NEWS
A6 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3, 2019
Accident turns into happy ending for dog in Hermiston
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
STAFF WRITER
A stray dog was run over
by a car March 26 in Herm-
iston, but the injury ended
up saving the life of the dog
and her then-unborn pup.
Late week, Hermiston
Pet Rescue and Fuzzball
Animal Rescue responded
to a call about a small dog
that had been hit by a car on
Southwest 11th Street and
Hermiston Avenue.
Robin Barker, a board
member with Fuzzball Ani-
mal Rescue, said when they
went to pick up the dog, a
Chihuahua, they noticed
there was milk leaking.
“At fi rst we thought
she had pups nearby, but
it turned out she was preg-
nant,” Barker said.
The pup was too big for
the dog to deliver, and the
veterinarian at Oregon Trail
Vet Clinic ended up hav-
ing to do an emergency
C-section. They also had to
amputate the dog’s leg, as it
had shattered when she was
hit.
“The guy who hit her
was so upset,” Barker said.
She said several people,
including the person who
hit her and people from
nearby businesses, imme-
diately stopped and tried
to fi nd the dog, but she ran
into a nearby fi eld.
Barker said this is not
an uncommon problem in
Hermiston.
“The stray population
and roamers are a huge
problem,” she said. “We
have another one in rescue
who got hit and has a dou-
ble fracture.”
Barker said after some
initial shock and uncertain
moments, both the mother
and her pup are doing well
and are expected to survive
and recover.
“How she survived, I’ll
never know,” Barker said.
They will both be in fos-
ter care for the next two
months, while the mother
heals.
Barker said they haven’t
quite fi gured out a name for
either dog yet, but they have
some ideas.
“We’re thinking ‘Xena’
for the mom, like Xena:
Warrior Princess,” she said.
And for her pup, they’re
thinking “Marvel.”
“Like a miracle,” she
said.
Photo contributed by Robin Barker
This pup was born after his mother, hit by a car in Hermiston, had an emergency C-section.
Meat processors show peppers
Follett’s with awards
Elvis rocks Stanfi eld Moose Lodge
Follett’s Meat Company
of Hermiston brought home
the bacon during the 2019
Northwest Meat Proces-
sors Association Conven-
tion and Trade Show, held
March 28-30 at Anacortes,
Washington.
Owner Justin Follett
and manager Travis Cal-
houn were excited to receive
grand champion for their
pepper jerky. In addition, the
crew from Follett’s received
reserve grand champion for
its pepper bacon and cham-
pion for the company’s
jalapeño cheese summer
sausage.
Calhoun said the con-
test includes meat proces-
sors from Oregon, Washing-
ton, Idaho and Montana. In
each of the categories that
Follett’s won, Calhoun said
they were competing against
at least 20 or more other
products.
“We have great work-
manship, great leadership
and a great product,” Cal-
houn said. “We have excel-
lent attention to detail and
The Stanfi eld Moose
Lodge couldn’t help falling
in love with Elvis imper-
sonator Mark Stevenz.
Stevenz performed to
a full house on Saturday
night as part of the lodge’s
effort to attract new mem-
bership and raise money
for the charitable causes
Moose International sup-
ports, from Christmas bas-
kets for local families in
need to Mooseheart, a chil-
dren’s home in Chicago.
Stevenz started his
career as an impersonator
12 years ago, when he sang
an Elvis song at a karaoke
bar in Vancouver, Washing-
ton. A local theater group
was there, and approached
him about playing Elvis in
an upcoming play.
“They said ‘Try to look
like Elvis,’ so I started
growing out my hair and
grew these little bitty side-
burns,” he said.
Stevenz loved the expe-
rience so much he started
moonlighting as the King
at
weddings,
nursing
homes and birthday par-
ties. Eventually he booked
enough gigs to quit his day
job in construction, and
moved on to performing at
resorts and casinos, includ-
ing a two-year stint in Can-
cun, Mexico. He even
appeared on the television
show “America’s Got Tal-
ent,” and he and his wife
Nicky were featured in an
episode of House Hunters
International.
“Elvis is my hero,” he
said. “I get to portray one
of my heroes in life, and
make people happy doing
Contributed photo
Justin Follett, far right, owner of Follett’s Meat Company
of Hermiston, brought home three awards from the 2019
Northwest Meat Processors Association Convention and
Trade Show.
we always strive to have our
products up to standards.”
Family-owned and oper-
ated since 1921, Follett’s
Meat Company is based in
Hermiston. It provides cus-
tom meat processing for
beef, pork, lamb and wild
game that offers both sta-
tionary and mobile slaughter.
Follett’s is open Mon-
day through Fridays from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 31019
Follett Lane, Hermiston.
For more information, call
541-564-2780.
