Shop Local HOLIDAY Celebration
New SNAP benefits available
Page A6-8
Page A2
$1.50
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2021
VOL. 130, NO. 31 Serving the Lower Columbia Region since 1891
Threats at 2 schools in Columbia County Separate investigations launched ZOE GOTTLIEB chronicle2@countrymedia.net
Parents have been notified and investigations launched following two separate school threats in Columbia County this week. The first incident occurred at the Rainier School District. Superintendent Joseph Hattrick said officials learned that on Dec. 6, two students at Hudson Park Elementary made threats to harm other students. In the second incident, police were called to St. Helens Middle School after school administrators said a student told a classmate not to show up for school the next day, claiming that he was going “to shoot it up.” School officials were quickly notified, and local law enforcement responded without further incident. Rainier incident Hattrick wrote in a Dec. 7 letter to parents that the Hudson Park Elementary incident was immediately investigated by the district and law enforcement. “We cannot disclose details of the incident but can inform you that it is being handled swiftly and appropriately,” Hattrick’s letter reads. “While we know that parents would like more specific information about the incident, we cannot share details in order
to preserve confidentiality and also so as not to interfere with the investigation.” Students impacted in the threats were informed the day of the incident, and the school district alerted the school community the following day, according to Hattrick. No one was hurt in the incident. “The safety of students is our highest priority,” Hattrick wrote. At the end of his letter, Hattrick issued a reminder to parents to be conscientious about the premature spread of information during an open investigation. “I know that social media is often a place to share information, but I would respectfully ask that when issues involving students occur, please contact the building principal or myself via email,” according to the letter. “We cannot engage in these types of inquiries on social media out of respect for all and out of respect for due process.” “Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have specific questions. Thank you for your advocacy, concern, and support during these challenging times.” Read the superintendent’s full letter at thechiefnews.com. While full details of the incident have yet to be released, Hattrick said he wants to assure parents and community members
by Columbia Health Services. Currently, staff are working on supplementing the resources with lesson plans to teach students about student safety, bullying, and other behaviors. “Our campaign will center around kindness, compassion, and care for others,” Hattrick told The Chief. Federal advisory
School threat notification the district takes measures to protect students and any incident that has the potential to impact student safety very seriously. “When there are alleged threats, we must first notify any student who has been threatened,” he said. “Once the situation is better under control, we also communicate with the school community.” Hattrick said the district currently offers a notification system for parents to inform them of incidents and events on campus. “Families can opt into our automated alert system where families get text, email, and phone calls alerting them to announcements,” Hattrick said. “If anyone wants to enroll please contact your child’s school.” According to Hattrick, Rainier School District has three clinical staff on campus and is supported
Just one day prior to the Hudson Park incident, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy issued a public health advisory on the growing mental health crisis among youth and children. According to Murthy, the number of children and youth exhibiting depressive and anxiety symptoms nationwide doubled over the course of the pandemic. In a Sept. 29 Chief Guest Column, Grace Bullock, PhD., the Senior Mental Health Officer at the Oregon Department of Education (ODE), said the department launched the Care and Connection Campaign to encourage schools throughout the state to foster welcoming, inclusive, communities for students and nurture social bonds. “School districts across the state can promote student mental health by dedicating time each day to activities that build care, connection and community, and allowing staff and students the opportunity to make meaning
of their experiences,” she said. “These types of activities and trust building exercises are particularly important and meaningful now, as many students spent much of last year apart from their peers and trusted adults outside their home.” The Rainier Health Center is located on the Rainier High School campus, 28168 Old Rainier Road in Rainier and offers youth mental health services from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Call 503-556-2178 for more information or to schedule an appointment. Clatskanie School District recently adopted a School Based Health Center (SBHC) to increase the scope of mental health services for students to cope with difficulties set off by the pandemic. The center is located at 471 SW Bel Air Drive on the Clatskanie Middle/High School campus. The mental health services are available to students from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. The center can be reached at 503-728-5181. Call your local school for more information about student mental health resources. To reach Northwest Connections, a 24-hour mental health crisis hotline in Columbia County, call 1-888-5526642.
Pop-up COVID-19 vaccinations, booster clinic ZOE GOTTLIEB chronicle2@countrymedia.net
Columbia County Public Health (CCPH) and the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) have spent the last week hosting a pop-up drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination and booster that began Monday, Dec. 6, at the Columbia County Fairgrounds in St. Helens. The pop-up clinic is one of several being conducted around Oregon to slow the pandemic and help prevent the spread of the Omicron variant. While the Omicron variant had not been reported in Oregon as of Monday, Dec. 6, health officials expect it will eventually spread to the state. Both California and Washington state have reported cases of the variant.
