Mayfield awarded Bronze Star

Lance Cpl. Justin R. Mayfield, U.S. Marine Corps, has been awarded the Bronze Star (with combat distinguishing service) for heroic achievement on Nov. 16, 2005.

Mayfield was part of the 2nd Marine Division during Operation Steel Curtain in New Ubaydi, Iraq. Five U.S. Marines were killed and 11 were wounded, including Mayfield. Many of the Marines were awarded medals for their heroic actions.

Mayfield was born in Corvallis and attended school at Santiam Christian, West Albany and Linn-Benton Community College prior to entering the Marines.

His mother is Pamela Sloan of Albany; his sisters include Karliann and Makayla Sloan. His father is Barry Mayfield of Manhattan Beach, Calif.; his sister is Pearl Mayfield. His grandparents are Merle and Jean Woods of Corvallis and Wallace “Bud” and Glenda Mayfield of Hermiston.

Hill named editor of

Oregon Law Review

Corrinne Hill of Philomath has been elected editor of the Oregon Law Review published by the University of Oregon Law School.

The Oregon Law Review is published four times per year.

Hill will be a summer associate for Holland and Knight for three months before starting her final year of law school in September.

LBCC newspaper earns awards

ALBANY — The Commuter, Linn-Benton Community College’s weekly newspaper, received the general excellence first-place award for community college newspapers from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association.

Dan Wise is the Commuter’s editor in chief, and Rich Bergeman is the faculty adviser. In the daily division, the winner was the Oregon Daily Emerald and second place went to the Daily Barometer of OSU.

Other awards earned by the Commuter staff include:

Best Design, second place; Best Section, honorable mention; Best Headline Writing, Melissa Chaney, second; Best Writing, Davis Rogers, honorable mention; Best Editorial, Dan Wise, first; Best Sports Story, Steve Farrens, second; Best Columnist, Walt Hughes, second; Best Photography, Dan Wise, second tie; Best Feature Photo, Megan Pickens, second; Best Sports Photo, Erik Swanson, first and honorable mention tie; Best Graphic, Elizabeth Beckham, first and second.

Students place in state solo contest

Eight Corvallis students placed at the OSAA/U.S. Bank/Les Schwab Tires Solo Music State Championships held recently at Corban College in Salem.

Amy Kwon of Crescent Valley High School placed first in cello. This is the fourth year she has earned first place honors in cello.

CV student Sean Turner placed first in state in tuba, and Corvallis High School student Nicolas Sayavedra placed second in viola. CHS students Sean Hunter and Daniel Freilich placed third in alto saxophone and bassoon respectively. Annabritt Coakley, CV, placed fourth in timpani and Joyce Kwan, senior, placed fourth in violin. David Jones, CHS, placed fifth in French horn.

A total of 444 students from 103 high schools participated in the event.

Kwon named 2006 Scholar

Amy Kwon of Crescent Valley High School has been selected as a 2006 Presidential Scholar. Kwon is one of 141 high school seniors to win the award for demonstrating exceptional academic achievement, artistic excellence, leadership, citizenship and service at school and in their community. The Presidential Scholars will be honored for their accomplishments in Washington, D.C., June 24-27.

Kwon will attend Stanford University in the fall. She plays the cello and the piano and has been the Oregon High School Cello champion for four years. She is a bioengineering research intern and assistant. She also studies vector calculus at OSU and is a soup kitchen volunteer. She is a National Merit finalist and a National Chamber of Music semifinalist.

Rotary students of the month

Sabrina Heaven of Linus Pauling Middle School and Emily Simmons of Cheldelin Middle School were named Rotary Students of the Month for April.

Heaven is involved in Leadership Class and Service-Learning. She volunteered at Garfield Elementary every morning working with a kindergarten class. She has volunteered at community events such as the Corvallis Fall Festival in the children’s area and for many child care projects. She recently attended PEACEJAM, where she presented, along with fellow students, her school’s PeaceJam service-learning project. She has completed more than 100 hours and will be receiving the Presidential Service Award, the highest award given to middle school students for service to their community.

Simmons has a 4.0 grade-point average. She is in the leadership class and has participated in the Giving Tree, rose and carnation sale, Katrina relief and Tsunami relief fund-raising. She volunteers for the Picnic in the Park for the homeless and pulled ivy with the No Ivy League. She is in Girl Scouts and has been awarded the Bronze Award for her leadership.

Equestrian team places in finals

The Corvallis High School Equestrian Team (a combination of Corvallis and Crescent Valley high school students) completed the equestrian season at the final district meet at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem.

The team competes in the Willamette District, which includes 20 high schools from throughout the Willamette Valley.

Top finishes by local students include:

In-hand trail, Melissa Queen, CHS, 11th place; Reining, Nicole Schrock, CHS, seventh place; Drill short program, CHS, fifth place; Barrels, Shoni Majeski, CVHS, 10th; Two-man birangle, Claire Gibbons, CHS, and Shoni Majeski, CVHS, sixth place; Individual flags, Nicole Schrock, CHS, eighth; Team Canadian flags, Gibbons, Samantha Berger, CHS, Schrock and Majeski, third place; Keyhole, Majeski, sixth place; Pole bending, Gibbons, 11th place; Working pairs, Ali Emmons, CHS; and Melissa Queen, CHS, 11th place; Hunt seat over fences, Hannah Stepanek, CHS, first place; Working rancher, Nicole Schrock, CHS, eighth place; Hunt seat, Hannah Stepanek, CHS, first place, Taylor Long, CHS, ninth place; Dressage, Stepanek, fourth place, Long, ninth place.

