Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 635 - 659 of 864
WAITSBURG - Nineteen members of the Waitsburg High School FFA Chapter competed at the state level at the 84th Washington FFA Convention in Spokane on May 15-17. Several teams and individuals won awards and the Chapter walked away with a $5,000 check for placing first in the "Nutrients for Life Helping Communities Grow" competition. FFA members participating in the state competition were: Emily Adams, Caitlyn Jones, Zion Branson, Beka Adams, Mikala DeRuwe, Kassidy Kuykendall, Devin Newman...
WAITSBURG - One hundred eighty-five Waitsburg alumni, guests and graduating seniors attended the 111th Waitsburg High School Annual Reunion and Banquet held at the Waitsburg Elementary Multi- purpose room on Saturday, May 24. A roll call of classes began with 75-year anniversary alumni Ivan Keve and Jim Hansen who graduated WHS in 1939. The pair began school together in first grade at Waitsburg Elementary School. Both were active in FFA in high school and Keve was basketball manager whi...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg High School is no stranger to the Washington State Achievement Award list, earning the Overall Excellence Award four times - awarded to the top 5% of schools -- as well as awards in a number of other categories. Preston Hall Junior High joined WHS on the award list for the first time year with state recognition for High Progress and Math Growth. Waitsburg Elementary School was also a first-time state list maker this year - on another kind of list. Waitsburg Elementary...
WAITSBURG - Flags snapped briskly in the breeze, with miniature versions dotting the grounds in memory of local veterans, as the crowd gathered at the Waitsburg City Cemetery for the May 26, 2014 Memorial Day Program. Boy Scouts from Troop 332 raised the flag and high school junior Mikala DeRuwe sang "The Star-Spangled Banner." Pastor Bret Moser offered the invocation. K.C. Kuykendall welcomed the audience on behalf of the City Council, expressing thanks for those who gave their lives for our...
WAITSBURG - Two new programs were approved last week, which will help make summer even more enjoyable for Waitsburg youth. Waitsburg's School Board approved a summer food program that will provide both breakfast and lunch to students, while the Waitsburg Resource Center (WRC) mapped out a "Knock Out Boredom" Summer Fun program for the month of July. Because over 50% of Waitsburg students - 55% in the elementary school and 51% in the middle school -- receive free or reduced lunches, Waitsburg...
WAITSBURG - Dayton High School graduate Miles Lytle won't get much of a summer break after graduating from WSU on May 10, but he's far from disappointed. Instead, he'll be leaving for Guam- all expenses paid -- on May 29, where he'll be working as a construction manager on the Tiyan Parkway project for IMCO Construction. Lytle is the grandson of Betty and Terry Hofer of Waitsburg and son of Winton and Karen Lytle, of Texas. Betty graduated from Waitsburg High School and Terry was a Prescott...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg School District will be joining schools across the state in dropping the culminating project as a graduation requirement. Last month, Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill that eliminated culminating projects as a statewide requirement, beginning with the class of 2015, and instead allowed the determination to be made at the district level. At their May 14 meeting, the Waitsburg School Board voted unanimously to drop the requirement. Superintendent Carol Clarke shared with the...
DAYTON - Students from area high schools were honored in an Outstanding Student Award Program ceremony at Masonic Lodge 26 in Dayton on April 30. The awards were sponsored by the Waitsburg, Dayton and Pomeroy Masonic lodges. Randy Turner welcomed guests, Mark Scott presented the flag and Steve Kazda offered the invocation. The guest speaker was Dayton lawyer and Washington State Representative Terry Nealey. Nealey shared personal experiences and anecdotes while encouraging students to develop...
WAITSBURG - 2013 Waitsburg Celebration Days Queen, Emily Adams, passed the crown to this year's queen, Megan Morrison, in a coronation ceremony that took place at the May 6 Commercial Club meeting at Waitsburg Town Hall. Royalty court advisors Amanda DeRuwe and Joycelin Munden coordinated the ceremony, which was attended by representatives from several area courts. Commercial Club members, local royalty, and community members enjoyed a dinner catered by Emry and Sandy Kleck of "the Q." Royalty...
WAITSBURG - This year's Waitsburg Celebration Days Parade Marshals -- Gary Thomas and Jeff Broom -- are as native as you can get to Waitsburg without actually being born here. Thomas has invested decades of service in the former Days of Real Sport racing event and Broom has been involved in nearly every other aspect of the community, and the new Celebration Days event. Gary Thomas was born in Walla Walla to parents Don and Wilma. The family moved to a home on Middle Waitsburg Road in 1945 when...
WAITSBURG - Routes were set, T-shirts and posters were designed, an insurance waiver - believed to be the biggest obstacle - was in hand. But then the Waitsburg Celebration Days (WCD) Committee learned that the planned May 17 Dead Man's Hand ATV Poker Run was not approved to take place on Walla Walla County roads. An April 29 letter to the committee from County Commissioner Perry Dozier explained that the Walla Walla County Public Works Department had denied the request. WCD organizers quickly...
DAYTON - Columbia County Health Systems (CCHS) will spend the month of May focusing on women ' s health iss ues as part of the Columbia County Wellness Project. So far, the Project has addressed diabetes, tobacco cessation, heart health, drug abuse and alcohol abuse. The big event for May is a Women's Show that will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Liberty Theater on May 17. The intent of the Women's Show is for women to be empowered and encouraged to be their healthiest and feel great...
