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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 2020)
A2 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM THREE MINUTES WITH … COMMUNITY WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2020 HERMISTON HISTORY Police arrest suspect in chamber burglary BRYCE DOLE Reporter, East Oregonian When and why did you move to Hermiston? I moved to Hermiston Nov. 12 to begin my job report- ing for the East Oregonian. Where is your favorite place to eat in Hermiston? Lawan’s Thai Garden is delicious, but it’s also the only time I’ve ordered food since moving to Eastern Oregon about a month ago. What do you like to do in your spare time? I read a lot, but on weekends I love going into the wil- derness to go trail running, hiking, or lately snow- shoeing and skiing. Since I moved here, I have run on Mount Emily near La Grande and snowshoed a 6-mile loop on the Umatilla Rim Trail, which were both spec- tacular. I can’t wait to explore more of the mountains out east. What surprises you about Hermiston? How kind the people are. It seems that’s the case throughout most of Oregon. Everyone is so welcoming, which is always nice when you move to an area where you don’t know anybody. What was the last book you read? I recently fi nished two books on the same day: “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo,” by Stieg Larson, and “From Beirut To Jerusalem,” by Thomas Friedman. Incredible books. What website or app do you use most other than Facebook? Instagram for personal use and Twitter for work. If you could travel anywhere, where would you go? India. I’ve always dreamt of going there. What is the funniest thing that’s ever happened to you? I was once backpacking in the mountains of Japan and I found myself photographing monkeys as they were lounging around in a river. I got onto an island in the middle of some rapids and crouched down to take a photo of a baby monkey playing with a pebble. Sud- denly, a large monkey, who I later learned was the leader of the pack, jumped at me, screamed and began to grab me and push me into the water as I stood up. I was terrifi ed because this monkey was about half my size and he was tearing my pants by yanking me back and forth. Most of the pack had gathered at this point and were staring at me. I thought for sure I was lunch, though macaques don’t eat humans. Eventually, the big boss relaxed and sat down on a rock next to me, as did the other monkeys. I calmly sat down and was more or less accepted by the pack, as they never bothered me for the rest of the day. I still laugh about that moment. Not many people can say they’ve been beaten up by a monkey. What is one of your goals for the next 12 months? To get to know this community and the wonderful peo- ple here. There are so many fascinating stories, and I want to get to know as many people as I can to amplify their triumphs, struggles, conundrums and moments of bliss. What is your proudest accomplishment? That’s tough. Well, two very different things. One is that I graduated from the University of Oregon during a global pandemic. The other is that I summited Mount Fuji in Japan at sunrise after two days of climbing. Hermiston Herald, fi le Students and staff gather for a groundbreaking for an addition to A.C. Houghton Elementary School in Irrigon in 1995. 25 YEARS AGO Dec. 12, 1995 Hermiston Police arrested a sus- pect Monday in the Oct. 13 break-in and vandalism of the Greater Herm- iston Chamber of Commerce offi ces in the Hermiston Community Center. Police say revenge for a traffi c citation may have been the motive for the vandalism. Steven Rea Greenwalt, 36, was taken into custody without inci- dent around 8:30 p.m. Monday. He faces two counts of second-degree burglary, two counts of fi rst-degree criminal mischief and one count of fi rst-degree theft in connection with the break-in. Hermiston Police Chief Andy Anderson said the break in the case came from information obtained through an anonymous source. The tip made the physical evidence col- lected since the break-in fall into place, he said. Anderson said Green- walt’s action was directed at the city and the police over an incident the previous evening. “We had cited his girlfriend for driving while suspended and towed his car, which happened to be in front of the community center,” Anderson said. 50 YEARS AGO Dec. 17, 1970 Sewer repair Monday night became a subject of major concern to the Hermiston City Council. City Engineer John Morgan showed the council diagrams of two locations where sewer lines of a material said to be in danger of col- lapsing run on private property. In those cases and many others, city records do not clearly indicate which sewer lines were built by the city and which were built on private property. Because of this, no answers were arrive at on Monday. Council- man Carl F. Peters noted that city policy has been to pay for repairs of sewers originally paid for privately. However, when City Manager Tom Harper told the council the original sewer line at Orchard and 8th Place was installed privately, Councilman Stephen J. Trukositz expressed the opinion that a line laid privately should be repaired privately. Morgan said some of the sewer lines in the trouble spots and else- where are made of compressed paper, now illegal in Oregon for laying sewers, which has become plugged in several locations and through which tree roots have grown. Hermiston Herald, File These designs were presented to the community for the original version of Funland Playground in 1995. 