50 YEARS AGO

from the Democrat-Herald

June 7, 1971

CORVALLIS — Mike Bennett high jumped 6 feet, 7 inches for a second place and placed fifth in the low hurdles and sixth in the highs to score 11 points and give the Baker Bulldogs a 13th place finish in the Oregon State Class AAA track meet in Corvallis Saturday.

25 YEARS AGO

from the Baker City Herald

June 7, 1996

Participants in the National Judges Association Conference in Baker City this week surprised their host by honoring him as the outstanding non-attorney judge in the United States Thursday night.

Larry Cole, who serves as a Baker County justice of the peace and the Baker City municipal court judge, was presented the MacEachern Award during the closing banquet at The Sunridge.

10 YEARS AGO

from the Baker City Herald

June 8, 2011

City officials have dubbed a longtime hangout for youth an attractive nuisance and asked the owner of the site, known as Boys Jungle, to clean it up and deter people from trespassing.

The heavily wooded area is on the east bank of the Powder River, just north of D Street and south of Elkhorn Village apartments. The Leo Adler Memorial Parkway runs through the east side of the property.

ONE YEAR AGO

from the Baker City Herald

June 9, 2020

“We’re going to be legends for this.”

That was Lucas Stearns’ assessment as he and his Baker High School senior classmates waited to collect their diplomas in a most unusual graduation Sunday afternoon.

For Stearns, who will be attending Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, and his fellow seniors their final year of high school started like any other.

But their last term turned out to be anything but typical.

With COVID-19 closing schools, other traditions, including senior prom, were also canceled.

“I definitely didn’t get to do as much as I wanted to do this year,” said Melissa Titus, a senior headed to Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario for addiction studies.

And when the school year ended, instead of walking across the grass at Baker Bulldog Memorial Stadium to receive their diplomas, seniors were passengers in cars driven by parents, other relatives, or friends.

After driving through the bus lane in front of Baker High School to receive their diplomas from BHS principal Greg Mitchell, the graduates gathered in the student parking lot for the traditional shifting of their tassels, and then proceeded in a driving processional along several streets lined with spectators who cheered them on.

“When the year started I was expecting a traditional walk across the stage graduation ceremony but I honestly feel like this might be a little better, because I mean, what class can say they got a parade?” said Austin Corpier, who’s headed to the University of Tennessee at Martin to study political science.

“It might become the new normal.”