EASTERN OREGON
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
herMIsTOnheraLd.cOM • A7
Battle of the Books ends with a brawl
ical question was, “What
color hair does Johnny
have?” They might also
have to answer, “How old
is Suzie?” or “What is
Brandon’s favorite food.”
“The questions are
detailed, very detailed,”
Hunt said. “They prac-
ticed, and practiced and
practiced.”
Panda Bears 2.0 takes
hermiston school district
reading crown
ERICK PETERSON
hermiston herald
Their battle would
not be denied. When the
2022 Oregon Battle of the
Books was canceled due
to the ongoing pandemic,
Hermiston educators and
students chose to have
their own event.
“We decided to do
our own thing,” Miranda
Hunt, librarian, said.
She explained that, as a
statewide program, Battle
of the Books is a big deal
that needed to continue.
In the contest, students
within a given age group
read the same 16 books.
Then, they form groups of
three or four. Teams com-
pete against one another
answering questions about
the books they read.
In a normal year, Herm-
iston teams would be com-
peting against teams from
around the state. This year
was different.
“We had to modify the
program,” Hunt said.
Here are the winners
Hermiston School District/Contributed Photo
From left, Amelia Foy, Samuel Godby, Zach Adair and Larry
Corralez of the Panda Bears 2.0 of Highland Hills Elementary
School, Hermiston, pose at the end of Book Brawl on March
15, 2022.
Hunt and fellow librar-
ian Alyxandra
Rowe
worked with students on
this event for months,
Hunt said. Students com-
peted in five Hermiston
elementary schools, and
winners went head-to-
head against one another
to become the Hermis-
ton School District Cham-
pions for the elementary
division.
The final contest, the
Book Brawl, was March
15. More than 50 students
and supporters were at the
contest, Hunt said.
Contestants read 16
books, a total 3,888 pages
or 545,406 words. Stu-
dents had to remember the
title and author of each
book, as well as basic
information.
The librarian said a typ-
Good Shepherd Community Health
Foundation awards $99,065 in grants
hermiston herald
Spring grants in the
amount of $99,065 will
be donated to organiza-
tions in west Umatilla
and Morrow Counties
this month, according to a
Good Shepherd Commu-
nity Health Foundation
press release.
Good Shepherd named
several organizations that
will benefit.
The Arc of Umatilla
County will receive money
to fund activity nights,
camps, and other disabil-
ity awareness events.
Boardman Parks and
Recreation, the City of
Hermiston, Good Shep-
herd Community Health
and Outreach, GSCHC
Emergency
Depart-
ment,
the
Hermis-
ton Police Department,
Made to Thrive, the Ore-
gon East Symphony, the
Seventh-day
Adventist
Church, Trucare Preg-
nancy Clinic, the Umatilla
County Sheriff’s Office
and Umatilla County
Search and Rescue are
other beneficiaries.
Grant money covers a
wide variety of projects,
including teen counsel-
ing services, concert pro-
duction, an officer well-
ness program and a rescue
drone.
Grant funding is made
possible by planned giv-
ing and community sup-
port, the release states.
“Because we live in
an area where the cul-
ture is to make our com-
munities better, residents
consistently give to the
Good Shepherd Commu-
nity Health Foundation,”
stated Liz Marvin, Foun-
dation executive director.
“The next grant cycle will
close the end of July and
we encourage nonprofit
organizations to apply for
funding.”
To apply for a grant
awarded this fall, submit
applications by July 31
online at www.gshealth.
org/gschf-grant-applica-
tion or by mail via appli-
cation that may be down-
loaded and printed at
https://www.gshealth.org/
awards. For more informa-
tion, call 541-667-3419.
Irrigon classroom fire ruled an accident
By ERICK PETERSON
hermiston herald
The fire that closed Irrigon Junior/
Senior High School on March 8 was
an accident, according to Casey Kump,
deputy state fire marshal.
“We had an accidental fire in the back
of a classroom,” he said.
The fire was in the junior high wing
of the school at 6 a.m., before students
and most staff had arrived.
According to Kump, the fire was
detected by a school custodian, who
smelled smoke in a hallway. He checked
a door and found it hot, then peered in
an outside window to see the smoke,
Kump said.
“We had some materials that were
just stacked on top of an electrical cord,
just accidentally placed there,” he said.
The weight of the materials pressing
down on the electrical cord, he said, was
to blame for the fire.
Kump added this sort of fire is com-
mon, “one of those things that sneaks up
on people here and there.”
