Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 401 - 425 of 637
To the Editor: The Dayton School District is running replacement levies and a Capital Levy (a feasibility study to improve electrical outlets in the Elementary/Middle School building to be able to install air conditioning). During our last “community meeting” a few years ago, this was one of our (yours and the district’s) major concerns. I am in favor of and will vote for the future of our school district by always supporting the education of our students. Please check out the District website, the Citizens for Education website, and the Faceb...
Dear Editor: We would like to offer accolades about the show stopping flower hangings that adorned our Main Street this past Summer and Fall. The baskets were all propagated, planted and maintained by local gardeners and were a joy to see throughout their growing season. We want to thank everyone who provided their hard work and expertise and look forward to the coming season’s beautiful displays. Bruce & Heather Hiebert...
To the Editor, The Dayton School District needs your support with the upcoming replacement levies. The State of Washington is committed to providing the costs of basic education. The local levies help to support the parts of public education that are not fully funded by the state allocation. Here are just a few of the many ways the levy funds are used: Smaller class sizes Counselors and Nurses Transportation for field trips and club activities Athletics Classroom supplies CTE Classes- Home Ec, Wood Shop, Ag Shop, Business Education...
Dear Editor, Four generations of my family attended Dayton Schools and received a solid education here. I want to ensure that the children in our community continue to have the same opportunity for a quality, well-rounded education. That is why I am supporting the upcoming levy for Dayton Schools. This renewal levy will provide needed funds to bridge the monetary gap left by the state’s funding formula. The Educational Programs and Operations (EP &O ) levy will support maintaining smaller classroom staffing, Career & Technical Education (...
Dear Editor: Walla Walla’s struggle to retain its curbside recycling program has rightfully overshadowed our efforts to resuscitate glass recycling in our community. In many ways, this new struggle is repeating the one that resulted in the abandonment of glass recycling in 2012. In both cases, the problem is lack of cost-effective markets for the waste product. While wholeheartedly supporting the efforts of the Sustainability Advisory Committee to retain the curbside recycling program, Ted and I and friend Philippe Michel are persisting in o...
Touchet Valley Arts Council and the Liberty Theater concluded its last performance of Mary Poppins on December 7. It was our 19th fall musical production, and one of our most successful. When I say “our” I’m referring not only to the TVAC Board or even the Productions group who produced the show. I’m referring also to everyone from the stage crew to the audiences which made it happen. In fact, audiences are a key component to live theater. They are not passive viewers; they are active characters. Each audience brings a unique persona and energy...
Dear Editor: Full disclosure, while never descending to the level of a Grinch, I never could really fully celebrate the spirit of Christmas. I raised children and hopefully provided for them a Christmas-ish foundation, but personally never quite got it. That is until this weekend in Waitsburg. What a charming couple of days, from the wonderful vendors at Town Hall, to Santa at Ten Ton Coffee, to the grand finale of the parade, it had the magic I have been largely denied all of my many Christmases. At least in part it was knowing a bit about...
Dear Editor, Theater at its Best!! From the front rows I witnessed a full house at Dayton Liberty Theater, presenting Disney’s Mary Poppins musical. One could not have enjoyed more if seeing it on Broadway. The cast of 59 was magnetic, makeup artist, costumes, staging, design, pianist, everything was suburb and, selflessly given. Team-work was professionally over the top. More powerfully presented than one experiences today in most churches. Phillip Montfort Waitsburg...
As we prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday we have been reflecting on what we are thankful for and wanted to update you on the what we have been up to at Ten Ton. Two years ago a plan was hatched in Seattle and a couple of city slickers made the journey east to a small town on the other side of the state. Using our combined years of experience in food service, the goal was to create a coffee shop within an existing, family-owned art studio. We dreamed of creating a beautiful, inviting space where people from all different walks of life could...
To the Editor: First of all, I would like to thank the voters in Dayton, for turning out during our recent elections. Our participation was the third highest in the state. During the local campaigns for Mayor and City Council members, there was an endless amount of false information posted on social media. False accusations, misleading or erroneous information, did not afford the public the necessary and factual information they needed, prior to casting their votes. This demonstrated that social media is not the most reliable source of...
Dear Editor: Thank you so much to all the voters and supporters who helped me along the way to win this election. I couldn’t have done it without you. I’m excited to move forward with serving this community and continuing to work on improving Dayton. Along my campaign trail, I have had the opportunity to speak with many of the residents who live and work here and who have given me insight on what concerns our community. I have been in contact with the various entities that serve the people and continue to fuel our city with great res...
Dear Editor: Over the course of the campaign, I’ve canvassed neighborhoods across the county and met with more than 2,200 residents on their front porch. I’ve also held meetings with major employers, institutions (colleges, university, school districts, etc.), governmental agencies, civic organizations and leaders from the business community. Through these conversations, I’ve heard a near-universal desire for expanded economic opportunity across the county. The world of economic development is highly competitive. Our country competes with...
Editor, In an October 13, 2019 Walla Walla Union Bulletin article outlining various candidates in the upcoming election, Dain Nysoe, incumbent candidate for Position 4 on Dayton City Council, had various comments on the proposed Touchet Valley Trail. I encourage you to read the full article for additional context, but among Nysoe’s comments was the following quote: “It’s a new idea, so some have expressed their opposition to the idea, and have either misunderstood the scope of the plan, or are just closed minded to new ideas.” The “scope...
