From 1973: Mrs. Paul Dwigans awards Harold Hansen with a lapel pin signifying he has donated a total of six gallons of blood to the American Red Cross.
Almost everyone is familiar with what is known as static electricity. One rubs the cat’s fur the wrong way, and gets a little shock. The cat, however, must be a dry cat. Or one walks across a carpeted floor on a dry winter’s day and then touches a radiator or some other metal object; whereupon there is a perceptible discharge from the body. It is said that some folks can light the gas that way.
Anyhow, while sparks produced in this manner are ordinarily harmless, they are under some circumstances a source of serious danger. They cause a great many accidents in gasoline distilleries, explosive factories, flour mills, dry-cleaning establishments, cotton-gins and threshing machines.
The National Association of Dyers and Cleaners of the United States is now undertaking an active campaign to eliminate fires from this source. Inasmuch as appreciable charges of static electricity can be produced only when the surrounding air is very dry, the most effective prevention is to dampen the atmosphere of factory rooms by injecting steam.
75 YEARS AGO
March 5, 1948
With interest keen, it is indicated that a record heavy vote of school patrons will be cast Saturday in the Warm Springs, New Era and Madras grade school districts on the proposed consolidation of the three. While last week, the board of New Era unanimously expressed opposition to the proposed merger, it is reported that new settlers of that district are expressing a favor of the merger.
Sentiment appears strong for the proposed merger in Madras, and Dan Macy of the Warm Springs board has expressed in another column of the Pioneer this week a strong support of consolidation.
It is stated that the elections will be held at the school buildings of the respective district, at Room No. 2 of the grade school here. While the school law, regulating district elections, says that boards may close the session when all present have voted, it is stated that the polls, which will open at 10:30 a.m., will remain open until 1 p.m., in order that late-arriving patrons may have an opportunity to cast their ballots.
The names of patrons, in order for them to establish eligibility to vote at the Saturday election, must appear on the last assessment tax rolls of the sheriff’s office.
The Madras district school board has urged that all eligible patrons vote Saturday.
50 YEARS AGO
From 1973: Mrs. Paul Dwigans awards Harold Hansen with a lapel pin signifying he has donated a total of six gallons of blood to the American Red Cross.
Pioneer archive
March 8, 1973
With the present quota of 100 pints for each visit of the American Red Cross blood mobile instead of 75 pints as was formerly the case, the total of 85 pints at Monday’s bloodmobile call was disappointing, Mr. and Mrs. Wilber Tong, cochairmen of the blood program for the Jefferson County chapter of the ARC, said Tuesday.
They reported that a total of 90 donors checked in at the Masonic Temple, but five deferrals cut the total back to 85 units.
Harold Hansen, a longtime donor in the county blood program, received a lapel pin signifying that he had given six gallons of blood.
Mr. and Mrs. Tong thanked donors, volunteer clerical staff, kitchen helpers, and Dr. George Waldmann, who provided medical coverage.
25 YEARS AGO
March 11, 1998
County officials met last week with 30 or so residents who had concerns about the operation of the Box Canyon Transfer Station.
A specific focus of the meeting was the transfer station agreement between the county and Madras Sanitary Service.
In explaining what prompted the meeting, county commissioner Bill Bellamy said, “I had a couple of friends who called up and said there were rumors about the agreement that were not flattering. And I felt we needed to have a meeting to explain the agreement.”
Shortly after the meeting was scheduled, several residents in the area began receiving an anonymous fax about the transfer station agreement, Bellamy said. The one-page fax was full of inaccuracies, “so it reconfirmed the need for the meeting,” he added.
Bellamy, and commissioners Janet Brown and Jodi Eagan, along with county administrative officer Mike Morgan, and public works director Mike McHaney, met for a little more than an hour last week at the Old Library with the 30 or so residents.
In attendance were Janelle and Oliver Orcutt, owners of Madras sanitary. The operators of the Crooked River Ranch sanitary service, which also uses the Box Canyon transfer station, were also present, along with the citizens who had questions and concerns.
Somewhat unexpectedly, considering the fairly emotional and negative comments that have been made in recent weeks about the county’s agreement with Madras Sanitary, the meeting was very cordial. “I expected a lot more hostility,” Bellamy said.
One of the factors which prompted recent criticism of the county in regard to the transfer station arrangement was the decision to significantly reduce the wage of the scale house attendant, Doeshia Jacobs.
Jacobs’ wage was reduced from $9.40 an hour to $7.49 an hour, a reduction of about $1.91, or about 20 percent. This happened in January, and in the meantime Jacobs says she’s had to take a second job to meet her bills.
“I’m probably eligible for welfare,” Jacobs, who has a son living at home, said. She also mentioned that she is the only person working at the landfill who received the pay cut, although she has worked there the longest, five years.
Jacobs said that the Laborers International Union of North America, AFL-CIO, Local No. 121, representing public works department employees, did not help her when the county was considering cutting her wage.
“I feel that the union didn’t do anything for me at all,” she said.
County officials say they decided to reduce Jacobs’ wage to bring it more in line with the average rate for other landfill scale operators in the region. Research indicated that the $9.40 wage was out of line with similar positions in nearby counties, said Mike Morgan.
In another matter at last week’s meeting, a Crooked River Ranch sanitary service representative commented that he felt he had not been notified when the county was in the process of working out the transfer station arrangement.
The commissioners responded that the matter had been discussed in open county commission meetings, and, when necessary, had been published as a legal notice in the newspaper.