He said there would be no charges
filed against anyone for this fire because
it was an accident.
“It’s good that there was no one there, so
they didn’t have to evacuate,” Kump said.
Though an evacuation was not
needed, the Morrow County School Dis-
trict did close the school for the day. The
district announced on Facebook that the
school’s students would move to virtual
learning for March 9 and 10.
Principal Ryan Keefauver said virtual
learning could last longer, depending on
the recommendations from the cleanup
crew and insurance company.
Dirk Dirksen, Morrow County School
District superintendent, provided an
estimate of returning. On March 9, he
said the school could be closed to stu-
dents until after spring break, which
started Monday, March 21. He said the
classroom with the fire would not be
used until next school year.
Irrigon Rural Fire Protection Dis-
trict firefighters worked on the blaze.
Fire Chief Larry Burns said the fire
was large enough to require a hose; an
extinguisher could not have doused the
flames.
The Irrigon firefighters were joined
by another local group. Mike Hughes,
Boardman Fire Rescue District chief,
said his firefighters also responded.
“When we arrived, Irrigon Fire had
made entry through the front,” Hughes
said. “We were redirected to the rear of
the school.”
Entering through the back, Boardman
Fire officers learned the fire was limited
to a single classroom.
Speaking on March 9, Hughes said
there were no injuries.
Keefauver said he was thankful no
one was hurt and this is a learning oppor-
tunity for the school, the district and the
community. People should be on the
lookout for items that may be stacked
on top of electrical cords, he said.
“It is a devastating situation that
could have been a lot worse,” Dirksen
said.
He stated that if the fire happened in
the middle of the night, it could have
spread throughout more of the school
before being detected. If it occurred
during the school day, he said, people
could have been hurt.
Oregon senator to hold virtual
town hall for Morrow County
ing to a chamber
of commerce press
The
Boardman
release.
Chamber of Com-
People may join
merce is hosting a
the town hall online
virtual town hall with
or on the telephone to
Oregon Senator Jeff
discuss issues that are
Merkley
Merkley on Wednes-
important to them.
day, March 23. It is
“In these uncer-
his 23rd digital town hall of tain times, it’s more import-
the year and his 491st open ant than ever to hear directly
town hall since first being from you, but it’s also import-
elected to the Senate, accord- ant to respect the health and
hermiston herald
safety of every member of
our communities while there
is still a risk of spreading
COVID-19 through in-per-
son gatherings,” the press
release states.
The Morrow County
Town Hall starts at 4:30 p.m.
Call 669-254-5252, enter
meeting ID 1609919028#
and passcode 43332369.
To join online, visit bit.
ly/3txd4SH.
First place went to Panda
Bears 2.0 of Highland Hills
Elementary School. The
team is comprised of Ame-
lia Foy, Samuel Godby,
Zach Adair and Larry Cor-
ralez. Angie Cooke, teacher,
coached the team.
The Pandas received
medals for their victory.
In addition, their school
received a plaque with their
names on it. This plaque
will be hung in the Highland
Hills library, Hunt said.
Novel Rebellion of Des-
ert View Elementary School
took second. Team Scorpion
of Rocky Heights Elemen-
tary School won third. The
Fantastic Four were fourth
place. And the Book Hunt-
ers scored fifth.
All of these teams were
champions at their own
schools. As such, they
received certificates for their
achievement. Also, they
were given drawstring back-
packs filled with prizes.
Everyone is a winner
Hunt said there are no
losers in the competition.
The goal, she said, was to
encourage reading. Since
this is the case, everyone
who took part in the con-
test at any level was a win-
ner; each participant read
something.
“It’s a great opportu-
nity to work on vocabulary,
spend time with friends and
get excited about books,”
Hunt said. “The books were
a variety of books, from
mystery to fantasy, realis-
tic fiction, biography and
graphic novels. They were
exposed to different types of
reading materials, and they
had fun.”
The 16 books
The books were “Astrid
the Unstoppable” by Maria
Parr; “The Bookwanderers”
by Anna James; “The Care
and Feeding of a Pet Black
Hole” by Michelle Cue-
vas; “Clean Getaway” by
Nic Stone; “The Fourteenth
Goldfish” by Jennifer L.
