By Lauren Brown
Burns Times-Herald

In April, Crane and Burns high schools will both undertake an intricate program designed to make students more aware of the dangers of driving while intoxicated.

The program titled, “Every 15 Minutes,” involves staging a realistic accident in which police, Air Life and firefighters respond. A 125-page manual accompanies the program, indicating that there is a lot involved with staging this  event.

At the March 11 Harney District No. 3 School Board meeting Burns High School (BHS) leadership teacher Eric Nichols and leadership students Sarah Fitzpatrick, Logan Garner, Matt Ogata and Conor Colahan gave a detailed presentation on how the program will play out.

The project has special meaning for Nichols who was the victim of a drunk driving accident years ago. “This is a big, big deal,” he said. All of the students at the high school as well as the community members will be affected by it, he noted. Statistically, every 15 minutes somebody dies in an alcohol related accident.

Nichols said he was first approached about the program by Ty McNab who had been involved with the program at a high school he attended elsewhere. McNab’s younger brother now attends Crane Union High School, and he wanted him to go through the same experience. Under the supervision of advisor Larry Conaway and the CUHS senior class, Crane will put on the program April 9 and 10. The mock accident and aftermath will take place in Burns on April 23 and 24.

Ogata told the board how the leadership class had to come up with about $8,000 for the program. State Farm Insurance donated $5,000 to the cause. Students collected an additional $3,000 in donations from local businesses.

The students have had to organize a student retreat, contact and schedule speakers and confer with local agencies regarding the program.

Fitzpatrick noted that as part of the program, a student will be pulled out of class every 15 minutes to physically illustrate how many people die from alcohol-related accidents. A policeman will come in and read the student’s “obituary” and the student will then go to the retreat area for the remainder of the two-day program. There, they will not be allowed to have contact with the rest of the student body or their families. Students who are pulled from class will be chosen ahead of time and will have to have their parents sign permission slips.

The mock accident will take place at 10:30 a.m. April 23 on Saginaw Avenue near the track. At 10:55 a.m. there will be a 9-1-1 recording played on the school’s intercom and at 10:56 a.m. the fire alarm will go off. Teachers will escort their classes to the track area, where students will watch the crash scene unfold.

Make-up artists will make the vehicle occupants look like they’ve been involved in a crash. One person will be declared dead at the scene, one will be Air lifed out, one will be taken to the hospital, and the intoxicated driver will be arrested and taken to jail. The firefighters will then clean up the accident site and students will return to class, where teachers will have an opportunity to talk with students about what they just witnessed.

The accident “victims” will be taken to the student retreat site.

While all the students know the accident is a simulation, there will be counselors on hand to deal with students who have an emotional response to the situation.

A video crew will document the entire event, and the following day a “funeral” will be held in the form of an all-student assembly, where the video from the previous day’s events will be shown. A luncheon will follow the assembly, and all of the students involved in the program will be invited. T-shirts will be made up for all BHS students to remember the event.

Nichols and the leadership students want to make sure the community is aware of what is going on so that the mock accident doesn’t take anyone by surprise.

By Randy Parks
Burns Times-Herald

To bring the seasons to an official close, the winter sports awards  ceremonies for boys basketball and wrestling were held last week at Burns High School.
The wrestling team celebrated their seventh consecutive 3A state championship this year, and the boys basketball team earned a state berth by winning the league title.

Individual award winners for the wrestling team are as follows:

Most Outstanding Wrestler — Joe Drinkwater.

Most Improved Wrestler — Daniel Doverspike.

Jeremy Johnson Memorial Most Heart Award — Patrick Stampke and Josh Cate.

Most Outstanding Underclassman — Brendan Palmer.

Most Improved Underclassman — Dallas Root.

“Gut It Out Award” — Mike Schaff.

The wrestling team finished with a total of 263 pins this year, led by Stampke with 28.

Nathan Young finished with the most reversals and escapes with 48, Schaff had 56 takedowns to lead the team and Palmer had the highest number of nearfall points with 156.

•••

Individual award winners for the boys basketball team included:

Most Valuable Player — Drew Heinz

Chris Miller Most Promising Freshman — Cole Potter.

Most Inspirational Player — Trevor Smith and Logan Garner.

Most Improved Player — Garrett Swisher.

The awards ceremony for girls basketball and dance team will be held tonight (Wednesday, March 19) at 6:30 p.m. in the high school cafeteria.

