with the
students. They are proud
of what they have accom-
plished and are committed to
making it happen for many
more Riverside students.
The cooperation between
the school and BMCC,
Rosen said, has evolved and
improved, making the pro-
cess more streamlined. She
also said there has been great
support from the Morrow
County Education Foun-
dation, which pays for the
majority of college credits
for Riverside students, total-
ing more than $100,000 for
these seniors alone.
• • •
People are invited to a
free class that’s designed to
help anyone who cares for
an aging Oregonian bet-
ter understand the effects
of Alzheimer’s and similar
diseases.
“The Basics: Memory
Loss, Dementia and Alz-
heimer’s & Effective Com-
munication Strategies” is
Wednesday, June 6 from
10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in
Room M-01 at Good Shep-
herd Medical Center, 610
N.W. 11th St., Hermiston.
It’s appropriate for individ-
uals who provide care for
an aging family member or
loved one, as well as those
who work in professional
caregiver settings, public
safety or social work.
Offered through Oregon
Care Partners, the class
will focus on care for those
with memory loss, demen-
tia or Alzheimer’s. For more
information or to register,
visit www.oregoncarepart-
ners.com For questions,
contact 1-800-930-6851 or
info@oregoncarepartners.
com.
———
You can submit items for
our weekly By The Way col-
umn by emailing your tips
to editor@hermistonher-
ald.com.
Gladys West Graham (far left) stands with the other students in her Hermiston High School
class of nine which graduated in 1918.
100
continued from Page A1
In a scrapbook created
by Gladys, she labeled a
picture of her along with
two friends, “Hermiston
Peaches.”
“It’s so ironic because
Peach is kind of my nick-
name,” Emily said. “My
family said I look peachy
all the time. My friends just
started calling me that.”
Donning her purple
graduation gown, Emily’s
long brown hair flowed
in the wind while recently
standing under the concrete
archway of the old Herm-
iston Union High School.
The site, located on East
Ridgeway Avenue and Sec-
ond Street, also is where
the old Sandstone Build-
ing once stood. According
to files reviewed by Bri-
ana Cortaberria, Hermiston
School District executive
assistant to the superinten-
dent and board, the build-
ing served as Hermiston
Standard High School from
1908-1937.
An interest in education
apparently has been passed
down through the genera-
tions. As part of the family
lore, it was said that Gladys
longed to attend school and
could often be found hang-
ing around the building.
“I guess Gladys used to
sit on the steps of the school
before she was old enough
to go,” said Heidi Mar-
vin, Emily’s mother. “And
Emily always loved school
and couldn’t wait to go.”
Lee’s sister, Suzie Sams,
said Gladys only got in
trouble one time while
attending school. As a third
grader, she was acting out
in class and was sent to
the principal’s office. After
that, she would visit the
principal on her own.
“She loved going to the
principal’s office because
she could read books,”
STAFF PHOTOS BY KATHY ANEY
Emily Marvin holds the framed Hermiston High School
diploma earned by her great-great-grandmother Gladys West
Graham. Emily will graduate from HHS 100 years after Gladys.
Suzie said.
Emily said her only
visits to the principal’s
office have been to receive
awards.
“I’m a pretty good kid,”
she said with a laugh.
Gladys was born in
Superior, Iowa, to Adora
and John Sherwin West.
She was the youngest of
four children. Gladys’ fam-
ily headed to Hermiston by
train in 1908 — lured by
the promise of job oppor-
tunities through the Uma-
tilla Reclamation Project,
which implemented irriga-
tion and hydropower proj-
ects throughout the region.
As her graduation from
high school neared, Gladys
had another important mile-
stone on the horizon — her
upcoming wedding to Ver-
lin Graham. According to
family stories, her father
wasn’t too keen on the idea.
“They had to call Sher-
iff Til Taylor to provide
protection,” Lee said. “He
didn’t want his daughter
marrying the son of a Meth-
odist minister.”
Emily was born in Walla
Walla, Washington, to
Heidi and Brandon Mar-
vin. She is the middle child
with two other sisters. She
has lived in Hermiston her
entire life.
Her future plans include
moving to Corvallis where
she will study hospital-
ity and business manage-
ment at Oregon State Uni-
versity. After being active
in DECA, serving as the
chief executive officer of
the student store and taking
nearly every business class
Hermiston offers, Emily is
looking forward to further-
ing her education with the
ultimate goal of owning her
own line of luxury hotels.
“The campus is beauti-
ful and the college of busi-
ness accepted me, so it
kind of worked out rather
nicely,” she said.
Rather peachy.
"Scram ble for
Scholarships"
Friday, June 8th
1pm Shotgun Start
Big River Golf Course - Umatilla
Golfers of all skill levels are invited to participate in the 25 th annual
"Scramble for Scholarships" golf tournament. Four person teams can sign
up together or individual pairings can be made by the tournament
committee. Your $70 entry fee covers green fees, a box lunch, and BBQ
dinner, and makes a charitable donation to the foundation to use in
awarding scholarships for local health care students.
Join us by registering at scrambleforscholarships.eventbrite.com or by calling
541-667-3405. Entry deadline is June 6th.
Great prize holes and Hole-in-one on #1 & #9 wins a new car sponsored by Tom Denchel Ford
and Hermiston Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram!
CEU credits available!
McKay Creek Estates
THE BASICS & EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES
DATE
Wednesday, June 6
TIME
10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
LOCATION
REGISTER
We need to talk
about your driving.
Driving represents freedom and
independence for people of all ages. Asking
an aging parent to hand over their keys can
be a difficult and emotional conversation,
even when safety is the main concern.
Good Shepherd Health Care System
610 NW 11th St., Conference Room 2
Hermiston, OR 97838
• How do I start the conversation?
These class is free, but registration is required.
To register, call 800-272-3900.
• When is the right time to bring it up?
• How will they react?
The Alzheimer’s Association Oregon Chapter is pleased to present these back-to-back
community classes in Hermiston: “The Basics” and “Effective Communication Strategies.”
In the first class, you’ll learn about Alzheimer’s disease detection, causes and risk factors,
stages of the disease and treatment. In the second class, you’ll explore how communication
takes place when someone has Alzheimer’s, learn to decode the verbal and behavioral
messages delivered by someone with dementia, and identify strategies to help you connect
and communicate at each stage of the disease.
An education program by the
Presented in collaboration with
This could be one of the most challenging
talks you’ll have with your loved one.
We’re here to help.
Visit TheyDeserveTheBest.com to learn more about transitioning
your loved one from driver to passenger.
McKay Creek Estates
1601 Southgate Pl.
Pendleton, OR 97801
(541) 704-7146
www.PrestigeCare.com