Holm; “Guts” by Raina Tel-
gemeier; “The Harlem Cha-
rade” by Tatasha Tarpley; “I
Can Make this Promise” by
Christine Day; “Lety Out
Loud” by Angela Cervantes;
“Lowriders in Space” by
Cathy Camper and Raul
the Third; “Sarah Journeys
West” by Nikki Shannon
Smith; “Save Me a Seat”
by Sarah Weeks and Gita
Varadarajan; “Some Places
More than Others” by Renee
Watson; “Some Writer! The
Story of E.B. White” by
Melissa Sweet; “Stay” by
Bobbie Pyron; and “The
Storm Keeper’s Island” by
Catherine Doyle.
These books remain
available to students, Hunt
said. Anyone who missed
the contest still can read
the books. She added that
everyone is welcome to next
year’s contest, as prepara-
tion begins in September.
She said she is looking
forward to a regular contest
with play between regional
and statewide matches.
“Though the Book Brawl
was successful, and it was
fun to have the kids and par-
ents there in person, we can’t
wait to get back,” she said.
Mission report from Kenya
By TAMMY MALGESINI
hermiston herald
Stanley Gitari, director
of Maua Methodist Hospital
Community Health Services,
will be visiting Hermiston to
provide an update on mission
work in Kenya. An experi-
enced speaker, he will share
about community health,
programs to help orphan chil-
dren, the effects of famine in
Africa and much more.
“There are people from
Walla Walla to Heppner,
Pendleton and La Grande
who are/have been involved
with this project,” said Pas-
tor Patty Nance of the Herm-
iston First United Methodist
Church.
Anyone interested in
hearing about this outreach
ministry in Kenya, includ-
ing how to get involved, is
encouraged to attend. The
free presentation is April 3,
5 p.m. at the Hermiston First
United Methodist Church,
191 E. Gladys Ave.
Hermiston residents Lou-
ise and Jamie Kienzle have
taken several trips to Kenya
to work at the hospital and
surrounding area. As part of
the April 3 presentation, Lou-
ise will share about other
upcoming opportunities:
• To participate in a Vir-
tual Mission to Maua Meth-
odist Hospital, April 6 and 8,
8-9:30 a.m.
• To join a team heading
to Kenya in 2023 to build a
home for AIDS orphans and
support other projects related
to health and education.
The Kienzles, who first
went to Kenya in 2009, are
especially excited about
what’s happening across the
globe in East Africa. Liv-
ing in John Day at the time,
the couple was motivated to
get involved in mission work
after their pastor encouraged
Patty Nance/Contributed Photo
Louise Kienzle of Hermiston hands keys to a family during a
January 2018 house dedication in Maua, Kenya. Stanley Gitari,
director of Maua Methodist Hospital Community Health
Services, is in the background with a camera. He will provide
an update about the Kenyan outreach ministry at 5 p.m. April
3, 2022, at the Hermiston First United Methodist Church.
the church council to look
beyond their immediate area
and state.
“We did a lot of things
in the community,” Louise
Kienzle said. “I thought this
is my chance, this is a cue for
me to jump in.”
And jump, she did —
since that first trip in 2009,
the Kienzles have returned
to Kenya six times. And they
are planning to lead a team in
July 2023.
A typical trip, she said,
includes building a house for
the family of an AIDS orphan,
as well as going to the schools
to provide de-worming and
working with an outreach
program for the hospital, pro-
viding basic medical services.
Those seen are weighed, have
their blood pressure checked
and often get tested for AIDS
and other medical conditions.
People can obtain eyeglasses
or needed medications. Peo-
ple, Kienzle said, walk for
miles to be seen at the “medi-
cal camp.”
Medical experience isn’t
required to participate in the
mission trips, Kienzle said.
One of their roles, she said,
is to promote the hospi-
tal by helping alleviate peo-
ple’s fears about going there.
Also, Kienzle said people
don’t have to belong to the
United Methodist Church to
get involved.
“Anyone interested in
mission work and learn-
ing about another culture is
invited to come,” she said.
Gitari, the press release
said, has been the inspira-
tion and organizing force
behind the ongoing rela-
tionships between Ameri-
can teams and their mission
work in the area of Maua,
Kenya. As a nurse and hospi-
tal administrator with a mas-
ter’s degree in community
health from Ghana Univer-
sity, and as a committed man
of faith, Gitari has worked
tirelessly to help the people
in that area who suffer from
extreme poverty.
Additional
informa-
tion, including a link to the
upcoming Virtual Mission,
is available by searching
www.facebook.com/OR.ID-
KenyaMissionTeams. For
questions, contact Kienzle at
umvim@umoi.org, 541-620-
0989 or Nance at herfumc@
outlook.com.
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