March 30
20 Years Ago-1994
Tom Hibbert, and Kitty Filbin from Maupin, Gwen Filbin and Jerri DePriest from Dufur; Donitta Booth from The Dalles and Mary Ann Justesen from Grass Valley, represented the Mid-Columbia area and completed a three-day Leadership Training Institute sponsored by the OSU Extension Service Family Community Leadership Program (FCL). The training was held at Kah-Nee-Ta on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, March 1-3. “The thirty hour curriculum is designed to help volunteer trainers become involved with public issues impacting their community and the state,” said Greg Tillson, State Coordinator, “It combines lectures with experiential small group activities as its education model.”
Without question, Sarah Pickette believes there are many good things that can come out of a live Easter performance which delivers a message about the resurrection of Jesus. It was that enthusiasm, and a strong belief in the story about Jesus’ life, which led her to agree to serve as this year’s director of The Last Days of Jesus, a four day production this is now in its 16th year. Started by the First Christian Church in The Dalles, the production now features cast and crew members from “at least” 11 different churches, according to Pickette, who has been involved with the program for the past three years.
40 Years Ago-1974
With the retirement of Capt. Lester Spickerman from The Dalles Fire Department becoming official, three appointments have been announced within the department. Spickerman leaves the local fire department with 27 years of service. He joined the department on May 1, 1948, and became a captain in November of 1963. The three appointments announced today are all probationary appointments. All of the promotions were by competitive exams within the department. Dean Van Nice received a probationary appointment to captain to fill Spickerman’s position, Charles Norris’ promotion was to lieutenant and George Holcomb’s to engineer.
Receipt of the State Farmer degree has been added to the achievements of The Dalles FFA member Ben Synon. Ben was awarded the degree at the annual convention of the Oregon Association of Future Farmers of America at Ontario, attended by hundreds of FFA members, friends and special guests. Among the latter were Mark Mayfield, national FFA president, Floyd Hawkins of the Oregon Farm Bureau Federation and Dr. Dan Dunham, the keynote speaker. Requirements for the State Farmer degree include a $500 investment or 500 hours of work experience, plus a Chapter Farmer degree. Ben’s project consists of 450 Leghorn laying hens, two breeding cows and three Hereford market steers.
60 Years Ago-1954
Minimum temperatures this morning stayed two or three degrees above the level of yesterday but orchardists in this area were still watching their trees with apprehension. Frost apparently damaged all of the three major fruit crops of the Dalles area, with apricots suffering the hardest blow. Many growers reported cherries were damaged to considerable extent even though far from blossom stage. Growers agreed their fruit was damaged but would not venture estimates in terms of percentages. It was generally agreed that all trees which had blossomed would lose their fruit and some growers thought other trees might also be damaged.
A picture of the moon taken through his own home-made telescope has earned top physical science honors for a Dalles High School senior in competition at Portland. Brenton Mattes, son of Mrs. Margaret Mattes of The Dalles, was judged the grand winner in the division of physical science at the recent Northwest Science Exposition. The exposition was sponsored by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Young Mattes used the homemade Newtonian reflecting telescope which won a first prize for him last year to help win the grand award last week. The two grand award winners are chosen from all first award winners in the two divisions of the contest from biological science and physical science.
80 Years Ago-1934
A certificate of merit issued only to those fire departments in the state which show exceptional results in prevention of firefighting was delivered to The Dalles City fire Department today by G.W. Stokes, deputy state fire marshal. Accompanying the certificate was a letter from State Fire Marshal
A.H. Averill commending Fire Chief L. L. Mohr and his department for its efficiency during the past year, when fire loss was kept below 25 cents per capita of the city’s population. A check for $50 was also received by Chief Mohr today from J.G. Vogt, payable o the fire department, in recognition of its service in extinguishing a fire which occurred last Tuesday in one of the business building owned by the Vogt estate.
Looking like some sleek and monstrous grub worm, the new Union Pacific high-speed, light- weight and streamlined passenger train crawled slowly through The Dalles this morning while hundreds of local citizens lined the tracks to see it, the latest development in modern land transportation. Due to the decision of the railroad not to have the train stopped here, the watchers had to be satisfied with an exterior view of the buff yellow train in which railroads are putting their hopes for new growth in rail transportation.
100 Years Ago-1914
The Dalles Coffee club is now a regularly incorporated institution. The articles of incorporation state the object of the club to be as follows: “To establish and maintain free reading, rest and game rooms, for employment bureaus and social centers for the comfort, convenience and improvement of its patrons and others desiring to avail themselves of the benefits thereof, which may be partially or wholly supported by lunch counters; thus sale of coffee, tea, milk, chocolate, cereals, other similar drinks and articles of food and the renting of sleeping rooms, to lease, rent, hire, buy, construct, or change, sell and convey suitable and appropriate rooms, buildings, lots, lands premises and real estate for the purpose of establishing such rest, reading and social rooms, free employment bureaus, social centers and rooms for lodging.”
Writing of his recent trip up the Columbia River Valley, John H. Cradlebaugh has the following in the Salem Capital Journal: At The Dalles everybody seems busy, though there was complaints that it “was dull.” It did not strike us that way. In fact sitting at the windows of The Dalles Hotel and rubbing up against an old friend, Judd Fish, who is head of the commercial club, manager of the hotel, and booster for Wasco corn, and pretty nearly everything else there is to do or boost, our nerves got a severe jolt.
Looking Back on March 30
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