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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 19, 2020)
COMMUNITY A6 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2020 Aspiring librarian wins summer writing contest By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR When Cassidy McQuain found out that the theme of the Hermiston Pub- lic Library’s teen summer reading program was about myths and magic, she was excited. The Hermiston teen, age 18, loves Greek mythology. “These stories explain how something happened, like the gods are fi ghting, and so that’s a volcano that blew off its top,” she said. “It’s crazy that people made these stories up to explain everyday, normal things.” She immediately had ideas for the program’s summer writing contest, and turned in a story about an archaeologist named Cass, who uncovers Pan- dora’s Box while on a dig in Greece. After discover- ing the box, the heroine of the story meets many fi g- ures from Greek mythology, from Hades to Zeus. The story was named the contest winner, and the prize included writing supplies Photo contributed by Stacie McQuain Cassidy McQuain won this year’s Hermiston Public Library teen summer writing contest. A summer in Greece The following is a short excerpt from “A Summer in Greece,” the fi ctional story by Cassidy McQuain that won the Hermis- ton Public Library’s teen summer writing contest. To read the full story, visit www. hermistonherald.com. Cass wiped the sweat off her brow. Greece during the summer season was really hot. She still couldn’t believe she was getting to be part of one of the biggest archeological digs for Grecian artifacts ever known. Just three months ago, she was teaching archeology and Greek mythology classes at University of Oregon, and now she was the lead archeologist on this historical dig. This morning, she was focused on care- fully removing an urn she discovered in the ruins a day earlier. As she used her pick to gently remove the fi nal rock, she was able to lift the precious piece from the ground. She then took it to the rins- ing station, where she rinsed it off and observed how strange it was. It was dark black and unlike any urn she had seen before. It was square and had strange letters carved into it. As an archeology scholar, she was familiar with many languages, but didn’t recognize this one, so she called over the linguistics expert. He thought it might be Old Greek, but he wasn’t sure. Cass slowly lifted the top of the urn and that’s when everything went black. The next thing she knew, she awoke with a pounding headache in a grove of olive trees. Standing over her was a very tall, handsome man. He had blonde hair, protruding muscles, and was dressed in a white toga and golden sandals. He helped Cass sit up and then he handed and an interview with the Hermiston Herald. McQuain said most of the time she just shows her writing to her family, but she is working on a book that a family friend plans to illus- trate for her. The book is a time-traveling tale involv- ing the legends surrounding King Arthur. “When I write, I can go anywhere, I can be anything I want,” she said. She said she doesn’t usu- ally write outlines of her sto- ries fi rst, she just gets an idea and sits down and starts typing. She often gets those ideas from reading, which is another favorite activity. It probably comes as no surprise, then, that she would also love the library — something McQuain said she “absolutely” does. She sits on the library’s Teen Advisory Council, and hopes to become a librar- ian herself someday. Her mother, Stacie McQuain, said Cassidy is in a high- risk category for COVID- 19, so she was grateful that the library has so many online resources and created a summer reading program with activities that children and teens could do online or socially distanced. “We’re grateful in this digital age that the library and open for Oregon’s Coro- navirus Relief Fund (CRF) Cultural Support program. According to a news release, funds will be avail- able to Oregon cultural orga- nizations facing losses due to the COVID-19 health crisis. The $25.9 million in funding was made avail- able through a $50 million relief package for Oregon culture recently approved by the Emergency Board of the Oregon Legislature. Applications are due by noon Monday, Aug. 24, and approved funds must be dis- tributed by Sept. 15. All Oregon cultural non- profi ts and community ven- ues are welcome to apply. Funding will be determined based on eligible request amounts, an award alloca- tion formula that establishes a base amount of funds per county or tribe and the organization’s fi scal size. COVID-19 expenses previ- ously reimbursed by other federal CARES Act pro- grams are not eligible. The intended use of the CRF Cultural Support funds is to provide fi nancial assis- tance to cultural nonprofi t organizations and commu- nity venues that have can- celed or postponed pub- lic programming because of public health executive orders associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The federal CARES Act requires that CRF fund- ing only be used to cover expenses that are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency and were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved as of March 27, 2020; and were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on Dec. 30, 2020. For more information visit culturaltrust.org/grants. BRIEFS Black Lives Matter march planned Aug. 29 A march for area resi- dents against police brutal- ity and systematic racism is planned Saturday, Aug. 29, from 4-6 p.m. beginning at Roy Raley Park, 1205 S.W. Court Ave., Pendleton. The event will include speakers, a march through Pendleton, a car march, cen- sus and voter registration