Medicare Assistance Program, through the Harney County Senior and Community Services Center is held the first Monday of each month from 1-3 p.m. Call 541-573-6024 to make an appointment.

Masonic Lodge meets the first and third Monday of each month at the Burns Masonic Lodge, 1210 West Taylor, at 7 p.m.

HDH Sports & Physical Therapy will offer a free athletic injury clinic at that facility, 559 West Washington, every Monday from 5 to 6 p.m. A physical therapist will assess and treat athletic injuries and provide education for athletes and parents on self management of injuries. For more information, call 541-573-1543.

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

The Hines Volunteer Fire Department meets at the Hines Fire Hall each Monday at 7 p.m. (except the last Monday of the month). Prospective members may contact Fire Chief Bob Spence at 541-573-7477 or 541-573-2251.

Narcotics Anonymous meets each Monday at 7 p.m. at Foursquare Church, 74 S. Alvord, Burns.

The Burns Lions Club meets each Monday at noon at the Burns Elks Lodge, 118 N. Broadway, for lunch. Those interested in serving the community are welcome.

Medicare D and Health Plan assistance is available on the first Tuesday of each month, from 1-3 p.m., at the Harney County Senior Center. For an appointment, call 541-573-6024.

Harney Basin Writers meets the first Tuesday of each month at the Harney County Library, from 2-4 p.m.; and the third Tuesday of each month at the St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church Hall at the corner of Diamond and “A” Streets, from 7-9 p.m.

Silvies River Spinners meets the first Tuesday of each month at Native Circle, 90 W. Adams in Burns, at 5:30 p.m.

Harney Hospital Foundation meets the first Tuesday of each month in the Hospital Conference Room at 7 p.m.

Sylvia Rebekah Lodge meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at the I.O.O.F. Hall, 348 North Broadway at 6:30 p.m.

The Chamber Orchestra meets the first and third Tuesday of each month in the Burns High School band room, 1100 Oregon Ave., from 7-8:30 p.m. with Ken Peckham directing.

Harney County Democratic Party meets the first Tuesday of each month at the Harney County Courthouse, 450 North Buena Vista, at 7 p.m.

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

All 0 to 3-year-olds and their parents are welcome to attend play group at the Early Childhood Center at 655 W. Fillmore, weekly on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m.

Patient Assist, Needy Med Program trained volunteers will be at the Harney County Senior Center each Tuesday, from 1-4 p.m. For appointments call the Senior Center at 541-573-6024.

Boy Scout Troop 440, sponsored by the Burns Lion’s Club, meets each Tuesday from 7-8:30 p.m. at the LDS Church in Hines. Boys ages 11-18 are welcome to join.

Alcoholics Anonymous meets each Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Foursquare Church, 74 S. Alvord, Burns.

The man in red answers age old questions including how reindeer fly

By Lauren Brown
Burns Times-Herald

Here at the Burns Times-Herald, we were lucky enough to score an interview with Santa Claus despite his busy schedule this time of year.

Santa, what is your favorite part of your job? Seeing the children and parents smile and getting hugs.

Which one is your favorite reindeer? And while we are on the subject of reindeer, how exactly do they fly? Donner. He is Rudolph’s father you know and he is good at flying under the radar. I hate dodging missiles. Getting reindeer to fly is very complicated. I can tell you it takes magic oats, some very special alfalfa from a secret location in Harney County and a lot of lighter than air gas, which you would be very aware of if you had ever ridden in a sleigh behind a bunch of reindeer.

What is the most popular present request? For the girls it is easy, Barbie Dolls. The boys are all over the place, Xbox 360s BB guns, PlayStation, Nintendo DSI and the list just goes on and on.

What is the funniest present request you have received? I just don’t get funny present requests. Children take Santa and presents very seriously. I would like to read you a list I got from a little girl in Harney County a few years ago, (I have changed the names).

Dear Santa Claws,
This is my list of my wishes.
1 Love
2. Nice friends.
3. Forrest to behave.
4. Madeline H. to be my friend, please
5. A room for me, please
6. Monopoly.
7. Tree house for me, please
8. Money for me and my family.
9. Have cable, please
10. The important thing is for me is for my family to be happy, kind, and get along.
Children can say so much with very few words.

Just how do you deliver all those presents in one night? That is easy, it is magic.  There are a whole lot of things going on at the atomic level. I can give you a hint though, “beam me down Scotty.”

What is your favorite snack? Cookies and Lactaid.  Oatmeal scotchies are my favorite.

December is undoubtedly your busiest time of year. Afterward do you take a vacation? Do you go somewhere tropical? Mr. and Mrs. Santa love vacationing on the Oregon coast. You see, coming from the North Pole the Oregon coast is almost unbearably hot for us, and the water is warm as a hot tub. We stick to the secluded beaches because you just don’t want to see Santa in a bathing suit. We love beach combing and perusing all the tourist shops.