Scott Lewis Grasty, 56, of Milwaukie died of natural causes at his home on March 9. He was twin brother of Harney County Judge Steve Grasty.

Grasty was born in Nyssa on Aug. 2, 1951, to Phyllis and Gene Grasty. He graduated from Ontario High School in 1969 and immediately joined the U.S. Army, serving one stay in Vietnam. Following his military service he joined the National Guard and moved to Burns to work for a short time at Teague Motor Co. He married Bonnie Jean Williams in Ontario, on Sept 1, 1973.

For all of his adult working life he was involved in the auto parts industry. Managing the NAPA Auto Parts store in Woodburn, owning and operating a Snap-On tool franchise for a number of years, and being employed at the NAPA distribution center in a variety of roles. At the time of his death he was employed at Ott’s Friction Supply in Portland. Grasty continued his education throughout his work life with numerous certificates and awards.

Grasty’s interests included auto restoration/construction projects, wood working, building custom walking canes, hunting, fishing, sailing and boating. He and friends enjoyed an annual ATV outing to Central Oregon, he had just returned from the 19th annual trip for that purpose before his death.

Grasty is survived by his wife, Bonnie; son, Brandon Grasty and wife Emily of Seattle, Wash.; daughter, Stacie Jacoby and husband Jake of Caldwell, Idaho; six grandchildren; and brothers, Craig, Brent and Steve.

He was preceded in death by his parents and infant sister, Pamela.

Services will be held at the New Hope Community Church, 11731 S.E. Stevens Road in Portland, at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 14. A reception will follow.

Burial will be at Willamette National Cemetery in a private service. Flowers may be sent to the church. Donations in Grasty’s memory may be made to Legacy Emanuel Pediatrics ICU, 2801 N. Gantenbe, in Portland.

William “Bill” John Stolz, 84, of Hermiston, died on March 6, at Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, Wash.

He was born on Dec. 14, 1923, in a farmhouse outside Kelliher, Saskatchewan, Canada, to Crist and Lena (Wrege) Stolz.

Stolz was raised in the Okanogan Valley area of Washington State. He attended grade school in Malott, Wash., and high school in Okanogan, Wash.

A World War II veteran, he served with the 464th Army Air Force Base Unit from 1943 to 1946 as an airplane and engine mechanic stationed in Portland.
Stolz married Dorothy James of Malott in 1944. After his honorable discharge at the rank of Sergeant, Stolz  moved his wife and first-born son to Disautel, Wash. There he worked alongside of his father in the woods around Omak, Wash, falling trees with a crosscut saw, eventually graduating to power chain saws. An early McCullough Company chainsaw pamphlet featured a photo of Stolz bucking a tree.

Stolz and his wife had three children before moving to Grant County in 1951. Settling in Mt. Vernon, he felled timber for Blue Mountain Mills of John Day for nearly 25 years. He was an avid elk hunter and fisherman, enjoying all outdoor activities. He took 28 elk on public land in the Blue Mountains of Oregon, including an 8×9 bull. As the mountains got steeper in 1989 he gave up hunting and concentrated on fishing. He also enjoyed water skiing, boating, cooking, camping, and making 8mm home movies.

In the late 1960s Stolz  remarried and moved to Fields. There, he and his wife, Joanne, owned and operated the Fields Store-Service Station-Cafe-Motel-Hotel complex for four years. Following their divorce, he sold the property in Fields and became a heavy-equipment operator for Harney County Roads Department. Living in Andrews, he and his roadgrader crew constantly groomed more than 120 miles of desert roadways, keeping them open through snow storms, wind storms, and flash floods.

Stolz  retired in 1988 and moved to Hermiston to be closer to his three children. He enjoyed fishing, gardening, canning, helping his neighbors and family, taking scenic drives and tinkering in his shop. He could repair and build just about anything. He was gifted in fabricating and inventing clever tools to make a job easier.

Stolz  showed his family and friends, by example, the values of honesty, integrity, hard work, and patriotism. Throughout his adult life he was active in the American Legion, the Elks and the Eagles.

Stolz  is survived by his sons, Gary Stolz  and Troy Stolz and daughter, Cathy Stolz all of Hermiston; four grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents, and his sister, Rose.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, March 21, at 1 p.m. at Burns Mortuary Chapel in Hermiston. Contributions in Stolz’s memory may be made to the diabetes organization of one’s choice, or plant a tree in his  memory. He had fallen many in his life, and would be honored to have the supply replenished. Burns Mortuary of Hermiston is in charge of arrangements.