booths, and kid-friendly activities. Masks are required, and social distancing is highly recommended. Masks and bottled water will be pro- vide, and hand sanitizer will be available for use. Par- ticipants are asked to wear black if possible. For more information, or if you would like to volun- teer or host a booth at the event, email PDTBLM@ outlook.com. Traffi cking awareness march scheduled People are invited to march to raise awareness of child exploitation and human traffi cking on Satur- day, Aug. 22, in Hermiston. The march will begin at 10 a.m. at the corner of Highway 395 and Elm Street next to McDonald’s, and end at McKenzie Park. Organizer Alicia Gre- gerson said she had origi- nally hoped to have speak- ers and information set up at the park, but due to current COVID-19 restrictions the event will just be a march. She said she hopes that it will spark interest in future events, however. The event is part of a “global march” on Aug. 22 encouraged by Freedom for the Children. The orga- nization’s website, free- domforthechildren.org, states that its goals include increasing awareness and asking for “change and ref- ormation within our gov- ernmental and law enforce- ment agencies to ensure that all justice is brought to the victims and more accessibil- ity of support is provided for survivors.” Navarrete awarded accounting scholarship The OSCPA Educational Foundation awarded the McDonald Jacobs PC Schol- arship to Lionel Navarrete of Hermiston, a student at Port- land State University. Scholarships ranging from $2,500-$4,000 were awarded to 39 students based on academic perfor- mance and intent to both pursue a CPA career and work in the state of Oregon. The Oregon Society of CPAs, founded in 1908, is a voluntary association of CPAs and prospective CPAs engaged in public practice, industry, government, and education. With over 4,200 members, the OSCPA is committed to the continu- ing professional success of members. “ Wearing a mask is vital to the safety of our community, staff, and clients. Join us in keeping others safe and mask up! ” MARCELA GARCIA & CASI WHITE, SIMMONS INSURANCE GROUP her a cup and instructed her to drink from it. She took a sip of the liquid, which was sweet and thick like honey and she asked, “What is this? And for that matter, who are you and where am I?” The stranger replied, “You just drank nectar. My name is Zeus and you are in Greece. It is 1600 B.C.” Cass’s head was reeling. This was not possible! She thought she must be dreaming. She thought perhaps she slipped in water, hit her head on a rock, and was comatose or having a dream. Zeus said, “You are not dreaming. I brought you here with magic. Remem- ber that strange urn you had? It wasn’t an urn; it was a box— Pandora’s Box.” still exists and they take so much care of our commu- nity,” Stacie said. Cassidy said this sum- mer reading program was “defi nitely different” than in years past, but she still had fun doing activities pro- vided, including a scaven- ger hunt looking for pic- tures from Greek mythology around town. The library is closed to visitors while Umatilla County is in baseline status, but residents can still visit www.hermistonlibrary.us to fi nd information about curbside pickup and digi- tal collections that library card holders have access to, such as e-books and audio books. WORSHIP COMMUNITY Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church 565 W. HERMISTON AVE. DAILY MASS: Monday-Friday .......................................... English 7:00 am Thursday ....................................................Spanish 6:00 pm SATURDAY:.............................................. English 5:00 pm ....................................................................Spanish 7:00 pm SUNDAY:................................................... English 9:00 am ................................................................Bilingual 11:00 am ....................................................................Spanish 1:00 pm Office..................................................................... 567-5812 LANDMARK BAPTIST CHURCH 125 E. Beech Ave. • 567-3232 Pastor David Dever First Christian Church “Proclaiming the Message of Hope, Living the Gospel of Love” Sunday School...9:15 am Sun. Bible Classes...................10:00am Sun. Worship Service..............11:00am Sun. Evening Worship..............6:00pm Wed. Prayer & Bible Study......6:00pm Children’s Church 10:45 am www.hermistonlmbc.com 775 W. Highland Ave., Hermiston St. Johns Episcopal Church Join Us Us Join On Our Journey With Jesus. Join us on ZOOM 9:00 AM Sunday Email: chuckb@eotnet.net for link N.E. Gladys Ave & 7th, Hermiston PH: 567-6672 We are an all inclusive Church who welcomes all. Worship Service...10:30 am 567-3013 NEW BEGINNINGS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Worship Service 10:30 AM Sunday School 9:00 AM Pastor J.C. Barnett Children’s Church & Nursery Available 700 West Orchard Avenue P.O. Box 933 Hermiston, Oregon 541-289-4774 Seventh-day Adventist Church Saturdays Sabbath School........9:30 a.m. Worship Service......11:00 a.m. English & Spanish Services 567-8241 Hermiston Jr. Academy 1300 NW Academy Lane, • Hermiston Coronavirus relief funds available for nonprofi ts Applications are now live HOME MAINTENANCE CENTER 541-567-7534 Blue Mountain 225 100% Douglas Fir $ Brown Bag Pellets per ton $ White Bags Fir-Pine Mix per ton 195 • Wear a mask in public • Avoid indoor gatherings • Stay 6 feet away from others • Wash your hands frequently SALE ENDS 8/31/20 TN10 Wood Stove $ 1,099 • 10”/12” logs • 30,000 BTU ALL STOVES ARE 2020 CERTIFIED Help Reopen Umatilla County Wearing a mask saves jobs and saves lives To share your worship times call 541-278-2678
