Continue to Stand in the Gap: Lake County

Lake County, Oregon
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy. Proverbs 31: 8-9

With Lake County we reach the second of the two counties in the South Central Region of Oregon. We are in one of the largest counties by land area and one of the smallest by population in the state. The county has about one person per square mile. By crossing the border from Klamath County, we are fully into the region referred to as the Oregon Outback, the high desert region of Oregon. Lakeview, the county seat, bills itself as the “tallest” city in Oregon due to its over 4,000 foot elevation. Read previous posts here, here, and here.

Lake County, Oregon

There are three elected County Commissioners, elected to four-year terms. The present Board is made up of Barry Shullanberger, James Williams, and Mark Albertson.

The County Sheriff is Michael Taylor. Recently the Oregon State Sheriff’s Association honored a group of Lake County individuals with The Life Saving Award. The community members rescued a victim after a pickup truck wreck on Highway 395.

The Sheriff’s Office is adding to its fleet of equipment, acquiring three new much-needed Ford Responders and expecting three more this summer. Also, the Office has begun a drone program, anticipating adding drone technology to aid in search and rescue and in locating suspects.

January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Various prayer groups in Oregon focus on the trafficking that is a problem in our state, especially along the I-5 corridor and other highways that connect with California and Nevada. In Lake County Highway 395 runs from California up into central Oregon. The Lake County Examiner reported that ODOT’s motor carrier enforcement officers and safety inspectors shared information recently (January 8 – 12) with truck drivers in Lake County on how to be aware of possible trafficking situations. Around the world, and in every state in the United States, large numbers of men, women, and children are sold into prostitution or forced labor. Truck drivers travel the same routes the traffickers use and are in a unique position to spot and report questionable activities and situations. The goal of ODOT, law enforcement, trucking companies, and trucking associations is to develop a network of truckers trained to recognize and report trafficking.

In 1894 the Oregonian’s Handbook of the Pacific Northwest published a list of distinguished pioneers in Lake County. One mentioned was Judge W.M. Townsend, who was born in Indiana in 1839 and came to Oregon after the Civil War. He lived in several areas of the state but settled in Lakeview when appointed by President Cleveland to be the receiver of the land office in 1878. He was a man of many talents and became the first mayor of Lakeview in 1888. He later was the judge in Lake County, and also found time to establish the first newspaper: the Lake County Examiner, mentioned above.

Lake County is a beautiful county with many opportunities for tourism and recreation. Pray for the people of Lake County and the churches in the region.

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