Your voice: April 23, 2025

It has been a challenging task against the odds and obstacles Chelsea described: rising costs, hesitant ad base, competing influences, and declining readership. It’s a simple fact that the very best way to know what is going on in any Gorge community is to read the newspaper.

Recently I had a (positive) social media exchange with some local residents after I saw an online post praising a local man for his letter to this paper. “If you don’t read the paper,” here it is, the post said. Good to see the affirmation but it was also, frankly, a perpetuation of an annoying modern trend: online pass-alongs as  opposed to simply reading the content in its original form — and then seeing what else is being reported upon, or commented upon, and which advertisers are supporting the paper so that one in turn might support them.

My response to the online post was, “If you don’t read the paper, then do so. Subscribe.”

Congratulations, Chelsea and crew, for all your hard work and enduring contribution. That was a fast five years, and not an easy time, and my hat is off to all of you.

Kirby Neumann-Rea

McMinnville

Community support

In the Wednesday, April 16 edition of Columbia Gorge News, a piece titled “Hood River resident killed in theft.” In this piece, paragraph four states, “… Officers found Stephen Hayes, 38, a Hood River resident, laying in the roadway.”

Reading this, one would think that this wonderful man was there all alone. Stephen was NEVER alone. His partner was with him the whole time and two neighbors arrived immediately and were following 911 instructions for care. It did not take long for trained first responders to arrive and take over.

One might assume, from a self preservation or protection point of view, that fire and police persons must have to develop an armor, keeping emotions at arms length. First responders see all sorts of trauma. I assume they would act, in a situation like this, almost robotic because they’re trying to obtain facts, etc.

What was experienced was completely opposite. Police reached out to his partner with empathy and compassion the entire evening and in the days following. Fire department personnel were respectful and compassionate.

Did you know that there’s a program called TIP? Trauma Intervention Program, “helping citizens in crisis.” Belinda was the volunteer that was on site almost immediately and an absolute angel checking in on people for days to come.

The outpouring of support, kindness, empathy, and compassion from friends, neighbors, and total strangers, has been a great comfort to Stephen’s family, his partners, family, his friends, coworkers, and neighbors. This community is remarkable. Support is needed for months and months, as trauma is reintroduced in often unexpected ways. 

So many people want to support, express love, share stories, and grieve together. On April 14, Solstice, Stephen’s work family, organized a beautiful candlelight vigil at the port. For everyone who feels compelled to pour out some love and support there is a GoFundMe to help with this unexpected and tragic loss one of the most kind, interesting, and adventurous humans I have ever met.

Samantha Irwin

Hood River

Thomas for port

I’m proud to support Kathryn Thomas for the Port of Hood River Commission.

I’ve worked alongside Kathryn since the formation of the Hood River–White Salmon Bridge Authority in 2023, where she has been a key force behind our progress. Her leadership, professionalism, and dedication have consistently moved the work forward.

Kathryn brings a unique blend of discipline and public service, shaped by her career as a Navy helicopter pilot and environmental permitting expert. On our Engineering and Construction Committee, her deep knowledge of regulatory processes and stakeholder coordination has been critical to advancing the new bridge project.

Earlier this year, Kathryn and I traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for federal funding for the bridge replacement. Throughout our meetings, she stood out as a thoughtful, well-prepared, and persuasive voice. Her ability to build trust with agency staff and elected officials was clear and earned her broad respect.

She cares deeply about the future of the Port of Hood River — its infrastructure, its partnerships, and its role in supporting the regional economy. Kathryn’s integrity, collaborative spirit, and steady leadership would be a tremendous asset to the port commission. I strongly support her candidacy.

Jacob Anderson

White Salmon

What you voted for?

My friends who are MAGA believers have tried to tell me that Trump has lived up to all of his promises: Being a dictator on Day 1 only; shutting down the border; decreasing crime and deporting “illegals” (and doing it illegally); stopping Fentanyl; and bringing manufacturing back here with his tariffs. I think it might not be so simple.

