WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2021
HermistonHerald.com
The Bridge
owners are
‘hellbent’ to
make shift
from The
Riverside
permanent
N.W. CRANE SERVICE IN
‘BEST
POSITION’
EVER
Sounds of babies
and children are now
commonplace
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
UMATILLA — From the
outside, The Bridge Bistro
& Brews may look like the
old Riverside Sports Bar, but
it is much diff erent on the
inside, and the owners could
not be happier about it.
“Things are good,” said
Paulette Dufl oth. She owns
the Bridge with her husband
Daren Dufl oth. They owned
The Riverside as well, inher-
iting it from Daren’s father.
She called the transition,
which began in May 2020,
“wonderful.” She also said
the community has been
very supportive.
The Riverside opened
in 1994, and it was a busi-
ness that supported her fam-
ily in a town the Dufl oths
love. It also employed sev-
eral people, so they do not
express any regrets about
it. However, they had long
wanted to convert the sports
bar and strip club to a fami-
ly-friendly restaurant.
On March 15, 2020, they
ended The Riverside due to
COVID-19 concerns. They
stood in the middle of their
business and wondered what
they would do.
“We had some hard deci-
sions to make,” Paulette
said.
They went from making
an income to making noth-
ing, and they felt stressed.
Two days after closing,
they started renovating with-
out a decision about the busi-
ness and whether they would
make the transition.
Paulette was feeling
burnt out by the business.
It was never her cup of tea,
she said. And while they did
not make a statement right
away about changing it per-
manently, she said she was
“hellbent” on a big change
and she would not go back.
The adult business would be
no more, forever.
See Bridge, Page A9
EasternOregonMarketplace.com
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
N.W. Crane Service Inc. employees wait as a crane segment is lowered into position to be attached Sept. 27, 2021, at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland,
Washington. The Hermiston-based company has not experienced the staffi ng issues that are prevalent in other industries as a result of the pandemic.
Editor’s Note
Editor’s note: Today is Part 5 of a fi ve-part
series of articles by EO Media Group looking
at the lack of workers for jobs in Central, East-
ern and Coastal Oregon — why workers are not
returning to previously held jobs and how busi-
nesses are functioning without being fully staff ed.
This last segment looks to the future.
By ERICK PETERSON AND SUZANNE ROIG
Hermiston Herald
HERMISTON — Not every company is feel-
ing the employment pinch equally, according to
some local construction companies and at least
one economist.
People at N.W. Crane Service Inc. and other
companies say they are not having the same prob-
lems with staffi ng as in other industries. And when
they do have personnel issues, they are not related
to the pandemic.
“We’re blessed,” said Ryan Karlson, logistics
manager at N.W. Crane Service in Hermiston.
Though he credited much of his success to luck,
his company’s achievements in hiring and main-
taining staff seem to be more than a fl uke.
First, he said, crane businesses attract a spe-
cial sort of person. Karlson’s company employs
12 crane operators and drivers. Karlson is himself
an experienced crane operator and knows a thing
or two about this type of worker.
Crane operators, he said, are excited by the chal-
lenge of their work. Often, prior to beginning their
careers, they looked up at cranes while doing other
construction, and they wanted to get behind the
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Riley Sederburg, of Adams, lines up a hydraulic
component while working with Hermiston-based
N.W. Crane Service Inc. to assemble a crane Sept.
27, 2021, at Kadlec Regional Medical Center in
Richland, Washington.
controls of the huge machines.
This desire, he said, is sometimes hidden deep in
their hearts. When they fi nally talk to an employer
about crane work, and they learn about the oppor-
tunities, they are excited. And when they get a job,
often they do not want to leave it.
Being able to off er employees a challenging,
fulfi lling and enjoyable job, then, accounts for part
of N.W. Crane’s employment success. This is not
the end of the explanation, however.
A major reason Karlson has been able to fos-
ter loyalty is because he off ers in-house certifi ca-
tions, which employees appreciate.
Certifi cates are important for crane opera-
tors. Many work sites, including ones owned by
Amazon, allow only certifi ed workers. And many
employers, Karlson said, require employees to fi nd
and pay for their own certifi cates.
He said he suspects his employees appreciate
their training, but also other perks. He off ers insur-
ance and vacations. Depending on their experi-
ence, a new driver can earn $20 to $22 per hour.
