WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2019 NEWS HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3 Searchers recover pair missing in Columbia River By PHIL WRIGHT STAFF WRITER T he search for two adults missing from a boat on the Colum- bia River ended Monday evening when the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Offi ce con- fi rmed the recovery of both bodies. Sheriff’s Lt. Sterrin Hol- comb said sonar equipment played the crucial role in fi nding the bodies of Janice Arsenault, 44, of Umatilla, and Trenton Williams, 20, from Idaho. They went missing Sat- urday evening on the river near Bobby’s Beach, a small site along Highway 730 near milepost 195, after a caller reported two adults were no longer on a boat that pulled onto shore. The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Offi ce, Morrow County Sheriff’s Offi ce and several other agencies responded soon after the call. Umatilla County Sher- iff Terry Rowan said res- cue boats from multiple agencies arrived that night to scour the water, and as word spread of the crisis, as many as 30 private boats participated. “There was a tremen- dous number of resources out there Saturday evening until about 1 Sunday morn- ing,” he said. Law enforcement from nearby counties in Wash- Staff photo by E.J. Harris Umatilla County Sheriff Terry Rowan talks on a cellphone while on the south shore of the Columbia River on Monday during a search for two missing boaters east of Umatilla. ington sent person- day morning. By that nel. Teams walked afternoon, Holcomb the shoreline for any reported, the focus signs of Arsenault of the search became and Williams. recovery efforts. “It’s like looking In June 2018, for a needle in a hay- Arsenault became a Arsenault stack,” Rowan said, volunteer fi refi ghter “only underwater.” for the Umatilla Searchers took a break Rural Fire Protection Dis- Sunday night and resumed trict. The Hermiston Herald the effort in the morning. profi led Arsenault in Sep- They returned again Mon- tember 2018 for the Three Minutes feature. She revealed she lost her health care job in Las Vegas in 2008 and moved to Uma- tilla because she has fam- ily there. She worked as an offi ce specialist at Blue Mountain Community Col- lege. She loved sushi and in her spare time enjoyed hanging with friends and riding her Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Arsenault said she was working toward the completion of an associate’s degree. Holcomb said the sher- iff’s offi ce did not have much information about Williams but was able to get notices to relatives of the missing about the situation. Information about what happened remained sketchy. The driver of the boat, Richard Kirkendall, 41, of Hermiston, reported Arse- nault and Williams had been riding on the dive step of the boat while he was driv- ing to shore, according to the sheriff’s offi ce. Kirken- dall noticed they were miss- ing when he arrived on shore. Rowan said it appears the two adults lacked life jackets. The size of the effort scaled down after the ini- tial frenzy of the search, Holcomb explained, but the work remained methodical. Airplanes conducted an aerial search along the shal- low shorelines where boats could not gain access. Uma- tilla County Fire District members and volunteers searched along the shore- line. Teams reported the water was “pretty murky,” according Holcomb. She also said the Columbia Basin Dive Rescue of Rich- land, Washington, provided a towable side-scan sonar to help search the bottom of the river. The sensitive equipment provides valu- able information, she said, and dive teams will investi- gate objects of interest that show up on the sonar. Holcomb said the team found Williams’ body at 8 p.m. and Arsenault’s body shortly before 8:30, both in the area of Bobby’s Beach. Their remains were trans- ported to a funeral home Monday night, accompanied by emergency vehicles. Former Hermiston city manager remembered always followed Hermis- ton politics closely, looking up city council agendas and writing the occasional letter to the editor into his nineties. “When he retired, some- one asked if he would move, and he said, ‘I spent 25 years trying to make this a good place to live. Why would I By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR ermiston’s fi rst city manager, Tom Harper, died June 11 at the age of 96. He was one of the fi nal living members of a generation of city lead- ers who helped move Herm- iston from a small town with few paved roads to the larg- est city in Eastern Oregon. “It’s the passing of an era,” Beverly Harkenrider said. Harkenrider’s husband Frank Harkenrider, who served as mayor of Herm- iston for 10 years and a city councilor for 40, frequently said before his death that hiring Harper as Hermis- ton’s fi rst city manager was the best decision he and the council ever made. Harper served as city manager for 26 years, from 1961 to 1987, after the city council decided Hermiston had grown large enough to need a full-time manager outside of the mayor. At the time Harper was hired, Hermiston had about 4,000 residents. Under his management the city built a library, public works build- ing, wastewater treatment plant, opened a new city hall and built the public safety building that houses the police and fi re depart- ments. The city paved miles of road, purchased the land that now houses the East- ern Oregon Trade and Event Center, created the Hermis- ton Cemetery District and put together the master plan that charted the course for its fl edgling municipal airport. Harper was an original member of the Hermiston Development Corporation, the fi rst nonprofi t develop- H move now?’” Harkenrider said. She remembered Harper as a good friend and a good person, as did many who reacted to his passing on social media. A celebration of life will be 11 a.m. on June 29 at Burns Mortuary. Awnings · Patio/Sun Shades Pergolas ·Patio Covers · Solar Shades Solar Screens & More! Hurry & Beat the Rush! Ask about our Monthly Specials! 509-308-1354 FREE ESTIMATES! www.nwshadeco.com 102 E Columbia Dr. Kennewick 99336 Staff photo by E.J. Harris Former Hermiston city manager Tom Harper, center, looks at the signatures on a ribbon used in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center as current city manager Byron Smith, at right, looks on Monday, Aug. 7, 2017, in Hermiston. Harper was the city manager when the city of Hermiston originally bought the EOTEC property. ment corporation in Ore- gon. The group was instru- mental in recruiting many of the city’s largest employ- ers, including Lamb Weston, Hermiston Foods and the Wal-Mart Distribution Center. Current city manager Byron Smith — one of only four city managers in Herm- iston’s history thanks to the tradition of longevity that Harper set — said Harper’s work laid a strong founda- tion for the community. “He did a great job get- ting the city ready for the growth we are experienc- ing,” Smith said. A plaque at city hall hon- ors Harper for “his distin- guished service and dedica- tion to the City of Hermiston and its citizens.” Beverly Harkenrider said her husband and Harper were different in a lot of ways — Frank was famously outspo- ken while the city manager was quietly diplomatic — but the two of them worked well together along with people like Joe Burns, Russ Dorran and Charlie Kik for the betterment of Hermiston. “So many of them have gone now,” she said. Harper stayed in Hermis- ton after his retirement and CORNERSTONE 1055 S. Hwy 395, Suite 313 Hermiston, OR 97838 541-289-5454 • Fax: 541-289-5456 www.hermistoncornerstone.com gon! For the first time in Eastern Ore VETERAN BENEFIT Please Welcome Summer Godier Summer has lived in Hermiston most of her life and with seven years of experience, she specializes in men’s and women’s hair cuts. Also, colors, perms and waxing. EXPO19 9 A.M. TO 3 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 27TH PENDLETON CONVENTION CENTER Learn about all of your Federal and State benefits Under one roof! Subscribe to NEW THIS YEAR: Hours are Mondays thru Fridays 9am-5pm, plus Saturdays by appointment. Veterans town hall meeting with odva director kelly fitzpatrick 6 p.m. july 26  same location WZ^Ed/EWZdEZ^,/Wz Walk-ins are welcome. 541-567-2911 • 315 SW 11th Street • Hermiston, OR 97838 (541) 567-6457 W W W. E X P O.O R E G O N D VA .C O M License #188965