75 YEARS AGO Dec. 13, 1945 The anticipated cutback to peace time level has at least begun at the Umatilla Ordnance Depot. Employ- ees were given memorandums last Friday advising them of the neces- sity of lowering the personnel level by approximately 200, the cut to be accomplished by Jan. 10, 1946. 2) Sgt. David E. Hamm, son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter L. Ham, was honorably discharged from the U.S. Marine Corps from their separation center at Mare Island, Calif., Dec. 4th and is now home. David saw a great deal of action in the three years he was in service and the following is a chronologi- cal record of his foreign duty: New Caledonia, March 25, 1943 to Octo- ber 1943; Bougainville, November 1, 1943 to January 12, 1943; Emirau, St. Matthias Islands, March 20, 1944 to April 11, 1944. His duty on Guam began July 22, 1944 and it was here that he received shrapnel wounds and burns which hospitalized him for a few months. He was next at Okinawa, Ryuku Islands, from Aril 1, 1945 to June 21, 1945. At the end of the war he took part in the occupation of Yokosuka Naval Base at Tokyo. 100 YEARS AGO Dec 17, 1920 Motorists need not be quick about putting their cars in storage this year. In fact, they will get plenty of use from them if they don’t store them away, for there are many indications in nature that the approaching winter will be a short and mild one. In noting this fact, the United States Tire Company points out that one nice thing about motoring in winter is that wear on tires is less in cold weather than in the hot summer months. Heat is the worst enemy of rubber.. 2) Last week L.M. Smith brought to town a very large eagle which he shot near his place three miles west of town. The bird measured seven feet from tip to tip of its wings. It rose from the ground and was fl y- ing in front of Mr. Smith’s car. He speeded up and overran the bird and then shot it. The bird was capable of picking up 15 or 20 pounds and fl y- ing away with it. BY THE WAY Community Fellowship Dinner planned for Christmas The Community Fellowship Dinner will be serving free heat-and-serve Christmas dinners on Friday, Dec. 25. Traditional Christmas meals will be available for pick-up from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the parking lot of Hermiston High School, 600 S. First St. People are asked to wear a mask and stay in their vehicle. Meals are also available on a delivery basis. To have a meal delivered, call 541-371-9772 before 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 23. The group of volunteers reported serving 1,300 meals on Thanksgiving, and are still looking for more volun- teers to help prepare, package, hand out and deliver meals. To volunteer, email cfdhermiston@gmail.com or call 541-371-9772. • • • Bus service sets holiday schedule Kayak Public Transit, which operates local buses including the HART and Hermiston Hopper, will not operate any bus routes on Dec. 24-26 in recognition of the Christmas holiday, or Dec. 31-Jan. 2 for the New Year’s holiday. Kayak is also operating on reduced hours on Dec. 28-30. The early morning and evening routes for the HART in Hermiston will be canceled, with routes run- ning from 9:12-11:12 a.m., 12:05-2:05 p.m. and 2:55- 4:55 p.m. on those days. On Dec. 28-30, the Hopper will run from 8:14-11:45 a.m. and 5:34-7:56 p.m. only. For the latest updates visit the Kayak Public Transit Facebook page or call the dispatch line at 541-429-7519 on Monday through Friday, 4:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. • • • with no meal served on Thursday, Dec. 24. It will also be closed on Dec. 31 through Jan. 2 for New Year’s. For a Meals on Wheels delivery in Hermiston, call 541-567-3582 before 10 a.m. to place an order. To pick up a meal from the center at 255 N.E. Second St., call the same number before 11 a.m. Meals are $4 and can be picked up between 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. The Boardman Senior Center is now providing meal delivery. Meals are $4 paid upon delivery. Call 541-481- 3257 to order. • • • Senior menus include spaghetti, ham The Hermiston Herald’s offi ces will be closed for Christmas, Dec. 25 and New Year’s Day on Jan. 1 to allow staff to celebrate the holidays. While the offi ces have been closed to walk-in traf- fi c due to COVID-19 restrictions, the closure means there will also be no one answering the phones on those holidays. The Harkenrider Senior Activity Center’s menu for Thursday, Dec. 17, is ham with yams, veggie, Jell-O salad and dessert. Tuesday, Dec. 22, is spaghetti, garlic bread, salad and dessert. The center will be closed Dec. 23-25 for Christmas, Herald offi ces closed for holidays
