Posted: Monday, December 11, 2006 12:00 am
Academy honors Benton deputy
Deputy John Potts of the Benton County Sheriff's Office graduated from the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training Basic Corrections Class, and was awarded the Victor G. Atiyeh Award.
The award is named in honor of the former Oregon governor in whose term the academy became a reality. It is presented to the outstanding student of each basic class as selected by their fellow students and the academy staff.
The student selected must display exceptional professionalism by demonstrating an exemplary attitude and outstanding achievement in leadership, academics, health and fitness and survival skills.
Bell honored
by fairs group
Larry Bell of the Benton County Fair was honored with a Heritage Award, posthumously, by the International Association of Fairs and Expositions during a convention Dec. 4 to 7 at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Bell, of Philomath, died Nov. 2.
He was one of five volunteers presented the award, which recognizes the achievements of outstanding volunteer fair managers. Each winner received a plaque and $1,000, and each fair nominating the winner received $500.
Bell was involved with the Benton County Fair for nearly 35 years. He began as an assistant manager in 1972. He later became a founding member of the Benton County Fair Foundation and was a member of the board of directors.
Bell was also an active member of the Oregon Fairs Association and served as a delegate and officer several times. For many years, Bell worked as a fair evaluator, visiting county fairs across the state and helping make them more successful.
For the Benton County Fair, Bell volunteered in many ways, including superintendent, grounds manager, fair manager, sponsor coordinator, security coordinator and facilities coordinator.
Over the years, Bell earned numerous awards, including the Meritorious Service Award from the Oregon County Fair Commission, the Oregon Fairs Association Appreciation Award, the Oregon Fairs Association Honorary Lifetime Membership Award, the 4-H Leadership Award, and the Benton County Fair and Rodeo Spirit of Rich Guerber Award.
Babbel named 'Governor Scholar'
Danielle Babbel of Corvallis has been named a Governor Scholar at Utah State University. The Governor's Scholar program honors four students from each of Utah's colleges and universities who have demonstrated academic excellence during their freshman or sophomore years.
Babbel is majoring in geography and anthropology. She is pursuing a bioregional planning project for Kenya's Nairobi National Park that addresses the impact of urban expansion on the park's human and animal ecosystems. Babbel is also a presidential scholar and university undergraduate research fellow.
She is a 2005 graduate of Crescent Valley High School.
Robinson earns Gold Award
Mathew Robinson of Corvallis was presented a Shriver Greatness Award at the Governor's Gold Award ceremony Dec. 2 at the Oregon Convention Center. The Shriver Greatness Award recognized outstanding achievement by nine Special Olympics Oregon athletes who competed as part of Team Oregon at the 2006 Special Olympics U.S. National Games in Iowa in July. Robinson, 28, earned two gold medals in bocce.
The annual awards dinner benefits Special Olympics Oregon. Attending dignitaries included former governors Vic Atiyeh and Barbara Roberts, and master of ceremonies Gerry Frank.
Corvallis writers named finalists
Corvallis residents Tracy Daugherty, William G. Robbins and Deborah Hopkinson were finalists in the 20th annual Oregon Book Awards. The Dec. 1 ceremony at the Portland Art Museum celebrated the state's finest authors.
Daugherty was selected as a finalist for the H.L. Davis Award for Short Fiction for "Late in the Standoff."
Robbins was a finalist for the Frances Fuller Victor Award for General Nonfiction for his work "Oregon: This Storied Land."
Hopkinson was selected as a finalist for the Eloise Jarvis McGraw Award for Children's Literature for "Sky Boys."
Since 1987, the Oregon Book Awards have annually honored the accomplishments of Oregon writers in genres of poetry, fiction, literary nonfiction, drama and young readers' literature. Out-of-state judges choose finalists in each category, including a winner, using literary merit as the sole criterion.
Film conference, lectures get grants
OSU and the Benton County Historical Society have received grants from the Oregon Council for the Humanities.
OSU received a $5,000 grant for Cine-Lit VI, an international conference on Hispanic film and literature, organized by the foreign languages and literature departments at OSU and Portland State University, and the Northwest Film Center. It will be held in February in conjunction with the Portland International Film Festival.
The historical society received a $3,500 grant to fund the 2007 Benton Lecture Series, "Voices of the People," which will feature eight lectures by tribal representatives and scholars exploring history, politics, language, literature, the arts and human relationships.
The OSU Foundation and the Benton County Historical Society are among 15 nonprofit organizations in 10 Oregon counties to have received the fall 2006 grants, totaling $57,475.