PENDLETON â Despite the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic, The Giving Tree at Hamley Western Store in Pendleton saw every tag plucked from its branches this year.
The giving tree, in its 20th year, is a collaboration between local elementary schools, the Pendleton Early Learning Center, the Umatilla County Care Program and the Department of Human Services. The groups submit referrals, or âwish listsâ to the tree, and after community participants take those referrals and gather the gifts, the gifts are provided to at-risk children and their families.
âEvery request is hopefully going to be filled this year,â said Heidi Zeigler, from Umatilla County Health and Human Services, who has worked with the giving tree for about 12 years.
2020 Winter Poker Open (WPO) at the
Seminole Hard Rock Tampa marked the first big poker series to play out at the series since the pandemic began. The eight-event series proved to be a big hit, especially the
$1,700 buy-in, $200K GTD Main Event, which absolutely crushed it by attracting 779 runners (up from 479 the year before) and offering up a $1,207,450 prize pool.
Emerging victorious in that tournament was well-known circuit grinder
Max Young, who captured the guitar trophy and a hefty $226,510 top prize. It marked the second-largest score of his career and brought his lifetime tournament earnings up to $1,941,679.
It was the latest title for Young, who has a case full of trophies. Not only is he a six-time WSOP Circuit ring winner, including a win in the 2018 WSOPC Choctaw Main Event for a career-high $263,815, heâs also won MSPT and WPTDeepStacks titles, and captured titles at Parx, Wynn, Chinook Winds, and Wildhorse Resort & Casino in Pendleton.
MISSION â Around midday on Thursday, Dec. 3, more than 25 vehicles sat in front of Wildhorse Resort & Casino, waiting to receive a free COVID-19 test supplied by Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center and the Oregon Health Authority.
Cars approached a large white tent where health officials, donning light-blue protective gear, face masks and gloves, handed passengers a kit with a cotton swab and instructions for self-testing. Participants were advised to take the brush, swab an inch into their nostril five times, and then insert the swab into a testing reagent before handing it back to a health official.
After about six hours, officials had successfully tested 447 people, most of whom were Wildhorse staff and members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Results came back two days later and showed seven positive tests, according to Carrie Sampson-Samuels, the community wellness director for Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center.
MISSION â Wildhorse Resort & Casino may be quieter than usual, but the staff is putting extra effort into the resortâs holiday light display this year in order to bring cheer to the community and brighten spirits for the holidays.
âWe can all use an extra reason to smile these days,â acknowledged Mary Liberty-Traughber, public relations manager at Wildhorse, in a press release. The goal is to bring something bright and beautiful to people in the community.â
The outdoor lights can be easily viewed from a car as you circle through the casino parking lot and down Market Road. And inside, lights and decorations can be found in the casino and food court. Families can enter at the FunPlex doors and view the displays in the common area.