Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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To the Editor: Dayton's political forum (Oct. 6) was packed with interested citizens desiring to select the best candidate for Columbia County. Walt Hessler so graciously expressed no grudge or animosity to his opponent. Perhaps it's time to pull up the campaign signs with a 66 to 33 percentage loss in the primary election and join in the pursuit of fighting the recent crime wave in Dayton. I observed when Mr. Lewis began speaking with dignity, respect, experience and maturity that he would add to the court as a constitutional pros...
The gravel road to the trailhead was filled with potholes that rocked the car. We knew we were close to our destination. We pulled up to where the old logging road is cut off to motorized traffic by a high mound of dirt and a deep trench. The four of us got out of the car. Niko and I emerged from the back seat. My friend and his oldest son got out of the front. My friend's youngest son, a good friend of Niko, wasn't with us. But he was foremost on our minds. His father made a point of...
Barely a week after it was unveiled, Keith McMaster's statue of the stationmaster near the historic train depot in Dayton was desecrated. An acidic liquid, perhaps Coke or Pepsi, was dumped over it leaving splotches on the statue's head, and the carefully crafted, bronze eyeglasses were twisted and cracked. During the same week, someone went through a lot trouble to release a seed-laden boxcar that thundered through the Touchet Valley and could have cost someone's life. Columbia County Sheriff Walt Hessler and a citizens group in Waitsburg r...
Dear Editor, In one of Ms Culwell's campaign brochure, she states that she passed the bar in 2001; in another she says she passed the bar in 2002. In one she says she has prosecuted nearly 1,000 cases; in another she says she has prosecuted over 1,000 cases. Which is accurate? I have attended court sessions and have seen both Lewis and Culwell in action. Lewis seemed well prepared. He had his trial materials laid out in an organized way on his table. He presented his defense in a straight-forward, easy-to-understand way. Ms Culwell, on the othe...
Dear Editor, Here are a couple of what I consider facts that helped me choose Randy Lewis for Prosecuting Attorney Fact 1. Randy's opponent Rea Culwell did not tell the truth in her campaign brochure when she said, "Lewis has overcharged Columbia County so our judges will not appoint him anymore." On October 6, 2010, I spoke with Judge Acey and he said there was no allegation of over charging, and the county has continued to employ Randy. In fact, Randy has additionally provided pro bono services. Justice will only prevail in the courtroom of...
Dear Editor, I am supporting Mark Franklin for sheriff of Columbia County because I have seen Mark's care and concern for the youth of this community and for the safety of all its citizens. Mark is very proactive and volunteers his time for many community programs and events. Mark serves as chairman of the Columbia County Community Network and is vice president for the Coalition for Youth and Families. He volunteers his time to make presentations at the school and to interact with our youth. I have known several kids who have turned to Mark in...
Dear Editor: I am responding to Norm Passmore's recent letter to the editor about my brother-in-law, Randy Lewis. Randy did run for election against an incumbent judge in Louisiana. Randy knew it would be an uphill battle, but there were issues about this judge that Randy felt were unethical and needed to be brought to light. During the campaign, my dear husband Bob was diagnosed with cancer. My sister Debbie came to Dayton to help Bob and I deal with his cancer. On election day, rather than being in Louisiana, Randy was in Dayton spe...
Dear Editor: I'm a male conservative Republican, at the core of my beliefs are freedom and personal responsibility. I've been a conservative since I turned 18 and have taken my right to vote as a serious duty. I am curious about the number of people in Columbia County supporting Randy Lewis for Prosecutor. It's mystifing that so many would vote in the primary, for a candidate who had not passed the Washington State Bar Exam and has never prosecuted crime. Mr. Lewis is too close for comfort to Charles Thronsen, who has the county's criminal...
Dear Editor: I consider myself a politically responsible citizen and I follow the candidates' news and views closely each election season, especially the local races which will have direct affect on my life. The unfortunate course of many close races results in negative campaigning. Often one side or the other will likely make up something when they were unable to dig up dirt or they simply revert to using vague comments that cast doubt and slander on their opponent. The Columbia County race for Prosecuter is very tight and has become quite c...
Dear Editor: Are you kidding me? Trusting that the legislature would not increase the income tax and gradually spread the tax to everyone is about as likely a proposition as saying that Viper owners with radar detectors will always obey the speed limit. Alas, have we not learned that whenever you grant the government authority to take a little from a few, then we are granting them license to incrementally take a lot from all? The proponent's siren song of "a small percent tax confined to only the rich" should blow wind to scarlet red flags o...
