WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24, 2021
HermistonHerald.com
EasternOregonMarketplace.com
UPDATES
Hermiston
students to
return to
full time
HERMISTON HERALD
Hermiston School Dis-
trict announced on Tues-
day, March 23, that all
students will return to
in-person classes full
time, fi ve days a week
starting April 13.
The
announcement,
which came shortly before
the Hermiston Herald
went to print, stated the
change was made pos-
sible by the unexpected
update to the state’s Safe
Schools, Ready Learners
safety rules on Monday,
March 22, that allowed
districts to shrink the
space between students’
desks from 6 feet to 3 feet.
Students will have
school off on April 12
to allow staff to prepare.
When they return, ele-
mentary students will
attend from 7:55 a.m. to
2:30 p.m., with a 1:45
pm release on Wednes-
days. Middle school stu-
dents will attend from
8:30 a.m. to 3:18 p.m.,
with a 9:15 a.m. start on
Wednesdays. High school
students will go from
8:25 a.m. to 3:25 p.m.,
with a 9:10 a.m. start on
Wednesdays.
“This is welcome
news, following updated
federal guidance,” Super-
intendent Tricia Mooney
said in a statement. “I
want to express my grati-
tude for the community’s
support and for everyone
doing their part to help
keep each other safe and
reduce case counts.”
On
March
23,
Gov. Kate Brown also
announced
Umatilla
County will remain at the
high risk level of restric-
tions for COVID-19 for
another two weeks and
Morrow County will
remain at low risk.
Oregon Health Author-
ity assesses COVID-19
cases and test positivity
every 14 days to deter-
mine the level of restric-
tions for each county.
The risk levels determine
the capacity allowed for
indoor dining establish-
ments, gyms, churches,
event centers and other
gathering places.
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Darrell “Pete” Rollins poses with his Eastern Oregon Recovery Center certifi cate of completion for a portrait at McKenzie Park in Hermiston on Tuesday,
March 23, 2021.
Road to recovery
Eastern Oregon Recovery Center helps people beat addictions
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
When Darrell “Pete” Roll-
ins entered inpatient treatment
for addiction at Eastern Oregon
Recovery Center in Pendleton, he
didn’t think anything counselors
there had to teach him would work.
“I packed my stuff every day for
the fi rst 30 days, wanting to leave,”
the Hermiston man said.
One day, he said, he broke the
rules of the center and was asked to
give up his cellphone for a week.
He asked for time to think about it
and called his adult son, hoping his
son would be outraged on his behalf
and come and get him. Instead, his
son asked him if he had really bro-
ken the rules, and when he said yes,
told him he needed to own up to
his mistake. So he handed over his
phone, and in the process, decided
to embrace the recovery program
instead of resisting it.
“When I gave up my phone, that
was the best thing I ever did,” he
said.
There were still setbacks, after
that. He almost left when his
younger brother was killed in a
motorcycle accident, before decid-
ing his brother would have cared
Recovery Resources
Umatilla County Human Services: 541-564-9390
Eastern Oregon Detoxifi cation Center: 541-278-2558
Eastern Oregon Recovery Center: 541-278-2558 ext. 102
Power House Residential Drug Treatment Center: 541-567-2593
New Horizons: 541-289-0190
Grande Ronde Recovery Center: 541-663-4104
National Substance Abuse and Mental Health hotline: 1-800-662-4357
Darrell Rollins/Contributed Photo
A printed photograph of Darrell
Rollins shows his condition prior
to his treatment at Eastern Oregon
Recovery Center in October 2020.
more about him getting clean than
attending his funeral. But Rollins
graduated from the recovery center
in February and said he hasn’t used
drugs since.
He’s thrilled. He says he’s hap-
pier, healthier and has a better
relationship with his children. He
enjoys more activities, and has a
steady job.
“I wish I had done this 35 years
ago,” he said. “The world has
opened up to me.”
He has a lot of people to thank
— his child’s pediatrician, to
whom he confi ded his drug prob-
lem. His primary care physician.
The people at Umatilla County
Human Services, who helped get
him into treatment and have sup-
ported him in the outpatient phase.
His probation offi cer. Those who
attend Narcotics Anonymous and
Alcoholics Anonymous meetings
with him. His boss at Bud Rich
Potato, who held his job for him
while he was in treatment. He said
he couldn’t have done it without
his children, either.
“I’m really fortunate my kids
never turned their back on me,” he
said. “That was my support.”
He also credits the staff at East-
ern Oregon Recovery Center for
their help. He said they managed to
“teach an old dog new tricks” and
could see through his excuses and
get to the heart of the problem.
“I couldn’t believe the love and
compassion they had for someone
like me,” he said.
While staff can’t talk about indi-
vidual patients’ treatment, employ-
ees of EORC can talk about the
facility in general. Eastern Oregon
Recovery Center began as Eastern
Oregon Alcoholism Foundation in
1960. The overarching organization
includes the 36-bed inpatient treat-
ment center for men and women,
the Eastern Oregon Detoxifi ca-
tion Center and transitional hous-
ing. Located in Pendleton, it serves
people throughout the state who are
seeking treatment for addiction.
Kati Jokinen, clinical supervi-
sor for the recovery center, said
See Recovery, Page A8
Keeping families fed
Hermiston groups bring food and other supplies to
thousands of farmworkers
By BRYCE DOLE
STAFF WRITER
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Rafael Romero inserts lists of COVID-19 and workplace safety information into packages of food for farmworkers
at New Horizons in Hermiston on Friday, March 12, 2021.
INSIDE
A3 Demolition work begins on
city hall to clear the way for new
building
A7 Bird Scooters bring e-scooter
technology to Hermiston
Wences Dominguez makes a
little more than $400 each week
pruning grapes in the sprawling
fi elds around Hermiston — $350
of which he gives to his family.
He sends about $300 to his
mother, wife and sons back home
in Michoacán, Mexico, where
he’s been coming to and from for
the past 23 years, while search-
ing for a better future. In his fi rst
years working in the United States,
he used all the money he made to
build his family’s home.
The remaining $50 he gives to
A8 Governor expands vaccine el-
igibility to agricultural workers and
those with underlying conditions
his daughter. Before he came to
Hermiston over two years ago, he
hadn’t seen her for seven years. He
couldn’t get a green card, he said.
“I felt very happy,” he said of
the fi rst time he saw her again.
She has two daughters, and
when the pandemic began to
spread through nearby agricultural
areas in the summer, they were the
reason he worked hard to protect
himself from COVID-19.
“Always I take care,” he said
through a translator. “Always I
have my mask. For my kids.”
See Supplies, Page A8
A9 Umatilla County Fire District
1 goes for bond on May ballot