LaVern Grant Williamson, 84, died in Nampa, Idaho, on March 6.

He was born on March 4, 1924, in Baker City, to Ora E. and Melissa Sarah (French) Williamson.

After Williamson graduated from Baker Union High School, he married Betty Jean Martin on Jan. 7, 1945, in Baker. They lived in Baker, Burns, Bend and Lebanon, before moving to the Nampa area.

Williamson was a knife-grinder and mill worker at the Oregon Lumber Co. in Baker, the Edward Hines Lumber Co. in Hines, and the Clear Pine Lumber Co. in Prineville.

He loved playing cards and board games with his family. Williamson also enjoyed the outdoors — hunting, fishing and camping. He always had a smile on his face and a kind word for everyone. His family, church and faith in God were very important to him. He was a member of the Four Square Church in Oregon and Nazarene Church in Nampa.

Williamson is survived by his wife Betty of Nampa; daughters, Sandy O’Leary and Terry Westfall; seven grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers and one sister.

A graveside service was held on March 11 at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens, under the direction of Alsip & Persons Funeral Chapel, Nampa.

Jane E. (Higgins) Brabb, 60, of Ontario died on March 10.

She was born on Sept. 20, 1947 in Burns to Donald and Vachel Higgins.

Brabb was raised and educated in Burns and was Miss Harney County in 1966. In 1965, she attended Northwest Christian College in Eugene, where she met her future husband. On Aug. 26, 1967, she married Steve Brabb at the First Christian Church in Eugene.

Both Brabb and her husband graduated from college in 1969. They then moved to Fort Worth, Texas, where Steve attended Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University.

While in Fort Worth their first child, Travis, was born in 1972. After graduation, the couple pastored the First Christian Church in Winnsboro, Texas, where their second child, Christopher, was born in 1974. In 1977, the family moved back to Eugene to be closer to family.

While in Eugene, Brabb worked for the Holt Adoption Agency, and later for the Eugene School District with developmentally disabled children. In 1982, the family moved to Ontario to pastor the First Christian Church, where Brabb was the church secretary for many years. Later on she became the director of the Pregnancy Resource Center in Ontario.

In 1985 a third child, a daughter, Marci, was born.

When the S.R.C.I. opened in 1991, Brabb’s husband became the first Chaplain. From that time up until her death she worked as an active volunteer. She was honored in 2007 as the Volunteer Of The Year at S.R.C.I.

Brabb was a singer/songwriter and loved playing the guitar. Ladies in the community who were broken-hearted would seek her council. She had a heart for those in need and was always willing to help. She enjoyed traveling, camping and visiting family.

Brabb is survived by her husband, Steve; sons, Travis Brabb of St. Joseph, Mich., and Christopher Brabb of Springfield; and daughter, Marci Brabb of Ontario.

She is also survived by her grandchildren, Alexandria and Josiah Brabb of Springfield; brothers, Russel Higgins and wife Ingrid of Burns and Robert Higgins and wife Carol of Bend; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Brabb was preceded in death by her parents and one brother, Richard.

A celebration of life was held at 11 a.m. March 15 at Christian Life Fellowship in Ontario, with Pastor Doug Hezeltine officiating.

Contributions in Brabb’s memory may be made to C.L.F. Prison Ministries Fund, 366 S.E. 5th St., Ontario, OR 97914. Condolences may be made to the family at: www.lienkaemper-thomason.com

Burns High School class of 1978 will hold a class reunion meeting on Wednesday, March 19, at 5 p.m. at Glory Days Pizza. The dates set for the reunion are Aug. 8-9.

Harney Partners for Kids and Families meets on the third Wednesday of each month.

Babe Ruth meets the third Wednesday of each month in the courthouse basement meeting room, 450 North Buena Vista, at 7 p.m.

Community Response Team meets the third Wednesday of each month at Hines City Hall, 101 East Barnes, at 5:30 p.m. For dinner reservations, call Pam Mather at 573-2251.

Oregon Hunters Association is for all hunters, whether rifle, bow, shotgun, muzzle loader or other. The local chapter meets at Linda’s Thai Room, the third Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m and is followed by a board meeting.