WAITSBURG - The Frog Hollow Band - voted Best Local Band in the Union Bulletin's People's Choice Awards the last four years running - is becoming as much a part of the fabric of the Touchet Valley as wheat fields, Walla Walla Sweets, fine wine and hot air balloons. The band will say "thank you" to their supportive fans with a free party on May 31at 7 p.m. at the Walla Walla Elks Lodge, in celebration of the release of their CD album titled "Days Like These." Singer/songwriter Zach Winters of...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg Public Works Director Dan Katsel is one of five Washington state award winning "water pros." The first week in May is National Drinking Water Week, the week when the state Department of Health (DOH) honors the work and dedication of water system operators who work to make Washington water some of the safest and best-tasting tap water in the world, according to a DOH press release. "It takes an incredible amount of knowledge, dedication and hard work to keep water systems...
PRESCOTT - After falling hard to Touchet (5-1) and Connell (15-5) earlier in the week, Dayton made a strong comeback in Saturday's double-header against WP, taking the Tigers 13-1 and 11-1, respectively. "The girls played solid defense and successfully put the bat on the ball. They got at least one hit in all but one inning. They put runs on the board in all but two innings. This is big for us --consistency was key on Saturday and everyone contributed," said Bulldog Assistant Coach Desirae...
WAITSBURG - "Parting is such sweet sorrow." Waitsburg 7th and 9th grade students will likely echo this Shakespearean sentiment as they say good-bye to Shakespeare Walla Walla educators Thomas Beebe and Josh Haddock who wrapped up a four-day Living with Shakespeare workshop in Waitsburg on Friday. Budget constraints and rising program costs may prevent the school from offering the program next year. Students laughed as they learned when The Times visited workshops in both grades on Friday. In...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg Celebration Days will include several new events this year including an ATV Poker Run, an ATV Rodeo, a Lawnmower Rodeo, and a Touchet Valley Brew Hop. The Dead Man's Hand Poker Run is a family friendly event, though only those over 18 may participate in the "poker" part of the run. Participants will ride in Saturday morning's Celebration Days parade before heading to the fairgrounds where they will begin the 35-mile Jasper Mountain run. Riders will make a loop through...
DAYTON - In most cases, the best leaders are those who have spent time in the trenches themselves. That personal, practical experience helps make Dayton Developmental Disabilities Leadership Project (DDDLP) Leader Sherri Huwe and her team a valuable community resource. On Friday night, Representatives Maureen Walsh and Terry Nealey, joined local families and DDDLP team members in a reception at the Dayton Best Western Plus Hotel to raise seed money and brainstorm how to best meet the needs of...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg's City Council approved a Main Street Bridge Feasibility Study by the Army Corp of Engineers at their April 16 Council meeting. It is hoped that the study will eventually result in funds to help replace the Main Street Bridge, which is a flood hazard. City Clerk Randy Hinchliffe says the City has been researching ways to replace the bridge for "a very long time." The State won't help with funding because of the classification and project backlogs. The US Army Corps of...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg High School Principal Stephanie Wooderchak "saved the best news for last" as she announced, at the April 17 school board meeting, that Waitsburg High School has received the Overall Excellence Award in the state's 2013 Washington Achievement Awards - an honor reserved for the top five percent of Washington elementary, middle and high schools. WHS had held the title for four out of five years, since the award's inception in 2009. A total of 413 schools received recognition...
WAITSBURG - With just over a month until graduation, local high school seniors are scurrying to put the final touches on their senior projects. The projects - termed 'culminating projects' by the State -- are a graduation requirement for all Washington State seniors - at least through this year. A Yakima student - as her senior project - was instrumental in removing that requirement in a bill signed by Governor Jay Inslee on March 13. Because WHS saw the value in senior projects and initiated...
WAITSBURG - In a grudging decision, Waitsburg's School Board voted to hire an additional certificated teacher for the 2014-15 school year, with the District absorbing the cost of the nonstate funded position. The part-time position will allow the district to provide one class per elementary grade level - rather than the current combined classes - and the sixth grade class will move from the elementary school to Preston Hall. The decision was made in response to instructional and scheduling chall...
WAITSBURG - Representatives from Southeast Area Technical Skills Center (SEATECH) have been visiting partnering districts to make high school sophomores and juniors aware of the programs they will offer in the upcoming 2014-15 school year. Construction of the new $11,519,000 SEATECH facility - built largely with state funds, at no cost to local taxpayers - is on track, and classes are scheduled to begin this fall. The Center, located on the Walla Walla Community College campus just off Isaacs...
PRESCOTT - More than 20 people - ranging in age from single digits to those in their 80's - attended the first Steering Committee meeting of the temporarily titled "Vacant Lot Project." Through the project, Prescott area community members will work with nationally known artist Milenko Matanovic and the Pomegranate Center, to create a "gathering place" in the burned out lot between the Tuxedo Tavern and the Prescott Library on "D" Street. The project is funded by a $25,000 Pomegranate Center...
PRESCOTT - The WP Tigers Softball team took two wins in a double-header against the District 7 Liberty Christian Patriots at Prescott on Thursday, April 3. The Tigers came out strong in game one. The Patriots made two runs in the first inning but the Tigers held them there throughout the game. Hannah Grant hit a solo home run in inning three and Paige Wood had a tworun homer in the fourth. "We hit the ball really well and played outstanding defense," said WP Coach Angie Potts. "Jaidyn Brown did...