What are some of the hobbies you do in your off time? Amateur radio is my favorite hobby. I can talk to my friends all over the world and at the North Pole we can put up any kind of antenna we wish. I also like to carve animals out of juniper wood from Harney County. But my all time favorite hobby is doing just exactly what Mrs. Santa tells me to.

In closing I would also like to say that I try never to forget that Christmas is someone’s birthday. That is a whole lot more important to us than Santa Claus.

Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Al Foulke for facilitating this interview.

Fire Chief Guindon says old one needs too much maintenance

By Randy Parks
Burns Times-Herald

On Wednesday, Dec. 16, the Burns City Council voted to purchase a pumper truck for $30,000 from the Lakewood Fire District in Pierce County, Wash.

Before voting, the council heard from Burns Fire Chief Bill Guindon who explained that the pumper truck they currently have, a 1976 American LaFrance, has outlived its usefulness.

Guindon said maintenance on the current truck has been increasing, and asked the council, “Can we afford to keep putting money into it?” He added that it was appraised at around $5,000 and it would cost more than that to keep it in shape.

Guindon stated the replacement truck from the Lakewood district featured up-to-date technology, more water capacity and would probably meet the city’s needs for another 10 to 15 years.

Faced with having to make a decision on spending $30,000, the council asked what would happen if they postponed the vote until a later meeting so they could look into it a little further. “If you don’t make a decision tonight, we’ll probably lose the opportunity to get it,” Guindon answered. “They’ve allowed us to be the sole bidder on this and have been working with us.”

To help recoup a portion of the expenditure, Guindon suggested they list the American LaFrance truck as surplus and put it out to bid at a minimum of $5,000. Once sold, the money would be put into the general equipment fund.

Councilor Darwin Johnson asked if rather than sell the truck, could it be put to use elsewhere, such as the rural fire district or at the airport. Guindon explained that the truck isn’t equipped for those situations, and with the recent problems they’ve had with the truck, it probably wasn’t safe either.

After further discussion, the council voted to purchase the replacement truck, and would decide what to do with the older truck at a later date.

•••

Several citizens were in attendance to discuss concerns about the Burns airport.

Before they were allowed to address the council, City Manager Don Munkers told the audience that an audit is continuing, and the city had been advised by legal counsel to not discuss any past issues with the airport with the public until the audit is completed. “At that time, information will be made public,” Munkers said.

Scott Franklin asked the council, “So when will we know when we can discuss it?”

“We don’t know,” Mayor Len Vohs said. “Until the audit is completed, we have been advised by legal counsel not to discuss it.” Vohs also assured Franklin that when that time comes, there will be a discussion.

Franklin stated that if they couldn’t talk about what had occurred at the airport, he would talk about what was happening now. He said he felt the snowplowing was inadequate and unsafe, and had questions about the Notices to Airmen (NOTAMS) that should be filed with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

John Ebar echoed Franklin’s concerns and said, “Chunks of snow and slush are dangerous. You can’t leave snow on the runway, and plow drivers need to know that,” he stated. “It is life and death every moment.”

Munkers said he understood their concerns and added, “We will work with you elbow-to-elbow to correct these problems.” He explained that part of the problem was two of the three plows had broken down, but were to be fixed the following day.

•••

Councilor Dan Hoke told the council the cemetery committee had received an updated estimate from Ferguson Engineering to replat the cemetery in the amount of just over $13,000.

Hoke said last September the council set aside a little more than $11,000 for the work, and with the new estimate higher than previously calculated, the council had two options. “The first option is to give Ferguson the OK to do the work, and they will bill us for the amount of money over what we have aside in the next fiscal year,” he said. “The other option is to do the work until they reach the dollar amount allocated and then stop.”

Hoke then urged the council to get the work done and reminded the council that he had previously said that they wanted to do the job right the first time.

Dick Day, a member of the executive cemetery committee, presented the council with a wish list his committee had developed. The list included correction of the grave arrangement, an increase in plot sizes, a new egress or exit on the north side of the cemetery, the reservation of space for future structures or areas such as a columbarium, scatter garden, urn garden, memorial garden, baby graves or pet cemetery, a map of the current infrastructure and more locator pins.

Day said after listening to Hoke, a lot of the concerns were already being addressed and they would continue to work with the cemetery committee.

The council then voted in favor of the first option presented by Hoke by a 6-0 vote.