Harney County Fair Board will meet on March 19, at 6 p.m., at the Hibbard Building.

Storytime for preschoolers is held Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. at the Harney County Library.

Burns Fire Dept. meets each Wednesday at the Burns Fire Hall at 7 p.m.

Burns Elks Lodge, 118 North Broadway, meets each Wednesday at 7 p.m.

Alcoholics Anonymous meets each Wednesday at the Foursquare Church at 7 p.m.

Harney County Rural School fund raiser “Night on the Town” with country music artist, cowboy poet and storyteller Marty Campbell, will be held on March 20. The event will begin with a no-host social at 5:30 p.m., at the Harney County Fairgrounds Memorial Building. Dinner will follow, with a silent auction being held throughout. Campbell’s concert will begin at 7 p.m. Following the concert all musicians are invited to participate in an impromptu jam session.

Burns Planning Commission meets the third Thursday of each month at Burns City Hall, 242 South Broadway, at 7 p.m.

Harney County Historical Society meets the third Thursday of each month at the Elks Lodge, 118 North Broadway, at 11:45 a.m.

The Alternative Energy Club (AEC) meets the third Thursday of each month at Harney County Library, 80 West D Street, at 7 p.m.

Silvies River Spinners meets the third Thursday of each month at 650 East Washington at 7 p.m.

Tween Night is held at the Boys & Girls Club on the third Thursday of each month, from 6-7 p.m. The night is for kids who are told they are too young, or too old, for other activities.

The Prescription Assistance program through the Harney County Senior and Community Services Center is held each Thursday, from 1-3 p.m. Call Selena Westlake at 573-6024 to make an appointment.

Chamber Music Bell Choir meets each Thursday at 6:30 p.m., at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, 393 West A. St. Bell ringers are being recruited. For information, call Carol Sawyer, 573-6886.

Tai Chi is held every Thursday at the Harney County Senior and Community Services Center, from 9:30-10:30 a.m. All ages are welcome to participate.

Kiwanis Club of Burns-Hines meets for a no-host luncheon each Thursday at Glory Days Pizza, 690 Oregon Ave., at noon.

Take Off Pounds Sensibly meets each Thursday at Hines City Hall, 101 East Barnes, at noon. Call 573-2896.

The Boys & Girls Club holds karaoke each Thursday. Members of all ages are welcome to join Hanna in the education room for a program that promotes the art of singing, as well as a fun way to practice reading skills.

Teen Night is held at The Boys & Girls Club each Thursday, from 6-7 p.m. for all teenagers.

Alcoholics Anonymous meets each Thursday at the Foursquare Church, at 7 p.m.

Good Friday Services will be held at the following: Faith Baptist Church at 7 p.m., and Harney County Church of the Nazarene at 7 p.m.

Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Black Cat” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” will be presented on March 21-22, at the Lincoln Administration building. Both presentations will begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free.

Oregon Old Time Fiddlers, District 9, meets the first, third and fourth Friday of each month. Call Julia at 573-2770, for time and place.

Boxing is held each Friday from 2-4 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club. The fundamentals of boxing are taught to kids. Permission slips must be turned in prior to participation in this program.

Hines Middle School Reading Club meets each Friday from 10:30-11:30 a.m. at the Harney County Library.

The Boys & Girls Club has the Club Bucks Store open each Friday. This is an incentive program in which members earn “club bucks” by doing good deeds and helping out around the club.

Alcoholics Anonymous meets every Friday at Foursquare Church at 7 p.m.

An Easter egg hunt is planned. Zeta Sigma will sponsor the annual Easter egg hunt on March 22 in Hines Park, at 10 a.m. Children ages 1-8 can participate. The Easter Bunny will be in attendance. For more information, call Darcy at 589-0651.

Breakfast with the Easter Bunny will be held at the Elks Lodge on Saturday, March 22, from 8:30 -11 a.m. There will be prizes, a pancake breakfast and a visit with the Easter Bunny with a picture. Tickets will be sold at the door, with all proceeds to  benefit the Burns Hilander soccer team. For more information contact Bobbi Edmunson at  Bobbi.Edmunson@oregonstate.edu.

Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Black Cat” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” will be presented on March 21-22, at the Lincoln Administration building. Both presentations will begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free.

Alanon holds an open meeting each Saturday at Foursquare Church at 5:30 p.m.