It takes a while (years) to build up manufacturing even if there is massive spending by both the government on infrastructure, and by businesses that feel secure in their investments. Frankly, I think Trump has always over-promised and under-delivered on infrastructure. And he has made the markets so shaky that businesses might feel reluctant to invest.

As far as his other promises have gone: Did the Ukraine War end on day one or before? Have the price of eggs and groceries gone down yet? How about inflation? What about the farmers — how are they doing with the tariffs? Are you better off now than you were under Joe Biden? Is anyone better off, other than the billionaires, and the Trump insiders who might have known that he was going to flip-flop on the tariffs, so they bought low and sold high (“Trump ignites ‘insider trading’ accusations after global tariffs U-turn,” The Guardian, April 4)? Did it ever occur to you that Elon Musk could give all 334,735,155 people in the 2020 U.S. census — including the 3,385,874 Puerto Ricans — $1million each, and still be the richest man on earth (unless you count Putin’s purported, untold and uncounted, wealth)?

Cheap food for thought, since real food, and everything else, is going to become much more expensive. Good luck to us all!

Mark Browne

Hood River

Nelson for school board

John Nelson is an experienced, thoughtful, and long-serving volunteer in The Dalles. I encourage people to support for another term on the District 21 school board.

John has served for 12 years on the board, through many challenging and turbulent times, always trying to help our school district weather the storms, while caring for and educating our children the best it can.

Additionally, John volunteers in our community in many roles. While many people define themselves by their politics or opinions, John defines himself by his efforts, his service, and having a consistent good attitude. He does the hard, good work of making our community a little better, bit by bit, on the school board, the forest collaborative, the beautification and tree committee, and in many other ways.

John’s experienced, too, not just as community volunteer and school board member, but as a retired public school teacher with more than 24 years on the job. He has hard-won perspective.

We are lucky to have people like John stepping up for the challenging job of school board director. Vote John Nelson for school board.

Dan Richardson

The Dalles

CJD concerns

I’m writing in response to the recent announcement from the Hood River County Health Department about three confirmed or suspected cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) in the county over the past eight months. While the statement includes general facts about the disease, it leaves out crucial context and creates a false sense of reassurance.

The department mentions that around 500 CJD cases occur in the U.S. each year. But nearly all of those are sporadic, meaning random and unlinked. The form of CJD that is acquired through medical procedures — called iatrogenic CJD — is extremely rare, with fewer than one or two cases reported annually across the entire country.

In a county the size of Hood River (about 23,745 people), we would expect less than one CJD case every 30 years. To see three in just eight months is statistically extraordinary. The odds of three unrelated sporadic cases happening in that time and place are less than 1 in 193,000. If the cases are acquired, and also unrelated, the odds fall below 1 in 250,000. It is almost certain that these cases are linked by a common source, and that possibility must be taken seriously.

Some residents may wonder if improperly handled meat could be the cause. However, variant CJD (the kind linked to contaminated beef) is extremely rare in the U.S. and does not match the pattern seen here. These cases are far more likely to have resulted from medical exposure.

This should be treated as a possible outbreak. We need transparency: Were the patients treated at the same facility? Have hospitals been inspected? Are others being notified?

Prion diseases are fatal and resistant to routine sterilization. One case should prompt concern. Three in the same small community? That demands answers.

Casandra Ware

The Dalles

 Editor’s note: Columbia Gorge News has reached out to the local health department for more information, and we hope to have an article on the topic soon.

Autism facts

On April 16, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took to the public airwaves to pronounce his shameful ignorance about anything related to Autism. I have worked with students with Autism for nearly 30 years as a speech/language pathologist. All of his conclusions stated at that press conference are wrong.