In other business:

• Mayor Vohs read a letter of resignation from Councilor Joyce Kozeni, and the council voted 5-1 to not accept the letter;

• Councilor Darwin Johnson said he has been talking with Harney County School District No. 3 about the possibility of having an ice rink behind the district offices for the public to use;

Vohs asked Johnson to check in to the liabilities associated with such a venture and make a presentation to the council at their next meeting.

• The council reappointed Dauna Wensenk to the board of the Greater Eastern Oregon Development Corporation.
The next council meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 6, at city hall.

It’s not an olive branch being extended, but perhaps a Ponderosa pine branch. On Dec. 16, Oregon environmental leaders and timber industry executives stood side-by-side in the nation’s capital, joining Sen. Ron Wyden to announce new legislation to revive the Oregon timber industry with a more conservation-oriented approach to logging.

Wyden prodded the discussions along over the past year and will introduce new legislation that has the blessing of both sides, for managing the six national forests in Eastern Oregon, covering nearly 10 million acres of federal land. It focuses on protecting old-growth trees and streams, and logging more selectively to improve the health of the forests.

Steve Pedery, conservation director for Oregon Wild, was part of the negotiations

“I’m not going to say we see eye-to-eye with the timber industry on everything, because we certainly don’t. But I think it’s demonstrated to both sides that there really are opportunities to sit down and meet both sides’ objectives.”

The bill would create a scientific panel to monitor the outcome. In crafting the historic agreement, Pedery says there was more common ground than either side had expected.

“We were a little surprised on the environmental side of the table that the industry folks really weren’t all that interested in logging old-growth Ponderosa pine anymore, either. They had a general consensus on their team that there’s not a lot of that stuff left, and the public really doesn’t want it logged. It was really, ‘Yep, that’s the right thing to do.’ ”

Eventually, the agreement and legislation are expected to end the cycle of expensive legal challenges to many of the timber sales on federal land. Pedery says it is not retroactive, however, so the fate of some sales would still be decided in court. If it becomes law and works well, he says a similar agreement might someday be forged for Western Oregon.

The Oregon Eastside Forest Restoration, Old Growth Protection and Jobs Act would protect old growth forests and refocus national forest management in Eastern Oregon on science-based ecological restoration. Future logging must be consistent with watershed and forest restoration goals, and would focus on removal of smaller trees. The act applies to National Forest System lands within Oregon not covered by the Northwest Forest Plan. The terms of the bill call for watershed protection, protection of old-growth forests, and a restoration standard and intent for all future management activities.

Implementation of the bill is expected to result in forest thinning projects, which will increase the volume of small-diameter wood available to the few remaining timber mills in Eastern Oregon, and to provide increased certainty of timber supply in both the short and long terms.

Pacific Rivers Council (PRC), a regional conservation organization dedicated to protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems, supports the bill because of it places strong sideboards on forest management and helps address the forest service’s growing forest roads problem.

— Oregon News Service and Pacific Rivers Council

By Randy Parks
Burns Times-Herald

The Burns girls varsity basketball team defeated Eastern Oregon League rival Nyssa 47-35 to claim the top spot in the Cascade Christian Classic basketball tournament held Dec. 17-19 in Medford.

After leading by five at the end of the first quarter, the Hilanders outscored the Bulldogs 17-2 in the second quarter to take a commanding lead.

Nyssa made a charge in the second half, but couldn’t close the gap and the Hilanders picked up the win to stay undefeated  this season.

Brea Ribeiro scored 19 points, including three 3-pointers, to lead the Burns offense. Taylor Lee finished with 10 points and seven rebounds and Jamie Higle had a good all-around game with nine points, six rebounds and five steals. Kaci Nonnenmacher had eight points and Maddye Dinsmore added one.

The Hilanders shot fairly well from the field, making 17 of their 43 attempts (40 percent).

Lee and Higle were both named to the All-Tournament team.

1    2    3    4   Final
Nys     7    2   10   16    35
Bur   12   17   8    10    47

•••

Burns moved into the finals with a 46-36 win over St. Mary’s on Friday, Dec. 18.

St. Mary’s kept pace with Burns for one quarter, but the Hilanders went on an 18-3 run in the second quarter to lead 30-15 at the half.

After a slow third quarter, Burns outscored the Crusaders 13-12 over the final eight minutes to seal the victory.
Lee led the team in scoring, finishing with 17 points to along with her team-high nine rebounds. Higle had 14 points, Ribeiro eight, Chelsea Siegner four, Nonnenmacher and Teri McConnell two apiece.

The Burns defense came up with 18 steals, and the team hit 11 of their 33 field goal attempts (33 percent).
1    2    3    4   Final
StM   12    3    9   12    36
Bur   12   18   3    13   46

•••

Higle scored 17 points as Burns opened the tournament with 51-35 win over the Clatskanie Tigers.

