Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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Waitsburg High School SENIORS 4.0 Seth Deal 3.25 and above Samantha Moss Alex Hays Alex Leathers Logan Dozier Katy Hofer Alexander Dill Benjamin Shafer Rhiannon Chapman Jessica Foxe Jennifer Nichols Samantha Henze Madeleine Witt Elizabeth Xaudaro Donovan Leroue Dakota Baker Dalton Estes Cheyenne Frohreich Tucker Alleman Brandon Gusse Michael Smith Riley Stevens JUNIORS 4.0 Heidi Miller Nicholas Pearson 3.25 and above Haley Dorman Nathan Bartlow Thibault Martinelle Chao Lei Dai Meara M. Baker Kimberly Hamann Kendra Roberts Kyle Dozier Rebekah...
To The Editor, Running for a political position has been one of the most challenging and exhausting activities I've ever engaged in. But it has also been one of the most reward- ing and learned experiences too. Every parade, every festival, and every door I knocked on became an opportunity for me to build a relationship and engage in conver- sation about what people in Walla Walla County care about-afford- able housing, counseling services for youth, and public safety to name just a few. These issues and more are what drive people like me to...
WAITSBURG - Some time before Coppei Coffee Co. opened on Main Street in August of 2011, Allison Bond and her husband Bruce Donohue had their eyes on a downtown building to start a café just like it. They had the same thought I did when they took one look at the Burg: This place needed a coffee shop. Now they'll have it, or rather, Bond will have it. Coppei Coffee Co., Llc., has leased its premises and equipment to Bond's Llc, Bitey Parrot. The papers were signed recently and she officially took...
This column reaches our readers a few days after we celebrated this year's Veterans Day, but this message's delay by a few days may be a good thing. As they say about other holidays and their unique attributes, such as the peace we promote at Christmas or a sense of nationhood we mark on the Fourth of July, every day should be Veterans Day. Not that setting aside a day to be off more than once a year would be all that practical. But the spirit of Veterans Day may certainly live on throughout the year and does for many in our valley's...
I am very disturbed to read, yet again, that the city council voted down the flood control dis- trict "because the council mem- bers believed the citizens would not support a new tax." The volunteers of the flood control district put in their time and energy to line up grants that would have paid for the levee work. All they needed was to be ratified by the council as an entity, so that they were legally able to receive those grants, and then to submit a plan. There was never any intention of a tax, and the volunteers had made it well known,...
The Waitsburg City Council will be reviewing the budget for the city of Waitsburg on Thurs- day, Nov. 15, 2012, at 7 p.m. at the Waitsburg Lions Club Me- morial Building at the Waits- burg Fairgrounds. Anyone interested in the budget plan for the city is invited to attend the meeting to provide any com- ments or suggestions regarding the budget for next year. Some highlights of next year's budget include: Funding for general fund departments including the Weller library, city fire department, pool, park, city and I.O.O.F cemeteries,...
WAITSBURG - It has been estimated that as much as 80 percent of childhood learning is done with the eyes, according to the Opto- metric Physicians of Wash- ington. When a child's vision is not functioning properly, education and participation in sports can suffer. This is why Dr. Angela Ferguson, an optometrics physician, brings a small staff with her once a year to Waits- burg Elementary School to provide free vision checks for students. "If you can't see well, you can't learn as well,"...
We bring you this editorial after the elections, but we wrote it before the results were in, on purpose. We wanted to make some points about this year's elections and elections in general - that aren't tied to the outcome, except for this: If your candidate(s) didn't win, well, such is the nature of democracy. There were more people who voted for the other can- didate and, despite the fact that there are isolated irregularities in every election, we can feel blessed we don't live in a country with such problems as widespread voter fraud,...
In a story titled "Council Raises Tax To Benefit Pool" in the Oct. 25 edition, the calculations for how much tax would have to be paid on a $100,000 property were incorrect. One-quarter of 1 percent would be $250 on a 100,000 home. With the recent increase of the real estate excise tax to one-half of one percent, sellers will now pay $500 on a $100,000 property within city limits during closing costs....
The city needs your help. The Public Works Director has informed me that we would greatly benefit from an upgrade to our current press used for processing of waste at the wastewater treatment plant. The city currently has a gravity-fed press and would like to up- grade to a belt press in order to improve the ease of use and function of the city's wastewater treatment plant. This type of press would also save us money on the power and materials we buy to process the waste, as it is much more efficient than our current press. As you can guess,...
I am writing for your vote for Tom Bensel for Place 2 County Commissioner. I first met Tom at the Community Bible Church. My memory goes back to Vernon Marll, a former 20 year county commissioner. I once answered a phone call from Congressman Tom Foley since I lived at Vernon's during the summer between college semesters. Vernon spoke with the similar honesty, friendliness, open- ness as I have noticed with Mr. Bensel. Vernon was also a lifelong Republican and a member of the United Brethren Church. I live in Texas since the army stationed me...