Finally, Columbia County residents, Touchet Valley businesses and skiers in the region can let out a collective sigh of relief. The future of Ski Bluewood seems secure. Unless there's a hiccough in their inspection of the resort, Mike and Kelly Stephenson and their group of silent investors from the Tri-Cities will be the resort's new owners by Nov. 1. And if all goes well, the mountain will be open again this year. The Stephensons, who are longtime skiers and passionate skiing instructors, are a Godsend for Bluewood, its ski community and t...
It's oftentimes viewed as a cliché, but voting is a duty of citizenship. For decades, many Americans have given their lives so that all of us would have the opportunity to influence the direction and type of governance we deem best, not only for our personal comfort but for the general welfare and common good. That being stated, I enthusiastically and unequivocally endorse Mark Franklin for Columbia County Sheriff. My reasons for doing so are quite clear. Since moving to Dayton seven years ago, I have had many opportunities to observe Mr....
It's not our habit to run a photograph in this editorial column, but sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words, as they say. In this case, it certainly counts for a lot. Last Wednesday, the WP Cardinals volleyball team played against Tri Cities Prep at Kison Court, but the home crowd was a bit thin, and few, if any, stood to cheer the girls. It didn't help that quite a few of the WP high schoolers had gone to watch the WP Mustangs play against DeSales. Head coach Jesse Buehler said sh...
This is the year when we all talk about schools, and why the school system in our country is in crisis. Of course, there hasn't been a year I can remember when we haven't talked about the crisis in our schools. It's become something of a national mantra. The question needs to be revisited. I was thinking about this lately when I read a letter written by my dad when he was nine - a letter of such artistic proportion and elegance of style that Shakespeare would have sat up and marveled, "Man,...
Walla Walla County has been fortunate to have Mike Humphreys, and Bill Jackson before him, as sheriff. Bill White is cast from the same mold. Bill White has helped Mike Humphreys make our sheriff's office extremely effective, even with limited budgets and resources. I have worked with Bill White on hundreds of criminal cases for over 25 years and found his varied experience in law enforcement and knowledge of Washington law extremely helpful. As a law enforcement instructo,r he has been a mentor for new deputies. Bill and his wife Lora ha...
By now, it is obvious that the recent Cycle Oregon event in our community was a resounding success. It took the whole community to accomplish this. It my intent with this letter to single out some of the individuals who agreed to coordinate various parts of that event and make it the success it was. Deputy City Clerk Kelly Steinhoff was the community manager and responsible for the overall event. The site coordinator was Dr. Carol Clarke with the responsibility of table and chair setup an...
I urge Columbia voters to re-elect Sheriff Walt Hessler and vote for Randy Lewis as County Prosecutor. It was Deputy Mark Franklin, now running against the sheriff, who did not believe or understand the Constitution under which citizens have the right to protect their own property and was stopping property owners at the end of 4th Street from taking tractors to help prevent the notorious Dayton complex fire. We remember the horrendous outcome. Franklin was Sheriff Burgland's undersheriff during that "regime" in another editorial by Cla...
Driving east out of Waitsburg you quickly reach the county line. A small sign on Highway 12 indicates that you're crossing from Walla Walla into Columbia county, but nothing else changes. The hills that mark the Touchet Valley watershed continue in the distance as the wheat fields, grain tanks and farms roll by. For the purposes of this editorial, we'd like to use the valley's seamless landscape as a metaphor for our news coverage of the area and its community. It's in answer to a question we've had from some of our readers why we have "so...
Dear Editor: This week we hosted as many strangers as at any time in my memory. Despite a heavy month of civic service activities, organizers of the Cycle Oregon events managed to round up volunteers and make the experience fun for both participants and locals. I was so proud to hear an almost universal heartfelt appreciation for Waitsburg from the many people I spoke with. As they first rounded the corner and came onto Main Street, you could hear, "Wow, what a beautiful little town," and the good words continued throughout the event. Pictur...
Dear Editor: I would like to voice my support for Mark Franklin for sheriff. I do so for two reasons. First, I believe Mark is the best qualified by a mile. He has the background, education, experience and professionalism needed going into the second decade of a very dangerous and complicated world. Columbia County may be a small, rural county now, but it is going to grow by leaps and bounds. There is an immeasurable push from the south to the north that will bring many people and many problems. When the recession winds down there will be...
Dear Editor: I am writing today to invite everyone in our area to join me at the upcoming American Cancer Society Blue Mountain Relay For Life, which is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18-19, at the Dayton Sports Complex. The Blue Mountain Relay For Life will once again raise funds for the American Cancer Society, while also raising awareness of a disease that will be diagnosed in more than 34,000 men, women and children in our state before the end of this year. One of the most moving and emotional times during the Relay is the l...
