WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2021
HermistonHerald.com
Hermiston
Assembly
prepares
for
rebrand
Documentary at Nov. 7
service tells the history
of 90-year-old church
and reveals church’s
new name
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
When is Hermiston
Assembly not Hermiston
Assembly? When it is some-
thing else, of course.
The church at 730 E.
Hurlburt Ave., Hermiston,
soon will undergo a name
change.
Church leaders are keep-
ing the new name a secret
for a big unveiling at an
upcoming celebration but
want to make one thing
clear: Although the name
will change, many of the
most important parts of the
church will remain the same.
The reveal of the new
name will come during a
service Nov. 7. At that ser-
vice, a fi lm also will be
shown, which describes the
history and mission of the
church.
“This has been something
that has been in the works,”
Clayton Haight, Hermiston
Assembly experience pas-
tor, said.
He, as well as other work-
ers and volunteers, recently
upgraded parts of the church
building. Now complete
with the physical changes
to the building, Haight said
the church wants to show off
a “signifi cant change in the
life of our church, which is a
name change.”
The theology of the
church is not changing with
the name, Haight said, nei-
ther are the message or the
church’s “heart for Hermis-
ton” becoming diff erent.
Haight expressed his
feelings for why a name
change was needed, point-
ing out the “interesting” past
two years. The coronavirus
pandemic is a historic event,
he said, which we are all liv-
ing through.
As the eff ects of COVID-
19 are monumental, church
members felt inclined to
contemplate their role in
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
alloween 2021 will be a holiday to
remember for people of Eastern Oregon.
Friday to Sunday, Oct. 29 to 31, 2021,
people turned out for local events. Some attended
the activities as visitors, others as helpers, but
everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
It was a big year for many people, as they
delighted in experiences that had been can-
celed the year prior because of the coronavirus
pandemic.
H
EasternOregonMarketplace.com
Umatilla
County
celebrates
Halloween
with big events
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
A dinosaur trick-or-treats Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, during Treats on Main in downtown Hermiston.
Hermiston
Hermiston hosted several events, includ-
ing Treats on Main & Beyond. Local businesses
handed out candy to costumed trick-or-treaters.
“It was pretty cool,” Sarah Ramos, Hales’
Restaurant hostess, said. There were many vis-
itors with fun costumes, including some decked
out as dinosaurs, she said.
Cristal Carman, cook for Veg Out, participated
also in the festivities, as she handed out candy
with a co-worker.
“It turned out really good,” she said. “I really
enjoyed seeing all the costumes. Some of them
made them themselves. Others had unique
themes, like some ballplayers from ‘A League of
Their Own.’ So I really enjoyed it, and I think the
kids did, too.”
Another impressive costume, she said, was
Col. Sanders, the KFC founder and mascot.
Someone dressed up like the Colonel and carried
a bucket of fried chicken, Carmen said.
Over at the Hermiston Public Library, staff
also reported having a good time with their vol-
unteerism. Vivian Cano, library assistant, was one
of those volunteers, helping to put “goody bags”
together and then handing them out to children.
She said she saw many excellent costumes —
a giant banana, unicorns, Fortnite characters and
more. She noted the specialness of this holiday,
especially as some of the kids were enjoying it
for the fi rst time in a couple of years, having had
it cancelled last year due to COVID-19 worries.
“They were excited, shy but excited once they
got their bags,” she said. The bags contained
candy, bookmarks and library information.
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Trick-or-treaters on Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, line the sidewalk along Hermiston’s Main Street
during Treats on Main.
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
See Halloween, Page A8
See Assembly, Page A8
Darci Giesen, left, hands out candy to trick-or-treaters Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, in downtown
Hermiston for Treats on Main.
Cat owners warned to vaccinate cats against a deadly disease
By ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Herald
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Amanda White fi lls out intake paperwork for Beetlejuice
on Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, at the Pendleton Animal Welfare
Shelter in Pendleton. While PAWS has not had a case of feline
panleukopenia, it is working to inform cat owners of the
dangers of the disease.
INSIDE
A3  Bi-Mart pharmacies
close, transfer patient fi les
Veterinarian and other animal wel-
fare professionals have noticed an
uptick in feline panleukopenia in
Umatilla County. As they warn the
public about this disease that kills
cats, especially young kittens, they
also spreading the word on how they
can help prevent it.
“I’ve never seen it this bad,” Carol
Boggs said.
Boggs is a volunteer and treasurer
for Fuzz Ball Animal Rescue, Herm-
iston. She also assists Cat Utopia of
Pendleton and at the Pendleton Ani-
mal Welfare Shelter, Pendleton.
Her work includes trapping, fos-
tering and transporting animals. In a
regular week, she traps around 20 cats
and dogs, she said, but recent weeks
have not been normal. Last week,
she was not capturing animals at all,
and she has limited all contact with
the creatures she would ordinarily be
helping, because of her fear of pan-
leukopenia contamination.
Panleukopenia, also called “pan-
A6  Operation Christmas
Child gears up for its
annual shoebox gifts
leuk,” is an infectious disease among
cats. Mark Sargent, Oregon Trail Vet-
erinary Clinic veterinarian, explained
details of the disease. Its literal trans-
lation is “all white low,” referring to its
eff ect, lowering a cat’s white blood cell
count.
Cats pick up the virus in their envi-
ronment, the veterinarian said, some-
times from other cats, but soil also can
be a source of infection. Indoor cats
may be less at risk, but even they are
susceptible to the disease if someone
tracks the virus into their home.
Jessie Frischman, veterinarian with
Hermiston Veterinary Clinic, added the
disease attacks bone marrow, decreases
white blood cells and sets up its victim
for other infections. Symptoms include
vomiting, loss of appetite and diarrhea.
Death often follows, she said.
Kittens are especially at risk, as
their immune system is immature and
their body fat is low.
Sargent said Umatilla County has
“seen a lot” of panleuk, a “fl urry of it”
in the last two months among strays.
“I don’t recall seeing an outbreak
like this before,” he said.
A6  Hermiston FFA
places in national
competition
A7  Halloween
scary story winner
Cases sometimes pop up “here or
there, but nothing like this,” he said,
adding he suspects it got into the right
population, stray cats, and spread like
“wildfi re.”
Boggs, who fosters cats, also used
the word “wildfi re,” when describ-
ing panleuk transmission in her home.
When she still was trapping animals,
she brought home an infected cat and
the disease spread within her home.
Having lost seven cats recently to
panleuk, she is on the lookout for the
disease. In addition to limiting her con-
tact with other cats, she regularly dis-
infects her home, her car and herself
with trifectant spray. The 53-year-old
Hermiston resident has been taking
care of cats her entire life, and said she
is heartbroken by a disease she sees as
being on the upswing as she has never
seen before.
Cindy Spiess, owner of Pendle-
ton’s Cat Utopia, called the situation as
“really sad.” She also is on the board
of directors for PAWS. She added she
tends to see outbreaks every fi ve or
See Disease, Page A8
REMINDER
Set your clocks back an hour,
Sunday, Nov. 7.