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THURSDAY, JUNE 12, 2014
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NB School District acquires church property BY CHELSEA DAVIS The World
NORTH BEND — The North Bend School District is expanding its footprint. The North Bend schools budget committee received something unexpected during its second hearing last month: a letter from North Bend’s First United Methodist Church offering to hand over the church property at 2289 Meade St. for just $1, plus any closing costs. The church was destroyed by an
accidental fire in August 2012. “They’re turning tragedy into something that can be really great,” said school board chair Megan Jacquot at Monday’s board meeting. Hillcrest Elementary sits across the street from the church property. The Rev. Laura Ann Beville, pastor at North Bend First UMC, credits the church’s long-standing relationship with the school as the reason for essentially donating the property. “From providing teachers with
school supplies at the beginning of the school year, to providing coffee for staff on the first day of school, the members of First United Methodist Church, North Bend, have appreciated the relationships that we have fostered over the years with teachers, staff, and students,” Beville wrote. Beville has led the North Bend congregation since July last year after the Rev. Jerry Steele was transferred to the Cottage Grove United Methodist Church and the Hope United Methodist Church in Drain.
“They (the congregation) just felt like that was the right thing to do, to offer that property to the school board and to have them utilize it however it can best benefit the children of North Bend,” Beville said. North Bend schools Superintendent Bill Yester isn’t sure what the school district will do with the extra space. Hillcrest teachers and staff have used the church parking lot for overflow parking for years. “It’s really up in the air right now what would happen to it,” Yester
said. “I think right now we’re going to mainly use it as parking lot facilities, then ... we’re going to try to do something with it, maybe expand Hillcrest.” The school district was turned upside down this year, with grade reconfiguration, Lighthouse School’s move, administrative changes and a new superintendent. While new, low-cost property is good news, school officials won’t know what to do with it for awhile. SEE CHURCH | A8
Lawmakers push unified veterans’ bill
Made in the shade
Only three Republican senators voted against the measures ■
BY MATTHEW DALY The Associated Press
shot down in World War II over the Pacific. Later, he decided to jump from a plane of his own accord and marked his 75th, 80th and 85th birthdays by skydiving. He said on his 85th birthday that he’d like to do it again on his 90th. Thursday’s jump would be his eighth. Other birthday festivities included a private dinner with more than 200 relatives and friends, including some from his White House days: press secretary Marlin Fitzwater, White House counsel Boyden Gray
WASHINGTON — After two overwhelming votes in two days, members of Congress say they are confident they can agree on a bill to improve veterans’ health care and send it to the president’s desk by the end of the month. The Senate easily approved a bill Wednesday to help shorten wait times for thousands of military veterans seeking medical care, a day after the House unanimously adopted a similar measure. The Senate bill would authorize about $35 billion over three years to pay for outside care for veterans, as well as hire hundreds of doctors and nurses and lease 26 new health facilities in 17 states and Puerto Rico. The House would spend about $620 million over the same period. Just three lawmakers — all Republican senators — voted against the veterans measures, compared with 519 lawmakers who voted in favor. Opponents said the Senate bill was a “blank check” to spend billions of dollars with little or no way to rein it in. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said the overwhelming Senate vote spoke for itself. The 93-3 tally came after the Senate voted 75-19 to waive normal budget rules and declare the bill an emergency. “I think we’ve shown that we can overcome partisanship and move quickly on a very important issue,” Sanders said, adding that he hopes to bring a unified House-Senate bill to a vote as soon as next week. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of House Committee Veterans’ Affairs Committee, also was optimistic. Many of the provisions included in the Senate bill “are based on ideas that have already cleared the House, so I’m hopeful that both chambers of Congress can soon agree on a final package to send to the president’s desk,” Miller said. The White House said Wednesday that President Barack Obama supports the Senate bill. “Our No. 1 priority is getting veterans the care they’ve earned,” the White House said in a statement. “To do that, we need to make sure that the problems identified at VA medical facilities get fixed.” The legislative effort comes as the FBI revealed it has opened a criminal investigation into the VA, which has been reeling from allegations of falsified records and treatment delays for veterans. FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday that the investigation was being led by the FBI’s field office in Phoenix, which he described as the “primary locus of the original allegations” being investigated by the VA’s Office of Inspector General. “We’re working with the VA IG to follow it wherever the facts take us,” Comey said. The inspector general said in a report last month
SEE BUSH | A8
SEE VETERANS | A8
By Lou Sennick, The World
Gail Virgili takes a little bit of shade in the sunshine with the help of her parasol Wednesday around lunch time. She was taking care of business at a table with information on the upcoming Oregon Coast Music Festival next month in the Bay Area.
Ex-president to make parachute jump
F o r m e r President George H.W. Bush will make a parachute jump today on his 90th birthday.
KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine (AP) — Former President George H.W. Bush can no longer use his legs, but he isn’t letting that stop him from keeping a vow he made five years ago: to jump from an aircraft on his 90th birthday, which is Thursday. “It’s a wonderful day in Maine — in fact, nice enough for a parachute jump,” the nation’s 41st president announced on Twitter. Bush intends to jump from a helicopter with a retired member of the Golden Knights, the Army’s parachute team, near his summer home on the Maine coast, spokesman Jim McGrath said.
The announcement was kept secret until the last minute, partly to give Bush himself the option of bagging it. The forecast Thursday called for clouds and scattered showers across southern Maine. McGrath said Bush likes both a surprise and an adrenaline rush. “It’s vintage George Bush,” he said. “It’s that passion for life. It’s wanting to set a goal, wanting to achieve it. I’m sure part of it is sending a message to others that even in your retirement years you can still find challenges.” The first time Bush jumped from an airplane was when his plane was
Cancer patient swimming Eugene to Portland
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Johnnie Hair, North Bend Earnest Williams, Coos Bay Kerry Titus, Coos Bay Terence Groves, North Bend John Frazier, Coquille
Obituaries | A5
SEE SWIM | A8
The Associated Press
Dean Hall, of Gresham swims in the Willamette River near Corvallis on Monday during his attempt to swim from Eugene to Portland at a rate of about 10 miles a day.
Student loans Legislation to help students refinance their student loans is shot down by Senate Republicans. Page A9
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and people need to get out and start having fun on it.” Promoting the Willamette is one reason Hall is swimming its length, but it’s not the main reason. His first goal is to show cancer patients they can still get out and live their dreams — and to raise money and awareness for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society while he’s at it. “I’m just an ordinary guy,” he said. “If I can swim 184 miles, just about
NATION
INSIDE
CORVALLIS (AP) — Dean Hall of Gresham has heard the warnings about how swimming in the Willamette might be hazardous to his health. As someone battling both leukemia and lymphoma, the 54-year-old took them seriously. But ever since the idea came to him, he has remained determined to swim the entirety of the 184-mile river.
He started last week and said he has been, both literally and figuratively, swimming in miracles ever since. “Swimming in Miracles” is the title Hall has chosen for his journey, which he figures he’ll wrap up around June 23 in Portland. He started at Alton Baker Park in Eugene and swims approximately 10 miles per day, taking Sundays off to rest. “It’s such a beautiful river. And we see no one on it,” he said. “It’s one of Oregon’s greatest natural resources,
DEATHS
BY JENNIFER MOODY Albany Democrat-Herald
Chance of rain 61/53 Weather | A8