Wallowa County Voices: The people, the beauty brought him here

Published 7:00 am Wednesday, January 10, 2024

ENTERPRISE — Alonso Mendoza and his wife came to Wallowa County for work and stayed because of the beauty they found here five years ago.

He moved here from La Grande, but is originally from Washington’s Tri-Cities.

Mendoza manages the Wallowa County Nursery in Enterprise part of the year and in the winter, he works as a ski guide for Wallowa Alpine Huts. His wife, Haley Hess, works remotely from home.

In addition to the mountains, Mendoza likes the people of Wallowa County.

(The people) “are great, they’re nice and very community-oriented,” he said. “I just got done dropping off a lost dog at the vet and they liked that.”

He didn’t make much of a new year’s resolution beyond keeping up with his health. He hasn’t broken it yet.

All set for winter, Mendoza is aware of the the need for more affordable housing in Wallowa County.

“We have a studio and we’ve outgrown it, so we’re looking,” he said. “There’s nothing. It seems like everyone wants to rent from August to May and want somebody to be in their house in the winter.”

He’s not too sure what could be done to alleviate the problem — but he said he would like to have other options for places to live.

And he has advice for those people who are moving to Wallowa County: “Don’t tell your friends.”