I have never really con- sidered myself Democrat or Republican. Instead, I vote for the person because belief systems don't always fit nicely into one party or another. I have voted for just as many Democrats as Republicans. When it comes to local races, I pay even more attention to the person because I believe they have a greater impact on Walla Walla, the place I've called home most of my life. This November, I urge you to vote for Chris Blackman because she's a candidate who has a reputation for working hard, listening to others about what...
With the Nov. 6 elec- tion approaching I feel it is important that each voter examine the qualifications of the candidates and make a well-informed choice. As a taxpayer and resident of Wal- la Walla County for 39years, I, along with the rest of the community, have been fortu- nate to have fiscally respon- sible county commissioners elected to office throughout the years. For example, we presently have three individ- uals in office that have signed both sides of a paycheck and met that obligation with their own money. I feel very strongly that...
This letter will serve as a strong endorsement of Mike Talbott for position 2, Columbia County Com- missioner for the next four years. I have known Mike on a personal level since we were Green Giant Pre-graders back in the mid to late 1960s. After retiring from the WSU faculty in 2007 and moving to Dayton, I have gotten to know Mike again at that personal level, as well as a fellow member of the Columbia County Planning Commission for the last 4 years. I have seen how Mike works with others and how he addresses difficult issues with fairness...
I have had the pleasure of serving with Commissioner Perry Dozier while he was involved in the Washington Association of Wheat Grow- ers. I sat on the Executive Committee of WAWG, Perry was elected as a WAWG State officer. In preparation for a lobbying trip to Wash- ington DC, we both attended the Ambassador Training Program at Princeton where very valuable skills in com- municating with our federal lawmakers was the focus of the program. I have attended lobbying trips with Perry, both in Olympia and Wash- ington, D.C. and have found him to be...
I've known Perry my en- tire life and believe he has the right financial tools to help oversee the county's $55 mil- lion budget. The agriculture economy is very cyclical and planning for the future is critical for sustaining your business. My background in agriculture and commercial banking, 23 years, allow me to have an understanding of budgetary needs. Perry has held strong at keeping the county's current expense reserves at 25 percent, which is used for unexpected emer- gencies. For example, if one case of Tuberculosis happens in Walla...
Why am I running for State Senate? Throughout my life I have always been taught that when something is broken one should try to fix it. As a state employee I have seen things become more and more broken costing the working family more and more. The cur- rent way of doing in busi- ness in Olympia must be changed. My opponent has shown time and time again that he only has his eye on the people at the top and pays less and less attention to the little guy. The work- ing family, the actual small bus...
A t a recent Dayton City Council meeting, skateboarder Michael Milan described the city's skate park facility as a "second home." "I think the skate park is a good place where kids can go and relax," he said, explaining that he "went there all the time." Now, thanks to the thoughtful action of the Dayton City Council and involvement of the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, Milan and at least a dozen other kids who enjoy the park can return there. We want to applaud the council, law enforcement representa- tives and the community for coming toge...
Chris Blackman is best candidate for Commissioner I would like to express my support for Chris Blackman's campaign to become County Commissioner for District #2 and give my reasons why: Chris has a diverse back- ground and education. When I first met her she was em- ployed by Washington State Division of Children's Ser- vices, more commonly referred to as Child Protective Services. She handled everything from families in poverty to families suffering from abuse or drug addiction. I was immediately impressed with her tenacity, energy, and...
When I first met Mike Talbott some 35 years ago, he impressed me with his honesty and dedication to his job. He is well read and keeps on business developments. He also has the ability to listen and hears and understands what people say to him .He keeps up with the latest world and regional events so he is able to make decisions whether it be for his successful farm, the downtown busi- ness he and his wife operated for ten years, or the other important positions he has held like the Dayton School Board, County Planning Commission or the...
For decades, Walla Walla County has been an agricultural economic based community and history has shown when agriculture is successful, the rest of our community benefits by cir- culating those dollars, over and over. Agriculture, in the broad sense, is the third highest employer in Walla Walla County and the second larg- est employer in Washington State. It is logical that the Walla Walla County Board of Com- missioners should have a member that is not only acutely aware of the issues relating to that specific eco- nomic base in our...
I recently listened to Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers talk about how the Afford- able Healthcare Act, also known as Obamacare, has increased health insurance rates. This isn't fair since it doesn't fully kick in until 2014. The fact is health insur- ance rates had been increasing annually prior to The Af- fordable Healthcare Act. My premiums were going up 15 percent or more every year for years and 39 percent the last year before I moved to Washington where I couldn't get health insurance at all because of a pre-existing condition! McMorris...
