COMMUNITY
A2 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
THREE MINUTES WITH ...
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2020
HERMISTON HISTORY
MICHELLE KANE
Title I assistant for the
Hermiston School District
When and why did you move to Hermiston?
My family moved to Hermiston in 1997 because
my husband got a job with The Hermiston Herald,
and we wanted to be close to our extended family.
HH fi le photo
Where is your favorite place to eat in
Hermiston?
My go-to places are Papa Murphy’s and Safe-
way deli’s Chinese takeout. I like to grab some-
thing and take it home. I also like to hop across the
street to Rio Express Mexican Grill for lunch when
I get the chance.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I love to read, go for walks with my son, and go
on crazy day trips around the Northwest with my
daughter.
What surprises you about Hermiston?
I would say our town’s resiliency surprises —
or impresses — me the most. We’ve weathered
through some tough times: the loss of jobs due
to plant closures, the depot closing and the like.
I have some friends who have experienced hard-
ships, as well. It’s nice to be in a community where
the people are so supportive of one another. We
seem to come back even stronger.
What was the last book you read?
“Communication Between Cultures” by Samo-
var, Potter, McDaniel and Roy. It was for a class
that I was taking. I am currently reading “A Better
Man” by Louise Penny.
What website or app do you use most other
than Facebook?
I use Hulu and Netfl ix to watch TV shows and
movies. I also enjoy the Welcome to Night Vale and
Mo Rocca’s Mobituaries podcasts.
If you could travel anywhere, where would
you go?
Anywhere! I dream of traveling to see both historic
sites, and unusual and mystical places around the
world.
What is the funniest thing that’s ever hap-
pened to you?
What comes fi rst to my mind was when I tried to
operate a scissor lift two years ago for the fi rst
time while decorating for the Me and My Prince
Ball at EOTEC. I had a hard time grasping how to
steer it and I tended to brake too hard. My friend,
Lyndsey, was on the platform with me, holding on
for dear life. We laughed hysterically … and so did
everyone who was watching us.
What is one of your goals for the next 18
months?
I want to scrape together enough money to visit my
parents, brother and sister in Mississippi. I miss
not having them here anymore.
Printed on
recycled
newsprint
VOLUME 114 • NUMBER 13
Scott Cason, left, John Lloyd and Fernando Mendosa plant onion seeds in 1995.
Houseboat victim found after 6 months
25 YEARS AGO
March 28, 1995
Hermiston will have an Arby’s
and, very likely, a Burger King before
the end of the summer.
Elmer Alcorn, who owns the
Arby’s in The Dalles, said construc-
tion on a restaurant at Highway 395
and Elm Street should begin June 1.
He said he has been looking at
placing a restaurant in Hermiston for
some time, and the boom the local
economy is experiencing made him
act now.
“It’s been in the last six months
that Hermiston’s been hot with devel-
opment,” Alcorn said.
Pendleton will have to wait another
year for Alcorn to set up a restaurant,
he said. A new shopping mall slated
for the town should spur growth there,
he said.
“Umatilla County looks pretty
good right now, compared to what it
was,” he said.
50 YEARS AGO
March 26, 1970
A 6-year-old Hermiston youth,
Danny Ralls, was injured Saturday
when he was thrown from a horse
after it was hit by a car.
Mrs. Gayle Ralls, Danny’s mother,
was driving south on east 10th and hit
the horse her son was riding at a blind
corner.
Danny suffered a fractured leg and
head lacerations. The horse received a
cut leg.
2) The body of a 51-year-old Herm-
iston man was found about 2 p.m.
Sunday, March 22, near Blalock
Island, according to State Police.
The body of James Turk had not
been recovered after a houseboat he
and four others were in capsized last
September. Paul Sampson, Prosser,
discovered the body.
Two other persons were killed in
the accident, Marian Turk, 28, and
Herbert K. Ramsey, 63, of Power City.
Both bodies were recovered earlier.
Two children, Melissa and Leanna
Turk, were rescued from waist-deep
waters on the Washington side of
the river about seven hours after the
accident.
75 YEARS AGO
March 29, 1945
Chris Rush | Publisher • crush@eomediagroup.com • 541-278-2669
Jade McDowell | News Editor • jmcdowell@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4536
Tammy Malgesini | Community Editor • tmalgesini@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4539
Annie Fowler | Sports Editor • afowler@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4542
Jeanne Jewett | Multi-Media consultant • jjewett@hermistonherald.com • 541-564-4531
Audra Workman | Multi-Media consultant • aworkman@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4538
Extensive preparations have been
completed by the United Drug Com-
pany of Boston and St. Louis to make
the wonder-drug Penicillin instantly
available to its distributors, the Rexall
Drug Stores throughout the country on
March 15 when the War Production
Board authorized the general release
HH fi le photo
A truckload of fl attened cars leaves Hermiston in 1970.
of this amazing drug for civilian use
on doctors’ prescriptions.
