May 19, 2020

Tuesday, May 26 the Union County Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a live webinar for Union and Wallowa County businesses. The webinar will feature several local experts to provide information geared towards business owners with questions regarding requirements of daily operation during the coronavirus. The Governor has provided sector guidance for businesses, restaurants and bars, employers, retailers, personal services, and others. Live questions will be answered as time allows. The webinar will begin at 2:00 p.m. Additional details will be provided within the next few days.

The City of La Grande Parks Recreation Department announced today that a limited number of summer camps will be available utilizing sector guidance provided by the Governor. Camps will be limited in size to ten participants or less. Due to the statewide restrictions, Parks & Recreation will only run camps that are full or half day duration. Registration is open for a few of the camps, and a full listing of all available camps can be viewed at www.lagrandeparks.org.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today the details of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), which will provide up to $16 billion in direct payments to deliver relief to America’s farmers and ranchers impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. In addition to this direct support to farmers and ranchers, USDA’s Farmers to Families Food Box program is partnering with regional and local distributors, whose workforces have been significantly impacted by the closure of many restaurants, hotels, and other food service entities, to purchase $3 billion in fresh produce, dairy, and meat and deliver boxes to Americans in need. Additional details of the programs can be found at https://www.usda.gov/.

Union County remains at six confirmed cases of COVID-19 of which three meet the definition of Oregon Health Authority as recovered. Baker County and Wallowa County each remain at one confirmed case. Umatilla County is reporting a total of 106 confirmed and presumptive cases and three COVID-19 related deaths. Statewide, Oregon Health Authority is reporting today a total of 3,801 confirmed and presumptive cases and 144 COVID-19 related deaths.