Restaurants, businesses and organizations throughout the community
mirrored life around the world when they shuttered their doors last month as
COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, became a pandemic.
Oregon Governor Kate Brown issued an executive order on Monday, March 23,
closing non-essential businesses, prohibiting large gatherings and limiting
social contact between people.

“It is essential to the health, safety, and welfare of the State of Oregon during
the ongoing state of emergency that, to the maximum extent possible,
individuals stay at home or at their place of residence, consistent with the
directives set forth in my Executive Orders and guidance issued by the Oregon
Health Authority,” Brown said in a statement.

Some impacted aspects of Mountain life include the closures of schools, parks,
playgrounds, ball fields and sports courts in the Oregon Trail School District
until at least Tuesday, April 28, closure of the Bureau of Land Management’s
developed recreation facilities (including Wildwood) and the closure of all
campgrounds, day-use sites, trailheads, Sno-Parks, fire lookouts, OHV areas,
ski areas (and ski area parking lots) and other developed recreation sites in
the Mt. Hood National Forest (MHNF) through at least Friday, May 8.

Heather Ibsen, Acting Public Affairs Officer for the MHNF, noted in an email to
the Mountain Times that while developed trailheads are included in the
closures, trails are not. But she added that people are encouraged not to head
to the forest to recreate.

“Across the region, we are asking people to please delay travel to outdoor
destinations as much as possible,” she wrote. “We’ll still be here when it’s
much safer for all of us. Time outdoors is important for mental and physical
health, but for right now, please explore your neighborhood and follow the
(Center for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines on social distancing.”
MHNF offices are conducting public business by phone, email or web-based
transactions. Latest updates and information can be found online:
www.fs.usda.gov/mthood.

The impact of the closures was evident everywhere, not just in the signs in
the windows of businesses, but in the number of newly unemployed people.
During the week of March 15, the Oregon Employment Department (OED)
received more than 76,500 initial claims for unemployment insurance
benefits, and during the first three days of the week of March 22, initial claims
have been tracking at record levels again.

OED had received just 4,900 initial claims filed during the week of March 8.
In response to the pandemic, OED enacted temporary rules to give more
flexibility in providing unemployment benefits to COVID-19 affected workers,
including for employees whose employer stops operation for a short period of
time, such as cleaning following a coronavirus exposure or by government
requirement.

Workers can also get unemployment benefits and do not need to seek work
with other employers if their place of employment will resume operations. To
receive benefits, affected workers must still be able to work, stay in contact
with their employer and be available to work when called back. Information
for filing an online claim and a full resource guide with questions and answers
about specific COVID-19 coronavirus-related situations and unemployment
benefits is available at Oregon.gov/employ.

In another effort to help Oregonians maintain social distancing and avoid the
coronavirus, people who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(SNAP) benefits can now purchase groceries online from Walmart and
Amazon. People may be eligible for SNAP if their work hours are reduced or

they lose your job. For more information, visit OHP.Oregon.Gov or
https://www.oregon.gov/DHS/Offices/Pages/Self-Sufficiency.aspx.
Taxpayers will get an extended amount of time to file both state and federal
tax returns, with the date moving from April 15 to July 15 (for more
information, to check the status of a refund, to make payments or get forms,
visit www.oregon.gov/dor/), while the Oregon Department of Consumer and
Business Services issued a temporary emergency order requiring all insurance
companies to extend grace periods for premium payments, postpone policy
cancellations and non-renewals and extend deadlines for reporting claims.

In support of COVID-19 response, the Oregon Office of Emergency
Management and the State Emergency Coordination Center have established
a webpage where Oregonians can submit requests to donate services or
supplies, volunteer to support or to engage in a business relationship with the
state at https://oregon-coronavirus-geo.hub.arcgis.com/. The biggest need
right now is for Personal Protective Equipment, such as masks, gloves, and
gowns.

The City of Sandy offers resources and information on the pandemic, including
links to local and national organizations, area closures and ways to access
essential services at https://www.ci.sandy.or.us/COVID-19Information.

Mountain residents can also find help through Neighborhood Missions, a
community outreach program sponsored by Hoodland Lutheran Church that
provides assistance for those in need. For more information on Neighborhood
Missions, visit http://hoodlandlutheranchurch.org/neighborhoodmissions or
call 503-622-9213.