Dear Editor, I was proud to run for Congress last year to stand up for my community. I’m so thankful to all of you who supported me with your donations, your time, and your kind words. I’m reaching out today because there is another important fight on your ballot this November. Initiative 1000/Referendum 88 is our best chance in two decades to end our state’s regressive ban on affirmative action and restore fairness and opportunity to all Washingtonians. As a higher education leader in Spokane, I saw firsthand the benefit that diversity has i...
Dear Editor, Thank you Everett Maroon for a detailed letter to the editor informing readers of the history of police deliberating on providing Narcan to victims of opioid overdoses. This will be instructive and helpful information as Waitsburg moves forward in broadening improved public health services to citizens. Terry Lawhead, Waitsburg...
My name is Katie Leid and I am running for re-election to Dayton School Board, position #4. For those of you who are not familiar with me, I grew up in the Touchet Valley, graduated from Waitsburg High School, married my childhood sweetheart, followed and helped him receive his college and advanced degrees, raised two very successful children and completed my education at Washington State University over twenty years ago. We moved back “home” when I accepted the elementary/middle school principal’s position in Dayton in July, 2003. After an ama...
Ballots to vote for the next Mayor of Dayton will be arriving in the mail very soon. If you have not become informed regarding each candidate’s qualifications, I encourage you to do so. Too often in today’s society, elected officials are placed in their positions based on popularity or the likability factor, not based on the person with the best qualifications. Just because a person is your friend doesn’t make them the best person for the job. Dayton residents have three candidates willing to put their names forward for a job often met with...
Dear Editor: Last week’s column (Turn America’s innovators loose on greenhouse gases – Don Brunell) began with a limp denial of the consequences of greenhouse gases and proceeded to use decades old unscientific information from around the world to, as far as I could tell, justify the author’s faulty claim that innovation in America is being stifled by his catch-all word, “government”. On the contrary, America’s entrepreneurs have never been busier at inventing new products as have other global innovators living under other governments....
Hi, my name is Rod Johnson and my wife Lisa and I moved here to Waitsburg back in January. I have been told that in Waitsburg you are still new in town until the 2nd or 3rd generation. So I guess we are really new. Now I was actually born in Dayton, and while we moved away when I was an infant, we moved back when I was a teenager and I was there through my early twenties. Now I'm back and we love it here. We have been warmly welcomed here, and I have to say that the folks around here are super...
Dear Editor: I appreciated the side by side editorials in the recent Times and hope readers felt the friction of perspectives. Business pundit Don Brunell applied his predictable economic views to praise two controversial industries, forest management and railroads while heartbroken Swedish climate change spokesperson Greta Thunberg chastised politicians for their longstanding negligence. Brunell declares the success of his highlighted industries but laments their ‘story’ is not better publicized although I am certain that expensive public rel...
I would like to take this opportunity to show my support for Byron Kaczmarski and Dain Nysoe who are both seeking to serve the Dayton City Council for another term. I have served on council as well as the finance committee with both of these men and have found them to be very well informed on the issues. I believe that every decision they made is made with the best interest of the citizens of Dayton in mind. The have had to make many tough decisions and those decisions have been made with thoughtfulness and integrity. For these reasons I will...
Dear Editor and Waitsburg City Leaders, There are many arguments for keeping City Hall where it is, and the same can be said for moving to the former Jehovah’s Witness location. Most for keeping the current location deal with historical issues/opinions rather than practical ones, though this would not be the first time City Hall has been re-located. One of the arguments against moving has been the risk of another flood. My guess is adequate storage of records could be found to keep them safe in the event of another major flood. If there is a n...
Dear Editor: In response to the Letter to the Editor submitted by Melissa Bryan and Caitlyn Robins regarding the Dayton Chamber of Commerce board, I would like to share my experience and what I have observed. Melissa Bryan was, by far, the most difficult chamber director in over 28 years. Working for Bette Lou Crothers (Chamber Board Member), we have taken on many extra duties during All Wheels Weekend and the months preceding. These duties include stuffing packets, stamping, folding, selling shirts/merchandise/raffle tickets, and helping with...
Dear Editor, Waitsburg is called, “One of a Kind”, and from the turnout of volunteers for this year’s Traffic Safety Coalition/the Department of Walla Walla County Community Health Bicycle Rodeo, I couldn’t agree more. Except this year we were joined by many other groups in the area. Volunteers included: The Bicycle Barn, The Christian Motorcycle Association Bikers in Prayer, The Waitsburg Resource Center (Food Bank), The Waitsburg Christian and Presbyterian churches, State Patrol Officer Grandstaff, the Waitsburg School District, parents...
Dear Times Staff, Please note the change of address as of August 1. I am writing to tell you how much I am enjoying the newspaper since you have taken it over. What a great job you are doing. The layout is beautiful, and the content is so thoughtful. There is a wonderful energy to the paper now which is reflective of the people that live in the area. My family had a real presence on Main Street and in the area when we lived there. My mom and dad had the TV/electronics shop in the Plaza, the first cable TV to people. The speakers on top of the...