Up to now “life-saving” Penicil-
lin has been almost wholly reserved
for the exclusive needs of our armed
forces. However, production of the
drug has advanced so rapidly in
recent months that a limited amount
can now be regularly set aside for use
on the home front without endanger-
ing the supply going overseas. That
is why the long-awaited date for its
release by the War Production Board
was history-making.
100 YEARS AGO
March 27, 1920
Hermiston’s fi rst horse show, held
Saturday of last week, was a suc-
cess, both in the number of exhib-
its and attendance, being one of the
most successful stock gatherings held
in the county this year. Great interest
was manifest by all horsemen in the
county, and several auto-loads came
from Pendleton, Umatilla, Stanfi eld
and Butter Creek.
2) Plans are completed for the
remodeling and improvement of the
Lowman store rooms in the brick
building on Hermiston Avenue on the
west side of town. The property con-
sists of a one-story brick structure
containing fi ve store rooms and has a
frontage of half a block on Hermiston
Avenue.
The property for several years past
has been used for residence purposes
and small stores, though at one time
it was completely occupied with busi-
ness concerns.
The local agent of the property,
HH fi le photo
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serivce biologist
Kelly Moroney keeps an eye out for
curlews in 1995.
C.S. McNaught, has given notice to
all tenants that they must vacate by
the next thirty days, when the work
of putting the building in shape will
begin. The work, outside of remod-
eling the stores, will be the laying of
a wide cement walk in front of the
building. It is understood that all of
the storerooms in the building have
been spoken for.
Mr. Lowman of Seattle, the owner,
was until a few years ago largely inter-
ested in project lands here with the
McNaughts under the fi rm name of
Maxwell Land Co., and still has con-
siderable property interests in this city
and vicinity.
Dawn Hendricks | Circulation assistant • dhendricks@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4530
To contact the Hermiston Herald for news,
advertising or subscription information:
• call 541-567-6457
• e-mail info@hermistonherald.com
• stop by our offi ces at 333 E. Main St.
• visit us online at: hermistonherald.com
The Hermiston Herald (USPS 242220, ISSN
8750-4782) is published weekly at Hermiston
Herald, 333 E. Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838,
(541) 567-6457.
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Member of EO Media Group Copyright ©2020
CORRECTIONS
It is the policy of the Hermiston Herald to correct errors as soon as they are
discovered. Incorrect information will be corrected on Page 2A. Errors commited on
the Opinion page will be corrected on that page. Corrections also are noted in the
online versions of our stories. Please contact the editor at editor@hermistonherald.
com or call (541) 564-4533 with issues about this policy or to report errors.
SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Letters Policy: Letters to the Editor is a forum for the Hermiston Herald readers
to express themselves on local, state, national or world issues. Brevity is good, but
longer letters should be kept to 250 words. Letters must be original and signed by
the writer or writers. Anonymous letters will not be printed. Writers should include
a telephone number so they can be reached for questions. Only the letter writer’s
name and city of residence will be published.
BTW
Continued from Page A1
• • •
Many stores, restau-
rants and offi ces around
town have been closed due
to COVID-19. We have
received notices of clo-
sures from stores such as
the Hermiston Goodwill,
as well as closures of the
reception areas of offi ces
such as Umatilla Elec-
tric Cooperative, which
are still working behind
the scenes but are no lon-
ger accepting walk-in foot
traffi c.
We do not have a com-
prehensive list of all of
them, but we encourage
everyone to call ahead
or check websites before
attempting to frequent a
business or other organi-
zation, as it may be closed
or be operating by appoint-
ment only. If you don’t
need to be somewhere
in person, stay home to
protect the health of our
community.
• • •
An update on COVID-
19: As of Tuesday after-
noon, the Oregon Health
Authority
announced
that three more known
COVID-19 patients in the
state have died from the
virus, bringing Oregon’s
total to eight deaths and
209 known cases.
The
New
York
Times database of all
state announcements of
COVID-19 cases reported
675 deaths and 52,215 con-
fi rmed cases nationwide.
• • •
The Oregon Depart-
ment of Transporta-
tion announced Monday
that the deadline for driv-
ers to remove studded tires
from their vehicle has been
moved to May 1.
• • •
The Department of
Motor Vehicles has closed
all but six of its offi ces in
the state completely.
The Hermiston offi ce
is one of the six that is not
completely closed, but is
only accepting customers
for a commercial driver’s
license, and they must call
503-945-5000 to schedule
an appointment.
• • •
In Stanfi eld, anyone
wishing to visit city hall or
the municipal court must
call ahead at 541-449-3831.
Utility payments can be
left in a dropbox outside of
city hall, by mail or online
(there is a fee for online
payments).
Parks will remain open
if social distancing recom-
mendations are followed,
but sport courts and play-
ground equipment will be
closed.
• • •
Harkenrider
The
Senior Activity Center
remains closed.
Meals can be ordered
for drive-through take-
out or Meals on Wheels
delivery on Tuesdays
and Thursdays by calling
541-567-3582.
— You can submit items
for our weekly By The Way
column by emailing your
tips to editor@hermiston-
herald.com.