Harney Co. Sheriff Ward calls for community healing

As he did at an earlier FBI news conference, Harney County Sheriff David Ward gave an impassioned plea for healing and residents bridging their differences in the wake of the 41-day occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

Asking those on hand to excuse him — “I’ve been feeling a little emotional today.” — Ward said, “I’m proud of this community. I’m proud of my friends and neighbors. I’m proud of the way you stood up to this stuff.”

After a pause to collect his thoughts, Ward said, “I love this country,” then quoted President Lincoln on the Civil War: “and a house divided against itself cannot stand.”

“I’ve seen division in the community, division in families, division among friends and neighbors and divisions in our church congregations,” the sheriff said.

But he added, “There’s good that can come out of this — if friends and neighbors can get off social media and sit down over a cup of coffee and talk out their differences. I don’t think there’s anything that’s been done that can’t be worked through.”

“We need to communicate with our leaders, and our leaders to communicate with us,” the sheriff said. “I’ve seen people angry who couldn’t even explain what they’re angry about.”

Ward said he was “amazed” when listening to the live feed when final refugee holdout Dave Fry, who he called “a very troubled young man,” said he’d come out and turn himself in — if everybody said “Hallelujah.”

“I heard ‘hallelujahs’ from a SWAT team,” Ward said, expressing pride for all the agencies that worked together “to get the most peaceful resolution they could find.”

“Unfortunately, a life was lost,” he said, referring to the Jan. 26 shooting death of LaVoy Finicum.

And then he returned to his main theme, of healing divisions.

“We can’t continue to go on tearing each other apart due to differences of opinion,” Ward said, adding that he would “encourage my friends and neighbors to get off Facebook and talk to each other in person.

“Get off your computer and get on your knees and pray for your leadership,” he said. “There’s no way we’re going to fix this country if we’re all mad at each other over everything.”