Lee recorded a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds and Ribeiro finished with 12 points. Siegner added four points and Nonnenmacher and Dinsmore each had two.

The Hilanders also had their best shooting game of the tournament, making 21 of their 43 shots (49 percent).

1    2    3    4   Final
Clat     8    8   10   9     35
Bur    14    8   15  14    51

•••

The Phoenix Pirates slipped past Burns 53-49 to earn the third-place trophy at the Cascade Christian Classic basketball tournament held Dec. 17-19 in Medford.

The first half was close throughout with the Hilanders taking a one-point lead into the locker room at the break.
The Pirates came out fast in the third quarter and outscored Burns 24-14 to grab a 45-36 lead.

Burns came back in the fourth period, but Phoenix made their free throws in the final minutes to hold on for the win.
Carraig Colahan scored 17 points to lead the Hilanders’ offense, with Caleb Feist and Dylan Thompson scoring 15 and 12 points, respectively. Zach Dobson added three and Cole Potter two.

1    2    3     4   Final
Pho    11   10  24    8     53
Bur    13    9   14   13    49

•••

Cascade Christian downed Burns 68-46 in the semifinals of the tournament on Friday, Dec. 18.

The No. 2-ranked Challengers started fast, building a 21-8 lead in the opening quarter.

The Hilanders played them even for much of the remainder of the game, but couldn’t make up the deficit.

Feist finished with 12 points to lead the Burns scoring attack and Thompson had 11. Rounding out the scoring were C.

Colahan with six points, Potter and Gus McConnell with four each, Dobson, Casey Heinz and Kieran Colahan two apiece.

1    2    3    4   Final
CC     21   12  21   14     68
Bur     8   10  13   15     46

•••

The Hilanders opened up the tournament with a 61-42 win over Clatskanie.

Burns built a 13-point lead by halftime, and then opened up their biggest lead of the game, 42-21, in the third quarter.
C. Colahan dropped in 16 points, and Thompson finished with 13 to pace the Hilanders in scoring. Feist added nine, Dobson and Heinz five each, Potter and McConnell four apiece and K. Colahan three.

1    2    3     4   Final
Clat     8    5   13   16     42
Bur    13   13  19   16     61

The next action for the Burns varsity teams is the Sisters Tournament Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 28-29, at Sisters High School.

Catherine Alberta Skinner died on Dec. 16.

She was born March 1, 1924, to Antone and Sylvia Frates in Murray, Utah, the second child of seven children.

Skinner was raised is Salt Lake, Utah before moving to Payette, Idaho, with her family in 1940. During World War II, she moved to Portland, where she welded in the shipyards. There she met Forrest Skinner who also welded. They were married in 1943 and from that union came three sons and a daughter.

Skinner and her family moved from Portland to Ontario, where they lived until they moved to Crane in 1956. In Crane, they operated a well drilling business, farmed and raised their children. After her children were raised, Skinner worked for several years as a cook at Crane Elementary. The students loved her cooking and she loved the students.

Skinner had been living with her daughter in Gem County for the last four years.

Skinner is survived by four sisters, 30 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, two brothers,  a granddaughter and one great-granddaughter.

Services were held on Dec. 22 in Crane, with burial  at the Crane Cemetery.  Services were under the direction of Potter Funeral Chapel of Emmett, Idaho.

High Desert Park and Recreation District board of directors meets the fourth Wednesday of each month in their office at Lincoln Junior High School, 550 North Court, at 7 p.m.

Storytime for preschoolers is scheduled at the Harney County Library, 80 West D St., each Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. Contact the Harney County Library for more information 573-6670.

Gospel services are held each Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the home of Betty Ashlock, 112 NE Circle Drive in Hines. Quiet, one hour service. No collections are taken. All are welcome.

Bring the babies to Lapsit Storytime at Harney County Library, each Wednesday at 10 a.m. Enjoy music, stories, rhymes and fingerplays especially for babies and toddlers.

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

Alcoholics Anonymous meets each Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Four Square Church, 74 S. Alvord, Burns.

Christmas Eve Service will be held at St. Andrew’s Episcopal/Peace Lutheran Church at 5 p.m. Dec. 24. Reverend Lee Kiefer will celebrate Holy Communion. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Disabled Services Advisory Council (DSAC) meets every fourth Thursday at the State Office Building small conference room, 809 West Jackson, at 1:30 p.m.

Harney County Soil and Water Conservation District board of directors meets the fourth Thursday of each month at the Rory and Ryan Best Western in Hines from 5-7:30 p.m. The public is welcome to attend.

Narcotics Anonymous meets each Thursday at 7 p.m. at Four Square Church, 74 S. Alvord, Burns.

Merry Christmas!