100 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Dec. 5, 1920

School week in Pendleton will be observed with visiting days in each of the buildings, an exhibit of handwork in the Umatilla county library and special observances in the schools, according to an announcement made last evening by the city superintendent of schools. The week is nationwide in scope. The exhibit of domestic science and art work in the county library will be the most comprehensive of any yet seen in Pendleton. It will be placed in the assembly and club rooms and will be open each afternoon to the public. Posters that have been prepared by the art classes in the schools are among the important exhibits of the week. In most of the school rooms special displays will be made and the individual schools will have visiting days. The movement is designed to acquaint grown-ups with the needs and progress of schools and children to understand better the reason why they are attending school.

50 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Dec. 5, 1970

Helen Gibson lives in a big, blue and white house on Despain Avenue. She lived there alone until last spring, when the three teenage girls came to live with her — on a trial basis. Two more joined the household in late summer. Wards of the court, the girls were sent to Helen Gibson by the Umatilla County Juvenile Department, which wanted to start a group foster home for girls, to give them the same advantages boys get at the County Boy’s Farm. The Juvenile Advisory Council suggested Mrs. Gibson. A widow and former teacher, Mrs. Gibson said she “couldn’t resist the challenge.” Once the girls prove they will follow the house rules, they are offered a permanent place to stay. These girls, some of them runaways from previous homes, some who have been in the foster system since they were young, have found the security of good food, a comfortable home, companionship with their peers — and most of all, the interested concern of an adult.

25 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Dec. 5, 1995

Anxiety over an uncertain future turned to optimism Monday as mill workers at the Louisiana-Pacific Corp. sawmill in Pilot Rock went back to work, ending a five-month shutdown. The town’s primary employer was closed all but nine weeks this year, operating only in January and June. “We’re all glad to be getting back to work. It’s been a discouraging year,” said Steve Janke, mill manager. Ironically, the Pilot Rock mill is running today largely due to the closure of two other L-P mills, at Walla Walla and Post Falls, Idaho. “We feel sad because we are feeling like we’re dancing at someone else’s funeral,” Janke said. Long-term continued operation depends on the federal government’s willingness to open national forests to logging, he said, because the supply of logs from private land is growing increasingly difficult to purchase.