He said, “They destroy families. These are kids who will never pay taxes, never hold a job, never play baseball, never write a poem.” These are dangerous lies about the nature of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that sounds frighteningly similar to how Kristi Noem and Stephen Miller describe immigrants. These statements are particularly damaging. His audience will likely accept his characterizations as well as his insinuation that the expense of supporting people with ASD is excessive. His ideology, paired with the clamor to dismantle the Department of Education, will have devastating impacts on the ASD Community.

Here are some facts: Autism, also known as Autism Spectrum Disorder, is a spectrum disorder, meaning the characteristics associated with it range from normal/typical development to severe/atypical development. The key features that are used to diagnose ASD are social communication, restricted/repetitive patterns of behavior, and hyper- or hyposensitivity to sensory aspects in the environment.

Each of these factors can range widely. Often, the biggest struggles that impact a student’s participation socially or academically are due to a secondary diagnosis such as a cognitive, physical, vision or hearing impairment, or health/medical complication. It’s important to know that people with ASD have the full range of intelligence and ability that the general population has. There are many people with ASD working, living, playing, marrying, raising kids and yes, even paying taxes, all around you.

There is a saying, “If you’ve seen one person with Autism, you’ve seen one person with Autism.” There is no single characterization to describe them all. I’m starting to think RFK Jr. has no idea what he’s talking about and it is terrifying that our federal administration wants to put him in charge of programs and funding that protect and support education for our students with exceptional needs.

Laurie Stanton, M.A. CCC-SLP

White Salmon

Ford for port

I am writing in support of Karen Ford for port commissioner. I have known Karen for nearly 20 years, both personally and professionally. She is an amazing community member — active in many community building activities, through her work with Rotary, as a volunteer with bike trail building and maintenance, a school volunteer, hospice volunteer, youth exchange student host and more.

She also has a wealth of knowledge and experience from her four years as a Parks and Rec board member, her work on the design committee for the Waterfront Park, her years of co-owning a commercial property management business, and her many years in business serving in positions focused on business development and project management.

Karen Ford is a dedicated community member, has an incredible work ethic, is intelligent and thoughtful, and plays an active role in the boards and businesses in which she is involved. She has great problem solving skills, she’s collaborative, and I know she would make a great addition to the Port Commission. I fully support Karen and know that she has and will continue to have our community’s best interests in mind as she serves on the port commission. Please join me in voting for Karen Ford for Port Commissioner, Position 3 in the May election.

Julie Gilbert

Hood River

Land of the free?

Snatching someone off the streets, whisking him onto an airplane, and “disappearing” him to the hellscape of a cruel foreign prison, all without providing due process — does that sound like America, the land of the free?

Sadly, tragically, this is exactly what is happening in our nation today (AP News, April 10).

And when multiple federal judges agree that this extrajudicial kidnapping is wrong and must be made corrected, the government argues that the judges have no right to protect Constitutional rights — is that what our Founding Fathers hoped our nation would become?

Although my conservative friends and family members often disagree with me on the best governmental policies to make our nation strong, there are principles we agree about. We agree the government cannot arbitrarily arrest and throw people in a foreign prison without due process. Allowing a government to get away with such behavior puts us all at great risk of crumbling into an autocracy. If that happens, whom will the government target next?

And so I ask my conservative friends: Please find common cause with liberal citizens to stop governmental cruelty and abuse of power. Our arms are open. We’re not the caricatures that Fox News scurrilously portrays. We love our nation, and we know that you do, too.

Rick George

White Salmon

Dexter and Bentz

U.S. Congresswoman Maxine Dexter (3rd District) has been vocal in supporting important programs, such as Medicaid. Medicaid provides health care for 40% of all children and 60% of all nursing home residents across the nation. Cutting this important program will hurt children and seniors. When you add in cuts to Social Security, American seniors will be devastated. Add cuts to Meals on Wheels and the Food Bank ... some Oregonians will be unhealthy, unhoused and hungry.

