NEWS
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2021
Junk Barn Girls host 10th event, Shearer’s chemical
leak hospitalizes three,
following last year’s hiatus
evacuates others
Two-day event called a success
by organizers and vendors
By ERICK PETERSON
HERMISTON HERALD
HERMISTON — A two-day event
showcasing the repurposing “junk”
for a new life returned to Hermiston.
Junk Barn Girls was Friday and
Saturday, Oct. 1 and 2, at the East-
ern Oregon Trade and Event Center
in Hermiston. Katie Anderson and
Angela Ditchen, members of the Junk
Barn Girls, organized the event.
This year was special, Ander-
son said, because it marked the 10th
year of the event. Last year should
have been No. 10, but COVID-19
prompted the cancellation.
Junk Barn’s comeback included
30 vendors. This is 10 fewer vendors
from 2019, but the organizers still felt
pretty good about the turnout. The
pandemic is continuing, and many
vendors are choosing to stay home,
Ditchen said.
Ditchen, a Junk Barn Girls founder,
started the organization with Shan-
non Snyder on Golden Valley Farms.
Their event, which outgrew the
farm and moved to EOTEC, and the
Junk Barn grew until the pandemic,
Ditchen said.
Anderson has been part of the
event, at least helping out, from the
beginning, Ditchen said.
The event chooses a charity each
year. This year, the charity was Cam-
pus Life, a cause Ditchen and Ander-
son said are close to their hearts. They
are both mothers and appreciate char-
ities that look out for children.
Inside Junk Barn, vendors seemed
to be doing well. They kept busy most
of the time with transactions, and they
said they were enjoying themselves.
Kris Bennett, KRISanthemums
owner and Hermiston Chamber of
Commerce board chair, said she is a
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Walla Walla resident Neva Gould shows
off her vintage tools Saturday, Oct. 2,
2021, at Junk Barn Girls at the Eastern
Oregon Trade and Event Center, Herm-
iston. The event marked its 10th year.
regular at Junk Barn.
“I’ve always enjoyed coming
here,” she said.
She explained she likes supporting
an event that supports the community.
Many people are able to promote their
business through Junk Barn, she said.
Also, several charities have benefi ted,
and she likes that, too.
Neva Gould, of Lighthearted, said
she does a few shows throughout the
year. She sells vintage furniture, tools
and hardware.
“This is a great show,” she said,
adding the customers are her favorite
part because everyone is pleasant.
Alexis McCarthy and Angela Pur-
sel, owners of The Next Chapter
Bookstore, took a break from their
Hermiston store to sell books and
puzzles at Junk Barn. This was a good
event, McCarthy said, because she
could sell more home decor books
and cookbooks than she could nor-
mally sell at her store.
Also, McCarthy enjoyed being
a seller at an event she had often
attended as a buyer.
“We love Junk Barn,” She said.
“When we got the call, we jumped
right on it.”
As her store is new, this event
served as a good chance for publicity.
Erin Gunesch, Illie owner and
Salem resident, said she was disap-
pointed the event did not occur last
year. She appeared at it in 2019, and
she liked it.
“It’s good to be back,” she said. It
gave her a place to market her home
décor and clothing.
Travis and Laura Winters, Browne
House Coff ee Co. owners and Hep-
pner residents, were at Junk Barn to
sell coff ee and promote their business.
They are fi xing a Heppner building to
house a café.
This was their fi rst year with their
own business at Junk Barn. Laura said
she has been at the event in previous
years but she was with another com-
pany then.
Donna Rogers, antique and craft
seller, has been a vendor for eight
years. A Hermiston resident, she goes
to Portland for her inventory. She vis-
its antique stores and estate sales to
fi nd treasures to bring back and sell at
Junk Barn.
She said she loves the “thrill of the
hunt,” an experience she shares with
her friend, Rhonda Campbell, with
whom she was selling items.
Campbell said she has a good time
at Junk Barn. More than the fun of
selling goods and the opportunity to
make money, she likes spending time
with her friend.
“This is a lot of fun,” she said, and
Rogers agreed. They hope they can do
it again next year.
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
A chemical leak the
night of Sept. 27 at Shear-
er’s Foods in Hermiston
resulted in three people
going to the hospital.
Umatilla County Fire
District No. 1 responded
to the food processing fac-
ulty at 8:45 p.m. with three
engines, two medics, a
hazmat team and more.
Division Chief Richard
Cearns said around 20 to 25
employees were evacuated.
It is not entirely com-
mon to send out a hazmat
team, Cearns said, but this
was a case for it, as people
reported a chemical smell
in the warehouse.
The hazmat team tri-
aged fi ve possible patients.
Ambulances rushed three
to Good Shepherd Medical
Center, Hermston, and two
refused transport, accord-
ing to Fire Chief Scott
Stanton.
Cearns said his team
found the cause of the leak
and mitigated the problem,
though he could not say the
exact chemical released.
Once the chemical release
was stopped, and after
aff ected employees were
sent to the hospital, Shear-
er’s was allowed to open at
4 a.m. the following day,
Cearns said.
A spokesperson for
Good Shepherd said all
three patients were treated
and released by Sept. 29.
Shearer’s has not yet
returned calls regarding the
incident nor made a state-
ment about the cause of the
evacuation.
Umatilla County Fire District No. 1/Contributed Photo
Umatilla County Fire District No. 1 responds Tuesday night,
Sept. 27, 2021, with a hazmat truck and more to a chemical
leak at Shearer’s Foods in Hermiston.