Hank Grossman breeds and raises horses on his plot of land. Pictured with Hank is Wyatt, a week-old stallion. For the next two or three years, Grossman will continue to raise Wyatt. But when he matures, Grossman will either sell him or keep him to breed.
John Rosman/OPB
John Rosman/OPB
Pam Kelley pulled her oldest daughter from Ontario High School. "The schools are not that wonderful," says Kelley. One of her top concerns is gang activity. Gang presence is something she sees in her neighborhood as well. "Last week there was a drive-by shooting right around the corner," says Kelley. Kelley doesn't feel safe. "I hate [living in Ontario], but my family's here. So it's hard."
John Rosman/OPB
Christopher Hamsher lost his job at a big box store. After overhearing a colleague speak ill of him, Hamsher confronted him. "I told him, 'Men don't talk behind each others' backs. Women do that, not men. Say it to my face.' " Hamsher's coworker reported him. And he was let go immediately. Currently, Hamsher is collecting Social Security.
John Rosman/OPB
John Rosman/OPB
After 34 years of work, mail carrier Cheri Rebman's retirement is bittersweet. Rebman will miss her coworkers, some of whom she has worked with for more than 30 years. But she won't miss the hot summer days. "The trucks didn't have AC," says Rebman. After walking a route in the summer sun, Rebman remembers returning to the trucks. "They're all metal; sometimes it was 120 degrees in there."
John Rosman/OPB
John Rosman/OPB
John Rosman/OPB
In his 76 years in Ontario, a big change Lowell Kolbaba says he's seen in town is degrading morality. "There's sex everywhere." Above everything else, Kolbaba feels like his and his community's voice are not heard. "In this part of the country we vote Republican." Yet he feels like the urban areas dictate how he should live.
John Rosman/OPB
John Rosman/OPB
"When you start out, I notice you wear a heavy badge," says Gilberto Rodriguez, a captain at the Snake River Correctional Facility. "But you go through the years and realize the inmates are human as well. The line is there, but I can also be compassionate as an employee."
The city of Ontario is virtually as far east in Oregon as you can get. It hugs the Idaho border, and is the largest Oregon city still on Mountain Time. The city's website describes Ontario as "where Oregon begins."
Ontario's population is only 11,000. However, many times that number come to shop and work. Agriculture plays a dominate role in the city's economy, and an estimated 40 percent of the nation's onions come from the region. The eastern Oregon city also is home to a growing Latino population, who make up 40% of the population.
View the slideshow above to meet some of the people who have made Ontario their home.
![Pam Kelley pulled her oldest daughter from Ontario High School. "The schools are not that wonderful," says Kelley. One of her top concerns is gang activity. Gang presence is something she sees in her neighborhood as well. "Last week there was a drive-by shooting right around the corner," says Kelley. Kelley doesn't feel safe. "I hate [living in Ontario], but my family's here. So it's hard."](http://res.cloudinary.com/bdy4ger4/image/fetch/c_limit,h_480,q_90,w_620/http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/opb-media/artsandlife/2012/07/7603885266_439012547d_b.jpg)
