WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2018
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A7
NEWS
STAFF PHOTO BY PHIL WRIGHT
Aidee Velazquez of Hermiston helps her children, Aiden,
5, and Andrea, 2, make healthy pizzas in the children’s
cooking class Saturday at the Family Health and Fitness
Day at Hermiston High School. For more photos from the
event see A15.
STAFF PHOTO BY JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
Food Service Manager Clara Nichols, left, shows a group of citizens around Stanfield Secondary School’s kitchen — one of
the spaces that would be renovated if a bond is passed next May.
Stanfield schools look at bond projects
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
STAFF WRITER
The Stanfield School Dis-
trict is looking to make some
changes. In May 2019, the
district plans to place a bond
on the ballot, which will
target safety upgrades and
improve classroom space for
both the elementary and sec-
ondary schools.
If passed, the bond will
appear on Stanfield resi-
dents’ tax statements begin-
ning in July 2019.
While the district needs
about $14 million to com-
plete the proposed projects,
it is not yet clear how much
the bond will ask of voters.
The district found out on
Wednesday that it received
a $4 million Oregon School
Capital
Improvement
Matching grant.
“We could ask voters for
less than $14 million, which
would actually lower taxes,
and use the $4 million in
matching funds to make up
the difference while account-
ing for the rising costs of
materials and labor,” said
Stanfield
Superintendent
Beth Burton in an email.
The district has identi-
fied several projects that
bond money will target. At
the elementary school, it
will focus on a more secure
entryway, with better visi-
bility. The parking area will
be remodeled to hold more
vehicles, and separate the
driving area from the drop-
off area. The bond also allots
money to replace the floor-
ing in the elementary school.
There are a slew of pro-
posed projects at the sec-
ondary school, including
upgrading the surveillance
system, removing lead
plumbing, replacing all exte-
rior and some interior doors,
upgrading the kitchen equip-
ment, remodeling the admin-
istrative office and entrance,
and expanding the metal and
wood shops.
Burton and Stanfield Ele-
mentary School principal
Lacey Sharp led a group of
about 30 Stanfield residents
and staff members around
the facilities, pointing out
the areas that the bond will
target.
Burton noted that while
capital improvements in
some schools have focused
on capacity, that’s not the
case in Stanfield. She said
enrollment numbers are not
projected to increase, and
have dropped a bit in the
past few years. Stanfield has
about 470 students between
its two schools.
Instead, she said, prior-
ities for the bond include
improving student and staff
safety, enhancing career and
technical education space,
expanding the space for the
middle school (currently
housed in a single portable),
and improving the overall
learning environment.
Burton noted some of the
design flaws in both build-
ings, such as the lack of
windows in the secondary
school. Earlier that day, the
power had gone out in the
school.
“It was pitch dark and
unsafe,” Burton said.
The group toured the
gym, which has new floor-
ing and bleachers, but would
get a new air condition-
ing system as a result of the
bond. In the kitchen, they
observed the cracked floor
and old appliances.
“It takes me about 45
minutes to boil water,” said
Clara Nichols, the food ser-
vice manager at Stanfield
Secondary School.
The district last went for
a bond in 1999, after which
they built Stanfield Elemen-
tary School. That building
has not had any upgrades
since then. The secondary
school was built in 1979,
and was remodeled in 1995.
Hermiston man’s daughter, grandson trampled by giraffe
By JADE MCDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
A Hermiston man has
spent most of his time at a
hospital in South Africa this
month after his daughter and
grandson were trampled by
a giraffe on Sept. 3.
Dr. Katy Williams and
her son Finn, 3, were seri-
ously injured but their health
has been improving, Jack
Standish said.
Standish, who moved
to Hermiston with his late
wife in 2005, said Katy and
Finn were going out to meet
Katy’s husband, Sam Wil-
liams, on Sept. 3 as Sam
returned from a run. Often
Katy and Finn would meet
him inside the large, fenced
estate where their home was
located before walking back
together. They are both sci-
entists (Katy specializes
in hyenas and Sam in big
cats) and have been in South
Africa for research.
