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