Other team members include Nichelle Lassen, CVHS; Alicia Parsons, CVHS; Pam Lundeberg, CVHS, and Elizabeth Coskey, CHS.

Based on the culmination of the season results, these students have qualified for the state meet May 19-21 in Central Point and will receive district medals: Hunt seat over fences, Stepanek, bronze medal; working rancher, Schrock, bronze medal. Two-man birangle team of Gibbons and Majeski has also qualified for the state meet.

OSU veterinary prof honored

David Sisson, professor of cardiovascular medicine at Oregon State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, has received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Torino, Italy. Sisson’s more than 30 years of accomplishments in veterinary cardiology were noted by Torino scholars, particularly in the area of congestive heart failure in domestic animals.

Sisson has published more than 54 scientific papers, as well as 128 abstracts and a reference book in small animal cardiology. His interests include development of biochemical markers for developing myocardial disease, neurohormonal responses to left ventricular dysfunction, cardiac imaging and the development of non-surgical interventions for treating congenital heart disease.

Philomath seniors honored for math

Lacey Johnson and Lisa Martini, both seniors at Philomath High School, have been recognized for their outstanding achievement in the study of mathematics during their high school careers.

Johnson and Martini will receive certificates of merit issued by the Oregon Council of Mathematics and the Oregon Department of Education in a program honoring students’ accomplishments.

Linus Pauling, Cheldelin awards

Students from Cheldelin and Linus Pauling middle schools won several awards recently at the regional Pentagames Math Competition in McMinnville, where the Cheldelin team took first place.

Cheldelin team members were Molly Gard, Andrea Higdon, Michael Trujillo, Christian Strahl, Ben Condrea, Annisa Goss, Michael Takamori, Dwight Ransom and Noah Baker. The open team took second and the eighth-grade team took first.

Molly Gard won the open division individually and Andrea Higdon was fourth. Christian Strahl won the eighth-grade division and Ben Condrea was fourth. Michael Takamori was third in the seventh-grade division and Dwight Ransom was fifth.

The Linus Pauling seventh-grade team of Stephanie Wang, Taylor Kunke and Jasmine Frei placed first in the “Solve that Problem” competition and second in “CR Squared.” The team also placed third overall in the seventh-grade competition. In addition, Taylor Kunke received the fifth-place award in “Math Tac Toe.”

The Linus Pauling eighth-grade team of Annie Spiegelberg, Lani Penner and Ashley Culver were part of the team effort to earn third place in “Solve that Problem.” In addition, Annie Spiegelberg won individual places of second in “Math Tac Toe” and fifth in “35 Minus.” Lani Penner placed third in “Solve that Problem.”

The Linus Pauling algebra open team of Alissa Wall, Rosiee Thormahlen and Suzanne Katz placed third in “Math Tac Toe.”

Ertle school nurse of the year

The Oregon School Nurses Association has named Benton County school nurse Cindy Ertle as School Nurse of the Year for her outstanding service and commitment to quality care.

Ertle’s employment with the Benton County Health Department began in 1999 as a school nurse for the Philomath School District. She has been involved with numerous activities and programs, including: Walk To School Day; developing a district wellness plan; obtaining funding for a dental van and other connections to dental care for low-income students; working with teachers on health education; helping to contain and prevent further spread of a pertussis outbreak; leading the development of an air-quality program; and procuring eye exams and glasses for 21 students who are low-income and do not have any health insurance.

Ertle serves as the eyes and ears of Benton County Health Department’s Communicable Disease program within Philomath schools. She is also active in Benton County’s pandemic flu and public health emergency preparedness plans and maintains her own Web site about school nursing services.

Berger honored by Oregon State

At a ceremony April 29, Oregon State University’s department of animal sciences honored Paul Berger with a Distinguished Service Award for his lifetime achievements in animal sciences.

Berger grew up on a farm in Linn County. His relationship with the university spans a lifetime, beginning when he was 10 and first set foot on campus as a 4-H club member.

Berger earned a Bachelor of Science degree at OSU in 1950 and a master of science degree in 1951, both in dairy science. In 1955 he joined the animal sciences department, coordinating the department’s livestock, farms and facilities used in teaching and research.

In 1963 Berger was hired by Eli Lilly to serve in their animal health division. He remained with the company until his retirement in 1990.

Berger has been an active supporter of the OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences, serving on the board of E.R. Jackman, establishing the Paul C. Berger Endowed Professorship in the Crop and Soil Science Department, and supporting the endowed Animal Sciences Department Head Scholarship program. He now lives in Vancouver, Wash.

Noelle Cockett was also honored at the April 29 ceremony for her work in animal breeding and genetics. Both Berger and Cockett will be inducted into the OSU Department of Animal Sciences Honorary Withycombe Club.