Katy and Finn walked
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY JACK STANDISH
Katy, Sam and Finn Williams are pictured sometime before
Katy and Finn were trampled by a giraffe.
into a clearing to see a
tower of giraffes, and before
they had time to react, one
charged and began kicking
them. Sam, returning from
his run, saw the attack and
was able to scare the giraffes
away by yelling and wav-
ing his arms. Standish said
the giraffe that attacked was
a mother with a young baby
and was likely protecting
her baby from a perceived
healing. Finn is finally able
to open his eyes and, while
not speaking yet, is reacting
to his surroundings. He will
be moved soon to a reha-
bilitation center for chil-
dren to help him get back
up to where a three-year-old
should be developmentally.
“There’s a lot of hope,”
Standish said. “His family
and doctors know he’s going
to get well.”
To contribute to their
medical
costs,
visit
w w w. g o f u n d m e . c o m /
finn-amp-katy-williams.
Umatilla County
events help locals
clean up and get fit
By PHIL WRIGHT
STAFF WRITER
Saturday was all about
getting clean and fit in
Umatilla County.
Folks at the Family
Health and Fitness Day at
Hermiston High School
were busy collecting infor-
mation, from know-how
on health insurance to
cooking tips to medical
and dental screenings. The
health and wellness fair
offered something for all
ages.
Jessica Brown of Herm-
iston said the fair is must
for her family.
“My kids love coming
to the Teddy Bear Clinic,”
she said. “We bring our
own stuffed animals.”
The clinic also had a
table full of teddies and
dolls for children to select,
name and give to nurses for
examinations, including
“X-rays” on an overhead
projector. Children helped
treat the furry patients.
Brown said the clinic
was a fun way to show
children that going to the
hospital didn’t have to be
scary.
Johanna Shelley of
Umatilla brought her son,
Isaac, 11. He was among
the many children who
received a bicycle helmet.
Shelley said this was their
first time coming and they
appreciated the wealth of
information available.
Aidee Velazquez of
Hermiston helped her
son, Aiden, 5, and daugh-
ter, Andrea, 2, make piz-
zas in the children’s cook-
ing class. They also were
first-timers. She said the
day was fun and filled with
valuable information to
help her family.
Angie Treadwell is a
founding member of the
Healthy
Communities
Coalition in Hermiston and
chairwoman of the Chil-
dren’s Health Committee,
which took on the work of
bringing back the health
and wellness event three
years ago after a hiatus of
a couple of years. She said
credit for making the fair
possible was the wealth
of community sponsors
and volunteers, including
Hermiston High School
and many of its students.
“To me, this is what you
need for your community,”
she said.
Sherry and Roy Lentz
of Pendleton drove that
point home.
“I found my doctor
from going to this fair,”
Sherry Lentz said. “I’ve
been going to her ever
since.”
The event also provided
a lunch of a turkey sand-
wich and sides of local
produce, on the house, and
everyone who attended
could get a free loaf of
Dave’s Killer Bread.
On the other side of the
county, Pendleton Conven-
tion Center’s parking lot
served as the site to turn
over hazardous household
wastes for free.
Umatilla County led
the waste collection. Gina
Miller of the county’s code
enforcement program won
a $65,000 grant from the
Oregon Department of
Environmental Quality to
hold the event. The money
paid for contractor Clean
Harbors to handle what
came in.
The collection started
a little before 9 a.m., and
three hours later nearly 300
vehicles had gone through.
Miller said she anticipated
the total could crest 700.
threat. He said the family
holds no ill will to the giraffe
for an “accident of nature.”
Katy and Finn were flown
to a hospital in Johannes-
burg, Standish said. After he
got the call about the attack,
he and his son David, who
is serving in the U.S. Navy,
rushed to Johannesburg.
Katy woke up from her
coma, and her broken bones
and punctured organs are
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