Stanfi eld Police chase ends when
suspects get stuck on waterlogged road
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
STAFF WRITER
A man and woman on
the run from the law picked
the wrong escape route last
week.
Stanfi eld Police arrested
Kelly Ray Chapman, 37,
and Rebecca Ann Mayes,
27, after their car got stuck
on fl ooded and muddy roads
west of town on March 26.
Stanfi eld Police Chief
Bryon Zumwalt said he rec-
ognized Chapman on one of
the side streets in Stanfi eld,
and tried to pull him over
because he had a warrant.
Zumwalt said he ended up
following Chapman for
about 13 miles.
“He went out some
county and gravel roads,
Chapman
Mayes
and ended up on Highway
320 — the Echo-Lexington
Highway,” he said. Zum-
walt said that Oregon State
Police set up spike strips on
the road, but Chapman went
off-road and avoided them.
He ended up on Highway
207, and Zumwalt was in
the same area.
Zumwalt went into the
Space Age gas station off
Highway 207 to see if
Chapman had stopped in
there. As he did, he got a
call from a resident that
Chapman’s car was stuck
in the high water on Noble
Road, just off Highway
207.
Stanfi eld Police arrested
both Chapman and Mayes
and lodged them in the
Umatilla
County
Jail,
where they were charged
with parole violation.
After Chapman was
arrested, he was also
charged with one count of
attempt to elude.
Chapman has had a his-
tory of encounters with
local law enforcement, with
almost 20 incidents in the
past 10 years, including
robbery, identity theft, drug
possession, assault and fl ee-
ing or attempting to elude a
police offi cer.
He worked the crowd,
making jokes between
songs and frequently leav-
ing the stage to kiss hands,
cheeks and babies or pose
for a photo. During “It’s
Now or Never” he handed
out long-stemmed red roses
to women in the audience.
“You’ve been a fantas-
tic audience, and I really
appreciate it,” he told the
crowd.
Beverly Stewart, a
member of the Women of
the Moose for 35 years,
was the one who got Ste-
venz to come to Stanfi eld
after her granddaughter
told her about seeing him
perform.
“I thought, ‘I’ve got
to get him to the Moose
Lodge,’” Stewart said. “I
called him up and he was
all for it.”
During intermission she
said she thought he had
done a wonderful job so
far.
“I’m telling you, every-
one loves him,” she said.
An Alzheimer’s Association® Educational Program
ALZHEIMER’S IS NOT
NORMAL AGING.
MEET
PATCH!
Mark Sargent, DVM • Brent Barton, DVM
Eugenio Mannucci, DVM, cVMA • Jana von Borstel, DVM, cVMA
Small and Large Animal Care
541.567.1138
it.”
Stevenz said he watches
at least one Elvis video
per day to “stay sharp”
and has picked up a lot of
moves and tips for hair and
makeup from fellow imper-
sonators at Elvis competi-
tions over the years. While
he has placed in several
competitions, he said his
favorite award has been
the “Heart of the King” at
the Penticton ELVIS Fes-
tival in British Columbia,
Canada.
“I’m really proud of
receiving that from my
fellow Elvis brothers,” he
said.
On Saturday night
he performed a two-
hour show at the Stan-
fi eld Moose Lodge, com-
plete with the sideburns
and white fringed jump-
suit. The show mixed rock
and roll classics like “Blue
Suede Shoes” and “Jail-
house Rock” with soul-
ful ballads like “Kentucky
Rain” and “In the Ghetto.”
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WHEN
Mon: 8-6
Tue - Fri: 8-5
Sat: 8-12
Emergency Service
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
Elvis impersonator Mark Stevenz hands out roses during
a performance at the Stanfi eld Moose Lodge on Saturday
night.
UNDERSTANDING
ALZHEIMER’S AND DEMENTIA
PET OF THE
WEEK
Patch came into rescue after Pet Rescue
contacted us about a dog brought into the
shelter with a broken leg. He needed surgery
for a double fractured leg and now has a
fixator on his leg for 8 weeks. He is approx.
a year old. Very sweet, playful little guy.
Loves both cats and dogs. He will be up for
adoption once healed. If you are interested
in Patch please fill out an application. We can
arrange for meets during his recovery time.
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
80489 Hwy 395 N
Hermiston
www.oregontrailvet.com
PLACE
YOUR AD
HERE!
WHERE
Wed., April 10
10-11 a.m.
Good Shepherd, Room 1
This class is FREE,
610 NW 11th St.
registration is required
Hermiston, OR 97838
800.272.3900
Contact Audra at
541.564.4538
Today!
If interested in him please go to
fuzzballrescue.com and fill out an application.
If you aren’t able to adopt, but would like to donate you can through PayPal by going to fuzzballrescue.com,
or you can mail in donations to Fuzz Ball Animal Rescue PO Box 580 Hermiston, OR 97838
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