by BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH / for The Observer

Kelly Belton Ducote, a recent graduate of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La., has joined The Observer as a reporter and editor.

Ducote earned a bachelor’s degree of arts, journalism and political science in May 2012. She was in the school’s Honors Program, and accrued a 4.0 GPA. She was a winner of the John Caldwell Social Sciences Memorial Scholarship, and the Kerry Garland Memorial Journalism Scholarship. 

Peter Farnam is the coordinator for Solarize Union County 2013, a program initiated by the local grassroots activist group Oregon Rural Action. (BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH photo)

Upcoming information session will give residents an opportunity to learn about the program and sign up for a free site assessment  

by BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH / for The Observer 

A public-private program that resulted in installation of more than a dozen solar hot water systems in Union County last year is back for another round, expanding its offerings to include solar electric systems. 

Kara Rudd, Serendipity owner and founder, readies a window display at her bridal and formal wear boutique in La Grande. The shop’s new extension contains items high school students need to prepare for their proms, including dresses and shoes. (CHRIS BAXTER/The Observer)

Bridal shop expands, marks 10th year and gears up for prom season 

by DICK MASON / The Observer 

A new wing at Serendipity is helping prom season take flight in Union County.

Serendipity, a bridal and formal wear boutique, has opened an extension to its store. The wing is filled with everything high school students need to prepare for their proms, including elegant short and long dresses in a wide spectrum of colors, dress shoes and tuxedos.  

The Elgin Stampeders are raising matching funds in preparation for a grant application to build a community multi-purpose building at the Stampede grounds. This drawing depicts the west side of the proposed building. (WC Construction)

by TRISH YERGES / Observer correspondent 

Membership drive barbecue and dance slated Saturday with proceeds going to building fund  

ELGIN — The Elgin Stampeders are hosting a membership drive barbecue and dance Saturday starting at 5 p.m. All of the net proceeds will be contributed to the new Stampede Hall building fund.

The Stampeders will serve the barbecue dinner from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The menu includes barbecued hamburgers, hot dogs with condiments, chips and a variety of salads along with coffee and punch. People are welcome to bring their own beverages if they want. 

The Market Place’s downstairs is called the Underground International Tour, where the 18,000 square feet is divided into countries — England, Germany, France and Italy — and features small spaces for businesses. (LISA BRITTON photo)

When you enter The Market Place, you forget time and place as you stand beneath a moon-lit sky and stroll down a German street. 

by LISA BRITTON / for The Baker City Herald

This place, located in downtown La Grande, is a project started three years ago by Al Adelsberger.

He is so passionate about The Market Place that he doesn’t want to describe it — he’d rather you experience it for yourself.

by BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH / for The Observer

Here’s a fact a lot of people probably don’t know about Union County Sheriff Boyd Rasmussen: He’s got a degree in business.

He puts it work every day managing the county sheriff’s office, a huge operation employing patrol deputies, corrections officers, administrative staff and more. And soon, he’ll be putting it to work in a business of his own. 

For some landowners, hiring someone to prepare a field or harvest a crop makes financial sense

by JAYSON JACOBY / Baker City Herald

A person can do an awful lot of farming, it turns out, without owning a single acre of land.

You will need a tractor, though.

And other implements besides.

Staff Reports

A grant-ready workshop series is scheduled this spring to help Northeast Oregon nonprofits set up systems to budget, track and evaluate programs and projects for larger and multi-year grant funding. 

The lack of funding for nonprofit work is a critical challenge. Many of our rural nonprofits are delivering vital services that aren’t available from other sources.  

Julie Naknakhone is the proprietor of Bangkok East, a Thai and Vietnamese restaurant soon to open in downtown La Grande. (BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH photo)

Vietnamese food will also be on the menu at Bangkok East that is set to open in early April at site formerly occupied by Foley Station restaurant

by BILL RAUTENSTRAUCH / for The Observer 

A downtown restaurant closed since 2011 will soon open its doors again, under a different name, with different management and a decidedly different menu.

Moving into the space formerly occupied by the upscale Foley Station restaurant is Bangkok East, an eatery serving up Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. It’s the brainchild and labor of love of Chourirath Naknakhone, a woman who was raised in Laos and Thailand and moved to the United States in 1981.