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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 8, 2020)
NEWS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2020 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3 Raices offers grants for DACA applicants HERMISTON HERALD A local organization is offering grants for people who would otherwise strug- gle to pay the fee to renew their Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. Raices, a grassroots orga- nization in Hermiston that advocates for the needs of the Latino community, held a fundraiser at the Union Club on Saturday with 220 participants. Raices member Roy Barron said the event was the organization’s larg- est yet, raising more than $2,000. DACA does not provide a path to citizenship, but it does protect undocumented immigrants who meet cer- tain criteria from deporta- tion. DACA recipients must have been born after 1981, been brought to the coun- try before their 16th birth- day, have lived in the United States continuously since June 15, 2007, be a current high school student or high school graduate and not have any felonies or seri- ous misdemeanors on their record. “I feel like this is one of the few things most Ameri- cans can get behind, because these are people who were brought here through no fault of their own, and there are very stringent require- ments,” Barron said of DACA. Recipients must apply for a renewal every two years. Currently, the total fee for renewal is $495, but the Trump administration announced last fall that they intend to raise it to $765 in 2020. Barron said that much money can be a signifi cant fi nancial hardship. A “schol- arship,” or grant, from Raices can help cover the cost. The application is posted on the Raices Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ roots541. Applicants must be a DACA recipient living in Umatilla or Morrow coun- ties. The deadline to apply is Jan. 15 and recipients will be announced on Jan. 31. Anyone who wishes to donate to the cause can send money to @raices541 via the Venmo app or $raices541 via Cash App. For more information, email raices541@gmail.com. Hermiston teen killed in car crash remembered fondly by family, friends ist, according to his family. He kept his clothes immacu- lately clean, and got his hair cut every two weeks. He had strong moral convictions, and they came to light at a young age. “If people were going to do something he felt wasn’t right, he just would not do it,” Shannon said. “It’s hard to be that way, and he stuck to it.” One time in school, his classmates teased their sub- stitute teacher, according to Shannon. Brett would have none of it. Of his own accord, he wrote an apology to the teacher on behalf of the whole class. “He struggled to fi nd friends with as much con- viction as him,” Maddie said. “His moral compass was dead-on.” His grandmother, Jeanne Jewett, an account executive at the Hermiston Herald, said he often seemed beyond his years. “He wanted the best for his mother and sister,” she said. “He was very much the man of the family.” And — being as compet- itive as he was — his fam- ily was impressed when he at long last accepted defeat during the fi nal Monop- oly game he shared with his mother and sister. On Monday, his father, Brian Jewett, a trooper with the Oregon State Police, said his son had a way of winning over people’s hearts easily. “He was happy-go-lucky but set on his ways, too,” he said. Brian added he was thankful he got to see Brett right before his passing. Maddie and her brother were returning from a visit with their father in Ione before the crash. “Apparently, God needed him now. He was taken at such a young age,” he said. “I was looking forward to his future.” A celebration of life ser- vice will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at New Hope Com- munity Church in Hermiston. By JESSICA POLLARD STAFF WRITER A Hermiston teenager who died in a car crash last week was a star student, a lover of debates and one of Lana Del Rey’s biggest fans. Brett Jewett, 16, lost his life on Jan. 1 in a fatal crash on Highway 207. But the stories that people who knew him have to share about their beloved son, brother and friend are so vivid, his authentic demeanor lives on. According to his sister, Maddie, 18, he just couldn’t wait to get a job after his 16th birthday in November. He wasn’t the type to wait around for life to happen, she said. “He was mad at him- self that he hadn’t gotten one yet,” she said. “He was excited about customer ser- vice because he can charm the pants off people.” It’s a quality that Brett always seemed to have, his mother, Shannon Jewett, remembers. When a teenaged fam- ily friend came to visit from Chicago, Brett was just an elementary schooler when he offered her a keepsake — one of his mother’s nic- est amethyst rings, plucked from her jewelry box. “He wanted to set up a little dinner for her, even though she was like 10 years older,” Maddie said. Friends, family and Hermiston High School Principal Tom Spoo remem- ber Brett as someone who tried hard in school. “He was one of our top students,” Spoo said. Brett’s family said he had many interests, but he was drawn to video produc- tion and digital art. His sis- ter described him as a vid- eo-game expert. “We were wondering if he’d do something with that,” Shannon said. “But he also loved to argue.” He loved to debate poli- tics with Maddie. At Hermiston High School, where Brett was a Contributed photo Brett Jewett sips an iced mocha, a drink that family members say he particularly