U.S. Congressman Cliff Bentz (2nd District) stated in a March 3 interview that 40% of his constituents were on Medicaid, and yet he voted for a budget that will cut Medicaid benefits. He represents farmers who are harmed by reckless economic policies that increase costs of fertilizer and reduces export markets, yet he continues to support Trump economic policies.

Is this the Oregon we want?

Katharine Goe

Mt. Hood-Parkdale

Three months

It’s the third month of what is becoming clear to those paying attention: Trump and the Republican party are changing America’s government to one of favor and donation for the elite — it’s called patrimonialism.

Their funding cuts will damage public health efforts permanently and eliminate as much of the safety net as possible with each budget bill (“On top of layoffs, HHS ordered to cut 35% of spending on contracts,” OPB, April 3). They are moving troops into countries to set us up for military engagement. The Republican party awaits approval from the Pentagon to invoke the Insurrection Act, allowing them to utilize the military against its own citizens (“Pentagon faces deadline on recommending whether to invoke the Insurrection Act,” Task and Purpose, April 11). They endorse the tariffs that wiped out trillions of dollars and likely delayed retirement for many Americans. They plan to sell public lands enjoyed by millions of Americans each year. They continue the lie about rampant voter fraud and passed the SAVE Act to suppress voting (“What the SAVE Act could mean for millions of voters, according to a Brennan Center expert,” NPR, April 15). Instead of defending our Constitution and utilizing their power to check and balance, Congressional Republicans are voting to remove consumer protections and energy savings requirements.

Republican Dan Newhouse refuses to hold town halls to listen to the concerns of thousands of his constituents. He responds to emails with form letters that say nothing. He’s complicit in the destruction of the U.S.

Sue Kusch

White Salmon

Trump’s brilliance

Donald Trump keeps telling us how smart he is and how brilliant his ideas are. Well, folks, here is just how brilliant he really is. Trump put tariffs on two islands, the Head and McDonald islands located in the Indian Ocean. The islands are 100% inhabited by penguins. How is that going to affect them? Tell us, Mr. Trump, what is your straggly if they fail to respond? What will you do about it? I’m sure the whole world would like to know.

Gary Fields

Hood River

Vote Ford

We support Karen Ford in her campaign for Port of Hood River Commissioner. She has been a valuable part of our community for many years. Her board experience with Hood River Parks and Rec, property management and business development make her a qualified candidate. We also appreciate her non partisan stance and honesty. We believe she will work hard to ensure a bright future for our community.

Jim and Jackie Skakel

Hood River

Nelson for D21

When I think of John Nelson, I think, “Caring, dedicated public servant.” John had an admirable career in education, having owned a childcare center for eight years and teaching in Oregon public schools for 24 years.

In addition to his 12 years of membership on the Northern Wasco County School District 21 board, he has a long history of volunteerism: Watershed Council, planning commission; Urban Renewal; Beautification Committee; Gorge Literacy; and so much more.

John knows the schools and people of The Dalles — the needs, challenges, aspirations. He is choosing to give of his experience and wisdom by once again running for the D21 School Board. Vote Nelson for Zone 4.

Connie Krummrich

The Dalles

Ford for port

We are writing to encourage you to vote for Karen Ford for Hood River Port Commissioner. Many of you probably know Karen, since she has been a long-time resident of Hood River who has been very active and involved in our community. In addition to her professional experience in commercial property management, project management, and business development, she has done a lot of volunteer work in our community. She previously served on the Parks & Rec board, where she gained valuable experience in public works and consensus building. She has been involved in the rotary and in our local mountain biking community through HRATS (Hood River Area Trail Stewards) as a member and board member. She can frequently be spotted with her shovel or rake, working at our local trail work parties. Through all of these activities and more, Karen has shown a genuine commitment to making our community a better place to live. We know that she has spent the last couple of months studying the issues and talking to as many people as possible to gain perspective and understanding of how she might best help. We believe that her dedication and skills can benefit the Port of Hood River, and hope you will join us in supporting her.

Erin Burnham and

 Jeff Blackman

Hood River

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