His crane operators can earn $23 to $40 or more.
These are nonunion jobs, but Karlson said
employees can benefi t from not being union mem-
bers. Union employees, he said, might have to wait
years before they can receive crane training. This
is not the case for his workers — they can start
training right away.
Turnover, then, is low, according to Karlson.
His workers appreciate their jobs and the benefi ts
of their labor, so they work well, but this is not all.
They did not just start working hard when they
joined his company; they started as good workers.
Karlson relies on pre-employment interviews to
screen potential employees. Even if he has to do
interviews by Zoom, rather than in person, he likes
to be able to look a potential employee in the eye.
He said he tries to fi gure their abilities and their
character. If he thinks an employee will be a good
fi t, he said, they usually are.
Karlson said his company is “in the best position
we’ve ever been,” and this is during a pandemic
See Workers, Page A9
Morrow County Harvest Festival was a success, organizer says
Event returned after
missing 2020
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
BOARDMAN — More than
1,000 people showed up Saturday,
Oct. 2, for the return of the Morrow
County Harvest Festival.
The SAGE Center in Boardman
was the site for the eighth festival,
which went on hiatus in 2020 due to
the pandemic. Harvest Festival ran
10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Breena Beck,
SAGE Center assistant manager, said
she was happy to bring back the Har-
vest Festival for its eighth year and
set an attendance goal of 1,000.
Attendance neared that mark by
2 p.m.
“We’re so excited to be back in
full force,” Beck said.
Pleasant weather — temperatures
were in the 70s — helped make the
Harvest Festival a success, accord-
ing to Beck, and the vendors created
fun for people. New vendors included
INSIDE
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Anthony Licea, 12, paints a pumpkin Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021, during the
Morrow County Harvest Festival at the SAGE Center in Boardman.
sign makers, jewelers and clothing
makers. Beck said she believes lock-
downs may have inspired people.
“I think the quarantines have
brought out the makers in all of us,”
she said.
A3 Three new peer centers open
in Umatilla County
The number of returning vendors
was another point of pride, Beck said.
Around 30 vendors — includ-
ing general vendors, food vendors
and volunteer groups at Kid’s Cor-
ner — participated in the festival.
A6 New “Eminent Oregonians”
book tells Oregon history
That was a drop from 2019, when
40 vendors set up, although Beck
said the decline was expected as
Harvest Festival was using only its
outdoor space. Organizers closed
off the inside area because of the
pandemic.
Live music, mule-drawn wagon
rides, food and children’s activities
were present. There also was a pine-
wood derby race, which was new
to the festival. Sponsors included
Amazon Web Services, Lamb
Weston, Threemile Canyon Farms
and Wildhorse Resort & Casino.
Sierra Simmons, Irrigon High
School sophomore, was among
local 4-H members who were in
attendance. Simmons was show-
ing goats and cattle, which she
described as “pretty fun.” She said
she especially liked introducing the
animals to small children who had
never seen such critters up close.
Harold Rietmann, Ione resi-
dent and self-described hobbyist,
brought his woodcrafts to the Har-
vest Festival. Among the items he
was selling were earrings and neck-
laces. He said he started this work
A7 Shannon’s AmazBalls is
prepping for Christmas
in the 1980s and began selling his
products at events in 2010.
Rietmann said he has been to all
of the festivals, since they began. He
goes to local craft bazaars, and this
one is “very good,” he said.
Gracie Krahn, Linn-Benton Com-
munity College sophomore and 2021
Oregon Dairy Princess Ambassador,
was among the people who had a
booth at the festival. She visited
Boardman on her tour of state fairs,
summer camps and other events.
Krahn, an Albany resident, said she
was having a good time.
“I love this event,” she said. “I’ve
been able to connect with little ones
and others, all the way up to grand-
mas and grandmas. It’s been an out-
standing afternoon.”
Linda Mackey, owner of The
Natural Maximum of Washington,
boasted being at Harvest Festival each
year since it began. A Prosser, Wash-
ington, resident, she said she was glad
to be outside in beautiful weather.
Most years, she said, the weather has
been windy and unpleasant.
See Festival, Page A9
A8 Junk Barn Girls was a hit
for participants