Thirty-five health care staff members will be at the fairgrounds site to administer first doses, second doses, and boosters of all three FDA-approved pharmaceuticals, the Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines, to adults and the Pfizer vaccine to children ages 5 and up. Those who have waited at least six months after receiving the second shot are also eligible for the COVID-19 booster. The weeklong event was conducted from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and was scheduled to run through Friday, Dec. 10 at Columbia County Fairgrounds, 58892 Saulser Road in St. Helens. Entire families will be able to drive up and get their shot without needing to fill out any pre-regis-
tration forms, according to CCPH Director Michael Paul. “Supplies are not an issue,” Paul said. How it works OHA County Testing Coordinator Timothy Hall said the pop-up clinic is designed to reach many in a convenient drive-through format. “We basically give (drivers) their vaccination while they’re sitting in the car and once everybody’s done, they pull forward to observation if they need it, where an EMT will observe them to make sure that they don’t have any reactions,” he said. “Then they go home.” Zoe Gottlieb / The Chief
See COVID-19 Page A3
A pop-up clinic medical volunteer administers a shot during the immunizations and booster drive-through clinic at the fairgrounds in St. Helens.
Hunt is on for the perfect Christmas tree ZOE GOTTLIEB chronicle2@countrymedia.net
As Clatskanie and Rainier residents navigate a pandemic landscape, Christmas rituals, such as finding the right Christmas tree, remain intact. Most Christmas tree growers in Oregon, although challenged by weather and supply events, have persevered and are offering popular types of trees at market prices. Oregon Christmas Tree GrowObituaries ................. A3 Clatskanie Grows .... A4 Holiday Events ........ A4 Classified Ads ......... A5 Legals ....................... A5 Crossword ............... A5 Shop Local ........... A6-8
Contact The Chief Phone: 503-397-0116 Fax: 503-397-4093 chiefnews@countrymedia.net 1805 Columbia Blvd., St. Helens, OR 97051
ers Association President and Trout Creek Farms Founder Tom Nordy said while his own yield has remained steady, he knows other Christmas tree growers have had difficulty maintaining their supply. “Generally speaking, growers are having to manage their harvest and what they cut maybe a little bit differently this year,” he said. “They may be going through and doing a little more selective harvest this year where they’re cutting every other tree or every three.” Nordy said the trees he sells wholesale from his Corbett tree farm are experiencing a 5 to 8% price hike, a change he chalks up to rising fuel, labor, and day-to-day expenses. Grower challenges On top of a fluctuation in prices, the severe weather event in June, extreme temperatures into the low 100s, had consequences for Christmas trees planted over spring. “The biggest impact upon the
Metro Creative Connection
Despite weather and supply challenges, most local and state Christmas tree growers are offering popular trees at market prices this holiday.
Christmas tree industry was that three-day (heat dome) in June. (The dome) just sat over the whole Northwest region for several days and just never cooled off at night. All the Fir trees had red needles on them; all your plants had red leaves on them,” Nordy said. “Everything got cooked.” Nordy said fortunately, the heat dome had a lesser impact on his Christmas trees, but expressed
greater concern over a tight labor market. “Probably the biggest challenge that every grower faces at this point is labor, same as everybody else,” he said. “To harvest Christmas trees, you’re asking people to go (work) outside in what has been a very wet November. You’re always wet, you’re working hard, you’re lifting 20 pounds constantly all day long (and) you only have about
eight hours of daylight to work.” Oregon is the single largest Christmas tree producer in the nation, according to Nordy. “At one time, if Clackamas County was a state, it would have been the third largest producer of Christmas trees in the nation,” Nordy said. “It’s something that Oregon can be super proud of, that we produce high quality green product for the world versus petrochemical Christmas trees, which have no positive impact on the environment.” Nordy said artificial Christmas trees, despite their long-lasting durability, degrade, rather than improve environmental quality. “What are your artificial Christmas trees? It’s petroleum from the Middle East shipped over to China made into plastic wrapped around some wire. If you don’t use that tree for a decade, you’re creating a huge carbon footprint on our globe,” he
ColumbiaCountyOR.Gov/Vaccine | 503-397-7247
See TREE Page A3