enjoyed, at the Union Club in Hermiston recently. Jewett, a sophomore at Hermiston High School, was killed in a two-vehicle car crash on Jan. 1 along Highway 207 outside of Echo. sophomore, a team of psy- chologists and other men- tal health professionals pro- vided student support on Monday. It was the fi rst day back from winter break, and fi ve days after Brett’s untimely death. Administrators said that substitute teachers were on call all day, in case any edu- cators needed to step out of their classrooms to pro- cess tragedy. Kaitlyn Cur- tis, a 16-year-old junior at the high school, befriended Brett when he fi rst moved to Hermiston from Heppner in elementary school. The pair loved participating in local community theater together. And although that was years ago, the friendship stuck. “We were, in a way, each other’s rock,” she said. Harley Pennington, 18, is friends with Maddie, and said she considered Brett her best friend. “Many nights, we would stay up until 4 a.m. just play- ing games and talking about life for hours,” she said. “I could tell him anything and he would accept me no mat- ter what.” Brett was a perfection- Contributed photo by Raices Board members of Raices pose for a photo at the organization’s DACA fundraiser at the Union Club on Dec. 28. Umatilla County adds sheriff’s patrol deputy By ALEX CASTLE STAFF WRITER The Umatilla County Board of Commissioners authorized adding another deputy position to the sher- iff’s offi ce Thursday morn- ing, giving the county its 18th patrol deputy on staff. The authorization moves a deputy who had previously been contracted from the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Offi ce to serve in the county’s community corrections division back to the UCSO. While the deputy had also requested a transfer back to the sheriff’s offi ce, Commissioner George Murdock said, the commu- nity corrections division lacks the state funding to continue its contract. The move also con- tinues the county’s com- mitment to expanding its patrol force, which has remained a priority since a public safety levy was voted down in 2013. Murdock said the county only had seven deputies on staff at the time and public comments and polling indicated it was the highest priority for taxpayers. The levy would have added 18 dep- uties to the county in one fell swoop and was a sur- prise when voters rejected it resoundingly. Entering 2020, Mur- dock highlighted the need to continue the county’s criminal division expan- sion as something he hoped to accomplish. “We’ve made a lot of headway over the years,” he said in an interview on Monday. “Our polling data and conversations with the public show that pub- lic safety remains a high priority.” Later during Thursday’s meeting, the commis- sioners reappointed Rob- ert Wolfe to the Umatilla County Fair Board and fi lled the board’s upcom- ing vacancy by appoint- ing Michael Engelbrecht as the board-elect. “He was primarily selected because of his experience,” said Com- missioner Bill Elfering, who was a part of the inter- view process for candi- dates. “He was very famil- iar with the board duties and has interacted with the board in the past.” Engelbrecht works at Barrett Business Services Inc. (BBSI) in Hermiston and has volunteered and contributed to the fair in previous years, according to Elfering. Engelbrecht will fi ll the seat vacated by Stephen Anderson, who’s not eli- gible for reappointment when his term concludes at the end of 2020. As the fi rst board meet- ing of the new year, Thurs- day also marked the offi - cial appointment of Commissioner John Sha- fer as the new county chairman, while Mur- dock’s role reverts to vice chairman. The change mostly means Shafer becomes the board of commissioners’ spokesman, or the “voice of the county” as he’s put it, and he’ll lead the board’s meetings. Mur- dock, who has held the role for several years, said the chairman takes the lead on overseeing much of the day-to-day operations because the county doesn’t have a manager. IMAC ANNUAL MEETING and SPAGHETTI DINNER The most valuable and respected source of local news, advertising and information for our communities. eomediagroup.com Saturday, January 11, 2020 6:00 pm • $6 per person Strokes Landing/Senior Center 195 Opal Place, Irrigon, OR Tickets available from Don and Donna Eppenbach (541-922-3197) and senior meal site on Mondays. Bank of Eastern Oregon new branch PET OF THE W EEK Cody is a sweet & timid old boy who likes to get loves and will give in return (on his terms). He is sight impaired, which makes him a bit skittish. He is scared of loud noises, and will get excited when it’s time to eat. He loves to lay out of the way where he feels secure. Please consider meeting Cody so he has a home to spend the rest of his days with love. JANUARY 9TH • 5:30-7:00 PM New Branch/Current Loan Office Location! 1475 N. 1ST STREET, HERMISTON MEET CODY Mark Sargent, DVM • Brent Barton, DVM Eugenio Mannucci, DVM, cVMA • Jana von Borstel, DVM, cVMA Small and Large Animal Care Mon: 8-6 Tue - Fri: 8-5 Sat: 8-12 Emergency Service 541.567.1138 80489 Hwy 395 N Hermiston www.oregontrailvet.com PLACE YOUR AD HERE! Contact Audra at 541.564.4538 Today! If interested please go to fuzzballrescue.com and fill out an application. If you are not able to adopt, but would like to foster or donate, visit fuzzballrescue.com or you can mail in donations to Fuzz Ball Animal Rescue, PO Box 580, Hermiston, OR 97838 ChamberRibbon Cutting @ 5:40! Raffles Giveaways Food & Drinks Tours Join us! Member FDIC NMLS# 414459
