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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 23, 2020)
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2020 HermistonHerald.com EasternOregonMarketplace.com To the rescue Eastern Oregon residents send aid to fi re-stricken towns By ANNIE FOWLER FOR THE HERMISTON HERALD ‘MY WIFE (CARYN) AND I HAVE A BIG HEART FOR HELPING PEOPLE. PEOPLE WERE PACKED IN THE CLACKAMAS COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS. TO SEE IT IN PERSON WAS ASTONISHING.’ D avid Dunn returned Sunday, Sept. 20, from his second trip to Clacka- mas County, where he dropped off much-needed supplies to help those affected by the fi res that have devastated Western and Southern Oregon. The Pendleton man, who spent part of his childhood in Molalla, also has a brother, Damion Dunn, who lives in Mulino. His sister-in-law, Casey Buck- master, lost her home and belongings in the fi re that destroyed a good part of Talent, a town of 6,500 people that is 7 miles south of Medford. “My wife (Caryn) and I have a big heart for helping people,” Dunn said. “People were packed in the Clackamas County Fairgrounds. To see it in person was astonishing.” Dunn, the executive director at Redemption Life Services, took bot- tled water, hygiene items, pet food, and supplies for livestock on his latest trip. The donations came from Eastern Ore- gon people wanting to help in any way they can. The Dunns accepted donations at the Walmarts in Pendleton, Hermiston and College Place, Washington. “People from Eastern Oregon differ from those on the west side, but when it comes to something like this, people want to know how they can help,” Dunn said. “It’s nice to come together.” Dunn not only delivers supplies, but offers comfort to those who have lost David Dunn, Pendleton man volunteering to help those affected by fi res that have devastated Western and Southern Oregon Staff photos by Ben Lonergan TOP: Bettina Senter, left, hands donations to Caryn Dunn during a donation drive for Clackamas County fi re victims and fi refi ghters at the Pendleton Walmart on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. Dunn and several others gathered donations from Hermiston, Pendleton, and College Place, Wash., to take to fi re victims in Clackamas County. ABOVE: David Dunn, center, makes calls to try and wrangle donations for fi re victims in the parking lot of the Pendleton Walmart on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. Dunn made stops in Hermiston, Pendleton and College Place, Wash., to help gather donations for fi re victims and fi re fi ghters in Clackamas County. nearly everything they owned. “It’s good to talk to the volunteers and displaced people and share the gos- pel with them,” Dunn said. “You don’t know me, but I love you and I’m here to help. You don’t know how far those words go to helping people in crisis.” Dunn also praised Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer, who helped orga- nize a collection of items that were taken to Bend, and then to Southern Oregon and Clackamas County. Dunn plans more trips to help those in need. If you would like to donate, he can be reached at 541-612-0506, or by email, redemptionlifeservices@gmail. com. Items in greatest need are fuel gift cards, gift cards to major retailers for disaster victims, food for pets and live- stock, water, toilet paper, horse bedding, Gatorade, masks, gloves and fi rst aid kits. Donations are tax deductible. Dunn’s family is but a small part of those reaching out to help fi re victims. American Legion Post 37 in Hermis- ton was collecting donated items at the VFW Hall at 45 W. Cherry Ave. includ- ing foods, produce, toiletries, bottled water, new bedding and new clothing to be delivered to the American Legion Post in Estacada. See Aid, page A10 Stepping Stones looks outside Hermiston after city council vote By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR The Stepping Stones board says they are committed to looking for a new location for their proposed homeless shelter after the Herm- iston City Council passed an ordi- nance on Sept. 14 that banned shel- ters within 1,000 feet of parks and schools. Cathy Lloyd, president of the Stepping Stones board, said while the ordinance technically allows for temporary emergency shelters like the one proposed, regulations in the ordinance — particularly INSIDE the 1,000 foot rule and a require- ment that the shelter must be co-lo- cated with an existing use on indus- trial property rather than having its own property — means the board will be looking outside city limits for space. “We sat and looked at the city’s map last night and there’s not any- thing available,” she said. “It’s pretty disappointing.” She said the next steps were to look for possible sites located in the county or a nearby city and look into zoning rules in those areas. The Stepping Stones board has proposed a shelter modeled after A3 Morrow County moves to Phase 2 as Umatilla and Morrow counties are taken off the state’s COVID-19 watchlist shelters in Walla Walla and else- where that use small Conestoga huts to shelter homeless individu- als. The huts do not have running water, electricity or other ameni- ties because they are not meant to be seen as a permanent housing option, but they do provide more privacy and storage than a warm- ing station with cots lined up on a fl oor. The board has stated that guests would only be allowed into the property at night after checking in with a volunteer, and paid security See Stepping Stones, page A10 A6 COVID-19 is aff ecting the Hermiston Education Foundation’s usual fundraisers Staff photo by Jade McDowell, File A fenced lot between the Agape House and the Theater Sports Park was the proposed site of the Stepping Stones project before the Hermiston City Council approved an ordinance that bans shelters within 1,000 feet of a park or school. A7 Rae’s Dayz Donuts & Etc. opens in Umatilla A8 Graciela Garcia’s family steps up their eff orts to fi nd the missing Hermiston woman
