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WEDNESDAY, MAY 26, 2021
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UPDATES
Umatilla
County
reports
3 recent
COVID-19
deaths
HERMISTON HERALD
During the week
of May 16, Umatilla
County Public Health
offi cials reported three
new deaths of patients
with COVID-19 from
Umatilla County.
The fi rst was an
80-year-old man who
tested positive on March
26 and died on April 3
at Trios Health South-
ridge Hospital in Ken-
newick. He had under-
lying conditions.
The second was an
82-year-old man who
tested positive on May
4 and died on May
10 at Pacifi c Health
and Rehabilitation in
Tigard. He had underly-
ing conditions.
The third was an
82-year-old man who
tested positive on May
3 and died on May 19
at his residence. He had
underlying conditions.
The three deaths
bring Umatilla County
up to 87 deaths of peo-
ple with COVID-19
since the pandemic
started. The vaccination
status of the individuals
who died was not stated
in the news releases.
According to Oregon
Health Authority, 34.1%
of Umatilla County res-
idents over the age of
16 have had at least one
dose of the vaccine so
far, compared to 64.3%
statewide.
Morrow
County
stands at 39.4% and
Union County stands
at 41.4%. The high-
est vaccination rate in
Oregon so far is Ben-
ton County, at 68.7% of
individuals over the age
of 16 at least partially
vaccinated.
More
data
on
COVID-19 in Ore-
gon, including cases
by ZIP code, hospital-
izations and more, can
be found at https://pub-
lic.tableau.com/profi le/
oregon.health.authority.
covid.19.
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Kaylie Cook examines the cost of transportation options during a FAB Life exercise at Hermiston High School on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.
A wake-up call
FAB Life returns to teach students how expensive it is to be an adult
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
Joshua Farias needed a
roommate.
The single father of two, mak-
ing $36,480 per year as a restaurant
manager, was almost out of money
for the month but still needed to
pay for utilities, a car and clothing
for himself and his children. So he
asked around until he found some-
one willing to pay half the mort-
gage for a room in his three-bed-
room home.
Fortunately for Farias, he isn’t
actually a father of two, just a
Hermiston High School senior par-
ticipating in a budgeting simula-
tion meant to teach students about
the cost of living. And he learned,
to his surprise, just how expensive
adult life can be.
“Housing is the most expen-
sive,” he said.
The budgeting exercise, known
as FAB Life, took place on May
19-20 at the high school. Seniors
were each given a scenario sheet
detailing aspects of their “life,”
including their profession, annual
salary, monthly take-home pay,
married status and number of chil-
dren. They had to then visit booths
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Giselle Gutierrez, left, and Jose Cortez examine their scenario sheets while
waiting in line at the housing booth during a FAB Life exercise at Hermiston
High School on Wednesday, May 19, 2021. The exercise showed students
the true cost of adulthood through simulated life scenarios.
around the gym, staff ed by volun-
teers who explained their spending
options to them.
At the child care booth, students
were given options ranging from
public child care centers to a nanny,
with price tags based on the num-
ber and age of their children. Kory
Terry and Miranda Cranston, who
were running the booth, said stu-
dents were often surprised at the
cost.
“They’re giving us ‘wow’ eyes,
like, ‘Are you serious?’” Terry said.
Important choices
Cranston said a few students
said it was important to them
that their child got the best care
possible and hired a nanny, but
most students chose the cheapest
option.
A few booths down, Candelario
Rodriguez was giving students a
price for their car insurance, based
on the vehicle they had chosen at
the transportation booth. He said
he was surprised how many stu-
dents had chosen to drive a used
car, even if they were single and
making a high salary.
When a girl visited his booth
and shared the type of car she had
purchased, he talked to her about
the importance of purchasing car
insurance before letting her know it
would be $85 a month.
While most of the booths caused
students to add a new expense to
their budget, those who were run-
ning out of money could visit the
supplemental income booth to fi nd
out ways they could increase their
revenue.
Lori Spencer went over options
with students that ranged from
picking up a second job in the
evenings to holding a yard sale for
a one-time infusion of cash. Some
students who visited the booth
learned that as a single parent they
were entitled to child support.
See FAB, Page A12
Hermiston man died a
classifi ed death in WWII
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
Jack Ballo/Contributed Photo
The sinking of the HMS Rohna, pictured here, is the subject of the “Rohna: Classifi ed” documentary.
A Hermiston man, Kermit Belles, was one of the more than 1,000 American troops who lost their lives
on the ship on November 26, 1943.
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Kermit Belles’ parents never knew
how he died.
The Hermiston man, serving his
country during World War II, died in
one of the worst naval calamities in
United States history. But the sinking of
the HMS Rohna was classifi ed, and so
details of its demise didn’t become pub-
lic knowledge until the 1990s.
Instead, the Hermiston Herald
reported on Jan. 6, 1944, that Mr. and
Mrs. Claude Bellles had received the
following telegram:
“The Secretary of War desires me to
express his deep regret that your son,
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Pvt. Kermit A. Belles, has been reported
missing in action since November 26 in
the North African area. If further details
or other information are received you
will be promptly notifi ed.”
Further details were not forthcoming.
Robert Sutton said over time, the
family decided he must have been killed
in the sinking of the USS Liscome Bay,
which a Japanese submarine torpe-
doed in the Pacifi c the same week. Sut-
ton’s mother, Gloria Belles, was Kermit
Belles’ younger sister. She died in April
2000 — just six months before Congress
offi cially acknowledged the sinking of
the Rohna for the fi rst time.
See Belles, Page A12
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